Tuesday, October 25, 2005
Mr. and Mrs. Victor and Mandy
So, we did it. We got hitched.
The entire weekend was a blur, so forgive me if this post is really disjointed. Thursday was a mess of people arriving by car and plane. Gabi and I drove in from Dallas. Ellen flew in from New Zealand (via Jordan, Austria, the UK, Florida, NY, Ottawa, and Chicago), and Victor and his parents arrived by plane as well.
Friday morning, more family appeared. A couple of my aunts and uncles arrived in time for our cookout lunch. I rushed to Eureka to get my massage, which was delightful. Afterward, I checked out the suite at the Crescent Hotel that Gabi, Ellen, and I were sharing for the night. It was beautiful and overlooked the gardens, valley, and the church. At 5:45 we wandered down to the church, and we met Megan in the parking lot. About half of us had arrived by starting time (6pm). The other half included our families, the groom, the best man, and the matron of honor. People trickled in slowly, as a lot of them were lost in Eureka's winding streets. The rehearsal went pretty well, despite a few mishaps (the priest hates lateness, plus I forgot to bring the readings). Afterward, we went to a local Tex-Mex restaurant for the rehearsal dinner. We were supposed to have it at an Italian restaurant, but they cancelled on us because of the freezing weather (apparently they were seating us outside). The rehearsal dinner was crowded and chaotic, and I ended up having a complete meltdown and had to run outside to cry. But everything ended well. Afterward, Ellen, Gabi, Megan, and my coworkers Shane and Aaron had a drink at the lounge in the hotel.
Now, I had always heard that the Crescent was haunted. We were staying in one of the big suites, number 419. It definitely had a bit of a creepy feel to it. We got scared as the night wore on, so Gabi brought the extra blow-up cot to the foot of the bed Ellen and I were sharing. At one point, as Ellen was talking about her trip, I saw Gabi stand up from the bed. When I asked her if she was standing, she said no. So it was someone/something else that I saw. Also, we heard the door slamming all night, but it never moved. It would slam twice and then be quiet for a few minutes. Needless to say, we didn't get much sleep. Ellen found that her camera was missing the next morning (it mysteriously appeared when we went back Sunday evening to get my car, and the lounge staff said it was probably taken by the ghost). While getting my hair done the morning of the wedding, the stylist told me that our room had just been featured on Sci Fi's Ghost Hunters, and she told me a few of the things that people had reported happening in the room. Well, I believe in ghosts, and I'm pretty sure we all felt something crazy that night.
But on to wedding stuff. Friday had been cold and dreary, but Saturday was warm, sunny, and beautiful. The fall trees looked amazing. I could tell it was going to be a fantastic day. We started off with breakfast in bed and mimosas, and then we did hair and makeup. Then it was time for the dresses...
We got ready, and the photographer arrived to start the pictures. There were a few moments where Victor and I had to hide from each other, since we were not allowed to see each other before the wedding. The church and flowers looked amazing. The bridesmaids and I covertly drank some champagne and gin while waiting for the ceremony to start. When I finally walked into the church, Victor started crying. I started crying when my dad gave me away. Crying became pretty much the theme of the day. The readings were wonderful. The priest gave an amazing homily about a 400 year old Irish ring (the gist of it is found here, but his version was much more elaborate and beautiful). Victor and I both cried all through the homily. When it came time to do the vows, I steeled myself and promised myself that I wouldn't cry. Victor made it through his alright. When it was my turn, I used my "theatre voice" (read: really loud) to keep from crying, and everyone laughed. I didn't cry again until we walked out and people started congratulating us. We did the pictures and headed to the reception.
The mariachi band we had hired (Rogers-based Mariachi Amistad), played us into the reception. They were amazing. Everyone loved it. They played for an hour while everyone got food and drink. The ballroom looked incredible. The florist had done wonders with the centerpieces that we designed, and the food was great. Victor's aunt made two amazing cakes for us. After the mariachi finished, it was time for Mark to start DJing from our computer (Diana and Billy had supplied us with amp, mic, and speakers). Victor and I danced our first dance to the Iron and Wine version of "Such Great Heights." We cried. Then my dad and I danced to George Strait's "Love Without End, Amen," and everyone cried. Aaron's wife had to leave the room because she was so choked up. I've heard reports that my mom was sobbing. Then there was more dancing (and less crying).
The toasts were full of crying, too. Enrique got choked up during his speech but soldiered on. Diana had to stop before she broke down. Victor and I said our thank yous (crying all the way through). I cried one more time, when I called my grandma, whose health didn't let her come to the wedding. Then it was just time for the fun stuff: cutting the cake, the bouquet toss (my ex-coworker Kirsten caught it), the garter toss (Victor just walked over and handed it to Enrique), and a traditional Mexican dance. Oh, and the dollar dance, which was a lot of fun (and quite lucrative). Family began to leave, and soon it was mostly just friends left. We all danced until it was time for the party to end. Afterward, we went to the hotel bar to shoot pool and drink. We all got hungry, so we wandered the town until we found some place that was still serving food.
Sunday was great - brunch with friends, lunch with family, and the opening of the gifts. We relaxed Sunday afternoon and had BBQ for dinner. Things began to wind down. Everyone that was still there left Monday morning.
All in all, it was a pretty magical weekend. There were some minor annoyances, with some of the drink order being wrong, the hotel cancelling our wedding night suite, and then not remembering that they had rebooked us (and calling our room at 3:30am to see who we were), and other various little things. But they really are just going to be good stories. I don't think anything could have ruined the day. A lot of people told me it was the most fun they had ever had at a wedding. Victor said it was the most fun day he had ever had, period. We walked around with permagrins and tears in our eyes all day. My mouth hurt from smiling so much.
Shout outs are necessary here - thanks to everyone who came, especially those who traveled from Texas, Chicago, New Zealand, and everywhere else. Big shout out to everyone who participated in the actual wedding. Thanks to Billy and Diana for helping with the audio stuff, and thanks to Mark for DJing. My sister and mom were amazing with helping to get stuff ready and hosting everyone. Diana made the pocket squares for the groomsmen. I got so much help from friends and family that it really made me realize how much people do care about us.
If you're still reading, I'll get pictures posted tomorrow night. In the meantime, here are some recaps from guests (some have pictures):
Kris
Ryan
Dan
Kat
Karen's pictures
So, we did it. We got hitched.
The entire weekend was a blur, so forgive me if this post is really disjointed. Thursday was a mess of people arriving by car and plane. Gabi and I drove in from Dallas. Ellen flew in from New Zealand (via Jordan, Austria, the UK, Florida, NY, Ottawa, and Chicago), and Victor and his parents arrived by plane as well.
Friday morning, more family appeared. A couple of my aunts and uncles arrived in time for our cookout lunch. I rushed to Eureka to get my massage, which was delightful. Afterward, I checked out the suite at the Crescent Hotel that Gabi, Ellen, and I were sharing for the night. It was beautiful and overlooked the gardens, valley, and the church. At 5:45 we wandered down to the church, and we met Megan in the parking lot. About half of us had arrived by starting time (6pm). The other half included our families, the groom, the best man, and the matron of honor. People trickled in slowly, as a lot of them were lost in Eureka's winding streets. The rehearsal went pretty well, despite a few mishaps (the priest hates lateness, plus I forgot to bring the readings). Afterward, we went to a local Tex-Mex restaurant for the rehearsal dinner. We were supposed to have it at an Italian restaurant, but they cancelled on us because of the freezing weather (apparently they were seating us outside). The rehearsal dinner was crowded and chaotic, and I ended up having a complete meltdown and had to run outside to cry. But everything ended well. Afterward, Ellen, Gabi, Megan, and my coworkers Shane and Aaron had a drink at the lounge in the hotel.
Now, I had always heard that the Crescent was haunted. We were staying in one of the big suites, number 419. It definitely had a bit of a creepy feel to it. We got scared as the night wore on, so Gabi brought the extra blow-up cot to the foot of the bed Ellen and I were sharing. At one point, as Ellen was talking about her trip, I saw Gabi stand up from the bed. When I asked her if she was standing, she said no. So it was someone/something else that I saw. Also, we heard the door slamming all night, but it never moved. It would slam twice and then be quiet for a few minutes. Needless to say, we didn't get much sleep. Ellen found that her camera was missing the next morning (it mysteriously appeared when we went back Sunday evening to get my car, and the lounge staff said it was probably taken by the ghost). While getting my hair done the morning of the wedding, the stylist told me that our room had just been featured on Sci Fi's Ghost Hunters, and she told me a few of the things that people had reported happening in the room. Well, I believe in ghosts, and I'm pretty sure we all felt something crazy that night.
But on to wedding stuff. Friday had been cold and dreary, but Saturday was warm, sunny, and beautiful. The fall trees looked amazing. I could tell it was going to be a fantastic day. We started off with breakfast in bed and mimosas, and then we did hair and makeup. Then it was time for the dresses...
We got ready, and the photographer arrived to start the pictures. There were a few moments where Victor and I had to hide from each other, since we were not allowed to see each other before the wedding. The church and flowers looked amazing. The bridesmaids and I covertly drank some champagne and gin while waiting for the ceremony to start. When I finally walked into the church, Victor started crying. I started crying when my dad gave me away. Crying became pretty much the theme of the day. The readings were wonderful. The priest gave an amazing homily about a 400 year old Irish ring (the gist of it is found here, but his version was much more elaborate and beautiful). Victor and I both cried all through the homily. When it came time to do the vows, I steeled myself and promised myself that I wouldn't cry. Victor made it through his alright. When it was my turn, I used my "theatre voice" (read: really loud) to keep from crying, and everyone laughed. I didn't cry again until we walked out and people started congratulating us. We did the pictures and headed to the reception.
The mariachi band we had hired (Rogers-based Mariachi Amistad), played us into the reception. They were amazing. Everyone loved it. They played for an hour while everyone got food and drink. The ballroom looked incredible. The florist had done wonders with the centerpieces that we designed, and the food was great. Victor's aunt made two amazing cakes for us. After the mariachi finished, it was time for Mark to start DJing from our computer (Diana and Billy had supplied us with amp, mic, and speakers). Victor and I danced our first dance to the Iron and Wine version of "Such Great Heights." We cried. Then my dad and I danced to George Strait's "Love Without End, Amen," and everyone cried. Aaron's wife had to leave the room because she was so choked up. I've heard reports that my mom was sobbing. Then there was more dancing (and less crying).
The toasts were full of crying, too. Enrique got choked up during his speech but soldiered on. Diana had to stop before she broke down. Victor and I said our thank yous (crying all the way through). I cried one more time, when I called my grandma, whose health didn't let her come to the wedding. Then it was just time for the fun stuff: cutting the cake, the bouquet toss (my ex-coworker Kirsten caught it), the garter toss (Victor just walked over and handed it to Enrique), and a traditional Mexican dance. Oh, and the dollar dance, which was a lot of fun (and quite lucrative). Family began to leave, and soon it was mostly just friends left. We all danced until it was time for the party to end. Afterward, we went to the hotel bar to shoot pool and drink. We all got hungry, so we wandered the town until we found some place that was still serving food.
Sunday was great - brunch with friends, lunch with family, and the opening of the gifts. We relaxed Sunday afternoon and had BBQ for dinner. Things began to wind down. Everyone that was still there left Monday morning.
All in all, it was a pretty magical weekend. There were some minor annoyances, with some of the drink order being wrong, the hotel cancelling our wedding night suite, and then not remembering that they had rebooked us (and calling our room at 3:30am to see who we were), and other various little things. But they really are just going to be good stories. I don't think anything could have ruined the day. A lot of people told me it was the most fun they had ever had at a wedding. Victor said it was the most fun day he had ever had, period. We walked around with permagrins and tears in our eyes all day. My mouth hurt from smiling so much.
Shout outs are necessary here - thanks to everyone who came, especially those who traveled from Texas, Chicago, New Zealand, and everywhere else. Big shout out to everyone who participated in the actual wedding. Thanks to Billy and Diana for helping with the audio stuff, and thanks to Mark for DJing. My sister and mom were amazing with helping to get stuff ready and hosting everyone. Diana made the pocket squares for the groomsmen. I got so much help from friends and family that it really made me realize how much people do care about us.
If you're still reading, I'll get pictures posted tomorrow night. In the meantime, here are some recaps from guests (some have pictures):
Kris
Ryan
Dan
Kat
Karen's pictures
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