Get Me To The Church On Time
This June 16th my wife and I will celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. It is hard to fathom that time has gone by this quickly. While I say that, I can't imagine that both of us will be around for our 50th, but hey, never say never.
Our wedding day was such a big event in our lives, that I think it deserves some reflection. So, I'm dedicating the next couple of posts to it.
At the time, I was living in a large victorian home that my roommate was in the middle of renovating. We lived upstairs while he gutted - and I mean, down to the lathe gutted - the downstairs. Donna was back in New York, so most of our planning was done by letter (snail mail) or long distance phone calls. She took on most of the planning, while I was in charge of getting the groomsmen tux sizes and securing a rental station wagon to haul her stuff back from NY to Milwaukee. I was also in charge of making a map from the church to the reception, but more about that later.
I managed to work it out so my friend Pat would drive from Tulsa, Oklahoma to Milwaukee, then he and I would drive the rental car out to NY. After the wedding, he would drive the station wagon back to Milwaukee alone with all of Donna's stuff in the back. Donna and I would then drive her Chevette with all the wedding gifts back to Milwaukee, which was about as bad as it sounds.
I called the family and was surprised to hear they could all make the trip. Family comes through when you need them most.
As the date approached, my fiance' got significantly more stressed, rightfully so, of course. When she called me to see how the map was coming, I made the mistake of saying I hadn't started it and that I wasn't quite sure where the one she sent me was.
Wrong thing to say to a maxed out bride.
She let me know through her tears and terse words that I'd let her down. I then assured her I would find the map and get it done and out that week. I did and got back in good graces. Message to future grooms: When you are assigned your one or two jobs before the wedding, get them done. Save yourself (and your fiance') a headache.
After my family arrived we all touched base and said our hellos. On that Thursday evening, we had our wedding rehearsal at the church and then a bridal dinner at the Thendara restaurant. Much of that is a blur. I do remember giving Donna a pair of pearl earrings as a wedding gift that night.
The following day my mom and sisters drove up to Niagara Falls. By the time they got to the backyard gathering at the Neufangs house, they had been through the toll booths a number of times. It seems they got a wee bit lost in Buffalo/Niagara Falls.
Nevertheless, we all managed to make it to the church on time the next day. More on that in my next post.
Blogging off...
Our wedding day was such a big event in our lives, that I think it deserves some reflection. So, I'm dedicating the next couple of posts to it.
At the time, I was living in a large victorian home that my roommate was in the middle of renovating. We lived upstairs while he gutted - and I mean, down to the lathe gutted - the downstairs. Donna was back in New York, so most of our planning was done by letter (snail mail) or long distance phone calls. She took on most of the planning, while I was in charge of getting the groomsmen tux sizes and securing a rental station wagon to haul her stuff back from NY to Milwaukee. I was also in charge of making a map from the church to the reception, but more about that later.
I managed to work it out so my friend Pat would drive from Tulsa, Oklahoma to Milwaukee, then he and I would drive the rental car out to NY. After the wedding, he would drive the station wagon back to Milwaukee alone with all of Donna's stuff in the back. Donna and I would then drive her Chevette with all the wedding gifts back to Milwaukee, which was about as bad as it sounds.
I called the family and was surprised to hear they could all make the trip. Family comes through when you need them most.
As the date approached, my fiance' got significantly more stressed, rightfully so, of course. When she called me to see how the map was coming, I made the mistake of saying I hadn't started it and that I wasn't quite sure where the one she sent me was.
Wrong thing to say to a maxed out bride.
She let me know through her tears and terse words that I'd let her down. I then assured her I would find the map and get it done and out that week. I did and got back in good graces. Message to future grooms: When you are assigned your one or two jobs before the wedding, get them done. Save yourself (and your fiance') a headache.
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| Family and friends at Wedding Eve picnic - Gorham NY |
After my family arrived we all touched base and said our hellos. On that Thursday evening, we had our wedding rehearsal at the church and then a bridal dinner at the Thendara restaurant. Much of that is a blur. I do remember giving Donna a pair of pearl earrings as a wedding gift that night.
The following day my mom and sisters drove up to Niagara Falls. By the time they got to the backyard gathering at the Neufangs house, they had been through the toll booths a number of times. It seems they got a wee bit lost in Buffalo/Niagara Falls.
Nevertheless, we all managed to make it to the church on time the next day. More on that in my next post.
Blogging off...
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