The Last Feast

(Update on Photos: We still haven't seen a single professional photo. When I called our photographer at week 5 1/2, he said that he changed his workflow a few months back, and now it takes 7-8 weeks. This upcoming Saturday will mark 8 weeks since the wedding, and if we don't see something by then, I'm unsure how to proceed. I don't want to pester him, but I'm reeeeally anxious to see photos. It's getting to the point where they don't even seem real to me anymore... and Ryan has completely stopped caring. That's sad.)


After our rehearsal ended, we were all starving and ready for some dinner. Our large crew headed over to the Distinctive Cork, which was right across the street from my church. One funny thing I recall from that night is standing around the church lobby as everyone filtered out, and realizing I was all alone. I looked around for Ryan, but didn't see him, so I headed to my car and gave him a call.

Kelly: "Hi."
Ryan: "Hi."
Kelly: "Uhh... where are you?"
Ryan: "On my way to dinner with my parents."
Kelly: "Oh."
Ryan: "Where are you?"
Kelly: "At the church, waiting for you."

Woops. Silly me... I had assumed that my soon-to-be husband would want to drive with me to the rehearsal dinner so we could enter together. Instead, I ended up showing up behind everyone else, alone and lugging a ton of gifts, like a total weirdo.

Shame on you, Ryan.

When I arrived, the party was already in full swing. We had the entire restaurant to ourselves, and our guests were enjoying the open bar and hors d'oeuvres.

 

Ryan and I found a little time to chat with family and friends...

Sadly, I have no photos of the food (my photography skills were off duty wedding weekend), but it was delicious. Hors d'oeuvres were gourmet chicken and beef sliders.

Our bridal party had our own table, which was pushed off to the side a bit. It was nice having a chance to catch up with everyone that just got into town that day.

The main course was a choice of Pork Chop, Salmon, or Asparagus Risotto.

The kids got some sort of pasta (which looked delicious)...

After dinner was over, I wanted to make sure I passed out gifts before our guests started to leave. So I stood up, gave a general "thank you" to the crowd, and handed out our gifts to the bridal party and our parents. My parents received a digital picture frame, and Ryan's parents received a gift card to a restaurant back in Philly. Apparently I was too late with the gift-giving, because my brother and his girlfriend had snuck out at some point.

After the gifts were given, Ryan's mom gave a lovely toast. I wish someone had thought to videotape it, because it made both Ryan and I tear up a little. I'm very lucky to be joining such a wonderful family.

After all that, I went to grab some dessert, but it was mostly gone. Ryan's mom had ordered some mini-desserts, but the restaurant staff put them on display before any of our guests got there. So when people arrived, they scarfed the desserts while they waited for real food. Along with that, there were only enough desserts for two per person... but I saw people walking around with over 5 on their plates. Isn't it funny the little things that stick in your mind and irritate you?

Overall, everyone had a great time. Ryan's family did a wonderful job putting on such a spectacular dinner from 3 states away. There were rave reviews about the food and location.

Next up... Hopefully I get some professional photos so I can start the wedding recaps!

A Distinctive Dinner

When it came time to start thinking about our rehearsal dinner, I thought it would be a fun and easy task.

My hometown is a sprawling town which has maintained a unique charm throughout the years. It's got character and friendly people, and is chock full of family-owned shops and restaurants. In theory, it should be the easiest place in the world to find a rehearsal dinner location.

In theory.

But instead, we quickly discovered that all these chic little food joints don't hold the number of guests we need... or don't have the privacy that we're looking for.

Add to that the fact that my fiance is allergic to tomatoes, and his mom is allergic to everything else, and our options seem limited.

Back in October, when Ryan's mom flew in for some serious wedding planning, we took the opportunity to drop by a few potential rehearsal dinner locations.

Too small. Too noisy. Too old. Too far.

Our list was dwindling fast. But there was one tiny ray of hope along the horizon...

Distinctive Cork was a random little place I had never even heard of until I did a Google search for rehearsal dinner locations in my town.

I mentioned it to my parents, and their reaction was less-than-enthusiastic.

"That's the place next to the bread company, right? Psh. I wouldn't trust that it'll even be around come next June... that storefront changes all the time. It can't ever seem to hold a business."

Hmm. So there was that. But we stopped by anyway (ya know... just for the hell of it).

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It was a chic one-room restaurant with movable tables and a whole wall of wine (I love me some chardonnay!). It's a mere 2 blocks from the church, and the manager told us we could have the whole place to ourselves for our Friday night rehearsal dinner.

In short, it was perfect.

They usually serve shared plates, but they have offered to create a custom menu for our party (and any food allergies Ryan or his mom may have).

As for my parents' complaint... I did a little research, and found out they've been in business since 2007. I think that's some pretty good staying power.

And just look at this yummy food!

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It seems our last choice has now become our first.

Nothing has been set in stone yet... but the wheels are in motion, and I think we may have found a contender.

Ryan said excitedly, "We can make this into a memorable part of our wedding weekend... instead of just some blah dinner somewhere."

Anniversary Wine Box

Welcome to my newest follower, Nicolette!

I have a really exciting idea to share with you all. It is an idea that has evolved over time since our engagement (probably since my discovery of WeddingBee), and has finally come to a grand conclusion.

It began with the Love Letter Wine Box ceremony. This is a ceremony that has gained popularity recently in place of a traditional unity ceremony. The bride and groom each write each other a love letter, then during the ceremony, it's sealed into a box with a bottle of wine and 2 wine glasses. The idea is, if ever their marriage is in jeopardy, they should take out the box and drink the wine while reading eachother's letters. It's sort of a last-ditch effort to save their failing relationship.

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I liked this idea, but I found it a little depressing. I definitely didn't want to do anything like that during the ceremony. Our guests would think we were planning for divorce or something.

Ryan thought it would be a better idea if we did the Love Letter Wine Box by ourselves... and just planned on opening it on a special anniversary (5, 10, 25... whatever). Better, but a little boring.

Then I thought... what if we let our guests write us notes and put them in the box as well?! We could read all their notes when we opened the box. How fun would that be!

But then.

Ohhh, wait for it.

I discovered something called the Anniversary Box. Start your brain with a clean slate and picture this: During the rehearsal dinner, each guest is given a numbered card. They are asked to write a short letter to the couple on the card and seal it in an envelope. The cards are then placed in a box. The couple may read one card at each anniversary (the card whose number corresponds with the anniversary).

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Super cute!

Do you see where I'm going with this?

I'm going to combine the two!

We will have a box (which I already purchased at Hobby Lobby). It will have a bottle of wine in it and will be on display at the rehearsal dinner. Before or after dinner, the guests will write their numbered notes and leave them in the box. Then, at each anniversary, we will open the box, drink the wine, and read one card from a loved one. After the anniversary is over, we will put in a new bottle of wine, seal it back up, and wait for the next anniversary.

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OMG. I can't believe my little brain came up with this all on its own! I'm excited... and it's a great way to incorporate our guests into every single one of our anniversaries from now until 50.