Episode III Revenge of the Slit
So church was over and it was almost time for the reception, but first, pictures! The photographer set us up outside on the steps of the church, and held off the butterflies until that was over, which kinda defeated the purpose, in my opinion. Especially since everybody had them already and Maria was chomping at the bit to open hers. I kept telling her "Not yet, not yet." Most of the pictures my parents took at that time do not have her looking up, because she was so focused on the box it was in. Finally the photographer said everyone could release them. It wasn't that exciting as I hoped, since it didn't all happen simultaneously. The best part of it was when Maria's butterfly landed on Sarah's bouquet and wouldn't come off. It stayed with her all through the pictures around the church and didn't want to leave. She got a little scared when it flew at her before it left. Mom thought that PETA would have a fit with that, since they were kept in boxes all day. They were frozen for a long time, but still. I guess it was sort of cruel. They probably should've had bubbles or something, since rice isn't allowed anymore. But at least New York does have monarch butterflies, so I don't think it upset the ecosystem. I hope not.
Anyway, as we were taking pictures, of course it started raining. A couple of us were standing under the limo driver's umbrella. We wanted to take shelter in there, but as soon as we went in, they called us back for more pictures. Finally, we were allowed to leave, but we ran into another dispute- which limo were we going in? Technically, the bride, groom and best man and maid of honor go in one (although in my parents wedding, they left the whole entire bridal party behind) and the groomsmen and bridesmaids in the other, with an extra for the parents of the bride and groom. But Chris's parents wanted to drive themselves, so all that was left in that one was my aunt and uncle, and the one for the bridal party was too crowded for all of us, so the girls and the guys split up. They took the limo we came in, on account that their drinks were in there, and all the girls, including Maria who was the only kid who went in the limo then (I guess the guys were with their mothers) went with my aunt and uncle. The limo had a not really a fridge, but something of the sort, with champagne, water and soda. I chose not to drank anything, since I was afraid to spill on my dress, although Sarah thought it might be stain proof. She spilled champagne on her self with nearly every bump in the road. I kept having to hand her napkins. Luckily, it didn't seem to do any damage. She spilled more than Maria did, who was drinking the water we'd promised her on the way there. Although she had other options, as Sarah actually told her to dip her finger and taste the champagne (she was asking what it was). I'm glad she said no, because the kid is only four. I wonder what her mother would think if she heard that. She already seemed a little annoyed that Sarah was teaching her to make the Loser sign at the guys in the other limo, because first they took ours and second because we were ahead of them on the road. Not that it mattered, because the limo driver had to stop and get the groom suspenders for his tux. I don't know why he didn't have them beforehand.
But anyway, we made it into Chateau Briand unscathed and went upstairs into a room for more pictures and some food from I guess the cocktail hour, though I don't think it had started yet. Noelle was given a plastic bib so that she wouldn't ruin her dress eating. Maria also had one made of napkins to protect her white dress from all the meat she was eating. The little girl can really pack it away. She dropped her fork like four times, but she didn't seem to get anything on her, except a tiny bit of carrot, which I brushed off. In between bites and camera clicks, Sarah, who brought a curling iron touched up Noelle's and Maria's hair in the bathroom. The latter wasn't too pleased with this, but we got her to stay still by having a contest of who could do it the longest. Diane was the first to be eliminated, which was amusing. Then we went back to the other room while Sarah fixed Maria's mother's hair, only to rush back because Maria had to go to the bathroom. Then I had to go fetch them again for Chris's family pictures. Eventually, the photographer gave it a rest and we moved onto the bridal suite and cocktail hour. Only Noelle, me and Jen and Diane really went and stayed in there. The bridal attendant brought us food and drinks (I was scared something was going to happen because Noelle got a Malibu Bay Breeze, which is bright red) and we underwent some repairs.
Over the course of the day, Sarah had ripped the underskirt of her dress, Maria got a little whole in hers, Diane's top eye which was only fabric instead of metal like the other part ripped,and I somehow split a seam in my top. Luckily, my aunt had packed all different kinds of threads so Diane sewed me up before it could get any worse. As she was doing that, Chris came in. I'm glad she was doing it with the dress still on me. Over time everyone trickled in so we could line up before entering the reception. I was the keeper of the door, since it was broken and kept locking from the inside. We hung out in there a few minutes, which was very cramped, but we had fun talking to one of the ring bearers about the sports he liked, which included wrestling. We (jokingly, of course) had to refrain him from demonstrating. Then they made us line up in the hall. I was glad that the best man and maid of honor were towards the back, since they were making speeches, so I was able to keep talking to the kids. Then they announced us and we had to form an archway for Noelle and Chris to go through. But the scariest part of that was when they announced we had to dance! Mom warned me that was going to happen. Chris's brother was steering me around, I had no idea what I was doing. It was more fun to watch the kids, who were dancing in a group next to us. Their song was Shania Twain's "From This Moment," which Mom protested was old. I countered that argument by saying that it already was more longer lived than her wedding song, so she shouldn't complain.
Finally the torture was over and we had to find our seats. Mom had my place card, which was at table 3, the twenty something crowd, which consisted of my cousin Claudia and a bunch of her friends. Noelle apologized a bit for that, but I said it was okay. I only ate there and most of the rest of the time I was hanging out with my mom and aunt. I almost missed the ordering of the food since the menus were gone, but luckily the waiter came to me afterward and told me the six choices. I only understood the first one (although I could've sworn, and mom said I was right, that he said pollo somewhere. I was all "Why'd he suddenly switch to spanish" and consequently stopped listening). But I ordered the first choice, the chauteau briand filet minion, figuring that since that was the name of the place, it should be their best dish. It wasn't bad, although my dad, who had the same, thought it was too dry. But that was probably because he ordered it without mushrooms. They also had this sherbert between courses, penne a la vodka before hand, and before the cake, tartufo! For those who don't know what that is, it's basically ice cream covered with chocolate. My grandfather used to get it for me whenever we went out to dinner before he died, so it was a nice remembrance of him. Then there was the cake, which was chocolate with some kinda moosey filling. I love chocolate, but I'm not a moose person, so I left most of it. That was the end of the night anyway. But my mom didn't get any at all! She wasn't there when they gave it out, so for some reason they didn't put it down at her place anyway, even though they were supposed to. And my dad didn't say anything! She didn't ask for it, figuring she didn't need it anyway and just had a bite of mine.
Between meals, there was mostly fast dancing, much to the chagrine of my mom and aunt, who'd asked the DJ twice for a slow song but never got it. At first the Viggiano side (my mom's family, that is) didn't dance very much, but eventually even my aunt went up. Her niece Annie and her girlfriend Pattie (who btw used to work as a producer or the like for the TV show Crossing Jordan) were really good and my mother and aunt danced together, . The only one who didn't dance (when he didn't have to) was my uncle. I tried to get him up and he made some cockamamie excuse about his shoes (which for a man is no excuse at all). He looked so stiff during the father daughter dance, which was to Bon Jovi's "Thank You for Loving Me," slightly less corny that Chris's dance with his mother to the Backstreet Boys' "The Perfect Fan". She seemed to appreciate it though, since she was crying through it.
Then there was the bouquet toss, for which I could not hide in the bathroom like I wanted, since there were few people as it was. Luckily, all the girls came to an agreement, since the Best Man's girlfriend was the only one of us who wanted it. There were no fights for this one, even though Noelle's tossing wasn't very good and so the first and third tries landed on the floor (the second was caught by the DJ's drummer). Then came the garter toss (which in every other moment except that one, had been falling off her leg). Only three guys went up for that one- the best man, this guy at my table whom I didn't know, and Claudia's ex-boyfriend Brian, who was forced up by whom I believe was his mother. The middle guy caught it, but he gave it to the girl's boyfriend, which was nicer than what happened at my mother's wedding with my uncle's ex-wife and some cousin or whoever he was (not that it mattered, in the long run- or did it?). Anyway, so at least that humiliation wasn't too bad.
After cake, we went to the hotel room we were staying in because we were tired. Not that that stopped mom and me from talking till 3 in the morning. Which wasn't the best idea, since we had to get up early for our complimentary continental breakfast! Mom was very excited about that. There wasn't as much variety as there was in Mystic when we went last year on vacation, but I'd take a decent NY bagel over that any day. We ran in to my aunt and uncle, and sat with them for a bit, asking if they knew where my clothes from the day before though. They were in my cousin's room, where they were still asleep, so we had to go to their house on Sunday to pick it up. Then we went back to our room until checkout. Dad got bored and went across the street to Walmart (we go shopping in that area all the time) and we were watching cable. I was mostly fading in and out of consciousness, until around 12, when we watched "The Perfect Man" on HBO. You know, the Hilary Duff movie. I wouldn't have paid for it (largely for the fact that it was a Hilary Duff movie), but it wasn't too bad. During that time, Chris passed by, as it turned out their room was across the hall. Then when the movie was over we left. Dad went ahead to put stuff in the car and Mom and I were going to take the elevator, but this couple was fighting, so we decided to take the stairs. We ran into them again when we were going out. They were still fighting. Mom was very amused- she loves to see other people fight. And then we went home (Stopping at wendy's briefly for lunch) in the rain. And that's all. I'll try to post some pictures, once I figure out how to do that.
Anyway, as we were taking pictures, of course it started raining. A couple of us were standing under the limo driver's umbrella. We wanted to take shelter in there, but as soon as we went in, they called us back for more pictures. Finally, we were allowed to leave, but we ran into another dispute- which limo were we going in? Technically, the bride, groom and best man and maid of honor go in one (although in my parents wedding, they left the whole entire bridal party behind) and the groomsmen and bridesmaids in the other, with an extra for the parents of the bride and groom. But Chris's parents wanted to drive themselves, so all that was left in that one was my aunt and uncle, and the one for the bridal party was too crowded for all of us, so the girls and the guys split up. They took the limo we came in, on account that their drinks were in there, and all the girls, including Maria who was the only kid who went in the limo then (I guess the guys were with their mothers) went with my aunt and uncle. The limo had a not really a fridge, but something of the sort, with champagne, water and soda. I chose not to drank anything, since I was afraid to spill on my dress, although Sarah thought it might be stain proof. She spilled champagne on her self with nearly every bump in the road. I kept having to hand her napkins. Luckily, it didn't seem to do any damage. She spilled more than Maria did, who was drinking the water we'd promised her on the way there. Although she had other options, as Sarah actually told her to dip her finger and taste the champagne (she was asking what it was). I'm glad she said no, because the kid is only four. I wonder what her mother would think if she heard that. She already seemed a little annoyed that Sarah was teaching her to make the Loser sign at the guys in the other limo, because first they took ours and second because we were ahead of them on the road. Not that it mattered, because the limo driver had to stop and get the groom suspenders for his tux. I don't know why he didn't have them beforehand.
But anyway, we made it into Chateau Briand unscathed and went upstairs into a room for more pictures and some food from I guess the cocktail hour, though I don't think it had started yet. Noelle was given a plastic bib so that she wouldn't ruin her dress eating. Maria also had one made of napkins to protect her white dress from all the meat she was eating. The little girl can really pack it away. She dropped her fork like four times, but she didn't seem to get anything on her, except a tiny bit of carrot, which I brushed off. In between bites and camera clicks, Sarah, who brought a curling iron touched up Noelle's and Maria's hair in the bathroom. The latter wasn't too pleased with this, but we got her to stay still by having a contest of who could do it the longest. Diane was the first to be eliminated, which was amusing. Then we went back to the other room while Sarah fixed Maria's mother's hair, only to rush back because Maria had to go to the bathroom. Then I had to go fetch them again for Chris's family pictures. Eventually, the photographer gave it a rest and we moved onto the bridal suite and cocktail hour. Only Noelle, me and Jen and Diane really went and stayed in there. The bridal attendant brought us food and drinks (I was scared something was going to happen because Noelle got a Malibu Bay Breeze, which is bright red) and we underwent some repairs.
Over the course of the day, Sarah had ripped the underskirt of her dress, Maria got a little whole in hers, Diane's top eye which was only fabric instead of metal like the other part ripped,and I somehow split a seam in my top. Luckily, my aunt had packed all different kinds of threads so Diane sewed me up before it could get any worse. As she was doing that, Chris came in. I'm glad she was doing it with the dress still on me. Over time everyone trickled in so we could line up before entering the reception. I was the keeper of the door, since it was broken and kept locking from the inside. We hung out in there a few minutes, which was very cramped, but we had fun talking to one of the ring bearers about the sports he liked, which included wrestling. We (jokingly, of course) had to refrain him from demonstrating. Then they made us line up in the hall. I was glad that the best man and maid of honor were towards the back, since they were making speeches, so I was able to keep talking to the kids. Then they announced us and we had to form an archway for Noelle and Chris to go through. But the scariest part of that was when they announced we had to dance! Mom warned me that was going to happen. Chris's brother was steering me around, I had no idea what I was doing. It was more fun to watch the kids, who were dancing in a group next to us. Their song was Shania Twain's "From This Moment," which Mom protested was old. I countered that argument by saying that it already was more longer lived than her wedding song, so she shouldn't complain.
Finally the torture was over and we had to find our seats. Mom had my place card, which was at table 3, the twenty something crowd, which consisted of my cousin Claudia and a bunch of her friends. Noelle apologized a bit for that, but I said it was okay. I only ate there and most of the rest of the time I was hanging out with my mom and aunt. I almost missed the ordering of the food since the menus were gone, but luckily the waiter came to me afterward and told me the six choices. I only understood the first one (although I could've sworn, and mom said I was right, that he said pollo somewhere. I was all "Why'd he suddenly switch to spanish" and consequently stopped listening). But I ordered the first choice, the chauteau briand filet minion, figuring that since that was the name of the place, it should be their best dish. It wasn't bad, although my dad, who had the same, thought it was too dry. But that was probably because he ordered it without mushrooms. They also had this sherbert between courses, penne a la vodka before hand, and before the cake, tartufo! For those who don't know what that is, it's basically ice cream covered with chocolate. My grandfather used to get it for me whenever we went out to dinner before he died, so it was a nice remembrance of him. Then there was the cake, which was chocolate with some kinda moosey filling. I love chocolate, but I'm not a moose person, so I left most of it. That was the end of the night anyway. But my mom didn't get any at all! She wasn't there when they gave it out, so for some reason they didn't put it down at her place anyway, even though they were supposed to. And my dad didn't say anything! She didn't ask for it, figuring she didn't need it anyway and just had a bite of mine.
Between meals, there was mostly fast dancing, much to the chagrine of my mom and aunt, who'd asked the DJ twice for a slow song but never got it. At first the Viggiano side (my mom's family, that is) didn't dance very much, but eventually even my aunt went up. Her niece Annie and her girlfriend Pattie (who btw used to work as a producer or the like for the TV show Crossing Jordan) were really good and my mother and aunt danced together, . The only one who didn't dance (when he didn't have to) was my uncle. I tried to get him up and he made some cockamamie excuse about his shoes (which for a man is no excuse at all). He looked so stiff during the father daughter dance, which was to Bon Jovi's "Thank You for Loving Me," slightly less corny that Chris's dance with his mother to the Backstreet Boys' "The Perfect Fan". She seemed to appreciate it though, since she was crying through it.
Then there was the bouquet toss, for which I could not hide in the bathroom like I wanted, since there were few people as it was. Luckily, all the girls came to an agreement, since the Best Man's girlfriend was the only one of us who wanted it. There were no fights for this one, even though Noelle's tossing wasn't very good and so the first and third tries landed on the floor (the second was caught by the DJ's drummer). Then came the garter toss (which in every other moment except that one, had been falling off her leg). Only three guys went up for that one- the best man, this guy at my table whom I didn't know, and Claudia's ex-boyfriend Brian, who was forced up by whom I believe was his mother. The middle guy caught it, but he gave it to the girl's boyfriend, which was nicer than what happened at my mother's wedding with my uncle's ex-wife and some cousin or whoever he was (not that it mattered, in the long run- or did it?). Anyway, so at least that humiliation wasn't too bad.
After cake, we went to the hotel room we were staying in because we were tired. Not that that stopped mom and me from talking till 3 in the morning. Which wasn't the best idea, since we had to get up early for our complimentary continental breakfast! Mom was very excited about that. There wasn't as much variety as there was in Mystic when we went last year on vacation, but I'd take a decent NY bagel over that any day. We ran in to my aunt and uncle, and sat with them for a bit, asking if they knew where my clothes from the day before though. They were in my cousin's room, where they were still asleep, so we had to go to their house on Sunday to pick it up. Then we went back to our room until checkout. Dad got bored and went across the street to Walmart (we go shopping in that area all the time) and we were watching cable. I was mostly fading in and out of consciousness, until around 12, when we watched "The Perfect Man" on HBO. You know, the Hilary Duff movie. I wouldn't have paid for it (largely for the fact that it was a Hilary Duff movie), but it wasn't too bad. During that time, Chris passed by, as it turned out their room was across the hall. Then when the movie was over we left. Dad went ahead to put stuff in the car and Mom and I were going to take the elevator, but this couple was fighting, so we decided to take the stairs. We ran into them again when we were going out. They were still fighting. Mom was very amused- she loves to see other people fight. And then we went home (Stopping at wendy's briefly for lunch) in the rain. And that's all. I'll try to post some pictures, once I figure out how to do that.