The wedding was a grand event, planned to the nth detail, and executed with aplomb. As with my previous post Father of the Bride Part 1 - Who's That Girl, what I'm offering is a look at the proceedings from the father of the bride's point of view (duh). The pics are from the gallery of 1800+ shots taken by the professional photographer who covered the wedding. She did a fantastic job, as you will see.
I did have a couple of roles on wedding day. The first was, of course, giving the bride away. The second was being the "fixer". That is, leaping into the breach to prevent anything that looked like it might go wrong from actually going wrong. Fortunately, I was able to resolve the few items that came up by merely standing around with a frown on my face, looking official in my tux, and waiting until someone who knew what to do showed up and saved the day. Not that much different from just being a dad in general. But let's take the day from the top.
Among other things, a wedding day is also an opportunity for super-primping. I mean, big time. Hair, makeup, nails - you name it. And not just for the bride. The bridesmaids, the mothers of the bride and groom, even the flower girl joined in the festivities. Here are a few pics from the bridal suite at the Michigan League during this afternoon-long prelim. First up is the bride-to-be with her "do" in process. In the second shot Cathy is demonstrating the classic "two-mirror, what-do-I-look-like-from-behind", inspection technique.
Then there is the dress, shown here patiently awaiting its moment, which would be after all the exotic makeup potions are safely tucked away.
Moving on, here are a few more pics of the primp phase of the day. First up, bridesmaid Laura assisting flower girl Leili with what Leili refers to as "my wedding dress".
Next, brother of the bride Ted helping son and ring bearer Cyrus with his cravat,
and bridesmaid Laura assisting bridesmaid and sister of the groom Kim with her dress.
Here we have the bride and maid of honor/sister of the bride Christine taking a brief break from primping to provide me, the fixer, with instructions for the day. How do you like the dapper outfit I am sporting? And please note that just like the best Italian waiters, I'm writing nothing down. It's all in the old noodle (for better or worse).
Finally the primping was done, with marvelous results. Here are a few examples starting with the beautiful bride herself,
the girls side of the wedding party,
the bride and her family,
the groom Matt (boys don't really primp, but you get the idea),
and Matt with his parents Paul and Kit, and sister Kim.
This brings us to the ceremony. First, a few last minute instructions (yes, boys usually need more than girls; it's part of our charm).
Then, seating of certain VIPs,
and the procession, a scene stolen by this just too cute couple.
This set the stage for the entrance of the bride.
The ceremony began with a lovely presentation of roses to the parents, in appreciation, first to Nancy and me,
then to Paul and Kit.
This was a loving gesture that touched us all. And I would add an act typical of the sentiments Cathy and Matt often display regarding their parents and siblings.
Next was the wine box ceremony, a ritual I first saw last year in Toronto at the wedding of cousin Andrew and his lovely bride Sher. The way it works is that the bride and the groom write unshared love letters to each other laying out the reasons they fell in love. The letters, with the bottle of wine, are then sealed in the box where they stay for a designated period of time (10 years in Cathy and Matt's case) or until they are needed to perhaps help get through a bumpy patch in the relationship. When the box is eventually opened, the letters are read, the wine is drunk, and hopefully the process has the desired effect. The whole ritual is then repeated with the writing of new letters and placement of them with a new bottle of wine back into the box, which is resealed and tucked away. Unfortunately, there are no pics of the wine ceremony, but it was a very poignant moment in the proceedings.
The wedding ceremony continued with readings by Matt's uncle Dan (Kit's brother),
and Cathy's brother Ted,
followed by the vows,
the kiss,
a few tears,
and...happiness.
Following the ceremony there was a cocktail hour, the photos from which have been confiscated to protect, well, basically everybody. But there is this one photo I can share of the full wedding party before the ties and shoes came off, the libations were uncorked and the two clans and their closest friends began to...shall we say bond (actually, since the ceremony I have thought of the new extended family as the "Kuhl-Burks"; has a nice ring to it, don't you think?)
The festivities started with the entrance of the wedding party and parents into the ballroom, followed by the happy couple, dance-stepping, smiling, cheering, and sporting bottles of a favorite beer.
Then there were the opening dances starting with the bride and groom,
the bride and her father,
Following the formal dances, there were a few toasts. First up was...the father of the bride. As Cathy and Matt had an interesting and somewhat long-distance courtship, I felt it important to present the story. And as poetry is the language of love, I related the tale in verse form (and have for the record included the text of the poem at the end of this post). Here's a shot of me delivering the poem in all my paternal glory.
Next up was the maid of honor Christine who delivered an eloquent tribute to her "big-little sister", which included a couple of personality-revealing stories from early childhood, a personal endorsement of the groom, and heartfelt good wishes for the future.
The third toast was offered by the best man Naveen who in clever style brought the house down with several funny stories of Matt and Cathy during their U of M days, including one highlighting Matt's college housemates' assessment at the outset that he had "no chance" of a relationship with this girl (although I'm sure the housemates were usually a reliable source of wisdom, they seemed to have missed this one by a mile).
The final toast was that of the groom to the bride, during which Matt said all the right things in all the right ways, as confirmed by the following pictures of key interested parties, paying close attention to the message.
Following the toasts, dinner and dancing ensued for the balance of the evening. Old family and friends mingled with new, and the good times rolled.
I will confess that I actually had an additional assignment during the reception. That was delivering Wisers Manhattans from the secret stash in my room to those in the ballroom that knew enough to ask. And with the collective erudition of the attendees (especially among the Canadian relies), I had a busy but very satisfying evening. Or in more familiar terms, the pre-mix flowed.
Toward the end of the evening there were several group shots taken. Here's one of Cathy with all of the attending Grosse Pointe North graduates.
And to balance, a shot of Matt with his fellow Owosso HIgh alums.
Capping off the group shots was this collection of U of M grads.
I must not close before recognizing my two grandchildren who demonstrated the sturdy side of the family stock by lasting nearly to the end of the evening, dancing their little feet off for as long as they could stand. Here's a shot of Cyrus flashing his Saturday Night Fever moves as his sister eggs him on.
And a final pic of Leili, expressing the feeling we all had, that - to paraphrase Bilbo Baggins - this was a night to remember.
To close, as promised, here is the text of my bridal toast:
The Courtship of Cathy and Matt
‘Twas
an offer she couldn’t refuse.
And
really, what could she lose?
To
miss the big game,
That
would be lame,
So
she answered Matt with good news.
“I’ll
go to Ohio State.
I’m
sure the game will be great.
But
I want to go,
Just
as friends, you know,
So
it won’t be an official date.”
As
a patient and clever lad,
Matt
said, “Great, I’m really glad.”
He
could clearly see
The
possibility -
Things
might not turn out so bad.
As
we, here today, now know,
‘Twas
fortuitous she agreed to go.
The
poor Maize and Blue,
Lost,
it’s true,
But
love had its chance to grow.
After
courting at school for a year,
They
each had to choose a career.
They
both had a chance
Their
careers to advance,
How
t’do it together wasn’t clear.
But
after a period of doubt,
No
surprise, it seemed to work out.
She
went to DC,
To
Jersey went he,
And
their love went the interstate route.
But
the unvarnished truth, I’m told,
Was
that life on the freeway got old.
‘Twas
time to decide,
Just
where was this ride
Heading,
was it time to be bold?
After
dutiful consideration,
And
with only minor trepidation,
Cathy
and Matt
Took
a fifth story flat,
In
Hoboken – no more separation.
Life
in the big city was grand.
All
the high-life and fun one could stand.
But
after a while,
Of
partying in style,
It
was time for a longer-term plan.
Matt
started things off with zest.
He
proposed, and she said yes.
That
opened the door
To
planning for more,
And
well, you sort of know the rest.
For
my part, as they raise the curtain
On
marriage, their happiness is certain.
As
I’ve often said,
For
the well bred
The
‘It’ll work out”s in the person.
It’s
obvious to me that these two
Understand,
this is so true.
And
that with caring,
Effort,
and sharing,
Their
hopes and dreams can come true.
Now,
for the record, I decree,
On
behalf of the family tree,
Matt,
you’re in,
You’re
officially kin.
We
welcome you to the family.
So
on this grand wedding day,
All
I have left to say,
Is
here’s to,
The
two of you.
May
happiness and good fortune pave your way.
Until next time - Grosse Pointe Charles
Comments and more stories from the wedding welcome.
