MacLeod

Kevin and Kristen's wedding was wonderful! They had some really great personal touches, but we'll start with the basics. The ceremony and reception were held at The Riverview in Simsbury, CT. It lived up to its name with a view of the river and the whole venue was gorgeous. The ceremony was was held outside underneath a tent, which was beautiful. It was a smaller wedding, about 100 people. However, it was scorching outside in the humidity with only a small breeze. Obviously not their fault, but everyone was dripping buckets after the 20 minute ceremony ended. While people were finding seats, there was a bagpiper (since Kevin's family is Scottish). The ceremony was non-denominational, presided over by a minister from the church where Kevin's mother volunteers. They had two   readings, one adapted from the Bible and the second a poem read by Kevin's dad. The wedding party looked absolutely gorgeous: the men wore gray suits with purple vests and ties (Kevin wore a white vest and tie) while the girls had floor length purple chiffon dresses.

The cocktail hour started immediately after the ceremony, while the wedding party and immediate family took pictures around the outside of the venue. There were served hors d'oeuvres as well as two stations of food during the cocktail hour. The favorite, by far, was the mashed potato bar! They had delicious mashed potatoes that you could top with cheese, broccoli, bacon, sour cream, or gravy! It was awesome! The cocktail hour was in a small section of what would be the dining room for the reception. It was very spacious, though, and had small tables for people to sit at. They opened up the dining room and everyone was seated. The grandparents were announced, though they were sitting at their tables, then the parents were announced and seated. The bridal party came in pairs and then the bride and groom were announced. They entered, throwing a football which was really cute. The tables were labeled by both numbers and a name. The names were things about the bride and groom (for instance, we sat at the rock-climbing table which included a photo of them rock climbing and a back story to the name). After their entrance, the bride and groom had their first dance to one of my favorite songs! Everyone was seated and the maid of honor and best man gave their speeches. Dinner was delicious, with a selection of one of four entrees. The had a red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting for dessert which was wonderful! After dinner, the guests were asked to surround the dance floor for the father-daughter and mother-son dances. They recorded personalized messages over the beginnings of their songs which I really liked! They also did a couples dance like we did, even using the one of the same songs, where couples are eliminated by how long they've been married. My great-grandparents (Kevin's grandparents) were the winners, having been married for 62 years!

Overall it was a wonderful wedding, despite the heat, and we had a great time!

I really liked Kevin and Kristen's programs for the ceremony:

front (brochure style)

inside

outside

Here is a picture of Matt and I with the bride and groom, but for more pictures click here to go to our website!

Let the Parties Begin

We officially began our wedding escapades on November 23, 2012 with Andrea and CJ's engagement party. We traveled almost three hours to CJ's parents home in western Connecticut to celebrate with the bride and groom's families and friends. It was beautiful, very laid-back with great food (my favorite part). Matt had a great time catching up with fellow PC graduates that he hadn't seen in a while. We're especially excited for their wedding because their ceremony is being held at St. Dominic Chapel on the Providence College campus; the same chapel Matt and I got married in!

Less than a month later, on December 22, 2012, we attended Kevin and Kristen's engagement party. The party was held in western Massachusetts, where Matt and I both hail from, at my aunt and uncle's house. We had a great time and enjoyed being surrounded by my family. We left the party minus one gift for the future bride and groom but with two miniature bottles of champagne as favors!

Our fridge is currently adorned with three save the dates (as well as a million magnets, coupons, and pictures). I love that they are all different from one another and beautifully orginal. I've scanned them onto my computer so I can upload them here (edited, of course) along with the invitation that we received for Kevin and Kristen's engagement party.

The Beginning

We've hit that age: the age when all of your friends get engaged and you spend large amounts of money on gifts, hotels, clothing, and parties. Don't get me wrong, though, I'm wicked excited to attend these weddings and witness the beginning of the next stage of our friends' lives especially after own wedding in June of 2012. That's the "looking glass" part of my blog; seeing a wedding from the observational side rather than being one of the main participants.

So far we have three weddings this year, possibly four. In addition, we have a wedding in 2014 with the potential of another. So I'll start with the engagements:
  -My friend from college, Caitlin, and her boyfriend, Anthony, got engaged in July of 2011. Their wedding will be held in New York on June 8 of this year.
  -My cousin, Kevin, and his girlfriend of 8 years, Kristen, got engaged in February of last year. They have planned their wedding for June 1 this year in Connecticut.
  -One of Matt's friends from college, CJ, proposed to his girlfriend of about 3 years, Andrea, only a few months after catching the garter at my wedding! Their wedding will take place here in Providence, Rhode Island on April 6. Their ceremony will be held at St. Dominic Chapel on the Providence College campus; the same place Matt and I had ours!
  -Another of my friends from College, Emily, and her boyfriend of about 5 years, Jeremy, got engaged in July of last year. Their wedding is planned for October 26 of this year in New York.
  -My friend that I used to dance with, Margaret, and her boyfriend, Chris, got engaged in November of last year.
  -Matt's friend, Erik, (an usher in our wedding) and his girlfriend, Sophie, got engaged in early December of last year. Their wedding is set for June 7 of 2014 in Newport, Rhode Island.