The Pre-Wedding: Part 1

Hey folks, what have you been up to? Me? Oh you know, same old / same old. Flying to Seattle, visiting with my extended family, having a near perfect wedding (to spoil the drama, while dancing later in the evening, a button popped off my vest) and then jetting off to San Francisco on my honeymoon with my lovely wife, Cora. So, other than my life completely changing for the better, not much is new. ;-)

Before I get to the wedding (there's a lot of photos and video to work with there), I thought I would sneak in a few minutes while Cora is getting ready and tell you about the lead-up to the wedding.

Some facts:

• I flew out Tuesday after work.
• My parents drove to Seattle from Illinois. They had never been here before.
• 13 people from my Aunt Pat's side flew in from Indiana. They had never been here before. Some had never been on a plane before.
• My best man and his wife flew from Houston to Denver, and then drove the rest of the way, to pick up states he had never been in before.

Wednesday – While my parents and sister's family were out touring Snoqualmie Falls and the wineries, Cora, Gwen and I had some last minutes wedding stuff to do. Buy a guest book, get numbers for the tables, that sort of easy stuff. So, after Party City, we went to Jimmy Mac's for lunch. Cora and I have now eaten there 3 times, so it's 'our place'.

One thing about Jimmy Mac's is that it is a Texas style roadhouse, with a big barrel of peanuts by the door. When you are eating the peanuts, you are supposed to throw the shells on the floor. (There is a sign that says that there's a $1 fine for leaving the shells on the table.) It took Gwen a long time to get used to throwing the trash on the floor. She just had a hard time being that messy. (awwww)

After Jimmy Mac's and the shopping, we went home to finalize the seating chart and to fill out those little tent thingies. but before we knew it, it was time for dinner. My immediate family would be joining Cora and I, plus Cora's father (Carl) and her stepmother (Heather) for dinner at The Old Spaghetti Factory.

There was a beautiful view of Mount Rainer from the parking lot, and I encouraged everyone to take a look and take pictures, because if the weather got a little more 'typical', that may be the last they saw of the mountain. They ignored my advice, and the weather turned more 'typical' and the mountain went into hiding until later in our wedding reception as the sun was setting. (Then they monkeyed around again, and missed that. FLATLANDERS!)

Seated around the table from 12:00 clockwise are: My brother, Tim, my brother-in-law, Doug, his daughter, Hayley, Cora, her daughter, Gwen, Cora's dad, Carl, his wife, Heather, my mom, Leanna, my dad, Richard, my empty chair (photographer), my nephew, Adam, his girlfriend, Jenny, and finally, my sister (Doug's wife, mother of Hayley & Adam), Karin.

It was the first time anyone in our families met, and it worked out well. Cora spent the evening talking with my sister's family, which she has met before. I spent most of my time in the conversation between the parents. Both Cora's father and my mother are a little hard of hearing, so I needed to occasionally relay / translate what was going on. The night ended with a wild goose chase of my nephew, Adam, trying to buy and iPad to catch up in tech with his sister, who had gotten hers on the day they flew out.

Thursday – With most of the wedding stuff done, Thursday was a light day during the day. Had a little "Depp-fest" as we watched a little Alice In Wonderland and Edward Scissorhands with Gwen, ran some errands, and had Boca burgers and Boca Ribs for lunch. It was then off to the tux shop to pick up our tuxes. But like Cora, you will have to wait to see pictures (I didn't take any that day). My best friend, Tony, and his wife Maribeth made it from Houston. They flew to Denver, and then rented a car and drove the rest of the way, so they could see more of the western US that they hadn't seen. Cora's brother, Craig and his girlfriend Kristen, and her mom, June, and her nephew, Jaden joined us. (My family was out whale watching.) After the tuxes, we had a wonderful, and long meal at BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse at the mall.

A great time was had by all.

Coming soon – Friday, the wedding rehearsal, and the rehearsal dinner!