Sister's Wedding - April 5, 2008 - Chocolate and Roses

[PrairieDawn]

FINALLY! We married Sister off and it was fabulous. Here are some informal photos that Hubby and I took. I'm sure more will come soon from other family members.

...Pam

[PrairieDawn]

I arrived in the city on Wednesday evening so that I could help Sister and her fiance for two days before the wedding.

Thursday morning I took Sister to have artificial nails applied. It was her first manicure, ever. She went with a French manicure with squared tips. Very natural. This shot was obviously taken before she had them trimmed.

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After doing her nails, we shopped for jewellery for the bridesmaids, went out for lunch, finalized the reception seating plan, finalized the plans with the photographer, averted a dress disaster (see my next post) and shopped for the couple's new washer and drier. WHEW!

[PrairieDawn]

Some of you may know the bridesmaid drama surrounding Sister's wedding.

BM2 bought a size 12 dress without measuring. She ended up needing a 16. I had a 16. Yes, I measured, but it was still a bit too small. I decided to diet starting in mid-October and gave my 16 to BM2. BM3 bought a size 14 but needed the 12 that BM2 had. I took the 14.

Are you keeping any of this straight?

A month ago BM3 asked if I wanted to trade dresses. I thought about it over night and agreed. I would definitely be able to get into the 12 by the wedding. But BM3 changed her mind and I altered my 14 smaller to fit. I've lost 32 pounds.

Thursday morning, two days before the wedding, BM3 called Sister to let her know that 1--she was three months pregnant and 2--her dress didn't fit.

Sister has saved her own wedding day. Anticipating problems (with BM2, not BM3), Sister ordered an additional size 14 dress. So while we were doing other running around, we dropped of a brand new, bigger dress with BM3.

No, I didn't take the 12, although it would have fit better than the 14 that was poorly altered for me. Oh well, no one looks at the bridesmaids, anyhow, right? I enjoy my private, internal celebration, knowing that I'd gone from the fat bridesmaid to the skinniest one in five months. BM3, the diva, is the plump one now. ;-)

Yay me. Grrrr for BM3. Yah, its easy to talk smack now that I've lost 32 lbs.


...Pam

[PrairieDawn]

Friday I printed, folded and stuffed 100 wedding programs while sister packed.

Friday evening was the rehearsal. This is Sister with my parents in front of the brand new church.

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The rehearsal dinner was in a Spanish restaurant that the groom's family has frequented for 15 years. The meal was a spicy vegetable soup, salad, and chicken breast with a creamy mustard sauce served with roasted potatoes, carrots and cauliflower. Desert was creme caramel with Gran Marnier sauce. Yummy!

Hubby and the kids joined us for the RD, however I thought I had left my camera at the church, so I didn't take as many pics as planned. Long story short, I found my camera on a chair under Mom's coat. That was better than in the ladies washroom of the church in the next town.

Sister, the restaurant owner/chef/friend, and the groom and his family:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb763ecb7f79300000025108AcN2Lhk3ZNb


...Pam

[PrairieDawn]

Friday night I stayed with Sister in her hotel room. The reception took place at the Delta hotel in South Calgary. The wedding was in a town south of Calgary, the hometown of the groom.

After the Rehearsal Dinner, sister and I went to her room and assembled everything she needed for the ceremony.

At 12:30 am we crawled into the bed together. I was just about to close my eyes when she said, "I'd really like some potato chips. MY LAST salt and vinegar chips as a single woman." And so I started my quest. The hotel was very large. It is two properties joined by a skywalk, not unlike some Vegas hotels. I finally found Sister's chips in a machine near the lobby of the other building. When I returned to the room she was asleep.

She didn't sleep long, though. She woke when she heard the rustle of the foil bag and quickly ate all of her chips. She fell asleep for an hour and then I heard her digging through the "Wedding Day Emergency Kit". She'd found the white chocolate chip cookies I'd packed and ate a few of those.

Sister was up at least five times through the night, either to use the washroom or to have a snack. Finally, at 6 am, when I gave up on getting any decent sleep and got up, sister fell to sleep again and snored until 8 am when our wakeup call came.

Dad drove us to the salon. The bridesmaids had their hair done. Sister also had her makeup applied. She decided not to wear her tiara, opting for hair jewels and the veil, instead.

Me:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb763fe7b766600000026108AcN2Lhk3ZNb

BM2:
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BM3:
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Sister:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb763e4abf78b00000025108AcN2Lhk3ZNb


...Pam

[PrairieDawn]

At the hotel, BM2 zips me into my dress. Did I tell you I lost 32 pounds? :bear2:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76c8f9bd7c100000025108AcN2Lhk3ZNb

We don't have photos of BM3 getting ready. She had to be sent back to her hotel room to change her jewellery. She didn't think she had to wear the earrings Sister bought for her and had put on orange rhinestone earrings and a necklace of her own choosing, instead. The Monster of Horror (that would be me) and the Bride (that would be Sister) put BM3 firmly in her place and she did return propperly accessorized as we were leaving the hotel.

I had my own accessory problem. My shawl was missing, but a phone call to the hotel's lost and found was fruitful. The shawl must have fallen off my dress as I was brining it in.

So off we went, all dressed just right.

Getting ready to go to the church. Sister gets into Mom and Dad's big white van:

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The ride to the church in the next town is about 45 minutes. On the highway we caught a peek of the 1930 Model A car that the couple would use after the ceremony. I took this photo from the van window:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76c8e6797a500000026108AcN2Lhk3ZNb


You'll see in the background that the roads are wet and there is a bit of white stuff on the ground. Despite predictions of bbq weather for the weekend, we woke up to snow that morning. Sister was thrilled. She wanted a winter wedding.

...Pam

[PrairieDawn]

To keep her dress clean and dry, Sister changed in the coat room at the church. The bride's room, in the basement, hasn't been finished yet. This was only the fourth wedding at the church.

BM2, Sister, Mom:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76c8d23564800000025108AcN2Lhk3ZNb

...Pam

[PrairieDawn]

The processional was to Ave Maria in the Catholic ceremony. We all walked up the aisle arm in arm.

The groom and his parents:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76ca295974100000025108AcN2Lhk3ZNb

Mom, Sister, Dad:
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The moms and groomsmen wore cappuccino colours which went well with our chocolate dresses. The bridesmaids dresses came from Nordstroms and the shawls came from Sears Canada. The MOB outfit was two-piece and full of glitter; its from the Sears Canada website, too. MOG bought her dress from a private dress shop. The groom and the dads were in ivory vests with their tuxes. The tuxes were from Moore's in Canada.

The flowers were pink roses. Sister had a silver tussy mussy. We had handles wrapped in chocolate satin. The moms had wrist corsages with faux pearls on elasticized bands, a terrific idea. Although I had offered to hand-tie flowers, the groom's mom had a florist friend offer to do them and they accepted the offer to save time. We were all thrilled with how they turned out, simple elegance, the perfect accessories to sparkly dresses.

...Pam

[PrairieDawn]

The groom cried through his vows:

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Sister had Grandfather's wedding band refurbished for her groom:
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Sister's rings are STUNNING, with a total of 2.4 carrots. I hope the photographer took pictures of the set, because I forgot to.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76ca747d70900000026108AcN2Lhk3ZNb

That's me signing the register:
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BM3, BM2 and me. I think we must be watching the kiss. (Sorry, no pics of that yet. I'm sure someone captured it, though.)
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76cde9f977500000026108AcN2Lhk3ZNb


...Pam

[PrairieDawn]

Recessional:

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http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76ca47c97ab00000025108AcN2Lhk3ZNb

...Pam

[PrairieDawn]

The receiving line was in the large church vestibule:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76cf98156d000000025108AcN2Lhk3ZNb
"Girl, you look ALMOST as good as I do."

The church and the getaway car, a 1930 Model A:
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Exiting the church
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It was chilly, but a faux fur bolero that we found on eBay made it all better:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76c0b2dd73500000025108AcN2Lhk3ZNb

Getting into the car:
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http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76cf61216dc00000026108AcN2Lhk3ZNb

[PrairieDawn]

The cake, a traditional rum fruit cake, with rolled fondant icing. It was YUMMY! The favours were also traditional, wrapped pieces of cake in teeny boxes tied with a pink ribbon.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76c4ff256f800000025108AcN2Lhk3ZNb

The couple forgot to cut the cake -- did I fall down on my duties by not reminding them?! -- but don't worry... the photographer did a fake cutting earlier. We served the cake at the gift opening the next day.

The topper was important. A redheaded groom with a blonde bride.

...Pam

[PrairieDawn]

While we had our professional pics taken by the river, guests enjoyed cocktails at the hotel. The groom's friend, an award-winning comedic magician, performed strolling magic for the hour. (Sorry, no pics of either yet.)

Head Table:
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http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76c445316c400000026108AcN2Lhk3ZNb

The room was decorated by a friend of the couple with rented items from a bridal shop. Tablecloths were white with pink organza overlays. Centrepieces were rosebowls.

The head table had some pooled satin along the top edge where we placed our bouquets. The large, tall centrepieces on the head table were put there, in error, by the ushers and were moved very quickly. Behind the head table was some rented lattice that covered a storage room door.

Me delivering the Toast to the Bride:
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I managed to make most people laugh and Sister did cry, too.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76c4409169e00000026108AcN2Lhk3ZNb


Following the dinner and toasts, and just before the dancing, the magician performed again. The kids loved it. (Sorry, no pics yet.)


...Pam

[PrairieDawn]

The first dance was to Michael Buble's "Everything". The same day as the wedding were the Juno Awards (Canadian Music Awards) also in Calgary. Buble was performing there live, so Sister and her groom had to settle for a recording. ;)

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76c43cfd7f300000026108AcN2Lhk3ZNb

We bustled Sister's dress with diaper pins, believe it or not:
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Dancing with Dad:
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Mommy's Boy:
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...Pam

[PrairieDawn]

Because the bride and groom are older and few of their friends are single, they chose not to toss the bouquet or garter. They were presented very quietly during the dance.

...Pam

[PrairieDawn]

Siblings

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76c5a12168a00000026108AcN2Lhk3ZNb

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8da26b3127cceb76c5b37d70700000025108AcN2Lhk3ZNb


I don't have any pics of Corey or the kids yet. Core was taking these pictures. The kids were too old to be ring boys or a flower girl, which suited the boys fine, but Ashley really wanted to
carry Jenn's bouquet and straighten her train. Ashley took over that role from me for the reception.

I'll post more pics when they come from other family members. I know my uncle took lots, including some of my kids.



THE END!

[carolinalady67]

What a beautiful wedding. She looked so pretty. And the colors were beautiful together. Congratulations to her :) Oh, and I loved your mom's dress.

[Winter_Bride]

Typing one-handed. Everything looked so divine!! Your sister is quite fortunate to have such a help in you! Despite drama and lack of getting things done and such, it looked like an amazing day!!

Congratulations to your sister, and congrats on your new BIL :giggle:

[*Diane*]

Pam, you look fantastic! Wow! Your sister was beautiful. Thanks for posting all the details- it all looked so nice.

[Mrs.H]

THanks for sharing! Your sister looked beautiful, and so did you! I really like the colors, the combination turned out great.

Also, congrats on the weight loss, you look amazing!

[Renny]

Sister's wedding looked wonderful and yall were beautiful!

[Aramelle]

Everything looked perfect! I love the way the pink flowers pop against your dresses. :)

[Mimzy]

Fast job on getting us the news. You look amazing! Everything is so pretty. I like the cake table's clothes - very elegant.

[~Sherry~]

Yay!!! It was beautiful!

[TeenieBoggs]

Pam your sister's wedding looks fabulous! Can't wait to see more pics when you get them. And congrats on loosing 32 lbs!!! You go girl!! :)

[Poloke]

Beautiful wedding- you and your sister looked stunning :)