Here Comes The Bride Or The Way We Once Were...

November is a pretty eventful month for the Little family: Kevin and I went on our first date in November, we got married in November, Kevin's birthday is in November, as well as his favorite holiday. So this was a busy month.This year's wedding anniversary was very low key and subdued: we quietly exchanged gifts and went out to dinner.

Talking to a friend from work who just gotten engaged over Thanksgiving made me all reminiscent about our wedding, a fun and classy affair marked by debauchery, guests puking under the tables and pooping themselves (yes-yes, they did!!) out of drunkenness. In other words, everything you expect your wedding to be.

So, fasten your seat belts for a little trip down the memory lane:

Kevin proposed in July and our wedding happened in November that same year, proving that it is possible to put together a smashing fun wedding event in 4 months. I never thought I'd ever get married, let along meet the one person I wanted to live with in my very early twenties, so, as I've prepared myself for a life of spinsterhood and/or promiscuity, I haven't had a slightest clue as to how to plan a wedding, pick out a dress, or what exactly I wanted.

Honestly, I would have been perfectly happy to live in sin for years, but pesky legal issues (like being an illegal alien) played their role in speeding up our nuptials. Kevin and I are lucky enough to be mostly on the same wavelength for most things, so we knew that these were non-negotiable:
- lots of good food
- lots of alcohol
- great music

Everything else didn't really matter. And, turns out, if you are flexible and open about venues, guest lists and invitation styles, you can put your wedding together pretty quickly. Unfortunately, my mom and bro couldn't come, so that was one bit of a downer for me... Kevin's mom officiated the ceremony, I got my dress during the first run to the bridal shop, we made our own centerpieces, chose all this amazing food and a cake (it was raspberry chocolate with whipped cream), good friend agreed to DJ, guests graciously agreed to attend on a rather short notice, and we were set.

The night before we had a drunkfest rehearsal dinner for our guests, and I had a mean hangover on the wedding day. Add the fact that I stumbled into Kevin's hotel room at 5 am piss drunk, and you get the picture of squinty-eyed, pale shaky bride. After lots and lots of water, some make-up and rest I was ready.

Everything went on without a hitch (haha, here I go again, ain't I funny?), guests were having fun, and we danced the night away. One bit of wisdom that I've discovered: at your own wedding dinner, you can do two out of three things: eat, talk to guests, dance. One has to be sacrificed to the wedding gods.We chose the latter two, and didn't have more than a bite of all the amazing foods we painstakingly chose several months before. I think I had a single shrimp.

Our guests were having so much fun (thanks open bar and John!) that the venue had to kick us out (they flipped the lights on and starting clearing the tables while people were still dancing). Then lots of guests went back to our hotel, piled into our bridal suite and ordered pizza. They stayed till about 2 am. And it was a lot of fun even since.

I think I'd like to do a "middle of marriage" celebration at some point in time...This time a destination on the beach, during sunset. Flowers in the hair? Maybe some white horses? Rum? Reggae? Rasta minister? Yeah, definitely our kind of thing...