The Day After: Successes and Failures

First, a failure: liveblogging.  I tried, I really did, but the internet at the hotel wasn't working and when I posted from my phone (even though I'm supposed to be able to do so) it ended up as gibberish.  So, although I'm pretty sure no one really noticed, I feel sheepish; I don't like saying I'll do something and then not following through.

Second, a very important SUCCESS:  It happened; my mother got married yesterday.  All important people showed up (the wedding party, all vendors, and most of the guests), everyone was clothed, fed, and danced.  The ceremony happened, I signed the wedding certificate myself.

While the bottom-line necessities went as needed, there we hiccups along the way:

1. Friday, it took my sister and I (with my delightful fiance driving) more than an hour to drive 17 miles...on the freeway.
2. During this drive, we could not get a hold of my mom, so we had no idea what was going on....so we just kind of did what we supposed we should.
3. We still had many, many errands and tasks to complete Friday evening AND yesterday.
4. My mom's hair and makeup appointments were in another city, and she was gone for more than 4 hours in the middle of the day....without answering her phone.
5. My mom and the third bridesmaid arrived back at the hotel about an hour before we needed to leave for the venue.
6. A surprise cake for the groom's parents in honor of their 50th wedding anniversary was melted in the 85-degree heat.
7. My dress was extremely uncomfortable and the three bridesmaids were all wary of having a wardrobe malfunction in the chestal region. (None happened, though, thank goodness!)
8. Some of the personal touches that the bride and groom wanted to have didn't happen at all.
9. The groom forgot his wedding band (we had a stand in available, though).
10. There wasn't enough lighting for the end of the evening.

Because of all of this, and because of all the frustration that overshadowed some of what I'll list below.  For me, the stress and irritation I had been feeling was so overwhelming at different points over the past two weeks, that I felt relief that the event was happening and then over.  Knowing this makes me sad.  I wanted to enjoy the event with abandon, rather than with this unfortunate sheen laying over it.  

More importantly, though, many things went right:

1. My mother looked beautiful.
2. The groom choked back tears while reciting his vows.
3. The toasts were well-received (I was pretty proud of my short-and-sweet toast, given the amount of time I had to prepare).
4. No nasty scenes happened, despite some close calls.
5. People seemed to have a good time.
6. The food was good.
7. The booze was good.
8. There was lots of leftover booze. (My brother took home four cases of Sierra Nevada, my sister took home two).
9. The flowers were beautiful.
10. I have two new grandparents, who are just lovely (one of whom performed the wedding ceremony).
11. There are bound to be some amazing photos from the beautiful setting.
12. My siblings and I danced our asses off; we're pretty impressive dancers, busting out some cabbage patches and altogether looking a bit like this.
13. The music was good.
14. Mom and her new husband looked very happy.
15. I got to spend time with my former babysitter - the third bridesmaid - which was wonderful.
16. I got to dance with my very own fiance.
17. Everyone seemed genuinely happy for the bride and groom.
18. I got to meet some of my new extended family members.

Altogether, the event itself was and overall success, thankfully.

So, here's to my mother and her new husband:

CONGRATULATIONS MOM AND DAVID!!