The Wedd'n!

Dear Friends,
I left Auckland on May 7th to fly home to California…lots of wedding details to be hammered out before the big day on May 21. I flew on the same flight as one of Rob’s work mates, Jarrod. Jarrod was flying through SFO to business meetings in Amsterdam and France. It appeared that our flight was going to be early….something I always celebrate!! Then… we flew over SFO in a holding pattern for what seemed to be forever! Ugh! I am so glad I did not have a tight connection to try to make, as customs was at high alert due to the recent news regarding Osama Bin Laden. I was a very happy camper to get through customs, and out the door to meet Emmy. We bid farewell to Jarrod and got on the road for our trip to Sacramento.
We drove straight back to Sacramento, as Emmy had what we thought was going to be the final fitting of her wedding dress. But…somehow they made a boo boo in the previous alterations, and now we needed to come back again for the final fitting. I was completely knackered! At one point I was talking to Emmy, and then I was completely asleep…needless to say that when we returned to Emmy & Chris’ house, I went straight to bed. This jet lag had really hit me hard.
My plan was to work with Emmy on all the loose ends, and tighten up all the plans that were already in motion. If I had gone to Sonoma…we all know that I would never have been as productive as I was in Sacramento. I also had the privilege of cooking a bit for the kids. I loved having Chris tell me how much he appreciated home cooked meals…I will cook for those kids anytime!! I can’t tell you how fast that first week flew! Blink, blink, and we were picking up the wedding dress, packing the car & driving to Sonoma for the week before the wedding activities.
One of the greatest concerns for us was the weather…that first week in Sacramento was nice enough, but the forecast was changing dramatically…rain, rain, and more rain! Heaps and heaps of rain with lovely bits of hail as well. Oh joy! Once we got to Sonoma, we had one last meeting with the cake baker, and then off to the site to meet up with the caterer and the photo booth vendor. We still were trying to assess whether or not we would rent an event tent…but seeing that the wind was howling through the site, it only took me one minute to make a decision to rent that tent. And, of course, Maryellen, the caterer helped me decide by telling me we really needed to define the space. Whilst we were checking out the barn I was having a difficult time envisioning simple décor…but after going through the layout with Neil & Maryellen, I was feeling a bit more confident that we could achieve a simple yet elegant décor for that very empty barn. The wedding site, with the views through the vineyard to the surrounding hills in the valley, would be what most people would take home with them…. It is like any re-do…the vision will come to life as you are able to get your ideas into action.
And action is what occupied us throughout the week. We even had an action register with people assigned to each action. So organized! First item on the list was a lovely bridal shower hosted by the maid of honor, Megan. I was in charge of organizing all of the food. Many thanks to my sisters, sister-in-laws, mother-in-law, and friends for bringing such delish food!! Megan put together such an amazing setting in her parent’s back yard. This girl knows how to set the scene…and every detail was carried out with finesse! There were 45 or 50 women in the family, and a few very close friends in attendance. It was definitely a great way to set the stage for the activities to follow throughout the week. Next time I have a party…I will be consulting with Megan!
After the bridal shower, all the girls headed out to San Francisco for the bachelorette party. They had a custom game that was designed by one of the bride’s maids…Michelle. It sounded very clever, and from their stories it sounded like they all enjoyed their night out with Emmy. I could not believe that some of the bachelorette party would get up so early and run in the Bay-to-Breakers, an annual SF event…but there was proof via Facebook, that Megan, Emmy, Leanna & Tracy got in their race outfits and started the race…good on ya girls! I did hear that they were thoroughly freaked out by all the naked, old men jogging/running along- side them…eek!
After the girls left the shower…I went off to my dear friend, Anne’s house. Ross came up from Alameda, and the three of us walked into town and had a lovely dinner together at Harvest Moon. Oh my! If you have never been there…it is fantastic! It was very crowded, but we were able to huddle under some over head heaters and enjoy the back garden before the rain let loose. And then the rain started…aaak! All night it poured!
Sunday, Ross went off to his company planned outing, and Anne & I went off to Inverness. My first wish was to be able to visit the spot where my mum was laid to rest. We had planted her favorite colored rhododendron, and I wanted to see that it was doing well. It was gorgeous! One of the flowers had come into full bloom, with many more buds getting ready to burst open…also, some very special person had found some more heart shaped stones and set them on the large heart shaped rock that was put near the rhododendron the day we had the burial service. It was a peaceful, beautiful visit. A very emotional moment for me…
I had also rallied a few girlfriends to brave the weather and join me on a hike to the top of Mt. Vision. At the start of our hike…we just had little spits of rain, and then it seemed to clear nicely for the majority of our climb up the mountain. This was a hike that I had done many times during my childhood, and I was honored to have Nichola and Lisa join me and Anne. We reached our picnic spot on the top of the mountain, overlooking the Point Reyes Peninsula just as a huge, black cloud was moving our way. Anne & Lisa came prepared with winter garb…I lent Nichola a waterproof jacket…and we all huddled around our picnic table as a fierce hail storm unloaded on us. I will have to say we laughed hare at the irony of the timing! What? Hail storms on Mt. Vision in May? We managed to eat our lunch, and set off for the return trip down the mountain. Not long after we left our picnic spot…the rain/hail stopped, and we enjoyed a gorgeous hike back down to Inverness. Oh what a special place Inverness is…very close to my heart!
As soon as we returned to Sonoma…the wedding work went into full gear! Emmy & I set out on a very rainy Monday to Santa Rosa to shop for decorating supplies at Michael’s Crafts, look at rental plants, and exchange some gifts that had been duplicated. That kind of shopping really drained me…when we were leaving the car park to head home in a driving rain storm…I had a panic attack! Was this rain ever going to go away? And were we going to be able to get this venue decorated and ready in time for Saturday? I couldn’t believe how calm Emmy was…hmmn…I was the one who was supposed to be keeping Emmy calm.
Relatives started arriving on Tuesday, the tent went up on Wednesday, a trip to the flower mart in SF was at o’dark hundred on Thursday, pedicures/manicures were scheduled for Friday as well as the wedding rehersal & dinner…and Saturday after hair and make up there were photos…lots of them before the wedding! All the time in between was spent on set up…
Thankfully, and army of friends and relies pulled together and helped out so we could achieve the setting! We have so many people to thank for their amazing generosity and support! Those thank you wishes will be personal…I am sure you all know who you are!
My mum must have been up in heaven helping out with the weather! Saturday was sunny and beautiful with a slight breeze! It was such fun to be able to be with Emmy & her girls getting ready for the ceremony. Lots of nervous jitters riveting through me…but I managed to keep my composure better than I thought I would. Before I knew it…the limousine arrived, and we were off to the wedding site for more pre ceremony photos. Laurie, our photographer, did an amazing job with all the photos…what an incredibly talented friend!
All the gorgeous guys had cleaned up, and donned their tuxedo’s…what a beautiful group of friends and relies! As soon as these photos were taken, Rob & the girls all went back to the limousine to have a little drive around while the guests began arriving. I had one little adjustment to my wedding outfit…a little surprise that I had kept from everyone. I had a custom hat made for me in NZ to go with my dress…a big surprise to most everyone! Joe & Denise and I welcomed the guests as they arrived…what fun catching up with all the friends and relies!! Very brief catch ups…and lots of love and happiness was flowing!
And then… the ceremony! Joe escorted both Denise & me down the aisle, then the bride’s maids & groomsmen…followed by the most adorable little ring bearer holding the hands of the two darling flower girls! One of the little flower girls got into throwing the rose petals down, while the other got upset and tried picking up the petals…soooo cute! And then…the aisle runner came down and our gorgeous Emmy on the arm of her Daddy. Gulp…got a big hitch in my heart, as tears started to escape…deep breath…and got that flow to stop briefly. Emmy & Chris were brilliant! There were some fun moments in the ceremony that had everyone giggling…as the feeling of love and support was incredible! In a very short time we were all cheering and welcoming Mr. & Mrs. Christopher Kirkwood! There was just so much happiness in my heart!!
Once this wedding started…there was only a good time to be had…and that we did! From the awesome setting, to the photo booth , the food, the wine, and the dancing!! Oh boy was the dancing a blast!! And of course it was fantastic to see family friends, and meet more family and friends. Emmy & Chris sure have some amazing people in their lives! It was a total shock when the DJ announced the last song…we wanted to dance for days! We stayed until the wee hours visiting with the late crowd and Tony & Christine…our friends that own the venue. It was all just the greatest party!
After the relatively easy clean up on Sunday, we gathered once again with family & friends in the Sonoma Plaza to have a chance to visit some before we all went off on our next journey. Emmy & Chris were going off to Whistler, B.C. for their honeymoon, and Rob & I were going off to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary in Sedona, Arizona. I have no idea how I was able to organize all of luggage…but being the early bird, I got up and started packing before we went to the venue to do the final clean up. Thankfully, Ross was able to hold on to our extra luggage at his cottage in Alameda until we flew back to NZ out of SFO.
So now I am on the plane about one hour out of AKL…I’ll be writing about Sedona in my next blog…as this post is getting on a bit in length…To all of you who were a part of the wedding times…thank you all for making Chris & Emmy’s wedding so special! It is a very special privilege to officially be a part of Chris’ wonderful family!