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Monday, June 25, 2012

Chapter 1. The Wedding

The focus of my writings is usually not my family, but I have to make an exception.  My youngest son got married this past weekend and I am still on Cloud 9.  To see my son marry the girl of his dreams and to be the happiest I have ever seen him, made my heart sing. 

The wedding weekend (who celebrates for only one day anymore?) was centered arounbd our summer home in the mountains.  It started with the rehearsal dinner (or as we like to call it, the Welcom Dinner) at a local restaurant.  I decided that this was the best time to unveil "THE CHUPPAH".  No one had seen it before except my husband and the almost 100 women at my quilt guild!  So it was a surprise for everyone.  It also gave me the opportunity to explain how meaningful it is in the Jewish marriage ceremony.

The bride and groom

Whenever you have an outdoor event, the big elephant in the room is the weather.  We tried not to talk about a PLan B, thinkging a positive attitude would keep bad weather away.  The days before the wedding, it was stinking hot and there was a threat of thunderstorms.  But it tuned out to be one of the most beautiful days ever.  It had rained a bit the day before and that cooled it off.

As MOTG on the wedding day, my list was short. First, I directed my son, Roger, and his buddy Scott, on the hanging of the flags in the yard. Loren and I had made the 150 flags during their visit on  Memorial Day weekend. 




While we were setting up the yard, my DH was doing one of the things that he loves to do - teaching a child to fish:

My great nephew's first fish  (Don't you love that red hair?)

My second job was to set up the chuppah. My DH and I had a plan that we had been working on for 2 weeks.  We thought it was a great plan.  (Tomorrow's post will give all the details of how it was set up with some close-ups.)  We even had  a plan to deal with the wind, anchoring the chuppah to the dock so that it would not act as a sail.  But wind can be mighty. It took a bunch of us and a bit of adjusting to make sure that the chuppah did not end up in the lake.  Even the Rabbi got involved.

Thankfully it did not blow away before the ceremony.

Rabbi Hyman is a family friend.  He has known my son since he was 12.  Currently the rabbi at Temple B'nai Israel in Easton, MD, he drove over 4 hours to perform the ceremony.  He then turned around and drove back home to perform another wedding in MD the next morning.  We love him and he made the ceremony so meaningful and personal.  At one point he stepped outside of the chuppah to talk to all the guests about the symbolism and what it means in the Jewish religion.  Roger wore the tallit that we bought on our trip to Israel.

Before the ceremony, we were talking about  some other items we brought back from Israel.  One of them was a handmade mezuzzah that we had not mounted yet.  It has a scroll inside with a handwritten prayer that blesses your house.  So the coolest thing was the Rabbi said, where is it?  I'll hang it for you.  OMG  Did he mean that? 
Yes he did! And he blessed it too.

After the ceremony, we all headed to a restaurant/hotel in the town of Hawley, called The Ledges.
There are multi-level decks with a view  of a waterfalls.  The bride designed the tablescapes and they were gorgeous. 



On one of the decks was the band. 

The first dance.

 I think I talked non-stop during the Mother/Son dance because I wanted to forget that everyone was watching us.




The bride bought the cake topper on etsy.  It fit the woodsy theme perfectly.
And the cake was delish.  I waited all night for a piece.

A friend of the bride's family decorated the car.



I am so excited for this couple to begin their journey together with a lifetime of love and happiness.
2 sons + 2 wonderful wives = happiness

Chapter 2. - The Chuppah
Details to follow tomorrow.

14 comments:

  1. Congratulations! Looks like it was a wonderful day full of love and happiness!

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  2. Congrats MOG! I know what a wonderful day it must have been! I love the chuppah! Im helping my sister plan a Nov wedding so am especially interested to see everyting about others.

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  3. You knew that I had to check your blog all day today waiting to hear all of the wedding details. I love each photo and the happiness for all of you is so obvious. Congratulations on making Roger and Loren's wedding so special with the beautiful Chuppah.

    HV

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  4. What a beautiful place for a wedding, love how they got married on the dock with your beautiful Chuppah and the waterfall setting was perfect to end the day. Certainly a day to remember.

    Debbie

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  5. congrats and thank you for sharing your personal joys, those joys are what add to the artistic soul. I love your smile while dancing with your son!

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  6. Everything looks so pretty! A gorgeous setting for a wedding. The Chuppah looks perfect. The bride and groom look absolutely beautiful together. I am so glad everything went the way it was planned and the day turned out to be gorgeous for you all.
    Congratulations!

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  7. Cheryl, everything looked wonderful especially the Chuppah!
    Roger and Loren look very happy, the setting for the reception was beautiful, love the water falls too.
    Congratulations to the happy couple!

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  8. How awesome! What can I say? This is a wonderful post about a wonderful day. Congratulations to the happy couple!

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  9. I can't say thank you enough to my new mother-in-law! The day was gorgeous and somehow went off without a hitch! I think it says a lot about you that you thought your list was short. You designed and made that beautiful chuppah, planned and executed the rehearsal dinner, helped me with linens, my veil, and lots of planning, and opened your home to me and my family. That's more than I'll ever be able to say thank you enough for!

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  10. The Chuppah is so beautiful. It looked like a glorious day for wedding.

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  11. Cheryl - The wedding day looks like it was a glorious event! You can tell there is welcoming arms for the newest member of your family... Frankie

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  12. Wow! What great pictures. Everyone looks sooooo happy! You look great in the pic with Roger! The chuppah is beautiful and the lake, trees and the sunshine...what a beautiful place to get married. I love how so many of the decorations were made by family members too. It just makes everything more personal. Thank you for sharing your photos and family with us. I wish the newlyweds much happiness! You too!

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  13. Thanks so much for sharing the beautiful wedding photos. You look so beautiful dancing with your handsome son! What a blessed day you all had! The Chuppah leaves me speechless. What a lovely and loving gift for the bride and groom, it is even more beautiful than I imagined. I'm sorry I missed last month's Guild meeting . . .

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