Five years ago

Five years ago today, Tom and I were married.

It was a beautiful, sunny day, warmer than usual for mid-March. I spent the morning hanging out with Julee, Lindsee and Gretchen - Lin got her hair done while Julee and I went to Starbucks in the plaza the hair place was in, and then we all popped into the grocery store to get flowers for my bouquet and Tom's boutonniere.

Back to Gretchen's to put together the flowers and get dressed - Julee patiently did up all the buttons on the back of my dress - and a few pictures, then off to St. Mary's for the ceremony. I wasn't really nervous, but wanted to get the show on the road.

Evan and Sam walked their respective grandmothers up the aisle, then Lin and Mary walked. Madilyn brought up the rear with Gretchen, but half way up decided she was done and ran to her father. Finally, Andy gave me his arm and we walked up to where Tom and his dad were standing. The whole way up the aisle, Andy whispered things to me to make me smile and laugh, taking the edge of any tenseness I had. The smile on Tom's face when we stood beside him melted away any last bits of worry or fear I may have had.

I don't remember much about the ceremony itself. Mike Paris was there, serving on our wedding (and a few years later he stood up as Clara's Godfather). I played with my rosary and kept looking at Tom and everyone in the pews. I remember liking the sermon at the time but can't for the life of me tell you what Fr. Mike said.
I do remember tearing up a bit during our vows, but when the ring was put on my finger and we kissed, I also knew it was the best decision I had ever made, to marry this man.

Our reception was fun, just a really good time. When I arrived, Nick G, who was president of the association I worked at, was behind the bar mixing cocktails. People ignored the seating chart and just kind of flowed into the room, mixing our friends and family together in a way I couldn't have gotten right but that worked out for the best.

We had an awesome band, the food was good - Lisa and Laura made me a plate, took me by the hand, and made me sit down to eat, one on each side of me so they could chat with anyone who came by. At one point, Andy handed me a beer and said I needed to stay true to my PA roots. We didn't do any of the "traditional" reception things, the dances and toasts, because those things just weren't "us." Instead, it was more like a big cocktail party. My cousins and Tom's cousins got together to toast us with shots of tequila. Tom did a better job than I at making sure all of the guests were greeted and spoken to.

When it was over, a few friends and family remained and we relaxed around a table, chatting and laughing, while Patty took her turn with the tiny buttons on the back of that dress. I wrapped my shawl around me so I wouldn't flash everyone, and holding hands we headed home. In the parking lot of the hotel, a couple hockey teams were loading up onto buses; they stopped to "applaud" us by banging their sticks on the ground and the bus windows.

We went out to lunch today since Tom couldn't get off work, and we talked about about making it this far. And I told Tom honestly that at the heart of it is the fact that I like him, I like being with him and spending time with him. Yes I love him, but you can love people you don't really like, and we are lucky to have the like, the friendship, on top of the love. Don't get me wrong, there are days I would happily stick a fork in his head (and I am sure he would say the same about me) but in the end, when push comes to shove, when we are fed up with each other and work and life and everything... we like each other. And we love each other.

I can't believe 5 years have gone by. In some ways it seems like yesterday, in others it feels like we have been together forever. We got married fast - 9 months to the day of our first date, and we only dated 5 or 6 weeks when marriage was brought up. The past 5 years have not been easy, and parts have been downright hard. But we've stuck through it, and stuck together. And I don't regret a minute of it, and can't wait to see what the future brings.

Happy anniversary, Tom. I love you. With all my heart and soul.

My eBay dress, grocery store flowers, and H&M Headband

 

 

The wedding party. The "bridesmaids" are now teenagers, the "ushers" are turning into young men, and our flower girl is in kindergarten.

We did dance once at the reception, when Tom's cousin Michael stepped in for a song while the band was on break. Is it wrong that I look at this picture and see not only how happy we were but how awesome my arms were from karate?

One of my favorite pictures from the reception. Just relaxing and enjoying being together.

(All of these pictures were taken by a very talented young photographer named Maggie Winters. She was in high school when she photographed our wedding, and has since taken pictures of our kids - those awesome ones on the side of the blog... she took them. I can't recommend her enough. You can reach her on Facebook or through www.maggiewinters.com)