Going to the Chapel of Love

Just a quick comment on the above picture. We are from left to right Big Sis’ whose chubby cheeks make her look like a 10 year old child bride, Middle Sis who begs the question “Was she adopted?” and Little Sis who looks adorable but inexplicably somewhat angry.

Now for our story. In a few short months, (11 to be exact) Big Sis and her hubs will celebrate 50 years of wedded bliss. Yes, three kids, five grandchildren and lots of adventures later, they are still together. That is quite an accomplishment and it begs the obvious question…..where has the time gone?

Cue the soft music, and rewind back in time to the fateful day that they sealed their vows. After 49 years it’s a faded memory but Big Sis still has all her faculties and can recall a few vivid celebratory moments that she happily shares.

Smile But Keep Your Mouth Shut

Our special day dawned rather dark and cloudy. Rain was threatening and it was all together somewhat depressing. This was not a good omen…oh, lets just move on here. Who needs a weather report from 49 years ago? Let’s get to the heart of the matter. The fact is I have two very vivid recollections and of course they are more to do with odd or unexpected issues.

Although our love for each other knows no bounds, it is no secret that Little Sis and I are years apart….fourteen to be exact, hence we occasionally aren’t on the same page. Little Sis was six years old when I married and was in the beginning of what we dental professionals call a “mixed dentition”, meaning that she had no upper front teeth….. when she smiled, she displayed a huge gap.

Among the myriad of details that a blushing bride has to deal with, it occurred to me that this could be a possible issue when the wedding photos were taken, and I was having none of it. Little was given strict orders not to smile in any of the photos and just to make sure, I regularly reminded her. Of course years later I deeply regret that I inflicted such a terrible edict on an innocent child and hope that it hasn’t had any lasting mental health effects? .

Everything is Coming up Daisies

I mean that literally…. daisies were our wedding flower. Look closely at both my wedding dress and Middle and Little Sis’ dresses. Then look even more closely at our bouquets 🙁

As I mentioned previously, our special day started out cloudy, but if memory serves, it quickly became rather warm, and therein lay the problem. An error in delivery timing meant our bouquets were delivered a tad too early and it coincided with the rise in the outdoor temperature. Afraid that they would wilt in the heat, I sought counsel from Dad. He advised that he thought the flowers would keep if we put them in the freezer…. yes, you heard that right…. not the fridge, but the freezer! And I in my preoccupied and nervous state, did just that!

Of course panic ensued when we took the flowers out and within minutes they were turning brown. We had killed the daisies, but necessity is the mother of invention so we picked out the brown flowers and raided our neighbors garden. It was by no means spectacular and the bouquets were pitifully small and boring but at least there was some color mixed with a tinge of light brown.

In addition, I do want to comment on my wedding dress. In particular notice the delicate scallops on both the hem and neck. My veil was scattered with daisies as was the sheer overlay. At the time I thought it was exquisite but 49 years later, all I can think of is what a shame it no longer fits and was I ever really that petite? And how about the lovely hats that the bridesmaids wore? Yes, we were stylin’ 🙂

Looking back on that special day it’s hard to believe that so much time has passed. As the saying goes, time flies when you’re having fun and I know for sure I wouldn’t change a thing. I am blessed. And to my husband, as the song goes, “We’re still having fun and You’re still the one!”

And that is pretty much the sum of my recollections. Since I don’t have more to offer, I asked Middle and Little to regale you with their wedding memories.

There’s Something About A Man In Uniform

Being a only a few years behind Big Sis in the anniversary department, the specific details of our wedding day also tend to be a bit fuzzy, but there certainly are some moments that do stand out for me.

I first met my husband he was a young constable in the RCMP. When we decided to marry there was of course a lot of excitement, but I had no idea that I would have to satisfy the RCMP that I was in fact a bride worthy of joining the RCMP “family”. Understandably there were security checks for my immediate family but, in what would by today’s standards be considered way over the top, my husband-to-be had to officially ask for permission to marry me and prove that he was in a suitable financial position to marry. And this was just after they had dropped the requirement that a constable had to be in the RCMP for two years before even asking for permission to marry! He even had to ask permission to wear his dress uniform for our ceremony. After getting through all this, the actual wedding planning was a piece of cake (no pun intended).

Decisions, Decisions

Who doesn’t love a man in a uniform? I was (and still am) very proud of my husband’s vocation, and so I was excited when he received permission to wear his red serge dress uniform for our wedding. I’m sure this does not in any way factor into the RCMP decision making about their uniforms, but the fact that my husband was going to wear his red serge uniform made choosing the colors for our wedding quite simple – it would be red and blue or blue and red. After much deliberation I chose the blue and red combination. 🙂

And then there was the dress. I have never been one for a lot of frills and lace, but looking back, I think I maybe took it just a little too far in trying to avoid anything “frou frou.” The dress was made from a Vogue designer pattern and I remember thinking it looked so elegant, which it did on the model in the picture who was 6 feet tall and probably weighed 100 pounds. And let’s just say I am not 6 feet tall and I passed 100 pounds too long ago to remember. To the rescue, one of my bridesmaids tactfully suggested that the dress, while beautiful, could use a little more panache. Enter her mom who did a few tweaks to the fit, added a touch of lace and that was that.

We’re In the Movies

Given that our wedding was so many years ago, the technology to do a video did not exist as it does today. Nonetheless, we did have a neighbor who volunteered to use his Super 8 movie camera to record the day. Doing this meant a very bright spotlight had to be used for filming, which caused everyone to squint, making them look mildly confused. And with no sound in the movie, it was left to the imagination what was actually being said. Despite this, we are so thankful to have the movie as a record of our wedding day, particularly as the details get a little fuzzier each year.

Despite not being captured in our wedding movie, I do have a vivid memory from our reception. As was the norm in those days, dinner was followed by a dance and an open bar. You guessed it – plenty of opportunity for “over imbibing.” In this scenario it was one of the groomsmen who overindulged and decided he didn’t like the music the band was playing. Inexplicably, he also decided that picking a fight with the band was the best way to correct this and needless to say, raised voices and a bit of a donnybrook ensued. Fortunately, the other groomsmen quickly got things under control and the festivities resumed. Who knew that having groomsmen who were RCMP officers would come in so handy at a wedding?

And so here we are – almost 47 years married, two children and four grandchildren later and as the title of the Jimmy Stewart movie says…”Its A Wonderful Life! “

Always a Flower Girl, and Finally a Bride

Not too many people can claim that they were the Flower Girl at both of their sister’s weddings. I look back on it now, and realize it was pretty cool, but at the time, not so much.

I don’t remember too much about Big Sis’ wedding except that I could not wait to get out of that dress and go play with my friends. Maybe that’s why I look “inexplicably somewhat angry?” As for Middle Sis’s wedding I remember that at the time my best friend was the other Flower Girl. We stood beside each other and had a hard time to keep from laughing. When I look back on both weddings I can’t believe how popular I was. Unfortunately my career as a professional Flower Girl ended there. It wasn’t particularly financially rewarding anyway.

I met my husband when I was going to College, and well, College didn’t work out, but my marriage did. We dated for 7 years before we finally got married. I’m not sure why it took so long to decide to get married but nevertheless we eventually did. Now here is where things get a little fuzzy. I am a happily married and devoted spouse but I cannot for the life of me remember our exact wedding date. So lets just say I have been married somewhere between 29 and 30 years. Not quite as long as Big and Middle Sis, but I am sure we will get there.

Now, about the big day. I am sure all brides to be are nervous, but I’m not sure how many of them were worried if their future husband would be on time. You see in the 36-37 years I have known him, my husband was, has and likely never will be on time for anything. Luckily the morning was so busy that the picture in my mind of my husband running down the aisle at the last possible minute faded into the back ground.

Driving Me Crazy

When the time finally came to leave for the Church, my Mom, my Maid of Honor and I got into the car, with my Dad in the driver’s seat. Now, here is a little back story. My Dad was a terrible driver and that was no secret in our family. He liked to pump the brakes when approaching an intersection, pretty much always leaving the passengers in danger of getting whip lash.

So, on this special day as we approached a red light, we all got ready to brace ourselves, but instead of pumping the brakes, he decided to run the light, narrowly missing the car that was coming through the intersection. To the sound of a honking horn we all took a deep breath and thanked our lucky stars we were safe. Dad just kept on toodling along as if nothing had happened, oblivious to our obvious distress. I look back on that incident and cannot help but think that he was in a rush to get to the Church because finally his last of five children was getting married, and he no longer had to worry about me.

When we finally made it to the church with no visible injuries, I was able to breathe a sigh of relief when I saw that my future husband was on time, and waiting for me at the altar. As I walked down the aisle toward him, and he looked at me with adoring eyes (actually, he looked terrified) I felt beautiful in my stunning wedding dress….not! I had been talked into a style with puffy shoulders that made me look like a linebacker on a football team. It was totally out of my wheelhouse.

After the ceremony and all the legalities, it was time for pictures in the park behind the Church. I was feeling pretty good about being married and the setting was beautiful. However, my feet were killing me, I had a headache from the veil headpiece and I wanted to wipe off all my make up. If I had my choice I would have worn blue jeans and sneakers, and been married at City Hall but alas I couldn’t bring myself to do it so I kept a smile on my face and thanked everyone for their congratulations.

I have to say that I am very fortunate to have married the man I did. In all the time we have been together I have never cooked a meal, or gone grocery shopping. He takes care of all that, and all my friends are jealous because they know my husband is a “keeper.” Come to think of it though, I don’t do much of anything. No..wait..I do take Biscuit for walks and I bring an outstanding sense of humor, and an ability to do laundry and occasional vacuuming to our blissful marriage. Ours truly is a marriage made in heaven.

Once again, cue the soft music and the dream-like atmosphere as we return to reality, leaving these fond memories behind and the Sisterhood still wondering “where has the time gone?”

We plan on publishing a new post every Monday so stay tuned for our next one entitled “Meet Bartolio Sparkles”