Great Gratitude

Indulge me in one last wedding blog.

There is so much planning that goes into this one day event and it flies by so quickly. Truly each moment needs to be savored.

I want to salute the small businesses that helped make our day so incredibly special. They are simply The Best.

Rob's sister, Lani, was essential in connecting us to small business owners who were available the day after Christmas. She really took care of so many details that helped me plan the wedding.

She was my Matron of Honor, and I told her she would make the best wedding planner in PA ever! :)

Our cake was done by Pam Kakes from McAdoo, and everyone said it was the best cake they'd ever tasted.

The wedding topper, "Together" by Willow Tree, was given to us by Jerry and Patricia Kane, parents of our dear friend, Michael Kane.

Michael and his partner, Carl (above left), are our NY Family, including our Best Man, Ataman (far right). They're all an absolute treasure!

Michael ran the music for us, Carl read a piece for the wedding, and Ataman was the perfect Best Man. Such excellent support!

Flowers were done by Smith Floral, I don't think I've ever seen such lush, big red roses! They were awesome!

Prior to the wedding, we had a small handfasting, conducted by our friends, The Herb Sisters, aka Tina and Maryanne, whom we've known since our days in the Shakespeare troupe at the PA Renaissance Faire.

The Sisters created various hand-fasting keepsakes for us that were a testament to the great treasures they make daily from their home businesses. Maryanne adorned the cord with jewelry and beads that she makes in her Torchsong Studio. And the handfasting booklet was right out of the top quality print-work and research that goes into Tina's Essential Herbal Magazine.

I am so proud of these women and all they have accomplished. It was such an honor to have them conduct our hand-fasting.

Then we had the wedding at a lovely church called Faith UCC.

The pastor is a wonderful woman named Reverend Jane, and she was great at guiding us through the service.

The reception was at the deliciously divine restaurant called The Top of the 80's. We were in their Great Room, which is surround on 3 sides by windows overlooking the lush valley. Since we had misty rain that day, my brother said it was like being in a cloud, which I thought was appropriate since I was on Cloud 9 already! :)

The food was exceptional! Better than some of the fine dining restaurants in Manhattan! And the service was excellent. We were so well taken care of!

In fact, everything was so wonderfully taken care of for our wedding.

My Mom was an incredible help to us from the beginning.

My brother, Sean, was my Man of Honor, and he was fantastic at making sure everything was cool, smooth sailing.

Everyone involved was just phenomenal and made our day so very very special.

Thanks to everyone for sharing in this joy with us.