[ wedding! ]

sooooooo... my lovely friend, pamela, invites my husband, mike & me to a wedding! her brother in law, who has made a lot of money, is getting married in nyc & spending a lot on this affair.

i excitedly accepted!! who doesn't love a wedding? (especially a lavish one!) & i already had a classic dress that cost me an arm & a leg when i was single thats only been worn twice.

the wedding website (!!!) is forwarded so i can get all the details...

the day of the wedding arrives... i have planned things in military procedure, our sons, oscar 5 & flynn 3 are going for a sleep over. i've packed enough stuff to survive most major emergencies!  mike takes off early from work, i get a make over!

i feel a bit weird picking them up from school though... in my jeans & fancy up-do... & when someone asked me where i was going i really wanted to say, nowhere... i just fancied getting a 'do' to pick my kids!!

rush home, get dressed & we're off! mike in his tuxedo, me in my big dress...

after leaving the kids with our lovely friends, the kovacs, we get onto the turnpike & it wasn't until we were nearly at the lincoln tunnel that mike asks & i have no idea what made him ask it... it is black tie isn't it?

my response was of course it is ~ that's what the groom is wearing in the illustration on the wedding website... & it's at a really fancy place & a very extravagant function... i even back it by saying ~ i'm 110% sure it's black tie.

i look up the wedding website (!!!), right then, to double check... but i can't see it written anywhere... right at the same moment mike asks, you have seen it written somewhere haven't you? erm... i'll text pamela just to put your mind at ease... 10 seconds after the text went she calls me... no it's not black tie... all the men are wearing suits... just the groom will be in a tuxedo...

an exhausted mike, who has been working really long hours, says he can't go like this... people will think he works there & will be handing him glasses & ordering cocktails...

i'm sitting there letting the reality sink in... not just the tux fiasco... i have fringing feathers in my hair... i call up my lovely friend jenn, who has the kids, & announce it's not black tie, she can't hear me because of kid noise, again i say it's not black tie... after repeating that sentence several times she hears... there was an ooooh... followed by laughter!!! the whole thing is funny i have to admit...(well it is now!!) i really feel mikes pain & although the suggestions are heartfelt & appreciated, they weren't going to fix the situation... my dress cost way too much money to cut a couple of feet off the bottom... & taking off his jacket wasn't going to fly.

mike really wanted to go home, or just go for a meal on our own... i was beginning to think i really had just got a 'do' to pick the kids up! but i kept pushing... we were so close, we'd made a lot of effort, it would be ok once we got there, we just needed to change a couple of things...

mike suggested burlington coat factory, BRILLIANT idea, they have lots of suits & dresses for good prices. thank goodness we have a GPS ~ & there was one 5 minutes away from us! things were looking up... after sitting in traffic for another half an hour we made it there... what a total dive this store was... imagine the surprise of the other customers as we stroll in... i have to admit i did feel a tad over dressed...

mike went to the suits, i went to the dresses... unless i was spending the day at the beach, there was nothing appropriate ~ i head over to mike, who has found a really nice suit. we also grab a belt & he heads off to the fitting room... of course the trousers aren't hemmed... i ask at customer service if they have any pins? 'no' - tape? 'no'... mmmmmmmmm. as i walk away i suddenly think new shirts have pins in them... i open a couple of packets & pull out some...

good job mike is so tall ~ i think we can get away with not doing anything with the trousers!

we get back into the car after paying & i suddenly realize i don't have the usual bag with me ~ so i have no scissors to cut the million sewn on labels & tags... so we go back to the store & ask to borrow scissors ~ i was expecting a 'no', but hooray they have some!!! i suggest to mike to go back to the fitting room & get changed but he's not up for that... instead he strips off in the car lot!! i'm thinking this will be the next thing ~ we'll be arrested for indecent exposure!!! everything's good ~ mike looks great & off we go... i could down play my outfit, take the feathers out of my hair... but then i thought no... meghan, who did my hair, did a FABULOUS job... i'm not going to change anything!!

we finally arrive ~ not too late... we can hear the ceremony going on & both need a bathroom break before joining the other guests... a man in a tux came out of the bathroom & i was just about to say look mike! but then i noticed he had a walkie talkie in his hand...

we catch the end of the ceremony ~ get a drink from the bar, sit at a candlelit table overlooking the river, get offered lots of delicious nibbles from passing waiters, smile at each other & everything is good...

the wedding was really great! worth all the effort! there's nothing like good food, wine, dancing & friends!