Thursday night was the rehearsal dinner. Heather and I got ourselves all dressed up and then caught a ride to the dinner with our Aunt Diane. It was held at this cute little wine bar in Ann Arbor. We really enjoyed driving through downtown Ann Arbor - it felt very much like a college town (and made me miss Gainesville a little bit!) and we found it rather charming.
The dinner was great - delicious hors d'oeuvres, and even better wine! We had a great time catching up with family. Beth and her fiance Kevin seemed very happy and we enjoyed hearing the toasts made to the happy couple.
Beth and Kevin at the rehearsal dinner
My cousins and I closed the place down - we were the last ones left at the wine bar! We then left to go meet up with Beth and her friends at another local bar, only to find them on their way back to Beth's house. So, we decided to join them.
Heather and I on the streets of Ann Arbor after the rehearsal dinner
We ended up staying at Beth's house until the bride-to-be kicked us out, and understandably so! It was getting pretty late. The rest of the cousins then returned to the hotel and stayed up talking there until the wee hours of the morning. It was nice to catch up with all my cousins, since I don't get to see them very often.
Friday, Heather and I slept in a bit due to our late night on Thursday. When we got up, I introduced Heather to the wonderful show Dexter (my latest addiction), and then we got some lunch. Heather had to hurry up and get ready then, so she could leave early for the wedding to practice singing with the string trio for the ceremony. So, she left around 2:00 and I finished getting ready in time to catch the shuttle from the hotel to the ceremony at 3:00.
The ceremony was held in a beautiful garden. The weather was just gorgeous - perfectly sunny and not too hot (although it certainly did get warm sitting in the sun!). It really was a perfect day for a wedding.
Heather and I at the ceremony
Heather's VIP singer status got us great seats in the front row, so we had an unobstructed view of the good stuff. Beth looked just beautiful as a bride. She was escorted in by her brothers to Pachelbel's Canon, which made me a bit teary eyed, remembering what it feels like to walk down the aisle to your groom to that song.
Beth and her brothers
The ceremony itself was really lovely. Heather sang beautifully, as always, and Beth and Kevin looked so in love.
VIDEO: Heather singing "Amazing Grace"
The new Mr. and Mrs.!
After the ceremony, we moved directly into the reception hall. The room was full of character and really very nice. The food was delicious, and the couple served wine they had made themselves! I thought that added a great personal touch. A good time was had by all. And their cake was really good - chocolate cake with chocolate mousse filling and some sort of cherry glaze, topped with chocolate shavings. YUM!
The wedding cake!
Aren't they sweet?
Overall, the wedding was great, and I'm so happy for Beth and Kevin! Congratulations to the newlyweds!
Me with the newlyweds at the end of the evening
And, on the way back to the hotel after the wedding, we even got to see a few fireworks from the car! So that was a good way to end our Fourth of July. And, fireworks aside, the sunset was enough of a colorful show to suit my lit-up-sky-on-the-Fourth needs:
Sunset picture taken from the car on the way home - you can even see the tiny sliver of a moon in the sky!
After we got back to the hotel, Heather and I relaxed in the hotel hot tub for a bit then watched another episode of Dexter (seriously, great show!). Saturday morning we got up and packed up to leave, then had lunch together before catching a shuttle to the airport. And that was the end of our Michigan trip!
As an aside, I'd like to mention that our trip to Michigan was pretty educational for Heather and me. We learned some things about Michigan that we would not have known, including:
- The Detroit airport is unnecessarily ginormous and somewhat confusing (I had to ask for directions for how to get out!).
- Michigan gas stations do not sell beer. Sad, but true.
- Sometimes in Michigan, the temperature only gets up to 75 degrees or so, even in July.
- It stays light outside really late in Michigan.
This picture was taken at 9:45pm with no flash - it was really this light out at 9:45!
This is Heather being amazed at the amount of lightness for the time of night.
(It's also a good shot of Heather handling the "cold" Michigan temperatures...she's wearing my cousin Mike's suit jacket.)
So, that was our Michigan experience. Congrats again to Beth and Kevin! And, on a similar note, I'd also like to congratulate my cousin Jacob and his new fiance, Zita! I'm so happy for all my cousins!
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