We are Family: My White Valentine Wedding (that I almost missed!): Part 1

With Jeff and Kim's wedding happening in less than a week, I've been feeling sentimental.

You know, I'm not exactly the sentimental type.

An auspicious wedding date

Spencer and I decided on a Valentine's Day wedding in 2008 for three reasons:

Because it is an easy date to remember.
He didn't want to wait anymore.
So everyone would think we are uber-romantic.

At that point, I'd not seen him for nearly five months. Five months prior, when he visited me in KL to celebrate my September birthday, he also sprung a very romantic proposal that we get married. I guess I said 'yes'. :)

Invitations

Mom suggested Faith Lutheran Church as our wedding venue. We loved that suggestion and went with it. Spencer invited everyone in the family, all his friends and colleagues, Mom and Dad's friends. Basically anyone he could think of. That came up to about 70 people hehe. Most everyone lived close by. Except Ma, Pa, my side of the family, and myself. :p

Cousin Yoonie designed the beautiful invites.

Behind the Scenes

Mom ordered the cake, wedding decorations, made cookies, prepped fruit and salad for the wedding and everything.
Chef Jeff cooked veg, beef and deer lasagna. He also doubled up as Spencer's Best Man. And he made assorted gourmet chocolates for the wedding favors.
Yoonie also designed and hand-crafted stunning boutonnieres, bridesmaid bouquets and the bridal party wedding table centerpieces. She also crafted the wedding favor thank you cards.
All the family chipped in to help. We couldn't have done this without them. Thank You Family.

Travel Plans

The plan was for me to fly in to Pittsburgh for the wedding, then we both fly to California for our honeymoon (at the same time spend some time with Beth who couldn't make it to the wedding).

Pa, Ma and Faith would be fly in to Pittsburgh a few days before the wedding. This would be after their tour of the Grand Canyon and their visit with Pastor Ray Johnson and family at Mustard Seed Ranch.

I missed my flight.

Yep. I wasn't feeling well, thus my brain wasn't working as well as it usually does. Which is to say, it wasn't working at all. I arrived at KLIA at 6 pm to get on plane to the US. But that plane that had left for the US at 6 am that morning.

Uh oh.

I was in imminent danger of missing my own wedding!

The nice MAS people let me on the first plane out next morning.

On his end, Spencer had a fine (read: awful) time rebooking my connecting flights.

It could have all gone horribly awry.

But we all know it didn't :)

I arrived in Pittsburgh after a 30 hour journey, two days before the wedding.

The Nights Before

We packed the chocolates Jeff made, into boxes for the guests.