In Love
The Wedding Chapel
Mr & Mrs Paul
Reception
Chris - Mom - Robenna
Nancy - Mary - Chris
Robenna & Becky
July 21, 2007
Our Wedding
Wedding Photograph
The Story of the Wedding Cake...
Doug was supposed to pick up the cake after he got off work. The bakery was 2 blocks from where he works. Anyway he gets home and I ask where is the cake? His response was, "You forgot to remind me." So I get in the truck and drive 15 miles across town to the bakery. Once I get there, they are looking all over for the cake and finally find it in the refrigerator (where all the other cakes are). I'm watching the lady get the cake and she drops it on the floor. I just looked at her and shook my head. She scoops the cake up off the floor and heads to the back room. I see all this and tell another lady standing there - that I don't want that cake after it had been on the floor. She then says 'oh no we can't give that cake to you after it was on the floor.' She tells me to have a seat and someone will be out to talk to me.
The girl that drops the cake finally comes out and says "I don't know what happen" I look at her her and said "I do - you picked it up and it flopped out of the box and hit the floor". The baker behind the counter in now almost in tears from suppressed laugher at my remark. I look at him and he says "I'm sorry - I know it's not funny - it's just the way you said it." I said, "well that's what happened. I don't know why she told me she didn't know what happened." He then tries to give me pieces of desserts from the display case. I keep saying I don't want anything - just get the cake ready.
I am told they will redo the cake and deliver it. I asked them where they would deliver it to and they told me wherever I would like it to be delivered. I them told them I did not know where I would be - home, Luxor or the Chapel. I was then told they would have it would be ready in 45 minutes if I wanted to wait. I said ok.
After an hour and 15 minutes the cake is ready. I told the girl that dropped it not to touch it, I would take it to the truck myself. So I get the cake put it in the truck and drive another 15 miles back home. I took the cake inside and that's when the phone calls from my Mother and Aunt start! They want to know where I'm at and why I'm not at the Luxor. I told them to just give me a few minutes to regroup after my trip across town. I finally get a shower and the phone calls are still coming. So I finally told them I was on my way. I gather up my dress, shoes, makeup, hair stuff and of course the cake. So Mary and I (and the cake) head to the Luxor. I drop Mary off at one of the entrances and try to find a parking place. The phone calls are still coming in. My Mother says to valet park and I told her they were full. I finally find a place to park and go to get ready. I leave the cake all alone in the baking Vegas sun in the truck hoping it does not melt all over the back seat.
We then go to the Chapel with the cake and it gets to stay in the hot truck a little longer. Then we're off to eat with the cake still in the truck. After diner me and the cake head home. It is starting to look a little haggard. So I finally get home and put it in the icebox.
Two days later after all the company has left I told Doug we are having a piece of our wedding cake. He asks if I think it is still good. I told him "it does not matter - we are having a piece." Surprisingly, it was still good and we eat it over the next week.
The girl that drops the cake finally comes out and says "I don't know what happen" I look at her her and said "I do - you picked it up and it flopped out of the box and hit the floor". The baker behind the counter in now almost in tears from suppressed laugher at my remark. I look at him and he says "I'm sorry - I know it's not funny - it's just the way you said it." I said, "well that's what happened. I don't know why she told me she didn't know what happened." He then tries to give me pieces of desserts from the display case. I keep saying I don't want anything - just get the cake ready.
I am told they will redo the cake and deliver it. I asked them where they would deliver it to and they told me wherever I would like it to be delivered. I them told them I did not know where I would be - home, Luxor or the Chapel. I was then told they would have it would be ready in 45 minutes if I wanted to wait. I said ok.
After an hour and 15 minutes the cake is ready. I told the girl that dropped it not to touch it, I would take it to the truck myself. So I get the cake put it in the truck and drive another 15 miles back home. I took the cake inside and that's when the phone calls from my Mother and Aunt start! They want to know where I'm at and why I'm not at the Luxor. I told them to just give me a few minutes to regroup after my trip across town. I finally get a shower and the phone calls are still coming. So I finally told them I was on my way. I gather up my dress, shoes, makeup, hair stuff and of course the cake. So Mary and I (and the cake) head to the Luxor. I drop Mary off at one of the entrances and try to find a parking place. The phone calls are still coming in. My Mother says to valet park and I told her they were full. I finally find a place to park and go to get ready. I leave the cake all alone in the baking Vegas sun in the truck hoping it does not melt all over the back seat.
We then go to the Chapel with the cake and it gets to stay in the hot truck a little longer. Then we're off to eat with the cake still in the truck. After diner me and the cake head home. It is starting to look a little haggard. So I finally get home and put it in the icebox.
Two days later after all the company has left I told Doug we are having a piece of our wedding cake. He asks if I think it is still good. I told him "it does not matter - we are having a piece." Surprisingly, it was still good and we eat it over the next week.
Wedding Cake
This is the infamous wedding cake that never quite made it to the wedding.
Nancy's Memories of the CAKE
Here’s what I remember…
On Bo’s wedding day, she, Jo Ann and I planned to spend a leisurely afternoon doing our hair, makeup, nails, etc.. After all, we were dressing for a Las Vegas wedding…Elvis style! Daryl was with us, but he promised to get dressed quickly and get out. He’d wait for us in one of the many hotel bars. That is the fairy tale version, here’s what actually happened. Bo (the bride) called to say that although Doug (the groom) was tasked with picking up the wedding cake on his way home from work (yes…he worked on his wedding day!), he had failed to carry out the assignment. Instead of sending him back to correct his wedding day faux pas, Bo decided to forgive him, especially after he explained that his forgetfulness was really her fault because she didn’t remind him. Although she was the bride…the star of the day, she elected to drive across town and pick up the cake herself. After all, what bride isn’t so taken with her groom that she will forgive him anything?
For reasons explained below, picking up the cake became a several hour long nightmare that involved a dropped cake and rush hour traffic. Jo Ann and I began to pace sometime around mid-afternoon…and yes, we made a few anxious calls to the bride to ask, “Where are you?”. When time had dwindled down to less than one hour before the wedding and the bride was still a no-show, Jo Ann and I began to experience some feelings of anxiety, which eventually gave way to full-on panic. This is a good time to mention that one cannot be late for one’s wedding appointment at a Las Vegas wedding chapel. They don’t “hold” your appointment, the cattle call simply moves on without you, never missing a beat. There is no plan B. Also, we had reservations for a post wedding dinner at the Luxor. Jo Ann had paid a hefty deposit to hold the reservation.
Eventually, Jo Ann, Daryl and I dressed ourselves in our wedding finery so that we could concentrate on the bride if/when she arrived. It didn’t take long for us to begin to “wilt”. Remember, it was the dead of summer in Las Vegas. About 30 minutes to show time, the bride called to say she was finally on her way. She had in tow her future sister-in-law and the infamous wedding cake. Jo Ann directed her to go straight to valet parking to save time. She said OK, but soon called again, this time with the message that valet parking was full and she was driving to the resort parking lot. For those unfamiliar with casino parking lots, let me just say that a two mile hike from the lot to the casino is not unusual. The bride also asked if someone could meet her future sister-in-law in the lobby and make sure she got to the wedding. Jo Ann and Daryl headed to the lobby to locate the future family member and hail a cab. Miraculously that actually happened, they managed to find each other amid the throngs of feverish gamblers. I stayed back to help the bride get dressed.
When I heard the knock, I ripped open the door and there she was, the missing bride. She was carrying her dress, undergarments, shoes, makeup, curling iron, everything but the wedding cake. She explained that she couldn’t carry it without an extra set of arms. The beautiful wedding cake was sitting down in her truck…baking in an interior that would surely heat up to 200 degrees. OK, forget the cake, we had exactly FIVE MINUTES to spend on hair, makeup and attire. I did the fastest makeup and hair job on record. We threw her into the perfect Las Vegas-wedding-in-the-summer dress…a white cotton halter dress with lovely black embroidery around the neckline…very old Hollywood glamour. We finished off the ensemble with some elegant earrings and black/white flip-flops. At last…the bride was ready! As we rushed down to the front of the hotel to grab a cab and hightail it over to the chapel, the bride suddenly remembered a very important detail. The marriage license was lying on the seat of her truck, right next to the cake…you know…the truck parked out in the south forty…the one whose interior was cheerfully heating up to 200 degrees. We looked at each other, picked up our fancy skirts and started sprinting. We ran at breakneck speed through acres of slot machines, knocking over any one that got in our way. Exhausted, sweaty and red-faced, we finally made it to the truck and jumped in. The bride fired up the diesel engine and roared on to Las Vegas Boulevard…Jeff Gordon would have been proud. Just minutes later we squealed into the chapel parking lot. We definitely made an entrance, and we arrived with a few seconds to spare!! Fifteen minutes later, the wedding was completed. We had all survived and so had the wedding cake, although it was listing slightly to the side.
On Bo’s wedding day, she, Jo Ann and I planned to spend a leisurely afternoon doing our hair, makeup, nails, etc.. After all, we were dressing for a Las Vegas wedding…Elvis style! Daryl was with us, but he promised to get dressed quickly and get out. He’d wait for us in one of the many hotel bars. That is the fairy tale version, here’s what actually happened. Bo (the bride) called to say that although Doug (the groom) was tasked with picking up the wedding cake on his way home from work (yes…he worked on his wedding day!), he had failed to carry out the assignment. Instead of sending him back to correct his wedding day faux pas, Bo decided to forgive him, especially after he explained that his forgetfulness was really her fault because she didn’t remind him. Although she was the bride…the star of the day, she elected to drive across town and pick up the cake herself. After all, what bride isn’t so taken with her groom that she will forgive him anything?
For reasons explained below, picking up the cake became a several hour long nightmare that involved a dropped cake and rush hour traffic. Jo Ann and I began to pace sometime around mid-afternoon…and yes, we made a few anxious calls to the bride to ask, “Where are you?”. When time had dwindled down to less than one hour before the wedding and the bride was still a no-show, Jo Ann and I began to experience some feelings of anxiety, which eventually gave way to full-on panic. This is a good time to mention that one cannot be late for one’s wedding appointment at a Las Vegas wedding chapel. They don’t “hold” your appointment, the cattle call simply moves on without you, never missing a beat. There is no plan B. Also, we had reservations for a post wedding dinner at the Luxor. Jo Ann had paid a hefty deposit to hold the reservation.
Eventually, Jo Ann, Daryl and I dressed ourselves in our wedding finery so that we could concentrate on the bride if/when she arrived. It didn’t take long for us to begin to “wilt”. Remember, it was the dead of summer in Las Vegas. About 30 minutes to show time, the bride called to say she was finally on her way. She had in tow her future sister-in-law and the infamous wedding cake. Jo Ann directed her to go straight to valet parking to save time. She said OK, but soon called again, this time with the message that valet parking was full and she was driving to the resort parking lot. For those unfamiliar with casino parking lots, let me just say that a two mile hike from the lot to the casino is not unusual. The bride also asked if someone could meet her future sister-in-law in the lobby and make sure she got to the wedding. Jo Ann and Daryl headed to the lobby to locate the future family member and hail a cab. Miraculously that actually happened, they managed to find each other amid the throngs of feverish gamblers. I stayed back to help the bride get dressed.
When I heard the knock, I ripped open the door and there she was, the missing bride. She was carrying her dress, undergarments, shoes, makeup, curling iron, everything but the wedding cake. She explained that she couldn’t carry it without an extra set of arms. The beautiful wedding cake was sitting down in her truck…baking in an interior that would surely heat up to 200 degrees. OK, forget the cake, we had exactly FIVE MINUTES to spend on hair, makeup and attire. I did the fastest makeup and hair job on record. We threw her into the perfect Las Vegas-wedding-in-the-summer dress…a white cotton halter dress with lovely black embroidery around the neckline…very old Hollywood glamour. We finished off the ensemble with some elegant earrings and black/white flip-flops. At last…the bride was ready! As we rushed down to the front of the hotel to grab a cab and hightail it over to the chapel, the bride suddenly remembered a very important detail. The marriage license was lying on the seat of her truck, right next to the cake…you know…the truck parked out in the south forty…the one whose interior was cheerfully heating up to 200 degrees. We looked at each other, picked up our fancy skirts and started sprinting. We ran at breakneck speed through acres of slot machines, knocking over any one that got in our way. Exhausted, sweaty and red-faced, we finally made it to the truck and jumped in. The bride fired up the diesel engine and roared on to Las Vegas Boulevard…Jeff Gordon would have been proud. Just minutes later we squealed into the chapel parking lot. We definitely made an entrance, and we arrived with a few seconds to spare!! Fifteen minutes later, the wedding was completed. We had all survived and so had the wedding cake, although it was listing slightly to the side.
JoAnn's Memories of the CAKE ... and more ...
First off, I must say that the wedding cake was only a part of this fiasco. I'd like to start with our arrival for the big day. Bo picked us up (Nancy, Darryl & myself) at the airport and took us home with her.
Doug was at work.
Shortly after we got to her house, she had to return to the airport to pick up her future sister-in-law Mary and her son, Chris. She brought them home too. We were introduced to Mary & Chris.
Doug was at work.
Mary's arms were tatooed which had me up in arms. I think they had spent many hours on standby trying to get to Las Vegas and were tired & before long retired to the bedrooms to get some sleep.
Doug was at work.
We had some lunch and I believe we were readying ourselves to go to the hotel shortly thereafter. I asked Bo where she had made reservations for the wedding dinner. She said she hadn't made up her mind. I think I may have muttered something under my breath like; "this is my Bo, always a challenge." I clicked into panic mode and Nancy & I ran downtown hoping to make arrangements with a 24 hour notice. I remember thinking it was like making a silk purse out of a sow's ear. A near impossible job. But we managed to somehow pull it off.
Doug was at work.
Oh, the world of Las Vegas. They're used to working on a moment's notice. The plan was for Bo to come to the Luxor Hotel (where we were staying) that following day about noon so we could all get dressed, do makeup and nails for the evening wedding.
Doug was at work.
Noon came, then one o'clock, then two o'clock. I called again for about the 10th time. Doug had made it home but had forgotten to pick up the cake. Bo drove across town to pick up the cake. The lady in the bakery dropped the cake. Bo may or may not have been cool but she waited for them to put humpty-dumpty together again. I thought and may have shared the thought that if they planned on having children, I wasn't at all sure I could let Doug live that long.
One hour before the wedding, I was frantically pacing the lobby of the hotel and Bo was trying to find a parking place. Another call and she said she couldn't do Valet parking as I had strongly (very strongly) suggested because that parking lot was full. She said she had dropped Mary off at the hotel entrance and would go park somewhere. I was charged with finding Mary. By that time, I couldn't even recall what Mary looked like. I called Darryl in the room and had him come down to the lobby to find Mary. I think I actually barked at Darryl but he remained calm , probably out of fear that I was going off the deep end. All I could think of was that she had tatoos on her arms. Darryl told me those tatoos were just the sleeves on the shirt she had been wearing the day before. I just rolled my eyes and told him he was on his own in finding Mary.
Bo came saundering into the hotel lobby, wearing shorts, flipflops and carrying her wedding dress and accessories, wet hair. no make-up. Holy 'Cow' !!! I thought I was going to stroke out but Bo felt we were doing fine. I didn't think it was possible to get her ready in 15 minutes and on to the chapel. She said the cake was still in the truck. I said something close to but not quite "forget the cake". I gave her my card key to the elevators and sent her off to the the 13th floor. I called Nancy and said good luck, get Bo dressed, grab a cab and get her to the chapel on time. Darryl found Mary & we hailed a cab and headed to the chapel.
Later I found out that Bo had left the marriage license in the truck along with the cake so she and Nancy hiked out to the parking in their finery in 115 degrees of heat, jumped in the truck and came roaring into the parking lot of the wedding chapel with about two minutes to spare. The actual wedding went off without a hitch. Following the wedding, Nancy retrieved the cake and took it to the hotel room. Why? We didn't know. We were on full throttle and just had to keep moving. Nancy said the cake was so heavy, she thought she developed carpel tunnel.
The wedding dinner also went off without a hitch. Later that night, we collapsed in the room from sheer exhaustion (more mental than physical, no doubt). About midnight, Nancy & I staggered down to the the hotel bar and drank martinis until the pounding subsided. Life is good.
Oh, by the way, did I tell you that Doug was at work?
Doug was at work.
Shortly after we got to her house, she had to return to the airport to pick up her future sister-in-law Mary and her son, Chris. She brought them home too. We were introduced to Mary & Chris.
Doug was at work.
Mary's arms were tatooed which had me up in arms. I think they had spent many hours on standby trying to get to Las Vegas and were tired & before long retired to the bedrooms to get some sleep.
Doug was at work.
We had some lunch and I believe we were readying ourselves to go to the hotel shortly thereafter. I asked Bo where she had made reservations for the wedding dinner. She said she hadn't made up her mind. I think I may have muttered something under my breath like; "this is my Bo, always a challenge." I clicked into panic mode and Nancy & I ran downtown hoping to make arrangements with a 24 hour notice. I remember thinking it was like making a silk purse out of a sow's ear. A near impossible job. But we managed to somehow pull it off.
Doug was at work.
Oh, the world of Las Vegas. They're used to working on a moment's notice. The plan was for Bo to come to the Luxor Hotel (where we were staying) that following day about noon so we could all get dressed, do makeup and nails for the evening wedding.
Doug was at work.
Noon came, then one o'clock, then two o'clock. I called again for about the 10th time. Doug had made it home but had forgotten to pick up the cake. Bo drove across town to pick up the cake. The lady in the bakery dropped the cake. Bo may or may not have been cool but she waited for them to put humpty-dumpty together again. I thought and may have shared the thought that if they planned on having children, I wasn't at all sure I could let Doug live that long.
One hour before the wedding, I was frantically pacing the lobby of the hotel and Bo was trying to find a parking place. Another call and she said she couldn't do Valet parking as I had strongly (very strongly) suggested because that parking lot was full. She said she had dropped Mary off at the hotel entrance and would go park somewhere. I was charged with finding Mary. By that time, I couldn't even recall what Mary looked like. I called Darryl in the room and had him come down to the lobby to find Mary. I think I actually barked at Darryl but he remained calm , probably out of fear that I was going off the deep end. All I could think of was that she had tatoos on her arms. Darryl told me those tatoos were just the sleeves on the shirt she had been wearing the day before. I just rolled my eyes and told him he was on his own in finding Mary.
Bo came saundering into the hotel lobby, wearing shorts, flipflops and carrying her wedding dress and accessories, wet hair. no make-up. Holy 'Cow' !!! I thought I was going to stroke out but Bo felt we were doing fine. I didn't think it was possible to get her ready in 15 minutes and on to the chapel. She said the cake was still in the truck. I said something close to but not quite "forget the cake". I gave her my card key to the elevators and sent her off to the the 13th floor. I called Nancy and said good luck, get Bo dressed, grab a cab and get her to the chapel on time. Darryl found Mary & we hailed a cab and headed to the chapel.
Later I found out that Bo had left the marriage license in the truck along with the cake so she and Nancy hiked out to the parking in their finery in 115 degrees of heat, jumped in the truck and came roaring into the parking lot of the wedding chapel with about two minutes to spare. The actual wedding went off without a hitch. Following the wedding, Nancy retrieved the cake and took it to the hotel room. Why? We didn't know. We were on full throttle and just had to keep moving. Nancy said the cake was so heavy, she thought she developed carpel tunnel.
The wedding dinner also went off without a hitch. Later that night, we collapsed in the room from sheer exhaustion (more mental than physical, no doubt). About midnight, Nancy & I staggered down to the the hotel bar and drank martinis until the pounding subsided. Life is good.
Oh, by the way, did I tell you that Doug was at work?