Better Late Than Never

This past Memorial Day Weekend, The Boy and I celebrated our first second anniversary, which is to say that we celebrated the first anniversary of our second wedding. (You might recall that we eloped to Japan two years ago, but that's a whole other story I'll get to one day.) Since I haven't posted a thing about the wedding since the week after, I thought that it would be nice to commemorate the occasion by finally sharing with you all some of my favorite pictures and things from that weekend.

We wanted to kick off the weekend with things that were near and dear to our heart - family, friends, and good ol' fashion Southern BBQ. So the rehearsal dinner was really a laid back Welcome BBQ picnic for all our guests. (And besides, what's a Memorial Day Weekend without a BBQ?) Kudos to my wonderful mother-in-law for arranging such a wonderful evening. It was exactly what we wanted - simple and fun. And the setting was perfect. With the help of my amazing Uncle Paul D., she arranged for the picnic to take place at Natchez Bluff Park which has stunning views of the Mighty Mississippi River. The menu was yummy pulled pork and BBQ chicken with all the fixin's provided by the outstanding Pig Out Inn.

{The Boy and I with my Matron and Maid of Honor}

{What a view!}

{With my oldest nephew, godson, and ring barer.}

{My middle nephew and "crane barer" with a fan
The Pig Out Inn provided. The fans were big hits.}

{With the amazing Uncle Paul D.}

{The Boy and I chatting with guests. Notice how patriotic we are.}

{You can't really tell, but the people in this picture are playing croquet.
When I was little, my mother's family spent late summer afternoons on the lawn
of my grandfather's old Victorian home to play this game. After, when it got dark
enough, we would catch fireflies under the big, ancient oaks.}

{A few guests wait for dinner to begin.}

{My precious Miniature Schnauzer Ziggy even put in an appearance.}

{As you can tell from the haze in the background and our
generally melted appearance, it was a pretty typical
hot and humid Mississippi evening.}

Once the eating started, the picture taking stopped, so there aren't that many. My eternal thanks to my sister and The Groomsman who were kind and thoughtful enough to snap the few we have. Thanks again guys!


***UPDATE***
For all you other cost conscience brides out there, it seems that our efforts and desire to have a simple, meaningful, intimate wedding without being ostentatiously over the top is rubbing off on the LA crowd. In an article posted online on Monday, The NY Times says that more SoCal brides are looking for "authenticity" on their big day. Of course, the wedding industry has picked up on this and "simple" does not equal "inexpensive". The weddings in the article still cost between $150,000 and $200,000, which is kind of insane when you read about the the bride and groom serving French Fries and cobbler on burlap draped picnic tables. Which I'm sure was all very charming and lovely, but still insane.