Takin’ a Break for a Meme

A Wedding Meme

1. Where/how did you meet? Online in a chat room in the summer of 1995.

2. How long have you known each other? that would be almost 13 years.

3. How long after you met did you start dating? After a visit he made to my house in January 1996.

4. How long did you date before getting engaged? Only a few months – we were engaged by May 1996.

5. How long was your engagement? Almost a full year – we were married in mid-April 1997.

6. How long have you been married? This April it will be 11 years!

7. What is your anniversary? April 19

8. How many people came to your wedding reception? Hmm. 150? 200? I honestly don’t remember. The bulk of them were my parents’ friends. Besides the family tables we both had, I think three tables were my friends, and 1 table was Denis’ friends.

9. What kind of cake did you serve? It was a great cake. The best layers was the chocolate mousse layer. YUM. We also had a yellow cake with strawberry filling. don’t remember the third one.

10. Where was your wedding? At Truro Episcopal Church in Fairfax, Virginia.

11. What did you serve for the meal? We had a buffet that included brunch and lunch offerings since our wedding was late in the morning. I ate very little of it since I was making the rounds of all the guests to thank them for coming.

12. How many people were in your bridal party? My sister, a close friend, a college friend and a high school friend. Denis’ groomsmen were all friends of his. We also had a flower girl and ring bearer.

13. Are you still friends with them? I am still friends with them – I was in the wedding of my close friend, and I still email with all of them semi-regularly. Denis still talks to all his groomsmen and is planning on a trip to NYC to hang out with them this summer.

14. Did your spouse cry during the wedding ceremony? Denis did not cry, but I BAWLED LIKE A BABY. It’s all Cakes’ fault. He came and brought two other friends of ours from college and I was so touched that they came, I lost it as soon as I walked through the doors into the sanctuary of the church. Proceeded to continue crying through the whole thing.

15. Most special moment of your wedding day? I know this will sound weird, but having the opportunity to meet up in a nearby bar after the reception was long over and hang out playing pool with our friends that had come such a long distance for the wedding. We all got to let our hair down, drink some cocktails and just have fun. It was awesome.

16. Any funny moments? My friend Kirby and I once again doing full scenes of dialogue from “Mommie Dearest” at the request of some guests.

17. Any big disasters? Not that I know of – the potential for bad weather was there since it SNOWED the day before the wedding, but fortunately it cleared up overnight and ended up being a PERFECT day – the snow melted away and turned everything green and luscious for the photographs.

18. Where did you honeymoon? A cruise to Mexico (which we both hated) followed by 3-4 days in Los Angeles (which was a blast).

19. For how long? The cruise was a week, then 3-4 days in L.A.

20. If you were to do your wedding over, what would you change? I would have made the reception a lot less formal. I don’t know what I was thinking, but after the fact I wished I had gotten my deejay pals to set up their turntables and play dance music for at least a couple hours.

21. What side of the bed do you sleep on? As you look at the bed, I’m in the right.

22. What size is your bed? King, baby!

23. Greatest strength as a couple? Entertaining. We throw a GREAT party and work well as a team. While we have varied interests, we have a few key ones that bring us together – like going to plays, for instance, and a love for music.

24. Greatest challenge as a couple? Me communicating without seeming to accuse, and Denis needing to realize that I have the best of intentions even if it comes out wrong.

25. Who literally pays the bills? We both do. Not just financially, but also the physical act of writing the checks.

26. What is your song? I would say anything by the Monkees, since that’s the topic of the first conversation we ever had in the chat room.

27. What did you dance your first dance to? No idea, since Denis doesn’t dance.

28. Describe your wedding dress. gorgeous. Very classical lines, with a very Jackie Kennedy collar. Short sleeve, fitted waist, medium-long train. Shoulder-length veil.

29. What kind of flowers did you have at your wedding? Calla lilies. My favorite flower.

30. Are your wedding bands engraved? Yes. Denis came up with the phrase. Mine says “Love but him, and love forever” and his says “Love but her, and love forever”