This weekend Jason and I headed downtown for Lauri and Marc's wedding. We left Ava and Caitlin home in the capable hands of Nonna and Grandpa Steve while we went and partied all weekend... Even with two nights of more uninterrupted sleep than we are used to, it was an action packed, fun-filled weekend and we came back happily exhausted!
We started the festivities off with the bridesmaids luncheon at the Swan Coach House. The Swan House is the quintessential southern tradition for a bridal luncheon- all we needed was a mint julep to go with our cheese straws :) The luncheon was relaxing and the chicken salad was delicious- it was the perfect way to spend some time with just the girls and to kick off the weekend!
After the luncheon, we headed to check-in to our rooms at The Grand Hyatt and check out the hospitality room. Since there were many guests from out of town and quite a few from as far as England, there was a suite available all weekend dedicated to feeding the wedding guests at the hotel 24/7!
Lauri and her soon-to-be sister-in-law Sara were mingling and entertaining all the family that had flown in from England
Of course, Allie didn't want to miss out and was helping play hostess in the hospitality room...
Then we headed out to the pool to soak up a few more minutes of sun before getting ready for the rehearsal dinner.
Marc and some of his groomsmen were already out there with the same idea...
no nerves or cold feet for this groom!
A quick rehearsal was held in the library before we headed off to dinner. Adhering to tradition, Lauri carried a bouquet during the rehearsal made from all the ribbons and bows from the gifts she received at her wedding shower.
Lauri looked absolutely gorgeous in her dress, but my favorite part was...
... her shoes!
The rehearsal dinner was held at Maggiano's. All of those huge platters of pasta were just torture to all of us having to fit into bridesmaid dresses the next day!
So, instead we just filled up on wine :)
After a tear-jerker of a slide show, came the toasts- some hilarious, some embarrassing, but most sentimental. The one unifying theme, threaded through all of them was that Marc and Lauri are kind, loyal, generous and loving people that are perfect for each other. I hope they took a moment that night to enjoy being completely surrounded by people that loved them.
Of course, I had to include a picture with my honorary dad! Lauri has let me borrow him since our sixth grade spring break in Destin. He and Mrs. Rainbow have given me many typical parental lectures (no talking to boys!), fed me hundreds of meals and sheltered me for tons of sleep-overs. Hopefully both her parents know by now how much those years meant to me!
The almost-new Rainbow-Teitelman family couldn't look happier...
Marc celebrating with two of his groomsmen- Joey and Joe
I'm not sure if it was the sun or the beer that is helping out his color... :)
On the morning of the wedding, we started early with hair and make-up in the bridal suite. Lauri was incredibly calm and the whole atmosphere in the room was relaxed. We had music playing, lots of time to hang out and of course a tray of sweets from the hospitality suite to keep us all happy!
Jennifer, Julia and I were showing off our newly done hair and make-up... all we needed was our bridesmaid dresses and we were ready to go! Seriously, is there anything better than having someone else do your hair and makeup??
Lauri and her mom both looked gorgeous!
Lauri looked stunning to begin with, but then she put on her wedding dress and she was absolutely breathtaking...
Mr. and Mrs. Rainbow both looked fabulous and were such gracious hosts all weekend. Together with Lauri, they put so much effort and thought into every little detail of the wedding and it was obvious! Every aspect was amazing- from the centerpieces, to the lighting, to the place cards, to the menu, to the hospitality bags... I definitely think that if they wanted to make a business out of wedding planning they would be incredibly successful!
It was really fun running into old friends from high school at the wedding...
Abby was often part of our spring break trips to Destin!
My hottie husband looked especially handsome in his tux and he was the perfect dance partner- we had so much fun spinning, swirling and twirling all over the dance floor!
Introducing, Mr. and Mrs. Teitelman!!
After Lauri and Marc danced their first dance, the father-daughter and mother-son dance, the party really got started!! Rupert's Orchestra kept everyone dancing all night long. I didn't even leave the dance floor long enough to get a bite of the wedding cake- and anyone that knows me, knows that I never pass up on cake! :)
I had so much fun celebrating this weekend with these girls!
We stayed long past when the band stopped playing. The hotel staff was beginning to break the ballroom down and essentially kicked us out. And even then, we didn't want the party to stop- so we all headed up to the hospitality room to continue the celebration...
What else could top off an already perfect day? Cookie cake, of course! Lauri and I have a tradition of celebrating everything with cookie cake that goes many, many years back... and I wasn't going to skip out on this one! Jason was so awesome to pick this up, track down Lauri's wedding planner during the wedding to let him hand deliver the cookie cake to Marc and Lauri's room. Sharing the cookie cake almost made up for missing out on the wedding cake... almost...
Congratulations Marc and Lauri!! Jason and I were so honored to be a part of this magical weekend. We could not be happier for you and wish you many, many years of love and laughter... We hope your fairy tale never ends!
Once in a while, right in the middle of an ordinary life,
Love gives us a fairy tale...
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