Monumental Love: Packing Up and Practicing

The week leading up to our wedding wasn't really eventful - or maybe it was and I've just blocked that part out of my memory.  I've already mentioned that some tasks took some last minute effort, and others got scratched from the list, and I spent a significant chunk of my time checking the weather. The Monday before the wedding was Memorial Day, so we had an extra day off of work to take care of those last minute items.  We had done most of the hard work a few weeks before, which involved packing up all that glassware, labeling the boxes, and loading them into my parents' giant van, but there were still a million things on the to-do list.

The madness, and the result.  

But you don't want to hear about the week-of crazies, no more than I want to relive them.  The biggest item to get done was on Wednesday: Sphinx, his parents, my mom, and some other awesome helpers delivered all that decor to the Board of Trade, and they stored it in a back room.  This was so helpful, because we didn't have to worry about transporting all that glassware to the guy who would set it up, and we got it out of our hair a few days in advance.

Besides that it was just a lot of confirming and finalizing, buying gifts, and trying to get packed.  Oh, and I got my engagement ring back!  It had been at the jewelers getting cleaned and replated (for free!) for about a week, and I was freaking out every 2.2 seconds thinking I'd lost it since it wasn't on my hand.  Not a fun feeling on top of all the wedding-related stress!

Our rehearsal was on Thursday evening, because the church performs weddings on Friday nights.  I worked up through Thursday afternoon - just leaving a few hours early - because my vacation days were already stretched pretty thin for the year.  I got ready back at the house with BM Perk and Sphinx, and we all headed to the church together.

Once everyone had arrived, Maureen, the church coordinator, gave us all the details of how we would process.

And then we all did just that.  

Sphinx walking his mom down, with lots of glowy eyes watching on.

We took advantage of an aisle in the middle of the church by having the groomsmen wait there for the bridesmaids.  So the girls walked halfway up on their own, and then met their gentleman.

GM Lil Bro waiting for BM Perk in the middle aisle.

And then Daddy P and I let out some nerves by doing a little dance/skip number up the aisle.

"Well, we won't be able to do this Saturday, so I guess we should get it out of our systems now!"

Then Maureen explained what we'd need to do throughout the mass, and we listened attentively. 

MOH Curls and BM Skittles were up at the altar with us.

 My ears especially perked up when she explained how we would walk over to the statue of the Virgin Mary to place a flower.  Her tip was for me to walk over with Sphinx, but let him climb the two little steps to put the flower up, so I wouldn't fall down them.  Great, now that image is in my head. 

"That's it. I'm going to be the bride that falls on her butt during the ceremony, you just watch."

And before we knew it, it was time to head back down the aisle and pretend like we'd just been married.  

After all the official stuff was done, Sphinx's cousin (let's call her Cousin Who, because she's a big Doctor Who fan), practiced her solo from the balcony.  She's a music major, and a great singer, so we wanted to include her in our mass. I gave her some options to choose from based on the list from the organist, and she picked "Panis Angelicus."  And it was appropriately angelic.  

Tears.  There were tears at this point and it was only the rehearsal.  

And then we just made sure to take some pictures before heading out to dinner. Apparently none of just Sphinx and I, but we got some good group ones.

The Pyramid family looking sharp. 

Pyramid parents and godparents. I owe these guys so much for making that weekend spectacular, you don't even know.

And a photo of the bridesmaids, sans BM Duffy, whose flight wouldn't get in til later that night.  The others filled her in easily on how it would all go down.

BM Dino, BM Taco, me, MOH Curls, and BM Perk.

Then it was time to head out to the rehearsal dinner!  I was feeling good, since the hard part of the night was over, and we could just enjoy ourselves.

Until GM Jaws (who works at St. Francis Church - he's the main reason we looked at it), came up to me.  "So...it's a little hot in here, and I thought it was just because the A.C. was off all day - but looks like it's broken.  I'm not sure of the repair guy's availability."

Terror. Panic. Sweat. All of these things started showing on my face.

"Don't worry, I will fix it, I will do everything I can to have this fixed for Saturday."

Behind the freak out, there was a (very small) part of me laughing at this news.  I couldn't sail into the weekend without a few more reasons to stress, right?  I trusted GM Jaws and - spoiler! - he had it working by the next day.  Because he rocks.

Previously on the Pyramid Wedding:
Kickoff and teaser trailer

Monumental Love: A Wedding for the Ages

The time has come, dear friends, to lay down the first brick of the Pyramid Wedding Recaps!

The day in a nutshell: cheesy smiles, kisses, and beautiful flowers./Photo by Eau Claire Photographics

I've been popping in here and there since the wedding, but after a year of writing on the Bee, a little refresh of some of my favorite posts seems in order:

Pyramids in Polynesia: All the Food

I think as soon as our plane touched down in Hawaii, I decided that the theme of the honeymoon would be "Nobody Gets Hangry."  I mentioned last time that we had one little afternoon where hanger set in, but once over twelve days isn't too bad!

Before we jump in, I should make a few things very clear: Sphinx and I love to eat.  We're all about trying new foods and cooking together, even if we don't have especially adventurous palates.  And there's no such thing as too much garlic in our household.  Also, I wasn't actively dieting before the wedding, but I was watching what I ate and apparently Hawaii was the time to make up for all that.  And that's pretty much all you need to know.  Let's talk about some food. 

Giovanni's Shrimp Truck

www.giovannisshrimptruck.com

So the first one isn't really a restaurant, but that doesn't mean it wasn't some of my favorite food on the trip.  We heard tales of the these shrimp trucks on the north shore, and that Giovanni's was the place to go, so we that's where we headed after our surfing lesson. Our GPS was directing us to the wrong intersection, so we got a bit turned around, but just look for the open lot with all the trucks in it.  Duh. There's several trucks in that area, and I was really tempted to try food from several stands to determine the true winner - but we were starving after our morning in the water and only wanted to wait in one line.

Sphinx waiting for our order while I grabbed a picnic table.  

Pyramids in Polynesia: Activities - Part 2

Last time we talked about a few of our honeymoon outings that I would absolutely put in the "win" category.   Today, we'll talk about the things that I still recommend, but I wish we had planned a bit better for.  

Snorkeling at Hanauma Bay (Oahu)
Snorkeling is usually up there on a list of things to do on a tropical vacation, and plenty of people recommend Hanauma Bay to us, but we just hadn't made plans to do it.  We were like "Eh, if we get around to it?"

Then something funny happened: because I wasn't adjusted to the time change, I was waking up around 4 AM Pacific time every morning, unable to get back to sleep.  So I spent that time breaking every honeymoon rule by mindlessly browsing the internet, and on Friday, saw that a Facebook friend had shared this article.  Number 17 on the list of "35 Clearest Waters In The World To Swim In Before You Die" - Hananuma Bay!  We were leaving Oahu that day.  I shook Sphinx awake and told him I had to go there before our midday flight to Maui.  So that's how we ended up squeezing a very short snorkeling trip in before heading to the airport.  It was a gamble, yes, but it worked out fine and we didn't end up chasing a plane down the runway (sorry, spoiler alert).

It was a bit overcast that day, and we actually got a drizzle of rain, but not enough to keep me out of the water.

Pyramids in Polynesia: Activities - Part 1

It's been far too long since I sat down to write, and we've got lots to talk about (and lots of pictures!) so without further ado, let's get into some of the Pyramids' must-do activities in Hawaii!  If you want some background details on our trip, check out my first honeymoon post.

Surfing Lessons at Waimea Beach (Oahu)

One of the biggest reasons I wanted to go to Hawaii was to cross surfing off of my bucket list.  Even though I'm an unbalanced spaz, it's always been a dream of mine to try it out.

So, let me just say - it was awesome.  We were out on the water for at least an hour and a half, and we were both able to stand up to ride several waves.  If we were a competitive kind of couple, I'd mention that I stood up for a few more waves than my good-at-everything-athletic husband...but that would be bragging, right?

These photos were taken and sent to me by the mom of the family surfing with us. She stayed on the beach and caught us in some of her pictures and sent them to me in email.  So sweet!  Thank you!