Father of the Bride(s) Part II

My story Father of the Brides Part II, Jennifer and Josh’s Day, started with ‘the’ discussion with Josh. I had to keep it a secret from Jennifer until Josh surprised Jenn one cold night at Big Spring park in November 2009. We (the parents) were invited to the event and enjoyed a champagne toast at the park on the bridge. Fast forward to the day of the wedding. We (bridal party and parents) gathered at the same park, but this time it was 90 degrees and the troops were there to secure the bridge for pictures.

The real fun started when the wedding planning began. How much is my budget, asked Jenn? It depends, said Dad! She keep asking in different ways and I’d keep dodging the question, but I guess we are not too different because she wouldn’t tell me where they were staying after the wedding. After much conversation, over a year and a half’s worth, we didn’t always agree, but we were all happy with the final plans. I found out in Father of the Bride Part I, Erica and Jamie’s Day, that every dollar spent was so well worth the experience, feelings, and memories and the same is also very true with Jennifer and Josh’s wedding.

How did Nancy and I afford back-to-back weddings? The answer is simple; save, borrow, and pray a lot. You could call it creative financing or sacrifice. I call it a little of both. It is also a fallacy that the brides parents pay for the wedding. I can let you that there are a lot of expenses that are covered by the groom and his parents. A wedding is truly a cooperative effort. In preparation for the big day I found myself spending a lot of time working on my house.

The wedding helped me complete a lot of projects that I kept postponing including that hole in the Bama room that I made one night trying to catch that dam squirrel. In retrospect, the work on the house and yard helped me funnel my energy while we counted down the days before family and friends arrived from over 10 states (no pressure). Two days before the wedding my home turned into a sorority house as the bridesmaids came together to start the celebrating. I gave up my bedroom and relocated to the guest room.

 The wedding day started at 6:00 am. There was one detour in the morning when my rented tuxedo shirt didn’t fit, but I quickly got it exchanged. There were so many people going in and out of the house that the air conditioning unit couldn’t keep up, but before I knew it, everyone was dressed, hundreds of pictures were taken, and the limo whisked Jennifer and her bridesmaids off to the park. At the church I found myself quietly sitting in the hallway for a little quiet time before the ceremony. We are very blessed that the wedding went well although some challenges in the final weeks with tornados and final exams for Jennifer.

At the reception I was glad to see folks having a good time. I also heard, but can’t confirm that there were a few new couples introduced on the dance floor. Selecting the food, beer, and wine was a lot of fun. We did some taste testing and arguing, but the gals influenced the food selection and I won the beer battle. We danced to the Sweet Home Alabama (roll tide roll) and it was fun to see the true yankees (as opposed to dam yankees) watch.

FYI – the wedding was a mix of North and South customs. The DJ also played Old Rocky ‘something’ because when Aunt Mic, the matriarch, wants to clog then you play her song. Josh and Jenn drove off after the parade of sparklers, but they had to stop to cut the cans off. Nancy and I unpacked our car about 1:30 in the morning and we fell asleep knowing that Jenn and Josh were very happy. Me too.

Erica did a great job as matron of honor. We all loved her speech from one army wife to another. Thank you Erica for posting this blog.

I should have at least one more post, Father of the Brides Part III, Daughter-in-Law, but I hope we get a little more time than four months between weddings. I also want to thank Nancy for the incredible amount of work that she did to make this day very special.

Love,
Dad