The Reception

You know how when you are the bride you meticulously plan out all of the details of your reception? You line up all the vendors far in advance. You deliberate over the placement of the tables, the cake, the food, the guest book, and the gifts. You imagine where you will stand to greet the guests in the receiving line. You formulate an image in your mind of the atmosphere that will be created from your careful planning.

So, what happens when the day before your wedding, the weather forecast contains predictions of high winds and thunderstorms for the exact same time as your outdoor reception, even though that is extremely rare for your location in August?

Well, in Tricia’s case, she attempted to line up a reception center as a backup just in case the forecast held true. By some miracle, she found a reception center that was available for her wedding that was in less than 24 hours. It even happened to be the first one she called. Mom was skeptical that the venue might not be that great if they didn’t already have an event scheduled. She called six other reception centers which were of course all booked. At that point, Tricia decided she didn’t even care what the available venue looked like; she was just glad to have a backup at all.

Everyone was still hoping and praying for the weather to cooperate so that the original plans could be carried out. The reception was set to take place in our Aunt and Uncle Woolley’s backyard which was seriously built for their five daughters to have wedding receptions. The yard is like a fairy tale; the landscaping and views are castle-like. Troy and I were lucky enough to hold our reception there and can attest to its breathtaking beauty. Not wanting to let go of this dream, everyone decided to wait until the last minute possible to make a final decision for the location of Tricia and Jacob’s reception.

On the morning of the wedding, the forecast called for thunderstorms to roll in between 7 and 8pm, exactly when the reception would be taking place. We couldn’t wait much longer to see how the skies panned out because if there was going to be a location change, we had to get to work notifying guests and vendors. Just before their ceremony, Tricia made the ultimate decision. Though it would mean tossing out a lot of their original plans, she didn’t want to risk torrential downpours ruining their reception and the enjoyment of their guests. So, she resorted to the backup plan.

And you know what? The Carmelle Reception Center was an absolutely beautiful venue. Once Tricia made the decision to switch the location she did not look back. It didn’t seem to bother her one bit that she was settling for plan B. She was just completely caught up in wedding day bliss. I think I was more disappointed than she was and it wasn’t even my wedding!

The ironic part was that it never rained.

After a crazy day of sending out mass emails, updating the wedding blog, leaving recorded messages on answering machines, contacting all of the vendors, printing out hundreds of maps indicating the new location, and ultimating setting up everything in a reception center that previously hadn’t been given one glance, it never rained. It was still really windy, but it never rained.

What are the chances?

With everything being arranged and thrown together last minute, the reception actually ran very smooth. I think the biggest thing that went wrong was that the little voltive candles next to the centerpieces never got lit. If that is all that was forgotten after a whirlwind day, I think we can call the event a grand success!

The guests still piled in, there were smiles on everyone’s faces, and we were all so happy to celebrate Tricia and Jacob.

A few more shots were taken before the reception started.