The Wedding

So, for those of you that have been reading my blog, you know that we came to San Diego because my friend Allie is getting married. However, since many of you don't know Allie, let me tell you a little bit about her and how we met.

Allie is an incredible friend - she is so warm, caring and thoughtful and I am so lucky that in the summer of 1999 we both did a summer internship with a company called University Directories that held a week long training in North Carolina. Allie went to Indiana University and I went to UT, so without this internship we would have never met. Allie and I clicked right away - we have so much in common, and in the short week that we got to hang out a true bond of friendship formed. We stayed in touch after training, mostly via long emails talking about our internship (especially when it sucked), friends, our love lives and everything else under the sun.

So, when I got married in December 2000, it was very important to me that Allie be a part of the wedding ... and she was despite the fact that we had not seen each other since we met at the internship training. Douglas used to joke that Allie didn't exist since he had not met her, but he was pleasantly surprised when he picked her up from the airport to find that not only did she exist, but that she was as cool, fun and wonderful as I had described.

Since my wedding, Allie and I have traveled to see each other at least once a year and our friendship has continued to grow. So, I was extremely honored when Allie asked me to be part of her wedding. Ok, so on to wedding festivities!

Friday afternoon the girls went to Happy Nails for manicures and pedicures. It was so great to meet the girls I have heard so much about from Allie. Everyone was so nice and friendly! After our spa treatments we went back to the hotel to get ready for the rehearsal. The weather turned cold and ugly at this point and the rain started to come down. Poor Allie! The rehearsal and wedding were both supposed to be outside so she was getting very nervous about Saturday's weather. The rehearsal went off without a hitch and then everyone, including Andrew and Tyler, boarded the charter bus to travel to the rehearsal dinner. The dinner was held at the home of Marc's aunt and uncle. They had a lovely home and the appetizers, dinner and desserts were wonderful! Allie and Marc gave beautiful speeches about each member of the wedding party, including anecdotes about each of us. It was really great to hear all of the special stories. Andrew and Tyler were (mostly) good too, just in case you were wondering. Andrew only had to go to time out once. :)

Marc and Allie at the Rehearsal

Andrew on the bus headed to the Rehearsal Dinner

Allie, Anne and Tyler

Anne, Allie, Sarah and Jen (bridesmaids)

Allie and Andrew

Saturday morning we drove to Mission Beach for brunch at a place called World Famous on Allie's recommendation. We sat on the patio and enjoyed the ocean view, wonderful food and very interesting people watching -- it is a beach town after all! While we were waiting for our table, I took Andrew out to the beach and he was super excited to play in the sand! Yeah! We have conquered the fear of sand! After brunch we went back out to the beach to let Andrew run around again and to take pictures. Andrew loved running through the sand, but he was not particularly excited about the cold ocean water. For the rest of the trip, he stayed clear of the water.

Andrew checking out the water before brunch

Andrew running along the beach after brunch

Andrew with Daddy ... please don't drop me in the water, Daddy!

Andrew and Daddy going for a stroll

After brunch we went back to the hotel and I took Tyler to check in on Allie and to see how the hair and make-up was coming. We hung out for a bit until Tyler got hungry and then it was off to feed Tyler and get ready for pictures. All of Allie's stress about the weather worked - the day turned out to be clear, crisp and beautiful! We were all a bit chilly during the pictures, but I am sure that they will turn out beautifully as everyone looked wonderful, especially the radiant bride and handsome groom! The bridesmaids wore strapless black dresses and carried gorgeous pink and white flowers, including gerber daisies, orchids, peonies, and the like -- they were really breathtaking. Allie's bouquet was all beautiful pink flowers and it weighed a ton!

Allie's Bouquet

So, after pictures I had about an hour to feed Tyler again and then get back down to the pre-wedding festivities, including the signing of the Jewish marriage document. I had never been to a Jewish wedding so it was really neat to learn about the Jewish traditions. The wedding was at 7:00 p.m. and it was held outside near the marina. It was very chilly, but the evening was beautiful and even the seagulls seemed to enjoy the wedding - it truly was an idyllic setting for the ceremony. My favorite part of the ceremony was when the Cantor read personal responses from Allie and Marc. They were asked to answer the question why they wanted to marry each other. They both wrote their responses and gave them to the Cantor without sharing their responses with each other. It was so beautiful to hear the wonderful things that they said about each other and to see how they both reacted to the other's words. What a wonderful ceremony! Mazel tov!

Allie with her parents

Douglas and I enjoyed the reception, especially the dancing! Doug says that he cut a rug ... not quite ... but he did keep me company on the dance floor. The night passed very quickly and before we knew it, it was midnight and the reception was over, but not before we enjoyed a delicious seated dinner of chicken and fish and lemon wedding cake! The boys spent the evening with Mom Mom and thankfully, they were on their best behavior.

Wedding Cake

The happy parents

The Zimmermans

Allie and Anne

Andrew fell asleep with his bucket and shovel

Sunday morning I went on a run before the after wedding brunch and guess who I ran into? The newlyweds! Their first morning as husband and wife they enjoyed a morning walk on San Diego Bay ... what a great way to start a marriage!

After brunch it was time to say goodbye to the newlyweds and to San Diego and to head to Los Angeles. Goodbye to America's Finest City ... hello City of Angels!

Anne and Allie at brunch