WARNING! Wall of text below.It pretty much misted rain all day. But you know what - WE DIDN'T CARE! My baby got married to the man she loves and we were all so very happy! We started the day at the hair stylists. One of her bridesmaids and I had a little breakfast basket put together for her: mimosas, cut up fresh fruit, muffins. I had the tall (plastic) champagne glasses. Autumn was so surprised and Rachel (the bridesmaid) downloaded all of this awesome music and had it playing on her computer the entire time. It started out with "Going To The Chapel."The owner of the hair salon remarked that I was the happiest MOB that she ever seen. :)Molly's Trolleys took the wedding party to Heinz Chapel from LeMont. (First the boys, then the girls.) Ron, the driver is a super nice guy and everyone really enjoyed riding the Trolley. The wedding coordinators at Heinz Chapel were awesome - they really helped getting everything set up. I sneaked downstairs to the Bridal Room and Autumn was standing in the middle of the room in her gown and her bridesmaids were putting on her veil and I burst into tears! Thankfully they steered me to a box of Kleenex and I got myself under control! Michael Jacobs of Blooms did a fantastic job on the flowers! They were just so vibrant and lush and lovely. Autumn's bouquet was wrapped in my wedding gown.George Balderose, the Bagpiper arrived and I got chills as I heard the melancholy sounds of the bagpipes as he played outside as guests arrived. He was fabulous.Soon it was time to line up for the ceremony - my son escorted me down the aisle - he started to take off like a greyhound, I tapped his arm and said, "Slow down son, this is Mama's big moment, I want to savor every minute of it!" The bridesmaids roared with laughter and said, "You milk it for every moment, Mama!" I didn't mess up lighting the candle and made it into the pew. The girls were so lovely - the cognac color of their gowns was perfect. And the guys were so handsome in their brown tuxes! And then the bagpiper walked down the aisle and suddenly I gazed to the back of the Chapel and my husband and baby girl were standing 100 feet away, and suddenly, after 22 months of planning, it was TIME! Autumn had her arm linked with her Daddy's and she just glided down that aisle, she beamed the ENTIRE way down! I peeked over to see Derek's reaction - and he had this total look of adoration on his face. Steve and Autumn made it to the front of the Chapel and Steve leaned over and kissed Autumn and whispered in her ear, "I love you and you will always be my little Princess." And Autumn whispered back, "I love you Daddy!" The waterworks started again for me!Steve and I held each other's hands throughout the ceremony. Our former Pastor did a wonderful job. Autumn had incorporated a lot of Irish traditions in the ceremony: the Oathing Stone, The Make-Up Bell, and Irish Blessings."The bubble exit was wonderful! We had a group shot with everyone in attendance outside the Chapel. We had family photos in the Chapel after the ceremony and it started to rain just a little bit harder as we left the Chapel. Thankfully, I had ordered champagne and chocolate brown golf umbrellas for the bridal party and an orange golf umbrella for Autumn and Derek two weeks ago from
www.golfumbrella.com. Joanna Fassinger, the photographer, was lining them up in front of flowers with the umbrellas when Steve and I left for the reception and they all looked so cute! Joanna is an absolutely amazing photographer! Not only is she creative, but she is a wonderful lady. I can not wait to see all of the photos she took. The Trolley dropped them off at the base of the Duquense Incline and they all rode that up to Mt. Washington. The fog and overcast was horrible, so the Mt. Washington Overlook photos did not work out - I believe they had one or two shots there.LeMont was simply stunning. The guests were in awe. The cake was gorgeous and the groom's cake, a mini Stanley Cup was so cute! The food was incredibly delicious! Bill and his staff went the extra mile. Autumn and Derek did their first dance to Dave Matthews Band's, "Crush" and Autumn had choreographed this dance with them doing turns and twists and dips. and they had everyone gasping and clapping! My husband and Autumn did their Father/Daughter dance to"Sunrise, Sunset" as Autumn's friend sang and her Dad played the guitar.The DJ was Jodi Colella from Accents Unlimited. I high recommend her! She and her husband were the best DJs I have ever heard! They had everyone on the dance floor (yes, I even got out there a couple of times) until the reception ended at 10:30 pm. Derek was totally surprised with the sparkler send-off and kept saying, "I can't believe this, this is so amazing!" It was a beautiful wedding and we felt the love and happiness from everyone in attendance!I have posted over 600 photos from the rehearsal and wedding that friends, family and I took. If you are interested in looking at them, email me at morainemom@live.com and I will give you the link and password.I would like to thank everyone for being so nice to me these past 6-7 months. I have enjoyed being a part of your weddings and appreciate the friendship, advice and good wishes that you have bestowed upon me.