Monday, July 16, 2007

Mom & Dad's 40th Anniversary Party

Thursday was the big day - Mom & Dad's party. Mom had been planning this thing for months, so it was nice to see her hard work come to fruition. It took place at Leu Gardens near downtown Orlando.
http://www.leugardens.org/

It was a lovely summer evening in the south, so Tim and I took a moment to enjoy the rocking chairs on the screened porch.



There were 18 people there:
Mom & Dad, of course
My two brothers, Mike & Ray
Tim & myself
Tim's mom, Sylvia
My Uncle Buster & Aunt Fay
Cousin Tiffani (who is actually the daughter of my cousin Damon, so I guess she is my first-cousin-once-removed or something?)
Mom's best friend, Helen
Helen's daughter, Tracy, her husband Greg, & daughter Sam
Helen's daughter (and my sissy!) Ashlie & her son G'Rae
And two of Mom's old friends who now live in Florida, Jackie & Mike


First we had a little pseudo-ceremony outside. Since Tracy is an ordained minister, she ran the show. My parents stood underneath what appeared to be one tree, but was actually two trees that had grown into one another - wrapping around eachother over the years and basically becoming "one". Isn't that romantic?


Tracy started out by talking about how sweet and loving and generous my parents are & how they are a living testiment to what love can be. That got us all crying right away!


Then Tracy asked Ray to step forward and he talked about all the sacrifices our parents have made for us over the years & how they've always shown us nothing but love and support. More tears!


Then Mom and Dad spoke about the fact that they married just 3 months after they met & how they wer practically strangers at the time, but they would do it all over again. Aaaaaaaaw!


Next: drinks! And fun stories! Mom and Dad recalled the more ridiculous aspects of their wedding day.

For instance, Mom hadn't met Dad's mother before the ceremony, so she ended up meeting her mother-in-law for the first time in the receiving line after the wedding ceremony. My grandmother's first words to her new daughter-in-law?
"You must be Beverly."
Ummm ... ya think? :D

After drinks (non-alcoholic, I should add), it was time for dinner ...

... and laughs ...

... and perhaps a touch of insanity.

Oh no! It's catching!!!


The flowers in the centerpieces are daisies (which my mother carried on their wedding day) and yellow roses (which my father gives to mom on special occasions). Oh, and there was cake, too!


After we ate, Helen had some of us play a Newlywed-&-Not-So-Newlywed Game.
The Newlyweds: Me & Tim (2 years) and Tracy & Greg (2 years)
The Not-So-Newlyweds: Mom & Dad (40 years) and Buster & Fay (50 years)
Tim and I tied for last place ... with my parents! But we were just one point behind the winners, so that's okay.


We finished out the evening on the patio, watching the sun set over the lake.




In my family, card games are an important part of almost every family gathering. Luckily, my darling husband LOVES card games and was sure to bring his poker kit with him. So a bunch of us got together and stayed up late playing Texas Hold 'Em. Good clean family fun!


The happy couple ... and their growing pile of chips!

4 comments:

georgeious said...

now i see where you got your fixation on centerpieces.

me: there were centerpieces?
you: yes, and they were WRONG. don't you remember? they were on all the tables with the blah blah blah blah.... something something something. and i HATE baby's breath!! HATE IT!!! but other than that, everything was terrific.
me: oh yeah, centerpieces. those were what was blocking the bread baskets, right?
you: see, you do remember now.

hehehehehehe... i love you. and your parents had waaaaay better centerpieces than you did.

Mary said...

Yes, their centerpieces were way better. Not a hint of baby's breath. Mine, on the other hand, looked like the FTD Mother's Day Special from 1985. Bleh.

Frickin' baby's breath.

But hey, aren't my parents cute? Aaaaaaw!!! :D

lizgwiz said...

Your parents are cute. And you are correct, baby's breath is hideous.

that weird chick said...

Also, baby's breath is very difficult to make with gum paste, so if I ever make you a gum paste bouquet, it shan't include baby's breath. Because you don't like it. And its hard to make.