Pensive? No, Just Thinking: Classy Wedding

Yesterday we went to Mandan, ND for the wedding of Desareé (pronounced "Desirée" -- yes, "Desareé" is how she really spells it, including the illogically placed accent aigu, in absolute defiance of basic phonetic rules), the daughter of Susan's cousin Marty (who is the son of Susan's dad's sister Bonnie). We found the wedding/reception combo to be an overall classy affair.

The wedding gown and bridesmaids' gowns (in a deep red) were tasteful, and the groomsmen's black pin-striped tuxedos with tails and deep red vests looked very sharp. The vocalist had a beautiful soprano voice and sang precisely and was accompanied by an equally talented pianist. The music was all clearly religious (no "Love Lift Us Up Where We Belong" or "Endless Love" at this wedding) and helped to reinforce the sacred nature of the event. The priest was
excellent: a nice mix of casual and serious in his homily, and perfectly sincere in the prayers, the sacraments, and, interestingly enough, in his listening--he closed his eyes and listened intently to each of the readings as well as to each of the vocal solos as though he wanted to concentrate fully as each person spoke/sang. Even the programs were simple and tasteful! Susan and I agreed that it's a shame that it should strike us as unusual when a couple does a good job of planning a God-centered and non-tacky wedding ceremony, but such is the state of modern society. So "Good job!" to Jody and Desareé (but as for that spelling . . .).

There was a hiatus of several hours between the end of the wedding and the beginning of the wedding reception, so we connected with Susan's dad, Roger, and he took us out to the new house of Susan's brother, Jerrett. Jerrett didn't get back into town until evening, but Roger had a key and Jerrett's permission to show us the place, so we looked around Jerrett's ranch house with an eye out for what he might need as a housewarming gift. After the tour, we went shopping and bought him a toaster, a blender, and a coffee maker to match some of his other applicances. Yesterday was also Jerrett's birthday, so we made it a combo housewarming/birthday gift.

By then, we could no longer fend off our hunger. The wedding reception was held at the Best Western Seven Seas Hotel and was just as impressive as the wedding. Flowers, candles, and lots of glass made up the centerpieces, and strings of white lights ran beneath table skirts to illuminate the table of the wedding party and the wedding cake table in a lovely yet simple way. We got to visit with some relatives on Roger's side of the family (although considerably fewer than we thought ought to have been there considering the number of aunts, uncles, and cousins who live either an hour or less away or else right in town . . . and yet didn't show up . . . very sad), eat a delicious meal, enjoy the cake, visit with Jerrett (who arrived sometime after supper had been served), and do some dancing (well, the girls danced while we adults sat and talked).

We don't see Desareé (argh, that spelling!) much to really know her well, and we had never met Jody before, but we surely appreciated the wedding invitation and were definitely impressed with the planning and execution of both the wedding and the reception. It was nice to see a wedding focused on the religious aspect of the ceremony (and not just on pomp, circumstance, and showiness) and a reception for which every detail seemed to be well thought out. And it was fun to be at a gathering that brought together several members of Susan's dad's family, whom we don't see as often as Susan's mom's family. And good, too, to see Jerrett on his birthday!

The stained glass windows at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Manda, ND are beautiful. The church is in the midst of a comprehensive redorating/remodeling project that will result in even more interior art for congregants to enjoy.

Desareé and Jody look on as the priest leads them in saying their vows.

The wedding cake at the reception.

The table for the wedding party.

The flowers and centerpiece adorning the wedding party's table.

Suzanna's artistic take on the centerpiece. (Give a girl a camera, and she thinks she's Ansel Adams).

Many of the tables featured these towering, long-stemmed glass vases stuffed with beautiful roses. They seemed to be inviting some young rapscallion to start running around the room and bang into a table and send one of these toppling to the floor. However, they all held up fine while we were there.

The meal was great. It was preceded by wheat or white dinner rolls with butter and small plates of tossed greens with three salad dressing choices. The main course was a chicken breast rolled around a generous portion of dressing, a rice pilaf mix, tasty carrots in a sweet herb sauce, and an edible flower for garnish! The wedding cake came in two flavors: vanilla and chocolate-red velvet. We drank coffee with our dessert and had the girls go get us samples of of the homemade bars and cookies that were laid out alongside the cake!

Ding, ding, ding went the flatware against the glassware, and up out of their seats popped Jody and Desareé to lay one on each other for the benefit of the crowd. By the way, another tasteful component of the wedding/reception was the toast by the groom's best man. It was a nice mix of humor and seriousness, and it merited a hug from the groom. Ah, but the maid of honor's speech? Now that was terrible.

Susan's dad, Roger, and his mom, Laura. Laura lives in Dickinson but caught a ride to Mandan for the day with her daughter, Patty, and Patty's husband, Buddy. I complimented Buddy on his attractive new car, which happens to be a fuel-efficient model. His joking response? "Yeah, I'm pretty disappointed in it. I got only 50-some miles to the gallon on the way here."