I Do

[judecorp]

rings
Originally uploaded by judecorp.

So the main reason I didn't want to make a big fuss out of getting married was because I didn't think it was going to be any sort of big deal. I told people for months and months that whenever we legally tied the knot it would just be another day, since we exchanged rings so long ago and considered ourselves already married in our hearts.

Tonight I'm writing to say that I was totally wrong and my smurfbrother was totally right. He told me, a few days before the wedding, that there would be something important happening when everything was officially signed, sealed, and delivered. He was righter than right.

It was sort of a rush decision to get married, really. We had a couple of Friday afternoons off and decided, "Okay, this Friday we'll get our marriage license and next Friday we'll get married," pretty much. One of the driving factors behind moving out here was legal marriage and protecting our family, and we'd been here almost a year without doing it - a year plagued with arguments, stress, drama, and rough times.

Regardless of the pomp and circumstance of it all, I'm forever grateful that we decided to get legally married, and to do it last weekend. The plain truth is that in the simple exchange of vows in a small office in City Hall, I learned how to fall in love with my wife again. (My wife. HA! My wife!)

That was something that, in the hustle and bustle of our burned out Boston lives, had been dreadfully missing lately. This was the lightning bolt my brother warned me about. Thank goodness for that.

Comments

[siercia]

I'm so glad to hear you say all this - I remember it, too, when we got married. I really didn't think things would feel very different, but they did.

I'm am hugely happy happy happy for you both. Do y'all want to come over for a celebratory dinner this week, or next when you're back from Ohio?

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

That would be fantastic, and I'm sure we would both love to come hang out with you. This week isn't very likely because we're leaving Thursday evening and will likely spend all of tomorrow evening packing and such... but I'm sure we'd love to work something out for next week.

Jen is working every day from when we come back until Saturday. I don't know when she's opening or closing... but when she opens she doesn't get home until 7:00. We could shoot for next Sunday? But that's a holiday weekend - is that a problem?

Scheduling is so confusing. I hope you had a fantastic birthday!

[siercia]

We have a wedding next Sunday, so we can't do that. And then Tuesday I leave for Japan for 11 days =(

Realistically though, if we're going to have grown up dinner , we wouldn't be eating until 7:30 or later, since Hannah doesn't go to bed until then, so if y'all would be up for coming over on a school night, it would be fine with us.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I'm up for late dinner if you are! I'll have to check and see when Jen's opening days are. :)

[dustyskinandall.livejournal.com]

This entry is beautiful. I am saving it to my "weddingstuff" filter in my memories.
Congratulations to you both, and may you continue to fall in love with one another over and over again.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Thank you. But I have to ask - you have a "weddingstuff" filter? Am I missing something very important about your life? I mean, I know you're in love and all, but umm... am I clueless here?

:) xoxo :)

[dustyskinandall.livejournal.com]

yeah! Wanna be on it??

I am in love (for good), and we're going to get married -- but not in the next year or anything. We're taking our time, and aren't *officially* engaged...

The weddingstuff filter actually didn't come out of that, but rather out of my geeky obsession with event planning. I really dig coming up with ideas for receptions, weddings, decorations, etc. It's my one *REALLY GIRLY* hobby...which is why it's filtered -- I don't want to inflict it upon my entire flist.

(I do sometimes put stuff about *my* wedding in there, too)

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Yes! Yes! I want to know all the gruesome details! MORE MORE MORE!! :)

[dustyskinandall.livejournal.com]

Haha. I'll add you when I get home tonight.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Sweet, thanks. :)

[changinglight.livejournal.com]

Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!! And the realization is important. And your rings are beautiful, by the way :)

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Thank you. Jen found them. They're two color (black and silver) titanium with a teensy diamond in the middle. They actually look more like this (the above photo is a bit dark):



We had a hard time agreeing on a ring when we exchanged rings in 2003. We like incredibly different styles of things. This was a perfect compromise, and we're both still really happy with them. We get a lot of compliments on them, most recently (before you, of course) the City Clerk who married us.

[cranapril.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad that the actual moment of getting married was such a wonderful thing for you. I'm afraid that there are many things about my wedding day I wish I could forget... including when one of John's little cousins called me 'stupid bride' (I was walking into the ladies room as he was walking out with his mom and the door clunked into him).

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I think keeping it simple really worked in our favor. I know that afterward we realized that we wished we'd made it a /little/ more public, but still, without having all of that event-planning stress, it really was a nice day.

Stupid kids!

[wendywoowho.livejournal.com]

OH! I'm crying. This is so beautiful!

BEST WISHES to you both! (Because you don't congratulated brides.) May your lives together be blessed.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Thank you! (And why don't you congratulate brides?)

[wendywoowho.livejournal.com]

You only congratulated grooms, which you do because they clearly have been given INCREDIBLE luck to land such fabulous brides. You tell brides "Best Wishes" because OF COURSE they would land fabulous spouses, and so you're not congratulating a done deed, you're looking toward their future and being gooey over that.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Aha. The things I missed out on by growing up a boy. :)

[wendywoowho.livejournal.com]

I got my hands on an old Emily Post at far too tender a young age and devoured it.

Enough so that someone actually asked me if I'd been a debutante, the other day.

I almost pissed myself, I laughed so hard.

[smurfbrother.livejournal.com]

The way I learned it, you don't congratulate engagements, you give engagements best wishes, in the sincere hope that the wedding follows, etc. I do believe it's perfectly acceptable to congratulate bride and groom.

[wendywoowho.livejournal.com]

I'm an old school Emily Post fiend... from the font: "You congratulate the groom, but you wish the bride happiness, because it is a breach of good manners to congratulate a bride on having secured a husband."

But, to heck with it.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

[smurfbrother.livejournal.com]

Well, there you have it. My head is both bloody and bowed.

[sudrin.livejournal.com]

That's a very nice picture. Congrats again. :-) My Five Year Pants Plan (tm) is eternally foiled now I guess! Rats. ;-)

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Mmmm, PANTS.

(And thanks!)

[folkyboy.livejournal.com]

you know i'm a sucker for mush and this just made me cry! :D i love you guys

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I'm here for all your sap needs.

oh!

[dustyskinandall.livejournal.com]

I also wanted to mention that your rings are PERFECT for you.
Wow, just stunning on your hands.

Re: oh!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Awwh, thanks. We like 'em too!

[mooglegrl.livejournal.com]

Belated congratulations to you and Jen. <3

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Thanks, Deanna!

[patty30.livejournal.com]

Hey Congratulations on the wedding! Still wishing I lived in MA so I could do it legally. Goodonya and hope you don't mind I added you as a bud? :)

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much. When did you live in MA and why did you move?

And sure, I don't mind. I'm pretty boring though, most of the time.

[patty30.livejournal.com]

Lived in North Adams for 20-some odd years...grew up there :) Moved to Minnesota back in 2003 (my gal-pal got a job out here at the Mayo Clinic) and have been here ever since. Thinking of going to Arizona next :)

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

ooh, i like arizona. very pretty. :)