Hurricane wedding

Me (in blue), my kids, my husband, and the bride (in red)
I'm back!!! Feels like forever since I posted here. All summer, in fact. And what a summer this has been!

I spent huge amounts of time helping my sister-in-law long distance plan her Big Fat Indian Wedding (she's in San Francisco and the wedding was in Boston) only to have it CANCELLED at the last minute due to hurricane Irene!!

Ever get the feeling that you're in a bad movie? That such things couldn't possibly be happening to you, only they are? That's what this was like. We had planned things down to the last detail, but had to start over with hours not months to make everything happen.

Nana (my husband's grandfather) came all the way from India for the wedding!

They did have a beautiful wedding after all. Only it was a day earlier at the temple instead of the gorgeous Elm Bank reservation in Wellesley. And the reception was (shock, horror!) at my house.

Too late to re-order flowers, but my potted mums look nice, I think.

I'd planned to have the henna ceremony (mehndi) at my house anyway, so we just threw it open to anyone who could make it. A great caterer, an amazing set of friends (Amy, Reetu, Denise and Martha: You ROCK!), a big tent, and my father-in-law's construction crew made it possible to welcome everyone into my not-so-huge home.
There was chaos, confusion, laughter, celebration, umbrellas, wet saris, and a magical garage jam session (the groom is in a band, and his mates were all there, with their guitars!) It was perfect. And the smiles on the faces of the bride and groom made it all worthwhile.

Storm's over, sun's out, pots and pans washed up, now I can smile!

Now the wedding and hurricane is done, the kids are back at school, the last guests are leaving tomorrow, so I can actually get my life back :)! Not that I would have traded the whole crazy experience for all the peace and quiet in the world! I mean, this stuff is gold, right? Better get writing ... ;)