Adam's Wedding

A week ago today we (Torrey, Chris, Tim, Bob and I) were enroute to Asheville, NC to attend the "destination" wedding of Adam & Missy. The wedding was to take place at Lioncrest which is part of the Biltmore Estate. Lioncrest is a converted barn - which may not sound all that wonderful, but truly, it is Beyond a Barn....a Barn to Behold! Linda & Will (Adam's parents, and our close friends) and Peggy & Don (Missy's parents) demonstrated the epitome of Southern hospitality and graciousness....

We checked into the hotel where almost all the guests were staying to be ushered to a hospitality suite with drinks and snacks -- a place where anyone who wanted to hang out, could. Adam was holding court there, and it gave us an opportunity to begin to introduce Chris to some of our non-biological family.

The rehearsal dinner was a rather formal affair -- we had gotten special invitations, and about 75 of us gathered together at "My Beloved Homewood" that meal. Linda did an amazing job with the table decorations -- how I wished I could have transported her candle holders back here to Wheaton to use on our tables for the reception! She and Carole put it all together in the afternoon. A bus had been hired to take us to the dinner -- a bus which couldn't make it up the hill to the Homewood -- so they had to send another one! Needless to say, dinner was just a little late since all the guests weren't there! But it wouldn't be a wedding without something memorable happening!

Saturday was cool and sunny -- certainly warmer than it was back here in Chicago, but not quite just sweater weather yet. We were treated to a continental breakfast in the lobby area, and then we headed for a tour of the Biltmore Estate -- one of the "gifts" to the guests from Missy's parents.

What an amazing house! 101 bedrooms, 43 bathrooms (in an era in which many people didn't have bathrooms at all), lots of sitting rooms, a two lane bowling alley, exercise room and swimming pool. Overall, I found that the ambience of the home was a lot warmer than we remembered from the Hearst Castle which we toured several years ago. The view, of the mountains is gorgeous!

We also went to the winery for a tour (brief) and wine tasting -- even Bob tried a couple of the wines!

By the time we got back to the hotel, it was time to get ready for the wedding. This time, the buses didn't break down -- there just weren't enough of them, so that we, the guests, were late for the wedding which ended up starting at 6:30 instead of 6:00. But it was beautiful! The ceremony, conducted by a Lutheran pastor, was God honoring and personal to Missy and Adam.

Following the ceremony was an excellent dinner with food stations - a meat and mashed potatoes (I've never had mashed potatoes in a martini glass before!!) station, a seafood and sushi station, and a vegetables, cheese and bread station which I never got over to. It was so much fun just visiting with people and being with family and friends.

The reception was back down in the area where the ceremony was held. Great music, dancing and just SO much fun!

Sunday morning we took our three kids to the airport where they ran into Missy and Adam who were on the same plane to Charlotte. They spent their layover time together, having breakfast as a big group. Then Missy and Adam headed for their honeymoon in the Dominican Republic while Torrey, Chris & Tim went back to a slightly more prosaic Indianapolis.....

Bob and I drove around Asheville a bit, then went back to the hotel for the brunch Missy's parents provided.

What was really fun was saying goodbye to our extended family -- able to say to them, "see you in two weeks!"

And now, it is only one week and one day until OUR event. The county offices are closed, so our children do not have a marriage license....hopefully there will be no snafus on that end of things so they can pick it up next Friday -- the day before the wedding.....

That's just cutting it a bit close I think.

But hey! The seating chart is done!!