Some exuberant responses that landed in my in-box from my friends after sending them a link to my wedding photos:

UNFREAK’EN BELEIVABLE!!!   If I wasn’t laughing I was crying.   Absolutely beautiful and funny. Probably one of the most beautiful things I’ve seen in a long time. The photos, blending and delivery are GREAT.   My hat is off to the producers and players.

The drinking, the airplane,the cake, dancing,   the “gun”… where to stop?   Great job and you guys look so happy- keep it that way at all costs!
- Brian, www.designatea.com

My parents sent me a link to your wedding pictures…the last ones were way “riskay”!!!! i almost thought i should close my laptop and give you two a bit of privacy! hehehe just kidding you looked beautiful!!!! what a wonderful wedding!!
-Sara, the innocent new bride-to-be

So I have to just admit I watched the slide show of the wedding again, because it makes me happy lol
-Carmen, my new sister who’s planning her wedding 7 years in advance just to hire Neil & My wife

your photographer is pretty amazing! it kind of makes me want to get married… haha
-Jen, the one who loved being single until now

I’ve narrowed the choices for the front of my thank-you card down to 6 images, so give me till tomorrow afternoon to decide. This is harder than my college chemistry final! I’m not kidding…

-D

It’s unbelievable to me, but my wedding is only 3 days away and I feel incredibly lucky to be experiencing no stress or jitters, just total and immense excitement. Though I’m sad to have my 2 year engagement come to an end, I thought I would share some words of wisdom for brides wishing to be as happy as I am at this very moment:

1. Plan the longest engagement ever!

I’ll admit it, I’m addicted to being engaged. There’s a certain sparkle in telling people I have a fiance and watching their faces light up as they reminisce about their own weddings and romantic memories. I loved the time I spent with my mother planning every detail, listening to my bridesmaids discuss their dresses & dancing partners and learning new things about my man of 9 years. (Who knew he loved cake pillars?! Seriously?)

2. Book a crazy bachelor/bachelorette party yourself…aka go to Vegas.

There’s no written rule you can’t plan your own party! Our trip to Vegas with 6 of our closest friends was the best vacation we ever experienced. Though I’m sure my bridesmaids would have planned a fun outing, be spontaneous and go somewhere you know you’ll never forget. Well maybe you’ll forget some things……

3. Laugh at the drama and write it down!

Our wedding planning wasn’t without bumps. We “restructured” the bridal party a month before the date, sent out invites totally last minute (3 weeks to be exact) and desperately lacked in funds more than once, but when I tell my stories to others, they just make me laugh and realize the long and adventurous path we’ve taken to get to this amazing moment. Write it all down and when you’re finished, you just might be able to pitch your own soap opera!

4. Hire fantastic people.

I consider my taste to be high class, but the professionals I hired are in a class of their own. My caterer, cake decorator, stylist and of course, my photographers! are such wonderful and fun people to be around and this eases a huge amount of stress. Always there to answer any question, I couldn’t be more pleased to have met and shared my time with these people and I’m glad I choose my vendors based on personality, not just a portfolio.

5. Kiss each other goodnight EVERY NIGHT.

We might not be married yet, but almost a decade of dating means we must be doing something right.

Best wishes to all you beautiful brides! I hope your stories of celebration are as memorable as mine.

I have an obsession for the past. I’m talking 1930′s-60′s when the music was swinging, life was full of dancing and Frank Sinatra was damn sexy! (I have an obsession for him too.) So when I became engaged, I knew right away I was going to have an old Hollywood-themed wedding.

But what about my dress? I needed something nostalgic, hollywood, yet modern for today. Oh geez, was this going to be worse than my first prom?

 My tenth grade year, I bought 3 dresses, returned them, had a custom dress made, then bought my final dress 2 weeks before when i was looking for gloves. I’m so indecisive. So I buried myself in my endless library of bridal magazines and surfaced with a beautiful dress from Badgley Mishka, a classy designer inspired by 40′s Hollywood. Perfect!  

Now generally I’m carefree about my looks, except for my nose. It’s bigger than I’d like, but I’m not going to knife it for $5,000. Think of the wedding favors I could blow that on instead! Well, I’m thankful it doesn’t grow when I tell a lie, otherwise I’d be in trouble.

I knew I couldn’t tell my Mom the cost of the Badgley Mishka dress because she’d flip, so I fibbed a little. I also knew how important it was for her to see me try on wedding dresses and make my choice, so I promised her it would be an exclusive trip for both of us. Did my nose just swell?

I just happened to be visiting my Maid of Honor, Laura,   in Boston a month later, where we scheduled an appointment to try on bridemaid dresses. Well wouldn’t you know, this shop happened to carry the Badgley Mishka line! I couldn’t try on dresses without my mom, she would be heartbroken, but it seemed silly to drive 7 hours and not get a peek! I swear this is where the devil took over.

When we arrived at L’elie on Newbury St., I was greeted by the shop owner.

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I’ve of course never been married, but I sometimes compare my wedding to my senior prom. (Only let’s hope I don’t dump my man the next day.) My prom, at the time, seemed like the biggest event of my life and I just couldn’t wait. And of course with all the excitement and preparation came the crazy dreams. And I mean crazy…

So I wasn’t too surprised when my wedding nightmares started last year. Most are the typical worries: getting married on the wrong day, forgetting to invite anyone, the church shrinks while we’re in it…real common stuff. Well I finally experienced a “mind movie” that I wouldn’t mind watching again and I thought I would share it with you.

It was my wedding day and I think because of lousy weather, I got mad and called the whole thing off. Well Neil had already set up all his equipment, so he was annoyed and decided to smoke a joint in the parking lot. I thought this was an interesting concept so I sat next to him and started talking. He offered me a puff when a cop showed up to ask what we were doing. At that point Neil was so high, he offered the cop his own joint, which he gladly accepted!

Unfortunately, Neil didn’t continue in the sharing mood and another officer was mad he didn’t get offered a joint so he arrested Neil. Like a crazy man, Neil jumped in his 80′s Ford pickup truck and started doing donuts in the grass at my reception site. Dug the whole thing up like a mess then left, with the cops chasing after him.

As he drove off, we called My wife to come bail him out of jail, but instead she decided to talk to me on a balcony somewhere and discuss life. And of course as we were chatting, the whole thing fell down and we ended up joining the New York City marathon in progress below.

Can’t say I remember who won! But I woke up totally confused wondering if I was married or needed to find a different photographer. Should I be concerned?