Yesterday’s Tuesday was a case of the Mondays for me. Patrick and I returned home from our wonderful trip to Orlando Monday. We were completely spoiled by the snow and holiday last week, which meant we barely had one day where we had to go into work before we left Friday morning! Now, staring at this computer screen all day makes my eyes want to fall out….however, it has been quite a productive few days with lots of meetings and playing catch-up!
So, let’s get to the big point of this post. Last Thursday,
Patrick and I decided to have a small courthouse marriage ceremony with our
families and a few close friends. Don’t worry, friends: we will still have a
BIG wedding next year with all of our friends and family! We decided that
getting married now was not only the best thing for the baby, but also the best
thing for us. We already knew we would be getting married next year and that we
want to spend the rest of our lives together, and that we wanted to bring baby
Laiti into a loving, happily married family. Also, with things like health
insurance and taxes with a little one on the way, it made the most sense to
have a marriage ceremony now and save the big wedding party for next year when
the baby will be almost 1!
Apparently, we aren’t the only ones in the family to get
married after under a year of being together (but we have known each other for
10 years!). Patrick’s aunt and uncle were engaged after one week of meeting
each other, and married 4 months later! They have been happily married for over
30 years now, with 4 kids (well, all grown-ups now!). My great-aunt and uncle,
whom my parents are incredibly close with, were married after 6 weeks of
dating! They have been married over 50 years with children and grandchildren.
Also, Patrick’s older brother and wife whom we are close with, were married
before their big wedding so their little ones could attend (they are welcoming
their 4th this summer- her due date is just 3 days after mine!).
Guess we are following family trends on both sides!
Our wedding day was really the best day we could have
asked for. Everything went so smoothly, and there was nothing but love that
entire day. We had our small ceremony in the library of the law office of our marriage
officiant, and our families and a few close friends were able to be there for
us. We all went to Maggiano’s (a family-style Italian restaurant) to celebrate
afterwards. There were tons of hugs, beautiful speeches, lots of wine and good
food, and an overall amazing time! The speeches of course brought me to tears,
just to see everyone so happy for us. We could not have asked for a more
perfect wedding day.
After our wedding, we stayed in a beautiful hotel next to
the DC airport so we could sleep a little later before our flight. We flew out
to Orlando to have a “mini-honeymoon/babymoon” since this will be one of the
last times we will be able to travel for a while. Anyone who knows my family
knows that Orlando is our favorite spot, and to bring the love of my life there
to celebrate such a wonderful time meant the world to me. We had such a great
trip, and I got to do most things there since there are very few “rides” and
mostly attractions that are not rollercoasters. Patrick was able to hit all the
rollercoasters, though, since our room keys worked as fast passes. I never had
to wait more than 5 minutes for him to go on a ride!
Besides the theme parks there, we also went to a luau,
mini-golfed, and hit CityWalk for the nightlife. The luau was SO much fun,
considering there was tons of Hawaiian food and a show. CityWalk is always fun
to go to, because they have Margaritaville, mini-golf, and tons of bars and
restaurants. The weather was beautiful- just about 75 every day (beats the 6
degree weather in NOVA). We got to hit the parks early and do all the shows/attractions/rides
early, and then lay by the pool all afternoon before CityWalk at night.
Patrick and I are so very thankful for all the love and
support from all of our friends and family as we begin our lives together. To
know that others see us as happier than ever and to be able to point that out,
and want to come to our wedding and baby events, means the world to us. We are
so excited to be Mr and Mrs, and for the arrival of baby Laiti. Not to mention,
we can’t wait to find out if we will have a little football player or a little
cheerleader!
Also, I have posted a few of my favorite wedding day
pictures and honeymoon/babymoon pictures! And believe me; it was hard to choose
my favorites! The rest I’ll upload to facebook later. I put the pictures on a separate page which you can find on the right hand side of the blog since there are quite a few!
Laura Laiti (L²)
