The Reception

In the East Coast, wedding receptions tend to be 6 hour-affairs, with a formal sit down dinner and dancing. When my mom and I headed to New Orleans in search of a wedding venue, it quickly became apparent that people do things differently down there. New Orleans-style receptions are 3 hours long, buffet style and have a cocktail party feel. There's no assigned seating (in fact, there usually aren't enough chairs for every guest!) Since we were doing our wedding in New Orleans, we figured, let's do it how the locals do (although we insisted on proper assigned seating).

We had our reception at the Board of Trade, which back in the day used to be a place in New Orleans where stocks were traded, but it is now converted into an event space. It's an old historic building with a lot of character and fitted the look of our wedding perfectly.

Dan and I decided we would not partake in any of the standard wedding activities (cut the cake, toss the bouquet, etc.) Given that we only had a 3-hour party, I am so glad we made that decision. Otherwise it would have felt like we were rushing around trying to cross off a to-do list rather than enjoy our party. After we started taking swing dance lessons, we made one exception: we'd have a first dance.

Here's the secret: We had no idea what our song would be. Our band played dixie jazz music (not really our forte) so we contacted them a few times prior to the wedding asking them to suggest an appropriate song for us. They never got back to us. Our dance instructor choreographed a little number for us but we never knew if the moves would actually work with the music. So when we stepped out on the dance floor, we had no idea what we were in for. The song ended up being "It Had to Be You" which was a nice choice, and we just made up the moves as we went along. This is basically how our conversation went while we danced:

"You have the weirdest look on your face," Dan said.
"What are you talking about?" I asked.
"I have never seen this look on your face before. You're smiling but you look terrified."
"I feel like my boobs are going to pop out of my dress."
"They're not."
"But I feel like they are."
"Stop making that face."
I looked over to the 62 smiling faces staring at us.
"I can't."

We looked a little stiff out there but I am pleased that there was no Janet Jackson-style boob crisis and every time I think of the moment, it makes me laugh. I am happy that some of our guests really got down on the dance floor.


Our first dance.


The band chose a nice song...


...and boobs stayed securely in place.

All the food served at the wedding was New Orleans cuisine. We had cocktail hour in the courtyard where guests enjoyed coconut shrimp, mini muffaletta sandwiches, praline brie bites and crawfish cakes. Our buffet had Cajun turkey, pork loin with mango sauce, jambalaya, salad, fruits, veg, twice baked potatoes, and shrimp and grits.

Everyone was expecting us to have a cupcake tower in lieu of a wedding cake (I am a bit of a cupcake lover, if you haven't heard), but I couldn't resist the idea of a cake buffet with five different cakes. It's all my cake dreams come true: beautiful cakes to admire and the idea you could try all different flavors. Not to mention the cakes were amazingly moist and tasty! I surprised Dan with the cake topper that was made to look like us, which he loved.


The Giannandreas get a bite out of the muffalettas.


Katie, Matt, Josie and Scott enjoy Abitas at cocktail hour.


Eating and drinking at Table #1.


My seat.


David delivered a killer best man speech.


Little Katrine from Belgium gave us the cutest wedding gift (just from her): bride and groom Smurf figurines!


Pete and Brett share a romantic moment.


The cake buffet. The cake flavors were chocolate peanut butter, strawberry shortcake, wedding almond, lemon and red velvet.


The mini-Squeen cake topper.

We were super excited to surprise our guests with one of the great New Orleans traditions of all time: A second line band. The tradition is that there is a parade of brass instruments and the procession includes the band, the bride and groom who carry parasols, and the "second line" which is basically everyone who follows, waving handkerchiefs. For me, it was probably one of the most exciting moments of the day (although the whole day was pretty fun for me) and it really ended the reception in one great big bang!


Dancing to the band!


Everyone circles us!


I'm loving every minute!



The band escorted everyone out of the building.


Kayleen and Julien danced on the fountain.



Hip! Hip! Hooray!

Pictures by Susan, Apice, Nell, Gerda and Morten, Pete, Annie, Ara, Meagan (i think ;)

Scenes from our married life - 2

Last night, we watched Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. It was my first time. Dan thinks I am a crazy person for never having seen it.

"Do you think I will like it?" I asked Dan before the movie started.

"It's a musical about candy," he replied.

"Oh, right."

I did.

The Ceremony

We disregarded a lot of tradition for our wedding day, first one being that we slept in the same bed the night of our wedding. I tossed and turned and by 7 am, my eyes shot wide open and I could not go back to sleep. I ate breakfast with my brother and sister (Dan still slept) but my stomach was too nervous to really eat anything but cereal.

We kicked Dan out to go to his parents' hotel room, and room 1212 became a beauty parlor for Annette, the moms and me. We had Natalie, who told me she lives in the house featured in Benjamin Button, to do our hair, and Bella, a burlesque dancer, to do our make-up. It was pretty quiet and low-key, with some ABBA playing on the computer. I am glad I made the decision not to have a gaggle of bridesmaids because it was nice to relax before everything got started. Although I didn't give much time for introspection because as soon as we were ready, we ran out the door in a rush.

Dan and I saw each other decked out in wedding gear for the first time in the lobby of the Hampton Inn. Dan knew I would be wearing a tea-length number, but it was his first time seeing the actual dress. I think he liked it. I thought Dan looked especially handsome in his seersucker suit and yellow bow-tie.


Getting bridal ready.


Seeing each other for the first time.

Along with our photographer Ooti and his assistant (who I am pretty sure is his girlfriend), Dan, David, Annette and I went to the French Quarter to take some pictures. A lot of people in the streets said congratulations or commented on our outfits. Dan and I wanted some candids with some of the locals and tourists and so we asked two brass musicians in Jackson Square if we could take a picture with them. They stopped playing and all of a sudden started belting out "Here Comes the Bride." The music was getting louder and louder and everyone started surrounding us and clapping. It was fun.

The church is on the St Charles Ave. street car line, and Dan wanted to take the street car to our ceremony. We didn't have a lot of time, so we drove the car a few blocks short of the church so we could pick up the street car. We had no money for the ride, and there was a second there where we stressed about it but of course they stopped for us and let us on for free. The street car was packed with people and as soon as they saw us, everyone started clapping and cheering. Even cars on the streets were honking and then we saw that Henry and Susan were actually in one of them. The street car dropped us off right in front of the church and we got off the train to more cheers. One of the best moments of the day.

Dan and I were the first to arrive. The church wedding coordinator was like, "This is a first." What can I say? I like to be prompt. They made us sit in a room called the nursery, which had tiny little chairs and toys. It was hot in there, and I started to feel little waves of nervousness. Then Dan and I were moved to the back the church where we had to wait behind closed doors. We had decided long ago that we would walk down the aisle together. After being with each other for 7 years, I didn't want to be given away, and we were walking into this thing called marriage together, so it made sense for us to do it this way.

I am so glad I had him there when we were waiting. Pachelbel's Canon in D started playing for the procession of our parents and the bridal party. This song always makes me cry. I started to feel myself well up.

"Don't cry," Dan said, "It'll ruin your make-up."

"I can't help it." So Dan proceeded to do the chicken dance from Arrested Development and soon we were laughing so hard, I was afraid we couldn't stop. "What if they open the doors right now?" I said. We giggled and when the doors opened (by cousins Luca and Giancarlo), we were in the clear. Though watching this, you can kind of see the shadows of Dan jumping around through the door when my parents are walking.


Holy Name of Jesus church.


Waiting in the nursery.


Meanwhile, our guests took a bus to the church.


AJ and Jordan were especially pumped about the bus.


Our parents ready to go!


The babies meet! (check out Drake's seersucker!)

It was a long aisle, but it was a nice walk and all I remember seeing are smiling faces and cameras pointed at us. When we reached the altar and the music stopped, my first thought was "Where's the priest?" A few seconds went by which seemed like an eternity. No priest. More very long seconds. I started to giggle. I heard some snickers behind me. Then the vocalist went in the back to fetch the priest. When she came back and said "he's coming" I giggled more until he came out, scared to offend him.

The ceremony was very beautiful. We had a full mass service making it the only super traditional part of our day. Heather did the first reading, and Kunka did the second. Pete, Frank and Genevieve brought up the gifts. Katie and Matt did the prayer of the faithful. Besides for the beginning, I didn't feel tearful throughout the ceremony except when they named Tom as one of the deceased. He was really excited to come to our wedding, and I was sad he didn't make it. The homily was about how no one ever chooses the first reading (which was about love), and how people should choose it should more often (we agree!) When it was time to do our vows and ring exchange, I felt so nervous I wasn't sure if the words would come out of my mouth right, but somehow they did.

We had the choice to either sit or kneel and it was strange because our backs were always turned to the pews, and I wanted to turn around and look back at everyone. I would look at Dan from time to time, happy he was there beside me. I got a hot flash at one point and wondered if I would pass out and how weird would that be. I looked at the flowers we picked and thought, I bet Dan doesn't even notice those. Of course I also tried to pay attention to the service, but it was all so surreal.

The ceremony ended very abruptly. There was no "I now pronounce you husband and wife" or "You may kiss the bride." It just ended. And so we stood there a little stunned for a minute, and I think it was David who said, "Kiss her." And so I grabbed Dan and gave him a big smooch.


Walking down the aisle.


The church (yes, Emily sneaked away to take this picture from the balcony. Love her for it!)


Kunka reads.


Kissing! (note the flowers, Dan)

After pictures in the church, we stepped out to a sea of fabric yellow and white flags--which was cooler than I even imagined. What an adrenaline rush! We did not have a formal receiving line (the church wouldn't let us) so I tried to talk to everyone I could in the short time we stood there. We chartered a New Orleans street car to pick us up at at the church and take us back downtown. I am so happy we had the chance to sit next to Katie, who had us laughing a mile a minute. We were ready to celebrate!


I loved this part! Can you tell?


My sister and me.


Posing by the street car.


Posing inside the street car.


The newlyweds.

Pictures by Pete, Annie, Morten & Gerda, Courtney, Annette, Emily, Apice, Kunkas, and probably someone else I forgot-Sorry!

Scenes from our married life

We interrupt the wedding story because last night Dan told me in complete seriousness that he wished like he looked like this guy:



Then he turned over the Bob Serger album and said, "Oh, wait, maybe more like this guy" pointing to the long-haired mustached man in a pink leather suit and suspenders.




I shook my head in disbelief. "No," I said. "You can't."

Dan pouted.

"Nate would understand," Dan said.

Rehearsal & Welcome Party

Holy Name of Jesus Church

Even though Dan and I did not want to have a conventional wedding weekend, we DID want to have a traditional Catholic wedding ceremony. We found a beautiful church called Holy Name of Jesus that is located on the Loyola University campus. After it became apparent that no priest in New Orleans would marry us for reasons unclear (they were "busy"), we decided to ask my hometown priest, Father Jude, to officiate our wedding. We met with him a few times throughout the year for pre-marital counseling, and since he had already officiated my sister's wedding and my grandma's funeral years ago, it was like having a member of the family joining us.

The Monday before the wedding, Father Jude called us in tears and told us he could not go to New Orleans. The other priest at my hometown church was just diagnosed with cancer and needed emergency surgery, and Father Jude felt that he could not leave the parish at this time. It was heartbreaking, and for about a day, we did not know if there would be anyone to marry us. Father Jude came through by calling the church in New Orleans, pleading his case, and we got ourselves a new New Orleans-based priest. We met Father Donald for the first time at our rehearsal the day before our wedding.

At first introduction, Father Donald seemed super old-school. At the rehearsal, he went straight to business, telling us everything we needed to know--really seriously and really fast. But when it came time to sign our marriage certificate, he lightened up a bit and spoke to Dan for a long time about New York City politics. Turns out he was pretty witty and had a dry sense of humor. Sigh of relief. Everything was going to be okay. After that, I didn't worry about anything.


My mom and Ted watching the rehearsal.


Dan, with best man David.


Signing the papers. It's official! We're legally married.


Squeen men discuss water strategy. (We planned to have water bottles on-hand after our ceremony and this was subject to intense debate. I avoided these conversations. I mean look how serious they look. They're talking about WATER. Poor Kunka.)

After the rehearsal, we headed to our welcome party. To be honest, Dan and I were almost as excited for our welcome party as we were for our wedding. While we had already started seeing glimpses of our guests at the hotel and on the streets, this was the first time that we would see everyone together in New Orleans. Our 62 guests were coming from all over the place: California, Oregon, Texas, New Jersey, New York, Minnesota, Illinois, Colorado, Washington, DC, Pennsylvania, Belgium and Switzerland. I don't think that we will ever see all these people in the same room together again, so it was super exciting to think everyone in the same place, all because of us!

From the beginning, Dan wanted to have a barbecue for our welcome party, and he found a restaurant called The Joint in the Bywater that made a deconstructed pig. While I drooled over flowers and calligraphy, Dan obsessed about this pig. Back in December, Dan and I visited the place and had multiple food orgasms over the juicy meat, special sauces, mac 'n cheese, potato salad, baked beans and the pies. Oh, the pies! I am not a huge pie person but these were the best pies I have ever tasted in my life...pecan pie, key lime pie and peanut butter pie. We would like one of everything please! We met with the owner Pete and he scribbled down our order on a regular restaurant notepad. Just to show you how laid back things are in the South, we asked:

Are you going to send us a contract?
No.
Do you need a down payment?
No.
Should we call you a week before the party to remind you to come?
Um. Yeah, sure.

He said he was going to file our order away somewhere. It seems beyond belief for most type-A New Yorkers, but Pete and his wife Jenny showed up at our welcome party with all their yummy eats, just like they said they would.

To go with our barbecue, we wanted an outdoor space, which was actually kind of hard to find since most of the parks in New Orleans close after dark and we couldn't just use someone's backyard. Dan and I disagree over this, but we each think that we discovered the Pharmacy Museum on Chowhound. The building is the first pharmacy in the United States and it's filled with old bottles and potions and weird sorts of things. My friend Heather says the place is haunted. In the back is a big outdoor courtyard. When we visited it in December, it was cold and raining hard we thought, this is perfect. You can actually see a glimpse of our initial visit here.

The night of the party, the space was even more lovely than I anticipated. It was super hot but at least it didn't rain (There was a 30% chance of thunderstorms and we had no rain plan!) The Joint was set up with their awesome BBQ spread and we had a little three piece band playing music to add some ambiance. The whole feel was festive but casual--just the way we wanted it. Dan said a few words on behalf of the two of us. I had the best time mingling and talking to everyone. When you have a wedding so small, it's nice that you actually have the time to talk to all of your guests. The only person I didn't speak to very much was Dan, but that's okay!

Afterwards, a few of us went to Napoleon House next door for a night cap, but I didn't want to drink too much. My stomach was already a flutter for the big day ahead!


Dan and me in the Pharmacy Museum. Probably one of the five minutes we spent together all night--or so it felt!


Dan giving his speech. I adoringly look on.


The band rocks out.


To complement the barbecue's southern feel, we decorated the tables with mason jars tied with ribbon and filled them with candles. With the help of my friend Michele, we made custom buttons featuring each of our faces and "Team Squeen." (Dan's nickname is Squeen, and now that I am going to be a Pasquini, too, we're a team). I loved that many of our guests wore their buttons throughout the weekend.



Guests got to look at pictures old and new. (I never tire of looking at pictures of young Dan).


The party scene. As it grew darker (but never cooler!), the lighting was just gorgeous.


The bride's gotta eat. (There's our man Pete in the back)


Barbecue and grins.



Drake establishes himself as the wedding's most eligible bachelor. The girls (including Katrine) go wild.

Pictures and video by: Susan, Morten & Gerda, Heather, Annie, Pete, me, probably forgot someone.

Wedding Prep

Gosh, where do I begin? The last two weeks have been pretty darn amazing, and Dan and I are still coming down from all the excitement. Dan is back to work today, and I start a new freelance job tomorrow, and so soon things will go back to ordinary. But please indulge me for a few days as I recount our wedding and honeymoon story on The Ham.

First, I have a bit of a confession to make. For the last year, I have become somewhat of a wedding junkie. I never was the type of girl who dreamed about her wedding or had fairytale notions of the day, and I used to make fun of the girls who obsessed over every detail. But in the midst of the dullsville of job searching and everyday life, there was something very exciting about a world filled with romance and frilly dresses and beautiful flowers and fine paper goods. It was actually a lot more creative and fun than I expected, and I got very much sucked in, loving every step of the way.

The fact that I enjoyed wedding planning so much surprised me because I am sometimes required to plan events as part of my job and they are by far my LEAST favorite thing to do. In general, I am not a party person, and events tend to make many people -- how can I say, a bit crazy. I hate the intensity and pressure of it all. This time around, there was something different about planning a party where all the attendees would be the people I love and where we could do whatever we wanted in a very calm fashion. I especially loved the design element and creating a look and feel. We are lucky to have an amazing set of parents who never interfered with our vision and generously contributed to making our day just the way we wanted it. Which meant the only "crazy" people involved would be me and Dan, and as far as I can tell, we're not all that crazy.

So I was the one obsessed with reading my Martha Stewart Wedding magazines and wedding blogs and updating my multi-paged excel to-do list and spreadsheet, but don't be fooled...Dan was equally involved in the planning process. I hear some brides complain that their groom doesn't care about their wedding day, but not in this case. Dan and I made EVERY decision together (thankfully we wanted the same exact thing so we rarely argued over anything), and we split up the workload pretty equally. The weekend was truly a reflection of us as a couple.

There are many times where I wanted to tell you all about wedding planning on this blog, but Dan and I both believe that there is an element of surprise to every great event, and so I didn't really say anything to anybody. (Plus, I was still in the closet about my wedding obsession). Besides, you really did not have to know about the afternoon where my sister and I sat at my mother's kitchen table making handmade fabric flags or my jaunts to Brooklyn to visit the adorable and talented calligrapher or the fact that we didn't have one or two, BUT THREE BANDS or the gleeful day a big box arrived in the mail filled with Dan and Yvonne buttons. It was much more fun to see your reaction in person.

We arrived in New Orleans the Wednesday before our wedding because we needed to get our marriage license three days prior to the big day. Dan was convinced that we would be sitting on our bums, twiddling our thumbs with nothing to do. We did end up having a lot of things to do. Or shall I say, I had some things to do and Dan ended up having a lot of things to do. Dan lost a lot of weight before the wedding and the suit he got fitted in December in New Orleans was literally falling off of him, so we went to get his suit taken in. They usually needed a week for such orders, but agreed to have the suit ready in two days time. Dan was also on a mission for the right belt and maybe a new shirt and there was a lot of indecision so it was good we had some extra time to sort all that out.

I really wanted the days before the wedding to be relatively stress free, so while Dan figured out his belt situation and got beer for the welcome party, Annette and I went to a spa to get manicures and pedicures. It was the first time my sister has gotten a professional pedicure...ever. She never pampers herself so I am happy to treat her to one of my favorite indulgences plus have a little relaxation time before everything started.


Dan filling out the application for our marriage license.



Getting the seersucker suit taken in at Perlis.



Susan helped me put together the wedding favors which were little bags filled with pralines from Southern Candymakers.



Dan and I aroused some suspicion at the grocery store when we purchased 40 lemons for our wedding decor. The cashiers and shoppers we met were genuinely excited that we were having our wedding in New Orleans. I lined up the lemons around our hotel room because I was afraid they'd spoil sitting in plastic bags, which made our hotel room look kind of creepy and weird.


Dan and I have been together for seven years, but our families have never met each other, so we arranged a meet-the-families dinner on Thursday night at Dick and Jenny's, a neighborhood joint serving New Orleans style food with a twist. No surprise--everyone got along well and I think everyone was just excited to be there. As usual, my siblings Pete and Annette were nuts over the food options so we tried things like fried oysters, escargot, fried green tomatoes, and seafood aplenty. Even my mom, who is a pretty conservative eater, dove right in! Everyone was in a festive mood, even little Michela, who after a long plane ride, needed a bottle and a nap!

Dan and I often pondered what it would be like the day our parents met and it came and went so quickly and without a hitch, it's funny that we ever thought about it at all.


Pouring over the menus.



Henry and Susan - Happy Parents Number One!



Tad and Maria - Happy Parents Number Two!



Monica, Michela and Henry



Pete and Annette - the eaters!



Bros Dan and David

All photos from the dinner taken by Pete.