Mark, Marshall, Sharon and Peggy share a toast over the long-awaited marriage certificate.
The deed is done!
Marshall and Sharon (aka Bo and Spyke) are officially married. Our family and friends gathered to witness the brief ceremony, and a joyous celebration followed.
The invitation was sent via email, and a web page was created to handle all the details.
The Bachelor and Bachelorette Party was replaced by a rousing Happy Hour at The French Place. About 60 people packed the bar area and enjoyed the Bolline's hospitality as we celebrated in anticipation.
Design and decorations were handled by the Bride with labor supplied by anyone standing nearby.
The open bar was furnished by the Groom who elected to allow guests to serve themselves, which certainly speeded up things. The line at the bar was always short even though everyone had a fresh cocktail.
Valet attendants Chris and Blake provided a necessary parking convenience to the arriving guests who then signed the Guest Register and selected their souvenir glass before heading to the bar.
At approximately 4:15 pm on Saturday, January 25th, 2003, Richie played The Wedding March on harmonica to begin the ceremony. Sharon and Marshall marched around opposite edges of the pool with their attendants to meet in the middle and exchange vows.
Richie ended the ceremony by singing and playing a brief original blues tune on his harmonica. The reception followed immediately.
You say reception; I say party. A very informal and happy occasion included food, drink, music, and the energetic conviviality of our relatives and friends. The menu included:
Call for Photos: Anyone who has digital photos of the wedding or reception that they'd like to share, please send them to me or contact me. I did not take enough photos of the actual party, so I could use some help.
The newly weds spent Sunday morning with the guest in-laws and outlaws cleaning up, blending pitchers of margaritas, and recounting details of the previous day. We opened (and opened, and opened) gifts - the generosity of our friends was amazing and reassuring at the same time. We think that between the bottles of wine and liquor and the Home Depot gift certificates we'll be building a new shelf for the bar as one of our next projects. In the afternoon, we settled down with our guests to watch the SuperBowl and munch on turkey sandwiches. Sharon and I passed out during the 3rd or 4th quarter of the game and woke up in time to catch the final score and fall into bed exhausted.
Although you can be assured that we will be enjoying many honeymoons over the coming years, we elected not to go on one right after the wedding. Monday we went on a short "honeymoon cruise" in Fort Lauderdale by taking the Water Taxi downtown to Himmarshee Village and catching a movie at the IMAX and then dinner at The River House.
Do we feel different? Yes and no. Our commitment to each other has been strong for many years, so this wedding changes little in that regard. But the joy and happiness that the actual day brought us, and the love and laughter that our family and friends shared with us has given us new appreciation for all our loved ones. Whenever we feel down, we can always get out our wedding cards and read through them for a cure.
- Marshall and Sharon
