Wedding on the beach

Last Fri I wrote about my friend Joey getting married the next day on the beach, with a reception afterward in a hotel.  I thought I'd share some thoughts and photos.

First off, outdoor weddings are very risky because you never know how the weather will turn out.  It could be cold, rainy, winding, stormy, blazingly hot, crazy humid, or it could be nearly perfect like it was for this wedding.  It was in the mid-80s but the humidity was low and there was a lovely, constant breeze.  They were very, very lucky.

The grooms kindly invited everyone to dress casually (no suits and ties) which made it even more comfortable and enjoyable.

After the short and sweet ceremony Spouse & I paused for a moment to take a selfie.

The reception was held in the penthouse banquet room of the hotel which provided stunningly beautiful views of the ocean, beach, and boardwalk.

The food was served buffet-style and it was really good.  The cake came from Charm City Cakes.  We don't know if teddy bear Duff Goldman actually made or decorated the cake or not, but it was certainly charming and personalized for the couple.

The groom on the left side of the cake is 'dressed' in the outfit he wore in the wedding, and the groom on the right is dressed in a St Patrick's outfit because they met at a St Patrick's day party.  Its difficult to see in this photo but their dog and 3 cats are represented on the middle tier, as well as beer stines, sea shells, and starfish.  

After a few toasts from the 2 maids of honor, the grooms posed for photos and had their first dance as a married couple.  They wore matching ivory colored vests made from 1 of the grooms' mother's wedding gown, and they got married on the other groom's mother's birthday.

Then the DJ pumped up the tempo and the dancing began.  Even Joey's 92 year old aunt joined in and had a dance with both grooms!  

Everyone seemed to have a great time, including Spouse who always imagines the worst in such social situations.  Naturally witnessing the love and contentment of this couple brought back memories of mine and Spouse's wedding, which was probably one of the best times of my life.