Stiches in the Sud-Ouest

My father never had a passport. He has lived and worked his entire life in the same city and although he has traveled a fair amount, even to exotic lands such as Canada, he never felt the urge to venture too far from home.

Until now.

A sneaky hidden benefit of living abroad is that it encourages people to visit who would otherwise never make the trip. My grandfather's failing health kept my father from taking the plunge sooner, as he and his siblings took shifts providing round the clock care for Grandpa these last two years, but now that he's at rest, it has given Dad the time he needed to cross the pond.

October is the perfect month to visit Bordeaux. It's just after harvest time, so the wineries are abuzz with activity. The summer tourists have all gone back to work and the regular staff is on duty at all the restaurants and shops so you get a much more authentic experience. Probably the best part is that the weather is almost always good. The days are still warm but not hot and the nights are cool but not cold. Rain is rare. We have had visitors for three Octobers in a row and we have yet to get more than a light afternoon sprinkle (touche bois).

Mom and Dad arrived on Saturday the 17th and I took them on the typical walking circuit of the city. There was a rugby match on that night so we went to the Black Velvet to watch it with some friends, but mostly it was a ploy to keep them awake long enough to break their jet lag.

On Sunday we were off to the Portes Ouvertes in the Graves, the same wine event that we do every year when our parents come to visit. It's a great way to see a little bit of the countryside and try a bunch of Bordeaux wines all at once. Plus, there are some awesome châteaux in the region, which is hard not to enjoy. We drank lots of wine and brought a bunch to take home, too.

Château Cérons

Don't think that will fit in your suitcase, guys.

It was fall break at Kedge so I only had to work two days out of the week, which meant I could take my parents somewhere fun with the rest of my time off. Since Mom had already been to the dunes, we decided to head east the Dordogne Valley. We took the scenic route getting there because I inadvertently programmed the GPS to avoid tolls and it took us through every tiny little town between here and Sarlat. The countryside is beautiful, though, with rolling hills and valleys, winding rivers and craggy cliffs.

If I were a more confident manual transmission driver, this might have been an enjoyable drive, but alas, I am not and it wasn't. I don't know if I have ever been more stressed in my life. Why did I think I could do this? I was supposed to learn to drive stick this summer to prepare for this trip, but it didn't happen between all the weddings and traveling that we did. Dad took me out driving a few times but I just never got enough practice. I don't know why I thought meandering around rural France was the time to learn but we can't always choose these things, can we? We made it in one piece but my nerves have certainly seen better days.

We explored Sarlat a little and had dinner at a nice little place serving local specialties. This region is literally out of a fairy tale; the movie Ever After was filmed at several locations in the vicinity. The medieval towns are living history books and the castles will leave you gobsmacked. It's an absolutely incredible part of France, one that we find ourselves drawn back to time and time again.

The next day, we drove to Castlenaud, a museum/castle perched high atop a cliff, overlooking the Dore river. If you're in the region, you really should check it out. It's impressive both inside and out, and the views of the surrounding area will take your breath away. We ran into an American woman that has been living in France for 20+ years and she told us that it gets harder and harder to go back home the longer you're abroad. "After five years, you're settled in." My mother didn't seem to appreciate this comment. I suppose we will see about that when the time comes.

Château Beynac

With the previous day's 3.5 hours of intensive training under my belt, I was already feeling a bit better behind the wheel and I made sure to take the highway back to Bordeaux. Thank you, Dad, for being so patient with my terrible driving and never getting stressed out even when you had every right to be. 1000 Good Dad Points for you.

I left Mom and Dad to their own devices on Wednesday while I went to work and they had a mostly relaxing day of wandering around town and catching up on their sleep. We had been running around non-stop since the very first moment they arrived so I'm not surprised they were tired.

Thursday was tourism day. We took the Petit Train tour around town and learned about the history fo Bordeaux. They seemed to get a kick out of that. Then, we hopped on the BatCub and took a ride over to Lormont. We strolled around the park, saw some random goats, checked out the quarry lake and headed back into Bordeaux for dinner.

I had two classes on Friday morning but I was finished by noon so we all met Jason out at his work (where we had been parking the car for free) and hit the road for San Sebastian. This is quickly becoming our favorite weekend getaway spot. The food is good, the weather is perfect and it's simply beautiful. It's impossible to take a bad picture in this place.

We drove through St Jean de Luz and Biarritz on our way back to Bordeaux, both of which are adorable little towns in the Pays Basque. They really do have their own culture that is very distinct from the rest of France. And just think: all of this is about 2.5 hours south of home. Two hours south of Rochester will get you to... Corning. (Dat museum of glass, doe)

Mom and Dad had an early flight back to America on Sunday morning so we packed the car and I drove them out to the airport. (It's much less stressful to drive at 5am when there's no one on the road.) It was such a whirlwind that if you blinked, you missed it but could see in my father's eyes that he had caught the bug. He was not the same because that's what traveling does to you. It shows you things that you never knew were possible. Little things that you didn't even realize were a part of your culture are suddenly painful obvious. And it's weird and it's hard and it's confusing, but that's what makes it so good.

I already can't wait for them to come back.

In Sunshine and In Rain

"Nicole and Jason: Bringing two families together at a storm inspired wedding in a funky Rochester art gallery."

Lucky for you, this isn't a corny wedding blog so we'll skip right to the good stuff.

Jason got into town on September 14. His suit was mangled by the tailor in Waynesboro (not 100% his fault but still really inconvenient) so we had to find him something else to wear. Commence intense shopping quest. Got a suit. Where is the nearest tailor? Found one. Why is he caressing your calves like that? Whatever. Just suck it up and let's get out of here. I hope this comes out looking halfway decent...

Jason's family started coming to town on Thursday. Since they were traveling from PA to be there, many of them decided to make it a full blown vacation. Spend some time in Rochester, check out Niagara Falls, go to the Finger Lakes... Why not? NYS is beautiful in September so I was glad they decided to take advantage of it. My mom and I had nail appointments that afternoon and Jason took his family somewhere to eat.

On Friday morning, Uncle Craig and Aunt Anne invited us for brunch. Uncle Michael and Aunt Deborah were in town for the first time in years and we thought it might be a nice way to introduce some of the family. Julie, Jackie and Jeremy were there representing the Bayer crew, my parents and I were there, and Josh and Stefanie showed up at some point, too. It was a great way to start off an amazing weekend. The food was good, the conversation went smoothly and everyone was getting along swimmingly. This is a good sign.

We had our rehearsal at 2:00 followed by nail appointments for the ladies at 3:00. I cannot stress enough how much I appreciated the staff at Park Ave Salon and Spa. They really went above and beyond for us. Please go there and give them all your money.

Jason was in charge of the rehearsal dinner, which was being held at the Genesee Brewhouse. Slightly better than average pub grub, tasty beers brewed in house, amazing roof deck with a view of High Falls. This place was perfectly us. Their reservation policy was a little weird in that you can't reserve a table ahead of time but you can call an hour before and say how many people you have in your party and they will get it set up for you. We were aiming for 6:30 dinner time but people were still lingering in the tasting room or driving over from wherever they were so it was at least 7:00 by the time we actually sat down, much to the wait staff's chagrin. Oh well! Take all our money!

We gave toasts, distributed gifts to our bridal party and parents and everyone had plenty to drink. Jay and Aunt Deborah were BFFs by the end of the night and I don't exactly know why but I am not complaining. The one thing I was slightly nervous about was our families getting along and all those fears were put to rest that evening. Relieved doesn't even begin to describe it.

And then it was our wedding day. I spent the night at Josh and Stefanie's so that they could take me to my early morning hair appointment. Jason was getting liquored up and smoking cigars with his friends in our hotel suite. I must admit, I was a little jealous. But then again, I am getting too old to have multiple wild nights in a row so it was probably for the best.

The ladies and I got all glammed up and were ready to roll by 1:00. I was putting my dress on at 2:00 so everyone else went back to the hotel to get ready and Mom and I went for lunch at Wegmans. The butterflies were starting to kick in, which is strange because we're already married, but I think it was just the gravity of it all. There were about to be a whole lot of people looking at me all night and that was a little intimidating.

It suddenly seemed so real. All of the work, all of the money, all of the time. It was all for this.

I could try to describe every tiny detail of the evening but no one really cares and quite honestly, pictures do it better. So I will leave you with the important details and let the pictures speak for themselves. Please contact these people if you are having a wedding in Rochester. Our vendors were absolutely incredible.

Photography: Lisa Barker. See all of the photos here
Venue: ArtisanWorks (Wedding Coordinator: Victoria Benz)
Food: Madeline's Catering @ ArtisanWorks
Dessert: Goodness Cakes Bakery
Dress: Vera Wang
Beauty: Park Ave Salon and Spa
Transportation: Esteem Limo
Accommodation: Hyatt Regency
Invitations: PhiloSophie's
Table number postcards: Jackie Bayer
Other stationery: N+J
Lantern Centerpieces: Recycled Revival
Flowers: Becky Stidd
Music: Aaron Celentano
Nicole's ring: Gabriel & Co.
Jason's ring: ???

Getting Ready

Something borrowed and old: Julie's vintage jewelry

Bridal Party and Family

All of our significant life events involve rain and snow so this was no exception

Ceremony
"Should you ever seek an example of how to make a marriage last a lifetime, look no further than your own parents."

"Do you Jason choose Nicole to be your partner in life, to support and respect her in her successes as well her failures, to care for her in sickness and in health, to stand by her in sunshine and in rain, and to grow with her throughout the seasons of your life together?"

“I do”

"I give you this ring as a symbol of my eternal love and affection. May it serve as a constant reminder of my commitment to respect you, cherish you and love you for the rest of our days."

Look at those smiles

Reception
Each table had a little mini recipe booklet as the favor (Recipes for a Rainy Day) that I had designed and assembled with my parents. The table numbers were postcards that Jackie created and printed for us and the bases were made from corks of wines that we actually drank in Bordeaux. Jackie, Julie and I made the place cards.

There was also a little game that we wanted our guests to play. Each person had a quiz and the questions were all about us. Some people may have known some of the answers but in case they didn't, the number of each question corresponded with a table number and you could find the answer there, written under one of the guests' places cards. The whole reason we had this wedding was for our families so it was important for them to talk to each other. The first table with all the correct answers got a prize. We had a tie so Jason had one person from each table chug a beer for the tie breaker. Patrick totally won (there is photographic evidence!) but Jamie Pratt was declared the winner because Jason doesn't give clear directions. In the end, they both ended up with prizes so it was okay.

Cocktail Hour

Waynesboro Boys

Little Calliope is only 5 weeks old in this picture

First Dance: Come Rain or Come Shine - Ray Charles

Toasts

Josh: Man of Honor

Paul: Best Man

Jay: Father of the Groom

Bernie: Father of the Bride

"I thought weddings were a big waste of money. But I was wrong. This is a great night."

Dinner and Mingling

See? Paul knows that Patrick won.

Putting some stars on our map

Mother Son Dance: What a Wonderful World - Louis Armstrong

Father Daughter Dance: Isn't She Lovely - Stevie Wonder

Anniversary Dance: Forever and Ever, Amen - Randy Travis

Dance Party!!

Didn't miss the cousin photo this time

We played the Shoes Game but without having to take off our shoes. Ama made little signs for us to hold up, Rick was the "host" and the bridal party came up with questions to ask us: Who is a better cook? Who is more likely to start a fight? Who said I love you first? Who do you love the most right now?

Totally winning the award for best grandson

This is why I love my brother.

I will remember this moment as one of the happiest of my life.

Best. Night. EVER.

The after party was at Temple Bar and Grille where some random girl KILLED IT at karaoke, serenading us with Celine Dion and a random chick on her way out of the bathroom stopped to re-bustle my dress. Everyone was buying us drinks and wishing us well. If I'm ever having a bad day, I'm just going to put on a wedding dress and wander around town because people will go out of their way to be nice to you.

We stayed until close and then staggered back to our suite at the Hyatt. We invited folks in for a quick drink but made it very clear they couldn't stay because we had *ahem* other plans for the evening.

Jason and I stayed up drinking complimentary champagne and eating chocolate covered strawberries, recounting our favorite moments from the night. In the morning, we packed up our stuff and headed out to Ontario Beach Park for our farewell picnic. We had Dinosaur BBQ and drank leftover beers from the wedding and it wasn't until about 5:00 when the high started to wear off and I crashed. I think we were all exhausted at that point. 

It was a long and tiring weekend but it was far and away the best three days of my life. I can't emphasize enough how amazing it was to have all of our closest friends and family at hand to help us celebrate our love for one another. I have never felt more beautiful, more fortunate, more loved. None of it would have been possible without the incredible generosity of our parents, who funded a very significant part of the events. We will never be able to thank you enough. Our fantastic vendors made the day run so smoothly and we really appreciate all of your flexibility and understanding even when things weren't exactly as planned! Of course my biggest thank you is to my wonderful husband, for being the reason we did had this whole party in the first place. I still can't believe how lucky I am to have you. 

I love you now and forever, in sunshine and in rain.