Rehearsal dinner

The rehearsal dinner was great. Valet parking at Nonna's, an open bar with actual beer with an actual alcohol content higher than 3.2%. There were about fifty people there I should say, with the wedding couple at a long table in the middle. I was lucky with my table- I was sitting with Taylor, Saori, Grandma, Ashley's mom and dad, Ashley, and I sat next to the emcee, a.k.a. E.W. Marland, my Uncle Jeff, who was master of ceremonies for the whole thing, with occasional prompting and commentary from his "sidekick" Ashley.

It was a really fun evening. They had a slideshow going with pictures from both Josh's and Andera's childhood, and we all mingled for awhile before taking our seats and tucking in. Salad starter, followed by a choice of entrees. I got the lasagna, Tay got the sirloin, and Saori opted for the panko fried pork chop. It was all really delicious, and Uncle Jeff and I talked back and forth and had a good time. We both lamented the fact that dad couldn't have been there, and we talked about what my mom was up to with her law school.

Before dessert, there was a general roast where guests took turns talking about Josh and Andera as children. The recurring theme of the evening was the chirping birds people always saw around Cinderella's Andera's head, (she really is as light and warm and sunshiny as a Disney princess), and the way that the Edmond PD kept appearing in stories about Josh (who was somehow able to maintain a clean record (and actually, the worst you could say was about those incidents was more mischievous rather than any real harm)).

I racked my brain to think of a suitable story about Josh from our time together as cousins, but to be honest, we probably saw Josh once every two years or so as kids, and he was always very quiet. Tay had a good story, but it's his to tell so I won't relate it here.

Anyway, it was a good night and we lingered well past the time the restaurant closed.