Two receptions, one newly-wed couple

Call us crazy, but we had three wedding receptions. Why? We got married in Washington, D.C., and of course we had to have a reception after the wedding. Our families in Iowa and Michigan both wanted to bring the celebration home. We, the would-be beneficiaries of said festivities, could only accept our parents' invitations :) While we had fun being the center of so much love and attention, we are also very aware of and grateful for how much time, effort, and resources our parents and family friends gave to make everything possible.

IOWA

Highlights

• Motorcycle tour of Ames
• Homemade and homegrown rhubarb pie
• "KHAAAN!" —Star Trek Into Darkness
• Riding the carousel on pigs - a unique treat among the usual fare of pretty horses
• Beautiful and plentiful homemade cake pops of many tasty varieties

The reception was gorgeous. We had beautiful home-made decorations. In the back-right corner was a little arch with Christmas lights, draped cloth, and faux flowers. Lauren and I met our guests there. Each table had a tall rectangular glass jar filled with water and near invisible balls (see Youtube, and they made a good foot massage after the reception, too). In each one, a tiny 2x3 picture of us was suspended in the water, and a heart-shaped candle floated on top. The food was all desserts. There were cake pops (balls of cake on a stick, like a lollipop), special oreos, cheesecakes, treats with blueberries and raspberries, and many other goodilicious treats. Lauren enjoyed hearing tales of a young James Pringle from longtime friends and family.

MICHIGAN

Highlights

• Wakeboarding (Lauren coached me out in the water behind the boat, and I stood up and even wakeboarded for a while)
• Driving fancy cars (I just might be a fan of the new Ram now)
• Four deer in our friend's front yard
• The orchids survive!
• Biking with Lauren to downtown Rochester for Red Knapp's burgers, fried pickle, seasoned fries, and shakes

The Michigan reception was by reservation, and everybody showed up that we were expecting. The conservatory, our venue, was elegant. We had a reception line of Cloughs and Pringles. Everyone walked through to greet us and then sat down at a table. While it was full of people, it was also cozy. The food was Michigan themed. We had great salad with Michigan cherries, walnuts, and blue cheese. Next were the rice pilaf and macaroni and cheese. There were Coney dogs and gyros. For dessert, we had Sander's fudge and apple tarts. Lauren had a lot of great friends all throughout her life, and I got to meet a few of them at the reception.

Add it all up, and this little nine-day vacation involved about 40 hours of driving. We saw gas prices ranging from $3.45 (Costco in Cranberry, PA) to $4.47 (in Gary, Indiana) per gallon. We paid 40 cents in tolls to get from Baltimore to Michigan and some 25 dollars in tolls to get from Michigan back home.

I heard more than once, "She is a great catch," "You two look great/so happy together," and "You are lucky to have her." It all is so true :)