Out of the almost 200 photos I shot this last weekend, I chose these. Tomorrow, a whole other set of five might have risen to the top.The occasion? The joyful wedding of Lisa and Karl on Saturday. Lisa is Tom's niece who has been a widow for nearly 3 years. She and her three boys, Joel, Luke and Ben, joined with Karl to become a new family. It was all quite poignant, beautiful, and fun (not to mention delicious)!
Our whole family converged in Montecito (a gorgeous neighborhood in Santa Barbara) in a lovely church at which, until her recent retirement, Tom's sister, Diana, was an associate pastor. Dylan, Emi, Mike and Rachel drove down from San Francisco together.
Tom played piano for the ceremony, so he and I sashayed on down there for the rehearsal dinner, as well. Dick and Diana (Lisa's folks--Diana is Tom's sis) hosted the Friday party at their house. Pretty setting, out in their big, leafy yard with the expansive mountain view. Super-tasty vegan dinner spread including black rice mystery salad.
A combination of the artistic sensibilities of Lisa, Karl and Diana (among others), and the skillful and well-coordinated hard work of the rest of the family crafted a truly exquisite event. No kidding. From the flowers (blues and white with sunflower accents) to the outdoor table settings (round paper lanterns hanging from the trees overhead) to the ceremonial candle holders made by Karl--seriously. It was perfect. And the wood-fired pizza for dinner?
Well, that's my language, for sure. Ben, Lisa's oldest and, at 20, a college student studying film-making, was the official photographer. Luke, 16, played classical music at the piano as prelude to the ceremony. Joel, the youngest, baked and frosted hundreds of tiny cupcakes for dessert. And, in spite of the flurry of activity to prepare everything, the atmosphere was so serene and happy. Nice.So, these are just a few little snaps of it--highlighting our kids, of course. Yeah, well. Maybe I'll post a few more tomorrow.
As for these, you know who's featured in the first pic. Then, there's a shot of the happy couple coming up the aisle after the ceremony. That's Dylan and Emi in the lobby. And Rachel and Mike laughing with Ruth, Tom and Diana's mom, at the table. Lastly, Lisa and Karl cutting the home made lemon (with lemon curd filling) cake (with berry sauce on the side). Not shown, ice cream sundaes and three kinds of pie. Hungry now.
