Baby K's First Wedding

M and I took off last Friday and made our way to Queens to celebrate KF and MU's wedding. The church ceremony was literally minutes away from where we used to live. As we exited off the Grand Central Parkway, it brought back so many memories from when we used to make the drive home from Chinatown. It's amazing how much hasn't changed in four years -- the potholes in the road are exactly where we remember them to be, the gas station on the corner of Union Turnpike and Main Street remains standing, the Key Food parking lot continues to be filled with cars, and even the stores along Union Turnpike are still the same. It was a bittersweet moment; if we weren't so pressed for time, I would have been tempted to have M drive by Eden Rock to see our old building.

I was excited for my friend as she entered into this union with her long-time mate. Among our childhood friends who grew up together and managed to keep in touch these past two decades, she's the first to start dating her (now) husband, and the last to get married. There was never any doubt that the two of them would tie the knot, it was just a matter of when. And the way they did it was absolutely perfect. The ceremony was short but beautiful; the 60 or so guests who filled the sanctuary made the affair more intimate and private.

I was also excited because this was baby K's first wedding, and one of the rare times I had the opportunity to put her in a dress. She wasn't on her best behavior during the ceremony, especially when she let out a loud shriek while the priest was talking, but we managed to keep her quiet for the most part with Cheerios. We also had to keep the hymn books away from her, otherwise they would have been torn to pieces. The key is to bring QUIET toys with us the next time we go to a wedding.

After the ceremony, KF and MU had their reception/lunch at Kyoto Sushi & Thai Restaurant, conveniently located across the street from the church. While we were standing outside the restaurant, it suddenly occurred to M and me that we had dinner there once -- it was probably not long after the restaurant had first opened up. Being the small world that it is, turns out that I went to college with the catering manager responsible for this event.

Baby K was long overdue for her nap, and ended up sleeping in my arms as we left the restaurant. I could not believe how horrific traffic was on the way home! It took us three hours to get back! I was disappointed that we wasted so much time stuck in a car on a beautiful Friday, but at least we got to bake in the sunshine. In retrospect, we probably should have just stayed in Queens and headed back out after rush hour, but as they say, hindsight is 20/20. Hopefully there'll be more beautiful days to enjoy as we launch into spring.

Here's to wishing KF and MU a wonderful new life together!

A photo to share with all you baby K fans out there... here she is sporting her new dress and taking mommy for a walk after the ceremony.