What a beautiful wedding!

Ted and I took a cab from the RV park to the hotel.  Craig asked us to be there by 2:00.  We were one of the few that were on time for everything which meant we were an hour early for the pictures!   Fortunately the hotel was great for people watching! 

The photo taking of the groom, groomsmen, bridesmaids, grooms family (us) and grooms close friends lasted about one and a half hours!  The photographer took pictures inside the hotel.

And then we went out on our own and took pictures in front of the Hotel;

and in Union Square!

The beautiful bride in her beautiful dress just minutes before the wedding, surrounded by her beautiful bridesmaids!

The ceremony was beautiful. Attorney, and pastor for the day, Dave did a wonderful job! He first talked about how Claire and Craig met and added his own personal comments. I thought he was going to cry before he had hardly gotten started! During the vows Craig choked up a bit but managed to get through it. The ceremony was very touching.

After the ceremony the guests headed up to the 32nd floor for happy hour. The wedding party took pictures for about an hour, and I now present Mr. and Mrs. Meredith:

Presenting the newest edition to the Meredith family!

Beautiful rings!

Claire's family:  Jennifer (sister-in-law), Quint (nephew), Ernie Jr. (brother), Ernie Senior (dad), Claire, Linda (mom), Craig, Mackenna and flower girl Aubrey (nieces)!  Not sure on the spelling of the children's names, but my best guess!

The wedding party had a lot of fun taking pictures, they even took a few goofy ones!  But when asked to pose by the phographer, they did a good job!

After the photos were taken we all went up to the 32nd floor for happy hour.  What a beautiful view!  The toasts started with Ernie (Claire's Dad).  His toast was getting a little long so the DJ played the jeopardy time's up music!  He took the hint and then the best man and maid of honor did their toasts.  The brother's toasts were next and they brought the tears.  They both gave wonderful toasts to Claire and Craig, and Ted and I were so proud of them.  We remember when Chip couldn't even order his own dinner and now is the life of the party.  His toast was very touching and beautiful.  Stephen still seems shy but he stood up in front of everyone, pulled a joke on Craig and then brought the house down with his love for Craig and Claire.

Next was the first dance!

Next we had dinner.   They started with a wedge salad that was very good and then the main dish of chicken or steak.  Ted and I chose the steak which was very tender and tasty, good vegetables and potatoes. 

After dinner there was dancing.  The DJ was very good and he did a lot of fun dances. 

About 9:00 they cut and served red velvet cake!  It was a beautiful cake! 

Craig and Claire were very civilized and fed each other nicely!

We left about 10:30.  It was a beautiful wedding and we enjoyed every minute of it!  Craig and Claire, and of course, Ernie and Linda, planned a beautiful and enjoyable wedding and reception.

This morning we were back to the hotel by 9:00 (old hands at the Bart now) for brunch.  This time we had a view from the 12th floor.  Even with a lot of partying the night before there were about 70 people for breakfast.  The food was delicious and the service was excellent.

A wonderful wedding..."Ain't Life Grand!"