Original post author: Ryan
On October 9, 2021, I married my best friend and long-time partner Jessica. It was a magical day that I will never forget.
We started our wedding day on the right foot with a calming walk around the Weston Reservoir with our dog Violet. Then, Jessica and I split up to get dressed and ready. We reconvened at the Watch Factory for our "first look" later in the day. Only when driving to the first look did the gravity of the day hit me - I was sitting at a traffic light and I foolishly chose to listen to the song that Jessica would walk down the aisle to later in the day.
Our first look went great. That's when our Photographer, Rory McCann, started to work her magic. We got all sorts of great pictures near the Charles River. Afterwards, we headed over to our wedding venue, Branch Line in Watertown.
Our family and friends did an excellent job setting the venue up. Everything was exactly as we had imagined. We were lucky to have excellent weather. The venue was buzzing with nervous and excited energy. Guests were encouraged to get drinks at the bar to take with them to their seats for the ceremony.
I'll forever cherish our wedding ceremony. Our officiant was a close family friend, Naomi. She was very professional, yet she still gave the ceremony a personal touch. Jessica and I wrote our own vows. I bared my soul when reading my vows and it was emotional and challenging. Our close friends Casey and Pat read a passage that resonated with Jessica and me; it was all about embracing the strong aspects of a relationship, even during hard times.
Cocktail hour followed the ceremony, and the reception followed the cocktail hour. Food was amazing! We were graced with touching (and comedic) toasts from my sister, Casey, and her husband, Mike, who were the Maid of Honor and the Best Man. A second set of amazing toasts were given by our close friends Abby and her wife Amanda. Speaking of Abby, she was our DJ for the evening, which was really great because she also DJs professionally. She did an outstanding job incorporating our esoteric music tastes into the atmosphere at the venue. She also delivered a bumping dancefloor for us to all enjoy.
A highlight of the day were our guests. We kept the wedding small and intimate; around 50 people all together. We are fortunate to have such wonderful friends and family in our lives. We gave our guests halloween pins and trinkets on the favors table along with custom bandanas that I designed and Jessica tie dyed. We wouldn't say our wedding was halloween-themed, but it certainly had a halloween undertone - which was a nod to our engagement in 2018.
Following the wedding, we went into Boston with our close friends to a dance music show (Gorgon City). What an amazing way to close out a wedding night!
It was a delight to see our wedding day unfold exactly as planned. Branch Line impressed us with professional, high-quality service. Sincere thanks to everyone who contributed to our special day.
Comet Catch-up! This post is related to something that happened in October 2021. I took an unplanned 16-month hiatus from blogging, and these Comet Catch-up posts cover some of the things that happened in my life during that time. Thanks for reading!
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