kitanzi | Mrs!

telynor has already described it quite well, but I find it's fun to have more than one perspective anyhow.

As surprises no one who knows us, ACat and I got married yesterday! (Squeeeee!) Photos were taken and will be forthcoming, but the courthouse was not exactly camera friendly.

Let me start at the beginning.

Yesterday

autographedcat,

maedbh7 and I woke up bright and early. There was the usual time bumming around on the computers, watching a bit of television, eating a little breakfast, getting dressed and ready to go to Atlanta to the Fulton County Courthouse for the 2:30 group wedding ceremony. (Yes, I do keep correcting people - it amuses me. It wasn't/isn't a group marriage - if it were, I'd have about 25 wives and husbands now. It was a group ceremony. Yeah, I am easily amused.)

The night before ACat had found a card on the door saying an attempt had been made to deliver a flower arrangement to me, so I called the florist and asked them to try again before noon. At about 11 or so, a very nice lady rang the doorbell and handed me a huge vase of white flowers (lillies, roses, orchids and others I can't identify, equally suited to a wedding, funeral or Easter service!) and a bag with a bottle of champagne. My father and stepmother wouldn't be here, so they sent that - the thought is appreciated. Mom had called a few evenings earlier and done her version of the mother's advice to her daughter on the eve of her first marriage talk (minus the birds and bees thing, thankfully! *G*) so my parents were both there in spirit.

Shortly after that the three of us decided to head out a little early and get lunch at the Underground, just across from the courthouse. I was anxious and twitchy and excited, and I think ACat was nearly as much so, so this was a good idea! Telynor was meeting us there, so we headed out and everything went amazingly smoothly. (It's safe to say that, now!) We actually got to the courtroom about a half hour early and people watched and talked to some of the others who were waiting. Maedbh7 cracked me up by making me play Merry Macs with her when I started getting TOO twitchy!

Just at 2:30 they started letting us in to the courtroom. Shortly after, the Very Dour Baliff started the very drawn out task of making everyone sort themselves out. The couples were all to sit on the benches (people kept trickling in, but eventually we had six very full benches!) and all others - witnesses, friends, family - had to move to the sidelines or the jury box. One utterly bored looking young woman wound up sitting in the witness box, which I found unreasonably amusing. The people watching was exceptional, which was good since there was a chunk of hurryupand wait to sit through. Telynor was afraid she wouldn't make it in time due to traffic snarls, but she got in JUST at 2:30 and she and Maedbh7 had great fun sitting in the jury box and making faces at us, then taking photos while we were laughing. Unfortunately, we were smack in the middle of the bench about two thirds back from the front, so the angle was pretty bad for photos. We were lucky to have the camera with us at all, actually - when we brought it in security asked if it was a recorder. Like a frickin idiot, I told the truth - it can be, but we're not using it for that. They very nearly refused to let us take it in, and I'm still growling over that whole scene. It worked out, though, and no one else gave us any grief.

The procedure was simple enough. The baliff and an assistant explained what we were to be doing, and it was all flowed very well once they got the couples properly seperated from the rest. (ACat commented on the crowd control, and joked that they made very good Tankers. I snickered and admitted I'd been thinking the same thing - except I figured they must be Defenders. You *know* you play too much City of Heroes when.....!) So, everyone got herded to the front of the room in a long tidy line to sign in on the list and hand in their licenses, then we flowed back down the other side of the room so we were all back in the same seats we started in. Shortly after the judge (Pinky T. Toomer, no kidding. Suppose T. stands for The?) came in, made a very pretty little speech about the importance of this day and the change we were all undertaking in our lives, and then the same process was used so that each couple came before the judge to answer "Do you, (groom), take (bride) to be your lawful wedded wife?" (pause for answer, presumably affirmative!) "Do you, (bride), take (groom) to be your lawful wedded husband?" I couldn't hear the other couples answer as we were waiting, but I know ACat said "Without hesitation" and I said "Absolutely", so Pinky smiled and we walked back to our bench. Actually, I think I kind of floated, but it worked well enough! I do know we were both grinning so widely our heads should have split off and bounced along the floor. Everyone on the benches remainded standing through all of this part, and on the whole I think the witnesses got a MUCH more comfortable deal, but at that point I probably wouldn't have noticed if my feet actually fell off.

A few minutes before 3:30 the last couple skipped back to their seats, and the last bit of the ceremony occurred. We'd all been warned at the very beginning that any ring exchange would happen at the very end, and so it did. The judge carefully specified that a ring was not required and anyone without one would be just as married, but for anyone who wished to exchange rings, this was the time. So ACat slipped the temporary ring we have on my finger (we want to get some nice ones, but for something we like that will fit him, custom work's going to be needed!) and the judge sonorously asked that everyone who was exchanging rings as a symbol of love and commitment agree by saying I Do. And we did, and the room echoed with all the voices. Everyone started milling around and talking and smiling and showing off rings to eachother. A last few pictures were taken, including restaging ACat putting the ring on my finger since that was completely invisible from the jury box, and we all went off to be happy.

Many other things happened yesterday,and most of them were good and happy, but that's all in Telynor's post. I'm going to get back offline and go practice being happily married some more. :) Thank you all, so very many of you, for your good wishes and your congratulations and your phone calls and cards and your stunning England conspiracy. I never did expect to be married, but I don't think it could have been made any happier!

Current Mood: happy

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From:

gingicat

*grin* Yay happiness!

From:

Mrs!

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