One of my favorite things at my Bachelorette Party was going through the photos that Kerry asked people to bring. Here was Kerry’s submission:
That’s me, August 1990, at my aunt and uncle’s wedding in Vermont.
My mother’s sister Mary (on the other side of the family from the happy couple getting married) made these sweet Swiss dot dresses for my sister, my two cousins, and I to wear.
We all got to pick the color of the sash (which, in the picture above, I’ve hidden with the bride’s bouquet). I picked “seafoam green”. Yes, as an 8 year-old I specified that my sash would be seafoam, not just any old green, thankyouverymuch. I later learned that my sister and cousins had chosen shades of rose, pink, and lavender and I was so embarrassed by my “boy-ish” choice that for years I swore that my mother picked my sash color. Sorry, Mom.
This picture is right outside of the church where the wedding took place. We were all about to walk to the bride’s mother’s farm for the reception. The four of us little girls in white wanted pictures with the bouquet because we were enthralled with the idea of carrying flowers. The newlyweds had wisely gone outside the family to choose a flower girl (rather than pick among their eager little nieces and cause a lifetime of jealousy). As a 30 year-old, this makes complete sense. As an 8 year-old, it made me a bitter shrew.
The bouquet came back to our family later in the wedding when my quick and nimble five year-old sister caught the bouquet as the bride tossed it from a hot air balloon (yes, a hot air balloon. swoon!)
The four cousins were reunited before Christmas that year at my new aunt and uncle’s home. The little flower girl from the wedding was also in attendance, and she was excited to see us again – she had big news! Her parents had gotten her a pet parrot and she’d named it “Kerry” because it loved to talk. That still kills me.