This past weekend, Kelvin and I made the trip to Colorado to celebrate the wedding of Cathleen, my first (x 2 years) college roommate and her fabulous now-husband, Tim. Despite the multi-step travel we have to do to make it out of state (or to So Cal, where we're headed next weekend, for another wedding!), which includes driving to either Oakland/Sacramento (5-6 hours), staying overnight, and then flying out of a non-dinky airport in the wee hours of the morning only to have a repeat trip on the way back, it was soooooo worth it.
Cathleen and I met first via "letter" (remember the days when old-fashioned letters were written?) when we wrote a bit about ourselves and sent eachother a photo before our freshman year started at University of Richmond. We were quite different. Cathleen was a track star (specializing in high jump/heptathlon) and (despite her physics and computer science double majors!) a bit of an academic procrastinator. I was perhaps the nerdiest of music/science nerds who had to be dragged out past 9 p.m on a weekend evening :). I am not the neatest person but looked like a clean freak next to Cathleen('s side of the room). Cathleen came well equipped for college with 3 (landline) phones and a fantastic personality. We were fast friends. I wish I had some photos I could upload from our college days... but that would entail lots of scanning. It's hard to believe that we are coming up on our TENTH college reunion year... those were the days without digital cameras, laptops, or cell phones :)
In any case, between 2003 and now, Cathleen (or CC) and I have not lived anywhere near one another. She was in Oklahoma for a bit before moving clear across the country from her native state Pennsylvania and school in Richmond to Colorado (first in the Denver area, then in Greeley, and then to Fort Collins). I was in Minnesota and then Sacramento. We saw eachother when she had a track meet in northern CA. I visited her a few times, including one year while interviewing for residency when I got snowed in around Christmastime and got to stay with her for about a week. She and Tim came to California for our wedding last year and made our amazing luggage cake.
We have been friends amidst many (failed) relationships. We both said, innumerable times, "I don't think I'm never getting married." For me, it was said in more of a moping/self-deprecating manner. For Cathleen, she wasn't sure she was well-suited for long-term commitment (I wasn't sure that anyone would be good enough for her!). While it seemed so easy/effortless for some people, early in life, to find "the one," it has been much more of a journey for both of us. And I think this is why it was so special to be a part of her wedding weekend and to watch her walk down the aisle (me with tears flowing!). No matter how many miles or years separate us, there is something about a college roommate bond (roomies 304 forever!), and I know Cathleen will always be one of the most wonderful friends I have ever known.
I was privileged to be a bridesmaid for this awesome gal and we had some bonding time on Friday, with manicures/pedicures and lunch with the other girls (Katie, Liz, and Jill + some other ceremony participants) in Fort Collins, which is quite a lovely town. [As a side note: it was my first time to Ft. Collins, and K's first time to Colorado, to which I'm gently try to sell him! Other than California, Colorado is one state in which I really think I'd
LOVE to live. I came close to choosing a FP residency in Denver. But I digress :)]
We had a fun rehearsal picnic/bbq at the City Park in Ft Collins, where we caught glimpses of the 2012 Olympic long-jumping bronze medalist,
Janay DeLoach, who Tim coaches (!). Sorry for the lack of pics- we forgot our camera and the park was quite a ways from our hotel (and I'm not a great iphone-picture-taker).
Kelvin was able to explore the area a bit and (wishing he had Pep along) checked out Horsetooth Reservoir:
Colorado State University is where Tim and Cathleen are track coaches (and where they met).
Here are some of their lovely gardens:
The ceremony on Saturday was at St. Joseph's Catholic Church. Thanks to K for being the photographer of these shots (CC's sister, Colleen, was actually the formal photographer for the day!)
Mother of the bride!
Happy groom & priest
Cathleen, in very laid-back fashion, just had us bridesmaids wear "blue dresses" and silver shoes. No uber matchy-matchy madness for this awesome bride! Blue is my former favorite color, so I definitely had a dress which worked.
CC's niece, Mairead, was the flower girl
(and her other niece just had a cute, matching dress)
The bride enters!
She looked so happy and radiant (while we, at the front, had a hard time keeping it together)
Cathleen's dress was GORGEOUS with a very long train.
Sealing the deal!
Husband and wife!
This picture is just so "Cathleen." I love it!
Between the church ceremony and reception, we took some fun photos at the Field House (indoor track, a special place for the couple). Unfortunately I did not have camera, but Liz, one of the other bridesmaids (pictured), took these photos which I stole from FB.
CC, Tim and groomsmen
This awesome bride HURDLED in her wedding gown + heels + bouquet (!) without a thought. Liz caught it on camera AND video, too which was fantastic (hope this link embeds ok).
The reception was held in the CSU ballroom.
Grand entrance
First dance
The toasts
The Games...
Both CC and Tim are outstanding athletes and coaches, and both very competitive. We had crosswords to do and challenges to win them points so that one of them would get out of laundry for 6 months (Cathleen won!!). It was certainly one of the more entertaining receptions I have ever been to.
Katie and Jill, two other bridesmaids
Here is the happy couple cheering on their representatives (this shot has NOTHING to do with toasting or drinking, as neither CC nor Tim drink).
I had to sneak in this shot of the popular couple
Father-daughter dance(s)
I was sad we couldn't stay in Colorado longer to celebrate, as we had a quite long return trip. Since CC and Tim, two of my favorite people, live there now, I'm sure we'll be back.
