A Funny Valentine's Day Wedding Story

Ever so many years Valentine's Day falls on a Saturday. When this happens, prospective brides everywhere clamor to claim this holiday for their special day. Over twenty years ago I was that bride. After a summer proposal, I perused the calendar to select a wedding date. But once I recognized Valentine's Day fell on a Saturday that year, there was no question that we'd be married on that day.

I was getting married in my hometown and didn't have a lot of friends left in the area. Consequently, most of my friends were coming from out of town and many from other states. Although we'd ordered over 200 wedding invitations and divided them evenly amongst ourselves and family, my grandmother was adamant that her 50 invites were just not enough. She requested more invitations, but 10 or 15 more just would not do. Unbeknownst to us, grandma had another 200 invitations printed and disbursed to her friends, neighbors and church members. As a result, despite a very bad winter storm, we had a packed church and reception hall. Out of about 250 guests, my husband and I maybe knew 50 of them. It was my grandmother's affair and she enjoyed herself immensely.

Throughout the process grandma kept volunteering to do things for me. She checked on the flowers (and ordered an arch while she was there). She also offered to oversee and supervise the caterers during the reception. Of course, she knew about her added guests and likely wanted to make sure they were fed sufficiently. Thus, on the day of the wedding I discovered the simple cake that I selected had been upgraded to several tiers with an added fountain and stairs. Also added to the menu were macaroni and cheese, southern greens, green beans, cornbread, turkey and dressing. Truthfully though, it was the best food I've ever been served at a wedding.

So with grandma's help, the guest list multiplied and I gained back all of the weight I'd lost to get in my wedding dress on my wedding day. We also had a slew of flowers, and tons of gifts from folks we never met or hardly knew (not bad). In the end it was a wonderful affair. Grandma had a beautiful dream wedding and a good time was had by all.