Wedding Blog

Mr. Martini’s family is from CT and mine are in NJ, so our parents never met before we got engaged. Luckily for us, both our parents approved of us getting married. When Mr. Martini asked my parents for their permission to propose to me, my dad just had this huge smile on his face, and my mom didn’t say anything for about 10 seconds before finally blurting out, “We were waiting a long time!”

Now that we were engaged, the next step was for our parents to meet for the first time. Dun Dun Dun!!!! The big day! At first the engagement was going to be a low key dinner with immediate family so that we could get to know each other.

Then it was suggested that maybe it was a good idea that we invite our church pastor to say a few words and pray for us. All of a sudden my dad went a little nuts with the planning. Before long he had invited all three pastors of our church, an elder, and their wives! My dad claimed, “you can’t invite one and not the other!”.

My dad also invited his dearest friend and his wife. He has been there for my dad through multiple fights with cancer. My dad is battling cancer even now and his friend has really gone above and beyond to be there for him. They really are considered family to us, so it was only natural that they were there.

He also asked another good friend who enjoyed photography and videography as a hobby to take pictures and record the day. All of a sudden, he was preordering a cake for 25 people!

I was a little overwhelmed at what a big deal this had become (pictures? cake?!), but I had to smile. Up until a few months ago, we weren’t even sure he would be alive to walk me down the aisle. Fortunately the doctors are now optimistic about his recovery so we are sleeping a little better, but because of his journey I know that this day meant a lot to him.

What started out as a low key dinner turned into a kind of yak-kwon-shik, which is a loose translation for a Korean engagement party. I tried to do a bit of research on the topic in order to get my facts straight, but I really couldn’t find much information out there - so I attempted to ask my parents for details. Of course, they started blubbering about this and that and never really gave me any straight answers (so please feel free to add on or correct me if I’m wrong).

The traditional engagement of course is more formal, but basically the yak-kwon-shik is a joining of the families. In American culture the man takes it upon himself to propose to his significant other and that basically seals the deal. In Korean culture, the engagement process is a formal affair that is planned by the parents and is usually paid for by the family of the bride. Sometimes the engagement ring is given to the female during this engagement party, while other times matching watches or other gifts are exchanged between the couple. In modern times the guy will still propose, but most Koreans view the “proposal” and the “engagement” as two different things.

Here are a few pictures from the big day:

I hate being the center of attention, and they made us sit at the head of the table!

I wore the same dress that Mr. Martini picked out for me during the proposal.

I couldn’t help myself and I started crying (I cry wayyy too easily). Mr. Martini’s gift from my parents: a card with cash for a new suit. They also made me take off my engagement ring and give it back to Mr. Martini, so that he could “ceremoniously” give it back to me. lol.

Mr. Martini’s parents gave me a gorgeous gray pearl necklace and matching earrings. It’s hard to see but Mr. Martini is putting the necklace on me.

Family picture: Mr. Martini’s family is on the left, mine on the right.

Overall, I am happy to say that our families really liked each other. Now that the introductions are out of the way, it’s alllll about the wedding planning.

How did the first meeting between you and your FI’s parents go?