We’re still a few weeks from our RSVP date, but we’ve had enough replies to know that we are a very lucky couple. I’ve mentioned before that most of our families are overseas. It turns out that most of my English family can make it! I have two aunts (dad’s sisters), two uncles (their husbands), and two cousins coming out from England, which is just so exciting. We don’t think any of Cinnamon Buns’ English or Irish family will be able to make it out, but he does have other family members coming from across Canada and the US. I decided that it was a shame that all these people were coming from so far away to see us, but they’d never get to see us in our natural environment; our home. So I got it into my head that we could invite over any relatives who were still here for a gather on the Sunday after our wedding. We’ve got to clear our stuff out of the venue (and our hotel room!) on Sunday, so I knew we couldn’t do a fancy dinner party (we can’t anyway—we don’t have the space for a dining room table!) but I imagined people coming over and sitting on our couches and catching up a bit more.
The same week these ideas were percolating in my head, Cinnamon Buns’ mum asked if we were going to do a gift opening after the wedding, and my mum told me that she had people over after her wedding, and she set up a table with all the wedding gifts on it.
Now, because we have to get all our stuff out of the hall on Sunday, the food won’t be complicated. I think the menu will be fajitas. There is so much we can prep for this before the wedding that I think it will make Sunday a nice low-stress family gathering. The way I see it we can get all this done in the week or so before the wedding:
- grate cheese, refrigerate
- cut onions
- cut peppers
- buy tortillas, salsa, guac, sour cream
- buy pre-shredded lettuce
- buy meat, tomatoes
Photo from Caracara Mexican Grill
At that point, all we’d have to do on Sunday would be cook the meat, cut tomatoes, and put everything out on the counter! I like these types of build-your-own meals, because then people get just the ratio of veggies vs. meat vs. condiments that they want. We’re thinking of having a choice of chicken or beef—maybe even cutting down on prep even more by picking up a fully cooked chicken from the grocery store that day, and just cutting it up here.
Plus, there might be leftover pie from the wedding, and we could totally make sangria with leftover wedding wine!
I know some couples would want to just chill on their first day after being married, but these guests have come so far to see us—one aunt and uncle of mine are coming all the way from England for just five days! The other aunt abd uncle and their two boys are staying here until Monday, when they’re starting on a family vacation across the Rockies. They were going to go to Spain for their 25th wedding anniversary until they heard we were getting married! I think it is important to honour the gift they’ve given us just by coming.
We’re also going to try to have a gathering earlier in the week, before the wedding. Sunday is starting to look like it will just be my relatives—all of Cinnamon Buns’ people so far are heading home on Sunday morning. Thursday or Friday (depending how set-up goes) we might have a gathering at a restaurant for the people who are in town early.
Will you be entertaining guests the day after the wedding? What are your plans?
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