Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
Hive, I’m going to be honest with you. I finished writing my recaps a few weeks ago. I’ve been sitting on them editing them over and over again to “make sure they were perfect,” but in reality, I was just putting this post off. For the last 15 months, you’ve let me share my wedding with you. That fantastic day took place eight months ago, and I suppose it’s now time to quit dragging my feet and face the inevitable farewell. After all, a lot has happened since our wedding day. Mr. Lion left his job with family law and now works in insurance defense. I left my large trauma hospital, and I now work in a more specialized neurorehab setting. Most importantly (at least it’s what we’re most excited about), we bought a house! We’ve had a lot of change in the past eight months, but all of it has been good change. Best of all, we’ve had each other to rely on.
Mr. Lion and I have been friends since 2003, we’ve been together since 2005, and we’ve lived together since 2007. I really didn’t think being married would feel that different. I suppose in most ways, life still feels the same. We still enjoy the same things, and every interaction between us still reveals the goofy dorks that we both are. Our relationship is the same for the most part, but our plans feel different. Read more…
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
Before I knew it, the day had flown by and it was time to make our departure. The boys handed out my little DIY send off flags, and Mr. Lion and I headed towards the exit.
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
At this point in the day, I was very proud of myself for making it so long without crying. The day was over, and I had made it through dry-eyed. That is, until my bridesmaids said goodbye to me.
Only one of my bridesmaids lived in Atlanta at the time, and wedding planning was such a wonderful excuse to talk to them all the time and see them as often as possible. At this moment, it hit me that it was all really over. I lost it, and burst into tears. Read more…
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
Our wedding ceremony came and went, and now our reception was reaching its close. For our last dance, we asked the DJ to play All You Need is Love by The Beatles. Mr. Lion and I stood in the center of the dance floor, and a giant group hug quickly formed around us.
You’re probably wondering why everyone was looking to their right. Remember that balloon from our Save the Dates? Our photographer brought his along so that we could take these pictures… Read more…
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
This post is hardly a recap. I’m not telling the story of an important wedding memory. I’m not revisiting a DIY project that you saw before our wedding. I’m not providing insight or advice that could pertain to your wedding. But these photos are some of my favorites from the entire day, and I just thought they deserved their very own post.
We put together Atlanta-themed OOT bags for our guests. Needless to say, these included glass bottles of Coca Cola. Our photographer (who was an OOT guest himself) was clever enough to bring his bottle with him to use as a prop. The resulting photos were pure Atlanta pride.
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
As I’ve mentioned before, Mr. Lion and I had an interfaith, nontraditional wedding. It wasn’t very religious, but we wanted to incorporate elements from each of our cultures into our big day. One way I wanted to nod towards my Jewish heritage was by dancing the Hora during our wedding reception.
My mom’s side of the family is Jewish, but not many of them had traditional Jewish weddings. In fact, our wedding was the first time I had ever participated in the Hora. I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect. Allow me to now speak from my very recent experience: the Hora is a lot scarier than I expected!
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
Hive, I sincerely apologize for this post. This particular part of our wedding reception came at a time when everyone had enjoyed a few beverages, and we were feeling a little silly. I had just tossed my bouquet(s), and it was Mr. Lion’s turn to take the stage. Naturally, he chose Eye of the Tiger as his theme music. Sigh.
The song began, and Mr. Lion went in for the kill. By the way, keep your eye on that little kid in the corner. Read more…
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
Tossing the bouquet was one of the moments I was most looking forward to at our wedding. I’ve dreaded participating in the tradition at other weddings, but I was really excited about a little surprise I had in store for my single girls.
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
At one point in the night, I noticed that all of our groomsmen had mysteriously disappeared from the reception. I could only assume that they were decorating our getaway car, a theory later confirmed by photographic evidence:
I really wanted to rent a white vintage car, like a Rolls Royce or something that I imagined would appear in an old movie.
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
I had one goal for our reception: I wanted it to be a full-blown dance party. I wanted the dance floor packed for the entire four hours. We had a fairly young guest list, so we asked our DJ to skip the traditional wedding reception songs and just play lots of hardcore booty shaking music! I think we were successful.
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
One of my favorite things about going to weddings is to observe all of the different traditions and rituals, whether cultural or otherwise. It’s always interesting how every bride and groom bring different customs to both their ceremony and their reception. I love it, because it makes each wedding unique.
I was especially looking forward to one particular tradition at our reception. Every time a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma gets married, all of her sorority sisters who are present at the wedding sing a song called “Pat” to her. It’s a silly song, but our sorority has been practicing this tradition for over 100 years and there’s just something about that history that I absolutely adore. I’ve seen displays of other Greek organizations’ traditions at other weddings and the reaction is always the same: the rest of the guests look at them like they’re nuts! And maybe we did look a little weird, but from our end of things, we had a blast.
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
I had mixed feelings about doing a dollar dance during our wedding reception. Asking our guests for money when they had already bought us presents (and many of them had also traveled to our wedding) seemed inappropriate. Then, I learned that it was a tradition at Cuban weddings. I was trying to incorporate different customs from our different cultures, and this one seemed like an easy one to include. I decided that it was silly to worry about judgment from our guests; these were our closest friends and family!
If you’re having the same debate, I highly recommend going for it. The dollar dance became of my favorite parts of our reception because it was such an efficient way to mingle. In the midst of a busy day, it granted me the opportunity to have one-on-one conversations with many of my guests.
We started off with our maid of honor and best man.
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
As a blogger, words are very important to me. I love a captivating speaker, getting lost in a good book is one of my favorite things, and I’m easily moved by beautiful song lyrics. Needless to say, I was really looking forward to the toasts at our wedding reception. Listening to my dad’s toast at our rehearsal dinner was such a wonderful moment; I just couldn’t wait to see what some of our favorite people had in store for our wedding!
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
Our wedding budget revolved around making enough room for food. We chose our venue based on their catering. I wanted our wedding to have an incredible seated lunch, decadent cupcakes for dessert, and a tasty candy buffet to serve as favors. Unfortunately, among our two photographers and all of our guest photos, I have yet to find any pictures of our lunch. The good news is that I have pictures of the rest of the food! First, this is what our tables looked like sans food…that is, here are our lovely centerpieces.
Some of our tables had this centerpiece: a mint julep cup filled with cotton blooms, white hydrangeas, white garden roses, yellow garden roses, and blue thistles. Read more…
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
After Mr. Lion and I finished our first dance, it was time for me to dance with Papa Lion. I had chosen the song years ago, before Mr. Lion and I were even engaged. My dad wanted to be surprised, so I kept it a secret until that moment. As soon as Mr. Lion and I finished dancing, the DJ started playing St. Judy’s Comet by Paul Simon, a song my dad used to sing to me as a lullaby when I was little.
The reason we’re laughing in this photo is because my dad responded to his surprise with, “Oh! Far out!” I mouthed “far out” as he said those words, because I knew that’s how he would respond. Read more…
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
