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Thursday, July 10, 2008

To Bake or Not to Bake?

Summer is the season of weddings.

My wedding is long long past. In fact, we will be celebrating our 20th anniversary this summer. We were married at 12 years of age, in case you're wondering about our ages.

Wedding planning and decision making are fascinating dynamics to watch. There are a couple of promising trends that have sprung up over the years.

The dresses are much more elegant and streamlined. I remember dresses dripping with lace, exploding with ruffles, and bows popping out everywhere. The bridal party would glide down the aisle like a portable notions rack. Youthful exuberance without restraint is charming but revisiting the pictures years later ... it's just painful.

People are making their own wedding cakes. More power to them! Many weddings I attended had rented fake wedding cakes. It was the fashion then, but now I snicker a little bit. Some of the rented cakes appeared like tired tarts circulating the endless rounds of the wedding season.

Wedding cakes were hideously expensive and no one ate the real ones. There was one exception that stood out. It was the multi-tiered-chocolate-chip-cookie-cake made by the groom at our best friend's wedding. That was just delicious fun; it begged for shots of milk for toasting.

(Think of overgrown tuxedoed cookie monsters as groomsmen. You know you're going to have fun with that bridal party.)

Of all the weddings I have attended, the one that was the most relaxed was a potluck. That's right, potluck. The bride and groom were heavily involved in the community but their budget would not stretch to fit all the important people in their lives. "Why not a potluck?" I asked. The bride looked at me as if I sprouted horns but her mind was whirling around the idea.

But it made sense. This couple was well loved; their friends wanted to contribute to their special day. A good friend offered her house and garden for the reception. Another friend offered to coordinate all the food. We all pitched in to make it a success. It became a cooperative community wedding with fabulous food.

More power to the wedding party!

....that crack about being 12 years old, shame on you if you believe it.

3 comments:

Jenny said...

Well I dunno... I've met you and if I had not also met your children, I would believe you were younger than I was.
We did our own food for our wedding, though we bought a cake from a local bakery that was very good (I think, I'm not sure I got a piece.) The food was excellent and a joint effort by my entire family.

Catie said...

mmmm cake... I still drool over the memory of the cake that Jesse made for us - and it was gluten free! mmmm....

Jenny said...

Goodmorning! You've been awarded and tagged over at my blog. Come and get it! :-)