Weddings, reunions, and summertime trips

Sam and I have been together for more than ten years, and we've been married under DC's common law for about half of that time. We have been through a lot of things together, but we never did get around to having that wedding ceremony. Somehow, we came around to the idea that it would be fun to have a ceremony and celebrate with our friends and family. Boy, was it ever! We invited a few people up to my parent's home on Torch Lake, MI, for a July 30th celebration. With a pretty minimalist budget and enlisting the talents and help of my mom, we were able to have a lovely little event on the lake with lots of home cooked food, vintage plates and homemade details, water skiing, tubing, pontoon rides, and sunshine galore. We took full advantage of the local food and beverage scene - local beer from Shorts brewery, sausages and crab cakes from Sonny's on Torch, L. Mawby Vineyards sparkling wine, fresh flowers from the farmers' market in Elk Rapids, fruit pies from a local baker, Brownwood Cherry Butter, fresh cherries and blueberries, jalepenos from the garden...The weather was perfect, Cooper the dog led us down the aisle to Johnny and June, and the day landed in a perfect sunset.