Christy’s Wedding Weekend: The Maid of Honor’s Perspective

If you were in the Los Angeles area this past weekend, you may have seen a number of interesting scenes. Perhaps you watched a bridal party wade through the loose sands of Manhattan Beach to get the perfect picture. You may have witnessed a collection of transparent-skinned Coloradans testing their expertise on the sand volleyball courts. You may have even seen a bouquet of flowers tossed and caught in the ceiling decorations of a grand ballroom.

I suspect that if you are reading this blog entry, you know exactly which special event was the cause of these distinctive scenes: my older sister, Christy Corner, tied the knot this weekend with Justin Diehl. If you are reading this, you likely attended the wedding and remember it vividly. However, if you enjoyed the open bars too liberally, or could not attend, I offer this humble blog entry as an attempt to recapture many of the warm memories from the weekend. Enjoy!

DAY 1: REHEARSAL DINNER

After arriving in Los Angeles late Wednesday night, I knew it was time to sleep before all of the fun began. On Thursday morning, the five women in the bridal party (me, Leah Wickham, Melissa Ratliff, Kelly Diehl, Jessa Gyzm), Christy, and the two moms arrived at a nail boutique called Mani-Pedi Cutie to get our nails done for the wedding. It was great to relax with the girls and get pampered for a few hours. Next we arrived at the wedding rehearsal to go over the steps for the big day. I learned I had a very crucial title besides “Maid of Honor.” I was also the designated “dress fluffer”, who needed to ensure that Christy’s dress would remain beautiful and un-bunched throughout the wedding day. After running through the agenda and practicing a couple of times, we were all feeling good about the ceremony coming the next day. The day ended with a rehearsal dinner at Beaches, the restaurant where Christy and Justin first met at a happy hour. Situated near the coast on Manhattan Beach Blvd, our party offered spectacular views of the ocean. Two main highlights of the rehearsal dinner included a slideshow of Justin and Christy growing up and the unveiling of a special cake for Justin. Justin’s cake was literally a hemisphere of chocolate and frosting decorated as a bright orange Warriors basketball! After the rehearsal dinner, Christy, Leah and I moved to the Hermosa Beach House hotel to catch some dreams before the wedding day dawned.



DAY 2: WEDDING DAY

We awoke bright and early on Friday morning to prepare for the wedding celebration that night. Christy and I ventured downstairs to check out the included breakfast buffet and enjoyed our first cups of coffee and pastries on the patio next to the beach. After collecting plates of other snacks to share with the bridesmaids, we returned to the room to begin the preparations. Christy’s friend Sierra met the bridesmaids in the hotel room, and set-up a makeshift hair studio in the bathroom to style our hair for the day. While waiting for our hair appointments, the bridesmaids enjoyed chatting, eating snacks from Trader Joe’s, and helping each other tie our dresses. We also each received our gift from Christy; she gave each of the bridesmaids a beautiful pearl bracelet and a set of pearl earrings to wear! After we were all ready, we met the photographer to begin taking pictures. The entire wedding party took photos on Manhattan Beach with the ocean in the background. It was entertaining to watch the people on the beach stare in shock as we all stomped through the sand and wind to find the perfect picture spot!

Finally, we headed to Los Verdes Golf Club to prepare for the actual ceremony. The wedding party had a “secret room” where we could all relax before/after the ceremony and surreptitiously hide Christy. As family and friends arrived, we all nervously and excitedly waited to begin. The ceremony began and went so fast it seems like a blur now! Dad entered the secret room and the bridesmaids began their hike around the building to begin our walk down the aisle. The wedding itself proved to be a touching event. I will never forget the feeling of standing up at the alter watching Christy and Dad approach us to the tune of Pacabel’s Cannon. I mostly watched Justin’s eyes during the ceremony (Christy’s back was towards me). I also enjoyed watching Justin’s groomsmen transform into gentlemen – they had been very goofy and light-hearted during the rehearsal. My mom’s and Nancy Diehl’s eyes were sparkling as the sun set and the ceremony ended.

The after party was surely a treat for everyone in attendance. The DJ announced the names as the wedding party made our grand entrance into the ballroom. Each pair of the wedding party devised our own dance moves upon entering (I think mine and Issac’s was best! Ha ha). After the bride and groom’s first dance to the song “Lucky” by Colbie Caillat and Jason Mraz, the toasts began. Issac spoke about Justin always being one step ahead in life, and I talked about sharing sisterhood with Christy. We then had a surprise toast presented by Leah from Christy’s best friend Lindsay Copperberg. Lindsay was recently deployed to the Persian Gulf and could not attend the wedding, but it was touching to hear her words on Christy’s special day. The night continued with a feast of delicious food and tinkering glasses to encourage a kiss between the bride and groom. The second round of toasts came from the fathers who both reflected over Christy’s and Justin’s growth through the years. Their toasts were the perfect combination of sentimental and humorous stories! The most emotional part of the night for me was the Father-Daughter/Mother-Son dance, where they danced to the song “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” The night continued with the newlyweds cutting the cake and the classic bouquet and garter toss. Everything was running flawlessly until Christy accidently tossed her flowers so high that they landed in the gauze netting decoration near the ceiling. Thankfully, cousin Tim’s height saved the flowers, and one of Christy’s California friends caught the bouquet! The rest of the night was spent dancing with friends and family.

DAY 3: BEACH PARTY AT MANHATTAN BEACH

The final day of the wedding weekend was the beach party on Saturday. It was easily one of my favorite days, considering Seattle’s beaches are far inferior to the beaches of southern California. We played volleyball, enjoyed swimming and crashing through the cold waves of the Pacific, and napping in the sun along the shore. The grandparents spent the afternoon chatting under colourful beach umbrellas. We also successfully demolished the remainder of Justin’s Warriors Basketball cake! Dinner that night was shared at an Italian restaurant with me, Justin, Christy, Mom and Dad, Nancy and Greg Diehl, Uncle Jeff, Aunt Judy, and cousin Rachel.

AFTER THE WEDDING WEEKEND

You can now find me seated, legs-crossed in LAX waiting to catch my plane back to Seattle. The airport is such a miraculous place to people watch – it really seems to attract an eccentric group! Usually, it is the human idiosyncrasies which make people watching so enjoyable to me. Today, however, I find myself captivated by people and their wedding bands. Across from me, you will find a married mom with her son and daughter (both of whom are busy listening to their iPods). The mom is talking to an older gentleman, who was in LA this weekend for a 50-year high school reunion. He also has a wedding ring sitting comfortably on his left ring-finger. As I watch the many faces and wedding rings in the airport, I cannot help but smile. Each wedding ring is a reminder that these people also experienced a wedding weekend once. They too shared a day with their closest family and friends, fed their new spouse cake, and danced to their favorite songs. When I consider this, I feel warmed by the people around me. This weekend, Christy and Justin added even more affection and love to this world. I feel so thankful to have been a part of it.

Love,

Katie (a.k.a. The Maid of Honor!)