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I remember John mentioning the idea that we would get married in Las
Vegas someday. This was early in our relationship and I dismissed the
thought. I was in no hurry to get married as I was simply enjoying the feeling
of finally being happy and content.
He started planning a vacation to Las Vegas for us. I tried not to get
too excited about the trip but inside I was thrilled with the idea. I
love to travel and had never been there before. We talked about it a lot
and suddenly the plans began taking shape, what month, how many days,
etc..
One day he said, "Why don't we get married while we're there?"
I thought I was hearing things. I looked at him and saw that he was very
serious. From that moment on, the rest of the plans just fell into
place.
John chose the wedding date of May 2nd, which seemed perfect, as it
(unknowingly to him) falls right between both my parents' birth dates.
Somehow that gave me the feeling of having their approval.
Next John made the airline reservations and hotel reservations at The
Mirage and told me that the rest was up to me.
John could not wait to tell his family. He immediately planned a special
dinner and invited his Mom, Chris and Jen. I remember he was furious
because Jen didn't feel like driving over and she had many things to
accomplish that day. I tried to explain the urgency to her without
telling the entire reason, but still had no luck convincing her to come.
During dinner John told his Mom and Chris our plans and that he wanted
them to come with us to Las Vegas for the wedding. They were so happy
for us and of course, Mom and I had tears in our eyes. Jen was also
excited when we told her later and was sorry she missed "the
official announcement". Now we all had something to plan for and look
forward to, a wedding and a great vacation!
I spent several
hours scouring websites of chapels and hotels. On the advice of our good
friends, Al and Maria, who had just spent a few days in Las Vegas on
their honeymoon, we chose to have the wedding ceremony at The
Chapel by the Bay at Mandalay Bay
Resort. We
would then have our dinner at The Top of the World Restaurant at
The
Stratosphere. Then I fell in love with a limousine that I came across
online at Planet Limo. It was the Lincoln Navigator. It was a SUV only stretched. I
couldn't stop thinking about that car! So we reserved that too since we
would have six people to transport from place to place that day.
John also helped me choose what style of wedding dress to wear. I was
having a hard time deciding what to wear, something
"Vegas-like" or traditional? He was completely appalled when I
purchased a Bride magazine, but that book really did help us narrow it
down to a certain style that he liked and made things much easier for
me. John had a very particular vision of what his bride would look like
and I wanted to make that vision a reality.
I did find the perfect dress, only it had a long train. I thought that
it would be too difficult going from place to place with that train
following me or bunched up behind. You should have seen the look on the
seamstress' face when I told her to cut it off. It was priceless! She
was a tiny Korean woman who even called someone else into the fitting
room, to make sure that I really meant that I wanted it off.
All our plans fell into place and the time seemed to fly by. Before we
knew it we were all on our way to the airport.
I proudly
carried my gown with me through the terminal and on the plane, in it's
big white bridal bag. I later referred to it as "the body bag"
because it was so heavy and awkward. It was like dragging another person
around with us. By the time we got to Las Vegas we were just flinging
the bag around. The poor bag was torn and shredded, but the dress was
unscathed inside.
We immediately took the dress to a bridal shop that was waiting for us
in Las Vegas and they steamed and pressed it. We all breathed a sigh of
relief when we could finally take a few moments to relax in our hotel
rooms. The next day, the family went exploring and gambling while we
went downtown to the courthouse to get our marriage license. John could
not believe the strange mix of people who were also on line at the time
and couldn't wait to get out of there. It took a whole fifteen minutes.
Quick and painless.
The morning of the wedding I took the tram from our hotel, The
Mirage over to Treasure Island
Hotel to their Salon
and Spa to have my hair, veil and makeup done.
I felt so
foolish on my way back to the hotel as people were staring at me. I must
have had a determined look on my face or something. People kept saying,
"Look out for the Bride!" and they would move out of my way. I
felt like a spectacle! I just kept my head down and kept walking. I knew
Jen would be in our room when I got back to help me get dressed. After a
while the phone rang and it was John. He said, "You sure looked
mad!" He and Chris saw me walking through the hotel and casino when
they were on their way out. I told him what people were saying and we
both laughed.
From that moment on, everything went smoothly and the wedding was
absolutely perfect. We didn't know what to expect from a Las Vegas
wedding and were so pleased with the way we were treated at The Chapel
by the Bay. They did not rush us and the photographer took so much time
with us. We were very impressed with our video and photos. Our tiny
wedding turned out to be everything we imagined.
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