Wedding Photos

This post goes out primarily to my cousins - distant and not-so-distant - who may read this blog. Ben and I have decided that we'd like to include our* family history obsession in our wedding celebration, and so we're collecting the wedding pictures of our direct antecedents to incorporate into our decor. We have most pictures of our parents, grandparents, and some great-grandparents, but we'd like to collect as many as possible.

Some pictures we're looking for, if they exist - (some of these predate the widespread availability of photography, but it can't hurt to ask) :

Marilyn Mulcahy & William O'Hara

Veronica Mulvaney & Joseph Mulcahy

Mary Madigan & Michael Mulcahy

Margaret Sullivan & Matthew Madigan

Johanna Roche & Matthew Madigan (Johanna's not a direct antecedent, but I'll take what I can get)

Margaret Ryan & James Mulcahy

Julia Toner & Patrick Mulvaney

Bridget Rothwell & James Mulvaney

Mary Cullen & Richard Toner

Mary Quinn & John O'Hara

Mary King & John O'Hara

Bridget Hopkins & Michael King

Margaret C---- & Nicholas King

Bridget Kearney & Patrick O'Hara

Mary Gillen & Hugh Quinn

Mary Nora Grimes & Martin Gillen 

If you happen to have photos - preferably wedding photos, but other photos of the couples named would be appreciated, too - please contact me at kathleen.scarlett.ohara AT gmail DOT com.

*we're getting married. I can start saying "we" are obsessed with genealogy now, right?

(cross-posted at You Are Where You Came From)

Engagement Party, DC Edition

Because we have parents, family, and friends in both DC and NY, Ben and I are honored to be the very lucky recipients of two separate engagement parties. Ben's parents threw us a lovely party over the weekend. All of our local friends were there, and I got to meet Ben's coworkers, as well as some of his relatives I hadn't met before. It also may have been the first time we merged friend groups en masse, though, as we'd all attended Georgetown together, our disparate friend groups aren't exactly perfect strangers.

The party was really nice. Ben's mom had gotten a lot of good food. And then there was a cake. An enormous cake. A delicious, enormous cake.

It was chocolate with, I believe, a buttercream icing, and little silver balls called dragees (according to the ever-knowledgable Lauren!) Ben's dad gave a very sweet toast in which he said nice things about me that I certainly don't deserve, and then we blew out the candles. I've gotta admit, I wasn't expecting candles on an engagement cake! (Ben wished for a championship for the Hoyas; don't worry, I'm going into this with my eyes wide open to the fact that they're his first love!)

We had a wonderful time and want to thank all the friends and family who made it so wonderful!

My Engagement Ring

Photograph by Jamie Vitale

My engagement ring isn't just mine. It was Ben's grandmother's before it was mine, and it was his great-grandmother's before it was hers. I'd been waiting to post a picture until I had something better than the grainy cell-phone shot I first sent to my family in the immediate aftermath of the proposal, and luckily, my cousin Jamie the photographer took a picture at the St. Patrick's Day parade a couple weeks ago that features THE RING prominently.

The ring is perfect. It's a diamond surrounded by two smaller stones on either side, with a gold band. It's the perfect size, both in terms of the stone being exactly right (any bigger and I'd probably be uncomfortable wearing it), and, astonishingly, in terms of fitting my finger perfectly without having been sized. I'd given Ben my ring size, but he didn't need to use it. On top of that, it's a family heirloom, and I'm honored that he and his mother both wanted me to have this piece of their family's history. In case you hadn't noticed, everything from my hobbies to my college major (History) to my chosen career path (museums) reflects the fact that I love old stuff. Ben had told me before he proposed that his mom had offered us an heirloom ring from their family, and everyone I told this to had the exact same reaction: "Oh, you'll love that!" And I do.

In case you can't click the picture above to see a bigger version, you can find it on Jamie's blog, Mirror with a Memory.

(P.S. The chivalrous gentleman handing me a flower in that picture is not Ben, but my 4-year-old cousin James.)

Pictures

After looking at the grounds of a possible venue, Ben, my cousin Jamie, and I went to Long Pond Ironworks State Park to continue our outdoorsy day, where Jamie, a talented photographer, took what I believe are the first pictures of us together since we got engaged.

Photograph by Jamie Vitale.

Ben and I at the NJ Botanical Gardens.

Photograph by Jamie Vitale.

Ben and I at Long Pond Ironworks State Park.

After that, they asked what I want in a dress. That's another post entirely.