A Day of Joy & Laughter & Happily Ever After

We finally received our professional photos and going through them is like reliving the day all over again. View them in the "Wedding Photos" link to the left. It would take agest to post all of them, so we put up the best ones.We absolutely had a wonderful time with each of you and hope that we will all get together again soon. :)

View the Video

Hi All,

It has been a wonderful (almost) month that Christopher and I have been married. During this time, we have settled into our lives as a couple.  Things have not, however, slowed down so I apologize for not having the guest photos up just yet, but promise to have them on here soon.

In the mean time, we wanted to post the link to our short video that Jeremy Mitchell Cinema put together for our party. We could never thank Jeremy, Ashley, and Nick enough for all of the hard work and wonderful imagery that they captured on our special day.  I know that I have watched this at least 9 times since we got an email saying "CLICK ME!" a couple weeks back. (Love it!)

We hope that you enjoy it and will keep you all posted when we receive the full video. If you're interested in watching it with us over wine and cheese, please let us know :)

With that... CLICK ME!

Love,
Michele and Chris

Welcome Dinner

Hi All,

Things are looking great for the wedding in two weeks! Time is flying by and it seems like a month has passed since I was sitting for the Bar Exam. Marcus and I came back from the test in Roanoke to immediately move me from my townhouse in Williamsburg last Monday. Thank goodness for him because I would have been a distraught mess if he wasn't there for me through the nerves and jitters and all of the heavy lifting.

This week is all about tying up loose ends. Never one to do things like anyone else, there are lots of surprises for you in Charlottesville. We are finalizing our lists for Chef Borroughs as well so if you chose the steak and we have not gotten back to you about your temperature preference, please reach out to Marcus or me so that we can mark you down.

Our rehearsal walk through will be on Sunday, but afterwards, we are all going to Topeka's Steakhouse for some yummy, delicious food and lots of festive conversation and laughs. Last year, we stayed in the hotel directly behind the restaurant for the UVA v. Virginia Tech football game. After walking around campus all day, we wanted something close to the hotel so that we could relax for the rest of the night and decided to take a chance on Topeka's. The food was fantastic and the service was awesome. I even sent management an email to gush about how much we enjoyed ourselves considering how picky we are about steak and restaurants in general. We hope to be able to repeat that experience with you all.

The reservation is for 7:30 p.m. and it is optional so feel free to skip it if you would rather explore all that the greater Charlottesville area has to offer. We wanted to extend the invitation to everyone because we genuinely love your company :) Dress is super casual since we are having such a formal event the following day. So come as you are! Also, if you are concerned about consuming too much red meat for one weekend, they have other options; just take a quick gander at the menu.

Again, should you have any questions or concerns, do not hesitate to contact me. :) I really enjoy answering your emails.

Kindly,
Michele

It's the 21st!

Do you know where your RSVP is?!

Hopefully it's either in the mail or already at the Bailey House. If not, then you will be getting a personal call from Christopher next week :)

Thank you to everyone who has already filled it out and sent it back to us and I apologize again for the short turn around time.

Love,
Michele

Hi all!

I am so excited to finally announce that the wedding invitations went out yesterday morning. Blame the delay on my naivete when it comes to dealing with print shops -- I really thought that they would be finalized and sent out within a week. FALSE! Blame it also on Bar Study. I am completely swamped, but could not bring myself to settle for less than what I envisioned for the invites.

Despite all of the hassle, i absolutely love them and designed them myself along with an awesomely fantastic young man named Vincent who said that he had never had such a meticulous customer (aka Type A?). All of the effort was well worth it because these invitations were prettier than I ever expected them to be. When I mailed off the envelopes, I almost did not want to let them go :) my babies!

Anyway, I can't wait for you all to receive them finally. Enclosed with the invitation is information about the hotel and an RSVP card for you to mark your respective choices for the meal. But if you're here, you already have a leg up on everyone else, good job! Please be sure to send back the RSVP cards by the deadline so that we can have a tally to give the chef. Sorry for such a short turnaround on that. Again, blame it on.... the rain?! lol.

Love,
Michele

P.S. In case anyone else is interested:

Tastings, Pairings, and Another Escape to the Mountains

Saturday May 5th, Michele and I got a chance to take some time out to see our wedding venue again. We scheduled this tasting several several weeks back, but just recently sent our choices in to Jill, the amazing coordinator at Veritas Vineyard and Winery on Wednesday. The tasting room was completely packed when we walked in, but we were promptly greeted and sat in the ballroom overlooking the vineyard. There was a table beautifully set for us in the exact space where we will be exchanging vows. Michele and I took a moment to breathe in the gravity of it all and that fact that we would soon be husband and wife. She was excited to simply be there, but I was looking forward to tasting all of the wonderful dishes on the printed menus lying on top of our plates. 

First up were the appetizers, and while I will not go into detail, I have never tasted better "wedding food" in my life! The portions were plentiful and the wines paired perfectly with each delicious mouthful. It was not hard to decide which ones we would like to have on that day, but I wish I could say the same for the entrees. We were delighted by the multitude of choices presented to us, but whittled them down by what we thought would be crowd pleasers. One of them, however, was not quite right and talked quietly about ways that it could be made to better suit what we envisioned as a couple. 

Shortly upon finishing our meals, Chef Jonathan Burroughs came out to speak with us about his wonderful creations. Michele and Chef launched into a conversation about mixing and matching sides and garnishes while I listened on and sipped Veritas's Red Star, a new favorite of mine since their Cabernet Franc changed from last year's vintage.  Chef was completely accommodating with us and our desires for the second entree -- so much so that he is making a custom meal specifically for our guests, something that we are very excited about! He also allowed us to have both of our choices for the salad course as Michele and I could not agree on just one.They were both delicious, but we enjoyed each for completely different reasons. Because of our competitive natures, I am sure that we will be keeping count of how many guests order "mine" versus "hers." 

The tasting was a great way of starting the countdown to our wedding. We are sure that you will love all of the food and wines as much as we do. As Michele noted, "The food is traditional with a twist, much like you and me!" and I couldn't agree more. 

Christopher Marcus 

Graduation Time Come On!!!

Hi friends and family!

May 1st marked the last exam of my academic life! I am so thrilled to be able to to say that I am officially a law school graduate! Marcus was so supportive the whole time with his patience and support. I couldn't have asked for a better partner with whom to share this experience. Surprisingly, he showed up with flowers and pork rinds (lol!) just when I was waking up from my post-exam coma. His smile was so BIG and I could tell he was so proud of me.

Unfortunately, I was so overwhelmed with law school and wedding stuff, that I forgot to send out the announcements for graduation. I ordered them, but they probably won't be here and/or sent out until after graduation (yikes!) so, keep an eye out for those. We are doing things pretty low key with a fish fry and drinks at the Bailey House. I specifically asked for nothing big or fancy. I really just want to unwind with everyone and keep it light and laid back.  My wonderful Aunt Sherrill sent an entire case of wine as a gift for Marcus and I, so I'm sure we'll be digging into those as well :)

Graduation is on Sunday, May 13, 2012 at Lake Matoaka on the campus of W&M. Anyone is free to come as there are no tickets required for entrance. It starts at 2:00, but get there early because once it's at capacity they will turn people away. Feel free to email or call me for more information.

I love that this graduation falls on Mother's Day. It's so apropos as ever since I was a little girl she has told anyone who would listen that I would be a lawyer -- judge to be exact, but let's focus on one goal at a time :) She has always taught me that anything is possible and surely without her this would not have been. While both of my parents were instrumental to my achievements overall, my law degree is dedicated specifically to my mother. I share this one with you, Mom. I never would have made it without you. Thank you and I love you always.

Michele