Our Wedding - Part III - Photos, Cocktail Hour, and Reception at Hart House
When we last left off, Azim and I were bouncing down the aisle after exchanging vows at our nondenominational ceremony at Hart House :)
Our guests had a brief intermission while we took family portraits, and photos with our bridal party and groomsmen. I think what helped us stay as organized as possible (although taking multiple family portraits is still akin to herding cats), was having a list and appointing our brothers to try and keep things moving along. Although it took a long time, I'm so grateful to have these pictures. They turned out beautifully.
I love the photos we took with our best friends! Azim and I were truly honoured to have our bridal party and groomsmen dedicate so much time - some flying in from Italy, England, and Australia - to be by our sides.
Azim's brothers and sisters-in-law flew in and dropped everything to help with the wedding, and words can't express how grateful we are.
I could spend this entire post thanking family, friends, and loved ones - even those who didn't attend our wedding and still showered us with love and well wishes. Azim and I are truly blessed.
While our bridal party and groomsmen joined our guests for cocktail hour, Azim and I snuck away to practice our opening dance. We had so much fun attending dance lessons this summer, and we were ready to show off! I do regret missing cocktail hour - and my amazing harpist!! - but getting in the extra practice time helped boost my confidence.
I have to say - the service at Hart House was amazing. A member of their staff came and found me with a plate of hors d'oeuvres and held the plate so I could shove some food down before the reception started!
Azim had one main request for the wedding, and that was that the entrance song for our parents, bridal party, and groomsmen, be "Feels Like Summer" by Childish Gambino. I resisted at first, but in the end I'm glad I conceded because it was so cool. I know whenever I hear that song, I'll be reminded of how much fun we had, and the nerves and giddy excitement we felt before walking out into the Great Hall :)
Our entrance song was "Paradise" by Coldplay, which was perfect. Walking into the beautifully decorated Great Hall, surrounded by people we love, and soaring music will forever be one of the best memories of my life.
Once we reached the middle of the dance floor, we were ready! Our awesome DJ (watch out for this in my Vendor Dream Team post), hit play on our song: "Pink and White" by Frank Ocean. Azim chose this one too - a totally unique song, just right for us.
We were so nervous because during one of our practice sessions, Azim had stepped on my dress and ripped it - a total nightmare, which was fortunately resolved that same weekend by my magic seamstress!
But during our reception, we were totally fine :). Azim had to lift me into the air - ball gown and all - and he NAILED it. Woohoo!!
We also began the night with some lovely cultural traditions. Azim's cousins and family worked so hard to put these together. We included a pineapple ceremony, punkhwa ceremony, and saapatia ceremony.
The rest of the night went by far, far too quickly. Our MCs were so freaking incredible - Azim and I had genuinely just been expecting them to keep the speeches running on time, but they were so hilarious and kept everyone entertained. Multiple people came up to me afterwards to remark on how good they were!
They surprised us with a video, in which many of our loved ones (some from far away) sent in clips to give us marriage advice, and share fond memories. It was so touching.
The speeches were wonderful. My dad still talks about how much he enjoyed Azim's brother's speech. My mom lost it when my brother gave his speech - and so did I (he's still my favourite person in the universe).
The highlight of the night for Azim was the surprise dance that my cousins and I performed :) We had been meeting up secretly for 9 months to put it together for him, and he was blown away!
Azim and I don't have similar taste in music so it's rare that we both like the same song - but one tune we both love is "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen :) It was SO MUCH FUN choreographing the dance with my cousins, and completely worth the stunned look on Azim's face. Even at 2am when we were in bed eating Bic Macs that night he was still talking about it!
And yes, I did have TWO outfit changes :) If you read my wedding dress post, you'll notice that I had two gowns. My reception gown was a blush-ivory tone, with a beautiful collar and tuxedo band waist. And my dancing outfit was sequins galore! Complete with sequinned sneakers with fur pom-poms :)
Another of my favourite memories will be the last moments on the dance floor - completely sweaty and full of happiness. My best friend and I screamed the lyrics to "our song" - a moment I'd dreamed about since we were 15 :)
My brother, and a few completely inebriated friends helped us pack up the remaining flowers, decor, and treats (Jay, Adam, my dad still talks about hilarious you were) - although nobody would really let me or Azim lift a finger. They ushered us away so we could enjoy our night.
And enjoy it we did, with McDonald's in bed! The pinnacle of glamour.
We stayed at the Kimpton Saint George, which was top notch. The service was excellent; even though we rolled in quite late, they welcomed us and warmly congratulated us, and had a card and treats waiting for us in our suite. The aesthetics of the hotel are truly gorgeous - it was definitely one of the best hotel bathrooms I've ever seen! And I really liked the record player :) I played Stars while I waited for Azim to bring back McD's.
The next day we made out way to Merrill House and Prince Edward County for our "mini-moon" :)
Thank you so much for reading!! I hope you enjoyed some of these wedding highlights xox
