The Big Day

The nerves and excitement really set in Saturday morning. The girls headed over to the bridal suite in the morning for hair and makeup. The wind whipped and the rain poured down as the afternoon hours went by.

The 80's rocker stage of my poof hair for the evening. 

Once our makeup was set and hair was done, we snacked on sandwiches, chips, and ginger ale as the bride got ready.

Our bouquets were beautiful; stems lined with blue ribbon and small pearls.

And Lindsey was beautiful too. She was born to be a bride. She was calm, cool, and collected all afternoon.

The bridal party took pictures together in the bridal suite before we were joined by the guys.

We peeked around the corner and down the hallway as Lindsey and Brendan saw each other for the first time.

After we took pictures with the groomsmen around the Top of the Tower, we headed to the back hallway and lined up for the wedding ceremony, which was anything but ordinary. Before we all walked down the aisle, the wedding planner reminded us to smile, hold our flowers low, and to not walk too fast so pictures could be taken. I also reminded everyone not to lock their knees, a tip I learned from Catie's wedding a few years ago.

The bridesmaids all made it down the aisle without as much as a stumble, and Lindsey looked perfect as she walked down with her dad. About eight minutes into the ceremony, Rob (one of the groomsmen) fell slightly forward onto another one of the guys. To the guests, he just looked a little drunk, which we knew he was not. Within a minute of the first fall, he full on fainted. The ceremony was put on hold as he came to and made his way to a chair in the front row. Then, less than five minutes later, Kellie fainted. At this point, Lindsey turned to me and said, What the f*!# is going on? with a panicked look in her eyes. I tried to keep her calm as Kellie was led to a chair. Then, I kid you not, within two minutes of Kellie's fall Kristen blacked out and dove towards the chair next to Kellie. After the third member of the bridal party went down, we were all starting to feel a little light headed. It could have been a lack of food, the swaying of the building, standing in heels, or just the psychological effect of watching three people faint around us. But we all felt it. Luckily, the rest of us stayed standing for the remainder of the ceremony (barely). Needless to say, the entire bridal party ditched our heels the second the ceremony was over and loaded up on appetizers during the cocktail hour that followed.

After mingling with guests and sipping on cocktails for about an hour, the bridal party gathered and was announced pair by pair into the main reception room. Then, Mr. and Mrs. Halligan had their first dance as husband and wife. They both just looked so happy.

Speaking of happy...

After eating plate after plate of amazing food from the stations set up around the 51st floor, the dance began. And Lindsey and I cut up some serious rug. I now know that TOMS are the perfect wedding reception shoes. And there is a bridal collection, so Lindsey even found a white pair that perfectly complimented her dress. Rock on TOMS.

We danced for hours, laughed, sang, and enjoyed the most delicious desserts and red velvet wedding cake. Despite the drama during the ceremony, the wedding was perfect. Cheers to Lindsey and Brendan!