This past weekend, I had the great joy of witnessing the marriage of another of my grandchildren. Tuan Nortman and his fiance Rhianna chose to keep the festivities small and somewhat informal, which was just as well, since three days before the wedding, they closed on and moved into their first home. Anyone who has been through either of those events knows that one alone can be challenging, exhausting, and full of mishaps. Doubling up can increase things exponentially.
Tuan and Rhianna are nothing if not creative, and they put their own stamp on everything from the venue and vows to the menu and music. The wedding was at a dance studio in Indianola. This is in keeping with a non-pattern established by three previous grandkids' weddings: the Des Moines zoo, a rec center, and a barn venue in Alabama. I can't wait to see where the next one is. Anyway, they wrote their vows and chose a variety of music. Tuan asked his parents to cook an all-Asian meal for the reception: fried rice, egg rolls, a Korean beef and noodle dish, and garlic chicken. Family members and friends helped set everything up. Their attire was not the traditional white satin and tux but instead showed their spontaneous, creative sides.
But there were a few flies in the ointment. Besides the wedding, I was looking forward to seeing all three of my kids together for only the second time this year, as well as six of the eight grandchildren. But life interfered. Early in the week, granddaughter Brooke tested positive for Covid so she, her husband, and two daughters had to beg off. Saturday morning, son Andy woke up feeling poorly and he too had a negative test, Grandson Steven served in another wedding that he had committed to a year earlier. So there were fewer of us to watch the couple's first dance and wish them well in person. But the others were there in spirit.
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