Bryan & Jen’s Wedding

Featured photo credit: Adam Mason

We have a new daughter-in-law!  Our son Bryan married Jennifer Durdall on this last Saturday, October 6th.  It was a lovely wedding with great weather and located in their hometown of Washington D.C.  That location allowed for some sightseeing, fine eating, and quality time with family.

The Drive

We left the Ft. Chiswell RV park at about 6am on Friday for the six hour drive stopping by Christiansburg, VA to pick up our son Ross and our daughter Audrey.  This trip will break in the new Honda for sure.

The Rehearsal & Dinner

The wedding rehearsal was at 2 pm, so we just had time to check into the hotel at 12:30 pm, get changed, and then Uber over to the church.  I had used Uber just a handful of times in the past, but this weekend I used the service 12 times as we had many places to be.  I’m a veteran user now!

I did not want to drive our car around town, so left it in the hotel’s expensive parking lot.  We also used the Metro (subway) several times as well.  The hotel was located in the Dupont Circle section of the city that also has Embassy Row, a section of large old mansions that have been converted into Embassies for other countries.

We then attended the rehearsal dinner later that evening at Big Bear Cafe, a very nice dinner with a few drinks.

The Shirt

On Saturday, we were having a relaxing lunch with other family prior to the 2:30 pm wedding when Bryan called me in somewhat of a panic.  Upon opening his suitcase, everything was there but his new white shirt.  Uh oh…

So, at 1 pm I ordered an Uber to go across the city to pick up his shirt.  I had it retrieved by 1:30 and then another Uber back to the hotel for me to change into my suit.  At the hotel by 2 pm, changed by 2:05 pm and then another Uber to arrive at the church at 2:35 – Five minutes after the service was supposed to start!  Whew!  A little excitement.

They did hold the start time for us to attend and for the groom to be able to wear a shirt.  All was good.  From that point forward, it all went perfectly fine.  A beautiful wedding.

The Wedding & Reception

I loved the small Episcopal church nestled next to another building.  The church, Sts Monica and James, was built in 1883 to serve the Capital Hill area.  Another interesting fact is the church has a historic Steinway grand piano made in 1883, but donated to the church in 1983 as part of the 100th birthday.

The reception was also held in the Dupont Circle section of the city at a venue called the Toolbox, an older brick building that has been tastefully updated.  The large crowd seemed to enjoy the many small plates of food, the DJ’s music, and a well stocked bar.

The weekend was very close to perfect that also included some time with family.  Trish’s brothers Alan, Tom and his wife Ginny, and Robert and wife Sherri were there with Alan’s son Craig and his wife Holly.  It was great to see them and do some sightseeing around the city along with our kids, Ross and Audrey.

The wedding photographer was Adam Mason who took some great photos and has allowed me to share a few of them.  His website/blog is linked HERE.

Bryan and Jen left to honeymoon in the Greek Isles for a couple of weeks.  After all the planning and stress, I hope they enjoy and have a great, relaxing trip.

Well, that’s it for the wedding.  My next post will be about some of the sightseeing and family visits over some extra days we stayed in DC.  Our stay in Virginia has been extended again for a few more days due to another required dentist follow up visit.