Hey That’s A Nice Life

Today I get to do something for which I have waited a very long time - celebrate the marriage of my friends Chris and Hampton. They have been together since 1997.

Chris is a gifted photographer and took the photos at our wedding. Thankfully, we know a lot of talented photographers and Ed took a great one of Chris and Hampton that day.

When Don and I left Arlington, Va. early in the morning on April 30, 2009  for our wedding festivities, everything was as it always had been. By the time we returned from our mini-moon on May 4, the District of Columbia had announced it would recognize the marriages of same sex couples performed in other states.  We thought that was a pretty great wedding present. Don even asked if we had enough thank you cards to send one to every Council membe (we didn’t).

Then on my brithday this year, DC gave me another awesome gift when it passed its own same sex mariage statute. After the requisite time it takes for Congress to ignore a law passed in DC, same sex marriage was permitted in the District of Columbia.

Chris and Hamp were the 37th couple in line on the fateful day that the first same sex couples were issued marriage licenses. I was in New York for work, but following along on Facebook. It was national news with dozens of reporters and photographers gathered outside.

Here’s a picture of Chris and Hamp emerging from the municipal building with their marriage license and cupcakes.

Two weeks later, on March 17, Chris and Hamp were legally wed in the District of Columbia Superior Court with a couple of close friends to witness (I was in Florida at the time - boo hoo!). Below Jennifer M. and Matthew D. serve as official witnesses to the union.

A larger celebration is to be held today at the H Street Country Club and I am so excited. It’s going to be a wonderful.

Best wishes to Chris and Hamp for a long and happy life.

It’s Mother’s Day. Although this is technically my second year celebrating Mother’s Day with both a mom and a mother-in-law, it’s the first year I have really been able to appreciate it. Last year, we were still recovering from the planning and labor that went into our wedding celebration, we had company (my parents and family friends from Sweden) and I was about to leave for a work trip.

Both my mom, Maggie, and my mother-in-law, Penelope, are wonderful women. I am lucky to have them in my life. Here are my two favorite ladies, along with their terrific husbands.

Larry, Maggie, Penelope and Eric. Two great moms and their two great husbands. I'll probably use the same picture at Father's Day with the caption "Two great dads and their two great wives."

These pretty flowers are quite a different scene from earlier this year.

I started this blog when I was planning our wedding. Last weekend we celebrated our one year anniversary. At an art show. In Richmond. Where it was 98 degrees. While I was a little unhappy with the chilly temps and overcast sky on our wedding day, I had to admit it was a lot better than the heat and humidity this year. 

Here we are posing in our booth on the morning of May 2, 2010 - one year after our lovely wedding.

The traditional gift for a one year anniversary is paper. I made a faux Washington Post cover for Don with the headline ”Virginia Couple Sentenced to 99 to Life,” a nod to the inscriptions on our wedding bands. I also gave him tickets to see Lyle Lovett who wrote the song “She’s No Lady She’s Your Wife” which was the original source of the inscriptions.

Don gave me the beautiful Tina Palmer oil on plaster on canvas painting below.  I love it. A lot.

Also, back in April I finally ordered our wedding album. We used a photo book website, Blurb.com, and I am very pleased with the product.