Maui Meet Mardi Gras

Can you really have a bad Beach Party? Thank you to everyone who attended because I really felt all our friends came this year to have a good time and it made for an exciting evening. I believe we had somewhere in the neighborhood of six or seven birthdays we ended up celebrating this year and I think they all danced their way through the night in style. And speaking of music, I think that will be my one change for next year. I stayed a little too close to last year’s mix and I think I need to remove some of my mid evening filler songs to pick the crowd up earlier. Live and learn.


This year’s major twist concerned the three guys above us throwing a Mardi Gras party on the same night and while I don’t think any of us knew how the evening would play out, we did agree the house would be open to all of our guests. After a scouting mission upstairs, we ended up with a full party merger on our floor that could not have gone better. The two parties integrated smoothly as people mingled by mixing and matching costumes as they made new friends. The dance floor quickly became filled with leis, wigs, boas, masks, and a jester hat bouncing around to Outkast. It’s an evening like this that really makes us excited for the wedding and I’m not referring to our guests wearing Hawaiian shirts. It’s because our friends will all be looking to celebrate a nice evening while being friendly and welcoming to anyone they might not know. There will hopefully be a lovely buzz in the air to create a day of lots of smiles and laughter.

Thanks again for a fantastic evening and to everyone who assisted in the party preparations and clean up.

The Beach Party, Part VI

On Saturday, we will be hosting the sixth edition of our ever popular Beach Party. Yes, for those of you who haven’t been most of our loyal friends and guests will be wearing shorts and Hawaiian shirts in the middle of the winter. The origin of the Beach Party dates back to my senior of high school when student activities held a similar event in February or March. I remembered having an exciting time breaking out the summer clothes in sub freezing temperatures so I proposed to my roommates in 2001 that we try to replicate it’s success and I personally believe that party is one of the best parties I’ve ever attended.

I really love this night because it historically has generated great buzz leading up to it and our friends really come with a high level of energy to make it an exciting evening. While the passing of time and more responsibility prevents people from acting crazy with the alcohol, we still have managed to keep a full house until two in the morning rocking out on the dance floor for the past couple of years. After some slow responses on the Evite and the threat of losing some key players to a couple of birthday parties, I’m now confident we can keep the tradition alive another year so if you’re contemplating showing up I urge you to do so.

Here’s a quick guide:

Clothes: Most newcomers find it hard to believe they should dress up for the party and time after time I always hear rookies lament they should’ve broken out the floral shirt. Leis and temporary tattoos will be provided for all guests.

People: A great group of people have embraced this party and truthfully it would be nothing without them. You know you’re in for something special when people talk about being excited about your event several weeks before it occurs and it’s always cool to lure people from out of town. That energy is very contagious and makes for a great evening. There are definitely a couple of people who can only be found rocking out on the dance floor on this one night every year

Dancing: You will be privy to one of the greatest dance mixes you’ll ever hear combining Oldies, 80’s music, current favorites, and everything in between. I have carefully crafted this mix over the course of several parties and last year I boldly choreographed all seven hours of music with the goal of keeping everyone on the dance floor for the final two hours because every song would have that certain “it” factor. Sure, there was chance I could have failed horribly, but I think I nailed it. Please feel free to ask for advice.


Throw I a couple of pitchers of margaritas, a 6-foot inflatable palm tree, a life sized hula girl and our patented message balloons and you’ve got yourself a party! Sea you on Saturday

Fun facts

We thought we’d pass along some fun facts you may not know about us.


First Song: All or Nothing at All by O-Town. While Bethany will adamantly refuse to admit this song has any significance to us, I did successfully use it for material in my flirtation during the night we met so I insist it does have some importance.

First Date: The Northeast Brewing Company. I remember it as a nice meal and for some stupid reason I wore sandals with jeans which I never do. I recall suddenly realizing what I had on as I knocked on the door and thinking I may have dug my own grave. Sadly, this restaurant closed a year or two after our date so we can’t visit it for old times sake.

First Movie: Moulin Rouge. I think this would have to qualify as my first major sacrifice of the relationship. I held little to no interest of seeing this movie, but Bethany really wanted to go so I agreed without much of a fuss. To be fair, it ended up being a fun film to see in the theatre, but I did grow weary of all the singing by the time the credits rolled around.

First Vacation: Old Orchard Beach, Maine August 2002. We picked this destination because the house band from Sloppy Joe’s in Key West had booked a week in Old Orchard. While we ate some good seafood, spent our days on the beach, and drank too many margaritas and Captain and Cokes, the night life in the area turned out to be pretty light outside of a couple of bars.

First Time I Met Bethany’s Parents: Moving Day, 2001. After dining on some always delicious pizza at Pino’s in Cleveland Circle, we tackled the big move. I don’t recall this as being too stressful of a day although I’m still not sure how I ended up driving her parents’ car within two hours of meeting them. Our first team project involved hanging a sliding door on Bethany’s bedroom/dining room.

First Time Bethany Met my Parents: Summer 2001, Is it wrong that I can’t remember who met whose parents first although I know it was within a week or two of each other? Bethany turned out to be a trooper for the meet and greet because she found herself unexpectedly thrust into a family reunion where she ended up meeting twenty-five members of my mom’s family on the same day. Talk about pressure.

First Kiss: November 5, 1955. After our son, Marty, derailed the actual events of history, I called on all the strength in my body to knock out Biff in the parking lot and lead Bethany into the Enchantment Under the Sea Dance. While Marty filled in on guitar for Marvin Berry and the Starlighters performance of Earth Angel we finally shared our first kiss and set the world right.

The Tasting

Due to the wedding last weekend, we missed out on the food tasting at our reception site (Longwood Events), but our hosts were kind enough to extend an invitation for us to sample some of the entrée items last Friday. We narrowed it down to four dishes and arrived at 3:30 thinking we’d taste our selections and be on with our weekend, but this turned out to be a special experience and if I do say so myself our guests will be in for a treat.

Our host, Tara, arranged a table for two for us to comfortably enjoy the meal prepared for us by candlelight. A personalized menu had been prepared and we excitedly learned appetizers and a soup would be part of the day as well. I can sincerely say we found every single dish we sampled to be excellently prepared and it will be extremely difficult to make the necessary decisions of what to serve. The filet melted in your mouth, the sea bass tasted delightfully buttery, and we found the baked stuffed shrimp to be more substance than style. On the appetizer side, the rack of lamb came out perfect and the Ahi tuna could not have been tastier. The kitchen staff outdid themselves and left us thoroughly impressed.

In addition to Tara, we met several other members of the Longwood Events staff who not only said hello, but also stopped by to chat as they prepared for the evening’s event. Everyone we spoke with presented themselves as genuinely friendly and sincere which we hope will add to our wedding day. At one point during our conversation the sommelier noticed we had turned down wine, reviewed our menu, and insisted he present us with some samples to complement our meal. This attention made us feel extra special and we hope it will be extended towards our guests in July.

The room we dined in will serve as the location of our cocktail hour and we viewed it as a special opportunity because we had it all to ourselves for a private meal. It allowed us a moment to take it all in and really appreciate the decision we’ve made. The area has a great deal of character and while it’s spacious, it will provide an opportunity for our guests to all be together. Plus, it once served as the apartment to Babe Ruth and I will I say I am disappointed our menu did not consist of hot dogs, stale beer and cigars.

Thank you to our hosts on a great afternoon and we left 100% impressed with the quality and presentation of the menu as well as the personalities with whom we engaged. It left us with a great feeling and even more excited for our wedding day.

Longwood Events

Located at 20 Chapel Street in Brookline, MA the reception will be presented by Longwood Events in The Ballroom Veronique. The preceding cocktail hour will be held in the adjoining Club Longwood.

Please click here for driving directions to The Ballroom Veronique. Transporation will be provided for our guests to and from Harvard Square. The reception is also located directed located across the street from the Longwood T Stop on the D extension of the Green Line

Please contact Donny and Bethany with any other questions you may have.

Strangers in the Night

The wedding season kicked off for us over the weekend in snowy Louisville, KY as we witnessed Bethany’s friend from growing up, Kiera, marry her husband, Brad. Best of luck to both of them on a long and happy life.

Personally, the only other guests I knew before getting off the plane would be Bethany’s parents although they knew a few of the adults and family members in attendance. For our peer group, however, we knew no one. I often find people in this situation feel awkward because they don’t know where they fit in and become wall flowers who leave shortly after dinner. I really don’t understand this vision because most of the guests attend because they’re excited to celebrate the big event for their friends and will be welcoming to all. It’s essentially the premise of Wedding Crashers. Showing excitement for the couple and leading the cheers will make anyone your friend at a wedding. I’ve still been at weddings, however, where guests act annoyed to be attending the event and I question why you would even except the invitation if you don’t want to celebrate with your friends on their special day. Plus, how boring is your everyday life?

In my case, I like to realistically view the circumstances of my attendance and try to set goals. For example, my original goal for this wedding was to approach the band as the groom’s fraternity brother, Nate, and convince them to play the theme from The Greatest American Hero because it’s his favorite TV show. Upon touching down in Louisville, I realized this had the potential to bomb miserably so I abandoned the idea at the social gathering the night before the wedding after meeting Austin, the six month old boyfriend of the sister of the bride (who also would be serving as the Maid of Honor). Being new to the family environment, Austin found himself in the similar boat as myself of not really knowing anyone so we bonded instantly. I then hatched a mission for us to do the dance move The Turtle (made famous by the movie Animal House) when the band played Shout the following day. Oh, and we decided we would convince the father of the bride to get on his back with us. Long story short, this moment received some extensive build up among the guests and sure enough, once the band starts playing Shout I’m down, Austin’s down, and of course the father of the bride hits the floor first. I love it when a plan comes together.

Ok, so maybe I’m just really good at entertaining myself and lying on a dirty dance floor isn’t quite in your bag of tricks, however, if you do go to a wedding where you don’t know anyone you at least have to introduce yourself to people. When it’s time for dinner I find my table and candidly open with, “Hi, I’m Donny and I know no one at this wedding.” If you initially approach a jerk don’t be discouraged because you still have 6-8 other people at the table to meet and once again, most guests will be excited for their hosts. This time around we found ourselves sitting with three other couple who all turned out to be wonderful dinner guests. The highlight of the evening would easily have to be one of the couples having no idea what their wedding song was. And by no idea I mean they not only didn’t know the tune, but who sang it or what the sex of the singer was. After thirty entertaining minutes of good-natured ribbing and suggestions we narrowed it down to Luther Vandross. We had a very entertaining meal, but we did lose everyone once the band kicked things up and my skills were required on the dance floor.

I guess that’s a wrap so if you find yourself at a wedding where you don’t know anyone there’s no need to be a bump on a log. Introduce yourself to people, set weird goals, and if all else fails, hold out for the music.

Register This

If you take a peak over to the left, you’ll see a link to our registries for Simon Pierce and Macy’s. B did a bunch of scouting on the web sites and via store visits to Crate and Pottery Hut Sonoma before I came onboard to view our options. The one caveat here would be that I loathe anything related to shopping and need to mentally prepare myself for such an event. Even with this mindset, I’m really only good for thirty minutes before I start becoming disoriented and weary. After an hour, I’m out of energy and not even a Cinnabon or Orange Julius can reclaim my attention.

With the knowledge of my medical condition forbidding me to shop putting us on the clock, we hit the streets and I have to admit we had a wonderful time. Granted, before we headed downtown I thought Simon Pierce played third base for the 1990 Minnesota Twins. Come to find out he also makes glassware, dishes, and other assorted items. It’s nice knowing you don’t have to spend the rest of your life using hand me down chipped plates from the 1980s and plastic cups from the 2000 Harpoon Fest. We’ll soon have real plates, wine glasses, silverware that’s still silver, and coffee cups with matching saucers! Although, I must confess I still don’t understand why they make those oversized wine glasses you can pour a whole bottle into with room to spare.

Next, we tackled the items necessary for food preparation and I found this to be most interesting. I feel the kitchen appliance section could serve as a middle school science fair with the goal of seeing who can make the most noise. You have blenders, food processors, mixers, toasters, juicers, friolaters, and twenty-five different products endorsed my George Foreman. Has it occurred to anyone else that our children will view a counter top grill made by a professional boxer who named all four of his sons George as a regular kitchen item just as we viewed a mixer, toaster, or microwave? It’s kind of strange, but I want one and this time I’m going to try and clean it more than once every five months. Plus, we’ll be able to make real mashed potatoes in a mixer without having to smash them by hand

After spending some QT in the pots and pans sections deciding how we wanted to upgrade our current inventory to actually have pots with matching lids, we closed the show out with a look at bedding. While it’s been a struggle to give up my old Ewok sheets, I have to agree it may be time to see what all this talk of Egyptian thread is about.

There you have it. A brief summary of how a guy who hates to shop assisted his lady in building their registry. And if you don’t find anything you like, we will be more than welcome to assist your in making a donation on behalf of yourselves to our credit card bills