As I have mentioned many times, I am a first generation canadian born to punjabi parents. In Punjabi culture, weddings are not simple small affairs. They are multi-day community events. This particular wedding was even crazier for us, because mr.sm is very close to both the bride and grooms family - brides father is a member of my FIL's group of best friends, while the grooms father is also in that group PLUS a business partner. Needless to say bride is like Mr.SMs sister and the groom his brother. The brides family does not live in the same city or area as the groom and traditionally weddings are held in the brides homecity. This meant that all the invited guests had to travel to wedding city, on the day before the wedding and had to have the prewedding party or maiya / mehandi party on thrusday.
Thrusday night I wore the sexy shoes (the gold pair) to the mehandi party. It wasn't too late of a night and I didn't drink. The monkey did okay falling asleep around 10:30 pm, we left around 11:00pm, so I was asleep in bed by 11:30ish.
Friday we woke up at around 8am, the boy bouncing off the walls. Mr.SM went for a run while I tried packing mine and the monkeys things. We left the house at 11:30am to catch the 1:00pm ferry that would take us to WeddingCity. The rest of the grooms family was catching the 3pm ferry, but I figured that monkey normally sleeps at 1:30-3:30pm so it would be an easier and more relaxing ferry ride if we went at 1pm because the monkey would sleep on the ferry. Yeah, I know wishful thinking! The boy slept on the way to the ferry so that at 1 pm he was raring to go. And the Mr and I just wanted to sleep. We made it through the 2 hours ferry ride with a very awake monkey who passed out on the 1.5 hour drive from the ferry to WeddingCity.
We just wanted sleep when we got to our hotel, but the monkey (along with his almost 3 year old cousin) did not let that happen.
My niece is a very intelligent, very stubborn, has not been given boundaries child that my MIL can not handle. My MIL is not very good at taking care of kids, which is why (despite being indian) I pay for daycare. This also means that I took care of not only the monkey but his difficult cousin on both the ferry and at the party of friday night, when all I wanted to do was SLEEP. By 9:30pm the monkey was tired, I was frustrated and we were both cranky. My niece was tired, hungry, uncomfortable in her clothes and also CRANKY . Pj's, a clean diaper, a bottle of milk and the monkey was asleep in his stroller, while a few vodka 7's had me in a better mood. Plus I told off my MIL. Seriously she didn't brink PJ's or any milk for my niece to the party. Mr.SM and his little brother left the party to buy some milk from the store, I changed my niece into a clean diaper, the extra of sweats and Tshirt that I had for monkey and then fell asleep in our cousins' arms. The poor girl was exhausted.
We were home by 1pm and up at 7:30am to get ready for the wedding, which apparently started at 8am. Perhaps that should've been communicated to us at some point during the planning of this think??
My feet were done after 2 nights of heels, I barely survived the wedding. We made it home by 6:30pm, had the monkey in bed by 8pm and were asleep by 9pm.
Sunday we woke up a 8am and relaxed until 4 when I had to start getting ready for the wedding reception, which I was MCing along with the mister.
The grooms family kept changing the program on us. So we were literally making adjustments on the fly. It wasn't a great MC job but considering it was my first, I think it went ok.
After, I had few more vodka 7's and didn't get home until after 1pm.
Monday morning I checked my email to find out I was accepted in the new lab and they were expecting me that morning. I quickly got ready to start in the new lab, hungover, with sore feet and a sore back. GREAT first impressions. BUT we had fun and I looked great and did not end up falling on my ass.
I know you're dying to know which lab. I promise I'll fill you in this week.
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11 months ago
7 comments:
I was exhausted just reading this!
Hope things are settling down, and that you're enjoying your first week in the new lab. Do you have a defined project yet?
Congratz on the new lab... can't wait to see what lab it is!
That does it. I'm calling both labs and asking for you tomorrow! ;) But neat to hear about the wedding, too. Sounds chaotic and exhausting and fun all at once.
I have to ask (and I'm curious about the lab too)
What's a Mehindi party?
Wow! Talk about hectic! It does sound like fun, though.
I'll post today or tomorrow about the lab, sorry I just haven't had the time to put in thought I wouuld like to.
Mrs.spit - thanks for the reminder, i've put a link to a wikipedia sight
Sounds great! My best friend growing up was of Punjabi origin and I heard a lot (and saw tons of photos) from various family and friend weddings that she attended. I was gutted not to be able to make it to her sister's wedding a few years ago - I was invited but had already booked flights home 2 months before the Punjabi wedding, to attend a different friend's wedding.
I understand that there's a tradition of the bride's younger female relatives stealing the groom's shoes and holding them to ransom, only giving them back (and thus letting him leave!) when he gives them money or gifts. I once asked my friend, "is that to symbolise that you're reluctant to lose your relative to her new husband?", and she said "nah, it's just about getting his money off him". Is this true or is she having me on??!!
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