SUNDAY Andy arrived to pick us up right on schedule, and even with extra-heavy traffic on the beltway (and a bit of weather) we made it to La Ferme (the elegant French restaurant where the wedding was being held) on time.  Despite having the entire restaurant at their disposal for the wedding it was quite crowded (there were about 100 guests in attendance) which made it difficult to move around.  But it was a lovely ceremony and dinner, although between the band and the acoustics it was much too noisy for easy conversation.  Rachelle's father (my uncle) jokingly asked me at dinner if I was able to hear the band or did I want them to crank up the volume. Every time the band did take a break, everyone (at our table at least) was thrilled! Jonathan mentioned that Nancy Reagan used to lunch often at La Ferme, and I will say that my dinner was absolutely delicious.  Rachelle and Bob both looked radiant, and it was especially wonderful for her that her mother Helen, who recently moved to an Alzheimer's care facility, was able to attend, along with her still-active 92-year-old father (who danced up a storm with Rachelle to Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy!) When he asked me to dance, I was able to pretend it was my Dad (his brother) who I still miss dearly.

MONDAY we awoke to rain and fog, but since we had no plans to go out it didn't matter.  Tomorrow, when we will be going out, it's supposed to be much colder - by about 20 degrees. Figures....  Originally today we were supposed to have lunch here with my friend Cindy (who lives in Falls Church, VA) but a medical emergency with her significant other's elderly mother forced cancellation of that.  Hopefully we will be able to find a date to reschedule our get-together before I head back to Arizona... although my calendar doesn't have a lot of wiggle room!

Mom and I played some Rummikub, and I was on a roll and won all of today's games.  Mom has been feeling a little guilty about winning most of the time at her Thursday night games (after being invited to join an on-going group) so I figure that it's just her comeuppance for that.  We also watched Wordplay, a 2006 documentary about crossword puzzles which focused on Will Shortz (NYTimes crossword puzzle editor) and the annual puzzle-solving competition, held in Stamford, CT, that he started many years ago.  I thoroughly enjoyed watching it, and would even like to watch it again! 

We rendezvoused with the bridge crew downstairs for an early dinner tonight before they headed off to play this evening's game.  My retelling of our trials and tribulations Saturday evening trying to get to the pre-nuptial dinner astounded everyone. Now I'm heading off to watch tonight's movie downstairs, Chef, which Mom's already seen and recommends.