Honeymoon Adventures

Well, they say no honeymoon is complete without an adventure and ours was no exception.  Here's the rundown:

1) We had planned to leave on Wednesday, but didn't leave til Thursday (No big deal)

2) When we got to the house (one of Renee's former roomate's parents own a place on Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia) we discovered that we had been given one key that opened the dead bolt on the door, but no key to open the door knob lock.  Alas, Dr. Jordahl had to drive 40 minutes from Roanoke to give us the right set of keys (No big deal)
3) Friday morning we walked out of the house to go down to the water and didn't realize that the door locked behind us – and the keys were inside.  Luckily we found a ladder, Renee climbed up and went in through the second floor door, which luckily we left unlocked (No big deal – once we knew we had left the second floor unlocked)

4) This morning we get all packed up and we're ready to go – and I notice that my rear tire is looking a little low.  Sure enough, upon closer inspection – it's flat.  So, I reach into the recesses of my mind and remember what my dad taught me about chaning a tire and we get the spare on.  We drive into town and ask them where the closest service center is.  By this time I knew that I had a screw in my tire so I was hoping it could be fixed.  Turns out the closest service center is a Wal-Mart 35 minutes away.  Well, it turned out to not be that far and Wal-Mart was in fact able to repair my tire, or so they thought.  Turns out we had driven on that tire too long and the inside had gotten all scratched up by the screw and the tire was shot.  So, I had to buy a new tire.  Finally, by 1 pm (almost three hours after we had hoped to leave) we were set to go.  After some lunch we were off…. (Big deal)

5) Until a tractor trailer decided to roll over on I-81 North and back things up for miles.  Besides this, the rain was coming in buckets so traffic was slowed for that reason already.  All in all, we moved about 10 miles in 2 hours.

6) We ended up getting lost – I forgot that we needed to be on Rt. 37 in Virginia for a while.  But luckily (with Renee's sharp eyes) we get turned around and back on track.
7) Now back on the road the rain continues – and slows traffic down even more. 

8) Finally, at 10 pm, 11 and a half hours after we "left" we arrive home.  Tired, but home and safe – with one new tire to show for it.  

I have posted some pictures from our honeymoon.  As you'll notice I had more fun taking photos of my beautiful wife but hey… do you blame me?

Wedding Photos

Well, after many requests our wedding photos are finally available.  Enjoy!

1. Photos from the Rehearsal and Rehearsal Dinner
2. Photos from Sarah Definbaugh's House before the Wedding
3. Photos from Before the Ceremony
4. Photos from in the Girl's Dressing Room
5. Photos from During the Ceremony
6. Photos from After the Ceremony (Posed Pictures)
7. Photos from the Reception

All photos taken by Chris Humphrey

Hard Times Cafe…

There is one place here in Maryland where Renee and I will always go when I am down visiting, Hard Times Cafe.  Hard Times Cafe has the single greatest chili I've ever had and there is nothing better than a Three-Way Chili-Mac with Texas Chili.

So last night, before we went to see Cars, we decided we would make a trip to Hard Times Cafe here in Columbia.  So we go – and low and behold they're remodeling.  Tonight we decide to go down to the Hard Times Cafe in Laurel, where we first went.  When we get there, we discover that what was the Hard Times Cafe is now the beginnings of a Chevy Chase Bank.  So, finally, we continue south down to College Park where we finally find our beloved Hard Times Cafe.  

All this for some chili – have no doubt.  The bad news is that there are no Hard Times Cafes in the Pittsburgh area.  The good news is that Hard Times sells their spices by the box.  Needless to say, we'll have a box on order as soon as we get settled in our new house.

Renee and I have decided that for every church dinner we're going to bring one of two things.

1) Brian's Famous Buffalo-style Chicken Strips

2) Chili Mac using Hard Times Cafe Chili!

So while what we bring will certainly taste good, we'll also be responsible for the heartburn afterwards.  

Wedding #2

So on Saturday Renee and I celebrated our second wedding at our Alma Matter in Grove City. Most importantly, and unlike wedding #1, we were joined by 150 of our friends and family who witnessed our vows and pledged their support to us.

One of the coolest parts of our wedding was our cake, done by my mother-in-law. All homemade with three different layers consisting of three different types of cake and filling. But taking the “cake” for me was the bottom layer: chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and peanut butter filling.

Definitely the coolest part was seeing friends and family, many of whom we hadn’t seen in quite some time. Family and friends came from as close as Pittsburgh and Warren, or as far as Upstate New York, Maryland, Virginia, Georgia, and Florida.

Now we have 10 days to relax before we move Renee’s stuff from Columbia, MD to our new house.

New Schedule

So one of the parts of being married to a teacher is adjusting to a whole new schedule. So here it is, 7:30 in the morning, and I can honestly say I’ve been awake for about a half hour. I’m sitting at Renee’s dining room table and preparing to start scanning photos for the slideshow. My goal, is to finish our slideshow today so that Renee and I can work on seating tonight.

Update

After over a year and a half, the long distance relationship for Brian and Renee is over (the long distance part that is). Technically it ended on Thursday evening when Renee arrived (just in time for graduation) in Pittsburgh. But, it feels over because yesterday we drove back to Maryland together and will be together from now until the night before Wedding #2, and then from there after. While the long distance relationship was without a doubt worth it, I am glad it’s over. We both commented today as we were working that it was a lot easier to get work done when the other person is in the same room, and you’re not worried about talking to them on the phone.

Anyway, this week’s agenda includes finalizing table assignments for the wedding, printing table cards, scanning pictures, and making a video, all before we head back to Ohio this Thursday for the rehearsal, parties, and wedding this weekend. Then back to Maryland for about a week, before we move everything, for good, to our new house.

Also, pictures from Wedding #1 have been posted.

Married

I’m married.

From Left to Right:
Renee’s wedding ring, my wedding ring, Renee’s engagement ring

As some readers know, Renee grandmother has not been doing well lately. It became quite evident to us last week that she would be unable to attend the wedding on June 3rd even if she is still alive at that point. It was really important to both Renee and her grandmother that her grandmother is at the wedding (and I agree). So, we made a slight change in plans: we got married on Saturday.

Renee’s pastor from home came over to Renee’s grandmother’s house, we crowded into her room around her bed, we said our vows, exchanged rings, and had communion and were told “You are now husband and wife”

So now the question? What about June 3rd? (Our original wedding date). Nothing changes. We’re still celebrating our marriage on June 3rd as originally planned. But why you ask? Very simple: there’s a theological reason.

The service on the third has from the beginning been entitled “A Service of Christian Worship in Celebration of the Marriage of Marilyn Renee Barfay and Brian Robert Wallace.” Wedding ceremonies are by definition worship services and that’s what we had this past Saturday and that’s what we’re going to have on June 3rd. Also, while Renee and I consider ourselves married, weddings aren’t just about the couple, they’re also for the family and friends of the bride and groom. In a wedding ceremony the family and friends pledge to uphold and support the bride and room in their marriage. While some of Renee’s family was present on Saturday, a lot of her relatives, my entire family, and a lot of our friends weren’t at the wedding on Saturday. Needless to say, it’s important for us that they also witness our vows and pledge their love and support.

Finally, what constitues our marriage isn’t a ceremony, it’s the love that we share between us. A wedding ceremony as part of a worship service is a time for the husband and wife to make commitments to each other before the Triune God and their friends and family, and to ask God’s blessing upon the new couple. As they say with ordinations, the act of ordaining someone is merely making public and formal a decision that God made a long time ago. This isn’t to devalue the important of having wedding celebrations, but rather to put them in their appropriate context within worship services as well as to understand them and celebrations and formulations of something, rather a mechanic blessing that makes something a marriage. Hence, I don’t think it’s weird we’re going to have two but rather believe it was the “command of God in a limiting case” (for you Barth scholars). In other words, given the circumstances (which are unusual) I think we did the right thing – the thing that God would have us do.

(Leave it to me to make this into a theological issue)

Brian and Renee: Wedding #1

Pictures from Brian and Renee's first wedding are available here

Brian’s Big News…

Renee and I bought a townhouse!!! We had looked at it last weekend and really liked it, so we visited again this morning and decided it was the one and put in an offer. They counter offered an hour later, we counter offered, they responded, and we took it. It’s a townhouse in Richland, about a mile and a half from Hampton Presbyterian (where I’ll be working). It has three bedrooms and four baths (two full, two half), a finished basement, and a nice, big deck. We close on June 15th!

Here are some photos:

This is the exterior

This is the kitchen looking out into the dining room/living room

This is the dining room end of the living room/dining room

This is the living room end of the dining room/living room, looking into the kitchen

This is the family room

This is the bathroom off the family room

Brian and Renee: House Photos

Photos of Brian and Renee's new house are available here