When Mr. Wonderful and I arrived at our hotel after the reception, we checked in at the front desk and I handed them a gift card for the hotel. I had gotten the gift card through a website called Seattle Half Off, which sells gift cards for certain hotels, restaurants, and services for about half of their value. When the card arrived in the mail, I wanted to make sure I had it with me when we arrived at the hotel, so I removed the gift card from the paper card case it was nestled in, and slipped it in my clutch, which I would be sure to have with me when we left the reception. I slid the card across the front desk, and the receptionist asked if I had the paper it came in. Apparently, as the receptionist informed me, the cards don’t have any information on them, so she doesn’t know what it was for without the paper slip that came with it.

I was shocked. Who hands out gift cards that look just like any other gift card, with magnetic strip and all, but are really nothing but a piece of plastic? The piece of paper it came in was in the “Everything Binder,” which contained all the information about the wedding. I didn’t know the location of the binder, but I hoped that if I called my parents, they would be able to find it, because we wouldn’t be able to check out without that stupid slip of paper.

I called my folks and they had just arrived at home and were unloading the cars. My mom found the binder and the slip of paper I needed. Thankfully, Evin and Laura were there, so we bribed them to bring us the piece of paper in exchange for a drink at the hotel bar. In the end, it worked out beautifully. Matt and I lounged on the couches  in the bar with Evin and Laura, going over the “roses and thorns” of the day with drinks in hand. And actually, I think that may be one of my favorite memories of our wedding day, because we were still all dressed up in our wedding attire, and a sense of celebration was still in the air, but we were able to completely relax and be with our best friends. There were no expectations placed on us, no agenda. Just the best company we could ask for on the biggest day of our lives.

Despite the confusion with the gift card, our hotel experience was great. The bartender brought us some complimentary crab and artichoke dip, because we didn’t get a chance to eat very much at the reception, and she was excellent at recommending tasty drinks. Even though we had reserved a standard room, we were upgraded to a north-facing larger room on the very top floor. And we took advantage of the valet service, so we didn’t have to worry about finding parking, which was scarce due to numerous events in the area.

The day had both roses and thorns, but Mr. Wonderful and I agree that the bouquet of roses far outshines the thorns.