We did consider renting a limo to take the entire bridal party to the Church…but a few problems arose from this. The first being cash. When I priced out the cost of the limos, as soon as I mentioned the word "wedding," I felt the prices skyrocketed. I was offered a few different wedding day packages…the cheapest being a $650 old school limo, to take us from the hotel to the Church and then to the reception. These places were close enough to walk to for goodness sake! And it was an old type of limo!
Other reasons we opted to forgo the limo service was because my sister, my Dad, my two sister-in-laws and mother-on-law all drove to the hairstylists/hotel to get ready in their own vehicles. This wouldn't really have been a problem, except none of them were staying at the Radisson. They were all staying at the student residence on campus, where the wedding venue was. So, it just made sense for us all to take our own cars, and for my Dad to drive me.
One little problem came out of my Dad "chauffeuring" Melissa and I to the Church. Patrick, his groomsmen, or his Dad, basically anyone "in the know" were supposed to ensure that there was a parking spot out front of the Church. Well, they did leave a space…and it was likely large enough for my Dad to pull in, but when we arrived, my Dad thought it was a little tight. My Dad's car is a boat…and let's just say, smaller cars are easier to navigate into tight spots and to parallel park…lol Anyway, unfortunately this seemed to cause a little bit of stress for my Dad. So, instead of pulling in front of the Church, he dropped Melissa and I off, and drove around the block…er…a few times looking for a parking spot. Had we just went with a limo, the driver could have dropped us all of and my Dad wouldn't have had to worry about parking.
It was also kind of weird when my Dad dropped me. Melissa went on into the Church ahead of me. So, when I stepped out of the car, I was completely alone, on the street in front of the Church :p All my girls were waiting inside…and for some reason I thought they'd be waiting outside for me…lol I was also feeling kinda crummy about the parking situation, butterflies were starting to set into my tummy, and I was totally confused about my feelings surrounding my Mom. I had such high hopes that she would some how come through for me (for once in my life) and be inside that Church, and not miss this super important moment in my life. And although I knew I had all of the support in the world (even without my Mom), I felt completely alone at that very moment…Melissa's (or Lucas'?) photo pretty much captured how I was feeling:
They say a picture is worth a thousand words.
Anyway, everything (from the parking, to the feeling of alone-ness - which was silly, I had a Church full of people waiting for me!) all worked out in the end. These are just a few things to think about (how you'd like to get to the alter, and who you'd like physically by your side at all times :p) when considering your ride to the alter ;)