Went to a wedding this weekend... Some Views *Long*

I went to an incredibly magnificent wedding on Saturday. The ceremony was held at Our Lady Queen of Martyrs Church in Forest Hills and the reception took place at Tappan Hill in Tarrytown, NY (just spectacular). Some views are noted below: * My girlfriend had a full nuptual mass that lasted way over an hour. She broke the mass up by having readers and a soloist that was unbelievable. Also, it was great to have a program to follow along with. I went to a wedding recently that did not have programs and I can say that the programs are pretty much essential. * Because her church and reception location were located so far apart (at least 45 mins to 1 hour drive time), she didn't have a lot of time for pictures at the church and other locations other than the reception site. Keep this in mind. * She had a 'goody bag' waiting for all her guests that were staying at the hotel. The bag included water, soda and lots of snacks which was great since alot of people (including me) hadn't eaten anything all day and needed to wait until a 7:00 reception (I got to the hotel at 6:00 and was starving). Also included was an itinerary, directions to her reception and a nice pamphlet containing information on the interesting attractions in the area. Also, a really nice handwritten note saying 'welcome'. * Half of her cocktail reception was inside and the other outside. Guests congregated at the entrance of the inside part and didn't realize that it continued outside. Someone from the place should have let guests know as they entered. * She did not have anywhere to put the envelopes as guests were leaving. Everyone was confused about what to do... give it to the groom? Give it to the parents? Give it to the bride? Leave it on the cake table? Leave it on bride and groom's table? You see what I mean. * Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy. As a guest it went by so fast.... as a bride it will seem like a split second. If I think of anything else, I will post. Please also feel free to ask questions.