Witness

Last weekend I had the honor of signing the ketubah for Rob and Jamie.   I was thrilled to witness their union and honored to be chosen, an allowance only acceptable by the fact that their ketubah was an inter-faith one.   I have always loved Jamie and am so thrilled to have her in the family and am so happy that Rob and I continue to cherish our friendship even in our different adult lives.

At the rehearsal dinner I gave the toast below.  I shook like a leaf the whole time but managed to deliver it clearly enough to induce proper laughs.

Their wedding was a blast and I am so happy we got to share in their memories.

For those who don’t know me, I am Rob’s cousin, Wendy.  I’d like to thank Uncle Marc for having all of us here tonight.  I’d also like to welcome the Fenerty’s to the family.  Good Luck.  There’s a lot of us.

Rob and I were more than just cousins growing up.  Raised like brother and sister, twins in fact, there are few memories that don't involve him right by my side.  We were best friends.  We understood each other better than most, and argued better than most. Rob, as you all know, is a very good arguer!

Growing up, I've served as the skins for Rob's drumming practice, the target for his throwing practice, and the scratched victim of the Wolverine claws he believed he possessed.  But, also thanks to Rob, I was inspired to read classic books, exposed to great music, and shown the power of a great debate.

Together, we've driven endless miles to nowhere, trekked through 8 countries, and skiied many mountains.  Growing up, during high school, and even right through college we shared friends, good times, and laughs!

Because of all of this, I assumed that when it came time for Rob to marry that I would help choose his wife.  This was a selfish assumption as I wanted to be sure that I would love her like he did.  That she and I could be friends and our hanging out and our arguing could continue as it had.  In fact, I thought I would just pick one of my friends for him.  I had never discussed this with him and, instead, he went out and found himself a wife.

When Rob brought Jamie home there was never a doubt that she was perfect. We all fell in love with her also, and we kept our fingers crossed that she would one day be family.  Their courtship was nothing short of… long

We all waited, so long in fact that we were starting to lose patience, so much so that I was considering choosing her over him had they parted ways. 

But, over all of these years things have changed in Rob. For instance, now his tardiness has been reduced by half.  Also, it turns out that Rob does actually have a bedroom floor.  And, we have all benefitted from the fact that Rob cooks more often now that he has someone to cook for.  And, when Rob was single he watched all 82 games of the Flyers live or on DVR.  And, now that he has Jamie, he STILL watches all 82 games of the Flyers live or on DVR.

On behalf of Todd and myself, and perhaps the Bernstein family, I'd like to thank the Fenertys for giving Rob a place of his own to stay at the shore.  Of course, I think it will take the desire of a kid of his own for him to actually want to spend time on the beach.

Rob, I thank you for finally proposing. I thank you for choosing a girl I can call my cousin, my pseudo sister in law, my friend.  And, I thank you for not making me choose between you! 

Jamie, thank you for your patience and for welcoming our tight knit family into your heart with wide open arms. I hope your welcoming from me and from all of us has been just as wide

To you both, Todd and I, and Chase, Ryder and Turner, love you and are so excited to be a part of this wonderful new chapter in your life.