Team McLeod : Cheers!

I wish we'd had more time to dedicate to toasts at the wedding reception but let's be honest - I wanted to dance. Sometimes it's wonderful and lovely to have an open floor for guests to speak should they feel inspired. Sometimes it drags on and you end up losing half an hour of your precious time to speeches given by drunken distant relatives. The later being what I was trying to avoid. With such kind things said at the rehearsal just the night before, we didn't feel like anything was missing by having only our honor attendants say a few words.

Rachel and Gabe share a history of their own and each gave a touching and lighthearted toast. They got things started with a few verbal jabs about Rachel insisting she went first because hers would be so much better.

Gabe, a gentleman, of course had no problems letting her go ahead of him. Not without introducing her as the girl with "the face of an angel and the mouth of a sailor". When her reply to him contained a well-placed f-bomb I was glad we had a mostly-adult reception.
She said sweet words and talked about our long friendship. 17 years strong - now that's a big deal. I remember way back when - sometime in middle school I think - talking with the girls about weddings and how we have to be eachother's bridesmaids. There may have even been a chart worked up so that we would all get to be someone else's Maid of Honor. My maid was Rachel, even all those years ago.
Next up was Gabe. A better person to toast us probably doesn't exist. As Collin's roommate of 4.5 years and mine of 1.5 at the time, he knows us as a couple better than anyone else.
He had his own funny moments - talking about being our bachelor roommate, living in our garage apartment well into our adult lives.
Once the glasses were raised and "Cheers!" was shouted by all we hugged and cried a little (or Rachel and I did at least).

Now, did someone say wedding cake?