Together, we have circled around the sun 6 times since we first met in 2008. We have been fortunate to travel together far and wide, sharing adventures in Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario, New York, British Columbia, California, Cuba, Honduras, Barbados, Australia, and many stops in between. Life together remains an adventure with each new day, week and season. Now, we are about to embark on a whole new adventure together as we affirm our commitment to each other. For us, we feel it is important that our marriage and commitment ceremony reflects our deepest values and beliefs. Common threads in our relationship have been our love of music, good food, outdoor activities, gardening, permaculture, and advocating for sustainable living. Aspects of all of these are contained within what we have planned. More importantly though, we want our wedding to be about all of the beautiful things in our lives and simultaneously about sharing and being part of something bigger – about our families, the communities where we grew up, the communities and friends we engage with, and the natural world and community of life that we belong to. It is our festival of life, and our festival of love; of supporting and being supported; and so it is our honour and pleasure to invite you to share in this special occasion and we sincerely hope you can come celebrate with us. With love, We hope you will join us for the Dinner, Wedding Ceremony and Dance on Saturday, July 12th. We have lots of other fun activities planned throughout the weekend, and we would be delighted to have you join us for as much of the merriment as you are able. It’s a whole festival! Potluck with bonfire and music Afternoon Tea Open Stage Dinner Ceremony Dance Pancake Breakfast We met at a klezmer house concert at Prairie Sky and music has been a common thread in our lives, something that we love sharing with our community. We’d love this special day to be a festival and invite all who would like to sing a song, play a piece, read a verse or do whatever moves you. There will be a campfire sing-along on Friday evening, and an open stage on Saturday evening from 5pm until the ceremony starts. There will be a piano and/or keyboard on site and you are encouraged to bring your own instruments as well. Noah’s family has a bit of a tradition of going for a summer canoe float down the Red Deer River through the Badlands. This day trip involves some driving to and from launch points, and about a 5 hour easy paddle or float with lots of opportunities to cool off and swim in the gently flowing Red Deer River. If you’d like to join us for a post-party paddle on Monday just let us know in the RSVP and bring your own canoe and gear! Canoe Trip Our dinner, ceremony and festivities will be held at Custom Woolen Mills where Noah grew up. It’s situated out in the prairies 30 minutes east of Carstairs, Alberta. Noah’s parents Bill and Fen started the mill nearly 40 years ago using industrial revolution era machinery to custom process wool for their customers. It has been a special place for the Purves-Smith family and all of our friends and feels like a second home to Annie. At “the mill”, as we all like to call it, we have hosted many gatherings over the years. With our wedding we look forward to sharing this space with you and adding another chapter to the collection of memories. Come join in the festivities early and you may even get to try your hand at some games and wooly activities! This is a camp out festival! If you’d like to join in the weekend festivities beyond just Saturday we hope that you’ll join us in camping on site. Tents, tipis, trailers, RVs and gypsy caravans are welcome. No RV hook-ups are provided but there is running water available on site as well as port-a-potties. We understand that camping is not for everyone. If you would prefer to stay in a hotel or Bed and Breakfast, there are reasonable hotels and B&Bs located in Airdrie, Three Hills and Calgary. Most accommodations are 30 – 40 minutes drive from the mill. We’ve listed a few options here and if you have any difficulty making arrangements for camping or finding a place to stay please just get in touch and we’ll do our best to help. The mill is about a 45 minute drive from the Calgary Airport, or about an hour’s drive from downtown Calgary. Getting there is easy by car: Please be advised that Google Maps has the address listed incorrectly when searching for Custom Woolen Mills. However, it is placed properly on the map. Click here for a Google Map link with accurate directions. Parking is limited so we encourage friends to carpool if possible. If you need help arranging transportation just get in touch and we’ll do our best to connect you. We are prepared with a party tent for some showers or a passing cloudburst, but if it’s torrential all day or still snowing in July, the dinner, ceremony and reception will be held at Lone Pine Community Hall. Lone Pine Hall is a 15 minute drive away from the mill. May the weather Norns smile upon us! Food is another passion that we love to share, especially when it’s locally and sustainably grown. The food we’re providing throughout the weekend festivities includes: If you are able to join us for the weekend please come prepared with the necessary food and camping supplies for your other meals. We would love to make this event greener by not using disposable dishes. Please help us do this by bringing a table setting for yourself and members of your party. For your table settings please include the following non-plastic, reusable items: Dish washing stations will be available to help with the logistics. If you’re travelling from further afield and it’s not possible, we will have some dishes on hand for your use throughout the weekend. Dress is casual or smart casual. Dress how you’re moved to dress – we’re here to have fun and celebrate! Please bear in mind the event is outdoors on uneven ground and the evening can be chilly. (It is Alberta, folks!) Bring some layers and wear practical shoes for dancing! There will be enough two-legged shenanigans going on all weekend to keep everyone busy and entertained, so please leave your four-legged friends at home! The very best present we can receive is your presence at our wedding and your love and support as we embark on this adventure together. We recognize that especially for those of you coming from far away, simply attending our wedding will already entail spending money on travel and hotel accommodations. Many of you are contributing your time and energy to this event, and for the gift of your participation we thank you. To make it easier for the more traditional gift givers among you, contributions in the form of funds or hardware store gift cards would help make our dream of building a home one day a reality. This owl and pussycat will be taking their beautiful pea green boat to the shores of Newfoundland to hike and explore for a couple of weeks. Then we’re off to the land of milk, honey (and blueberries), Nova Scotia, to visit family and eat until our teeth turn blue. If you can’t go out to Alberta (“weather’s good there in the fall…”) don’t despair! Or if you fancy an excuse to travel east, come on out! There will be an east coast gathering at the Phillips’ farm near Debert, Nova Scotia on Sunday, August 3rd. Our heartfelt thanks to everyone who shared of their time, energy and wonderful company to come and spend this special day with us. It was an experience that will be fondly etched in our memories for the rest of our lives. We are truly blessed to have such caring and beautiful family, friends and neighbours. Thank you! We always love to hear from friends and family. Please don’t ever hesitate to pick up the phone, put pen to paper or fingers to keystrokes and send us a message! Or, just ring our doorbell or catch us in the back yard! Email us: friends@annie-and-noah.com
Dear Friends,
Schedule
Friday, July 11
Instruments welcome
7:00 pmSaturday, July 12
3:00 pm
5:00 pm and throughout the evening
6:00 pm
9:00 pm
Contra Dancing with live music
10:00 pmSunday, July 13
10:00 am
Music & Sharing
Canoe Trip – Monday, July 14
Canoeing through the Red Deer River Badlands
10:00 am
The Woolen Mill
Accommodation & Camping
Other Accommodation Options
Getting There
Weather Location
Food, Glorious Food!
Dishes
Dress
Pets
Gifts
About our honeymoon
East Coast Party – August 3rd
Thank You
Don’t Be Shy Now Ya Hear?!
