Andrea:

For those of you who don’t know us, I’m Andrea and this is Lauren, two of Karin’s friends and roommates from college. We were both so excited when Karin asked if we would want to give a toast today, but, since the three of us can’t do anything without checking with the others first, we thought we should speak together.

Lauren:

First of all, we’d like to just say thank you to Karin and Chris for asking us to share in their wedding day and letting us be a part of this happy occasion. It was truly an honor to stand with you at the beautiful ceremony earlier today. We’d also like to thank Karin’s parents, Susan and Bruce, and Chris’s parents, Stacy and Rich, for hosting us all here today.

Andrea:

When the three of us lived together in West Chester, we wrote a list of house rules on the wall of our apartment. While these were mostly just for fun, having had the experience of living with Karin, we would like to now amend these rules in order to give Chris some advice that we believe will lead to a long and successful marriage with Karin:

(L)1. Always have the kitchen stocked with mac & cheese

(A)2. If you see an overturned cup randomly placed on the floor, you are to promptly and properly dispose of the bug underneath it.

(L)3. A birthday isn’t a birthday without tequila, but make sure you have limes. Lemons are not a proper substitute

(A)4. Blankie stays in the bed with you. Period.

(L)5. Take-out Chinese food, wings, or Wendy’s can pretty much fix anything

(A)6. If you really don’t want to watch Blue Crush or Dirty Dancing for the millionth time, just call us and we’ll fill in. But you will have to deal with the million reruns of I Love the 80s, 90210, and Golden Girls.

(L)7. Always live within a 10-mile radius of Kohl’s and Starbucks.

(A)8. Don’t let her borrow your clothes unless you’re ok with them disappearing into the depths of her closet.

(L)9. Sometimes it’s easier to throw out dirty dishes and start over rather than trying to wash them.

(A)10. The remote is always Karin’s – she will use force if necessary.

Lauren

Being English majors, Karin and my writing abilities weren’t just limited to the graffiti on our apartment walls. We also took many literature and poetry classes together in school and often entertained each other by writing poetry about our teachers and friends, like the infamous serious “Ode to a Grecian (fill in the blank)” and “looking out on a freshly fallen cookie.” I think Karin might be expecting a custom-tailored poem for a special occasion such as this one, but seeing as how that poetry was pretty much terrible, Andrea and I decided that it would be better to read a poem that is very special to Karin and has meant quite a bit to the three of us over the years.

Andrea:

Thank you for being a friend. 
Travel down the road and back again. 
Your heart is true, you're a pal and a confidant. 

Lauren:

And if you threw a party, 
invited everyone you knew. 
You would see the biggest gift would be from me 
and the card attached would say, 
thank you for being a friend.

Andrea:

To Karin, thank you for being a friend, 

Lauren:

To Karin and Chris, may you know nothing but happiness as you travel down the road and back again.