Now that we’re back, we’ve got the full set to review. If you too would like to see all the photos, just let us know and we’ll send you the link.
Charlotte’s website is http://www.charlottegeary.com. Take a look at her other great work.

Those of you who have seen Lawrence of Arabia, David Lean’s 1962 epic, might remember this classic line and the film’s gorgeous desert backdrop, shot on location in Jordan. Well, we were fortunate to be able to visit Wadi Rum and enjoy a Bedouin-style meal during our honeymoon as we spent a night camping beneath the stars in the desert. We also visited Petra, the ancient “rose city” remarkably well-preserved for 2,000 years. The entire week was just amazing, and we were thinking of all of you as we relived moment after moment of our wedding day. We can’t wait to show you photos from the trip.

Here’s just three: one of Jenny in the red dunes of Wadi Rum; the ampitheatre at Petra; and the newlyweds at sunset at the Dead Sea.

1. Add a comment to this blog.
2. Send us email, at jskyne {at} hotmail.com or msmalseed {at} yahoo.com.
3. Phone us, at 646-649-3427.

At business school, Jenny worked with an organization called the I Do Foundation that enables couples to add a charitable element to their wedding. Participating stores agree to donate 4% to 8% of all gift registry purchases to charity, when they’re made through the I Do Foundation website. The donation comes from the store at no additional cost to guests.

We have chosen to register with three I Do Foundation partners: Macy’s, Sur La Table, and Cooking.com. Our registry can be accessed at the I Do Foundation website, as well as at any or Sur La Table store or Cooking.com.

About our charity. . .
Donations made through the registry support the Benin Education Fund, which funds schooling for students in rural West Africa. Jenny served in the Peace Corps in Benin and is on the Fund’s volunteer board of directors.

We'll keep you updated on all the vitals of the ceremony, reception, accommodations, and traveling from out of town, as well as fun facts about our families and upcoming honeymoon (where should we go?).

So check it all out, leave a comment or two if you are so inspired, and join our countdown to Sept. 16. We are very excited for the big day and so glad you can be part of this most special celebration.

You can read down the page or browse by the categories on the left. Also, we've included a Wedding Overview page that has all the weekend essentials in one place. You can access it anytime by clicking the navy blue "Wedding Overview" tab at the top of the page.

Why a blog? Well, they're easy to create, update, and make interactive. We'd love for your comments to make the site more entertaining, so go ahead, say something! Adding your own comment is easy-O: Just click the "add a comment" link. (Thank you, Jenny's mom, for breaking the ice.)

Ah, but we’ve reserved a block of rooms for our wedding guests at the most convenient spot in town:

The Hyatt Regency Bethesda
7400 Wisconsin Ave.
Bethesda, MD 20814 (Map)
301-657-1234

This hotel, located in the heart of Bethesda and minutes from the Beltway, is within a short walk of our reception. Hotel amenities include: a rooftop fitness center, indoor pool, two restaurants, and hundreds of shops and other restaurants nearby. We’ve reserved a special rate of $149, good for Friday and/or Saturday night stays.

UPDATE: Our guaranteed hotel block has expired, but the special wedding rate will be honored for as long as rooms are available. So don’t forget to mention the Kyne-Malseed wedding when making reservations.

If you’d like to explore other places to stay, read on
In downtown Bethesda, there are several other hotels also within walking distance of the reception. They include:

• Residence Inn by Marriott
  Offers suites & extended-stay rooms.
  301-718-0200
• Bethesda Court Hotel
  A budget option, recently renovated.
  301-656-2100

For those wishing to stay in Washington D.C., we recommend the Woodley Park and Dupont Circle neighborhoods, as they are more convenient to the Ceremony and Reception sites.

• Omni Shoreham Hotel
  A grand dame of Washington overlooking Rock Creek Park.
  202-234-0700
• Woodley Park Guest House
  Bed & breakfast one block from the Woodley Park Metro stop.
  866-667-0218

Please don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions. We want to make sure you’re comfortable and can make the most of your weekend in Washington.

Except as noted, all these sites are free and easily accessible via the Metro. Leave from the "Bethesda" stop on the Red Line (just steps from the hotel) and exit at the stops indicated.

Something Old

• Monuments, monuments, monuments. The Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln never fail to move us. Same with the Korean, Vietnam and World War II memorials, all clustered near each other on the National Mall. The light in early morning and late afternoon can be breathtaking. Blue or Orange Line to Smithsonian.

Something New

• The International Spy Museum. ($) One of D.C.'s newest attractions, this fun, interactive museum traces the history and tradecraft of espionage, with large exhibits on World War II and the Cold War. Also has a very cool gift shop. Red Line to Gallery Place/Chinatown.
• National Museum of the American Indian. The most recent addition to the National Mall, this Smithsonian museum chronicles Native American history and folklore. The large, striking yellow stone building sits next to the Air and Space Museum, near the U.S. Capitol. Blue or Orange Line to Smithsonian.

Something Borrowed

• Giant Pandas at the National Zoo. So they're technically on loan from China… That won't stop us from adopting them as our own. When Mark lived in Washington, the cute bamboo-eating bears were his next-door neighbors. They recently produced an adorable cub bear, Tai Shan, who turns 1 this July. Lots of other animals to look at too. Red Line to Woodley Park/Zoo.

Something Blue

• The Potomac. It's more of a brownish-blue, really. But lovely nonetheless, whether you take it in from the Georgetown waterfront, or along the hiking trails of Great Falls. Georgetown features historic homes, D.C.'s best shopping, and plenty of fine restaurants and watering holes along M St. and Wisconsin Ave. Take the Blue or Orange Line to Foggy Bottom (plus a ten-minute walk). Great Falls Park, which spans both the MD and VA banks of the river, is a 15-minute drive from Bethesda, but requires a car.

Keep on reading

Here's a Metro map of the Red Line and major downtown areas.

Click to see a full version in a new window.

This helpful guide from the Washington Post covers the best of D.C.’s scandal sites, from Watergate to Iran-Contra to Mayor Barry’s drug daze. Who knows, maybe you’ll create one of your own?

This begs several questions:

1. Who is Ukrainian? Actually, we both have Ukrainian roots, though Mark has a first-generation connection to Ukraine through his mother who was born there. Jenny's family on her mother's side also originally came from Ukraine. For the uninitiated, Ukrainians are not Russians. This is a bit of a sore point, given the history of the 20th century when Ukraine was ruled by Russian communists. In fact, Ukraine is its own country with 50 million people, and has its own language, culture, religions … and nuclear weapons. All good reasons not to get the two confused. (Ukraine also has a team in the World Cup.)
2. Who is Catholic? This one's all Mark. But here again is a sticking point: Ukrainian Catholics differ from your garden-variety Roman Catholics on a variety of theological, liturgical and cultural matters. (Notably, they cross themselves "backwards," i.e. right to left.) The church hierarchies are also independent, though they follow the Pope and have representatives in Rome. The Ukrainian church is part of the Byzantine Rite (aka the Eastern or Greek Rite), and for centuries has looked to Constantinople as its spiritual home.
3. Will the ceremony be different? We have chosen a modern Ukrainian wedding ceremony that includes a number of unique customs and traditions. Some of these we'll explain in an upcoming post; others we will save as surprises.

A bit of Uke wedding trivia: The 1978 Oscar-winning Vietnam film The Deer Hunter features a Ukrainian wedding scene (with a youngish, but still spooky, Christopher Walken.)