Mike and Arroxane

As of yesteday we both have filed for the name change to Eber.

Our DL and SS cards will be here soon.

This group of photos is just a variety of photos. There are many more, but here’s a themeless group to enjoy.

Here are some pix of us and friends and family dancing and generally having a ball.

Yes, we finally got some of the hundreds of pictures organized. Here’s a sample of the best from the ceremony. More to come… promise!

We announced at the wedding that we plan to append to our names the new surname ‘Eber.’

Many of our friends and family asked for resources on the name. Here are some facts about the history and meaning of the name:

• German: Strong wild boar.
• South German: from Middle High German ‘boar’, nickname for a man of strength or as a habitational name for someone who lived at a house distinguished by the sign of boar.
• From Middle English Ebreu < Old French Ebreu < Latin Hebraeus or Hebraic < Ancient Greek  < Aramaic ‘ibrāy < Hebrew ‘Ibri), meaning to traverse or pass over (supposedly referring to the fact that they lived on the other side of the Jordan River).
• Along with the name Habiru, considered by Biblical scholars to be the roots of the word “Hebrew”.
• Alternate spelling of Heber,  a great-grandson of Noah’s son Shem and the father of Peleg and Joktan. He was the son of Salah and an ancestor of Abraham.
• Sometimes spelled Heber, the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Heber, the son of Salah; not be confused with the Heber, grandson of Asher.
• From the same Hebrew root as ‘abur’ meaning produce. It is used when the Israelites abandon their diet of manna and begin to eat the yield of Canaan.
• Arabic for lessons learned or bits of wisdom. Plural of Ebra.
• Variant of ÉIBHEAR (Irish), this name belonged to two of the sons of Míl, Éibhear Dunn and Éibhear Finn, the first of the Gaels to conquer Ireland.
• Heber, the name of a people descending from Magog’s first son Baath who were supposed to have occupied the Iberian peninsula and Ireland, leaving their name in each location.
• Celtic name Eibhear “AY-var” Anglicized to Éber, Heber, Harry, Ivar, or Ivor. Also Iobhar “EE-ver” meaning yew tree.
• Related to Eboracum, “Eburaci”, a fort and city in Roman Britain–now called York. Eboracum is thought to have derived from the Proto-Brythonic word Eborakon which can mean “place of the yew trees” or “the field of Eburos”. The name of the Yew is Efrawg in Brythonic, Efwr in Welsh, Iobhar in Irish Gaelic, Iorc in Scottish Gaelic, Evor in Breton. The Gaulic equivalent Eburos is the basis for toponyms as far as Eburobrittium (Évora) among the Lusitani, or Ebura in Hispania Baetica, for the Celtiberians gens of the Eburanci or peoples like the Eburones or Eburovices in Gaul.
• Éber, Eber, Heber, Ébir, Éibhear - Name borne by at least four characters in the Lebor Gabála [Book of Invasions], who are easily confused with one another. The most prominent is Éber Finn, who is probably implied in the Old Irish phrase describing the genealogy of the Irish people, maicc Ébir, maicc Erimóin, ‘sons of Éber, sons of Éremón’.
• Similar to Welsh “Aber” “Abyr” and “Abr” found in many place names. The prefix means “mouth of a river/estuary”
• Associated with the Spanish Rio Ebro (Catalan ‘Ebre’) from Greek ‘ebros’ of the same root as Iberia, same root as Hebride Isles.
• Related surnames: Aber, Abir, Aver, Awr, Ebber, Ebert, Ebr, Ebre, Ebuer, Eiver, Ejber, Iber, etc.
• Linked to the Avars, a highly organized and powerful Turkic confederation governed by a central ruler (khagan or kahn) from the 6th to the 9th century.
• A Druidic incantation from De Jubainville’s Cycle Mythologique Irlandais includes the name:
  “I implore that we may regain the land of Erin,
  We who have come over the lofty waves,
  This land whose mountains are great and extensive,
  Whose streams are clear and numerous,
  Whose woods abound with various fruit,
  Its rivers and waterfalls are large and beautiful,
  Its lakes are broad and widely spread,
  It abounds with fountains on elevated grounds!
  May we gain power and dominion over its tribes!
  May we have kings of our own ruling at Tara!
  May Tara be the regal residence of our many succeeding kings!
  May the Milesians be the conquerors of its people!
  May our ships anchor in its harbours!
  May they trade along the coast of Erin!
  May Eremon be its first ruling monarch!
  May the descendants of Ir and Eber be mighty kings!
  I implore that we may regain the land of Erin,
  I implore!”

Look long and hard enough and you’ll find a hundred more websites with theories on the origins of this name. Like every name, it’s roots are in myth and it’s branches lost on some port of entry. We have chosen to graft this name to our selves and begin a new line that is purely American but respecting of the many lost roots before us.

At the wedding, we offered a raffle ticket for each time you got on the dance floor. The tickets could be deposited in any of several boxes corresponding to a celestial-themed prize package.

We finally got around to drawing the winners, so here they are in no particular order:

• Celestial Bathroom - Kirstin K.
• Celestial Bedroom 1 - Ben N.
• Celestial Bedroom 2 - Michael B.
• Celestial Kitchen - David R.
• Celestial Magic - Julie D.
• Celestial Zen - Denise C.
• Celestial Fashion - Ellen B.
• Celestial Beauty - Beth M.

Congratulations to the winners and thanks to all our dear friends and famliy who got up and danced.

We’re still recovering from Sunday and adapting to being married. That word feels soooo weird!

In the mean time, we want to say how grateful we are for the time and effort put in by our friends and family. So many people did so much to make our special day even more special.

We’d especially like to say thanks to the following:

• Maximedia Studios
• Cafe Marrakesh
• Rabbi and Mrs. Joseph
• Down family
• Ullman family
• Morgan family
• Amie, Rhonda, Lapis, Jo, Angela, Todd, Delissa, Christina, Shanna, Tess, Madison, Kaitlyn, Julia, John, Julie, Jimmy, Alan, Batya, Faye…
• And ALL our friends who helped before, during, and after the wedding

Y’all are the coolest, best folks in the world. We couldn’t have done this without every one of you pitching in  to make our dream come true. And it did!

Thanks again to everyone for everything!

The wedding’s just one WEEK away and we’d like to know who can  lend a hand with setup. The tentative prep schedule is 11am-1pm for “big stuff” (tables, chairs, lights) and 2:30-4:30pm for “details” (decorations, linens, etc.).

If you can help at any time Sunday, we’d love the assistance. Please email rsvp @ mikeandarroxane.com (remove extra spaces) with the approximate time and length you expect to be there.

Also, from 5-5:30 we could use a couple “ushers” to help direct people to fill the tables from the front/far side of the room. If you’re a friendly, people-person sort and would like to do this, email us please.

Thanks a bunch and we’ll see y’all at 5-8pm Sunday January 18 at THE MAX 13300 Branch View Ln. Farmers Branch, Texas 75234.

Just to remind those of you who can’t find the info or your invite…

Date:           Sunday January 18, 2009
Time:           5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Location:     The Max (at Maximedia studios www.maximedia.us) 13300 Branch View Ln. Farmers Branch, TX 75234
Registry:      Myregistry.com
Dress:          Comfy dressy, but include something silver and/or gold
Babysitting: Free, but must RSVP kids’ ages
RSVP:           rsvp at mikeandarroxane dot com
Volunteers:  any help is welcome, shifts are 11am-1pm (chairs, tables, lighting, etc) and 2-4pm (decorations, details, whatever)

Note to family members: there is not a formal rehearsal, but we’ll have a walk-through from 1-2pm at The Max. Wedding party members’ attendance REQUIRED.

Thanks to everyone who’s RSVP’d. We’ll see you there!

Some of you have asked how to find and use our registry. So here’s a quick reminder.

1. Go to myregistry.com
2. Type in either of our names (Arroxane Ullman OR Michael Down).
3.  Click Go To Registry to the right of our names under Find a Registry .
4. Click View Registry at the top of the page.
5. Read the instructions on How to Buy a Gift using this registry.
6. Close the How to Buy a Gift window.
7. View the items by page (10,20,40, all), category (household, leisure, all), and/or price (low-to-high, high-to-low).
8. Click the Buy Now button for item you’d like to get.
9. Click the Continue button to view the site where the gift is sold.
10. Purchase and check out of that website.
11. Return to MyRegistry and indicate whether you got the gift (or one like it).

If you would like to ship an item to our home address, please call or email us for that information.