Twice as Nice

A first-time
marriage is a happy event, the joining of two people who love one
another and pledge to be together forever. For whatever reason, that
doesn’t always work out. Acrimony during a divorce settlement can last
long after the legalities are over, especially when complications arise
concerning the shuttling of offspring between households. It can be a
difficult and lonely time.

Those who still long to share their life with someone
turn to marrying again. The quest is more complex than the first time
around, but in the end, love conquers all, as in the story of Lisa
Tassone Orlando and Scott Edwin Crowell.

“I had been married for 10 years, had three daughters and
divorced in 2002,” recalls Lisa. Looking for companionship, she checked
Yahoo personals on and off for three years, where she connected with
Scott, who, it turned out, lived only two miles away. Scott had been
married for 13 years and divorced for three when they connected online.
That was four years ago. 

Lisa has advice for anyone considering the Internet to
meet someone special. “With everyone’s busy schedule, just dating is
really not an option,” she says. “While it may be a little scary, you
are still operating in the privacy of your own home, and can always
have a backup plan if planning a meeting in person is not comfortable.
Be ready to be rejected, and don’t take the whole process too
seriously.”  

After a three-year courtship, trying to get to know one
another while each juggling a family and job, Scott and Lisa realized
that what they had was true love. She teaches Spanish at Nottingham
High School and he is a technology teacher at Onondaga Road Middle
School, in the Westhill School District. There were many considerations
to resolve, like how their blended family would work, where they would
live, as well as how their former spouses, their parents and friends
would react to their decision to marry.

Married with children: The Crowells, Lisa and Scott, pose after their beachfront wedding ceremony, while the
entire blended family Ryan, Lucas, Scott,
Olivia, Isabel, Lisa and Anna (image at top of story) have it made in the shade. PHOTOS COURTESY OF LISA

The big day was July 5, 2008. For the ceremony, they
chose the lakehouse in Southwick Beach near Henderson Harbor that has
been in Lisa’s family for three generations. They recited their vows
along the beach. Different colors of grains were formed into sand art,
contributed by both Lisa and Scott’s children, signifying the joining
of the two families. 

“The children were involved every step of the way,” notes
the bride. Lisa’s 12-year-old daughter Olivia was maid of honor, and
her other two daughters, Isabel, 9, and Anna, 8, were junior
bridesmaids. Scott’s son Ryan, 14, was best man, and 11-year-old Lucas
was an usher. In addition, the boys toasted to the couple and directed
speeches to their three new sisters while they were on the beach.
Olivia serenaded on the violin and Ryan played the guitar. 

“The weather had not been good, but on our wedding day it
was most perfect with a gentle breeze,” recalls Lisa. “Lake Ontario can
be pretty choppy but the water was serenely calm.”

An afternoon reception was held at the Manor House in
Pierrepont Manor. Lisa’s father, Dominick Tassone Jr., who operates
Dominick’s Restaurant on Burnet Avenue in Syracuse, also caters for the
Manor House, so it was a natural decision. 

Lisa’s sister, Debbie Camire, who owns
Biscotti Café & Pastry Shop on North Salina Street with her husband
Geoff, helped plan the wedding as well as the reception for the 140
guests. “We decided on cherry blossoms for the theme,” says Lisa. Her
bridal gown was a stunningly simple long, champagne-hued silk with
spaghetti straps, and Scott wore a brown business suit. 

The girls’ dresses picked up the pink and brown of the
cherry blossoms, and for favors, Oriental hand fans with the cherry
blossom motif were distributed to the guests with notations such as
“believe” and “imagine” printed on them. Camire created a three-tiered
cake of chocolate mousse and cannoli lemon-raspberry decorated with
cherry blossoms.

For the cocktail hour, frosty glasses of chilled
Cosmopolitans were served from a carved-ice elevated slide. Meat
carving, pasta and vegetable stations were set up and there was a kids’
table piled with chicken fingers and pizza. “We had a deejay and the
kids were the ones who took over the dance floor,” says Lisa with a
laugh. After an eventful day, the couple left for their honeymoon on a
cruise to Key West, Fla., and Cozumel, Mexico, leaving their combined
brood in the care of their families.

Back to reality, Lisa maintains that
everyone gets along on both sides, and all parents share custody of the
children. “We have them every other weekend, “ she says. Both former
spouses have also remarried. All spouses and former spouses honor the
other’s religion, and always show up for the kids’ school and sports
events. The Crowells live in Lisa’s original house, while Scott has
been able to rent out his former residence. 

“Scott can do everything,” boasts the
new bride. “He even fixed my toilet on our first date.” Handyman Scott
has renovated the entire house, and even worked on the Camires’
kitchen. “My parents love him,” she adds.   

Lisa reflects on her new life with Scott, their combined
family of three daughters, two sons and a chocolate lab named Rico: “We
are all truly blessed.”