Congratulations, Jake and Stephanie!
This has been a best-ever wedding day for
them, I’m sure, and I’d really love to be able to say it’s the same for me;
except I have some other family weddings that will be staying top-three-so-far
for me for quite a while yet – at least until my own wedding some day!
Before I get to the news from today, which
is basically yesterday now as I write this; let’s back up and do the full,
two-day wedding report.
Dawn on Friday morning was beautiful, and
while I could say that about my cousin too; I’m referring to the sunrise – and
our Tai Chi by the river workout – along with a fairly spectacular good morning
kiss that I shared with Michael before we started our warm-ups. Michael and I both really needed that bit of
exercise and calm before getting started on our very hectic day. For me, that meant hitting the shower and
getting ready for the day; heading to the Inn; and having breakfast with
Stephanie, the rest of the girls in the bridal party; and a handful of other
girls and women – most of them on the church decorating crew.
That first meal of the day was fairly
quick, and then we were off and running to the church. The amount of decorating that goes on for
weddings depends a lot on the expected number of guests. When two of the most well-known families in
town are involved; a full house in the sanctuary was expected – especially when
everyone in the area knows both sets of the parents very well through the Inn
and furniture store. I mention that
because it also means more decorating compared to smaller weddings when only a
section of the sanctuary would be decorated.
It’s a good thing that we had a lot of help; or we’d have been doing
that all day – and we only had two hours booked into our schedule to get that
job finished. We did have lots of fun
doing that work, though, though it was also fairly warm in the sanctuary; and
the construction work going on for the addition was loud and distracting.
Since our decorating volunteers were mostly
Stephanie’s friends, I should mention that some of those construction workers
were more distracted by a group of beautiful, college-age girls anytime we were
outside – especially since it was hot out; and we were all wearing shorts and
tees. I’m not going to suggest that
Rebecca and I didn’t get noticed by the guys too, and there are some teens on
the construction crew there, but this is a small town; so the younger guys know
we’re not available and the older guys know that we’re too young to ogle or
flirt with. A few of the guys definitely
flirted with Stephanie; there were two marriage proposals that she cheerfully
declined; and I suspect that there was more than one guy in that crew wishing
they were Jake – or at least that they could be the groom at the wedding
tomorrow; since I seriously doubt that any of them could picture themselves as
future chefs working at the Inn for the rest of their lives.
When we finished up at the church, Rebecca
and I moved on to the Inn; and our next job of the day was getting the rooms
ready for the weekend wedding guests that were staying there. That didn’t involve cleaning or bedding
changes – our job was to set the rooms up with the special gifts and decorations
that Stephanie and Jake had wanted for those special guests. All of the rooms at the Inn were being used
for wedding guests; so that kept us busy until we met up with another gang in
the dining room for a lunch meeting.
Rebecca and I were on the edge of the action for that, since there wasn’t
enough room at Stephanie’s table for all of us to be involved in the last
check-off of the schedule through until the end of the night on Saturday. We were in the loop enough to get our own
schedules; though we’d already known our jobs anyway; and there weren’t any
changes for us.
I should mention here that Michael spent
most of the morning helping out at the Inn, but he was set free after lunch;
and we were in charge of welcoming his incoming family at home. Rebecca and Lucas had a similar job, but they
were at their Uncle Bill and Aunt Sylvia’s house; and had two jobs. They helped with getting the place ready for
the rehearsal party that the Bassetts were collectively hosting because Jacob
and Miranda were just too busy with the Inn and the wedding to do that too; and
they were also the welcoming committee for some inbound cousins on that side of
the family that were staying with the Bassetts too.
That’s something that I haven’t really
thought about much, since most of the members of the Bassett family have stayed
here or in the area, but not all of them; and Miranda and her brothers have a
fairly large number of relatives in their extended family – even if they don’t
always see them very often. When you
think about that, so do I; but names and family trees in the archives are not
at all the same as having dozens of aunts, uncles, and cousins that you’ve
known all of your life.
Michael’s grandparents, aunt, uncle, and
cousins began arriving shortly before two o’clock. They didn’t all drive together, but his
grandparents didn’t drive at all; and instead got a ride with his aunt and
uncle. They were first; his younger
cousin, Eric, and his family were second an hour later; and his older cousin, Drew,
and his family rolled in at a bit after four o’clock. Drew was the latest to leave home because he
went into work this morning for a while before hitting the road. I don’t really want to comment on that or
anything else about the travel plans for the Stone side of Michael’s family;
but then this is my journal and they’ll never read it anyway.
My apologies in advance, Miranda, Michael,
and anyone else in your family who will read this some day!
First up, I seriously do not get why Jake’s
grandparents did not agree to come here early – especially since they were
invited to the family and wedding party dinner last night that all of the other
living grandparents attended – including Grandma Eleanor. I’m commenting on this from the perspective
of watching the family interaction for the past two days, and to be blunt about
it; Grandma Eleanor is more of a grandmother to both Stephanie and Jake than
Grandma and Grandpa Stone are to Jake, Rebecca, and Michael. I’ll caveat that with the point that I don’t
know what they were like with their only son’s children before moving away or
before I moved here; but it makes me more than a little sad that they are now
so distant from their ‘home town’ grandchildren – especially when that’s
obviously not the case with their Bishop family grandkids and great-grandkids.
My perspective on this is admittedly
one-sided, but it’s also coming from the point of view of a kid that only had
one family member for the first nine years of her life, and now that I do have
a family; I can’t imagine choosing to have so little contact with the people
you love – particularly when that doesn’t appear to have happened through
conflict or disagreements. Michael’s
grandparents have just chosen to leave their home town family and friends
behind in retirement and move on.
Before I move on from this little side-trip
mini-rant, I’ll also mention that some of us needed to keep our mouths shut and
say nothing about quite a few comments that Michael’s aunt, uncle, and adult
cousins tossed at us that were not intentionally cruel; but that were quite
derisive of our home and lives here.
Contrary to what is likely the majority belief among humans in general;
real wealth and value is not measured in dollars, power, or superficial
accolades. I’m positive that Michael’s
visiting family would openly scoff at my supposed naive innocence; but then
they don’t know that my view is from a fairly unique perspective. As I think about that; I’m very glad that none
of Michael’s Stone family cousins – at least so far – have inherited any Magi
talent.
Now that thought has me musing about
Stephanie’s side of the family; but let’s save that for a bit later in this
report and move along with the actual news and action from Friday.
Michael and I were kept busy welcoming his
family; hauling luggage up to the guest rooms on the second and third floors;
and hosting duties through until it was time to head over to the Inn for
dinner. Porter and server duties were
part of the job; but we also got to entertain two-year old Gerry; and I helped
out a bit with nine-month old Annette.
Both kids had slept during the trip; and Gerry was particularly fired up
– and in need of some back yard play time that his father, uncle, and Michael
helped him out with around the work and social time.
We had as much fun as we could, and Gerry
and Annette are both adorable kids; but I’ll also admit that those few hours of
hosting were tough because of some of those comments I’ve already mentioned from
Michael’s aunt, uncle, and cousins. His
Aunt Anne and older cousin, Drew, were toughest for me to keep playing nice
with. They’re both still decent people,
so it’s just their attitude toward my home town; everyone here including their
own family; and apparent inability to understand how anyone could possibly be
happy without what they perceive to be the necessities of life.
Too bad I can’t tell them that ‘Aunt
Miranda’ manages a multi-billion dollar portfolio of restaurant and hotel
investments in addition to her work at the family Inn! ;^)
I’m sorry and love you a lot Miranda, but
when you do read this in the future; don’t try to tell me that you haven’t at
least occasionally wished that you could say something about your ‘part-time
job’ to your sister-in-law and nephews too.
They’re all very smart, yet it’s almost as if they have blinders on when
they visit.
That’s not something I’m even joking about;
and I can back that up with just one example.
They’ve heard all about the expansion to the Inn that Jacob and Miranda
will be starting in September once they take over ownership of the Haberdashery
building. For a bunch of business
professionals, it amazes me that they don’t seem to notice how expensive that
kind of remodel and expansion will be – even in a small town like ours. Michael’s grandparents didn’t say anything
about the cost of it around me, and they did own the place, so they should have
a pretty good idea; but maybe they just think that Jacob and Miranda are taking
on big debts to make it happen. Let’s
not cover every comment I overheard about the Inn and the expansion
project. The main points, though, were
the unspoken group opinion that the plan was a waste of money and probably a
financial sink-hole that had little-to-no chance of success.
Okay, that’s enough of that. Let’s move this along.
Dinner at the Inn was for Jake and
Stephanie’s visiting family, parents, grandparents, and members of the wedding
party – not including Jacob and Miranda because they were busy running the Inn;
and doing that without the help of any of their kids for the rest of the
day. That meant that Michael, Rebecca,
Lucas, and I needed to continue our hosting duties. That was a bit easier for Michael and I
because we were put on kid control duty – and also had some teen visitors to
entertain. That included two of
Stephanie’s Wingborough cousins; though we only had her youngest Wingborough
cousin, Adaira, sit with us during dinner while the boys, Jarod and Garrett,
were either with Stephanie’s parents and grandparents – or hung out with other
guys their own ages.
Adaira is a year younger than Michael and
me – or at least she just turned fourteen and is a year behind us in
school. Other than liking Michael a bit
too much, which I can’t fault her for at all, we both liked her a lot; and had
fun together tonight whenever we had time to hang out together. I also hooked her up for some hang-out time
with Dawn and Jillian after dinner when she had some free time while we were
busy with the wedding rehearsal at the church.
They apparently had fun doing a little boy watching and flirting at the
park, and unlike Michael’s visiting cousins; Adaira apparently sees a lot that
she likes about her family home town.
Michael and I didn’t get to know him as well so far this weekend, but I’d
say that Adaira’s oldest brother, Jarod, doesn’t share that sentiment; and her
second brother, Garrett, definitely does.
He spent a lot of time with Grandpa Grant and Stuart; and even came to
the rehearsal at the church so that he could continue to hang out with his
uncle while the grandparents were kept busy with a little social time at the
Bassetts’ house.
I’ve skipped some of the details for the
dinner, but then Michael and I were out of the loop for the main action and
conversations anyway while we were busy with the kids and teens. The rehearsal at the church was at seven; we
were all there with five minutes to spare; and Pastor John, Stacey, and his
parents were all there to lead us through the ceremony – starting with a short
meeting before we began the ‘practice’ with the bridal party processional.
The highlights of the rehearsal, for me,
were that processional; Jake’s antics during the ‘ceremony’; and seeing the joy
on the faces of Jake, Stephanie, and their parents. That’s going to be even better tomorrow, and
while Jake is a very confident and outgoing personality; I’m really looking
forward to having a front-row seat when he first sees Stephanie in her wedding
dress. That’ll be a moment when having a
photographic memory is a blessing for sure!
While we didn’t actually get to spend much
time together during that practice, Michael and I still had fun while on
opposite sides of the wedding party.
Getting to be part of the ceremony together is a first for us, and since
our first date was at a wedding; I think that weddings will be just a bit
extra-special for us every time. The
most important part of the ceremony practice that we did get to share was the
recessional, though in hindsight as I write this after the wedding; it was just
a shadow compared to the actual ceremony when we were dressed up in tux and
gown and looking our very best.
The rehearsal almost felt like a break by
comparison when we got to the Bassett’s house and were immediately immersed
into the crazy action going on there. It
was past-eight by then; the meet and greet we were thrown into took nearly an
hour; and then we sat down for the rehearsal dinner that was the fourth meal of
the day for some of us. The dining room,
kitchen, and a handful of tables out on the back porch were needed to seat
everyone that had been invited, and while Michael and I were technically not on
the work crew; we helped his Aunt Sylvia as much as we could between other
responsibilities before and after the meal.
The one thing we couldn’t help with was kid control; but the other teens
at the party all pitched in to deal with that – along with some parental
support. Most of the kids were outside
for dinner; and that was mostly so that they could run around in the back yard
and play – some of them doing that in between stops for food and drinks.
We only did a bit of roasting for Jake and
Stephanie while we ate. It was the mini
speeches that were the entertainment highlights; and that was especially true
for Jake’s and Stephanie’s thank-you speeches.
They handed out the wedding party, parent, and honorarium gifts after
dinner too, and while I won’t make a big deal of that; we – the girls – loved the
matching bracelet and earrings sets that Stephanie gave us to wear at the
wedding; and the boys liked their monogrammed tie clip, money clip, and
keychain sets. One thing that I thought
was cool with those was that instead of putting the initials for each guy on
those sets; Jake and Stephanie went with ‘J&S’ instead. As Mitch pointed out; the guys will at least
be able to remember which wedding those gifts were for when they’re old and
forgetful.
It was past-eleven by the time the dinner
and gift-giving was finished; which left Jake and Stephanie with less than an
hour to socialize with the rest of their guests before we needed to take
Stephanie home at midnight. While they
did that, Michael and I helped with some of the clean-up and only did a bit of
visiting with his family. We didn’t even
get to have as much time as Jake and Stephanie did for our goodnight hugs and
kisses because Violet and Dillon herded them into the office for five minutes
of alone time before we left with a minute or so to spare. My hug and kiss with Michael was out on the
front porch while we waited for them – and we weren’t alone for that either.
We had car rides over to Stephanie’s house;
though it had been nice enough to walk.
Stuart and Samantha had another little midnight snack set up for us; we
talked with them for a half hour or so; and then it was time to head upstairs
for the required bridal party girl chat time while we also took turns getting
ready for bed. Rebecca and I were less
involved in that chat time than the older girls were; but that was mostly
because Stephanie had fun talking wedding nights and honeymoons with Violet and
Lynn. They had fun with that, but it was
a bit too much information for Rebecca about her older brother; and as I’ve
mentioned before; we were talking about my little girl crush – even though I
was mostly joking with Stephanie about that being a problem for me. For her part, Stephanie teased me right back
about how glad she is that I wasn’t five or six years older than I was when Mom
and I moved here – or she might have ended up losing her about-to-be husband to
me the way that the girls that liked Michael had lost him to me.
That’s a very interesting ‘what-if’
scenario, but when I actually play that one out; what I actually see is me
eventually just waiting for Michael to catch up with me – and then getting
teased about that the same way that Abby still does for her choice of a younger
husband.
I am also picturing Michael grinning as he
reads that some day in the future.
Miranda will laugh at it; and be happy that it worked out that she got
to have both Stephanie and me for daughter-in-laws.
Oops – did I write that last bit out loud?
;^)
Moving along, I guess that covers
everything for Friday; so let’s continue with the wedding day highlights!
My morning fun began with Tai Chi for one
in the back yard. That was a nice start
to the day, but my favorite pre-breakfast moment was a private couple of
minutes with Stephanie and Violet while I was doing their wake-up call. They were both exhausted; so I gave Stephanie
a little wedding gift that she assured me she’s really going to appreciate a
lot once she has Jake to herself – which she does right now as I’m writing
this. Yes, despite having a house full
of people, I put up wards around the three of us; had a fun little Healing
session that banished all fatigue and then some. I’d guess that Stephanie could stay awake and
at full power for two or three days if she wanted to do that.
Let’s totally skip the jokes that Stephanie
and Violet exchanged about how Jake was going to keep, um, up with Stephanie;
since I’m sure you can guess all of them anyway. Violet had way too much fun with that, but
the funniest part of the scene for me was that she didn’t even consider that
same issue for herself with Dillon; as if I hadn’t healed her too.
She’s likely thinking about it now – and doing
something about it; but I digress.
Getting ready for the day and having a
snack breakfast kept us hopping after that; though Stephanie and Violet had
more time to do that than some of us.
Rebecca and I were two groups ahead of them for our appointments with
Vicky, Liz, and the friends they’d invited to town to help out with the extra
work this weekend. That, by the way, is
why Liz and Philip didn’t take a full week off for their anniversary trip. She needed to be here both weekends for
weddings; though they hadn’t needed extra stylists last weekend for the smaller
wedding.
Vicky’s salon was a beehive of activity all
morning, and while I am getting older; the graphic nature for some of the girl
chat there can still be too much information for me. What I do love every time, though, is what
Liz does with my hair. She went all-out
today; and I have the mental pictures now of Michael’s reaction to seeing me at
the wedding and being with me during the rest of the day to prove just how
talented Liz is at her job. As she still
says, Vicky may continue to be the Master; but Liz is just as much of an artist
as her mentor and friend is.
Compared to the guys, we – the girls – have
it pretty good on wedding mornings. It’s
all about pampering and getting ourselves appropriately beautiful while the
guys have actual work to do that’s meant to keep them from having time to
reconsider – or run off. I know that
Jake took some teasing about that from some of the guys, but if any of them
actually weren’t joking then they need their heads examined. Jake is a very lucky man; and he and
Stephanie are definitely a perfect match.
Rebecca and I were at the salon for an
hour; we were back at Stephanie’s house before she and Violet left; and then we
had more time than we needed to do the little get-beautiful jobs – like doing
our nails and makeup. We helped Samantha
with getting lunch out on the table and ready to go by the time Stephanie and
Violet returned; Stuart was the only one to eat more than a snack for that
meal; and then the push was on to finish getting ready and into our gowns – or suit
in his case.
We were all ready by ten-to-two; went out
into the back yard for bridal party pictures; and then it was time to head over
to the church. The limo ride was shorter
than the time needed to get in and out of it.
Pastor Martha met us at the church entrance; and we had time for a short
chat and prayer with her before it was time to finally get the show on the
road. We lined up; Pastor Martha checked
to see if they were ready for us; and then I had the best view in the house as
the doors opened and I got to be the lead-off bridesmaid.
I love Jake too, but my first eye contact
was with Michael; and I’ll never forget that moment. His eyes went wide; his smile was sweet; and
then he was dazed when my own smile went from bright to brilliant at seeing his
first reaction to me. Jake was next to
get my attention; and I had to wait for him to look at me because he’d turned
his head to grin at Michael and quietly say something to him that had Michael’s
smile brightening too in response. Jake
proceeded to wink at me while still grinning; but then his attention moved on
to Rebecca; since she was following me.
Writing about everything that I saw and heard would take reams of
digital ink, so I won’t do that; but will point out that seeing Rebecca had a
devastating impact on Lucas – and her brothers were fairly blown away too. Sometimes I think that they forget that
Rebecca is quite possibly the most beautiful teen girl in town – a perfect mix
of their parents.
While I could take in that entire scene
with every minute detail; seeing Lucas’ reaction to Rebecca required a mental
replay once I’d consciously located him in the crowd. As expected, the sanctuary was packed and
beyond that to standing-room only for a couple of dozen guests. Some of my highlights for the processional
included exchanging smiles and unspoken words with my parents, Ethan, and
Ehlana; other members of my family; and some of our friends. That didn’t seem to take very long, and once
I was at the front of the sanctuary and standing on the low platform there; it
was watching Rebecca, Lynn, Violet, and Stephanie as they joined me – and the
guys.
I shouldn’t skip seeing Jake’s first
reaction to Stephanie! While my favorite
groom-sees-the-bride memories are still of my Dad and Uncle Adam respectively
at their weddings; Jake’s reaction was actually different than I expected. Yes, he was blown away and Stephanie would
have had no doubt about how he felt about her; but he managed not to lose his
cool or sense of fun and playfulness.
There are only two other things I’m going
to add to that with no details. It’s a
good thing that nearly everyone in the sanctuary was busy watching the bride;
and I can read lips, Jake.
Quit laughing, Stephanie. After that, I’m actually at least a little
bit glad that the in-person girl chat for your wedding night and honeymoon will
have to wait until you get back from Europe next May. Maybe being a year older then will make a
difference. I doubt it; but we’ll see.
Getting back to the story again, I’m so
used to spending time with Stephanie when she’s at the Inn that it almost
seemed strange to see her father walking her down the aisle instead of
Jacob. I know that sounds weird; but it
is how I felt. Stuart was the epitome of
the proud father; a little misty-eyed when he ‘gave her away’ to Jake; and
happy to hold his own beautiful bride as Samantha cried happy tears for their
daughter.
The wedding ceremony was the standard,
traditional version used most of the time in our church; so I won’t give you
every detail of that – particularly since a video of the ceremony will be
available in the archive by the time you read this someday anyway. Pastor John led the ceremony, but his parents
each helped out. Jake’s vows sounded
made-up, but I’m sure that he wrote them that way; and Stephanie’s had quite a
few of the women in the sanctuary tearing up because of her heart-felt joy and
promises of love and happiness. It’s
funny, but the bridesmaids and groomsmen actually have nothing at all to do
during the ceremony. Even Violet and
Dillon only had one job – handing over the rings to their best friends. I’m not suggesting that I was bored or
anything; but it was a different perspective.
While I loved every moment of the ceremony,
Jake and Stephanie’s first kiss as a married couple was especially fun – and Jake
had no problem with taking that kiss well-into the giggles, whistles, and
laughs stage that most couples try to avoid.
Pastor John didn’t have to intervene and pry them apart or anything; but
Pastor Martha did quietly clear her throat – even as she grinned at them too –
and possibly wished that she could have added a whistle or two of her own
instead.
Miranda didn’t have a problem with that;
neither did Aunt Leanne; and they were just two of many to enthusiastically
cheer Jake and Stephanie on in their efforts for a remember-forever first kiss.
As always, the ceremony seemed to be over
sooner than it should be after so much planning and work; and then we went to
deal with the paperwork before getting started on the recessional. Leading the way for the bridesmaids had been
wonderful, but walking back down the aisle with Michael had been all that and
then some. Jake and Stephanie were the
focus of attention for everyone as they passed –as it should be; but Michael
and I attracted a lot of attention too – and certainly more than Violet and
Dillon, Mitch and Lynn, or Josiah and Rebecca had. Michael and I know that we’re a match, but it’s
still fairly amazing to see that belief confirmed by our family and friends now
and then.
While the recessional didn’t take long, we
stood outside of the church and had a mini-reception line for everyone that
wanted to congratulate Jake and Stephanie; but wouldn’t be at the reception. Extra time was allowed for that before moving
on to the wedding photo shoot because Jake and Stephanie would be gone for so
long while in Europe; and we went over on time even with that allowance. It was five o’clock by the time we went to
the park and started the photos, and while we did our best to make up time
there; it was still six-thirty by the time we got to the Inn. The reception line there was to have already
been started by then, but we still delayed it and changed things up a bit so
that we – everyone in the wedding party – could take a half hour to freshen up
after nearly three hours outdoors on a fairly hot afternoon. We had four of the guest rooms to use while
doing that, and Rebecca, Christina, Lynn, and I used one of the rooms while
Stephanie had help from Violet and her mother in the other ‘girls’ room. We all met up in that room for a quick chat
and drinks before heading downstairs again; and the change in the reception
line that Miranda went with was that we instead did a mini parade through the
dining hall on our way to the head table that felt more like a conga line or
line dance.
This next part of the update is going to be
a bit disjointed, but it’s also past-time that I add in some details that I wasn’t
directly involved in; but were very important for the wedding.
First up for that is all about Jacob and
Miranda. While their kids were busy with
the fun parts of the wedding; they were trying to enjoy as much of that fun as
possible while also working their butts off both on Friday and all day
today. Jacob had a hand in every dish
being served for dinner; the prep work started for that on Friday; and he was
at the Inn this morning by five o’clock and worked in the kitchen pretty much
every minute that he could except for taking time to get ready for the ceremony
and being there for the wedding. He and
Miranda both juggled work at the Inn with the wedding photos and other
responsibilities – including taking care of their weekend guests with some help
from Miranda’s side of the family and some friends. They managed to serve breakfast and lunch at
the Inn too before it was closed to the public at one-thirty or two; and then
the dining room still needed to be set up and decorated after that. Everyone that works at the Inn was at the
church; so that should give you an idea of just how much work needed to get
done on either side of the ceremony in just a few hours.
My point with all of that is to acknowledge
that Jacob and Miranda went way above and beyond the call to make this such a
perfect day for their kids – and we couldn’t do nearly as much as we would have
liked to do to help them. Thankfully,
others did pitch in – including a lot of volunteers.
The earlier delays meant starting dinner at
closer to eight than the seven o’clock or so scheduled; but we did make up some
time there thanks to Dillon. As best man
and master of ceremonies; he did a great job compressing the non-meal
activities – and most of the speeches were shortened at least a bit too. Nothing important was skipped, though; so all
of that really just meant that there were no lulls in the fun and excitement.
Jake and Stephanie did a non-traditional
head table so that Josiah and Rebecca could sit with their dates; and we sat at
the table in couples too instead of split up with the guys on one side of the
newlyweds and the girls on the other.
Michael and I were on Jake’s side of the table; and we anchored that end
while Rebecca and Lucas ended up at the other end of the head table. I’m really glad that we did that; and I’m not
just saying that because it made the public kisses easier when we were called
to duty!
That didn’t actually happen that often for
the bridesmaids and groomsmen; thanks to the higher entertainment value that
came from the rounds of parents and grandparents kisses.
I can totally see Jake and Stephanie being
like Grandpa Grant and Grandma Eleanor a half-century or so from now!
As you probably expect, the dinner was a
culinary masterpiece. Jacob went
all-out, and beyond that; there were gourmet specials and favorites for Jake
and Stephanie in addition to the unbelievable meal he created for everyone
else.
Just in case I haven’t mentioned it lately,
I’m not with Michael because of the food; but it is definitely an added bonus!
;^)
The meal, entertainment, and dinner
conversation was all amazing and fun. While
the food was the highlight of that next couple of hours, the speeches, a video
montage, and some roasting of the newlyweds all helped to make for a perfect
evening for everyone. We weren’t having
a dance after dinner, but there was music, and once the entertainment part of
the evening was finished; our guests had time to socialize and wind down from
dinner while Jake and Stephanie eventually made their way out of the dining
room and went to get changed into their going away outfits.
At this point, I’m starting to skip over
all of the little details; but Michael and I actually had time for some
visiting then until we needed to get back to our wedding party duties when Jake
and Stephanie were ready to go around and deliver their gifts while thanking
all of their guests and having micro-visits with them. That didn’t get started until around
midnight; Michael and I were kept busy hauling those gift baskets into the
dining room and keeping Violet and Dillon supplied with them as they went
around the room with Jake and Stephanie; and we joined in for some of those
chats when we could do that too.
Jake and Stephanie were ready to leave by
one-thirty. That was later than planned,
but they also have more time available to them on Sunday before the first stage
of their flights to Europe; so it won’t be a problem for them – and Stephanie
was still wide-awake and at full power when they hopped into the limo and
headed out of town.
You’re welcome, Stephanie! ;^)
The final goodbyes with them outside were
just with the wedding party and parents.
Their driver was good about it, but wanted to get going; so we didn’t
drag that out – even though we won’t see them for nearly ten months. Miranda and Samantha had the toughest time
with that; though they both joked about it more than anyone else too. We all know that Jake and Stephanie will miss
us too, but as far as the parting tonight goes; let’s be honest and admit that
they were way more interested in getting started on their honeymoon than
worried over being away from home for ten months.
I don’t need the details, but do hope that
their wedding night and honeymoon is all that they want it to be and then some,
but while they were getting to that; our night here was far from over. We went back into the Inn; spent an hour
seeing our guests on their way; and then Michael and I rolled up our sleeves
and pitched in to clean up from the party; get the dining room ready for
another private family and friends meal that was essentially an extra buffet
sitting; and we also did some prep work for that meal.
Miranda and Jacob had some volunteer help
for that, but they didn’t have many employees that could stay that late after
working all evening – or even all day for some of them; so it took us a while
to get all of that done. Michael,
Rebecca, Lucas, and I sent them home at three-thirty too; and it’s saying a lot
about how tired they were by then to let us do that and trust that we’d make
sure everything was set up properly before we came home too. We did that, but didn’t get home until five o’clock
– to Michael’s house.
Rebecca and Lucas went straight up to bed
with Lucas bunking with Michael again while the guest rooms were being used by
their weekend guests. Michael and I
cuddled on the sofa for a while before I was ready to head home; but we really
only stayed there long enough for Rebecca and Lucas to take turns using the
washroom and doing their won goodnight hugs and kisses before Michael headed up
to bed after seeing me on my way by five-thirty.
At that, you’re probably wondering why I’m
writing this instead of napping. The answer
is that I’m doing a self-healing instead; I’ll skip the nap; and by the time I’m
finished with this report; it’ll be time for sunrise Tai Chi with anyone alive
enough to join me for it out by the river.
I say that because Mom and Dad were at the
reception too and were among the last guests to leave; and I don’t know how
late Ethan and Ehlana stayed up tonight either.
While I’m on that thought, one of the things I missed while busy with
the wedding today was the babysitting service that Dawn and Jillian led at our
house. They had other help too; but made
quite a bit of money for the work; and were in babysitting mode pretty much all
of the time between the end of the wedding ceremony until Mom and Dad got home
again after the reception.
Okay, it isn’t Quarry Lake, campfire, and
camping adventure fun for their last day of holidays here with us; but they’ve
still had fun today – and did get to attend the wedding; even if they weren’t
at the Inn tonight.
I don’t want to think about it right now,
but Dawn and Jillian will be heading home this afternoon with Violet and
Dillon. That isn’t going to be a
round-trip blast for Violet and Dillon because they’re going to stay in
Woodvale for two or three days for a visit – and to rest up after being so busy
over the past couple of weeks. They won’t
be leaving until sometime after that private lunch at the Inn; but I don’t know
whether I’ll get to spend much time with Dawn and Jillian or not because I also
have a breakfast at Michael’s house; and then Jacob and Miranda are going to
need all the help they can get at the Inn for the buffets.
It’s a good thing that I’m nearly done with
the self-healing or I’d need a nap just from thinking about all of that.
Then again, the sun’s coming up now and it’s
time to get dressed for Tai Chi; so I’m out of time for this report
anyway. I’ve skipped a lot, but I guess
this’ll have to do; so, until next time...
...May the Magi Force be with you!
