My Mom Gets Married

Last Friday my Mom and her fiance got married in an intimate outdoor ceremony. It was really lovely and we are all really happy for them!

That was the short story. Keep reading if you want the long story - complete with pictures.

So let's start with the clothes. My sister and I helped my Mom pick out her dress a couple of months ago. Once I saw what she picked, and had a better idea about what I should get, I went shopping and found a dress in my favorite color. (Noah's too!) Here is a picture of it on. Please excuse the look on my face - I hope I don't look quite that snooty all the time, but I'm afraid I might.

So, I let the beautiful color distract me from the fact that the dress was 100% silk. A serious disaster for several reasons, but the main one being that when I picked it up from the alterations place the morning of the wedding it was so beyond wrinkled I knew I could not wear it. I tried not to panic - after all, it was not my special day and I could always wear something else - and we attempted to take it to the cleaners to see if they could steam it. They could not. Then my sister literally said to me over the phone, "I mean, just put it in the dryer and fluff it up a little." After I counted to 10 and explained about what 100% silk meant Wes stepped in to save the day. He came home from work that afternoon with a brand new deluxe garment steamer. Seriously. And then he did this.

I love my husband. After 10 years he is getting pretty good at reading my moods and deciphering what I need. He knew that on that particular day I needed a steamer.

Anyway, on to the actual wedding. Mom and Marv got married in the garden of a little bed and breakfast in Summerville. It was a really perfect spot for their small ceremony that included just their daughters (my sister and I, and his two girls) and their daughters' significant others/families. The guests waited with Marv and the officiant - our friend Jeff who may need to leave his lucrative position as head honcho at the railroad in order to preform wedding ceremonies full time - under the gazebo while Noah and Liam walked Bebe down the "aisle".

Isn't that the sweetest picture?! The ceremony was very short but the words Jeff had written were really perfect. My favorite was the part where he said something to the effect of "learning to see imperfection as perfection". So true, and something that anybody who is married knows is necessary! After vows and rings the happy couple kissed, we cheered, and then all headed inside for a champagne toast.

The inside of the house was beautiful and Noah quietly asked Wes, "Is this Bebe and Marv's new house?!" Wes and I chuckled and then quickly realized that this nicely decorated place was not very kid friendly. The boys alternated between running down the hall and sitting like this in chairs.

They may have been a little bored. But despite that, they were very well behaved and I was so proud of them. They did manage to join in some picture taking with the rest of us.

Posing for a picture with Bebe and Marv. Lose the paci Liam!

Aunt J and her main squeeze, Brett.

Jeff fills out all the official paperwork.

All the girls. Lindsey, Jamie, Jessie and me. Do you like how were color coordinated. That was not planned but great minds must think alike :)

Getting ready to go for the bouquet. We were hoping for a good show....

But it landed straight into Jamie's hands. Darn! No cat fights!

My sis and I even snapped a normal picture - no silly faces allowed! (Also, can you spot the other problem with silk? Let's just say you can't wear it in the Charleston heat and be "Sure" at the same time!)

 After the ceremony Jeff took the kids home for us (props to Jeff and Lisa for being our babysitters) and headed downtown for dinner at Basil. The food was delicious and we really enjoyed celebrating Mom and Marv. Although, it was pretty funny that with the loud background noise and dim lighting neither of them could hear very well, and both had to be read the menu items by the people next to them. Ha! Sorry to call you guys out like that but I couldn't resist. It's all in good fun!

This is more what our pictures usually look like!

After a yummy meal, we sent the newlyweds off on their "honeymoon" and the rest of us called it a night.

And now, as of tomorrow, my Mom and all her belongings will be official residents of Charleston. Well, Summerville actually but you get my point. She gets to live near by in Charleston with Marv - just like she has wanted to do for so long. We are very happy for her!

A Mid Summer Report

I feel like all I ever do on the blog anymore is dump out the last 2 weeks worth of photos from my phone in order to get caught up on what we have done. So, here we go again. The following pics are from my phone and they include all last week - 4th of July and the following weekend.

We had a fun fourth, as usual!

 It is hotter than the 7th layer of hell here in Charleston so our standard activities involve either water or air conditioning. And I am not sure why I bother to shower or wear make up. It only takes 3 and half seconds to start sweating when you walk outside. In fact, the heat is so oppressive I have even started waking up early to run. (I know, that is so not like me!) It is just too dangerously hot to run anytime after 7am. However, I have actually been enjoying my early morning pavement pounding. It has provided some much needed moments of solitude and peace and just time to think. You know, before all the "Hey Mama I need...(fill in the blank)" demands starting dominating my day.

There is so much I feel like I could write about on here right now. I have a million things I would love to "talk" about. I am working on getting my thoughts together for some future blog posts that might have a little more depth than just, "Oh its hot and we are going to the pool." But for now, its off to the store and to do more cleaning. My Mom comes to town tonight. She is here to get married! On Friday she and her fiance will have a small ceremony with their children and their families. So the next few days will be filled with fun wedding activities and time with family.

Thank goodness I have my little helpers to assist me in getting the house ready.

Noah's glass cleaning skills leave a lot to be desired, but I love that he wants to help. And I love even more that he wants to do it wearing nothing but his Angry Birds underwear. I told you it was hot here!

Summer Snapshots

We love the sun, water, and time with friends and family. We do not love the heat - but we'll take it over winter any day! Happy summer everybody!!

Hello!

Just checking in real quick to let you know we are alive!

Oh, and to show two things that sum up my life right now very accurately.

Happy rainy Tuesday everybody!

Summer So Far

Somehow it is the middle of June already. I don't know how we got here already. I am already panicking that summer is going to disappear too quickly. I have a confession to make: I love summer! I know both my kids are home full time and I am "supposed" to be totally stressed out about what to do with them, and counting down the days until school starts... But I'm not. I honestly love the fact that we have no schedule at all. The only thing I signed Noah up for was VBS this week in the mornings, and that was only because he had some good buddies who were going to be there with him. Otherwise, I am perfectly content to wake up at our own pace, leisurely eat breakfast, and concoct our plan for the day spontaneously. Here is a little bit of what we have been up to....

1. We have been staying up a little too late. Not every night, but enough. It is so nice to be able to let the boys play without having to worrying about hurrying them inside for bath and bedtime. We have spent many a night at the pool, or outdoor concerts, or at friends' houses without a care for what time we finally head home. Now, I will say, I can enjoy this because I am lucky enough to have boys who will (for the most part) sleep in the next morning. One morning they both slept until 9:15 - and so did I! It was everything I thought it could be :)

2. The weather has been pretty great here. Aside from several days of rain - and a storm so big that Noah and I spent one whole morning cleaning up the debris in our yard - we have enjoyed lots of time outside.

We even enjoyed a morning play date complete with water balloon fight. Noah loved that one!

3. In the interest of full disclosure, our summer has not been completely care-free so far. Last Saturday Liam developed a 102 degree fever around 4pm and was so completely lethargic I was ready to jump in the car and head to the ER immediately. Him being sick is bad enough, but it just so happened that was the night my Mom was in town to keep the boys while sending us out on a special date for our anniversary. She had booked us on a sunset sail around Charleston Harbor and then was sending us out to dinner afterwards. However, instead of boarding a sailboat at 7pm that night, I was on the couch holding my youngest child who felt like he was on fire. And I was not all zen about it either - I was pissed. First because he was sick - I hate when my kids feel bad - and secondly, because I had really been looking forward to a night out with Wes. We needed that night. Plus, it was the only actual thing we had planned for our 10 year anniversary - and we didn't even get to go. Not to mention that the tickets are non-refundable/non-rescheduale-able. (Is that a word??) I tried to keep reminding myself that a 10 year anniversary does not require a special activity to be important, but I'll be honest, I mostly think that it does! Maybe for 11 years we will do something special. (Or maybe by then I will have miraculously matured into one of those very patient, humble women who don't need material things and special outings to feel content. Right. I am sure that is how it will turn out...)

4. Anyway... back to the positive. I am newly recommitted to working out. After my half marathon last month I somehow lost all motivation to do anything. I looked back at my calendar and saw that I only worked out 3 times in 4 weeks. And two of those were ballet classes. Yikes! I guess my body needed a break. But I am back in the saddle and excited to work up a sweat daily. Hopefully my new running shoes will help. My old pair were 2 years old (!) and the tread on the bottom was completely worn down. (I have a sneaking suspicion that helped contribute to my sore hip/knee during last months race.) I kept saying I was going to get a new pair but hadn't gotten around to it. So, Wes finally just went to Dick's Sporting Goods and found the brand/style I wear and purchased a pair for me. They feel awesome and I was very excited to break them in with a run the other day. Of course, Noah is convinced that his new running shoes are way cooler than mine. Whatever, they probably are!

5. And to wrap it up, here are some things I have been enjoying this summer:

     ~ The new reality show on the CW called Breaking Pointe. It is about a ballet company and follows the lives of several dancers in that company. We don't have cable so I can't enjoy all the really good, trashy reality shows - this is as close as I can get. When 8pm on Thursday rolls around, I turn it on and make Wes promise not to talk to me for an hour while I watch my new guilty pleasure.

     ~ Orange Sorbet. Yum! It is the perfect after dinner treat on a hot summer evening. I have also been enjoying my new favorite drink - Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka and Lemonade - but I am going to limit that to special occasions in order to support my recommitment to working out. (Don't worry friends... Play dates are always considered a special occasion. Ha!)

     ~ White jeans. I don't know what it is, but they scream summer to me. And they make any outfit look special.

See, Duchess Catherine shows us how to make it work. While white will always be my go to classic, I am also loving all the skinny jeans in bright colors. I have a pair of purple ones and my next purchase may be bright green.

     ~ My new Ray Ban Aviators. I love that my husband is in a profession that allows him to buy me cute accessories at cost! I have built up quite the sunglasses collection thanks to him :)

Well, that's all for now. Hopefully it won't be 10 days in between blog posts again. But it might be. You never know - I may be so distracted playing outside with the boys while wearing my new sunglasses that you may not hear from me anytime soon :)

Bye Bye Kindergarten

Before we made our short trip to see friends in Columbia last week, we had one final, very special, school year event to participate in. Kindergarten graduation.

I did not realize it, but they make a pretty big deal about graduating kindergarten. There was a whole ceremony and everything! The last day of school, all the kindergarten parents gathered in the cafeteria and watched as the students walked down the aisle and onto the stage.

The four kindergarten classes sang several songs and then the teachers got on stage to hand out diplomas.

Wes and I watched and we couldn't stop smiling at how cute Noah looked standing up there. He looked very grown up all of the sudden! Liam was there too of course - and he sat very nicely during the ceremony next to his buddy Caleb.

After the ceremony was over there was a reception and all the students handed out gifts to the teachers and said farewell to friends for the summer.

Here is Noah with his teachers, Mrs. Blanton and Mrs. Elsey

Noah also got some pictures with the fam...

....And a few shots with his friends. Here he is with Abby Grace. They have been in the same class for 3 years in a row now. She is moving this summer and I know Noah is going to miss her next year!

And here he is with his buddy Addie. Her Mom and I were cracking up at how much they look alike in this picture.

And I think this last picture of Noah with Abby Grace, Addie, and Ben is my favorite one of the whole day!

I think that pictures sums up two very important things. #1 - The difference between girls and boys, and #2 - How much fun Noah has at school each and every day. It was a great year in Kindergarten!

A Quick Visit

Okay, so I have about 4 and 1/2 seconds to spare this morning so this post will be quick!

Last weekend we drove up to stay with Wes' parents near Columbia, and took the opportunity to visit with some dear friends who were also in town visiting family. Our friends the Bedenbaughs live in St. Louis so we don't see them nearly as much as we would like, but we sure do enjoy our time together when we get it.

Thursday night we met Jeremy and Amy at a restaurant in Newberry, SC (we were assured it was Newberry's finest) where Jeremy promptly frazzled our poor waitress with his big city questions and we spent all night laughing our asses off. Some things never change. After our meal we went down to the basement of the restaurant where they have a wine and cigar bar. It was very cute. And completely empty so we were free to be as obnoxious as we wanted. I used that freedom to snap a picture of this.

Love it! We had such a fun time catching up while we drank wine and smoked cigars. Jeremy was kind enough to remind us that we would enjoy the cigars that night, but the next morning we would feel like the "shit elves had taken a dump in our mouths". Like I said, some things never change :)

The next day we grabbed the boys and headed over to Jeremy's family place so that all the kids could play. Noah and Jude had a blast together - I so wish they could play all the time. And Liam enjoyed some time with Sam on the go cart.

At the end of the day we hated to say good bye. Here's to hoping we can see them again soon!