The Great Wedding Weekend

We got back from Door County about noon yesterday and stopped by my MIL's house to celebrate Dave's birthday. The weekend was a ton of fun despite some not so perfect details.

The Bummers

• The weather - is was cold, rainy and windy all day Saturday. This meant NO outdoor pics in this gorgeous scenery.
• My camera battery died BEFORE the wedding and reception.
• The church wedding coordinator was a rag.
• Even though my dress fit great on Wednesday, by Saturday, it was too big in many places. WTH??
• The extremely drunk girl at the reception.
• The whole weekend went way too fast.

The Bonuses

• Getting to hang out with my lifelong friends
• Dancing my a$$ off
• The groomsmen were so much fun
• Everything was beautiful...flowers, the bride, etc.
• Getting to spend the weekend with my hubby
• The food at the rehearsal dinner
• The photographer - he was a rockstar. Took pictures from about 9am- midnight.

So, Friday morning we dropped Lauren off at daycare and stopped by work to drop off her carseat with my mom. We were on the road by 8am. It was a rather cloudy day...it was raining in Madison. By the time we got halfway there it had quit. Was still very cool for late August. I think the temp hit 67. We finally made it to Egg Harbor about noon. Jas and I found the Landmark Resort where we would be staying and knew that we could try checking in after 1:00. So we drove around for a bit since neither of us had ever been to Door County. It is very pretty with all the trees, quaint towns and the water. Reminds me of the shores of the east coast in Maine or something.

Just after 1:00 we made our way back to The Landmark to try to check in before the rehearsal. The other bridesmaids were arriving as well. As luck would have it...everyone's room was ready but ours. Thankfully, I had a hunch this would happen and so we wore our clothes up there. Since we had about 2 hours till the rehearsal, we decided to drive north to the tip of the penninsula (Gills Rock) So many pretty views of the bay, yachts, sailboats, bed and breakfasts. Just a really neat part of the state.

We made it back to the church about 20 minutes before the rehearsal was to begin. The church was massive. We met all the other wedding party members and did a walk through of the ceremony with lots of laughter. After the rehearsal, everyone headed back to the Landmark to chekc in and wait for the trolley to take us to dinner. Jas and I checked into our room and then headed to the main room to catch the trolley to dinner. The drive was nice and the restaurant was very nice (right on Lake Michigan) I had one of the best meals ever...shrimp! Mmmm!

Once we got back to The Landmark, some of us went to the resort bar to have a drink and watch the Packer game. Packers won! We were in bed by 11:00pm to get some sleep before the big day. Of course I was up every 2 hours afraid my alarm would not go off.

Saturday arrived and I got all showered and packed up and was out the door by 7:30. All the girls were meeting at the main lodge to go for our hair appointments. It was very cloudy, rainy and windy. Not a good start to the day. Mindy's mom made a delicious breakfast casserole and muffins for us. We all got our hair done and did our makeup. We left just before 11:00am to head to the church. It was still rainy and windy and we were praying it would clear up by the time the ceremony was over.

We got ready and waited for the church coordinator to come let us know when we had about 15 minutes until the ceremony began. We were upstairs and away from everything. The flowers were gorgeous and sadly my camera died, so I couldn't even get a picture of them. All of a sudden we could hear music and the lady came up and said they were ready for us. We still had to put Mindy's veil and shoes on. After a frantic few minutes we all decended the stairs and the show began. The ceremony went great...with just a few tears. We took groups pictures and then loaded the limo. It was still terrible outside so we went to a cute little pub instead of the beautiful park. The photographer took picture after picture. I swear they will have a million shots in the end.

We arrived at the Landmark for the recpetion about 5:30. Everything looked so beautiful. The food was good, the toasts were great and the DVD I made was a hit. Even made the best man cry. After dinner, we were ready to DANCE!!! The DJ was not very good, but thankfully we just requested stuff and it made for a great dancing night! It went so fast though...and before I knew it, it was midnight.

I cannot wait to see everyone else's pictures since I have so few. I did post a few of the ones I did take below.

CONGRATS MINDY AND DARREN!!!!

The ferry in Gills Rock

Jas about 2 hours in

Jas and I 4 hours later

The beautiful lake in Egg Harbor

Self portrait




Our suite at the Landmark Resort

Heidi and Jeremy at dinner Friday night

The bride and groom at dinner

All the girls posing by lake Michigan

Friends since kindergarten

Melissa getting her hair done.

My updo in progress

Jamie

Mindy and the lamp from A Christmas Story

Now that is some powerful hairspray!

Mindy's sister and MOH, Tara.

Heidi

Tara painting Anna's nails

All our dresses

The last pic before my camera died.

Hopefully I will have some wedding ones to post soon!

ADD: I forgot to mention more about the drunk guest. Seriously, I do not know how someone could be that drunk. She was drunk by the time dinner was over. She could hardly walk or keep her eyes open. Her husband had to hold her up to dance. She ended up puking in the women's bathroom sink....SO GROSS! Then about an hour before the end of the dance, a few of the bridesmaids and I see her fall to the floor, taking some of the head table with her. We rush over and help her up and take her to a chair. I run and get her some water. I come back and tell her she needs to drink and she won't respond...so I slap her a bit and she finally opens her eyes...sort of. The groom finds her husband and tells him to get her out of here. So ridiculous!! Come on....your in your 30's, grow the hell up. Ok, vent over!

The Time Has Come

It has been a very busy last 2 weeks. Mindy's wedding is just 2 days away and we head for Door County tomorrow morning. I am very excited and will have lots of pictures to share when I get back. Thankfully, the weather sounds like it will be nice. Cool, but nice.

This past weekend, Brent and Jill took Lauren and Lyla to the Milwaukee Zoo for the day. Lauren loved it and keeps talking about going back. Jill managed to take a few pictures for me.

Being silly at the zoo.

Lauren and Lyla checking out the animals.

Lauren and Aunt Jill

The girls

Enjoying the train ride.

Sunday, was Carter's (my nephew) 5th birthday party. He had it at Bounce U. A place with tons of inflatable things to keep the kids (and adults happy for hours) I have not had time to upload those photos yet, so I will have to share those later as well.

This week has been all about the wedding. The placecards are all done, Lauren is packed for her weekend with grandma and papa, I will be packing up Jas and I tonight, etc. etc.

The best news....MY DRESS FITS PERFECTLY! I actually had to have it taken in a bit in a few spots. My wonderful aunt did all the alterations...thanks Pixie, you are amazing!!! I got my hair trimmed and colored yesterday...a dark chocolate. I love it. I feel like a new woman. My mom gave me a mani/pedi last night, so I am good to go.

I guess that is all for now. We will be making the 4 hour drive tomorrow and enjoying a beautiful "fall like" weekend in Door County. Temps should be in the 60's! Love it!

Enjoy your weekends everyone!

Blog Anniversary

Happy Friday to all. This week has gone fast as I will busy finishing up the DVD and placecards for Mindy's wedding next week. I think I am all done with my stuff...minus all the packing and pampering I have to do next week. I am so excited for the wedding. It is going to be so much fun.

Also, tomorrow is my Blog Anniversary. I started my blog one year ago. my how time flies. While it has been a trying year in so many ways, it has also been a year of memories and thankfulness. The saying below is SO TRUE. It encompasses this past year for me completely!

On a funny note, something Lauren said to me the other day I just had to blog about. She was looking at a picture taken while I was about 8 months pregnant with her. I told her she was in my tummy in that picture. She smiled and said, "Mommy, when I get bigger, then you can go in my tummy."

It made me laugh harder than I had in weeks. Love that girl!

Chuck E Cheese

Last week was a busy one as it was Lauren's birthday and all. We had her party on Sunday and for her actual birthday on Tuesday decided we would do something fun as a family. My brother, sister in law and niece decided to join us as well, which was a blast. I think we will go back to Chuck E Cheese again soon....Lauren loved it.

Earlier in the week helping grandma weed.

On the way to daycare on her birthday.

At Chuck E Cheese. Fun on the slides. Lyla enjoyed them too.

Lauren and Aunt Jill.


Me and Lauren.

Lauren and daddy trying out their skeeball skills.

Lauren driving with Chuck himself.

Lyla enjoying her pizza.

Lauren loved this horse...she rode it numerous times.

Must be explaining something.

Family shot during dinner.

Kind of makes me happy when she still asks for help since she is growing up way too fast.

Sweet Lyla playing some games.

So I am still working on the 30DS. Tonight will be day 21. It is going well. I decided to get up and go for a run this morning. It was soooo humid, I was dripping within 5 minutes. Anyway, I went just over 2 miles.

Midnight Sun

Ok you other Twilight lovers out there...have you read Stephenie Meyer's little bit of Midnight Sun online? Wow! I might like this one better than Twilight itself. I pray that she finishes this. I have no doubt she would sell millions of copies.

Ever Feel This Way?

Can you really ever shake that image you see in the mirror? The one where you see yourself as fat, gross, blah, just plain unattractive. I know many, heck probably most, women see themselves this way from time to time. Even though I have lost 25 pounds, I still see myself 25 pounds heavier in the mirror 80% of the time. Still unhappy with my body most of the time. It frustrates me, angers me. Why can't I just be happy with how I look. Why do I only see the negatives? Why is it my love handles jump out at me or that spare tire I am trying so hard to get rid of after having a child seems to be inflating rather than deflating? As women, can we ever truly be satisfied with how we look? Everytime I see a celebrity who has just given birth walking around in a bikini 3 weeks later looking completely thin and toned, it makes me sick! THIS IS WHY WOMEN ARE SO UNHAPPY WITH BODY IMAGE!

I am trying to make a point of being happier with myself. Looking for the things that make me feel beautiful and unique. Trying to see the TRUE me, not the one my mind is projecting from the mirror.

Anyone else feel this way? What do you do to make yourself stop feeling this way?

Three Years Old

Happy 3rd Birthday to my little girl. My angel, my sunshine, my shooting star. I love you with all my heart and could not be more proud to be your mother. You grow more and more beautiful every day. Your intelligence, compassion and thoughtfulness amaze me. Watching you grow up is something I almost lost and I am so thankful that I was given a second chance to be here with you.

At 11:51am you came into the world three years ago and my life has never been the same. I am truly blessed!!

Birthday Bash 2009

This is going to be a rather long post....picture wise. I took over 200 pics yesterday for Lauren's 3rd birthday party. I condensed it down to about 40, so bear with me. We had a lot of fun despite the nasty thunderstorms that rolled in and ended our jumping castle fun early. Lauren got spoiled and loved every minute of it. I still cannot believe she is 3...well tomorrow she will be. Three years ago today I was at work having contractions.

The day started off sunny and VERY humid. It was pretty uncomfortable. Hottest day of the year by far.

Watching the castle come to life.

Giving daddy a little love.


Hanging out before the guests arrive.

Chillin (or sweating rather) with daddy.

A poor picture of me and my baby.

Lyla, Brent and Jill came over early too. This is Lyla's signature face. I love it!

Sassy girl wants cake already.

The goody bags and party hats. Lauren requested green party hats 2 days before the party. Thankfully, Target had some.

Trying to get a pic of the girls.

The theme was ABC's and the colors were red, blue, green and yellow.

Lauren's calendar...keeping track of her bday.

Birthday girl in her party hat.

Grandma giving her a quick pedi.

The spread...Little Caesar's pizza, breadsticks and fruit!

Caleigh, Carter and Lauren prepping for the jumping castle.

Lyla and grandma looking on.

In they go!

Trust me when I say we ALL had fun! I think almost everyone took a turn in the castle. We went in unsure and came out a sweaty mess.

A quick family picture.

Giving rides around the cul-de-sac

More jumping. Notice I am sitting down...it was about 95 and humid out. After jumping for 5 minutes, you were drenched!

The grandma's loved it so much, they didn't want to come out.

Petting the neighbor's guiena pigs (sp?)

Butterscotch and Snickers

Brent and Jill in a showdown.

The sky starting to look ominous.



This was about the point where we decided we better pack it up and head inside. Thunder was starting to rumble and severe weather was on the way.

A tired bday girl took refuge in a box.

Opening her million gifts.

The storm outside raged on. The rain was going sideways.

Preparing for cake..Lauren and Aubrey donned party hats

The cake my mom made and I decorated. They are suppose to be blocks. One side has A, B, C. Another had LEW (Lauren's nickname) and then we had animals, 3 and a circle design.

She huffed and she puffed...and then managed to blow them all out.

Thank you family and friends who helped make Lauren's 3rd birthday so special. We are so very lucky!