At Last

The good, the bad, and the ugly. Yes, it was all there. I'm finally getting around to recording the events of the weekend. I'm not sure I can squeeze it all into one post. I know I'm going to have to just hit the highlights. Maybe I'll even do two posts...we'll see.

Before I begin, I need to say thanks to the people who made this weekend possible. Cliche, yes, but very true. We were able to leave Sammy at home, well taken care of, the house well taken care of, and most importantly, Kat was well taken care of. Kat didn't go on the trip because of a responsibility she had at church. Junebug went above and beyond, and I thank her, as well as the other friends who welcomed her into their home for Friday and Saturday night. I was reminded this weekend of how incredibly blessed I am in the friend department.

The trip over was uneventful. For those of you who follow this blog, I know that is shocking. But it's true. We still haven't made many trips post-little-furry-dog, so the opportunity to stop and go into a restaurant to eat lunch is still a novelty. Also new is the ability to arrive at our destination fairly fresh, unwrinkled, and without dog fur all over us.

The primary reason for our trip, the real reason we took a day away from school and work, inconvenienced friends, and drove a total of 17 hours was for the 50th Anniversary Celebration for Kearsdad's parents on Sunday. But prior to that was The Wedding. It just so happened that Kearsdad's nephew got married on Saturday. So, of course, we attended the wedding...otherwise known as Redneck Heaven. I am not sure I can put into words what an experience it was. We had already been warned by younger brother and his wife that we were in for a treat, based on their experience at the rehearsal. (Mercifully, we arrived too late on Friday to attend the rehearsal.) But I don't think any of us were really prepared for The Wedding.

The groomsmen's brown tuxes were...well...interesting. Different. But in and of themselves they would have been fine. Everyone has their own taste, and since the bridesmaids' dresses were taupe, the brown was...reasonable. Unfortunately, the brown was just the beginning.

The ceremony began after we sat in the church for about half an hour wondering if the ushers/groomsmen were actually going to usher anyone in. Apparently they didn't get that memo. Most of us seated ourselves. The preservice music was traditional. We wondered if they were going to remember to light the candles. Finally two groomsmen entered and pulled out their handy pocket bic lighters and lit them. Nice touch. The grandparents and the mothers were ushered in. Sister-in-law/mother of the groom was wearing a hot pink fru-fru number. Sister-in-law is not a small lady, so there was lots of pink fru-fru. Mother-of-the-bride entered wearing a clashing red prom dress number. Stepmother-of-the-bride entered wearing a skin tight black number and sat between the other two mothers. Mother-of-the-groom reached for something...her video camera. She sat there on the front row and videos the entire stinking ceremony. There were a photographer and a videographer conspicuously present. But she videoed anyway. The whole time.
This is the camera, left lying on the front pew after the ceremony.

Piano....hymns...nice. The bridesmaids and wedding party entered to "Canon in D Major". Traditional. Normal. Then it got wierd. The piano began playing something no one recognized right away. We all just sat there confused until the minister asked us to stand. The bride entered and walked down the aisle to "At Last". Here is a version of it, if you don't know what it is...At Last. Yes, she walked in to that song.

Traditional wedding ceremony followed. Traditional vows. Traditional cell phone ringing in the middle of the service. Yes. Sister-in-law's father, sitting there on the second row, with his phone ringing loudly. He couldn't figure out how to stop it. After the ringing, we were treated to the sound of his voicemail alert. Traditional unity candle...sort of...the bride and groom lit the unity candle, and then we heard a song start to play. It seems the bride decided to sing her own song for this portion of the ceremony. But not live. She recorded it and had it played. Probably was worried she'd be too nervous. The song? "To Make You Feel My Love" by Garth Brooks. Nice. Yeah. Kearsdad says it sounded like she recorded it while in the shower.

End of ceremony. Introduction. Kiss. More kissing...then the Recessional. Kearsdad has another nephew (belonging to another brother) who is a very good musician. He had been asked to play his guitar and sing. He did as he was asked. THIS is what he sang. Keep in mind, THIS was the Recessional....what everyone exited to. Yeah. Nice.

Here's a photo of the wedding party, brown tuxes and all. It all looks so normal and innocent, doesn't it?

This lovely event was followed by the reception at none other than the Moose Lodge. Uh huh. Yes. It was. I won't even bother to describe it. But I did get a picture to prove that it was at the Moose Lodge.


This post is entirely too long. I can't describe the Main Event (aka Anniversary Reception). It will require its own post. Later. I'm too tired for any more description right now. Let the Redneck Event soak in for now.