The Long-Awaited Post

Lest you all think I had forgotten to post about my trip to the wedding...it is here at last! I was having computer issues with the pictures, so had to wait until I could use a library computer. Their high-speed connection works much better than my antiquated dial-up!

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I began my journey early on Friday, Sept. 7. My flight left Ohio at 6:30 a.m. Yes, that's a.m. I'm not a morning person, so 4:30 came a bit too soon for me! The flight was fairly uneventful, other than some serious turbulence over Illinois. (My seatmate had me a bit scared. She was looking quite green!) I arrived at my final destination around 10 a.m. Mountain Time. The best part of the flight? From Denver on, as we flew over the beautiful Rocky Mountains.

When I arrived at the airport, I had a great surprise. Not only was my sister there, with my niece and favorite great nephew--my parents, one of my other sisters, two more nieces, and my nephew were there, too! Baby Isaiah had a sign pinned to him that read, "Welcome, Great Aunt Joni! Love, Isaiah".

My sweet niece took me to her home, gave me a snack, and sent me off to bed. I didn't sleep for long, but did feel much better. Due to the 2-hour time difference, I felt hungry almost all the time. My stomach couldn't figure out why I was eating at these odd times!

There was a lot of work to be done for everyone that day. My sister was setting up all the decorations for the reception, as well as overseeing the decorating team for the wedding. Thankfully, one of our sisters and her family were able to assist in all that work. The rehearsal was that night. It went well, but was looong. The rehearsal dinner was a relaxed time eating pizza at a nearby park. Isaiah and Aunt Joni were quite ready for bed!

Wedding day dawned bright and beautiful. A few of us were invited to the bride's new home for breakfast. While we were there, my oldest sister's family showed up. (Have I mentioned how wonderful it was to see my family?) Then back to my niece's house for a quick "gather everything we'll need for the day", and then we headed over to my sister's house. She had made a nice lunch for anyone who needed nourishment. We gobbled something down, then headed to the wedding site.

The wedding was held at a vineyard. It was a beautiful setting. The chairs were set up on a lush green lawn, with the actual ceremony held in a white gazebo. The backdrop was a beautiful view of the Book Cliffs. The reception was in the "barn", which is used for the wine-making process. It had a large, open room that was used for the meal.

The afternoon was spent getting the bride and her bridesmaids all "dolled up"--hair arranging, makeup application, photos and video--it was quite the time. Most of my time was spent tending to sweet little Isaiah, who did quite well considering all the confusion and noise!

At last, everyone was in their finery and ready to go. Mr. Isaiah was the ring-bearer, even wearing a teeny little tux! His daddy carried him down the aisle, and he sat in his bouncy seat throughout the ceremony. What a great little fella!

The ceremony was beautiful and simple. Two favorite moments: hearing the bride's two older sisters sing together. It was so wonderful, hearing them singing God's praises in beautiful harmony. The other favorite moment: the kiss. You see, Kim and Randall saved their first kiss for their wedding. It was a tearful, special moment when the pastor told him to kiss the bride!

The reception was wonderful, though I probably missed some important moments (cutting the cake, etc.). I sat outside with my two older sisters and their families, as it was quite warm and crowded inside. The hardest part of the day? Saying goodbye to my parents, sisters, brothers-in-law, nieces, and nephew...the visit was just too short.

My flight out left at 6:30 the next morning, and I was off to Ohio. Other than sitting in Denver for three hours, the trip was fine. One bad part of the whole weekend was that I was already dealing with this allergy stuff. I could barely talk all weekend, due to the hoarseness caused by sinuses draining. (Ugh!) By the time I made it back home to my hubby and kids, I hit the couch and was "out"!

So there you have it--the Reader's Digest version. I hope you enjoy the pictures. I had more, but thought I should try to limit it.

And, as a side note, you will notice that my profile now has an actual picture of me (eek!) and my wonderful great nephew. As you can tell, he was in a fussy mood when the pic was taken. But still, it was special just to meet him and get to cuddle him!

The mom and the bride

Proud parents

First kiss

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