Like I said, the planning was crazy....renting tuxedos, buying a dress, getting the dress altered, getting everyone a haircut, getting everyone's hair fixed the morning of the wedding, getting shoes, working with the pillow, oh and did I mention that Cecilia was the flower girl and my sis in law was a bridesmaid!? I mean it was seriously going to be a jam packed weekend and I was already feeling the effects of the stress before we even GOT to the wedding weekend. However, I must admit that I did have high hopes for all of our participation and I knew the wedding was going to be beautiful. On the other hand, naptime delays, keeping clothes clean, staying up a little later than usual, and keeping everyone in a good mood with lots of strangers around, were some fears I was trying not to focus on too much, but be prepared for all at the same time! One thing I dont think I was prepared for was the rehersal dinner though. :( I work until 6pm or later M-F and since I am in charge, that also means I am in charge of locking up the building, which means no heading out early unless it is an emergency, so I missed out on the actual rehersal, but Seth did pick up Elem from school, and I had him all dressed up nice to hopefully make his debut as the cutest little ring bearer ever! Happily, he embraced the evening like this:
Just a few minutes later I received a text from Seth saying: Elem is crying and wont walk with the pillow. He wants his mommy. Of course I was immediately stressed and knew if I only could have been there I could have persuaded him to walk down the aisle cause I would have been at the other end waiting for him! And of course I would have had lots of good treats waiting for him. But I could imagine him scared with all kinds of strangers looking at him and trying to get him to come to them, Seth starting to sweat, and be all annoying because he was the best man, and already had enough on his plate. So I just told myself to get it together and hurry up and close up at work. The quicker I could get there, the quicker I could assure everyone that tomorrow would be different and he would be just fine at the wedding. What bride wants to add the stress of the ringbearer not walking down the aisle to her big day? I did not want to do that to Mandi. So I quickly got to the restaurant just a few minutes after the wedding party arrived, and came with lots of goodies to hopefully keep the kiddies busy. I was super excited to see that there was a balcony, with a huge green area below, that seemed to be fully stocked with bunny rabbits, and all kinds of wildlife! It was crazy, but a great way to keep the kids happy and busy till our dinner came out. Cecilia and Elem both did great until about 9pm or so which is actually their bedtime, so I will give them credit for staying up late fr us! However, before we knew it, the happy little boy that entered the evening affairs, had hit a downward spiral and we are lucky enough to have this family picture:
Onto the wedding day. First on the agenda, mommy to get her hair done, and daddy to pick up the tuxes. While I am getting my hair all dolled up, I receive another text from Seth, that says, something is wrong with the tuxes and to call him ASAP. So I quickly call to find out the tuxedo people have given Elem the correct size jacket, vest, and tie, but they gave him a shirt to fit an 8 year old boy, a pair of shoes size 7 in mens, not toddlers, and the pants looked like a 7 or 8 year old's shorts. Oh my oh my. So Seth brings home what he could and I began to see what I could do with Elem's closet options. We had a white long sleeved shirt so we were good to go there, and we had planed on putting him in his black and white nikes anyways, so we were good to go there. We made it work, only to find out that Seth's shoes were falling apart at the seams! We hate the tuxedo place, they suck. But on a positive note, we made it to the church on time, fully dressed, haired situated, tons of candy and snacks packed ready for treats, and the outcome.....2 beautiful mini wedding participants. Introducing the ring bearer and the flower girl: (this is al we got folks!)
I am so happy to announce that even though the wedding took place at 2pm, with no nap and lots of pictures that had to be taken before the actual event occurred, our little ones totally lived up to high expectations. Elem and Cecilia watched as daddy, mommy, and Ali all walked down the aisle all dressed up, and with a little encouraging from Uncle Dustin, they walked hand in hand down the aisle...all the way to the very front! I could not have been prouder. It was so FAST but so sweet. elem held onto his little pillow, which did not hold the real rings by the way :) and Cecilia held onto her flower bushel. Once they got to the end the were a little confused and Elem kept looking at Daddy saying, "huh", "whatcha doing", but Poppa was on the side line and he went right to him! Sissy was quick to follow as well! So all in all, a complete success. It is amazing when you are more concerned with your child doing good that worrying about what you actually look like or what is going on with your own hair! ha!
Happily, daddy and I actually got a good pic together at the reception. :)
On the 30 something floor of the Regions building....Elem LOVEd the view. I could hardly keep him away from the floor to ceiling windows. My sweet little ring bearer in his mini tuxedo.
Uncle Spoon, daddy, Brett, John, and Uncle Chad-just a few of the good lookin' men at the event!
And of course, Ali and I enjoying the chance to get all "dolled" up and take a pic with a great view! Can you blame us??? I have to admit, I have a beautiful sister in law!
Little man. Just excited about the view. So innocent, and so sincere. I love him.
It didnt take long for Elem to make his way to the dance floor. I wouldnt have expected anything less seeing as we are one music loving family! After only a couple of dances all by himself plus one adult chaperone on the floor, the cooks quickly noticed that this little boy was the life of the party. So they designated him "mini chef" of the day :) Here he is with his own chef hat he got!
Daddy was a little jealous.
And here we have the happy couple! Congrats Mandi and Tommy. We are so happy for you, we love you.
Dance machine I tell you. He must get it from me!
Finally, a break on the side with poppa. He loves him some Poppa!
It was so fun to actually spend a little time with some of my good girl friends. Me, Karla, and Ali. We all had such a great time, and I love getting to see my friends all dressed up. They are all so beautiful anyways, they dont even need all the fancy stuff, but we do look good for being in yellow! :)
The groom and his ring bearer. Elem saying, "Tank ew Tommy". Sweet little boy.
Ali, Seth, and Poppa. Do you see where my hubby gets his good looks? And Elem as well?
Overall, I could not have been happier with the outcome of the entire wedding! I really felt like a huge need for everything to go smoothly and it wasn't even MY wedding! The stress I felt during this weeding in regards to clothes, people, and overall happy attitudes is the exact reason why big weddings just aren't my thing! BUT I must admit, it was super fun! Just happy it was someone else's big wedding instead of mine. Everything was beautiful, the weather was perfect, the kids did awesome, and everyone had a blast! I am so happy that we all got to be a part of some of our dearest friend's special day. Tommy and Mandi we love you and know we will be spending many a day with you! Thank you for letting us share in your special moment.
3 comments:
Wow! What an action packed weekend. It made me tired just reading about. Ya'll looked great all dressed up in your wedding gear. Elem is such a cutie!
You look gorgeous!!
Cute wedding pics! Elem looks soooo adorable in his tiny tux.
And yeah, that's what made coming home better haha... my kids are so sweet! I can live with 95 degree weather for Marcus hugs :D
Post a Comment