Of Wedding Weekends and Hotel Fun

Life has been a whirlwind lately.

I have been away from home every weekend for the past month.

And I mean packed up, and not at home.

Also, we were gone for a week on vacation.

And during the week, we've been extra busy prepping for things like vacation and my brother's wedding.

The wedding was this weekend and it was wonderful.

All 3 of the big kids were in it.
I wasn't sure how it would all play out.
Lilly was still recovering from the worst cold ever and double ear infections.
James was up all hours of the night with the same cough Lilly had.
Aaron wasn't feeling too hot.
And William, well he's William, so you never know what you're gonna get.

But they were superstars.
The combined effect of very late nights and too many treats left them crazy tired, but they hung in there.
And looked pretty darn cute doing it.

Initially William and James declared, adamantly, that they would not be ring bearers.
I told them they had no choice--they had to do this for Uncle B.
So they did it.  Happily, even.
And had fun.
The best part was watching them walk down the aisle together.
William carried the pillow since James had been a ring bearer before.
James walked with his hand on William's back, guiding him down the aisle.
I loved seeing them together, big brother helping little brother, and supporting one one another.
One day they'll be the ones getting married.
As if I wasn't crying enough already.

Lilly was hilarious.
She was walking around all day with a dazed look on her face.
All the fatigue, pink dresses, pink flowers, pretty everything and her beloved Karen Pretzel in a beautiful, white princess dress was almost too much for her to take in.
She threw the flowers with gusto.
Originally straight down at the ground, then up in the air.
With gusto.

Normally I would say my kiddos were the best part of the wedding.
But they weren't.
Seeing the joy on my brother's face as he married the love of his life was, by far, the best part.

I've long been praying for him to find the one.

Life is sweeter with a partner.

I am so glad he has her.

I am so glad they have each other.

Weddings make me so weepy.

They remind me of my wedding day.
And of how far we've come since then.
For better or for worse, I am sticking with this guy.
And I love him more now than I ever have before.
In the words of Nacho Libra, "He's the beeessst!"
And Baby Davy was the PERFECT baby all weekend long.
Like he'd be anything else.
And aren't they both so handsome?  
And doesn't Davy look like an old man? (he really does have hair--it's just so blond you can't see it.  that white head really accentuates the old man look.)

I am sad to say I got very few pictures of the wedding or people in it.
My mom and sister looked so beautiful and I did not get one picture of them.
Or one of my brother and my kids.
Between getting all 3 of them where they were supposed to go and having a baby to attend to, I just had no free hands for snapping pictures.
There are a few pictures of the kids practicing for the big day over at Picnics in the Park.  Go see.
In the end, it was a beautiful day.
I am so glad we got to be a part of it.
..........................................................................................................
The wedding was down in San Diego, so we stayed at a hotel.
It was our kids' first time staying at a hotel.
They were stoked.
Our trips usually involve camping, staying at the grandparents' house or our yearly trip to the cabin.
So a hotel was all new.
And let me tell you, they lived it up.


It was a weekend of childhood decadence.
Bed jumping.

Breakfasts of champions.

Of eating said breakfasts, and snacks, and meals, in bed.
While watching TV.
What bliss, what joy, what utter indulgence.

And there was plenty of pool time.

They loved playing with cousin Veronica.
Cloudy skies didn't keep them out of the pool for hours.
And hours.
Thankfully it was heated.

Even David enjoyed hanging by the pool.

4 kids in a hotel room, 2 queen beds and it worked just fine. (we just kept the extra 2 kids in our room on the down low.  no one seemed to notice)

There are benefits to having your kids share a room.

Ours can sleep anywhere.

They're ready for another hotel adventure.

So am I.

But I don't think the kids would be thrilled to know I'd love to do the hotel thing without them.

Shh.  Don't tell.

And it will be a while.

Because I am sick of packing.

It's good to be home.

Love from,

Greta