Delightfully unexpected company

This morning I received an email from a dear friend who was going to be passing through town.  We were able to rearrange things on our end and meet for dinner.  Catherine joined us as well, and we invited her boyfriend to come along also.  Thomas was disappointed he couldn't attend as he would have loved to introduce Lyndi.  It was a short evening, but absolutely delightful.

It was especially appreciated in the midst of this very long week.  As I told someone today, once I get through this week I should be fine.  Then I laughed, because I feel like I've been saying that for weeks now.  It was nice to have a break from work and enjoy company!

The smallest shoe graduated

I have a picture I took 16 years ago (coming up in early June).  It is a picture of ten pairs of shoes on our porch.  One pair belonged to Andrew, three pairs belonged to my kids, and the other six pair of shoes belonged to kids of good friends, and they were all at my house for the entire day as they were in need of a babysitter.  I remember it was a pretty crazy day, and I specifically remember realizing in amazement that lunch was going to have to be in shifts as we didn't have the capability to feed everyone at the same time.  I remember being a bit relieved when the day was over, but it is also a fabulous memory.

This weekend, the smallest pair of shoes graduated.  She is the last of our close group of friends, and we've been friends long enough that I remember when she was born.  She is a beautiful young lady with a fabulous sense of humor, and I adore her tremendously.  We sat and visited with her brother Saturday evening (who was the owner of a pair of shoes as well) as well as brother's girlfriend whom we had met before.  The daughters of other friends were there as well.  I was so grateful that I had seen these kiddos grow up, I was so grateful that I was still a part of their lives, and I'm so, so grateful for these friends that have become family.

Whew!

There are just a few more days remaining in May.  And what a month is has been!  We had the wedding, which was a crazy weekend itself.  That was followed by musical week which requires extra evening work for school.  By the end of that week, I was absolutely exhausted.  For Mother's Day weekend, I just wanted to be able to sit, which I did because it turned out I had a touch of a bug.  The next week brought our end-of-year ceremony, but the night it was scheduled we were in a very severe weather pattern.  We ended up having to scramble and reschedule some things.  It made the week marginally easier, but meant the following week was tougher.  We so much rain in May it was crazy.  The last day of school is always the picnic, and every year we hope it will rain so we can cancel it.  After the rain had played havoc with our schedule the entire month, I was soooo annoyed that although rain had been in the forecast for days, the last day of school was dry, so the picnic was on.  Our boss fell and broke her hand right as the picnic started, which meant responsibilities fell more to me.  That was kind of how May went at school this year...not quite according to plan and just a bit of added work.

In the meantime, our pastor at church is retiring.  He has been pastor of our church for 25 years.  The man has been an incredible blessing in our lives, and I have no doubt that I would not be the faith-filled person I am without this pastor.  He baptized me eleven years ago, and I'm just so grateful that I've been able to not only attend, but work for, a church that, well, I can't even describe it.  He'll be missed, and the work is going to increase not only for myself but also for Andrew who is now our council President.  There are a lot of conversations and decisions that need to be made regarding the future of our church.

But the nice thing is...it is the end of May and school is out!  I know there is still going to be plenty of things to do, and there will be church craziness, but we have a lot of fun planned, and for the next eleven weeks, there are no students at school.  The time to relax is upon us!

I love Memorial Day weekend

Memorial Day weekend has always been one of my favorites.  It is the unofficial kick off of the summer, and many years (at least since moving here) we are done with school.  I loved the years we did the cemetery trip with my mom's family, and when Dad had his cottage we tried to spend a day there as well.  As a child, Dad would often take us to my grandparent's place in Michigan.  There were lots of friends gatherings over the years as well, and of course it is often a weekend filled with graduation festivities.  And of course, we get an extra day to the weekend, too!  This was so incredibly needed as the month of May was beyond crazy at work. 

This weekend had some grad parties with very dear friends, it had quiet time with just Andrew and myself, I tried to shop (unsuccessfully), and we had a lovely day with the kiddos.  There has been a tremendous amount of stress and drama involving the kids, and it was so much fun to hang out today for a meal and then a family game of croquet.  I laughed, and I especially loved hearing my daughter-in-law laugh out loud.  In two weeks we will be on vacation with all of us, and I think it is going to be an incredibly special week where we make lots of memories.

We have a lot of fun plans for this summer, and I plan to soak it all up! 

The wedding part III

The day of the wedding arrived and it was cold and wet, with lots of things to do.  Our dear, dear friend had a serious medical issue the week before the wedding and that added an extra layer of stress and emotion to the week.  She is doing okay and I was able to visit her in the hospital, but it definitely added to the craziness of the week.

We were exhausted heading into the weekend as it is a crazy time at work, and having to do all the setting up and arranging.  With it being at our school I pretty much had to handle most things, and that is why I hired one of my co-workers to be helpful.  Catherine was bridesmaid and was getting ready with the girls, and of course Thomas had all his buddies with him.  I was grateful that Andrew and I were actually able to get ready in a different building.  It gave us a few minutes of quiet, and I was so grateful that Emily co-worker) was there to handle things.  Andrew and I shared a few moments together, then we walked over to the wedding area.  Andrew and I took seats in the front row.  Our mothers were behind us, and we were joined by my sister and few good friends behind them.  Thomas's groomsmen consisted of his cousin Ryan, two friends I didn't know, Thomas's childhood friend Joseph, and our good friend Nick who is Thomas's godfather and was in our wedding all those years ago!

As we sat there waiting for the wedding to begin, I couldn't help but reflect on the craziness of the last couple of months.  In many ways, I was grateful that it all happened so quickly.  I'm a fairly sentimental person, and I know that I would have spent too much time being emotional about my "baby" getting married.  While I worry that Thomas and Lyndi are so young, I'm happy that they have each other.  I'm happy that overall they were reasonable about what kind of wedding they could afford.  And my happiness is generally what I felt, right up until Joseph, his childhood friend, walked down the aisle and Thomas and Joseph fistbumped each other.  These two have been friends since they were in Sunday School together at age four.  They were so close during the early elementary years...and then we moved.  And they stayed close...and here they were sharing this incredibly special moment.  That one little moment did me in, and the tears began to flow.  I got it together though, and enjoyed a lovely, albeit incredibly short ceremony.  We had dinner for about 40 of us at a local pizza restaurant where we could reserve a room.  I was happy to spend the dinner with Andrew's mom, our friends, and cousin Ryan.  My mom and sister didn't want to stay, and that made me a little sad, but it is what it is.

Ryan had an early flight so Andrew left at 5:45 for a trip to the airport.  Thomas and Lyndi came over around 11, and we had things to tear down and clean up at school and return to church.  It was nearly 4:00 before we were ready to just sit that day.  Andrew took the next day off work so he could meet his mom's neighbor for his mom's return trip.  I'm so grateful for the people who were there, and for those who helped out and have supported the kids.  I wish my family could be a little more on board, but I try really hard to put that behind me.  I'm also grateful that Lyndi takes such good care of Thomas, and they really, truly love each other.  I'm glad we get along with her, and I'm grateful she enjoys being a part of our family.  This is definitely ushering in a new era!

The wedding, Part II

In retrospect, I might have been better off suggesting a different date for the wedding, as this past week was the busiest week of the school year due to our school musical.  A weekend wedding followed by the longest week of the year leads to exhaustion.

Anyway, I've realized I need to come up with a blog name for my DIL.  I am going to call her Lyndi.  Thomas and Lyndi really are wonderful together, but they are so, so young.  Andrew and I have done our best to be there for them, and love them, and also stay out of their way.  It's all a fine line.

Back to the wedding!  We had decided my MIL would come for Easter and stay for the wedding.  I knew I would need her help in the week leading up to the ceremony.  Thomas couldn't take any time off work, and neither could I.  My MIL was helpful with getting Lyndi's dress pressed and helping to prepare meals, things I just couldn't do.  Because the wedding was at our school and there was a Friday evening event, we couldn't set up until Saturday and that meant no rehearsal.  We did borrow chairs from our church, so we were able to get those moved (although not placed until Saturday) on Friday.  Thomas had a cousin fly in from Vermont who was a groomsman and we were beginning to run out of room for people to sleep in our house so I was able to rent an Airbnb from a family at school for the weekend.  Lyndi did not want she and Thomas to see each other the day of the event, so that required a decent amount of logistical planning.  I hired a young co-worker from school to come and help with set-up and organizing.  Oh, and did I mention the weather?  Ten days before the event it looked absolutely gorgeous.  A bit chilly, but workable.  Then as it got closer, the rain chances increased, but still only in the morning.  Still workable.  And then as it got even closer, rain chances continued to increase and creep later into the day.  And finally, the day was basically just a complete washout.  And still a chilly one at that.

I'm so grateful for the amazing friends that the kids have.  They were so helpful in getting things ready.  I don't mean for this to sound like a complaint, but it is...Lyndi's family was not involved in any way at all.  They were very clear from the start that there would be no financial contribution, and I respected that completely.  But to not even be able to help set up chairs, or cut the veggies for the appetizers...well, that got to me a bit.  But finally the day arrived, and it was time.

About the wedding, Part I

I suppose yesterday's post may have been a bit of a surprise.  To be honest, I just wasn't ever entirely certain this wedding was ever going to happen.  The "engagement" happened nearly three years ago, and it was a really rough experience.  Thomas didn't want to be honest with us about it.  I get it, he was 18 and she was 17 with a year of high school to go.  But lying about it isn't helping anything.   Anyway, it was last summer when they really began to get serious about things, and she bought a dress, and they bought decorations, but no date was set.  Part of the problem was they really wanted an outdoor wedding, but I can't be out in the sun and heat, and obviously some months are too cold.  There was also the issue that there wasn't much money for a celebration, but there are a lot of people who wanted to be included.  Finally, early this spring, it was decided to do a small ceremony and a bigger party this coming fall.   There still wasn't much money, but my school offered to allow us to use the grounds and there is a pavilion on site, and buildings in which to get ready.  Dinner was to be at a room in a local pizza restaurant.  All of a sudden there were five bridesmaids and lots of guests, at least from the bride side.  Our side's guest list included 14 people (and that includes the groom).  My boss began to begin concerned with parking as our school is very small.  But plans were made and things were falling into place...

My son is married

Thomas got married yesterday.  They've been engaged for awhile, but never set a date.  Then last summer, they wanted to get married in a matter of weeks.  We talked them into waiting until next Fall, but it became apparent they weren't going to be able to save to have the wedding they really wanted, and we could only help so much.  As we talked to them a few months ago, they decided to do a smaller ceremony sooner, and then a larger party in the fall.  My boss offered our school as a location for the desired outdoor ceremony and with a pavilion, it all fell into place for yesterday.

I'm exhausted, but I'l write more soon (as I can).  This is also why I haven't written much recently, and as we are headed into the busiest week of my school year I'm not sure how soon I'll be back, but I wanted to share the lovely news in our family!