Shufflin' off to Buffalo...

When I worked in a hospital I was a
Health Unit Coordinator.
It was an intense job, not nursing intense,
but it had it's moments. I had to know where everyone
on the floor was, patients, doctors, nurses, techs, etc.
everyone.
We would have some pretty tough days
(especially during a full moon)
and would often talk about needing to take
a mental health holiday.
Well, I need to take a mental health holiday.
for my sanity...
I am trying to deal with some difficult
situations here, some health problems
some 'family' problems.
and now that
all the hoopla is over
from the spectacular wedding,
I have no choice but to face them and take care of things.
I am stepping back for awhile
I don't know how long.
It might be today
or
it might be weeks
or
it might be for good.
I can't make any promises at this point.
You all have been my lifeline
in the past,
YOU
are why I started this blog and I have
been blessed to have met so many wonderful friends.
I will be checking in on all of you
from time to time,
and will comment accordingly.
Please know that I
am
thinking of you all... with a smile =;))

Shangri-la...

Have you ever written a long,
newsy, pity-party e-mail...
and
sent it to the wrong person?
yeah...
I did.
it's "Feung shui" all
over again.

Daydreamin' and I'm thinkin' of you...

This was taken the

evening before the ceremony.

Blame it on the Bossa Nova...

the dance of love.
I don't know what is going on here but in this photo you can better see the brides veil which was hand-made by her best friend and carried here from San Fransisco to the wedding. We had our formal pictures done and then mulled around until 4:30 when the ceremony began.
Since I was part of the ceremony I don't have pics but when I get the formal ones I can post them. The ceremony was an intertwining of both of their faiths and was quite lovely. My husband and I walked our son down the isle, then the flower girls, and then the bride with her father and Step-mother. We each gave our blessing to the bride/groom and they went together to the front of the gazebo where the officiant stood. The next part was to fill out the paper-work with the witnesses. Neither the bride or groom had attendents so each of them had their only sibling witness their marriage. The fathers of the bride/groom were witness to the Katubah which is the Jewish Marriage License. After this they gave a blessing to those who were not physically present, my parents, the grand-parents of the bride, and the brides mother who passed away at a very young age. They said their vows and each read a poem to the other that they had picked out and exchanged rings. Then they presented the groom with a glass rolled up inside a towel. The Breaking of the Glass Ceremony symbolizes the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. It is also a reminder that the relationship is fragile and must be treated with love and respect. Then the groom stepped on the glass, breaking it. After another blessing they were presented to the crowd as Mr. and Mrs....
Another Jewish custom is lifting the Bride and Groom onto chairs and holding them up while everyone dances around them in celebration. This took place immediately after the ceremony and these pictures give you an idea of what that looked like.
This went on for several minutes and although it looks scary I am assured that it was not. After a bit more of dancing and singing we were off to the Lodge for the formal dinner...

Patience is a Virtue...

...I certainly didn't think that I would be busier this week than I was in the weeks leading up to the wedding but alas, I am. Blogger is being stingy tonite so I have been unable to upload more than four photos, but I will happily share what I have so far.

This picture was taken before the real ceremony but is the first time that the Bride and Groom have seen each other in their finery. We are at the historic Lake Quinault Lodge and all of the formal wedding pictures were taken in this area of the grounds with the lake views in the background. I present to you my son Jeffrey and his Bride Lauren:

Here we have the flower girls lining up for their photos:

This one is from the ceremony, just after the chair-lifting which I hope I can post later. This is, of course, the garter scene...
This is a photo of four of the people who mean the most to me, just add in my husband and you have my whole world! Left: my daughter Lindsay, my son Jeffrey, my daughter-in-law Lauren, and my son-in-law Craig.
We arrived at our cabin on Wednesday after about a 4hour drive. It is a beautiful 'home' on the lake and was much larger than we'd expected and just beautiful. There were two dining rooms with the kitchen in between which worked well for our Thursday evening 'Grooms' dinner. More on that later. It rained the entire first day. My daughter and her husband arrived the next day and we began preps for the dinner. It rained the entire second day. The bride and groom also arrived on Thursday as did the rest of the immediate family and approximately 70 relatives of the brides family. There were six of us. Anyway, we awoke on Friday, the big day, to rain, who is surprised?? I mean really, who? Lucky for us the sun dance we did around the bonfire on the beach the nite before worked and by late morning the sun was out, the grass was drying, and the bees were gathering for an appearance at the soon to be wedding...

Fan-tas-tic...

We. are. back...every thing was absolutely lovely from the weather to the bride and groom. As soon as I get settled, find my camera, and get some food in the house, I will share all the details. Fun, fun, fun...

Here comes...

...the flower girls on their practice run for the big day.

and here comes the Bride and Groom to-be. Notice the lovely bouquet that the bride is carrying, I believe it was made by the flower girls.


We are on the count down now...four days to go. Everything at the rehearsal went as planned, even better, as all of the in-laws to be get along tremendously. I hope this is the blessing we believe it all to be and I can hardly wait to share it with you.