Shane and Alyssa's Reception

Yes, yes I know that on the 24th Alyssa and Shane will have been married for four months. Time has slipped away so quickly this year. With two of my children getting married, then Christmas I lost all track of time. And for a while the idea of sitting at the computer to write anything was just one more thing to do in a time of too much to do, hence the long absence of blogs. Things have calmed nicely and many wonderful things have gone on. Now, I am going to try and catch up a little, even if it means talking about things from four months ago.

Going for the garter

I have learned something about myself through the past year. Though I love to take photographs, when I am in the middle of something, like my child's wedding, I forget to take pictures of my own. All of the pictures on this blog were taken by others. I haven't been able to get a hold of the photographer's photos yet, so most of these were taken on cell phones, except for two taken by my friend Dawn.

 The evening went very well. Except for one detail. You may remember from a previous blog that I made 300 meatballs and sauce for the reception. They were fine, as was the chicken alfredo provided by Shane's mom, Anita. The noodles that went with them, the noodles were, well, disgusting. They were an overcooked pasty nasty mess. It was my own fault though, I bought thin spaghetti, thinking they would be easier to cook, and cook faster, and well, that they did.

Father Daughter Dance

The rest of the evening was perfect though. There was music and dancing and friends and family. The bride and groom's first dance was perfect. They looked so happy. Kahlen danced around them as they danced. People watched from the tables and some eyes welled a little, ok yeah mine. They looked so beautiful and in love. They both were finally able to just relax and enjoy their wedding, and their day. The overwhelmed bride and groom to be, quickly settled into the excitement of being the new husband and wife. A calm washed over both of them and they took time to just be a couple.

 I have to admit though, it was the father-daughter dance that got me. I watched from the side as my husband and our beautiful daughter danced to Billy Joel's Lullaby. Willie had listened to many songs trying to pick a perfect song to dance to with Alyssa. He decided on that one. As they danced Kahlen danced and circled around them. As I watched them I couldn't help but weep. Weep, yeah right, I was out and out bawling the whole time.  It was so beautiful. Alyssa looking like an angle, Willie so handsome and dapper in his tux, and Kahlen fluttering around like a little happy pixie. It was my favorite part of the night.

Kahlen spent much of the night running around the dance floor. She ran and ran all night long. Every once in a while I would chase her down, take a cookie that she had grabbed of the food table, out of her hand, put a vegetable in her hand and send her on her way again. She would eat the vegetable, but soon had another cookie in her hand again. Eating was not her top priority, eating well was not on the agenda at all.

No, Alyssa did not use this fork to eat with.

When Kahlen wasn't running around happily, she spent a lot of time on the dance floor studying. She watched intently as people danced around her. She listened to the music, watched feet and hands, and then would try to dance along. She boogied the night away. She was the energizer bunny of flower girls. She never stopped. And somehow, and to this day I have no idea how, she never spilled anything on her dress. It was like she just knew that this was a special night, not just for her mommy and daddy, but for her as well. She seemed to understand that her family was celebrating the most important thing in her life. She was as happy as the bride and groom.

If this picture was a little clearer it would be one of my favorites.
I love the way Kahlen is watching us.

 And, Willie danced with me! Now, you have to understand, that was a big deal. Willie does not like to dance. He hates it as a matter of fact. I, on the other hand, love to dance. Not that I do it well, but I love it none the less. So, when Willie said he would dance with me, I was thrilled. Being the rare thing that it was, people got up and started snapping pictures. Alyssa even made the photographer get her camera back out to take a picture. As flashes went off around us, Willie got self conscious. He also hates having his picture taken. I kept telling him to just ignore them and look at me. We laughed and it was a wonderful dance.

As the night ended we cleaned up the hall and Alyssa and Shane sat down to breath. Both happy with the way the day and night went, they prepared to leave. They chased Kahlen down and got her to stand still long enough to give her hugs and kisses. Then, leaving her with Willie and me, they left for a night to themselves. Now husband and wife, a new life in front of them.