Wonderful Wedding

I still remember the day he came off of the airplane 24 years ago.  Even though I was just six years old, the image is sharp in my mind.  His little bald head was shining and his big, gummy grin worked its way right into my heart.  I was done for...I had a precious little brother, and it didn't matter that he didn't have the same blood running through my veins, he was my family.

Now that little boy is all grown up and he said "I do" this weekend.  He joined his life with that of his gorgeous bride, and now they are man and wife!

I watched him wipe a few tears from his eyes as he saw his bride walk down the aisle and I wiped tears from mine.  I watch him grin from ear to ear as they said their vows and I grinned too.  I saw him join hands and share a ring with this beautiful woman, and I felt absolute joy in my heart.  When they announced the Mr. and Mrs. I cheered and clapped.  My heart is so full of joy to see such a wonderful, loving union between my brother and his wife.

They remind me of Kevin and myself when we were starting out...young, totally and completely in love, and ready to take on the world.  Here we are six years later, more in love than we have ever been before, and having worked through so many trials together.

He is the rock that I lean on when things are tough.  He reminds me constantly that God is in control.  He makes me laugh, he takes good care of me, he spoils me when he can, and he supports me in everything.  I love him more than I could ever express with words.  I hope that Neil and Samantha will find the same kind of love, that deep, rich lasting love.  I am certain that they will.

The weekend was wonderful and the wedding was beautiful.  I even made it through the song I had to sing without breaking down into tears!  I just had a death grip on the microphone and focused on the words.  I didn't dare look at Neil or my dad, or I was sure to cry!

Because it was such a crazy weekend, I think the only way I can express it is to put it into points.

• Rusty was an absolute rock star.  The kid was A-MAZ-ING!  He didn't complain once, he slept great, he even went down the aisle like a good little ringbearer.  Well, sprinted down the aisle is more like it.  My sister said that he won the race for sure!  He was so adorable running down that aisle in his little tuxedo.  Rusty traveled great.  He was so good on both the flight there and back, and handled the long hours in the car like a pro.  I am so proud of him and his behavior and attitude this weekend.  Today and yesterday he is suffering a bit as he readjusts to his normal schedule again, but I can handle that at home!
• Seeing Rusty having so much fun was one of the major highlights for me.  I love technology.  I have said this before, but I really believe that our Skype sessions help Rusty to know who his family is!  He didn't even skip a beat with most of them, especially my parents.  He knows who they are because he sees them on the computer all of the time.  We also try to make sure that we show him pictures of my family a lot.  He had so much fun at the dance, with Daddy and I, and just in general.  I haven't seen him laughing so much in a long time!

• I loved seeing my family and having us all in one location.  We all stayed at the same hotel, and it was fun and relaxing to just sit out by the pool and talk and enjoy the kids playing in the pool.  We talked, we laughed, we did what my family does best, live life together!

• I always enjoy seeing Rusty with his cousins.  He is blessed to have such great ones.  Two were missing this weekend, but he had a blast with the three that were there.  Little Miss A is just four months younger than him, and they had fun hugging each other.  One time Rusty hugged her so hard that they both fell over!  Besides being slightly dazed they were okay with it.  Rusty had fun with his older cousins, J and R.  They are so great with him, and we especially enjoy it, as they keep him so entertained that we get a little bit of a break!  We are definitely looking forward to heading back to SD this summer and having more time with them.  There will be a new one joining the cousin crew in October, my cousin Nessa is expecting a little one!  I can't wait to meet that baby!

• Speaking of Nessa, she is my best friend.  We met in grade 8, when she moved to our school.  She started dating my cousin, who was also one of my closest friends.  They stayed together and now, SO many years later, they have two beautiful children, another one on the way, and they are so important in our lives.  They are an Aunt and Uncle to Rusty and their kids are our niece and nephew.  I love my Nessa.  She is just that person that can put things into perspective for me.  She can make me laugh, she can make me feel better when I'm crying.  She is a huge blessing in my life.  Relaxing and talking with her was awesome. 

Our little man was looking pretty handsome all dressed up in his ringbearer tuxedo!  I wasn't sure if he would perform his duties.  On Friday night at the rehearsal it was NO WAY MOMMA!  He had just been playing with his cousins and running down the aisle was not on his agenda.  We were able to do a practice run after most of the people left that night and then on Saturday morning...magic!  I crouched at one end of the aisle with my sister-whose daughter was the flowergirl.  The other ringbearer was old enough to understand what he needed to do, which was good since his mom was a bridesmaid!  Kevin crouched down with Rusty, pointed to me, and he was off!  He sprinted down the aisle and it was SO cute!  He had the biggest grin on his face and when he got to me it was like he actually had won a race and he was so proud!  We were just relieved he performed his job!  He fell in love with his tux, and when we tried to take it off later that night he cried!  

Overall, it was a beautiful, amazing, fantastic weekend.  My little brother married an amazing, kind woman.  They are off in Hawaii relaxing now.  I enjoyed a lot of time with my family, especially my big sister who was along for the ride from Minneapolis and back.  I laughed a lot, cried a little bit, and just loved being with my amazing family.  They are so wonderful and such a blessing in our lives!  We can't wait to see them again this summer.