I haven't really given a serious update since I got married.

So. being married is [insert all excellent adjectives here]. I highly recommend it.

The wedding was great, honeymoon was great, living together is great.

We have had tons of fun moving things into our apartment and having our own home together. I can't tell you how much we've laughed together about any and everything imaginable over the last week and half we've been married. Everything we're experiencing about being married and being with another person ALL THE TIME seems to crack us up. It is priceless and wonderful.

these are some things we have discovered lately:

Something has happened to Andrew. He has become freakishly clean. And if you would have seen his prior living spaces, you would know thats not possible. But he now has hair-in-the-sink radar. (And lets me know every time that radar goes off. And has already uttered the words, "I long for the day when there is no hair in the sink." Its freakishly and sadly funny, really.) He has become nothing-can-sit-on-the-dressers Man.

I turn off lights and TVs behind him. He forgets.

Andrew puts my dishes in the dishwasher after I leave them in the sink.

Also, Tuesday morning, (our second morning together in the "back to work" world,) the alarm went off. To make a long story short, apparantly, when he asked me on Monday night what time to set the alarm, I told him 7:15. This is where I am amused: Apparantly, he wasn't there on Sunday night or Monday morning when he set the alarm for the six-o-clock hour and when I left for work around 7:30. (Are you picking up what I'm laying down?) Oh yes....in my mistakingly telling him the incorrect hour to set the alarm for, he did exactly what I said, not giving the fact that I should leave for work 15 minutes after that, a second thought. So....back to Tuesday morning....after realizing what time it was when I turned the alarm off and freaking out and running into the bathroom with Andrew laughing, he literally helped me get dressed. It was good times. And by good times I mean, he was laughing as he said, "I'm dressing my wife." The best part? MAJOR BROWNIE points earned when I asked him to pack me something for lunch and he had ALREADY DONE IT. WITHOUT me asking him.

sweet. action.

We have family worship/devotions together everyday. And it is wonderful. I love hearing him pray and lead us in learning. I can't help but love him more.

Other fun things:

Oh...I should tell you first that living on campus is cool, because theres courtyard areas, and lots of us get together and hang out in the evenings and have a fire in this pit thing and its so nice. Anyway, last night, we were doing this, and Andrew was asked 2 questions by Sarah while I was inside the apartment for a minute. When I got back, I was asked the same two questions, having not heard Andrew answer them. The first question was, "What is the most surprising thing you've found out since being married, about him?" And I thought. And thought. And finally said, "Hm. There haven't been any real surprises. Nothing really big." Come to find out, that was Andrew's answer, as well. Then I was asked, "What is the best part about being married?" And I thought. And I thought. And I said, "Just being married." They asked me what that meant. And I told them, "Just being together. Just getting to live together and hang out all the time." And everyone laughs and smiles and informs me that Andrew had said the SAME THING." Weird. And then I'm all, "Honey, we really ARE One. We have the same thoughts."



I could provide a lot more information about the whole wedding experience, but you know. I don't really feel like doing that. But Kate wrote two beautiful bits about the weddingness on her blog, so I'm going to share that with you here. I dont' think she'll mind. I pretty much love the way she described everything. It makes me laugh and smile, greatly.

Here it is...(note...I'm going to add some of my own notes little by little in Caps...LIKE THIS..stay tuned for more as I add them:

(Part 1)
i don’t like weddings.
Tuesday June 20th 2006, 06:57:03
Filed under: Uncategorized
there.

i said it.

i haven’t really ever liked going to weddings.

maybe it’s just that i don’t like getting dressed up. or maybe it’s just a reminder that i don’t have a “love of my life.”

regardless…i’ve just never liked weddings.

however…i went to dena’s wedding this weekend.

and when i say “i went to dena’s wedding”…i really mean “i was a bridesmaid in dena’s wedding.” it was a new experience for me. i’ve never been in someone’s wedding before…and i was decently nervous about it. mainly about the dressing up. because not only did i have to dress up…i could’ve tolerated that. i had to wear an actual dress. i’m trying to remember the last time i willingly wore a dress before this past weekend…and i think i was 12. and it wasn’t very willingly. (my mom made me wear a dress that my grandma bought me [she hadn’t taken the hint yet that i didn’t wear dresses] when i was a page at the state capitol. blech.)

anyway…i bought the dress…some new shoes (ok…they were flip-flops…that i didn’t end up wearing)…and wedding flair. (just for jamie.) oh…and i had to buy a new bra. which was a less painful experience than i’d anticipated.

here’s my quick wedding trip rundown:

wednesday: get in to kansas city several hours ahead of schedule…without my checked luggage. dena was ON TIME to pick me up at the airport. and in case anyone reading this has had dena pick them up from an airport…you know this is rare. THIS IS TRUE. EXTREMELY TRUE. KATE, DID IN FACT, COMMENT THAT SHE COULDN'T BELIEVE I WAS THERE, WHEN SHE SAW ME. in fact, i think this is the first time it’s ever happened. I THINK THIS IS ALSO A TRUE STATEMENT.(dena…i love you madly. but you know it’s true.) INDEED. we bought a bunch of alcohol… HECK YES WE DID. got some ghettofied shot/pint glasses LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT THIS...BY "GHETTOFIED SHOT/PINT" GLASSES SHE REALLY MEANS "GREEN PLASTIC CUPS IN PLACE OF PINT GLASSES AND VOTIVE CANDLE HOLDERS TO USE AS SHOT GLASSES" OH YES. I COULDN'T MAKE SOMETHING LIKE THAT UP IF I TRIED. and various toiletries (since my luggage was not with me)…and went back to her parents’ house so she could change clothes before meeting anna at the holiday inn (the same holiday inn which housed mark smiley a couple years ago) for the bachelorette party.

and here’s something you should know about dena. she’s not down with sketchiness. AT. ALL. there were no strippers or anything of that nature at the party. IN FACT, DESPITE MY CHARGE THAT THERE COULD BE NOTHING ABOVE A PG RATING INVOLVED, APPARANTLY, ANNA DIDN'T GET THAT MEMO. I STILL LOVE HER...BUT I COULD HAVE DONE WITHOUT A FEW THINGS. there was dinner… AND LOTS OF PICTURES AND A THEREFORE VERY ANNOYED WAITRESS/PHOTOGRAPHER, AND THEN THERE WAS ANOTHER LIQUOR STOP AFTER DINNER...AS IF WE NEEDED MORE, various in-and-out friends I DON'T GET THAT AT ALL...PLEASE EXPLAIN IT TO ME …swimming (cooter shooter)WHICH I'M STILL CRACKING UP ABOUT.......KATE ALSO FORGOT TO TELL YOU THAT WE SNUCK INTO THE POOL AFTER HOURS...(KAT, ANNA AND I GOT IN...KATE, 'NAE & BETH LOUNGED IN THE POOL CHAIRS)AND OF COURSE, IN TRYING TO BE STEALTHLY AND QUIET, WE GOT THE GIGGLES SO BAD AND COULDN'T STOP LAUGHING…and drinking. lots of drinking. THERE WAS THE IRISH CAR BOMB THAT ANNA DECIDED TO SPIT OUT ALL OVER THE BED...THAT WAS FUN. THERE WERE NASTY LEMON DROPS IN COOL TEST TUBES. oh…and a few games. and shiny penis confetti. THIS IS ONE OF THE SEVERAL THINGS I COULD HAVE DONE WITHOUT. HOWEVER...MANY OTHER PEOPLE SEEMED TO ENJOY IT. ALSO, KATE SKIPPED OVER ONE OF MY FAVORITE PARTS: ANNA HAD BROUGHT QUESO CHEESE DIP, BUT SINCE WE HAD NO WAY TO HEAT IT UP, AND I DIDN'T WANT IT COLD, BETH ANN ATTEMPTED TO, TWICE (WHICH MAKES IT EVEN AWESOMER) HEAT IT UP FOR ME BY RUNNING THE COFFEE POT WITH JUST WATER AND THEN STICKING THE JAR OF QUESO IN THE COFFEE POT, IN THE SINK...IT DIDN'T WORK, BY THE WAY. BUT I THOUGHT IT WAS AWESOME AND AWESOMELY FUNNY. i finally got a few hours sleep at the end of the night…which leads us to…

thursday: we woke up with kat’s alarm about 06:30 thursday morning. SHE CALLED IN SICK TO WORK THAT MORNING IN ORDER TO PARTY WITH US WEDNESDAY NIGHT. AWESOME. everyone but dena had the sense to go back to sleep for a couple hours. I COULDN'T. I WAS AWAKE, AND THAT WAS THE BEGINNING OF MY THREE-DAY-LONG UPSET STOMACH. we all finally woke up…cleaned up…and checked out. WE WALKED OUT WITH A LOT OF LIQUOR. AND KAT'S COMMENTS ABOUT WHAT THE MAID WOULD THINK WHEN SHE SAW THE SPECIAL CONFETTI. WE HAD ALSO SOMEHOW LOST THE LID TO THE IRISH CREME, SO WE JERRY RIGGED A CAP FOR IT WITH LOTS OF TAPE AND A COFFEE FILTER WRAP. dena and i headed back to kci to claim my luggage WHICH WASN'T MY FAVORITE THING IN THE WORLD, BUT I DID STAY ON THE PHONE THE ENITIRE TRIP OUT THERE AND MOST OF IT BACK WITH PEOPLE INVOLVED IN WEDDING DETAILS. (the nwa staff lady was kind of a jerk about getting my luggage to me). the plan after that was decorating the reception hall. well…i was to the point of passing out since i’d skipped sleeping wednesday. (i got off work wednesday morning at 07:00 and didn’t have time for a nap or anything before leaving for the airport.) so…i ended up taking a six hour “nap” while dena met up with some others to decorate. BUT BEFORE THAT, ANNA, KAT AND I WENT TO TACO BELL, WHICH WAS GOOD TIMES FOR SURE. ANNA, KAT AND I WENT TO YOUTHFRONT TO START DECORATING. THEN MY MOM FINALLY GOT THERE. AND MY MOM'S FRIEND. AND WE REALIZED YOUTHFRONT DOES NOT KNOW HOW TO MATCH UP TABLECLOTHS OR HOW TO IRON THEM. SO WE HAD THEM TAKE CARE OF THAT. THEN WE WORKED ON ADJUSTING THE LIGHTING, WHICH WAS FUN.

i woke up…took a shower…and went out to dinner with deborah (DEBRA) (andrew’s mom), melissa (andrew’s sister), and heather (a friend of melissa and andrew…new bride of the best man) SHE ALSO WENT TO DINNER WITH ME...BUT APPARANTLY, I AM NOT IMPORTANT ENOUGH TO BE MENTIONED IN THE LIST OF WHO WAS THERE. point of interest: first time i’ve eaten thai food. it was good…but i’m pretty sure it was the source of my later poop issues. i’ll skip over that…for everyone’s benefit. AT THE RESTAURANT, I WAS PARANOID BECAUSE THEY HAD LITTLE CANDLES LIT EVERYWHERE, AND I WAS CERTAIN SOME KID WAS GOING TO KNOCK ONE OVER. I'M PRETTY SURE THAT WOULD NOT PASS FIRE CODE. after dinner, we all headed back to the barnes’ hotel (where andrew’s bachelor party stuff was going on) for some swimming and just plain relaxing. KATE DIDNT' SWIM. SHE READ. MEL, HEATHER AND I SWAM. AND BY SWAM, I MEAN, WE STAYED IN THE HOT TUB TOO LONG AND I GOT A LITTLE WOOZY WHEN I GOT OUT ONCE. HEHE. AND HEATHER AND I WERE WAY TOO AMUSED WITH ONE JET THAT WAS PUTTING OUT COLD WATER. WE ALSO HAD INTERESTING TALKS THAT NIGHT. IT WAS FUN. WE STAYED REALLY LATE AND I WAS SO SLEEPY WHEN WE GOT HOME THAT NIGHT. THEN KATE WANTED TO STAY UP AND WATCH TV AND I WAS LIKE, "UM. I LOVE YOU, BUT HECK. TO THE NO. I DIDN'T GET A SIX HOUR NAP." HEHE

friday: i’d planned to head out first thing in the morning to finish decorating the reception hall with dena. i apparently did not clarify with her that she’d have to wake me up whenever she decided to leave for this plan to work. WELL...I WASN'T SURE WHAT TO DO, BECAUSE I KNEW YOU HAD STAYED UP LATER THAN ME, AND I DIDN'T KNOW IF YOU'D REALLY APPRECIATE BEING WOKEN UP OR NOT. fran (dena’s mom) woke me up around 09:30 or so to see if i wanted to head to the reception hall (actually a youth for christ building) with her. (i didn’t have my own vehicle during this trip…since i flew. just to clarify.) a few hours of putting up lattice…immediately taking down said lattice… ANDREW AND I BOTH DECIDED IT WAS TACKY. BUT A FUN STORY ABOUT THE LATTICE BOARD. MOM HAD IT STRAPPED TO THE TOP OF HER VAN, AND I DROVE THE VAN TO YOUTHFRONT, AND YOU COULDN'T GO PAST 30 MPH WITHOUT IT WACKING THE DICKENS OUT OF THE VAN AND THREATENING TO FLY OFF, SO I DROVE THE WHOLE WAY WITH MY EMERGENCY FLASHERS ON. IT WAS GOOD TIMES. packing up said lattice on the top of fran’s van…attaching lights to tablecloths (which is MUCH MUCH more complicated than it should be). YES, INDEED. IT WASN'T FUN. EVERYONE WAS REALLY FRUSTERATED WITH THAT. THE LIGHTS WERE TOO HEAVY FOR THE TABLECLOTHS AND THE TABLECLOTHS WOULD START SLIDING OFF, AND THEN THE PINS WOULDN'T STAY IN. YAY FOR HEATHER FOR BEING AWESOME AT DOING THE PURPLE TULLE AROUND THE LIGHTS. after that, i went with fran to return the lattice to home depot. MY MOM PRETTY MUCH PISSED EVERYONE OFF WITH THE LATTICEBOARDEDNESS. ANOTHER HIGHLIGHT: MY MOM WEARING GRANNY PANTIES WITH HER LOW RIDING JEANS AND LITERALLY 5 OR 6 INCHES OF HER UNDERWEAR STICKING OUT OF THE BACK OF HER PANTS, AND ME CONSTANTLY GOING UP BEHIND HER AND PULLING HER SHIRT DOWN AND THE BACK OF HER PANTS UP. ASK KATE. IT IS TRUE. ALSO...THIS WAS NOT MY FAVORITE.

i got cleaned up once we got back to the powell residence and got dressed for the rehearsal. ANNA AND I GOT TO THE CHURCH EARLY & FIRST THAT DAY AND STARTED STEAMING DRESSES. ACTUALLY, JUST MY DRESS. IT TOOK FOR-FREAKING-EVER BECAUSE THERE WERE ABOUT ELEVEN-TEEN LAYERS. AT ONE POINT, I ACCIDENTAILY STEAMED ANNA (SHE WAS HOLDING OUT THE DRESS WHILE I WAS STEAMING) AND BURNED HER A LITTLE. WHOOPS. WE DIDN'T GET DONE STEAMING AND SO I WAS A LITTLE PANICY. BUT IT ALL WORKED OUT, AS YOU WILL BE INFORMED ABOUT SOON. i should state now that the ABSOLUTE LATEST we were to arrive to the church for the rehearsal was 16:45. ideally…16:30. THE REHEARSAL FORMALLY STARTED AT 17:00.

now…here’s where i might lose you. i love fran. i honestly do. but she runs around like a crazy person. she always has…and probably always will. but last week…it was kicked in to super extreme mode. it was astonishing, really.

it was about 17:00 when fran was ready to leave the house. you read that right.

another thing you should know about fran…her driving has always frightened me. in the sense that i have, more than once, literally thought i was going to die. again…this night…it was kicked in to super extreme mode.

i was pretty sure those were my last moments on earth.

we got to the church about 17:30, i think.

that’s right.

YES. BOTH OF MY PARENTS DIDN'T GET THERE TILL AFTER 17:30. YOU DO THE MATH. NOW, CONSIDERING THE FACT THAT WE HAD BEEN TALKING ABOUT IT FOR MONTHS AND MONTHS, AND EVERYONE HAD BEEN THREATENED ABOUT BEING ON TIME, THIS IS COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE. ALSO, DID I MENTION THE FACT THAT WHEN I WAS LEAVING MY HOUSE TO HEAD TO THE REHEARSAL, I YELLED AT MY MOM SEVERAL TIMES TO STOP CRAPPING AROUND AND GET READY TO GO? YES. I DID. AND YET. SHE REMAINED DICKING AROUND DOING NOTHING IMPORTANT AND WAS LATE TO THE REHEARSAL.

I THINK DAD WAS WAITING ON MOM TO GET READY SO THEY COULD COME TO THE CHURCH FOR THE REHEARSAL TOGETHER IN ONE VEHICLE. I FINALLY CALLED DAD AND TOLD HIM TO PLEASE DRIVE HIS TRUCK AND COME RIGHT THEN, BECAUSE WE COULDN'T WAIT ON MOM. WE NEEDED DAD TO BE THERE. SO HE FINALLY DECIDED TO DRIVE ON HIS OWN AND LET MOM DRIVE HER VAN.

SO KATE AND MOM RODE IN MOM'S VAN. DAD DROVE HIS TRUCK. THE FOLLOWING WILL FURTHER EXPLAIN KATE'S FEAR OF MY MOM'S DRIVING: MOM AND KATE GOT TO THE CHURCH. LATE, YES. DAD ARRIVED A FEW MINUTES LATER. WHILE DAD AND I WERE WAITING TO WALK DOWN THE AISLE, HE SAYS, "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOUR MOM MADE IT HERE BEFORE ME. WHEN I LEFT THE HOUSE, SHE WAS STILL SITTING ON THE GARAGE FLOOR IN HER WORK CLOTHES DOING SOMETHING." OH YES. MOM MADE IT THERE BEFORE HIM. AND SHE WASN'T EVEN DRESSED WHEN HE WALKED OUT THE DOOR. HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE, YOU ASK? WELL, I'LL TELL YOU! WHEN KATE AND MOM MADE IT THERE, KATE WALKS UP TO ME AND GOES, "DENA. I LITERALLY THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO DIE ON THE WAY HERE. I LIT-ER-A-LEE THOUGHT WE WERE GOING TO CRASH AND DIE. YOUR MOM WAS TAKING HER FINGERNAIL POLISH OFF IN THE CAR WHILE SHE WAS DRIVING." LET ME JUST SAY, IF A LIFE-INSURER WERE TO RIDE WITH MY MOM, THERES NO WAY HE WOULD EVER GRANT HER COVERAGE.

OK. SO, I WAS NOT THE HAPPIEST CAMPER IN THE WORLD BECAUSE OF THE TARDINESS OF MY PARENTS. BUT ALSO, ANDREW AND THE GROOMSMEN DIDN'T ARRIVE UNTIL AFTER 5 PM. AND BECAUSE ANDREW HAD RISEN SO MUCH CAIN ABOUT PEOPLE NOT BEING LATE, IT WAS SORT OF FUN TO TEASINGLY GET ONTO HIM ABOUT BEING LATE.

we did four or five run-throughs of the ceremony. ACTUALLY KATE...IT WAS THREE FULL ONES. THE NON-HIGHLIGHT OF IT ALL: THE FIRST RUN THROUGH, WHEN DAD & I WERE WALKING DOWN THE AISLE, LAUGHING AND ACTING ALL STUPID, I LOOK AT ANNA (MATRON OF HONOR) WHEN I'M ABOUT HALF WAY DOWN, AND SHE GOES, "OH DENA!" AND STARTS TO TEAR UP A LITTLE BIT, AND I GO "ANNA!" START LAUGHING AT HER FOR TEARING UP, AND THE NEXT THING I KNOW, I AM SOBBING AND I'M BAWLING LIKE A BABY. IT WAS COMPLETELY & UTTERLY UNATTRACTIVE AND I COULDN'T GET AHOLD OF MYSELF TO STOP AND IT WAS REDICULOUS. THE END. I WENT FROM LAUGHING TO LITERALLY IN THE SAME INSTANT, SOBBING UNCONTROLLABLY. I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THE PICTURES OF THAT. I'M SURE THEY WILL BE FANTASTICALLY UGLY. it was quite enough. it was to the point that i could tell when the coordinator was lying to me.

coordinator: “ok…go ahead [down the aisle].”
me: “no way…i’m not falling for that again. the boys haven’t gone in yet. DIRTY LIAR!!” CARMEN, OUR COORDINATOR, KEPT TRYING TO TELL KATE TO GO AHEAD AND WALK DOWN THE AISLE, BUT ABOUT THE LAST TIME THROUGH SHE WISED UP, BECAUSE CARMEN ACCIDENTALY KEPT TELLING HER TO GO IN TOO EARLY. THE LAST TIME, KATE ACTUALLY DID SAY THE WORDS "OH NO, I'M NOT FALLING FOR THAT AGAIN!" AND IT WAS AWESOMELY FUNNY, BECAUSE CARMEN HAD INDEED, ONCE AGAIN, JUMPED THE GUN ON HER GO-AHEAD." ONE OF MY FAVORITE PARTS OF THE CEREMONY.

ok. i may or may not have called her a dirty liar.

but she was.

after the rehearsal…dinner at cinzetti’s. it should be noted, however, that i rode to dinner with anna (matron of honor). i told the other bridesmaids that i couldn’t ride with fran again so soon. i just couldn’t. anna graciously took me to dinner.

dinner was awesome. DINNER WAS AWESOME. EXCEPT ANDREW NOR I EITHER ONE ATE VERY MUCH BECAUSE OF BOTH OF OUR WEDDING-RELATED-STOMACH ISSUES. SO THATS A SHAME. there’s no getting around it. andrew’s parents not only paid for the dinner…they also paid for everyone’s first drink. huzzah!! EXCEPT ANDREW NOR I EITHER ONE DRANK BECASUE OF MY DAD. NOT-HUZZAH.

AND THEN I THOUGHT MY FAMILY WAS GOING TO HAVE A JERRY SPRINGER-MOMENT BECAUSE MY SISTER HAD BROUGHT HER SON, WHO WAS TOTALLY *NOT* INVITED, AND BUBBY AND OLIVIA GOT PISSED AT HER FOR BRINGING HER SON, SINCE KIDS WEREN'T INVITED, AND BUBBY HAD CALLED THAT DAY TO ASK IF THEIR KIDS COULD COME (EVEN THOUGH THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN NO CONFUSION, WHATSOEVER ABOUT THAT BECAUSE THEY WERE INFORMED THAT, POINT BLANK, ABOUT A YEAR PRIOR, & THE KIDS' NAMES WERE DEFINATELY NOT ON THE INVITATION.) BUT THANKFULLY IT DIDN'T GET TOO UGLY. BUT I THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO FOR A MINUTE.

seriously…i ate a lot. A. LOT. it was really effing good. i hesitate to tell you that it was an italian market-style buffet…but that sounds cheap. it was amazing. you have to love a place that has a line set up solely for made-to-order crepes. mmmmmm.

ANDREW PRESENTED ME WITH DIAMOND EARRINGS. YAY. FANTASTIC. ANDREW'S DAD, CHRIS MADE A NICE TOAST.

after dinner, i went back to the church with anna to help her mom finish steaming the dresses. ANDREW AND I DROVE BACK TO MY HOUSE IN MY CAR WHERE HE DROPPED ME OFF AND TOOK MY CAR BACK TO THE HOTEL. we also discovered that my dress was made of a different material. they looked exactly the same…but the material of my dress is wrinkle-resistant or something. awesome.

then…back to the powell’s. anna and i hung out and helped dena pack for the honeymoon at lake of the ozarks. THIS WAS ONE OF MY FAVORITE PARTS. I LOVED GETTING TO JUST BE WITH ANNA AND KATE WHILE I PACKED. ITS A GOOD MEMORY. EXCEPT THAT IT TOOK ME FOREVER TO PACK BECASUE AT THIS POINT, ALL MY STUFF WAS STREWN ALL OVER THE HOUSE, PLUS I HAD ACCUMULATED MORE THAN I BROUGHT BECAUSE OF RANDOM CRAP MOM WAS GIVING ME AND THINGS I HAD LEFT AT HOME WHEN MOVING. (i have a couple pictures from down there on flickr if anyone wants to see them.) BY THE TIME I WAS DONE PACKING AND TOOK A SHOWER, IT WAS SORT OF AN UNGODLY HOUR. THAT MEANING, WELL AFTER MIDNIGHT. I ALSO DECIDED TO SLEEP IN THE CHAISE LOUNGE IN OUR LIVING ROOM FOR SOME REASON. PROBABLY NOT THE BEST IDEA.

ok…well…i obviously haven’t gotten to saturday (including the actual wedding) or sunday yet. but it’s time to leave work. so i’ll have to finish tonight.

(Part 2)
i still don’t like weddings.
Wednesday June 28th 2006, 04:26:18
Filed under: Uncategorized
so by “i’ll have to finish tonight”…i guess i meant “i’ll forget that i haven’t finished until dena comments on the last entry.”

still with me? good.

let’s see how much i can remember now…a week and some change after the fact.

ok.

saturday: i woke up at 04:00 to take a shower. that’s right. anna got me an appointment at the hair school where she had an appointment so i could get my hair did for the wedding. I LOVE THAT SHE SAID "HAIR DID." now…as shocking as this may be to you…i’ve never gone for something like this. i don’t do fancy hair. as it turns out…the hair people don’t want you to wash your hair right before you go in. which had been my plan. instead, to avoid wedding/reception greasy hair funk, i decided i’d just wake up at 04:00, take a shower, and go back to bed.

i am such a genius.

or not.

miraculously, i actually woke up when my alarm went off. glorious. i gather up my crap…head downstairs…and dena starts talking to me when i reach the bottom of the stairs. i almost crapped my pants. she was supposed to be asleep. turns out she’d been awake since 03:00 or something crazy like that. ACTUALLY, I THINK I WOKE UP AT 2:30. MY STOMACH WAS A MESS. IT WASN'T LOVELY. she asked if i had any suggestions for falling back to sleep. i jokingly suggested that maybe she should watch a movie…because she falls asleep every time we watch a movie. true story. she thought it sounded like a great idea. SO I TURNED THE TV OFF AND ON AND FINALLY FELL ASLEEP SOME TIME AFTER 5:30 IN THE MORNING. AT ONE POINT IN THAT THREE HOUR STRETCH, I GOT OUT A PIECE OF PAPER AND STARTED MAKING A LIST OF STUFF. SERIOUSLY. I COULDN'T STAND IT ANY MORE. MY MIND WAS RACING AND I KNEW I WAS GOING TO FORGET STUFF THAT I NEEDED TO GET DONE, ETC. DID I MENTION THE FACT THAT MY ALARM WAS SET FOR 7 AM? YES. IT WAS. WHEN IT WENT OFF, I SET IT FOR 7:30 AND KIND OF SLEPT TILL THEN.

ok…here is where i have to tell a side story. i’ve known dena for about three years. i met dena about two and a half years ago. which is all well and good. in those two and a half years, i’ve managed to avoid using her downstairs shower.

dena, if you’re reading this (since i know you are), your parents’ downstairs shower freaks me out. LOL. it’s like showering in a tiny kitchen closet. (the rest of you are just going to have to trust me on this. or email me for directions to their house. you can drop by and check it out for yourself.) there’s a fake plant that doesn’t come out during shower time, somethingelserandomhangingonthewallthatidon’tremember, and there was a cricket. i must have spent five solid minutes trying to kill that effing cricket with the removable shower head. and the damn thing still ended up touching me!! i was thoroughly creeped out. i finally killed it, however, and spent the next few minutes forcing the cricket down the drain…again with the shower head. LOL. I LOVE THIS STORY. IT WAS GREAT WHEN YOU TOLD IT IN PERSON, TOO.

anyway…i finally finished my shower, got re-dressed, and went back to sleep. AT THIS POINT, KATE THOUGHT I WAS ASLEEP. HOWEVER, I WAS NOT.

I GOT UP AT 730 AND TOOK A BATH.

i got up (again) around 8:45 to get ready for anna to pick me up. I WAS IN THE BATHROOM WHERE BETH ANN WAS DIDING MY HAIR. (YES, I JUST SAID "DIDING.") AND AT THAT POINT, I JUST WANTED TO SLEEP. I WAS TOTALLY SLEEP-DEPRIVED. anna arrived about 9:25 (i think she was running just a tad behind the schedule she wanted to be on), and we headed out to le baron (the hair place).

ok. le baron. having never been to a beauty academy (or whatever they called it), it was a new experience for me. the weird little man at the front desk (who seemed like he should have been in miami…he just seemed misplaced) asked us what we wanted done…debated (with himself) as to how much we should pay…and finally decided which girl would do our hair. he decided that the same girl should do both my hair and anna’s. why, you ask? i have no idea. it seems like it would’ve saved time to just have us each go to different girls…finish around the same time. i have no idea.

anyway…our girl had just finished setting up her area…and then had to move once miami man told her she’d be doing both me and anna. again…i have no idea why.

hair girl decided she’d do me first. great. no problem. she asks what i want done…and i tell her. i just want my hair straightened, and i want half of it pulled up. i don’t really care what you do to the top half…i just want it pulled up. i’ll give artistic license there. and off we go.

ok…she starts straightening my hair first. cool. now…i don’t straighten my hair…well, ever. but it has been straightened by bored roommates in college. and either colleen (bored college roommate) was just really fast…or hair girl was really slow. i’m leaning toward the latter. GENERALLY, THOSE PEOPLE IN TRAINING ARE VERY SLOW. ITS JUST THEIR WAY. as she was slow at pretty much everything she did. to both me and anna.

eight years later, she finishes straightening my hair. she then starts with the half-upsies. great. about damn time, even. i then have the thought…”is she braiding my hair? wait…i think she is. i am going to have to cut a bitch. or maybe i’ll just get beth ann to undo it. that’d probably be less of a hassle.” seriously. i was getting freaked out. turns out she just did some knot-twisty thing. which apparently was ok. i didn’t ever really see it. she also tried to talk me into letting her poof-ify the pulled-up section of hair. (dena: think beth ann. everyone else: think that weird thing natalie maines had going on a couple years back [beth ann’s was not that bad at all, for the record. it looked nice on her, even.].)

hair girl: “ok…do you want me to do anything with this top part?”
me: “look…no. you’ve already straightened. you’ve pulled up the top half. that’s all i want.”
hair girl: “are you sure? it’s kinda simple. nice…but simple.”
me: “i’m simple. please, for the love of god…just stop. let me up.”

then…anna’s turn.

i have to confess. i didn’t pay a ton of attention. i know hair girl talked about her sister’s (friend’s?) bachelorette party that was coming up that night. she and anna talked about being married (not to each other…just to clarify). hair girl also tried to talk anna into getting things done that anna didn’t want.

sixteen hours later, anna was done.

(side note: before anna was done, i went to the bathroom. they had up the creepiest painting of a little girl and a kitten with crazy devil eyes.)

with hair girl FINALLY finished with both of us…we hauled ass out of le baron. it took way longer than necessary.

anna and i were the first to arrive to the church. which was fine. we had a little lunch (provided by andrew’s mom) SOMEHOW, BY THIS POINT WE WERE ALL STARVING, INCLUDING ME, AND THERE WAS ONLY ENOUGH FOOD TO ADIQUATELY FEED ABOUT...OH....TWO OR THREE PEOPLE. NO OFFENSE TO DEBRA. WE JUST DIDN'T GET THE MEMO THAT WHEN SHE SAID SHE'D PROVIDE LUNCH, THAT MEANT "ABOUT A THIRD OF A SANDWHICH FOR 6 OR 8 PEOPLE. OH WELL. ANNA CONTEMPLATED MAKING A SONIC RUN. BUT SHE DIDN'T. and waited for the rest of the group to arrive.

dena was next to arrive. YES. I ARRIVED. DAD AND I DROVE TO THE CHURCH IN THE TRUCK. IT WAS A CUTE LITTLE MEMORY. I WAS A LITTLE FRANTIC THAT MORNING BECAUSE ANDREW HAD TAKEN MY CAR THE NIGHT BEFORE AND I DIDN'T HAVE A DEFINATE PLAN AS TO HOW I WAS GETTING TO THE CHURCH. SO I MADE DAD GO EARLIER THAN PLANNED. HEHE. we all ate a bit…steamed [dresses] a bit…sweated our balls off a bit…danced a bit. YES WE DID. SOMEBODY, I THINK IT WAS KATE, FOUND A BOOMBOX IN ANOTHER CLASSROOM AND BROUGHT IT IN AND WE CRANKED IT UP AND ROCKED OUT. IT WAS A NICE TENSION RELIEVER. SERIOUSLY. WE ACTUALLY DANCED. WE AREN'T KIDDING. then…it was time to change into dresses. not my favorite part of the day. but it was fine. THIS WAS A FUNNY TIME. EVERYONE IS HELPING EVERYONE GET DRESSED IN VARIOUS STATES OF THEIR OWN UNDRESS. ON A SOMEWHAT RELATED NOTE, MARIE, MY COUSIN, SHOWED UP WITH CLAIRE AND JOHN, THE FLOWER GIRL AND RING BEARER, HER KIDS, MY SECOND COUSINS.


we all got dressed…loaded up cars with our extra crap (so as to avoid doing that after the wedding)WHICH I'M SO GLAD WE DID, BECAUSE IT SAVED A TON OF TIME & CRAZINESS…and realized that andrew didn’t bring dena’s car to the church. he’s super crazy anti-car decorations. THIS WAS NOT MY FAVORITE NEW PIECE OF INFORMATION THAT DAY, JUST IN CASE YOU WONDERED. NOT AT ALL. it’s true. but he did avoid a decorated car.

it was also decided, without dena’s input, that anna would be barefoot for the wedding. I THINK I WAS ASKED OR SOMETHING. I REALLY DIDN'T CARE AT ALL. and i decided that i didn’t want to wear the gold flip-flops i’d gotten specifically for the wedding. so…i went with the tan ones i’d worn to the church. more comfortable.

then…picture time. the bridal party got to go first…which was fine with me. get it done, get it out of the way. SOMETIME AFTER THIS, WE WERE INFORMED BY MARIE, THAT AS SOON AS ALL THE BRIDESMAIDS HAD LEFT OUR GETTING-READY ROOM, CLAIRE PROMPTLY VOMITED IN THERE...WHILE WEARING HER DRESS...FOR THE SECOND TIME THAT DAY...THE FIRST TIME BEING AT ABOUT 4 AM. ALL WAS OK THOUGH BECAUSE THE SHOW WENT ON WITH NO MORE VOMITNG. THAT EXPLAINED WHY MARIE WAS HOLDING CLAIRE IN HER LAP AND FANNING HER FACE IN THE SANCTUARY WHILE WE WERE TAKING PICTURES. I WONDERED ABOUT THAT AT THE TIME. ALSO SOMEWHAT FUNNY: AFTER WE DID THE FIRST BATCH OF PICS & WALKED BACK INTO OUR GETTING-READY ROOM, ANNA POINTS AT THIS BEACH TOWEL IN A SACK AND IS LIKE, "WHOS IS THIS? WHY IS THIS HERE." A FEW MINUTES LATER IS WHEN WE FIND OUT THAT CLAIRE HAD VOMITED AND "THATS WHY IT SMELLS LIKE VOMIT IN HERE." AND "DONT' TOUCH THAT (TOWELL)! ITS ALL FULL OF VOMIT!" BY MARIE. THANK GOD WE HAD NOT TOUCHED THE TOWELL. AND FOR THE RECORD...NO ONE COULD SMELL VOMIT.

ENOUGH ABOUT VOMIT.

now…i don’t have much experience with wedding photographers…but is it common to make everyone lean? YOU KNOW. I WAS WEIRDED OUT ABOUT THE SAME THING. AND EARLIER IN THE WEEK WHEN ANDREW AND I HAD "ENGAGEMENT PICS" TAKEN, I WAS FREAKED OUT ABOUT IT THEN, TOO. BUT APPARANTLY, CHARLIE, OUR PHOTOGRAHER HAD JUST GOTTEN BACK FROM THIS PHOTO COURSE IN CALI AND HAD ALL THESE SWEET NEW TRICKS, AND THIS WAS ONE OF THEM. I'M STILL ANXIOUS TO SEE IF WE LOOK LIKE WE'RE SKIING OR NOT. in every picture? because he kinda weirded me out with all the leaning. am i just being weird? is leaning a part of wedding pictures that i was just unaware of? because i can accept that. in fact, it made me think of “spindle tree” by ryan long…not that anyone will know what i’m talking about. (since no one will know what i’m rambling about…in the song “spindle tree,” he talks about how “falling” is never really a good experience. so why do we “fall” in love? he says it’s actually more like leaning. one person leans…the other person leans…you meet in the middle. you support each other. it’s only falling if the other person doesn’t lean.)

ALSO IN HERE IS WHEN THE FLOWERS ARRIVED. WHICH I ALSO SHOULD NOTE MEANT THEY WERE HALF AN HOUR LATE. I HAD TO CALL THE FLORIST AND ASK WHERE THEY WERE. I WAS INFORMED THAT THE GIRL WHO WAS DELIVERING THEM WAS ON THE OTHER PHONE AND SHE WANTED TO KNOW WHERE THE CHURCH WAS FROM WHERE SHE WAS. THIS PISSED ME OFF, BECAUSE I HAD GIVEN THEM VERY CLEAR DRIVING INSTRUCTION, SO THERE WAS ABSOLUTELY NO NEED FOR THIS, AND THEY WERE HALF AN HOUR LATE. THE LADY SAID, "SHE'LL BE THERE ANY MINUTE" AND I SAID "THATS GOOD. BECAUSE PICTURES START IN FIVE MINUTES." (NOT KIDDING.) IT ALL WORKED OUT, THOUGH.

so…we (the bridesmaids) took pictures with dena. then we waited for the groomsmen to finish…and we took pictures with andrew. pictures all around. there were even a couple with dena kissing her guns. (turns out i did, in fact, have a ticket to the gun show.)

then…we waited. and found out that it was just our side of the hall that didn’t have air conditioning. so we swapped rooms. YES. AND THEN IT WAS ACTUALLY KIND OF COLD.

and then we waited some more.

KATE FORGOT TO TELL YOU ABOUT THE PART WHERE MY COUSIN FROM APPLETON CITY CAME INTO SAY HELLO BEFORE THE WEDDING. EXCEPT FOR THAT SHE DIDN'T LEAVE. SHE WOULDN'T LEAVE! SHE HAD TO TAKE SOME PICTURES. AND THEN SHE HAD TO TAKE SOME MORE. AND THEN SHE WANTED A FEW MORE. AND THEN, "OH COULD YOU STAND OVER THERE, FOR A MINUTE?" AND "OH, GIRLS, GET TOGETHER," WHILE I'M TRYING TO SIT DOWN FOR FIVE MINUTES AND JUST BREATHE. AND IT WOULD NOT STOP. I WAS LIKE SOMEBODY PLEASE SAVE ME. AND THEN SHE STILL DIDN'T LEAVE SOME MORE. AND THEN THERE WERE MORE PICTURES. I'D TURN AROUND AND THERE WOULD BE A FLASH IN MY FACE. AND THEN THERE WAS ANOTHER "STAND HERE" REQUEST. AND THEN WHEN WE THOUGHT SHE WAS DONE AND THAT SHE'D LEAVE, SHE WOULDN'T. THIS WENT ON FOR FAR TOO LONG.

SHE FINALLY LEFT. WHEW.

during the waiting…dena had to pee every five minutes. literally. YEAHHHHH...SHES NOT MAKING THIS UP, FOLKS. IN MY DEFENSE, I WILL SAY, THAT I WAS NERVOUSLY DRINKING BOTTLED WATER LIKE IT WAS GOING OUT OF STYLE, AND IT WAS GOING STRAIGHT THROUGH ME. EVERYONE KEPT TELLING ME TO STOP DRINKING IT, BUT I JUST COULDN'T STOP.

now…that wouldn’t normally be a big issue. an annoyance to her, sure. but not really an issue. well…it IS an issue when you’re in a wedding dress that has somewhere in the neighborhood of seventy-five layers. AAAAAND....EVERYBODY KEPT HAVING TO HELP ME HOLD UP THE LAYERS. IT WAS GOOD TIMES. ITS LIKE A 4 PERSON EVENT TO PEE IN THAT DRESS. FOR REALZ.

seriously.

every. five. minutes. ONCE AGAIN, NOT REMOTELY EXAGERATING, AT ALL.

and then, as if by providence, it was time for the ceremony. we (the bridal party) all lined up out in the hallway…where, of course, dena realized she had to pee again. that gets taken care of. she then realizes she has to go again. but we get her to hold it in. then we all realize we need to go to the bathroom. (”ya know…i kinda need to poop. no time! NO TIME!” we all held it in.) AND BECAUSE OF THIS, WE ARE CRACKING UP. ABSOLUTELY HYSTERICAL. AND ITS EVEN WORSE BECAUSE WE'RE DIRECTLY ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE SANCTUARY DOOR WHERE PEOPLE MIGHT HEAR US, SO OF COURSE THAT MAKES US GIGGLE EVEN MORE.

so…down the aisle we went. being the shortest bridesmaid, i went first. i’m not sure what my problem was…but that was the only part of the ceremony where i got a little emotional. not crying emotional. just maybe a little teary-eyed. no idea why. as soon as we were all down the aisle, i was fine. what the eff ever. AW

KATE, YOU LEFT OUT THE PART ABOUT US HAVING TO DUCK DOWN WHILE APPROACHING THE MAIN SANCTUARY DOOR IN THE HALL WAY, AND I STEPPED ON MY DRESS AND ALMOST FELL ON MY FACE. I DID THIS CRAZY AWESOME ICE SKATING MOVE.

ALSO, I DID NOT CRY LIKE I WAS SURE I WOULD. I'M PRETTY SURE IT WAS MAINLY DUE TO THE FOLLOWING: I HAD GOTTEN MY CRY OUT THE NIGHT BEFORE. AND WE HAD BEEN LAUGHING HYSTERICALLY LITERALLY SECONDS BEFORE THAT.

SO I WALK DOWN THE AISLE AND SEE ANDREW, AND HE WAS SO HANDSOME. HE WAS GRINNING SO SO SO BIG AND LOOKING AT ME THE WHOLE TIME. (AFTER THE WEDDING, BUBBY SAYS TO ME, "MAN, DENA, I KEPT LOOKING AT ANDREW AND HE WAS JUST TOTALLY LOCKED. IN. ON YOU. HE DIDN'T TAKE HIS EYES OFF YOU THE WHOLE TIME." AND I WAS LIKE, "I KNOW! IT KIND OF FREAKED ME OUT!" ALL THROUGH THE ENTIRE FIRST PART WHERE I WAS STANDING WITH MY DAD, ANDREW LITERALLY DID NOT LOOK AWAY FROM ME. NOT ONCE. I KEPT LOOKING AT THE PASTOR. THEN AT ANDREW. ...STILL LOOKING AT ME. REPEAT.)

it was a very lovely ceremony. there was the traditional wedding stuff…plus a hymn that i didn’t know (”the church’s one foundation”? i could be making that up.) YOU AREN'T MAKING THAT UP. …and a sermon. which the pastor claimed was ten minutes long…but i think he’s a liar. YEAH, I WAS THINKING THE SAME THING. MY BACK WAS HURTING SO BAD. I KEPT FIDGETING AND ANDREW KEPT SQUEEZING MY HAND AND TRYING TO HELP BALANCE ME WITH LITTLE HAND AND ARM MOVEMENTS THAT I CAN'T REALLY EXPLAIN. BUT THE WHOLE TIME I WAS THINKING, "WOULD IT BE HORRIBLY TACKY IF I REACHED BACK AND RUBBED MY LOWER BACK?" OF COURSE, KNOWING THAT IT WOULD BE, BUT IT WOULD HAVE BEEN A SWEET RELEASE. TRUST ME, THOSE BOOSTIEE THINGS ARE NOT WHAT THEY SHOULD BE. THE DRESS WAS SO DANG HEAVY. NOT COMFY AT ALL. not that there was anything wrong with it…it was, in fact, quite nice. i just don’t think he contained himself to ten minutes. there was much re-positioning by the bridesmaids. or at least this bridesmaid.

then…they were married! hooray for the barnes! WOOT WOOT!

then the new barnes couple and the rest of the wedding party formed a receiving line (is that the right term?) and shook hands with a ton of people. the highlight for me was seeing christina and the new baby i didn’t know she’d had. YES. HE WAS BORN IN MAY. I'M SORRY I FORGOT TO INFORM YOU OF THIS. ALSO. I'M PRETTY SURE I WAS SO EXCITED TO SEE NEW BABY MELVIN THAT I ACTUALLY ASKED, WITH GLEE, "CAN I HOLD HIM?!?!?!" OBVIOUSLY, GIVING NO REALISTIC THOUGHT TO ACTUALLY DOING SO, BUT I WANTED TO. SO BAD. AND IT JUST FLEW OUT OF MY MOUTH. so. cute. and i didn’t know that christina (plus kids) would be there…so it was nice to see them one last time. i even got a hug out of the deal. because i’m awesome. I WAS TOTALLY HYPED TO HUG CONNOR AND ELENA. AND I'M SO GLAD I GOT TO HAVE A LITTLE CHAT WITH CONNOR ABOUT THE TIRES AND BOB DYLAN. OH YES.

ok.

more pictures…more leaning. LOL.

then off to the reception. i got jeff (dena’s not-shy-at-all brother) to announce dena and andrew as they walked in. (literally…anna and i asked him in the parking lot of the church. we’re very last minute.)

not only did jeff announce them…he then set up a dvd he’d had made as a surprise for the new husband and wife. (he did, however, tell the bridesmaids about it at the rehearsal dinner…bwahahahaha!) they’d done separate interviews with someone (i have no idea who)MY BROTHER HAS A FRIEND WHO DOES PROFESSIONAL VIDEOGRAPHY…and their interviews had been cut together so that we first saw dena answering a question about andrew and then saw andrew answer the same question about dena. it was adorable. MY FAVORITE PART OF THE VIDEO IS WHEN ANDREW WAS ASKED, "IF DENA WERE A COLOR, WHAT WOULD SHE BE?" AND HE ANSWERED, "IF DENA WERE A COLOR...I THINK...SHE'D BE ...BLUE...BECAUSE BLUE IS MY FAVORITE...AND DENAS MY FAVORITE." TRUE STORY. ANDREW ACTUALLY SAID THAT.

so, obviously…they knew that’d been done. what they didn’t know (at least…i don’t think they knew) is that jeff had also gotten tons of pictures from fran (dena/jeff’s mom) and deborah (andrew’s mom) and made a slideshow of each of them growing up. EH. WE KIND OF SUSPECTED IT FOR SEVERAL REASONS. a baby picture of dena…then one of andrew…and so on up until now. NOT THAT I'M IN ANY HURRY, TRUST ME, BUT I ABSOLUTELY CAN NOT WAIT TO SEE OUR FUTURE KIDS. THEY ARE GOING TO BE REDICULOUSLY ADORABLE. JUST FOR THE RECORD. i think it was called “dena and andrew: a love story.” it was set to three songs…only two of which i can remember now. THATS BECAUSE THERE WERE ONLY TWO. “open arms” by journey (”their song”)…and “a page is turned” by bebo. WHICH I'M PRETTY CERTAIN I SANG ALONG. IN BETWEEN MY "OH, THAT PICTURE IS HORRIBLE. WHO PUT THAT ONE IN THERE?! I LOOK TOTALLY WIDE IN THAT SHOT." it was all very cute.

(this is taking way longer than i’d expected. bear with me.)

we all ate…WHICH WAS AWESOME BECAUSE ANDREW AND I ACTUALLY ATE WITHOUT NERVOUS STOMACHS. THE TWICE-BAKED-MASHED POTATOES WERE AWESOME. THE CHICKEN AND THE CORN, NOT SO MUCH. PORK WAS GOOD. BUT DRY. mingled…etc. the best man gave a speech…anna (matron of honor) gave a speech. then someone…and i forget who it was, but i’m thinking it was jeff…had the bright idea to pass the microphone all the way down the wedding party table. YEAH...THAT WAS KIND OF WEIRD. not my favorite. not only had i been wearing a dress all day. i had to speak..IN PUBLIC…WHILE BEING FILMED/PHOTOGRAPHED…while wearing a dress. i hope dena realizes how much i love her. INDEED, I DO.

ALSO. RANDOM PEOPLE STARTED MAKING SPEECHES. MY DAD GAVE A LITTLE ONE THAT MADE ABSOLUTELY NO SENSE, WHATSOEVER. AND IT WAS KIND OF EMBARASSING BECAUSE THERE WAS NO POINT. THERE WAS JUST THIS SILENCE WHEN EVERYONE REALIZED HE TALKED IN A CIRCLE. AND THEN A HALF AKWARD LAUGH FROM A FEW PEOPLE.

ANDREW AND I WERE TRYING TO MAKE OUR WAY AROUND TO GREET EVERYONE, BUT THEN PEOPLE KEPT GRABBING THE MIC AND SAYING THINGS, SO ANDREW AND I KEPT SITTING DOWN. IT WAS JUST AKWARD. AND THEN SOMEONE PASSED THE MIC TO ME AND ASKED IF I HAD ANYTHING TO SAY, (ARE YOU SERIOUS?) AND I SAID, "AS SOON AS Y'ALL GET DONE MAKING SPEACHES, WE WILL CONTINUE GREETING EVERYONE."

SOMEWHERE IN THERE, ALSO, DAD DECIDED HE WANTED A DANCE. UM. THERE CLEARLY WAS NO DANCING. THERE WAS A BACKGROUND CD. NO DANCING. BUT I WAS PUSHED TO DO SO, SO IN ORDER TO NOT CREATE A SCENE, I COMPLIED FOR A COUPLE MINS.

AND ANDREW WAS PUSHED TO DANCE WITH HIS MOM AT THIS TIME. HIS MOM AND HIM BOTH WERE LIKE WHAT THE HECK?

LATER, BUBBY NEEDED A DANCE. AND I WAS LIKE UM NO. BUT THEN I FELT LIKE A JERK. SO I DID FOR A MINUTE.

but i survived.

more eating…frozen cheesecake cutting (neither dena nor andrew like traditional wedding cake)…more mingling…more speeches. OK. SO THE CHEESECAKE PEOPLE TOLD US TO LET THEM SIT OUT AN HOUR BEFORE SERVING. THEY SAT OUT WELL OVER AN HOUR, AND WERE STILL IMPOSSIBLE TO CUT. ANDREW AND I WERE LITERALLY STABBING OUR CHEESECAKE WITH THE KNIFE AND IT WAS SLIDING ACROSS THE CAKE STAND, AND WE WERE USING ALL 4 OF OUR HANDS, AND IT WAS NOT GRACEFUL. I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THE VIDEO OF THAT. WE NEVER DID GET SLICES OUT. WE GOT THIS MANUVER WHERE WE KIND OF DID A JACK-UP-YOUR-CAR MOVE WITH THE KNIFE THAT GOT TWO SMALL BITS OFF, AND THATS WHAT WE FED TO ONEANOTHER. WE LAUGHED A LOT DURING THIS. (KATE, "I WRESTLED SATAN TO THE GROUND, AND I STABBED HIM WITH A KNIFE" JUST CAME TO MIND. LMAO.)

then…time for the after-party. this is where i realized i had a problem. i’d been riding with anna all day. good…fine. except she had to go home and pack up for her return drive to texas…so she wasn’t going to the after-party. and neither were any of the other bridesmaids. ooooook. i finally found someone i at least vaguely knew who was going…and who didn’t mind dropping me back by dena’s parents’ house afterwards. YESSSSS. SORRY KATE. I KIND OF DIDN'T PLAN FOR HELP FOR THIS. MY MIND WAS ELSEWHERE. I'M GLAD IT WORKED OUT, THOUGH.

i changed clothes (NO. MORE. DRESS!!) in anna’s car. (it should also be noted that casey and one of dena’s brothers walked through the parking lot at this point. just for the record.) HAHA. THATS AWESOME. YOU HAVE TO TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED WITH THIS. then i met back up with zach (my ride for the rest of the night), and we headed out to the sheraton for the after-party.

awesome.

we get to the sheraton. we look around…and find nobody. well…except renee. we saw her leaving the parking lot. but that doesn’t really count, i guess. we waited around…ordered a drink…and eventually saw jeff and olivia (dena’s brother and sister-in-law). i was pretty happy that they were the next to arrive…as they’re the only other people that i knew were coming that i’d spent any time around. i got to chat with jeff and olivia for a while…which was really nice, actually. olivia filled me in on their new business (and gave me the website for their travel agency)…we talked about travelling…very pleasant. i like them.

WHEN ANDREW AND I WALKED IN, BRIAN & ROXANNE WERE THE FIRST PEOPLE WE SAW. I WAS SO GLAD TO SEE THEM. NONE OF YOU KNOW WHO THEY ARE. SO NEVERMIND. LET ME JUST SAY THAT THIS PLACE WAS CHOSEN FOR OUR MEETING, SIGHT UNSEEN, AND I TRULY CAN NOT THINK OF MORE PERFECT SETTING THAN HOW IT ENDED UP. THE VIBE WAS AWESOME. AND THE WAY THE SEATING ARRANGEMENTS WERE, WAS AWESOME. I'M SORRY WE DIDN'T GET PICTURES.

PEOPLE BOUGHT ANDREW AND MY'S DRINKS. WHICH WAS SWEET ACTION. I HAD A BLAST TALKING TO EVERYONE. ANDREW'S FAMILY, DEBBIE SIMPSON, KATE, ZACH, ALL THE GROOMSMEN (EXCEPT DALE) AND THEIR WIVES. IT WAS SO. FUN. SERIOUSLY.

this is where it starts getting hazy.

i’m not sure if wearing a dress all day jacked up my body and made me afraid to fart or what…but i started getting crazy stabbing stomach pains. (which i eventually decided were gas pains. that lasted for over 24 hours. i hate my body.) i’m sure you’re all so happy to know that.

then our group grew. couple by couple. i figure we probably had at least twenty people at our peak. during this peak time…i had to take a time-out. i claimed an armchair and just watched some hockey while i was pretty sure something was trying to eat its way from my stomach to my belly button. I LOOKED OVER AT KATE AND SHE WAS CRYING. IT WAS SCARY. I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT WAS GOING ON. i finally scored some sweet drugs from dena (i think i ended up with aleve)…and that took enough of the edge off that i could function again. I'M GLAD. (i’m a pansy.) I LOVE PANSIES.

we all sat around…chatted…drank for a few hours. we had a great time. EVEN AFTER ONLY TWO DRINKS, I WAS SLIGHTLY BUZZED AND MORE THAN SLEEPY. IT WAS COMING TO THE END OF A LOVELY DAY.

then it was time for the new couple to go. (coughcakenightcough) INDEED. WHICH MADE IT VERY AKWARD WALKING OFF, HAND IN HAND TOGETHER. THERE WERE NO SECRETS ABOUT WHERE WE WERE GOING. HEEBEEJEEBEES.

they began saying their goodbyes. and that’s when i was especially glad that i’d wrangled a ride to the after-party. it was really nice to get a hug and few words with my dear friend. especially since we both knew it was the last time we’ll see each other for some time. we got to say that we loved each other. she, of course, already knew that i loved her, though. who else would i have worn a dress for all day? AW. THIS WAS A SPECIAL TIME.

we all headed out after that. or at least zach and i did. i think everyone else left soon after that though. i said goodbye to jeff, I ALSO FORGOT TO SAY BUBBY GAVE ME THE "I'LL ALWAYS BE YOUR BIG BUBBY AND IF YOU EVER NEED ME, I'LL BE THERE FOR YOU" SPEECH. WHICH WAS SLIGHTLY ALCOHOL INDUCED. BUT JUST MOSTLY, "THATS JUST MY BUBBY" INDUCED. got a goodbye hug from olivia, and hollered goodbye/waved (literally) to everyone else.

that’s pretty much the story of the wedding day.

jealous? you should be.

i was up for a little bit after i got back to dena’s parents’ house…but i don’t really remember what i did. which i think is appropriate. packing isn’t important. weddings and friends are.

sunday: woke up early-ish…finished packing…cleaned up the mess i’d made (deflated the air mattress, etc)…loaded up fran’s van.

i want everyone to take note of the next statement: fran and i had a completely non-frightening drive to the airport.

it’s true. and i’m pretty sure that’s the only time it’s ever happened. i am not exaggerating at all when i say i get nervous riding with her. she scares me.

but this drive was extremely pleasant. we talked…i wondered if i’d see her again…she didn’t bring us near death once.

amazing.

honestly.

a perfect ending to the weekend.

and now for some final random thoughts on the weekend.

before that wednesday night, i didn’t really know the other girls involved with the wedding at all. especially beth ann. i’d only met her once in passing back in january. and that made me a little nervous. the other three girls had known dena most of her life. i was very much the new kid in this group. (not that they made me feel like an outsider…it’s just a fact.) but i got to know these girls a little bit better over the weekend. beth ann even made me hug her twice by the time it was all said and done. it was such a relief to be “accepted” by the girls who’ve meant so much to dena for so long. I HAD SO MUCH FUN WITH ALL OF YOU. I AM SO THANKFUL I HAD THE BRIDESMAIDS I DID. IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN A MORE PERFECT REPRESENTATION OF MY DEAREST FRIENDS.

which sort of leads me to my last thought. i’d never been in a wedding before. which i’m completely ok with. and i’ll be completely ok if i’m never in another wedding. but as the weekend progressed, i realized how special it was to be involved. to have someone want you to be a part of something so big. in the end…being uncomfortable in a dress is not important. all that’s important is the love. *SNIFF* (NO, I'M NOT MOCKING YOU)

would dena’s wedding have been just as good if i hadn’t been there? of course. she would’ve been just fine. NO. I NEEDED YOU. i would’ve been fine to have just watched from any seat in the church. but it means a lot that she wanted me to be a part of that day. i’m not really sure how else to explain it without spouting off cheesy crap. so i’ll stop before i get to that point. it’s best for all of us.