Holy Sacraments! (Part One)

You may remember that when we were in Connecticut we visited Aunt S & the Godfather and Aunt Kristi, Uncle Jerry & Emily's cousins, Sarah & Amy. What makes all of that funny is that they would all be showing up in Illinois in less than a week. You may be asking yourself, "Self, why did everyone come out to Illinois if they already got to see Emily?" Well the answer in quite simple . . . once you see Emily, you have to see her again! Oh, and my sister, Susie (sometimes known as the Aunt S imposter), was getting married.

For now, I will skip all the fun that we all had together in the 2 weeks leading up to the wedding (most of the CT crew arrived at the beginning of August and the wedding wasn't until the 11th), and start with the rehearsal dinner. Before I talk about that though I would like to ask, What is the point of a rehearsal dinner? I mean, everyone there, generally speaking, has eaten before, what is there to rehearse? It is not like you are even eating the same food that you will be having the next day, what if you are having steak at the wedding and pasta at the rehearsal. Those are two completely different eating experiences, two completely different skill sets. If someone could explain this I would really appreciate it.

So now, back on topic. We went to the rehearsal at the church, and despite Father Rich's suggestion that they could just do the deed right there and avoid all the craziness tomorrow, Susie and Carl opted to just rehearse. After it was all over, Emily & I rehearsed for Sunday's big event; when Father Rich saw us, he scolded us and said, "No jumping sacraments!!" So we stopped practicing and went to the restaurant for dinner. Now I should tell you that when my family gets together for dinner, we have a really good time. I feel a little sorry for Carl's family, they probably had no idea what they were getting into.

So on Saturday, the sun dawned on Susie's big day. Emily was very excited because she had been waiting a very long time to wear her pretty purple dress and she had also never been to a wedding and wanted to see what the hype was about. So we all got ready and headed over to the church, we anxiously awaited the start of the ceremony. Emily was so excited she promptly fell asleep for the entire thing. When she woke up, she was just beside herself that she missed it and hoped that Susie wouldn't find out that she slept through it (Oh, Susie, don't read the last couple of sentences, thanks). After the wedding, we left for the reception. Emily was very excited about this as well and was looking forward to all the dancing. Unfortunately, shortly after we got to the reception Grandma Kathy, Grandpa Jerry & Auntie Mandy came to pick Emily up so she could take naps in peace and be comfortable for the afternoon. We, on the other hand, had a great time at the reception.

Emily spent the rest of the day having fun with her Grandma Kathy, Grandpa Jerry & Auntie Mandy. She had lots of fun playing all day, although she was a little bummed that she missed the chocolate wedding cake and all the dancing. After the wedding we came by and worked with everyone to finish all the preparations for tomorrow's big event (not tomorrow of course, but the tomorrow that happened weeks and weeks ago, you know the day after the wedding, August 12th to be more precise).

And with that I will finish this post and we are one more post closer to getting all the way up to date!! Stay tuned for the next installment of "Holy Sacraments", same blog title, same blog location.

Susie & Carl rehearsing for their big day tomorrow.

The whole gang at the Old Country Buffet, for the rehearsal dinner.

Emily being the little ham as usual.

Aunt S and Amy making faces at Emily.

"Daddy, what is that? Is it a swimming pool? I thought swimming lessons were over..."

Emily & Daddy "rehearsing" for her big day on Sunday.

"...We never did this in swimming lessons."

We gather here today...

Susie & Carl with Father Rich and Deacon Bill

"Wow, Aunt Susie, this dress is really sparkly!"

A family portrait

The Newlyweds make their exit to the reception.

Mmmmm.....Chocolate Wedding Cake!

What a cute little family...

Such a silly little girl!

Mid-costume change, Emily takes a few minutes to play with Grandpa Jerry & Grandma Kathy.

Now comfortable in her "Monkey Butt" onesie, Emily continues to play with her toys and her toy box.

In the high chair....wearing a bib....eating a BOOK?

Taking a little snooze.

Now fed and refreshed, she continues playing with Grandpa Jerry...

...and Auntie Mandy.