Tuesday, November 11, 2008

The Hero Bride

We had a fantabulous time in Austin this weekend. My friend Shannon got married and her family threw the best wedding weekend ever. We left saying, "Same time, same place next weekend?" It was so good hanging out with old friends we hadn't seen in ages and meeting some new ones too.


But first I'll tell you why Shannon is my hero. She did an outdoor wedding. In Texas. Where the all the rumors of the weather changing quickly are very true. It was gorgeous though, both the setting and the weather...just amazing. Here is a glimpse of our view, although the venue's website does it better.

I love outdoor weddings. I just wasn't brave enough to try to pull one off. Of course we would have had to choose a different month or a different state, because July and Texas aren't a good combo for an outdoor event that would have involved me in full makeup wearing yards and yards of hot material.

She's also my hero for not only making a grand entrance, but also a grand exit, on the stairs you see behind her here. In strappy heels. Without falling. That's pretty heroic in my book.

We decided to make it a weekend getaway minus the children. It was a very kid friendly event actually, but it is rare that we spend time as a couple without the kids. Usually it is so we can get a house project done or we keep one of them with us because they are ill and send the other one on to healthy land.

We did miss Lily right off the bat. Mainly because she would have represented us well on the dance floor. That lasted about 2.5 seconds though until the kiddie dancing turned into kiddie dragging races and their stained dress clothes would have given even Tide a challenge. That is when we sat back and sipped our beverages and were thankful we didn't have anyone to corral off the dance floor.

It was a morning wedding followed by a delicious brunch. So while I'm sure many couples took in some Austin sights that afternoon, the fact that we had been up since 5 AM coupled by some very tasty mimosas, made us head back to the hotel for a nap. A two hour nap. I'm not ashamed to admit that it produced drool on my pillow. To me, that is just a symbol of some much needed good deep sleep.

We did wake up in time to head to the evening wedding gathering at North By Northwest. What a fun place...live music, excellent food and some great handcrafted brews on tap. One last hug for the bride and groom and well wishes for their honeymoon not to be effected by the latest hurricane.

Barnes and Noble was our next stop, where I got far enough into Same Kind of Different As Me that I wish I had bought it to read on the way home. But my senses told me I could get it for half price on Amazon.com, and they were right.

Then Changeling kept us out past a typical babysitter's curfew. It was excellent. A thumb's up from both of us, which is rare. Even rarer is staying up late paired with getting to sleep in late, plus breakfast awaiting us downstairs. Glorious.

The only downside to the weekend was that we didn't get to meet up with our good friends who recently moved to the area. They had an Aggie game to go to though and since I set the Texas weather rumor straight, I met as well set the football one straight too. It doesn't matter if it is high school, college, or NFL football...it's all serious in these parts.

Thanks to my sweet in-laws for entertaining the girls all weekend. Oh the kisses and hugs and squeals of delight that were shared when we saw Lily and Jade again. Precious moments.

I got a nice e-mail yesterday from my mother-in-law saying that although they had gone to bed at the same time as the girls each night (sheer exhaustion I'm sure), they were sad to now be going to bed without all of the hugs and kisses from our girls. She then went on to tell me how angelic, precious, and perfect they were all weekend.

Do you think I should reply now telling her of our plans for a long 10th anniversary trip next summer?

10 comments:

Sara@iSass said...

Book 'em! Book 'em NOW!
Your weekend sounded glorious,as you said. I love weddings. Just love them. As long as it's not mine. I stressed about everything being perfect and had no true rock to say it would all be fine and beautiful. It WAS fine and beautiful but if a bride doesn't hear that validation every five seconds...well...
Mimosas, brunch, pretty dresses, dancing , NO children. Oh delightful.
PS Love the pic of your family there between the girls. cute cute cute!
I am so glad to hear of your wonderful time.

Jenni S. said...

Looks like a great weekend! By the way, I have read Same Kind of Different... and LOVED it! It was a wonderful and challenging book and worth every second! Hope you enjoy it too.

The Sullivan Sitcom said...

Sounds like a wonderful weekend! Our kids spent the night with their cousins on Saturday night, so hubby and I slept in till 8:00, it felt so good.

I would totally book the P's now too! At least put it in their heads so they don't leave for a 4 month vacation.

BTW - Hope you ate some cake for me!

Monica said...

I can understand why she would be your hero. I got married in Louisiana in August. Not a chance of even thinking about an outdoor wedding. Whimp? Sure.

P.S. I found you on Jamie's site.

Jackie said...

A getaway weekend? With just the two of you? That has never happened in my post-Savannah life. It sounds....well, heavenly.

Your friend was such a beautiful bride! And brave to plan an outdoor wedding.

We had an outdoor wedding that almost made my mother have a heart attack...it started raining about an hour before the ceremony...I mean, it was just POURING. She was freaking out...me, not so much. I was determined that nothing would ruin my day. :) And then the sun came out and it was glorious.

Carolina Mama said...

What a fun time in Austin! And the wedding looked beautiful.

Growin' With It said...

a sweet weekend away alone...what's that? sounds like planning for another one is a perfect idea! ;o)

Wilson Family said...

Oh how jealous I am!!!

jennifer said...

what a brave girl.

i wish i had been brave enough to do an outdoor wedding...

No Chub Club said...

I saw Changeling too. Very disturbing but good. I was with some friends and David would have hated it. He likes to go to movies to escape reality : )

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