*Edited 8/1 after I double checked my program*

I love these opportunities to go back and remember my day....

Choosing my bridesmaid's dresses was a challenge for me. I was so conscious of not asking them to spend too much. And I had some pretty tall girls who required extra length, so that negated some of my choices. All I really cared about was that they're blue! I wanted bold, bright, vibrant colors for my wedding. The church had red carpet, so I wanted the dresses / wedding to not clash terribly with it!





My bridesmaids are the sisters I never had. I was blessed to grow up in a small town and I've known most of my friends since my earliest memories. I'll introduce you to the girls from left to right:

Karin is my "sister" from Sweden. She was an exchange student who lived with our family for a year while I was a junior and she was a senior in high school. She fit so well into our family, and I look forward to an opportunity to go visit her in Sweden in the (hopefully) near future.

Bridget was my Maid of Honor. She and I went to pre-school together, and really just grew up together. She and I also stayed in close contact through college, despite going to different schools. She's one of those people who would do anything for another person, and she means the world to me.

Ann is my "sister" through marriage. She's Jon's youngest sibling and only sister. She was only 17 (I think?) when we got married -- she was between her junior and senior year of high school. I believe she took her finals and then their family loaded up the vehicle to drive from Oregon to South Dakota for the wedding. Can you say WIPED OUT? She's now married and has two beautiful girls of her own. I've enjoyed getting to know her over the past 11 years -- she's an inspiring person.

Tara is my first friend. She lived a few houses down from me, and my earliest memories (and even before I have memories) -- she's in them. She had been by my side through literally every event in my life, and I couldn't imagine getting married without her standing up for me. She's also got children of her own now -- the cutest pair of twins you'll ever meet!

Our flowers were kind of funny... well, not funny, they were beautiful. But how they came about is funny. I love to look at flowers, but really, I've got no clue about flowers. We went into the flower shop (the only one in my home town), and I said, "I want red, yellow, blue, and green.... you know how to make them pretty." And that's what I got! HA HA! We were married in 1998, which was right when the clutch style of bouquets was starting and the cascade style was ending (at least that was the case in SD). I saw the clutch style and immediately wrinkled my nose -- I didn't like it at all. I wanted the "wedding" look of cascading flowers. Of course, now I prefer the clutch style -- but it usually takes me a few years to accept the new "in" thing.

The Bible that our hands are resting on was carried by my Grandma and Mom in their weddings. My Mom gave it to me, but told me it's really hard to carry and she recommended that I not carry it. So instead, we put it on the table with our unit candle. So practical! :)




This photo kind of shows our unity candle. While we lit it, my brother and the other two soloists (fellow choir members from college) sang, "Shine On Us" by Phillips Craig and Dean. I still just absolutely LOVE that song.

Our unity candle was actually glass oil candles. We had the center one engraved with our name and the date. The side candles were taper candles. I love our unity candle!




This last photo shows a table that was really important for me to include. It was stationed at the back of the church, and we called it our "Legacy of Love" table. We're so fortunate to both come from homes with rock solid marriages founded in Christ. Not only our parents, but our Grandparents. So the table showed photos of our Grandparents and Parents weddings, as well as our engagement picture. We're thankful for that legacy that they've given us, and blessed to be continuing it...for better or worse!

The funny thing about reflecting on my wedding.... More than anything else, I knew what I wanted to have sung at my wedding. I went to college on a choir scholarship, and music was just the be-all and end-all. Yet now, I don't remember the music I chose. So here's what I think we had...

- Pre-Wedding Solo: "In this Very Room" by Ron Harris Oops! It was actually "Surely the Presence of the Lord is in this Place" by Lanny Wolfe

- Walking into the Church: "Canon in D" by Pachelbel

- Bridal Entrance: "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring"

- First Song: "There is Love" by Paul Stookey (my dad used to be in a quartet and would sing this for weddings - I've loved it ever since."

- Unity Candle Song: the aforementioned "Shine On Us" by Phillips Craig and Dean

- Song After Vows/Rings: "I Will be Here" by Steven Curtis Chapman and sung by my brother. It was the ONE song Jon requested, so of course we had to have it.

- Blessing Song: This is the one I can't remember, but need to find (I'll look when I get home). My Dad, Jon's Mom, My Aunt, and Jon's Aunt sang a blessing song for us. It was the neatest thing. I loved it! Found it! "Go Now in Peace" by Price and Besig. It's an SATB arrangement for choirs. I urge you to go listen to it on You Tube. I hadn't heard it since our wedding, and it still moves me.

- Exit Music: "Hornpipe"

- Return to the Church for Dismissal: "Ode to Joy"

I wanted to include the lyrics for "Go Now in Peace" -- remember it was my Dad, Jon's Mom, my Aunt (who's my Godmother), and Jon's Aunt who sung it -- so special!

I think I put most of the details on our bird feeder on the kids' blog. Amara has mastered the cardinal call, and we wanted to be able to watch the birds up close instead of hunting for them in the trees.

We did get birds... cardinals, chickadees, and the tufted titmouse mostly.

But we also fought off some squirrels.

Tonight, Jon just said, "We've got a raccoon on the deck. I got up and watched it. Then I dashed to the kitchen to take a picture of it as it was perched on the deck railing.

I thought for sure it was going to go after the grease droppings from the grill, or maybe food that fell off the table.

Then I realized there were two!!!!

Look what this little wily guy figured out how to do... (this pole extends about 5 feet off of our deck)

And look at his little friend surveying the scene and keeping a watch out for me standing in the kitchen door. That was a little creepy to be watched by the masked bandits. It'd be cute... if it wasn't a coon!



They weren't able to figure out how to get at the food, which is good. But I think once our bag of bird seed is done, we're not buying anymore. Squirrels on the deck I can handle.

Coons.... not so much!

I found another little Blog Hop -- actually, it's an every Tuesday Blog Hop called "Ten On Tuesday". Today's theme is your Ten Favorite Sounds. I thought it sounded like another fun one to participate in.

1. My children's laughter -- the sound of a laughing child is simply music to my ears. It speaks of hope, joy, love -- all things positive and innocent. There's a purity to children's laughter that can't be found anywhere else.
"The laughter of adults was always very different from the laughter of children. The former indicated a recognition of the familiar, but in children it came from the shock of the new." Author: Elizabeth Hardwick

2. My children's singing -- again, a sound so pure it moves me nearly to tears. And their memories of the words and the tunes is shocking to me. My daughter "wrote" a song the other day -- she probably sang for 5 minutes straight. Interwoven into her song was every single Bible lesson she'd ever learned. It was so beautifully sweet.
"A bird doesn't sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song." Author: Maya Angelou

3. My husband or my children saying telling me, "I love you."
"Who, being loved, is poor?" Author: Oscar Wilde

4. The sound of praise music -- particularly if it's sung a cappella in beautiful harmony. My family is one that sings "Happy Birthday" and "The Doxology" in harmony. There's nothing quite like it! I also love it when it's sung accompanied by a guitar in the form of campfire songs.
"O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation." Psalms 95:1-2, KJV

5. The crackle of a fire -- home fire, camp fire -- fires make me think of warmth, security, and belonging. If you partner them with the sound of guitar accompanied praise music, fires send me back to the days of my youth at Bible Camp and the days of college when I was a counselor there. Powerful days. Formative days. Magical days.
"It only takes a spark to get a fire going, but soon all those are warmed up with its glowing. That's how it is with God's love. Once you've experienced it, you spread His love to everyone. You want to pass it on." Campfire Song "Pass it On"

6. The waves slowly lapping the shore -- one of my favorite places to sit is on our back deck in the evening listening to the waves gently lap the shore. It's so calming and peaceful. It washes away all the day's stresses.
"Sit in reverie, and watch the changing color of the waves that break upon the idle seashore of the mind." Author: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

7. Crickets chirping at night -- I know the photo is of lightning bugs, but lightning bugs don't make noise. And crickets chirping say "summertime" to me, which also make me think of lightning bugs. Does that just feel like a perfect summer night!?
"In summer, the song sings itself." Author: William Carlos Williams

8. The wind rustling through the leaves as the birds sing -- another night time on the deck sound that just speaks peace to me.
"What is the good of your stars and trees, your sunrise and the wind, if they do not enter into our daily lives?" Author: E. M. Forster

9. The sound of the cheering crowd -- this is a photo of my alma mater's football crowd. I'm a sports nut. I used to play them, now I just enjoy watching them. I especially love the electricity of sitting in the hometown crowd of my favorite team -- whatever the sport. Just a bit of the Glory Days shining through!
Sports do not build character. They reveal it. Author: Heywood Broun

10. The sound of revving motorcycles or diesel engines -- an odd sound, to be sure. But to me, it's the sound of my husband coming home.
"Only a biker knows why a dog sticks his head out of a car window." Author: Unknown

I ran across a Blog Hop hosted by Brent Riggs that looked like it would be kind of fun to join. I just hope that I get it figured out and posted correctly! :)

For this particular week, the theme is "Favorite Photo," and I confess, I can't narrow it down to just one. I was thinking about it this morning... and I think my favorite photos have only a little bit to do with the quality of the photo itself. They have more to do with my memory of the event behind the photo. The mood of that particular day. The big hug and adorable giggle given by my kids immediately following the shot.

Can you remember your earliest childhood memories? Are they true memories, or are they driven by the photos of the event? I know my parents took us on many vacations -- some larger, such as Disney World and the Oregon Coast - but many of them just local camping or fishing trips, trips to see the local flavor. I have so many incredible memories of those trips. But in truth -- I think many of my memories are only due to the photos.

And for this reason, I'm a photo junkie! I want my kids to have the same incredible memories of their childhood -- both real and in photos!

So my first favorite photo (in no particular order) was taken about 3 years go when we lived in Cincinnati. We had recently moved into our new house, and we were playing on the jungle gym the old owners had left in the backyard (before it was picked up). My daughter, Amara, couldn't yet walk, but we were playing under the canopy just getting ready to go down the slide. My sister-in-law snapped this photo, and it's probably my favorite photo of all time. It shows the joy of being a new mom, the love between the two of us, the trust my daughter has. It shows the newness of life and the incredible hope and trust and joy that lies in everything that is to be for that little girl.

My second favorite photo was taken last November. For the first time, we live under a canopy of beautiful trees. They're awesome MOST of the year -- except for allergy and raking season! The kids loved to rake the pile together and jump and play in them. It was their first experience in doing so, and they had a ball. I told them to give each other a kiss, but didn't really expect cooperation (they were 2 and 4 -- why would they cooperate!?). But the result is this photo. I made it into a digital scrapbook page and added the words to "Up to the Moon" by Kim Hill (I think that's the title).



My third favorite photo was taken last Halloween night. We live on a tiny secluded street (i.e. we have 4 neighbors), and there are no other kids who live on it. Our street is very steep and poorly lit. We knew that there would be no trick-or-treaters, and we knew that our 4 neighbors had likely never had any before. But we wanted to share some of "the joy of youth" with them (they're all grandparents themselves). So we dressed the kids up in their costumes, bought some mums at a local greenhouse, put the mums in wagons, and trick-or-treated our neighbors -- bringing THEM the treats instead of the other way around. It was such a fun memory, and something we'll look forward to doing in years to come.



Now it's your turn! Join the "Favorite Photo" blog train!

I've had the unique opportunity to watch this event come to life from the beginning. We were in a hotel in Des Moines when Jon's friend, Mike, called with this idea.

In only a month, Mike, along with the help of others that he has listed at The Cobblestone Project, the event will be held tonight. And I will be there to be counted.

I'm excited to go. I'm excited to take the kids.

The guest speaker will be Mark Horvath, who is a former homeless person currently on a road trip interviewing homeless people across America -- giving them a name. He's the founder of InvisiblePeople.tv. Go check out some of his videos and interviews. They're very powerful.

My husband has been in non-profits since graduating from college. Until last year, he worked with troubled kids. Last year, he had the opportunity to become the Executive Director of a homeless center. It has been eye opening for both of us.

Just last weekend, we passed a homeless person on the corner of the interstate exit. Off the cuff, I asked Jon if he knew the man. Jon nodded, "Yep, he's a regular."

For the first time in my life, homelessness DOES have a name.

Does it for you?

I urge you, if you're able: Stand Up and Be Counted!

Or at least check out:
The Cobblestone Project / 1,287
InvisiblePeople.tv
Mark Horvath's Blog
and think about ways that you can make a difference in your community.

One of the blogs I discovered when we were church searching was Kelly's Korner, and I like to go back weekly (or sometimes more often) to check on her beautiful family and be inspired by her words. I know that I recently posted about my wedding and anniversary, but today she's hosting a "Show Us Your Life" blog hop with "Wedding Dress" as the theme, so I thought I'd play along.

Like Kelly, when I was married, there really were no digital photos to be had. I really got addicted to digital scrapping when Amara was born, but had never gotten around to doing anything with our wedding photos. Last summer, with our 10th Anniversary approaching, I decided I needed to change all that! So I scanned in my wedding photos and created an album for us to have as a permanent keepsake. Not that the photos aren't permanent, but it's fun to have them in a book. I even shared my scrapbook journey and provided free templates to other digital scrappers who were having the same dilemma: the need to scrap their wedding photos! It was such a fun journey, and I met lots of wonderful people through the sharing of templates. Now if only I still had time to do so much scrapping! Good thing I took on my project when I did, because it wouldn't have been completed had I waited to do it for our 11th Anniversary, which we just celebrated in June.

So... now onto the dress... (I've edited out my full name and details, hence some of the blur.)

I can't believe it, but I really didn't take the traditional "solo bride" photos. I had a whopping ONE photograph of me alone. ONE! That just doesn't happen. I never had bridal portraits done or anything -- it's just not a common thing to do in the north, I don't think. Or at least not where I was from. Or maybe just not for me? I tend to be oblivious to things like that! :)

I got my dress at Jean's Bridal in Wilmot, SD. It's a tiny little town of about 515 people...total. Yes, that's five HUNDRED and fifteen. However, this tiny little town draws brides from all over the place -- SD, MN, ND, IA, and from much farther than that as well. When I first tried on the dress, I loved it from the front, but it had the biggest, most hideous "butt bow" that I've ever seen. I immediately told my Mom, "No, absolutely not!" and began to take it off. She slowed me down and gathered the bow, then asked, "How about now? It's easy enough to take off the bow (yes, she's a seamstress)." Perfect. Loved it!

I wish you could see the train better -- it was so pretty. It has scalloped edges and cut outs with lace and beads. I thought for sure I wanted simple with no lace and beads -- I hate lace and beads! :) But the simplicity of the skirt and the cut of the dress was just "me" -- that for this one day, I could be "girly" and go with the lace and beads. They were subtle. :)



I wasn't a fan of veils in general, and really only wanted it for tradition. As soon as the wedding was over, I took the veil off and just wore the beaded crown. It was a pattern that looked almost braided. While I loved it that day (which is what really matters), my hair/veil are probably the biggest thing I'd change if I were to marry Jon all over again tomorrow. The dress, believe it or not, I still love, and I'd still opt for a similar style. Again, you can't see the veil/crown too well in this photo. But I love the photo! :)



This is my favorite photo from our wedding. My Grandpa has this awesome cherry red classic Chevy. He was our chauffer for the wedding to the reception. When the wedding was done and we were greeting our guests, he went to pick up his car, which was stored at a friends' house who lived close to the church (he didn't want to risk it getting "decorated" -- and for good reason!). He also changed into a tux complete with black top hat and cane, and he rolled out a little red carpet for us. It was so sweet! Obviously it's Jon and I in the car, but it's my Grandma and Grandpa behind the car. We've been blessed by many generations of strong, longlasting marriages built with God as the foundation, and this photo, to me, just speaks to that legacy.

Last night while getting ready for bed, Amara said, "What the halibut?"

I stopped in my tracks. I asked her where she heard that. You see, I didn't hear "halibut" -- I heard the crude phrase "halibut" replaced.

She informed me that Oscar (the fish) says it in the movie (Shark Tale). Only then, did I realize she had said "halibut" instead of the other option.

I then had to go into a long explanation of why we shouldn't say things, sometimes movies do say things we shouldn't, etc., etc., etc. Not the type of conversation that I'd like to get into at bedtime, but necessary all the same.

Then I got to thinking how perturbed I was at the movie "Shark Tale" for throwing the unnecessary pun into the movie. And I began recounting the number of kids' movies that have very adult humor or situations in them.

I think it was back in 2001 when there were two animated movies released at nearly the same time: "Monsters, Inc." and "Shrek." I saw both of them. I didn't have kids yet at that point. I thought "Monsters, Inc." was so creative and fun. My husband thought so, too. I left "Shrek" appalled at the idea that this was being marketed as a kids movie. I didn't think it appropriate for kids at all!

Now of course, I'm just one person, and I won't let my kids watch "SpongeBob" either....

I definitely understand the desire and motivation behind making a kids' movie fun for adults to watch, too. And I admire those movies that can pull it off. But not many are able to without resorting to crude language or inferences.

Even Dominic's beloved "Cars" has a line in it that makes me cringe every time. I forget exactly how it goes, but it revolves around the word "piston" if memory serves.

Why!?

There are other ways to make adults laugh. And part of the enjoyment of the movie is watching it with your kids and seeing THEIR enjoyment. The adult humor, situations, and language don't enhance the movie -- and there are more creative ways to slip in adult humor than resorting to crass phrases camouflaged as puns.

But perhaps I stand alone on this one. Or at least my husband and I do!

I wish I had a photo.

Truly.

We had our Class of 94 girls weekend this past weekend at Lewis and Clark Reservoir. The girls have been doing it for 9 years, but this is the first year I've been able to make it. My high school friends are wonderful people who literally make up my earliest memories. I've known most of them since Kindergarten or earlier! They mean the world to me, despite the miles between us and the months between visits.

This weekend our cabin's grill was on the fritz. The gas worked, but the ignitor wouldn't. Our old grill was like that -- the ignitor completely dead -- so I volunteered to start the grill, sans ignitor.

You know where this is going, don't you...

I walked out to the grill, and the gas smell was so strong. We turned it off to let it dissipate. I checked all the connections, but everything looked fine. Then I went inside to find something to serve as a long match. I decided upon a folded flat, used-up paper towel roll. Then I had to find someone with a lighter. All this took about 5 minutes. I thought that was probably long enough for the gas to dissipate.

So Joan and I approached the grill. Unfortunately out of order, I turned on the grill, then lit the end of the papert towel roll (which didn't light as easily as I had anticipated).

I slowly put the paper towel roll into the grill.

Suddenly: whoosh!!!

Followed immediately with: sssssssss.

I'm sure in the ball of flame I closed my eyes, but quickly opened them WIDE searching out just how much of my hair was on fire.

Thankfully nothing as actually aflame.

But I did singe a nice chunk of my hair on the left side of my head, my right eyebrow, and the baby hairs on my hairline.

Yikes!!! (Again, thankfully none of it's noticable - the the smell is still with me a couple days later).

Realizing that I'm OK (as confirmed by a very concerned Joan), I grinned as a plan unfolded in my mind. I quickly moved out of sight from the rest of the girls in the house. I ratted my hair up just as high as it could go. Then I took the soot from the paper towel roll and dabbed it all over my face. Joan and I were laughing so hard I was crying.

Then I went inside, tears of laughter actually looking like tears of hysteria. With my hair a mess and soot all over my face, I said, "Oh my gosh, you guys! Did you see that?!"

My friends had looks of horror on their faces. Leah came running over and shook my shoulders saying, "I told you not to do it!!! I told you!!!" Bridget looked a little bit sick and speechless. She kept saying, "Are you serious? Did that really happen? Are you OK?" Tears were in her eyes.

I kept telling them that yes, the grill blew up in my face...which it did. The horror on their faces continued.

Finally I broke down and told them the truth, that while the grill DID blow up on me, ither than a couple singed places, I was completely fine and unharmed.

I got 'em good!!! Ha ha ha!!!

I've been SO bad about keeping up with my blogs. In an attempt to streamline and do a better job of preserving the kids' childhood (since I'm so far behind in scrapbooking), as well as capture their funny antics, I'm going to attempt to make my OTHER blog (The Adventures of Amara & Dominic) more of a "week in review" type thing, rather than random posts as they occur.

As for this blog... it may get more neglected. It will probably be more of just general thoughts. Inspirations from Bible Study. Observations about the world. Who knows. I started blogging to preserve the KIDS' events though, not my thoughts, so like I said -- this blog will probably get neglected. Who knows if I'll be able to stick to my own assigned schedule, but I'll try.

Here's the ONLY time I'll duplicate what's on my other blog on this one -- and a sneak peek of what you'll see if you go over there instead (which is fine).

Last week was a very eventful week. Busy and hectic, but all wonderful.