Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Two moves, a wedding, a funeral, and family gatherings galore!


The moves
Two of my sisters shared a house for about two years, but as both were planning to get married soon, they decided it was time to part ways. Donnie and I spent about two weeks helping pack, move, and clean.

Angela moved into a condo, but Al was moving into a new house and it wasn't ready yet, so we helped move all of her stuff into a storage unit - actually it took three by the time everything was done! She has a lot of stuff...

The wedding
In addition to her big move, Al was preparing for her wedding, June 2. Yeah, I would not recommend scheduling a wedding and a move at the same time, but sometimes that's what you're handed.

Anyway, Al and her fiance Ura were married in an outdoor ceremony. It was nice, and thankfully the weather stayed cool..er. An outdoor wedding in Georgia in June could be disastrously hot, but everything seemed to work out perfectly that day.

I was the matron of honor, which meant Donnie was on baby duty all day. I try to explain that it is not babysitting when you take care of your own child, but that concept still eludes him. Anyway, the hotel was crazy that morning and Sydney did not get a nap, so at about 7:30 she was screaming and ready for bed. We left before the bouquet toss or their grand exit, but at least we were there for the important stuff. Overall, Sydney did really well and had lots of cousins to play with.

Here are a few pictures we took with our camera:







































And here is a link to the photographer


The Funeral

After the excitement of the wedding and moves faded away, we learned that a family friend passed away. She had been battling breast cancer for a few years. She had four children and 8 grandchildren. She was a very special person. She was very sweet and caring and it is sad to think she is no longer around. Granted, I have only had limited contact with her over the last 10 years or so, but she was my mom's friend and we all grew up with her children.


I attended the funeral with my parents and my sister Jana. It was a nice service - as far as funerals go. It was also good to see people I haven't seen in like 15 years.


Family Gatherings

Well, my family has never had a problem coming up with an excuse for a get together, but we may have outdone ourselves this month. Even if you take out everything wedding, moving, and funeral related, we still had birthdays and holidays to spend together.


For Memorial Day my parents had a barbecue at their house. It was nice to get together and we had the chance to finally meet Angela's boyfriend and his son. We're Southern, so naturally we are nosy and couldn't wait to meet them!


My Dad turned 61 in June and so we planned a party for him, but then had to postpone it because one of my sisters was in the hospital with pneumonia. We got together (well half of us)that night and had a birthday dinner anyway though.


The next week we got together for Father's Day and to celebrate my Dad's birthday with everyone. Donnie's sister and her family just moved to Atlanta and they were able to come also. It was fun to be together, but two of my brothers were missing. One is in Guam for two years working and the other went to play golf (it was his father's day too). Those of us there had a good time.


I know Donnie is happy to have family around. He loves my family, but its always nice to have your side around too. We're happy that they decided to move here.


We are spending the summer with my grandmother. Sydney has made herself right at home too! She loves the freedom she is enjoying, now that she can walk around with confidence and carry things with her.


Donnie bought her a purse after she kept trying to carry the diaper bag around everywhere - unsuccessfully I might add. She also likes to carry my wallet and cell phone around with her. She pulls out my cards and holds the phone to her ear and "talks." It is so cute...but kind of scarry too. I hope this isn't a glimpse into our future!


On the other hand, she is finally starting to enjoy playing with her toys by herself. She no longer needs me to press buttons or tickle Elmo for her. Most of the time, she gets mad at me if I do it - she's a big girl now ya know.

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