The Second Annual Long-Slade Wedding

Finally, I'm getting around to posting about the highlight of my summer - Tim and Anna's wedding! Well, it was more like a weekend-long party combined with a renewal of vows, since they were already technically married. So Mitch and I got done with work on Friday, grabbed Gabe, and headed downstate. We stopped at my parents' house for a little bit but were soon comfortably settled into the cottage. Grant, Robin, Jerry and Darby met us there later on that night, and Tim and Anna came by for a quick visit, too. The guys were rocking out on their guitars...by the way, see the pictures from all the festivities at http://photos.yahoo.com/skibunny11282.

On Saturday morning, we were up bright and early so Mitch could take his motorcycle road test with Bobby. By 11:00 am, I was hanging out with everyone at McHattie Park, playing some kick-ass volleyball games. Tim's brothers, and two "brothers from other mothers," Jesse and Sebastian, were awesome players, but they couldn't handle the Alma team of Tim, Gabe, Jerry and (briefly, 'cause he got there very late) Mitch. Yay for my guys! After volleyball, it was a mad dash to get showered, dressed, and off to the rehearsal in Howell. The rehearsal dinner was a yummy, Mexican-themed event complete with a Mexican hat dance performed by Anna's younger brother, Daniel. Afterwards, the guys went off to their bachelor festivities (Ultimate Frisbee) and the gals headed to the bridal shower. Anna got so many awesome gifts and we played the coolest shower games ever. My favorite was the ring game: everyone got a fake, gaudy ring, but if you crossed your legs or uttered the words "Anna, Tim or wedding," whoever caught you got to take your ring. The object of the game was to have the most rings. I think I'm going to use that for the next shower I have to throw!

Around 10 pm, maybe, I headed back to the cottage along with Robin and Darby, only to find the living room overtake by 10-12 beer-drinking guys. Apparently my dad told them they could help him and his buddies finish off a keg of Bass, so they forewent (is that a word? the past tense of forego?) a trip to Hooter's or Buffalo Wildwings in favor of free beer. Well, there was only a little left in the keg when they got there, but they quickly remedied that situation with a trip to the party store. Around the time I got to the cottage, they were getting ready to go out on the pontoon, and I think they were out for a good 2-3 hours or so. Everyone had a great time, from what I heard!

On Sunday morning, Jon D., dad and Bobby came out to the cottage for some waterskiing. It was lots of fun, though I'd forgotten how to handle the sharp, whipping turns my dad uses in order to get the most out of the length of the lake. I was way more used to Jon's wide, sweeping turns on Lake Missaukee! Anyway, that was followed by yet another mad dash to shower, change, collect the gifts (we went in with Matt and Becky to get them a tent and some camping chairs) and make it to the church on time. We were a little late, but it was OK. The ceremony was absolutely beautiful...I thought Anna looked like a princess, but Daniel disagreed and said she looked like an angel. That's fitting, too. Tim and the groomsmen were so handsome, the music was lovely, and their dads, who performed the ceremony, had just the right combination of humor and seriousness.

Since there was some downtime between the ceremony and reception, a bunch of us went to Mr. B's in Howell for appetizers. On the way to the reception, we passed Tim and Anna in their horsedrawn carriage...aww! Just like a fairytale. Dinner was tasty and we were all kept very entertained by the "copy kisses." Couples were called to kiss anytime people clinked their glasses, and then Tim and Anna had to kiss however that particular couple kissed. Mitch swooped my up into his arms, but the two most creative couples were Dan and Vicky (he flipped her over his shoulder) and Ed and Shannon, two dancers from Alma who executed a perfect parntering lift on the dance floor.

We ate, drank, danced, laughed and shared stories all night long. For me, one of the best parts of the wedding was the chance to reconnect with an old friend, Bruce. Bruce went to Alma for two years, then left and eventually joined the Marines. We didn't part on particularly good terms, but time and God's love can heal just about anything, and by the time I hugged Bruce before the wedding ceremony, I felt nothing but joy and relief that he made it through his first tour in Iraq. Throughout the evening, he told us stories of boot camp and being overseas...I had forgotten what a good storyteller he is! If I ever have a son who wants to join the Marines, I'll make sure he talks to Bruce first so he has the whole picture before he makes a commitment! Anyway, I'm thankful that we are blessed with Bruce's renewed presence in our lives.

After the reception, I went out on the pontoon with Mitch, Jen, Bruce, Jerry and Darby. Unfortunately, we ended up stuck in the middle of the lake with a dead battery, so Mitch and I had to swim in to shore (yes, we had floatation devices) and get the Malibu to tow them back in. Nothing like cutting through a stranger's yard, dripping wet, at 2 am!

On Monday, we had kind of a "last hurrah" and met at Cracker Barrell for brunch. Mitch took Tim on a motorcycle ride - "I want one," were Tim's first words when they got back! Then we all kind of went our separate ways, with promises from Tim and Bruce to come up to Alma later in the week for volleyball and climbing, respectively. They did, too...Tim on Tuesday, Bruce last night. This event brought together many of us who have been at very different places for a long time and I'm so eternally grateful. We now have plans to reunite at Thanksgiving (it will be a truly "thank-full" holiday) and possibly New Year's Eve. What a wonderful, wonderful time!