Home from Camp

Hubby and I are home from a week of camping at the family campground at church camp. We spent a wonderful week in New Hampshire with a lot of other families from our church who enjoy this same week away. The weather was great, we slept more, ate a lot more, read, relaxed, sat on the beach, swam, talked and talked, and made s'mores over the fire. I love that we spend this week with our friends who, like us, enjoy a week away amidst the pines, chipmunks, and red squirrels. This year, more than ever before, we had to safeguard all our food and equipment from these little creatures, or "mini-bears" as Hubby calls them. They were very agressive....one red squirrel even climbed up on my chair while I enjoyed a few cashews with my glass of wine. Eeeek!!!

Here is a photo of our campsite while we were in the process of taking everything down for the trip home. I had totally forgotten to take any pictures this year, so this one just captures our screenroom and "big blue tarp" just before they came down. Darling Daughter is sitting on one of the chairs. Yes, the newlyweds are home from their honeymoon and joined us at camp for the weekend. When I asked DD if this is the way she wanted to end her honeymoon, camping with Mom and Dad, she said, "Of course, otherwise I won't get a chance to come to camp this year!". That is how much she loves it there. We really enjoyed having them with us and they were the center of attention with all our friends. So nice!

Since we got home I've been doing laundry and cleaning all our equipment. The one problem with camping is that everything, including us, comes home dirty. It's such a big job, but certainly worth it. We're back on the normal eating plan now...no more roving cocktail hours with friends, or s'mores, or doughboys, or eating big dinners at the conference center. Ah, camping is a once a year tradition that is absolutely one of my favorite things to do.

A Beautiful Wedding!

Our Darling Daughter was married last Saturday in a beautiful ceremony marking the beginning of her life with the man she loves with all her heart. They were so happy, so in love, and so thrilled to be surrounded by all the friends and family who love them so much. We are thrilled that we have another son to add to our family. He is funny, kind, and so very patient. We could not have asked for a more wonderful man for her to love.

The wedding day was perfect. The weather was so nice, there was only one minor disaster when the zipper on one of the bridesmaids dresses broke, and the reception was the best party Hubby and I have ever thrown! I was blessed to have my dearest friends enjoy our celebration with us. My very special, longest friend, Mrs. Goodneedle and I spent such lovely time together both at the reception and the next day. She gave me some wise words: I would feel a let-down after the wedding was all over. She was right, as always, but there is also a bit of relief that all our work and effort made for such a joyous day. Tomorrow Hubby and I are off for a week at family church camp. Just what we need to relax and renew.

Here are Hubby and our DD dancing their father/daughter dance to "Isn't She Lovely". This song was popular when she was born 25 years ago and we used to sing it to her when she was just a newborn. It was so fitting that they danced to it now. Probably better than all those Sousa marches he used to hum as he carried her around, hoping she'd stop her crying and drift off to sleep. Many of those marches really did work.

Here is our DD the day after the wedding, in her lovely "day after" dress, feeling exhausted from such a busy time in her life. I couldn't resist but to snap this photo. It reminded me of times long ago when she would cuddle up on the sofa and drift off, comfortable and happy. Now she and Husband of Her Own (HOHO) are off in Hawaii, enjoying the tropical breezes, relaxing, and savoring their time as they celebrate the beginning of their life together. We wish them joy, love that knows no bounds, and many, many years of happiness!

Middle of the Night Musings......

I'm awake again in the middle of the night. Once I wake up, there's no going back to sleep. Wedding details are consuming my mind and it just starts to race the moment I stir. Everything is going well, so why can't I sleep? At least it makes for some uninterupted quiet time. (Thinking positively!).

More about the wedding preparations: In May, the bridesmaids hosted a shower for my Darling Daughter. My Dear Daughter-in-law, the Matron of Honor, lives in North Carolina, so far away, and she asked me if they could hold the shower in my home. And so began a wonderful event, where my family room was transformed into a lovely shower space. There was quite a look on Hubby's face when I told him we wanted to empty all the furniture out of that room and replace it with 9 small tables and 36 chairs...."No way that will all fit in there!", he said. Ah, he of little faith! After putting all the furniture in the garage, he and my DD's soon-to-be HOHO washed down all the rented tables and chairs and as they were brought into the room, we place pretty pink tablecloths on the tables, set places with pink silverware and sweet favors of little tins of flower seeds, and placed a pretty pink plant in the center. One might guess that the wedding color is pink, but no, it's not...the bridesmaids will be wearing ice blue dresses. The room did look quite lovely after its transformation!

Family and friends were treated to a wonderful luncheon and an afternoon of laughter and celebration. My daughter received many lovely gifts and her day was spent surrounded by the women most important in her life. Young ones, just starting to find themselves in the world, and we older ones, who are enjoying seeing a new bride begin her married life. So much to look forward to, so many dreams to share, and just beginning to know the joy of sharing her life with a partner she loves with all her heart. Here she is, at the end of the day, wearing a "veil" handcrafted by her bridesmaids, and holding her ribbon bouquet which she will carry down the aisle at the ceremony rehearsal just two days from now.

I'm trying to savor every moment of this week, even these sleepy ones in the middle of the night. I am truly blessed with a wonderful Hubby, the best children, great family, and some of the dearest friends in the world. In the quiet of the dawn, this is so evident to me. In the craziness of the daytime, with all the things that need to be done, I have to work a little harder to keep that in the fore-front but isn't it absolutely what life is all about? We love and are loved and that's what makes our life so meaningful. I wish my DD a life full of love! And as Mrs. Goodneedle would say, "Life is Good"!!

"84 Bottles of Wine on the Wall....."

I haven't written in this blog in so long. Life has been a non-stop merry-go-round of late and I just haven't had the time to sit and post creatively. But here I am in the middle of the night, unable to sleep because of so many things on my mind. Posting in my blog is something I can do in the wee hours of the morning, when I'm unable to make a lot of noise, make phone calls, or even sleep! You see, my darling daughter is getting married this weekend, and I've been consumed with wedding details and trying to make this the best party our family has ever seen.

That old song, "100 Bottle of Beer on the Wall..." has run through my head lately. Our version revolves around wine, and the 84 bottles that have resided on my dining room table for the last two weeks. This is how the story goes: when my daughter and her soon-t0-be Hubby of her Own had just started dating, it was quickly Christmas. Unsure what to get for this new lady, he bought her a bottle of wine, placed it in a lovely wooden wine box, and enclosed an invitation to a Wine Dinner at the Nashoba Valley Winery. It's a lovely little winery, making mostly fruit wines, and having a wonderful little restaurant. They had a marvelous time on that date, and have since gone back for special occasions. The last time they went, they strolled in the orchards first, and this is where Hubby of her Own proposed to my Darling Daughter. They had a romantic dinner there afterward, celebrating their betrothal.

Fast forward a year, to when they thought that the favors for their wedding guests should be a bottle of this Nashoba Wine. How fitting, they thought, to share with their guests something from a place so meaningful to them. The wine would be purchased in different types, so that when a place card was attached to each bottle, the guest would know which table he/she are sitting at. Perhaps at the Plum table, or the Baldwin table, or maybe the Maiden's Blush table. This however was a sizable project....

First we had to assign all of our guests to a table, then figure out who many bottles of wine were needed at that table. Each couple would receive a bottle, but we also had to give a bottle to each person coming as a single. Once we knew how many bottles of each kind of wine we needed, I called the winery to place the order (luckily with a 15% discount for such a large order!). Darling Daughter and I went to the winery and picked up the wine the next week.



Next, placecard tags had to be made for each bottle. Darling Daughter has a passion for lovely fonts, so the printing had to be just right. After hours at the computer, each guest's name and wine type were lovingly printed on their placecard. Each bottle was then put into a cellophane bag, tied with a light blue ribbon, and the tag attached. Here are DD and HOHO admiring the product of all our hard efforts, heads tilted to the side to read the placecards attached to the bottles. We laughed thinking about all the guests having to cock their heads to read their names!










Finally, each bottle had to be put into alphabetical order by the guest's name, and put into boxes for the trip to the reception venue. Today the wine will make its trip to the reception site where it will be placed on their big table, ready for our guests to receive.

This is just a snippet of life for me in the last two months. There have been shopping trips, bridal showers, phone calls, appointments, research, strategy planning sessions, and countless hours spent with my DD in preparation for this week. All of it has been fun, exciting, and filled with love. The love DD and HOHO have for each other, and the love we feel for them both.

Now the sun is coming up and another busy day begins. One day closer to seeing my daughter married. More to follow.....