Let's Try This Again...

So I tried to post during my lunch break. I got to the end of a nice long post, and I attempted to publish it -- and I got...nothing. I was running out of time, so I thought I'd just post a picture. And Blogger wouldn't let me upload it.

So let's try this again...

I finally made it home last night -- after almost eight hours on the road from Toronto back home. I don't think I would have made it without books on CD or free weekend minutes on my cell (I spent an hour and a half on the phone with Mom). But I made it.

I'll have to replay the whole week in pieces throughout the week. But I'll start with the end of the week -- the wedding. The house was insane for the day or two before the wedding. Insane. On Saturday morning, everyone was up and getting their hair done long before I even crawled out of bed. Since I wasn't in the wedding party, I figured I'd forego the trip to the salon and whip something up myself. This, however, is easier said than done, since I have absolutely no talent for that sort of thing. But when my sister-in-law returned with her own glorious up-do -- only to find me in my jammies, munching on Honey Bunches of Oats -- she suggested that one of the bridesmaids could do my hair. So I, too, got my own glorious up-do. Not bad at all. Sure, it may have shown off the mosquito bites that I'd gotten on the back of my neck (as well as pretty much every other place that wasn't covered by shorts or T-shirts while we were at the cottage), but really, with the hair and the fabulous shawl, I'm sure no one noticed.

Before the pictures started, I also got in a few minutes with the makeup artist, who decided that I should be a flurry of golds and violets. I seriously felt like a supermodel. I didn't even look this fabulous for my own wedding.

So remember how I was a little worried about the shawl...about it letting off dye if it got wet? About how Paul said we'd just have to hope it didn't rain?

Well, it poured. All day.

Fortunately, though, I was able to keep it hidden enough that I didn't end up with pinkish water running down my back.

Okay...okay...I've strung it out long enough. Now for the pictures...

Here's the Fabulous Adamas in Action:


And here we are on the deck (sheltered from the pouring rain -- but at least it looked a little sunny) before the wedding:


Until Saturday morning, I had no idea what the bridesmaid dresses were like. No clue. So I went with my navy, hoping that I wouldn't somehow clash with the bridesmaids. As it turned out, their dresses were almost identical to mine in cut. And instead of navy, they were light blue with all-over whitish sparkly swirlies that looked an awful lot like my white embroidered swirlies. I couldn't have matched more closely had I planned it.

So we welcomed a new member into our little club this weekend. First, it was just Paul T. Then, a year later, it was the two of us:


But now there are three of us who have married into the Kramer family: me, Paul T, and Steve Roast-Beef-Sand-a-wich (which, for us Dutchies, is way easier to remember than his actual last name). We have informed Steve that there will be hazing rituals to endure at a later date. Now that there are three of us, we're thinking that it's about time we got matching shirts. And perhaps secret decoder rings.

And, after it was all said and done, a good time was had by all. Especially, it seems, by Andrew, my brother-in-law's friend: