Wednesday, September 28, 2011
A wedding weekend
The wedding day has come and gone and the whirlwind of activity has given way to sighs of exhaustion.
In the weeks leading up to the our daughter’s wedding, the fullness of our days was stretched to the maximum. With Paul and I in Michigan with the bride-to-be and her fiancé, we were all working our personal lists of things to do. The high level of activity and
occasional times of heightened stress were well worth it when the “day of the rehearsal” dawned and our to-do list was mostly a “done” list.
Paul and I had one last minute (actually, 2 hours) of panic however, just to make life interesting. After moving the trailer onsite to Waldenwoods, we tried to open the slides and the bed slide wouldn’t open. The design of our trailer is such that we have no way of opening the bedroom door without first opening the slide. After a few minutes of trying, we started calling DRV, the trailer manufacturer, and Lippert, the manufacturer of the slide mechanism. We couldn’t see if anything was blocking the slide and I was starting to think in terms of taking a saw to the bedroom door. The bride’s wedding dress was inside, on the bed. In the end, Lippert walked Paul through a swap of the controller that works the slide mechanism, swapping the vanity slide controller over to the bed slide. That did the trick and the slide was opened (and a new controller was shipped out to us that day).
That was the last of the glitches, and the following 4 days pretty much ran without many issues at all, certainly nothing major. We all started to relax and enjoy the festivities!
Rather than try to post pictures here and making this a very long post, I am posting a photo album on the blog page. Its easier to caption the photos if I use Picasa, rather than inserting the pictures into a post.
Thursday evening was the rehearsal at Waldenwoods, followed by a casual dinner at the trailer for all those who were able to attend, which included my brothers, sister, and sister-in-law, who all flew in from Boston Thursday afternoon.
Friday morning we were able to start the day slow before heading to the airport to pick up my son. Afterwards, we headed out to dinner with my family and the bride and groom.
Saturday was a busy day that started with many of the bridesmaids, my sisters and I, and the bride, having lunch at Panera and then getting our nails done at a nearby salon. We made it back to the trailer with just enough time to get ready for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. Several of the bridesmaids came with us to the trailer to get ready, so I am sure the guys felt overrun!
Sunday morning we were up bright and early and headed to the hair salon to get hair and make-up done for the day. Back at Waldenwoods, Jess headed for the bridal room to meet up with her bridesmaids so they could get dressed together. I got ready myself, then brought her dress over there for her. The weather forecast was for rain all day, but I am guessing that hanging the rosary beads out the window saved the day, since the sun was out all throughout the afternoon, well past the ceremony time.
After an awesome ceremony and reception, and a very late night, we were up early on Monday, hosting a breakfast for our out of town guests, after which we retired to the trailer to relax before heading out to bring my son to the airport. One more dinner out, with my family and then today we moved the trailer back to the RV park we had been in before the wedding. we are both pretty exhausted and trying to recuperate!
In the weeks leading up to the our daughter’s wedding, the fullness of our days was stretched to the maximum. With Paul and I in Michigan with the bride-to-be and her fiancé, we were all working our personal lists of things to do. The high level of activity and
occasional times of heightened stress were well worth it when the “day of the rehearsal” dawned and our to-do list was mostly a “done” list.Paul and I had one last minute (actually, 2 hours) of panic however, just to make life interesting. After moving the trailer onsite to Waldenwoods, we tried to open the slides and the bed slide wouldn’t open. The design of our trailer is such that we have no way of opening the bedroom door without first opening the slide. After a few minutes of trying, we started calling DRV, the trailer manufacturer, and Lippert, the manufacturer of the slide mechanism. We couldn’t see if anything was blocking the slide and I was starting to think in terms of taking a saw to the bedroom door. The bride’s wedding dress was inside, on the bed. In the end, Lippert walked Paul through a swap of the controller that works the slide mechanism, swapping the vanity slide controller over to the bed slide. That did the trick and the slide was opened (and a new controller was shipped out to us that day).
That was the last of the glitches, and the following 4 days pretty much ran without many issues at all, certainly nothing major. We all started to relax and enjoy the festivities!
Rather than try to post pictures here and making this a very long post, I am posting a photo album on the blog page. Its easier to caption the photos if I use Picasa, rather than inserting the pictures into a post.
Thursday evening was the rehearsal at Waldenwoods, followed by a casual dinner at the trailer for all those who were able to attend, which included my brothers, sister, and sister-in-law, who all flew in from Boston Thursday afternoon.
Friday morning we were able to start the day slow before heading to the airport to pick up my son. Afterwards, we headed out to dinner with my family and the bride and groom.
Saturday was a busy day that started with many of the bridesmaids, my sisters and I, and the bride, having lunch at Panera and then getting our nails done at a nearby salon. We made it back to the trailer with just enough time to get ready for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. Several of the bridesmaids came with us to the trailer to get ready, so I am sure the guys felt overrun!
Sunday morning we were up bright and early and headed to the hair salon to get hair and make-up done for the day. Back at Waldenwoods, Jess headed for the bridal room to meet up with her bridesmaids so they could get dressed together. I got ready myself, then brought her dress over there for her. The weather forecast was for rain all day, but I am guessing that hanging the rosary beads out the window saved the day, since the sun was out all throughout the afternoon, well past the ceremony time.
After an awesome ceremony and reception, and a very late night, we were up early on Monday, hosting a breakfast for our out of town guests, after which we retired to the trailer to relax before heading out to bring my son to the airport. One more dinner out, with my family and then today we moved the trailer back to the RV park we had been in before the wedding. we are both pretty exhausted and trying to recuperate!
Monday, September 19, 2011
A brief update (New Hudson, MI 9-19-11)
To say that life has gotten hectic would be quite an understatement. We are in the final few days before our out of town guests arrive. Once that happens, I’d like to be able to kick back and relax and enjoy! Well, at least slow down a little bit. Most of my family will arrive on Thursday, and my son will fly in on Friday afternoon. I haven’t seen him since June, so I am looking forward to his arrival!
Thursday the festivities begin with the rehearsal at Waldenwoods. This is just the rehearsal itself, so we’ll be having food for the participants back at our trailer. Thursday morning we will move about 30 miles up the road to be onsite in the trailer at Waldenwoods for the 5 days surrounding the wedding. It should make things much easier on us. Friday evening we’ll have dinner with my family and then Paul and I have volunteered to be designated drivers so that Jess and the other “young people” can go out and have a good time at the local country bar.
The last few days have gotten busier. It seems that for every item that gets crossed off![the "BRIDE" hoodie]()
the “to do” list, another gets added! Jess and David have an apartment now, so we are helping them get their stuff moved in to it. That entailed a trip to Wisconsin with our truck, to pick up a bed, sofas and bureaus from David’s parents house. A very long day, especially for Paul, who had to drive for 11.5 hours. David has been painting their living room, which now looks awesome! Tomorrow we are taking them “shopping” in our storage unit, to see what we have that they can use. There are several things that Paul and I want to get out for ourselves as well. It’s 30 ft long, and 10 ft wide and we hope to “dig in” as far back as we can, so we’ll need all 4 of us.
The trailer is definitely shrinking as we work on projects such as centerpieces, cupcake towers etc. Paul, being the most creative as well as the most “mechanically” talented member of the family, is in high demand.
hmmmm, not everyone seems quite as busy as Paul…..
Dozer does try to help as much as possible, of course.
Anyway, I am sure the the next few days will be incredibly busy, so the next time I post, my daughter will be Jessica McClone!
Thursday the festivities begin with the rehearsal at Waldenwoods. This is just the rehearsal itself, so we’ll be having food for the participants back at our trailer. Thursday morning we will move about 30 miles up the road to be onsite in the trailer at Waldenwoods for the 5 days surrounding the wedding. It should make things much easier on us. Friday evening we’ll have dinner with my family and then Paul and I have volunteered to be designated drivers so that Jess and the other “young people” can go out and have a good time at the local country bar.
The last few days have gotten busier. It seems that for every item that gets crossed off
the “to do” list, another gets added! Jess and David have an apartment now, so we are helping them get their stuff moved in to it. That entailed a trip to Wisconsin with our truck, to pick up a bed, sofas and bureaus from David’s parents house. A very long day, especially for Paul, who had to drive for 11.5 hours. David has been painting their living room, which now looks awesome! Tomorrow we are taking them “shopping” in our storage unit, to see what we have that they can use. There are several things that Paul and I want to get out for ourselves as well. It’s 30 ft long, and 10 ft wide and we hope to “dig in” as far back as we can, so we’ll need all 4 of us.The trailer is definitely shrinking as we work on projects such as centerpieces, cupcake towers etc. Paul, being the most creative as well as the most “mechanically” talented member of the family, is in high demand.
hmmmm, not everyone seems quite as busy as Paul…..
Dozer does try to help as much as possible, of course.Anyway, I am sure the the next few days will be incredibly busy, so the next time I post, my daughter will be Jessica McClone!
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Tempus Fugit
Time sure is flying by. Now that we’ve moved up to Michigan, we can handle all the details of the wedding much easier, and we are all feeling a little less stressed. Jess is still living with us, and David is spending a lot of time here too, as they do errands together, including looking for a new apartment. Every day brings a new list of things to accomplish.
Paul is winding down his list of modifications and additions to the trailer, and is looking around, trying to find a new project to work on. He’s also been helping with the errands, and arrangements for the wedding, but after a while, his eyes start to glaze over and he starts looking for something to use his hammer on.
One of his major accomplishments was the addition of our Margaritaville sign. Not content to just put up the sign, he found LED lighting to put behind it. It’s very fancy LED lighting. We can choose one of about 5 colors, or we can have the lighting “scroll through” all the colors slowly, depending on our mood.
Meanwhile, the list of things that need to be fixed by the factory is growing, so it’s a good thing we are headed there in October.
In between bouts of wedding planning, shopping, and 3 billion doctor’s appointments, we are trying to spend some time with friends, taking advantage of the fact that we are here for a month. So far we’ve seen a few, with plans made to see more in the next few days.
Today was Dozer’s day to go to the doctor, and for the first time, we took him just on the leash, without the carrier, since it was a short ride. He did well, and everyone in the office was intrigued by the cat on the leash. He wasn’t too happy to get his shots though, and has been quiet since we got home. It’s funny how much he has changed since we bought the new automatic feeder for him. The thing is Huge, and holds about a 2 month supply of food. Now Dozer no longer associates us with getting fed, so he doesn’t cry or fuss at us near dinner time. And he doesn’t meow in the middle of the night, or bang on our door, trying to convince us it’s time for his breakfast. It’s amazing! It makes everybody much happier!
Paul is winding down his list of modifications and additions to the trailer, and is looking around, trying to find a new project to work on. He’s also been helping with the errands, and arrangements for the wedding, but after a while, his eyes start to glaze over and he starts looking for something to use his hammer on. One of his major accomplishments was the addition of our Margaritaville sign. Not content to just put up the sign, he found LED lighting to put behind it. It’s very fancy LED lighting. We can choose one of about 5 colors, or we can have the lighting “scroll through” all the colors slowly, depending on our mood.
Meanwhile, the list of things that need to be fixed by the factory is growing, so it’s a good thing we are headed there in October.
In between bouts of wedding planning, shopping, and 3 billion doctor’s appointments, we are trying to spend some time with friends, taking advantage of the fact that we are here for a month. So far we’ve seen a few, with plans made to see more in the next few days.
Today was Dozer’s day to go to the doctor, and for the first time, we took him just on the leash, without the carrier, since it was a short ride. He did well, and everyone in the office was intrigued by the cat on the leash. He wasn’t too happy to get his shots though, and has been quiet since we got home. It’s funny how much he has changed since we bought the new automatic feeder for him. The thing is Huge, and holds about a 2 month supply of food. Now Dozer no longer associates us with getting fed, so he doesn’t cry or fuss at us near dinner time. And he doesn’t meow in the middle of the night, or bang on our door, trying to convince us it’s time for his breakfast. It’s amazing! It makes everybody much happier!
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