Happy Birthday Avina!!!

Today is Jesse's daughter's 10th birthday. 10 is a big deal, for real. You leave the single digits behind. You've completed your first decade on Earth. I remember thinking I was pretty cool at 10 (of course, when haven't I???). Hope you are having a great day kiddo! We will see you tonight. Daddy is in charge of the birthday cake, so here's hoping he gets exactly what you want!

my guardian angel is........Snoop Dogg????

I now have a picture of Snoop Dogg watching over me on my computer at work thanks to Stephen. It is actually quite freaky, all night last night I kept feeling as if someone was staring me. Sure enough, someone was. And that someone was Snoop Dogg. I believe it stemmed from a conversation I was having with one of our outreach counselors, Scarberry (who behind his back we call Scarsberries-he hates it!). We were talking about the wide selection of Snoop songs we both have on our iPods. Apparently, this gave Stephen the idea to make sure I had a picture of Snoop at all times. Kinda like when I printed a picture of Jesus for my boss, Chris (long story). I swear to you all, we really do work at the crisis line (J is convinced otherwise). Just sometimes, you need a break. And printing off weird pictures off the internet is apparently what we do with our down time. So as Snoop Dogg always says, let's "chill, til the next episode".

SO not right....

I got this from my darling little sister. Thanks Red-remind me to smack you on the back of your head on Saturday! Nothing but love baby, nothing but love! :)



A Chicago family of Cubs fans heads out to shop for the youngest boy's birthday. While in the sports shop, the son picks up a Cardinals jersey and says to his older sister, "I've decided to become a Cardinals fan & I would like this St. Louis jersey for my birthday." His big sister is outraged by this and promptly whacks him upside his head and says, "Go talk to Mother!" "Mom?" "Yes, son?" "I've decided I'm going to be a Cardinals fan and would like this jersey for my birthday." The mother, outraged at this, promptly whacks him and says, "Go talk to your father!" Off he goes with the Cardinals jersey in hand and finds his father. "Dad?" "Yes, son?" "I'm going to be a Cardinals fan and want this jersey for my birthday." The father then proceeds to whack his son in the back of his head and says, "No son of mine is ever going to be seen in THAT!" Back in the car and heading home, the father turns to his son and says "I hope you've learned something today." The son says, "Yes, Dad, I have." "Good, son, what is it?" The son replies, "I've only been a Cardinals fan for an hour, and I already hate you Cub bastards."

To Jeff and Jessica

Wow-your wedding is only two days away! Jessica-can you hardly believe it? After, what, 10 years? You finally roped him in girl, good job! Baby Jeffy-I am so happy for you cousin. You deserve all the happiness in the world, and I know that Jessica will make you happy. Jessica-you have been around us for so long, we already consider you family, this will just make it legal! Congratulations to both of you. I can't wait for Saturday. You know how the Baumgartner clan likes to party! I love you guys and can't wait to see you! Love, your cousin Kerri

Ouch! I'm in pain......

As if spending 45 minutes of my life at the Missouri Department of Motor Vehicles wasn't bad enough, I also had to pay the sales tax on my car and get plates. I travelled to the DMV on South Kingshighway (very ritzy). I was first accosted by some gentlemen wanting me to sign a petition to raise the minimum wage. I figured that was a pretty good cause, so I signed my name. Then they wanted me to sign another one protecting Medicaid. Well, most of my clients are on Medicaid, again a worthy cause, so I signed that one too. Then on to the inside of the DMV where I see the drivers license line has, oh, 5 people in it but the plates/registration line has, say, 30 people in it. This is the line I had to go to. It was seemingly ok, although the old lady behind me had on this awful perfume that was about to make me gag. Seriously. Once I finally made it to one of the clerks, I knew it wouldn't be long until my entire bank account was drained. I was ready, but not entirely happy about it. The clerk was very nice (big shocker) as she advised me my grand total was $1,204.00. See what I mean by "ouch"? Good thing I love my car. Not as much as I love my boyfriend, but close.....(I'm almost just kidding J!). And can I just say, God bless the South Kingshighway DMV. They are some good peeps. Amen.

Pics of Lola

How cute is she? Lola is truly one of the most beautiful children I have ever seen!
Here's Lola and her mommy, my friend Robyn. I miss you girl! Hope we can get together sometime this century!

Goofy Hat Day

So, today at work is Goofy Hat Day-part of Employee Appreciation Week. So, of course I had to participate, so I am wearing my pink Cardinals hat, which, to me, is pretty darn goofy.

Wedding pix part 2

LOVE this pic of Kira. At least she wasn't growling...

Red and Timbo, our "baby" brother.

Dad walking his baby girl down the aisle. Made me tear up....

Dad giving his speech. I'll be honest, I don't remember it.

Me giving my Maid of Honor speech. I don't remember it either. I do remember that I was pretty drunk and nervous (see my cheat sheet?). I hear the speech was good. All I know is that it is weird hearing your own voice echoing throughout the room....

More pics of Red's wedding

The entire Baumgartner clan. There's a lot of us, huh?

How cute is this? Kira and Will were great as flower girl and ring bearer.

My mommy. Isn't she beautiful?

Mom and Grandpa

Me and my sis. Not sure what we are looking at...

Yes, I lost the bet-DAMMIT!

Ok, so I never really had a chance in hell of winning the bet. I realize that now as I sit here with a pink Cardinals hat on (its a bad hair morning). I have accepted defeat. And have accepted that my beloved Cubs hat is now sitting in jail with J's Cards hat. It's really not fair-it's sitting on a shelf in his room, so I can see it, I just can't touch it. What a tease. That's ok, it will be September soon.....I am ready for the next bet though. I ain't scared! Bring it! :)

I-55 series-THIS WEEKEND!

Bring it on baby! I absolutely love when the Cardinals and the Cubs play each other. It is always a good time, no matter who wins. Now, don't get me wrong, I fully intend to win this latest bet with my boy J, but even if I don't, it will still be fun. I'm a little nervous about it since it looks like Derek Lee is hurt-a wrist injury, I believe. Today on my instant messenger, Jeremiah (my brothers best friend since pre-school) asked me if the Cubbies were scared to go into the new stadium. Now, I haven't personally talked to any of them, so I'm just guessing at this one, but I'm gonna go with a......HELL NO! It's gonna be fun boys and girls. May the best team win!

You MUST try the new Ice Cream Skittles

Being a Skittles expert (certified and everything), I can tell you-the Ice Cream flavored Skittles ROCK! As if I needed more Skittles to eat....but when I saw them at Walgreens, I just knew I had to have them. In fact, I'm eating them right now as I type (I apologize to my Book Club gals and to J if I am a little hopped up on sugar). I love that they are expanding the flavors of Kerri Krack (as my co-workers call it). What's next? Diet Coke flavored Skittles? Hmmmm.......

Proof I'm a good sport....

"If I managed the Cubs, I'd be an alcoholic."--Whitey Herzog

"There's nothing wrong with this team that more pitching, more fielding and more hitting couldn't help."--Bill Buckner

"The Cubs were taking batting practice, and the pitching machine threw a no-hitter."--Radio deejay

Q: Did you hear about the new Cubs soup?
A: Two sips and then you choke.

Twenty major events that have occurred since the Chicago Cubs last laid claim to a World Series championship:

1. Radio was invented; Cubs fans got to hear their team lose.
2. TV was invented; Cubs fans got to see their team lose.
3. Baseball added 14 teams; Cubs fans get to see and hear their team lose to more clubs.
4. George Burns celebrated his 10th, 20th, 30th, 40th, 50th, 60th, 70th, 80th, 90th and 100th birthdays.
5. Haley's comet passed Earth twice.
6. Harry Caray was born....and died. Incredible, but true.
7. The NBA, NHL and NFL were formed, and Chicago teams won championships in each league.
8. Man landed on the moon, as have several home runs given up by Cubs pitchers.
9. Sixteen U.S. presidents were elected.
10. There were 11 amendments added to the Constitution.
11. Prohibition was created and repealed.
12. The Titanic was built, set sail, sank, was discovered and became the subject of major motion pictures, the latest giving Cubs fans hope that something that finishes on the bottom can come out on top.
13. Wrigley Field was built and becomes the oldest park in the National League.
14. Flag poles were erected on Wrigley Field roof to hold all of the team's future World Series pennants. Those flag poles have since rusted and been taken down.
15. A combination of 40 Summer and Winter Olympics have been held.
16. Thirteen baseball players have won the Triple Crown; several thanked Cubs pitchers.
17. Bell-bottoms came in style, went out of style and came back in.
18. The Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox and the Florida Marlins have all won the World Series.
19. The Cubs played 14,153 regular-season games; they lost the majority of them.
20. Alaska, Arizona, Hawaii, Oklahoma and New Mexico were added to the Union.

Miss Health Department-what's up with the mumps outbreak?

Ok, I'm pretty sure I don't want to get the mumps. I don't actually know what they are, but they can't be good. Red, what is the Health Department doing to save the community from this outbreak? Inquiring minds need to know....

What is the next bet gonna be fool?

I'm challenging you to Bet #2 Mr. JackAZZ! What you gonna do? I'll even let you come up with the terms....shall we go 2 out of 3 again? I'm sure I can find some other Cubs crap to torture you with.....

J, sweetie, are you gonna wear your Cubs hat Saturday night?

The Cubs just keep on keepin' on

8-4 baby! 8-4. Rock on.

What a day

It started off normal enough but quickly got weird. Work was a little nutty, busy in the afternoon, crazy at night. I got a scary call in which the caller had already overdosed and was fading fast on me. Luckily I got the police there just as she was about to pass out. Even after being at the crisis line for five years, every once in a while I still a call that freaks me out. At the end of the day though, I will go to sleep knowing that caller will be safe tonight. That's my job. After that fun, the power went out. Well, not completely, but our computers shut down-which is a huge problem, all of our work is done by computer. Not good. Never fear though, Super Supervisor Kerri called the IT guy at home and made him come in to fix whatever was wrong. Thats why I get paid the big bucks, people... :)

Happy Easter Everyone!

Hope everyone is having a fabulous Easter Sunday. I am spending mine at work for the first time in five years, but I'm not at all bitter about it.....Got to help J's daughters dye Easter eggs last night. That was fun. They were so cute competing to see who could color the best egg. I personally think mine was the best. I made a very special egg for J. It was a lovely shade of pink, and it said "Jesse loves the Cubs". Wasn't that sweet? I left him a note so he would find it when he got home from work. I am SUCH a sweet girlfriend.

On a serious note, I hope God has blessed you all with a wonderful day spent with family and loved ones. I guess my employees count as loved ones. Since their supervisor (me) is SO mature, we are having an Easter egg hunt in the call center. (don't you already feel sorry for the poor souls who call our crisis line?). It's just a bit of harmless fun since we all have to work on this day. I know all of us would much rather be with those we love.

May God bless you all with love, happiness, family, friends, and strength.

What is it about the Chinese buffet that makes you giggle?

Seriously. Everytime I go to a Chinese buffet, no matter who I go with, we always end up laughing and giggling the whole time we are there. Think its the MSG they put in the food? Or maybe crack? I don't know. Last night, J and I hit the buffet with the girls. Well, as soon as J's 9 year old asked us if the woman next to us was talking about smoking weed, the giggling was ON. I couldn't hardly stop. Then this guy that J knows was sitting a few tables away from us, called J on his cell, and started speaking "Chinese" to him. Dude, good times were had by all. I would blame the Chinese donuts, but I was the only one who ate them.

It reminded me of the days when Red and I would go to the Sunny China on Lindberg (or is it the Happy China?). We would sit for hours downing Diet Coke and Chinese donuts and just laugh and laugh and laugh. SUCH good times. Red-remember talking about the social status of the different school buses in grade school? Judy's bus was the "cool" one, Charlie's bus was the "skanky" one.....ok, so we were easily entertained growing up in Salem...

The moral of the story is, if you are looking for a fun way to spend your evening, go to your local Chinese buffet today.

J does look good in a Cubs hat...

J got his own Cubs hat. Apparently, he was afraid I'd try to pull something, and he would be right. I fully intended to get him a pink Cubs hat. I hate it when he outsmarts me.....Well, if you see him around town in that beautiful blue hat with the red "C" on it, don't make fun of him too badly. He's being a good sport. Can't wait till the Cards and Cubs play each other again (in a couple of weeks). Bet #2 will be on...not sure what it will be yet, but it's sure to be fun, no matter what! Sweetie-would getting a Cubs tattoo be pushing it too far????? :)

Quick! Look-you may never see this again....

One week into the season and the Cubs are in first place! Woo hoo! And, what? Where are the Cards???? I know it's too soon to talk real smack, but this may be the only time I see my boys in first place, so let me have my moment....oh yea, and the Cubs signed Derek Lee to a 5 year deal today. Hell yea!!!! Well on their way to a 2008 World Series title.....

National League

Central

1. Chi Cubs 4-1 .800
2. Houston 5-2 .714
3. Milwaukee 5-2 .714
4. Cincinnati 4-2 .667
5. St. Louis 4-3 .571
6. Pittsburgh 1-7 .125

Happy Birthday Cheryl!

To my friend Cheryl-hope the Cards win for ya on your birthday (and their home opener). I only say this because they are no longer playing my Cubs! No, seriously, hope you have a great birthday, can't wait to see you next week at book club. I'm bringing the Cracker Jacks!

Happy 30th Birthday Kim!

Hope you are having a great 30th birthday! Fun, isn't it? Can't wait to see you in a couple of weeks at Baby Jeffy's wedding! Love ya!

Happy Birthday to Aunt Paula and Kelli!!!

Happy birthday (yesterday) ladies! Aunt LaLa, you don't look a day over 27, really! And Kelli-is she 14 now? Good lord. I totally remember when she was born (wasn't that the baby boom of 1992???). I can't believe those kids are gonna be in high school next school year...yikes. I'm getting old. Anyway, hope you both had a great birthday. I love you both very much. See you at Jeff's wedding in a couple of weeks. Get ready to "shake your booty", Aunt LaLa!

J is gonna look good in blue.....

Yes, folks, it's true. I won our bet. My Cubbies have won the first two games against the Cardinals (I don't even care if they win tonight). J gave up custody of his Cardinals hat last night. It is now mine until at least September. I tried to be a nice winner and tell him that maybe he could have it back, but NO, Mr. Stubborn says a bet is a bet. Ok, fine. I'll be shopping for your brand, spankin' new Cubs hat, baby! I'll be bringing that and a camera-gotta capture this one on film! :)

I have a feeling....

that I'm gonna be wearing a Cardinals hat all season. Yes, I took J up on his bet. I say the Cubs will win 2 outta 3 this weekend from the Cardinals, and he says the opposite. Team hats are on the line. I gotta wear a Cards hat all season if I lose, and he has to wear a Cubs hat if he loses. Come on Cubbies, you gotta win. I'd pay good money to see my boy in a Cubs hat.....Unfortunately, I just don't have that much faith in my teams ability to actually win. I love them dearly, but lets be realistic-it IS the Cubs after all.....man I love baseball.

Why is it...

that when you feel you look your worst thats when others compliment you? I'm talkin' about bad hair days people. Today was curly hair day since it is a yucky, rainy day. I have to wear it that way when it rains because, if I don't, I will have what my sister and I call "lion hair". You know-as in, your hair gets big and poofy, like a lion's mane. I know, my sister and I need help. Today I walked into work and everyone was like "oh you look so cute today". My first thought was "huh? My hair is big and I feel fat and bloated, but ok". Then my boy texts me and tells me the same thing (not that I'm fat and bloated but that I looked "hot" today). Apparently he likes big, fuzzy hair (right J?). The good news is, it only takes me about 15 minutes to get ready, so perhaps I'm on to something.....

Not sure if I have ever mentioned this before, but for the record, I am so in love with this boy, we'll call him "J". He is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me and I just wanted to let everyone know how I feel! :)

Cards-vs-Cubs-This weekend baby!

It's never too soon to start talking some smack! Cards and Cubs are playing each other starting Friday. Can't wait for that one! Woo hoo! Bring it LaRussa!

I'm in love.....with my iPod

It is the greatest invention ever. Seriously. Now that I finally have a working computer at home, I have been a downloading fool. All the Weezer you could ever want people! My iPod rules. I can't wait to get the car adapter-thingy that will allow you to play it in the car. Built in road trip tunes J!!!! I know you love my music (he really doesn't, but thats ok....).

Is anyone else having a rough week? Work has been absolutely crazy. Granted, its a crisis line, but still. It's been crazier than normal. Maybe it's the weather. Who knows. Whatever it is-it needs to stop. Seriously.

How cute are they????

Meet my friend Stormy's kids, Calahan and Maddie. Are they not the cutest things you've ever seen?

Opening Day Baby!

Opening Day is here! Welcome to the 2006 MLB season! I am so excited and cannot wait to see how this year turns out! My favorite show, Baseball Tonight, is back on (love myself some Harold Reynolds-watching him and John Kruk fight is good times). My Cubs are currently kicking the crap out of the Reds, its 5-1 in the 1st inning. LOVE IT!!!!!! For most of my friends and family-here's to good luck to the Cardinals. I hope I get the chance to go inside that beautiful new stadium. For Stephen-may the Windians actually win. For baseball fans everywhere-may this be the best season ever, and may Barry Bonds finally admit he used steroids. Amen.

Happy 30th Birthday Lizzard!!!!!!

I know it was yesterday, but I wasn't around a computer. Anyway, hope you had a wonderful 30th! Now you can feel me and Robyn's pain! :) I love you Lizzard and miss you tons!

WOW-just saw some wedding pics....

Go to the link for my families blog (Sibs and More). There are wedding pics on there already (Good work Aunt Cheryl!). I started crying......

Part III-The Party Bus and Reception

Oh the party bus...SUCH good times. Nothing like a place where you are handed a drink as soon as you step aboard. Here is what I DON'T recommend-letting my brother make you a drink. My Captain and Diet Coke was at least 3/4 Captain (not that it stopped me from drinking it, mind you) and my Red Bull and Vodka was almost all vodka and tasted like cough medicine. On this bus I got to see my father drinking champagne from the bottle and my mother drinking Captain and Coke. We went through three bottles of champagne in record time. Granted, there were like 20 people on the bus, but still. When we arrived at Forest Park for pictures, everyone was pretty well buzzed. We got out and "frolicked" in the grass, took some pictures and it was back on the bus! The alcohol was flowing and the dirty rap songs were playing (I'm pretty sure my mother was horrified). We dropped mom and dad off at the reception site and the rest of us drove around downtown St. Louis on the bus and continued to drink. We went past the Cardinals new stadium and yelled "STAN!!!!" everytime we passed the Stan Musial statue....once we arrived back at the reception site, parts of it become blurry. I remember going inside and I'm pretty sure we stopped to go to the bathroom. The announcement of the wedding party was blurry-I couldn't hear what they were saying, so we all just kinda paired up and walked in......as the Star Wars theme played (and the boys were all wearing jester hats-it WAS April Fools Day after all!). As we all sat at the head table we realized my brother was not there. The groomsmen went to find him, and find him they did-puking in the bathroom (sorry to publicise this Timbo-but this is good stuff!). Well, no one remembers Tim drinking so much, then again, the rest of us were drinking too. At one point, Dave, Polster and I got Tim out on the veranda and laid him down. He looked like a dead body laying there. Seriously. I didn't want to leave him (we were seriously afraid he was gonna die of alcohol poisoning). Julz-the wedding coordinator-made us all leave and she promised to take care of him (she rocks). The good news is-Tim made a miraculous recovery and by the end of the night was out on the dance floor with us.

The reception was great, although when they announced it was time for the Maid of Honor and Best Man to give their speeches, I panicked. Luckily, I was just buzzed enough to have the guts to go speak in front of 250 people. I remember shushing the crowd and telling them to be quiet so I could talk....I really don't remember much of my speech, but all the stuff I wrote that I thought would be funny was (I loved hearing the crowd laugh!) and I got through it without crying. Robert's speech was great too even though he was so nervous. Once back at the table the bride and groom assured us the speeches were great. Can't wait to re-hear it on the video......After that, the dancing began. I knew my family (the Baumgartner clan) would be out on the dance floor all night long. And they were. Uncle Nick is a dancing machine!!!! And little Kira has some moves (not bad for a 3 year old!). The band, The Ultraviolets, were GREAT! I did get a little sad when they played "Jesse's Girl" as I was really missing J at that point. To deal with it, I put myself in the middle of the dance floor and danced to my song!!!!

It was all great, it was clear the bride and groom were having a great time (which is really what matters). By the end of the night we were all absolutely exhausted and just wanted to go back to the hotel and sleep. After a rather lengthy wait for transportation (long story, I won't go into it-it will only re-upset the bride!), we arrived at the hotel around 1am, and crashed.

On Sunday, the immediate families met at Jon's parents house for a brunch and to watch them open all their gifts. I'm sure Corningware and matching towels are exciting...actually what was exciting was all the cash they received (after seeing all that I decided maybe marriage wasn't such a bad idea after all!). It was sad saying good bye to them (and weird to say good bye to my new "brother"!), but we all had to go (I was heading to J's where I drove straight into tornado alley. No one was hurt, but there was a tornado at J's house. On my way there, I get a text message that says "Just got hit by a tornado". WHAT?). Anyway, as we speak, the new Mr. and Mrs. Baumgart are on their way to Jamaica (while the rest of us deal with the aftermath of the storm from yesterday).

I may be biased, but I can't help but think that this marriage is gonna be one of the good ones. Sometimes you see two people that clearly belong together. This is my sister and Jon. I love you guys so much. Welcome to the family brother! :) Have fun, be safe, and don't drink too much Red Stripe while in Jamaica!

Part II-The Wedding

Wedding day arrived. We awoke to an absolutely beautiful, sunny day (God took care of us on that one!). We also awoke at 7:30am, but that's a whole other story.....After an ok breakfast in the basement of the Hampton Inn, and an emergency trip to the soda machine for Diet Coke, we were off in our cab/limo AKA mom and dad's mini van, off to the beauty salon for hair and makeup. All of us girls got our hair done, loved the up-do and the 16 gallons of hair spray they put on my head...Red's hair looked gorgeous, and mom (who I've never seen in an up-do) looked absolutely beautiful and way too young to be the mother of the bride (seriously mommy-you did!). Once we were all done, we were picked up by the limo and the first thing we noticed was the champagne. We advised the driver to take us to the Bread Company to pick up some lunch, but the time we travelled the two block trip, we had finished one bottle of champagne. Yea, it was gonna be a long day.....by the way, if you ever wanna draw attention to yourself, take yourself and 6 other people to the Bread Company with your up-do's and one girl with a veil on her head......

We arrived at the church a full 30 minutes ahead of schedule. We were afraid to go in and the Church Nazi (aka the wedding coordinator for the church) specifically said we cannot get in before 1:30. Well I got out of the limo, saw that the church doors were unlocked and smuggled all of us girls in. Church Nazi was nowhere in sight. We all started getting ready and had a bit of a panic moment when Jon's mom called to say she was running late. Not a big deal typically, but she just happened to have my sister's wedding dress with her.....the MOH was on it, trying to keep the bride calm at this point. Anyway, the dress arrived, all was well, and my sister was absolutely beautiful in her dress-I teared up and the wedding hadn't even started. At exactly 3:00 the Church Nazi has us girls line up. I started to get nervous then. What if someone tripped going down the aisle? Or stood in the wrong place? Or walked too fast? As the music started it all became surreal-this was it! My baby sister was getting married!

Once the wedding party was in place, we waited for our bride. I had told myself not to look at Jon because if he cried, I was gonna lose it. Well, as soon as the opened the door and my sister was standing there with dad, I saw just one tear go down Jon's face. That's all I needed. And as soon as I got to see my sister (also crying) walking with dad (trying not to cry), I teared up some more. It was just all so beautiful, hard to explain. I looked out into the crowd, saw a row full of my aunts, all crying. We are a crying people, apparently. The ceremony itself went smoothly, although there was some chuckling later about the sermon as, apparently, we are ALL responsible for their marriage...who knew? And, for the record, the vents were still on...Julie (bridesmaid) and I had our dresses blowing up, I was afraid I was gonna pull a Marilyn Monroe, but luckily, it didn't blow up that high. Julie and I just stood there and giggled. It was very exciting and strange when the pastor had my sister and Jon turn around and introduced the married couple. What? My sister is married now! Wow. After picture taking in the church (loved the whole Baumgartner/Davidson clan pic-where did all those relatives come from? We are one huge family!), it was on to.................THE PARTY BUS!!!! That will be part 3......

My sister is a married woman now.....

Wedding weekend is officially over. We made it and managed to get my sister married off-Jon you are such a lucky guy!!! For my loyal blog readers, this may be a bit boring, but I must capture all that went on this weekend. It was fun.

So, Friday, at the rehearsal, several of us were confused. At first, I thought it was just me because I am easily confused (right, J?), but it wasn't just me. The pastor called Robert and I the "honor attendants". I wasn't sure at first, but he assured us he was referring to us. Then there was the matter of the vents blowing up my dress. I was a little concerned about this and hoped it would not be on during the actual wedding (more on that later....). The ushers, Polster and Jones, seemed confused most of the time-who knew that ushering was such a difficult job? Watching grandpa and mom come down the aisle together brought tears to our eyes. We were all thinking of grandma this weekend, we know she was there in spirit, but the reality of seeing grandpa walk without her really hit home. After our trial run of the ceremony (still confused at this point and figured we'd just "wing it" at the actual wedding...), we headed out to Forest Hills Country Club for the rehearsal dinner. At the door they served us with champagne mixed with cranberry juice-I knew it was gonna be a good night. The dinner was great and getting to chat with the family was great too. Of course, silly Jon just HAD to ask the pastor and his wife to sit at our table, so we felt like we couldn't drink. I got smart though and got a Captain and Diet Coke-for all pastor knew, it was just Diet Coke. Sneaky, right? Then there is the matter of the slide show that Jon's dad put together. This was a truly horrifying but hilarious experience. It was your typical show, pictures from each of their childhoods mixed with current ones. The childhood ones were the horrifying part. Why? Because siblings made the cut. And I really did NOT want to relive the permed-mullet years with 100 people....but I did anyway, and I threatened to kill my mother for giving Jon those pictures!!! The crowd favorite was a picture of Red, Tim and I and on the wall behind us was a giant picture of Michael Jackson-when he was still black, mind you. Hey, it was the '80's after all!!!! So, after dinner, on to the hotel where no one slept. I awoke to a knock on the door at 2am, I look out the peep hole and there is our bride, hair a mess, I open the door and she says she can't sleep because someone in her room was "snoring like a trucker". Well, we couldn't have a bride with bags under her eyes, now could we? So, I let her in and let her sleep with me. I promised her I wouldn't snore like a trucker, but I couldn't guarantee dad wouldn't (he and mom were in the room with us). Anyway, morning came WAAAY too quickly......now for part 2.