A Glimpse of Fall. WARNING: extremely long and LOTS of pictures...and some rambling.

         This blog is, mainly, my way of digital scrapbooking and journaling. I use it to keep track of our family's events, silly stories, and the things God is teaching me; which means sometimes you get deep profound thoughts and sometimes, well, you just get life :) This past week, we made another lightening-fast trip to Durango; this time, for a very happy occasion. An old student of ours, Sarah Branch-Boyle, was engaged to be married and had asked Adam several months ago if he would perform the ceremony. Of course, Adam told her that if it was at all possible with school, he'd be honored to do it; and as the summer went by we figured that we could make it work. So last Wednesday morning, I packed up the kids, picked up Nicole and Peyton Lobmeyer, and we headed to the cool of September in Colorado. Nicole was going to be a bridesmaid in the wedding of another old student of ours; so carpooling worked out perfectly! Adam and Jason left Phoenix late Thursday evening with their older 3, after Adam was out of class...I was a little nervous about their drive, I'll admit. It was pouring rain, they would be driving very late into the night....I prayed, a lot :)

Blythe the builder. With Blaise and Madi in the
background!

It's so fun when Daddy gets to come!!

 After fresh pain au chocolate for the kids and a croissant with coffee for me (just one of the perks of having inlaws who live over a bakery!), the kids and I spent Thursday morning at the Discovery Center with my sister-in-law and 3 nieces...I couldn't help but laugh at the contrast in their clothing. It was (to us!!) cold and rainy-my kids were dressed for Arizona winter. My nieces all showed up in summer dresses :)

Nina and Blaise "building" together.

 The discovery center is fun for all, and since it's small enough that the kids can roam at will, Tiff and I had a few minutes to talk, which feels like another rare occurance. We decided next time we're in town, we must figure out a way to go get pedicures, just the two of us... it's always fun to see how the middle 4 cousins just pick up where they left off. And Nina, our oldest niece (who, by the way, turned TEN today; which is crazy, since she was born 6 weeks after Adam and I started dating!) loves playing with and looking after Blaise.

Violet

Seriously...the kid was in heaven!

This is the rocket Violet made for herself and Pax :)

 The next day, with Adam safely arrived at about 2 am and a short break in the rain, we went to the "triangle park". See my very tired eyes? That's because someone got sick AND decided  his pack and play was extremely uncomfortable...the only time he slept all night was on me. Which, as all mamas know, means not much sleep for Mama :)

This girl. She's an emoter, that one, and although it can be challenging when she's angry or upset, watching her in full-joy-mode is delightful! Her cute little rain jacket was a gift Grandma brought back from their last trip to Paris, and she wouldn't be parted with it. No matter that the sun was actually shining for a few minutes....

I love the relationship that is already there between our boys. And I love my husband's goofy side (wearing Pax's fleece, which disappeared...now it occurs to me we may have left it at the park that day. I told you-no sleep!)                          

Tiff and the girls came, too-cousins swinging! Yup, now that I look at this picture, I'm convinced we left the fleece at the park. Glad to have that mystery solved, anyway...

Fall colors. Miss this so, so much! And I adored our little taste of fall...it's my favorite season (at least in Colorado); which may or may not have something to do with the fact that I was BORN in the fall. ahem.

We spent the morning climbing, running, playing hide and seek; then in the afternoon Adam and i made one of the most beautiful drives ever up to Silverton for the rehearsal dinner. it rained the whole way up, but cleared for the rehersal. Aside from being incredibly touched at the thoughtfulness of Sarah and Alex towards their family and friends and those involved in the wedding, it was so nice for Adam and I to just talk...and talk...and run through eye disease flashcards...romantic, I'm telling you! Saturday morning I had the opportunity to do 2 photoshoots, both for good friends of ours. In the middle of the first shoot, Jill (the mama) answered her cell phone-it was my sister-in-law, Tiff.
"Oh, sure, he can come. No problem!" she said, and I'm thinking to myself, "Oh no, my son did NOT just invite himself to a birthday party..." but yup. Apparently he literally sobbed when he heard Violet was going to Jack's birthday party (he loves the Palmer kids...Kale introduced him to Star Wars Legos. Pretty sure he's Pax's hero right now) and wouldn't let go of her; so Auntie Tiff of course called and asked if he could come along. (Her exact words to me that night were, "If it had been one of my kids I would have just told them to "suck it up, buttercup" but it was my nephew and I just couldn't....") Thankfully, Jill's pretty much great and so is Mark and so Pax got to go to a Star Wars themed birthday party; and loved every second of it. Blythe was thrilled to go off with Madi and Nina and Blaise to Farmington to watch uncle Yay-Yay coach peewee football; and somehow came home with her first Barbie-like doll: Cinderella. (ahem. Aunt Tiff again.) All in all they had a fabulous day...and so did Adam and I!

It rained, once again, all the way up; but the clouds kissing the tops of the mountians and the waterfalls rushing down in the distance were absolutly spectacular. We even saw the first snow on the mountiantops of Silverton, although it had melted by the time the ceremony was over. The rain stopped literally 5 minutes before they started the ceremony, and the sun came out. It was chilly and majestic and perfect. Adam did a wonderful job with the service; and the personal touches Alex and Sarah added (including washing each others' feet and communion with their parents) made the service one of beautiful worship, as well as a marriage celebration. It truly was an unforgettable wedding!

Below, you can see the view from the gazebo and the mountains with the low-hanging clouds clinging to them...it was spectacular.

                             

Sarah is half Irish, half Hispanic, which meant that both parents walked her down the isle. I couldn't hold it together, watching the three of them walk down the path; proud of the woman Sarah has become and seeing her parents love for her; and, yes, thinking a bit about our own only-daughter.

And the bride and groom :) see? Sun!!

The reception was very nice, although we left a bit early in order to pick up our kiddos and put them to be ourselves that evening. And to pack the car. We actually had everyone in the car and pulled away from the bakery at 6 am; although after gas and a few other errands we didn't actually get out of town until an hour later. But, really, that's how it goes! The drive home was almost-uneventful, with more eye disease flashcards and a little carsick girlie who unfortunately takes after her Mama. Even with a car-full of sick kiddos and very little sleep-I'm so very glad we made the trip happen. There's just something special about watching old students get married...and then, I love hearing Adam share his heart so eloquently...and seeing family was just the icing on the cake! And, a week and umpteen loads of laundry later, I think we're almost recovered. I think.