The Big Wedding

Yay! My sister is married! Our trip to Tallahassee went very well. We left Tuesday night and stayed in Macon, then drove the rest of the way the following morning. We got to spend a couple days with Trish and Wade, did some shopping for Quinn (still looking for cold weather clothes), and even went to dinner at Wade's parents' house. Shirley and Mike are so sweet, and Mike really loves Quinn. He took him out to see their goats after dinner. On Friday, Jalal left really early to go down to St. George Island and spend the day fishing with Wade and his best man. Turns out, a whole day fishing isn't Jalal's favorite thing to do. He's just not that outdoorsy. His face got really red, too, but thankfully it faded by the next day.

While the guys were fishing, I went over to Trish's house with Quinn to work on stuff for the wedding. Unfortunately, just before we got there, I looked in the rearview mirror and saw that Quinn had thrown up a little. I wiped his mouth and thought that I got it all. But when I went to get him out of the car, there was a little on the seatbelt clasp. I went back up front to grab a wet wipe, and he proceeded to throw up, significantly, two more times before I could get him out of the car. It was so bad, such a mess. It took me (and Trish) forever to get him cleaned up and then remove the car seat and take it completely apart to clean it. What a mess. So we were waiting for my mom to get into town. She was going to take Quinn for the evening while Trish and I went down to St. George to meet a couple of her friends for a "girls' night out." She only got lost once on the way to Trish's house. We put together some favors before Trish and I finished cleaning up the car and the car seat. We sent Mom (with explicit directions) to check into her hotel, after which she would meet me and Quinn at our hotel. Then I was going to drive back to Trish's and we'd leave for St. George. Quinn was starting to get hungry for lunch (it was already after 3, but he'd been sick), but I decided I'd let Mom take him when she got there. At least 45 minutes later, I called to see if she was close. She was lost. Why on earth she doesn't call one of us when she gets lost is beyond me. Instead she just drives around for a while I guess. Anyway, Trish got her back on the right path, and I went ahead and picked up something for Quinn to eat. By then, it was 5:00, past the time we were supposed to leave for St. George, which is almost 2 hours from Tallahassee. I kept calling Mom, but she got stuck in traffic, and it eventually took her an hour and a half just to get from her hotel to mine. I was so frustrated, and I felt especially bad for Trish. She couldn't catch a break. We finally made it down there, picked up Ali, and went to get something to eat. The girl who convinced Trish to have this girls' night didn't even get to the island until 10:30! Trish was supposed to stay with her and her husband that night at a family cottage on the island so she could be there first thing in the morning. Well, when she gets there, she calls Trish and says it's really bad and Trish probably won't want to stay there. This is where we were supposed to get dressed and take pictures before the wedding. So there are no rooms available at the only hotel on the island. Wade offered to let her sleep in the back of his truck in the campground (what an offer!!). She ended up staying with Ali and David and the girls (her flowergirls). Mom and I finished putting together the favors on our way down to the wedding the next day.
Getting ready went fine. Trish looked absolutely perfect in her dress and veil. We ran a little later than we'd planned because we had to wait for the friend who was doing our hair. But we (Jalal, Quinn, Trish, and I) arrived at the park at a few minutes before 4:00. As we were waiting for Mom, Aunt Jacquie, and Uncle Marcus to be seated before we walked up to the boardwalk (where we could be seen by everyone), Uncle Marcus got a call from Uncle Joe, which he gave to Trish. As if she wasn't stressed out enough, Uncle Joe said they were on the way and could she hold the wedding for 30 minutes!! She asked us, "What do I do? I have almost 100 people sitting on the beach waiting for me." I told her I didn't see how we could make everyone wait, especially considering they were out in the open and the sun was blazing. We just had to go ahead without them. I know that was tough for her, since Nani wasn't there, Aunt Linda wasn't there, Uncle Jay had called a couple days before to say he wouldn't make it, no other cousins were going to be there except Briana (who was with Uncle Joe and Aunt Polly), not to mention the fact that Dad wasn't there (in person). But Wade probably would have freaked out if he sat there for 30 more minutes. So we went ahead. Quinn was supposed to walk down with the girls, which he practiced pretty well that morning. But when the time came, it was Elizabeth, the younger flowergirl, who didn't cooperate. Addilyn tried to keep both kids in hand, and Quinn just followed along, but they weren't heading down the aisle at all. I had to come down the aisle again and bring Quinn and Addilyn with me while Elizabeth stayed with her mom. The rest of the service went great. It was very windy, so I had to keep adjusting Trish's veil to keep it out of her face, but otherwise it was perfect. I know I got teary a few times. The reception was very nice. Trish's new sister-in-law and brother-in-law provided the food: barbeque, beans, slaw, etc. They made two giant key lime pies for the "groom's cake" because that is Wade's absolute favorite. When I say giant, I mean they bought those giant clay platters that go under large flowerpots. They were probably two feet across. The wedding cake was beautiful. Her friend Louie made it for her and it was so classic and elegant. It also happened to taste great! So, altogether we had a great time. I will get pictures up as soon as I can, but as it turned out, we didn't take any with our camera because we were all involved. I'll get some from Trish's photographer when she gets back from her honeymoon, which is tomorrow. I can't wait! I have missed her so much. I want to hear all about the cruise they went on, which was 5 nights to Cozumel and Grand Cayman. Man, I need a cruise after everything I've been through. If anyone wants to donate a cruise for us, just let me know!! Love, Us.