Growing up Together

Aaron and I celebrated our sixteenth wedding anniversary this year. That means a kid born the year we were married would now be driving a car. (That makes me feel old.) Since I was sixteen years old when we met that also means I have known Aaron half my life.

It sometimes hits me how young we were when we got married. I had turned 19 only a few days earlier. Aaron was 21 and only home from his mission for 9 months. We were poor in money and rich in faith. We knew we were meant for each other. We absolutely knew it was right for us to be married. We jumped into life with both feet. We were young but all that means is that we grew up together. We have no regrets.

I look back at all that we have been through in the last 16 years years. I would not trade a thing. The Lord has blessed us in so many ways. I will be ever grateful for all the experiences good and bad, that we have shared with each other. I wonder what the next 16 years will bring. As long as we have each other and the Lord, we can do anything.

Why Reno?

Why Reno? We went to a wedding in the Reno Temple.

 Julian was only 10 years old when we moved to South Texas. We watched him grow up, go on his mission, and leave for college right before our eyes. We couldn' t miss this important day.

It was great being back with such great friends. I enjoyed seeing how much the kids have grown since we left. I asked Sarah what grade she was in, she informed me that she's a sophmore in college. How did that happen?

The wedding photographer loved Sarah's shoes.

Emilee, the bride, had lots of friends and family at the wedding and the reception. Julian's family had us. It was so worth the trip just for that reason.

Here Comes the Bride

Some of the girls from the neighborhood had a wedding party recently. Not a bridal shower, (there is a big difference). For this party, we put on wedding attire, shared our wedding albums, and had lots of fun in the process.

Out of my group of friends, I have been married the longest, therefore, styles have changed the most. Which means I really got laughed at. First of all, there is the engagement picture when I'm wearing stir-up pants, the announcement that makes me look like I have no clothes on,
the fabric covered scrapbook,
the scrapbook pages minus any color, embellishments, or journaling, but I did have fancy scissors to make scalloped borders (What more do you need?)
Then there is my dress. I rented it from a nearby bridal shop. A friend of mine, who I met a couple of years ago, rented the same dress from the same store two weeks later. The only difference is that she could still wear the dress. I'm not sure my big toe would fit into it now.
Which brings me to my next problem, what was I going to wear to the party? Well, I put on a white skirt (since it wasn't long, I put on some white knee highs, somehow that was going to make it better) and a white sweater. I took along my bouquet, green feather pen for people to sign the guest book, and my hat (Seriously, what was I thinking all those years ago....a hat?) As I left for the party, I asked Aaron if seeing all that made him want to marry me all over again. He just smiled.
This is my "sexy" pose. I'll be the first to admit I didn't pull it off. I wasn't the only one having fun. We did a little photo shoot with my friend Jessica.

Isn't she lovely?

We also had a full wedding line complete with bridesmaids.

Now, not everyone dressed up (party poopers). One of the highlights of the night was looking at all the photos from different weddings.
Each of us had to answer 4 questions 1-How did you meet? I said we met on a group date, but we were not with each other. Aaron met my brother at college and we met through him. I was just 16 years old. Question #2- How did he propose? We were in the Ogden City Mall on the skywalk when he got down on one knee. I was totally surprised. Question #3- What do you love about him? My answer, that he makes me a better person. I am dependant on him, yet he has taught me to be independent and to just be myself. Question #4- What do you dislike about your husband? I told them he leaves his clothes on the floor. I didn't tell them that I leave my clothes on the floor as well. I know that if I out live him I will miss picking up after him.

It was a great party. I can't wait for the next one. I still have all the photos and half a post written about our ugly sweater party back in February. Are you starting to wonder if we have to much time on our hands? Well, we do. It's winter in Utah.

Wedding Day!

Last Saturday was the wedding of all weddings! (No, I'm not talking about Jenna Bush's wedding). Maybe this wedding was not the biggest in money spent, attendance, or fame but, for our family, it couldn't have been more perfect!

For those of you who don't know, Lauren was born at 25 weeks into the pregnancy (normal pregnancies average 40 weeks). She weighed 1 pound and 9 ounces. Her father's wedding band slid up to the shoulder of her premature body. I thought of this as I watched her put a wedding band on her husband. I was reminded that without a miracle, this day would never have come. This is her now.I "borrowed" a couple of photos from her photographer's blog. I'm glad they have her stamp on them. She was a great photographer and took some amazing photos that should be copyrighted.

Aaron's cousin, Renee, took some more candid shots of the day that she shared. I wish I could be a photographer. I just don't think I have the "eye" for it.

The weather was perfect that day. It had rained all day the day before. Lauren was worried we would wake up to two inches of snow, but alas, it was a beautiful day. The spring flowers were out in full bloom which added even more to the beauty.

After the ceremony in the Logan Temple, we went outside to wait with the kids for Ammon and Lauren to come out. The girls entertained themselves by running around in their new dresses. I bought Savanah a pair of new white shoes for the wedding. She refers to them as her glass slippers. Now they have grass stains on them. (I wonder how that happened?)The boys played paper/rock/scissors and blew bubbles.
They eventually gave up those activities and just waited.Ammon and Lauren finally came out to greet all their family and friends. (I love the shoes, Ammon.)My kids have always called Lauren "Tia" which is Aunt in Spanish. They have been waiting to call Ammon "Tio" the spanish word for Uncle. Here is a photo of the happy couple with Jared. And a photo of the entire family. Yes, that is Ethan saluting who knows what.
Later, after the dinner, we tried to take a photo of Lauren with all of her nieces and nephews. (Getting them to all look at the same time is easier said then done).
A photo with the girls who had spent the day eyeing her pretty dress and shiny shoes.

As father of the bride, I can't imagine what he felt this day. (I forbid my little girls to grow up.)
I loved watching each of her brothers greet her in the Temple with a hug. It is fun to see her with all of the balding brothers. (Their maternal grandfather was bald. They have always known it was inevitable).The nice thing about having so many brothers, is that she gets that many sister-in-laws.

(Thanks for the disc of pics Renee, you should put your name on them as well so they can be copyrighted. You were kind to share with all of us.)

Like I said before, it was an absolutely beautiful day. I am so happy for Ammon and Lauren! They are a great couple and I wish them all the happiness as they begin their life together.

Getting Married

It's official! Aaron's little sister, Lauren, is engaged to be married. Ammon is a great guy and we are very happy for both of them. The big day is May 10th. They will be married in the Logan Temple.

Last week, we, as sister-in-laws, went along while Lauren was wedding dress shopping. This poor girl grew up with only brothers. Now, she's got all these sister-in-laws who want to be a part of her wedding. Our sole purpose was to be there to offer our opinons. We even gave our opinions to other girls who were trying on their wedding dresses. We were so helpful!

Here are a few of the dresses she tried on in two different bridal shops.

Why the scary look on her face? It was a hard decision. She looked great in all of them. Which one did she pick? You'll have to stay tuned to find out.

Melanie wanted to stand on the pedastal and show off her purchase of the day, an adorable tote bag. It was also a really hard decision to make, as to which color to buy.

After we purchased the dress, we went to the bridal fair up on USU's campus. Ammon was modeling tuxedos there. Aren't they a cute couple?
When we returned home, Lauren put on the dress for her dad and brothers to see. As I put on the necklace we purchased with the dress, Savanah's jaw dropped. She said, "Oh mom, she is so beautiful! I just love that dress!" Savanah has sinced told me she wants to wear Lauren's dress when she gets married. I told her she needed to marry someone like Ammon, who treated her kindly, honored his priesthood, and who wanted to get married in the temple. She responded, "and is very handsome." Yeah, that too.