In True Roman Tradition

June has traditionally been thought of as the month for weddings. The Romans are mostly to thank for this association as June was the month for honoring their goddess of marriage, Juno. I don't believe this had any real weight on Sarah and Scott's choosing the 7th as their day, but I did think it was an interesting little fact to share. Actually, I believe the date was chosen in honor of order and sequence, as it is 06-07-08. Ok...that wasn't the real reason either, but rather a nice little extra. The truth is, June 7th was the first reasonable date that Sarah and Scott could bind their lives together in holy matrimony. And so is burnt into our memories "06-07-08."

Now, some may have noticed the obvious absence of new posts here in quite some time and thought, "Rebecca just isn't going to be able to keep up with her blog;" and while that may yet prove to be true, in this case my sabbatical was more so due to this wedding and all it entailed for me (leaving home for 5 weeks to live out of a suitcase with 2 kids and no hubby tends to rearrange the schedule somewhat). But, I'm back, and hope to be more vigilant in keeping this spot updated on the ins and outs of our life and my thoughts on it.

I enjoyed our time in Michigan, and loved being a part of Scott and Sarah's day. It was an incredible day, one that (to steal my dad's sentiments) I wish everyone I know and love could have shared! The ceremony was beautiful and touching, and holds a place in my heart second only to Glenn's and my wedding day. I spent a fair amount of time before the wedding (especially at the rehearsal) ribbing Scott for the tears we all knew he would shed. And I paid for that ribbing by crying like a baby myself for much of the day (in part due to Scott and his own waterfall of emotions). It was a VERY touching, emotional ceremony, and she is my little sister, after all! I also particularly enjoyed my husband's presence, as we'd been apart for way too long. (Glenn was able to fly up Thursday before the wedding and then returned home on Monday.) It was a perfect day focused on a beautiful bride and a sweet groom honoring the Lord through their love and their testimonies--a day worthy of all the tears shed.

And let's not forget the dashing mini "groomsman," and beautiful "bride's princess" (a little poetic license on my part....this is my blog, after all!) who captured everyone's hearts with their formal attire and just-plain-adorableness. Wyatt did a great job walking down the aisle with the help of his big sister and his new cousin, Kyle. Of course, it helped that Grammie was waiting at the end of the aisle with his favorite car! Wyatt spent enough time before the actual ceremony dragging his Woody "action figure" around by its string that Woody ended up in a photo or two.

Kathryn truly was a beautiful princess who took full advantage of the high "twirl factor" of her dress. She was a little worried about having to stand up front during the length of the ceremony. I understood her concern when she asked me if it would be longer than one or two hours! Precious little girl! She was appropriately excited when I told her it would probably not even last one hour. And in spite of her worries, she was a perfect princess throughout the ceremony. (Not that I really had any doubts.)

My one disappointment in the day was my not being asked to sing, "Oh promise me that some day you and I...." I'd perfected the piece just for the occasion! I guess there was just too much to fit into the ceremony,...and besides, I would have stolen the show, don'tcha know!

All in all, it was a good trip. It was too long for my taste, but Sarah is my only sister, so it was worth it. I have to say, the length of the time away from home made it somewhat easier to say goodbye to those in Michigan as we left on our journey back to Louisiana.

On the trip home, we stopped by Chicago for a few days and spent some time with Mom and Dad Donnelly. Grandma and Grandpa Donnelly were also down from Minnesota visiting, so we were able to spend time with them too. It was a fun weekend, and we had the rare opportunity to be there for Dad's birthday on the 21st.

We spent the day downtown visiting the botanical wonderland of the Garfield Park Conservatory in the morning, followed by a picnic lunch on the beautiful grounds of the University of Chicago.

Then we spent some time touring The Oriental Institute, which is actually not the "oriental" I was thinking of. It was a wonderful museum covering the history and a great collection of artifacts from the ancient Near East (Egypt, Israel, Syria, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, etc). There were dozens of cool links between what we believe from the Bible and the Institute's research and finds. Kathryn even really enjoyed it, and it was a good teaching experience. It was a very pleasant way to spend a Saturday.

And now, we're back home, settling back in to our own little routine. There's nothing better to make you appreciate what you have than leaving it behind for a while. I love and appreciate my husband and all he does for us, but not being with him for most of 5 weeks makes me SO aware of that love and of his devotion to us and our life together. Even this house, which has been pretty much nothing but a pain and annoyance, suddenly seems a little more homey and comfortable. I can honestly say, "It's GOOD to be home!!"