A Not So Scary 5th Birthday PTR; October 2013 UPDATE 6/5/13 DD25's Wedding: Part 5

[LadyBeBop]

We left me driving into Downtown Nashville. Of course, I knew very little about driving into Nashville. All I knew was I-40 and I-65. And I knew that I would eventually find a sign to lead us to one of the two interstates.

Or better yet, I-65 itself. Going southbound.

Fifteen minutes later, I pulled into the hotel, and took the wedding dress upstairs into the hotel room. T and B were laying down on their bed; completely exhausted. They were surviving on only about three hours of sleep and bowed out of the get-together.

M rented out the suite at the end of the hall. I took the dress down to her, and she said she needed a ride to the venue, a condo clubhouse. K's sister owns a condo in the community, and all of K's family were staying there.

However, M took her typical time, and we (meaning M, DH, DGD and I) didn't leave the hotel until after 7. I didn't mind; the party was in her honor anyway.

Nonetheless, i was still a little nervous. I have never met K's family before. Usually, the parents of the bride and groom would have met sometime before the wedding. Not us. His family is from Georgia (only his sister lives in Nashville), and of course we're from Kentucky. M and K live in Louisiana. So, of course the wedding would be in Tennessee.

We got to the party a little before 8. We were starved...keep in mind, Nashville is in Central Time and we are used to Eastern Time. Eating supper at 9? Almost never.

Anyway, before settling down to a BBQ sandwich dinner, we met K's folks.



M, her future mother-in-law, and my DGD.






K's father and my DH.





From left to right, my father, my oldest sister and her husband. They ran a little late, because they got lost on the way to the site.





After supper (sorry, no food porn), M and K opened up some of their presents.





One last picture of the bride, groom and parents.



The party broke up about 10:30 (which is late enough for us, because it felt like 11:30). We drove home and immediately settled in for a good night's sleep.

Except for that (word that would get me banned) air conditioner that constantly clanked.

Coming up next: The Wedding Day (finally)

 

[PrincessInOz]

WOW! First time meeting the in-laws???


(Did you like them? Will they be in-laws or out-laws?)

 

[LadyBeBop]

In laws. They seem to be nice enough. Problem is, we'll probably never see them, except for very special occasions (births christenings, etc.)

Today is the first of my forced, unpaid days off. (Thank you di-functional Congress.) At least it gives me time to get things together for our trip to the Wisconsin Dells tomorrow.

Looks like I won't get the Wedding Trip report done before we leave for the Wisconsin Dells. I'll do this installment, but the remainder will have to wait until I get back in ten days. I'll finish the wedding trip installment, then move on to the Dells. After that, it will probably be time for my nephew's wedding in Cleveland. Then our camping trip.

Did I say it was going to be a busy summer?

Anyway:

Part 4: Wedding Day Morning

The clang from the air conditioner must have stopped, because I did get a good night's sleep, and there was no clang when i woke up about 6:30 Central time. We didn't want to pay the high prices of breakfast at the hotel (one of the few hotels remaining without a few breakfast). So DH, my youngest DD, her DH, DGD and I all piled into the car and headed for Panera Bread which was about a mile down the road. You would think Panera Bread would be inexpensive. Wrong. Our bill for six people (we ordered carry-out for my eldest DD) was early $40.00. And all I got was a bagel and a Diet Pepsi. I think part of the problem was that my daughters like the very expensive coffee drinks. No, I wouldn't pay $5 for a coffee. ( I don't like coffee, anyway) And neither would DH. (And he does like coffee. Black. Only.)

We got back to the hotel aroud 8 AM, and the stylists were already in M's suite, ready to do make-up and hair on the bridal party. I went first, since I was there.

Doing up hair and make-up is easy on me. I have short hair, and I wear very little make-up. My order to them...just make me pretty. Sorry, no pix until the actual ceremony.

T went soon after me. Afterwards, T and I both decided we wanted our nails done. Problem with it...there was only one nail salon open on Sunday in the area. And that was in the mall, the next exit up. And it wouldn't open until noon.

T and I left DGD with our DH's and left for the mall about 11:30. We got to the mall, parked at the Macy's side, and walked in. Macy's, and some of the other larger stores were already open. We checked the store map...and found out (of course) that the nail salon was at the extreme opposite side of the mall.

We got to the salon right when it was supposed to open.

And never opened.

Somehow, you can't get your nails done in Franklin, TN on a Sunday.

We stopped at Target to get some press-on nails, then got lost heading back to the hotel. Sorta lost. I thought this street took us back to the hotel, and my thoughts were confirmed when we passed the Panera bread we at that morning.

After getting back to the hotel, we chilled for an hour, then watched DGD get all made up. She was last, because she had long, fine hair, and we didn't want it all messed up before the wedding.

Then came 2 PM.
Time for the women to go to the venue to get dressed.

M took her SUV to the venue, while T, DGD and I left in T's car (her driving). M knew how to get there, so we would follow her.

Until we allowed several cars to get between us, and I lost her.

To be continued.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Enjoy Wisconsin Dells and your unpaid days. Sorry that the economy is so bad.

Looking forward to seeing the bridal party and you in your dress.

 

[LadyBeBop]

Just got back from the Dells a couple of hours ago. It was interesting to say the least. Still suffering from the bug bites from our five-mile hike (should have only been about 2 1/2 miles) from Wednesday. Oh, and I can't wait to show you the video of the dog that jumps from tall rock to tall rock.

Couple of Disney related items.

1) T got MNSSHP tickets for her and DGD for October 29th. At least I'm pretty sure she did. She text me that she was going to. DH and I will stay behind. Actually, I'm thinking about making that a date night for us two. Do you think California Grill will be open by then? And if not, where would you go for a romantic dinner? We'll probably celebrate our anniversary (acutal date is November 9th). Can be onsite or offsite; it doesn't matter. Only requirement...cannot be in a park. Remember, we don't have park hoppers, and we're doing AK. Also, we can't afford Victoria and Albert's.

2) The Dells has a Disney Store outlet. So we got a lot of good stuff for DGD to wear to WDW.



A Belle T-Shirt.



A Disney Princess T-Shirt.



A Minnie Mouse dress/hoodie.



A Disney Princess nightgown.



A Minnie Mouse bathing suit.



A Disney Princess beach towel.

Can't wait to see DGD with these items on our Disney Vacation. We're less than 150 days away.

But before then, I have to finish up my DD's wedding trip report. Then a Wisconsin Dells trip report. Then a mini-trip report on my nephew's wedding. Followed up by a trip report to Carter Caves, Kentucky. And then, a mini-report on my crochet convention trip.

I should get back on my DD's wedding report. When I last left you, we were on our way to the wedding venue.....

 

[PrincessInOz]

Welcome back! Your Disney stash is fantastic and looks beautiful.



You asked about recommendations for somewhere to go for a special dinner; not in a park.

What about Flying Fish or Raglan Road? Or maybe one of the restaurants at the Swan and Dolphin?

 

[IowaTater]

Oh my gosh...that Minnie dress is way too cute.

Hope you had a wonderful time in the Dells. I've never been there before but it is on my bucket list.

 

[LadyBeBop]

Oh my gosh...that Minnie dress is way too cute.

Thanks. DH picked it out. Upon examination, I found out it isn't a dress/hoodie. It's a swim cover-up to go over her swim suit.

Weather permitting, we're taking DGD swimming this weekend. Hopefully, I'll have pictures of her in her cover-up and swim suit.

Hope you had a wonderful time in the Dells. I've never been there before but it is on my bucket list.

It's a nice place. Too many waterparks, and I'm not a swimmer. The Dells are beautiful. Wouldn't think it'd be that far from you. It's about nine hours for us. I'll have a trip report...right after the wedding report.

 

[LadyBeBop]

Well, by now I guess you're wondering..

ARE YOU EVER GOING TO MAKE IT TO THE WEDDING VENUE?

Yes, we did. Even though I didn't see M's car, T did. The few cars ahead of us eventually turned, and we were, once again, behind her. By this time, we were on roads with no traffic lights, so we kept behind her.

A few minutes later, we reached the site. CJ's off the Square in downtown Franklin. Franklin has a nice downtown with a town square. I wished we had more time to explore the town. Maybe someday.

The wedding and reception would be outside. The buffet would be inside on the lower level. And the bride's dressing rooms would be inside on the upper level.

We met M and the remaining bridesmaids upstairs. There were a couple of dressing rooms, but we all got dressed in the large room.

DGD got dressed first.



Then M and the other bridesmaids got dressed. Here they are in the dressing gowns that M bought them. M is in white; the others are in pink.



All this time, DGD was getting a little antsy. It was still over an hour until the ceremony, and she was all dressed. Fortunately, there were snacks in the other dressing room, and the venue was wired with free WiFi. My Kindle was equipped with Netflix instant streaming. So DGD was content with trail mix and Scooby Doo.



Meanwhile, T was helping M with her wedding gown, and veil...the same veil I wore at my own wedding.



I don't remember if the time upstairs dragged too long, or if it was too quick. I think a little of both. But it was soon time for the ceremony. I left the bride and bridesmaids about a half our before the ceremony, and made my way downstairs to meet my family.

My youngest DS and her husband made it on time, thankfully. I was a little worried, because their DGD made her first communion that day. In Atlanta. Fortunately, the hour time change worked in their favor.

My nephew and his fiance also made it on time. They volunteered to take pictures on my camera during the wedding, so I game them the camera which was in the case along with the power cord. DN took all of the wedding pictures and many of the reception pictures. (Meaning, I'll probably be taking about 200 pictures at their wedding, later this month. Hey, I have to recepricate.)

The ceremony was wedding to start. Here is the groom, waiting for the bridal party.



To be continued

 

[PrincessInOz]

Looking great!

 

[LadyBeBop]

Well, we left the groom waiting at the altar. For a week.

Well, I've been busy. Sorta....

Anyway:

One thing I forgot to tell y'all. Last thing that M told me before I left to meet up with the rest of the family. "Mom. I know you're going to cry. Just don't be loud about it."

OK, now, I'm going to have to stifle the soft wailing that comes with my tears. What am I going to do? After all, how often does your eldest daughter get married?

My nephew did take some pretty good pictures. Here is K's mother and father.



Followed close behind by my father and me.



My DGD as the flower girl.



The groom, his groomsmen and the bridesmaids.



Finally, the father-of-the-bride (DH) walks his daughter down the aisle.



And gives her away to our new son.



To be continued

 

[PrincessInOz]

You look gorgeous and so happy! Love that colour on you. I hope you're happy with the dress and how you look. Absolutely beautiful.

Your DD is stunning! Hoping to see more soon.

 

[haley'smom44]

I just read your report all the way through - I'm glad the wedding went perfectly We will be in Disney just a couple of weeks before you - I hope your planning is going better than mine so far