Amazing Occasions

Hubby Tony and I got home yesterday from a magnificent nine day trip. The time away was divided into three distinct parts.

On the Saturday before Easter we flew to Dallas. That night DIL Ie entered the Catholic church during the Easter Vigil. In total, there were 30 Catechumens (non-baptized individuals) and Candidates (people who were baptized in the Catholic church or another Christian community who had not received the sacraments of Eucharist and Confirmation). The beautiful ceremony started at sundown and went for almost three hours.

We spent Easter day with Son Tony and Ie. Early Monday morning Ie took us to the airport for the next leg of our journey. This time were in the air for just under two hours. When the plane touched down, the pilot welcomed us to San Jose, California.  It was time to hang out with this guy and his parents!

We were at Son Brian and DIL Nicole's house for four days. During that time we got to shadow on a day care pick up and drop off, and attend a "Take Your Child to Work Day" event at Nicole's company. One day Tony and I took an ambitious walk to the San Jose Rose Garden to see what was blooming. At the end of the day my phone app told me I had walked slightly over 17,000 steps.

On Friday morning Tony picked up a rental car for the third chunk of the trip. We drove out of the Bay Area and over the mountains to Turlock, in the California Central Valley. Later in the day we practiced for the big event that took place Saturday morning...the wedding of Tony and Ie.

Photos and the reception took place on the grounds of a nearby lavender farm. The outdoor venue had comfortable,casual seating areas scattered about, yard games, and plenty of space for the children to run around. There were long wooden farm dining tables arranged next to a covered porch area. While the sun was up huge market umbrellas shaded the tables, but as it got dark the staff moved the umbrellas away, and the white lights strung in the nearby trees came on. The porch area turned into a dance floor (which was very popular). At the end of the night all of the guests got a long sparkler and made an arch for the new bride and groom to run through.

On Sunday we returned to Brian and Nicole's for one more night. This time Son Donald was there, too. The three of us left Monday morning for the flight back to St. Louis.

Five years ago today: International Jazz Day