Well, today is the big day! It's a little non-traditional in that the order of things is not as expected. They have been engaged for 12 years. Busy lives, Master Degrees, State Board Certifications , etc have delayed the wedding plans all these years. But they love each so much and they are finally tying the knot!
The future mother-in-law's house was the the center of activity before the wedding. All the wedding party got dressed at the here. The photographer arrived and some photos taken at the house and others across the street at the college that these two lovebirds graduated from.
The groom almost ready.
Happy couple before the professional Photographer arrives
Some of the Wedding party, just standing around.
Wedding party "unofficial" photo
After all the photos were taken, we were on time at the wedding venue and were able relax a bit and to see some of the guests arriving. The Ceremony started promptly at 5:00. The pavilion was all decorated, the chairs were all set up in a spiral, the guests had arrived, now it was 'Show Time!"
Chairs in a spiral for the Ceremony
The entire Ceremony is below. The wedding march was "The Star Trek Next Generation Theme" by the Vitamin String Quartet.
Me giving my daughter away, with my wife looking on. Great picture.
My daughter said "if you're having this much fun at the ceremony, it's going to be a great wedding"
Parents of the Bride, That's Us
First Dance was to "At Last!" by Etta James. How very appropriate after 12 years engagement.!
First Dance
The groom's father made all the cakes, the wedding cake, The Grooms Cake and all the cupcakes. They were all delicious. The strawberry cupcake actually had a fresh strawberry inside.
The obligatory "Cutting the Cake" photo
The wedding was fantastic! The Happy Couple were having a great time partying with their friends. Caterer was great and the food was outstanding. Everyone danced the night away until 11:30. A great time was had by all. The new bride & groom will be leaving for a 9 day "honeymoon" in Hawaii in two days! Such Fun. Youth is wasted on the young!
After month of planning, my daughter will be getting married tomorrow. Tonight was the rehearsal and rehearsal Dinner. The wedding will take place tomorrow, with both the Ceremony and the Reception will take place at the local camping club facilities.
The actual Ceremony will take place in the pavilion with chairs situated in a spiral with the bride & groom ending up at the center of the spiral.
The Pavilion - Ceremony will be here with chairs in a spiral
There is a patio at the rear of the hall. Plans are to have torches around the perimeter and the fire pit burning after dark.
Back Patio - Tiki Torches & Fire Pit at Night
The hall is quite large.
Inside the hall
You can almost make out the spiral in the "being silly" picture.
Practicing walking "Round-the-Aisle"
Reception area being set up.
The Reception not Set Up yet
After we practiced, we went to the future in-law's house for an Hawaiian-style backyard cookout.
Steve and Family members
Mother & Daughter
Everyone had a great time and we need to get some sleep before the "Big Day."
Our garlic garden is doing well with over 600 garlic bulbs. Since most of them are of the hard-neck variety, they will produce scapes. Scapes are the garlic flower that grows from the center of the bulb. It is basically green garlic.
Garlic Garden
The scapes must be cut if you want large bulbs so the growth energy of the garlic goes into the bulb, not to the flower.
The scape is the piece that is curling
Picked one to see the progress, scape is visible, bulbs are still smallsh
Will post more picture of the scapes as I pick them
Well the last attempt at raising her family was a bust for the Eastern Phoebe mom. She was forced to feed the large cowbird that hatched a few days before her own. This cowbird was so large at the time hers hatched that they were only as large as the leg of the cowbird. Consequently, the cowbird got all the food and the baby Phoebes perished from either starvation or suffocation.
The cowbird was raised until it was time to leave the nest and he flew away, leaving the mom Phoebe unfulfilled in her motherly duties. Usually she would come back later in the summer for a second brood, but this time she started almost immediately laying eggs (one a day).
These eggs seem like a different color that the first brood. These appear beige whereas the first ones were white. Don't know why?
White eggs and cowbird egg from the fist brood.
Incubation period is about 15-16 days.. So we should be seeing the little ones around June 25-26.
A few days ago, I looked out in the backyard and saw turkey feathers all over the ground. Oh my, my first thought was that Tom was attacked by the coyote that had been prowling around here. Tom was nowhere to be found, no dead turkey around the yard, my only hope was that he managed to fly off. But there were so many feathers!
Feathers all over the back yard
Well, a few days later Tome return looking a little disheveled but not too bad. He seemed a little mor skittish that he was before the attack, but seemed OK. I guess he was able to pull away from the coyote and fly away.
Tom returns, doesn't look too bad.
All is back to normal. This morning, Elly forgot to fill the bird feeders from which Tom picks up the scraps on the ground from when the birds push the stuff they don't want away. I guess Tom was hungry, so he came up and pecked at the door window where Elly usually exits to fill the feeders. Who says turkeys are stupid?
