a lovely wedding

Today was Elise's wedding day. (She and her husband Jerry are in the photo.) Her parents have been good friends of mine for many years and I don't see them nearly often enough now that they live in Pittsburgh. So it was wonderful to have a chance to chat with them and even more wonderful to be able to watch their daughter getting married. She was a beautiful bride. The ceremony was fairly traditional, except for the very loud slamming of two doors in the middle of it. (Comliments of a rather brisk wind outside.) Everyone gasped and laughed and then the service continued. It's the unusual things that make a wedding memorable. We'll remember this one. The reception was at Glen Echo Park in the bumper car pavillion. I don't know if there are bumper cars there in the summer, but they were not there today! The pavillion has a roof, but the sides are open. It was a bit chilly today, although the people who were dancing were probably warm enough. It was us older, non-dancing folks who felt the cold. Elise and Jerry met through swing dancing, so of course, they had appropriate music for dancing. Lessons were offered to those brave enough to try, although I didn't notice too many of the folks who took the lessons actually dancing later. Elise and Jeffy performed several solo numbers. What they do is beyond belief. Perhaps it helps that Elise is tiny (less than 5 foot tall) and Jerry is 6 foot plus and muscular. They are such good dancers. It was a delight to watch them. Andy (my ex-husband) and I used to swing dance about 20 years ago, but we never did the fancy stuff. All in all, the wedding and the reception were very enjoyable. I saw a number of friends who have moved far away and that was just icing on the cake. Speaking of cake - the wedding cake was just a nicely decorated sheet cake with none of that very sweet, rich decorators' icing. Instead, it had a lovely light filling. Best wedding cake I've ever eaten!

Since I got home, I have spent at least 2 hours on the computer trying to book a reasonably priced ticket to London in December. I don't know when I've been so frustrated. Every time I thought I had found the right connections, on the days I wanted, at the right price - there were no available seats or one of the airports was wrong or the price suddenly jumped up by $200. Arrrrgh! (Actually what I muttered was much stronger than that, but it's not polite, so I won't repeat it.) However, I perservered, and eventually I was successful and made the booking. I could not get a non-stop flight within my budget (not wanting to pay over $1000), but I got reasonable connections. The only thing that worries me is that I have to connect through Philadelphia - in December. I always prefer non-stop flights in the winter. However, Philadelphia is certainly less likely to have snow than Detroit or Chicago. Keep your fingers crossed.

I took a look at my appointment calendar today. I don't know how it happened, but I have a VERY busy fall. I seem to have something on every weekend in October and most of weekends in November. How do I get myself into these predicaments? Never mind, don't answer that. I know I do it to myself. Life is short and there are so many things I want to do. I really wouldn't have it any other way, but at times I feel a bit overwhelmed. I think the first weekend in December is still clear, but I suspect that I will find something to fill that one as well! LOL