50 years ago my parents said, "I do"
& that's a perfect reason to celebrate big!
We all ventured home from different towns & states to be there to celebrate Mom & Dad. It was awesome to be surrounded with family for multiple days in a row. We hung out at the farm, did a big "formal" family photo by the treehouse (hope to see it soon), went out for a fancy dinner with just the adults, & relaxed at the hotel.
Then on Sunday we had a special Mass celebrated by my brother at St. Francis. Many of the grandkids helped out by serving, reading, carrying up offertory, & singing. Most of them carried up flowers after Communion for Mom & Dad to present to Mary. It was beautiful! (Also anxiously awaiting those pictures taken by a friend) I was up in the choir loft with my nieces who are pretty fabulous singers! I've never been so disorganized directing a choir & had it turn out so well. :) Plus it was a lot of fun to be with them.
After Mass we ventured down to the nice new town reception hall for cake, candy, & lots of visiting. My brother-in-law Taylor put together an awesome video of all of us dancing to the song "Happy" that we played followed by a slideshow.
It really was amazing to have such a mix of family, fellow parishioners, their card club/hunting/skiing buddies, Mom's coworkers, neighbors all in one place! What a gift to see how many people really played a part in their marriage & in the growth of our family. Such a blessing!
Rebecca fit perfectly into the flower girl dress that Mom had made for their wedding 50 years ago. She was giddy to wear it & do something special for Grandma. :)
After the cake reception (with half the town!) we stayed for a dinner with family. Then we all headed out to the farm for a bonfire, guitars, laser tag for the kids, & more visiting. Such fun!
Hopefully, more pictures to follow soon!
