Brown Wedding - Corydon, IN

On a Friday in late September, we packed into the minivan and headed toward southern Indiana for a wedding that was sure to be an experience our kids would never forget. About eighteen months or so ago, one of my cousins met his forever love. It was easy to see that Jonathan and his beautiful girlfriend, Thanh, were a match made in heaven. We were excited to help them celebrate their lifetime commitment.  

Thanh is from Vietnam, and her parents still live there. This photo was taken at a special ceremony they had with their Vietnamese family and friends the morning of the wedding.  Thanh is beautiful inside and out.

 

Their wedding took place at Potato Run United Methodist Church in O'Bannon Woods State Park.  This site held significance because Jonathan's great-great-great-great grandfather had donated the land and building materials for the church.  Several of his ancestors are buried in the little cemetery next to the church. It was quaint, peaceful, and downright beautiful.

 

   

Waiting outside before the ceremony

A couple of cousins provided music

Thanh and her father before coming to meet her groom

Cowboy boots and suspenders were a common theme for the
wedding party and guests.  :-)

The bride and groom rang the church bell

and greeted the lavendar-tossing guests. 

 The reception was held on Jonathon's grandparent's farm there in Corydon.  The tent was set up on the hill, and provided a 360 degree view of surrounding hills and farms.  It was surreal.  Fortunately, the weather cooperated and gave them a picture perfect day.

Behind my sister are two tractors with wagons for gifts

 

Mmmmm...menu...the mason jars were for guests to take as favors.

Just down from the reception tent was a mobile restroom.  :-)

The kids found the "Sweet Barn" right away.  :-)

My grandmother (far right) with her two sisters, Judy and Patty

My brother and a cousin played some music down in the barn

 

The bride's uncle sang a song for the couple

 

Cake table...notice the rustic detail

Cupcakes

The photographer was printing instant wedding photos and hanging
them so that guests could feel free to take what they wanted.

My aunt and uncle relaxing in the barn

Hayride time!!!

 

 

Nearing the end of a long day, hanging out with cousins.

I think the only thing that kept them awake was ice cream and root beer. 

Allison hanging out by the cooler...
lots of Haagen Das ice cream and bottled root beer!

Happy couple 

As dusk neared, they pulled out a stack of lanterns.



As the lanterns sailed west, we pulled one crying child
and three other very sad ones into the van and began
the long trip home.  They could've stayed on the farm for a week.

This was the most unique wedding I've ever been to.  I'm planning to do a "farm wedding" post with a few details on my personal blog later.  I know some of my readers will be interested to see it.  One interesting aspect was that it was so guest-centered.  Obviously, the bride and groom were the stars of the show, but they were so concerned about those who had come so far to celebrate with them, and they wanted it to be a relaxing and fun time for everyone.   

 

So...Congratulations, Jon and Thanh!  May the strength of your love and devotion always be as deep or deeper than it was on your wedding day.

 

Happy 59th Birthday, Momma!

My mom always works so hard to make our birthdays special, and we wanted to do the same for her.  This year she was in a revival near Indy with my dad, so we weren't sure how it would all work, but they ended up meeting us in Dayton for a birthday lunch at Cracker Barrel. We had such a good time being together, as that doesn't happen much for us these days! My Uncle Joe and Aunt Carol Brown came from Circleville and met us, as well.

Grandkids (I hear they're pretty special)  :-)

Only a cool mamaw would wear these glasses in Cracker Barrel!  Haha!
Oh, and check out the pink mustaches!

Some serious talent floating around in this family...lol

September 21, 2013

Labor Day Visit in MI

This Labor Day, the Burley side of the family was able to all be together in Cedar Springs. The kids had so much fun spending a couple of days hanging out with their cousins, and Greg and I were able to relax and savor another beautiful summer weekend. We pulled the RV, which always makes it a little more nerve-wracking. As I predicted, we blew a tire on the way home. We have never had a "perfect" pull to MI with the RV. I think we're jinxed. :-)

A huge fire is pretty much a constant when we're all together.

Lots of cornhole

Hanging out with family (and looking forward to a great-nephew here soon!)

Wagon rides on grandpa's trailer

More fun with cousins

And cornhole...

Did I say cornhole?  ;-)

Spending time with our great-niece, Emma, who's totally adorable. 

That weekend was probably my first time to walk extensively on uneven ground, so I didn't move around much. Seems like every time there was a good photo opportunity, my camera was not in reach. Oh well...we have the memories. :-) Ryan was thrilled that a new fireworks store had come into town, and I was amazed (and a little dismayed) by how much $17 could buy! He will definitely be responsible for any grey hair that I acquire...hehe. 

We are thankful for good weather, a safe trip, and a wonderful time with family.

Our Summer Vacation

Vacation 2013...

We haven't taken many vacations, and the ones we have taken have been no more than four days in length. As a family, we have decided to use our vacation time primarily for spiritual enrichment and then take short weekend trips for recreation. As gas prices have gone up, our weekend excursions have been limited as well.

Late last fall, Greg's employer set up some one-time incentives in addition to quarterly bonuses. Those who reached the top tier on the incentive list qualified for a $3,000 vacation plus a sizeable bonus. Greg blessed us by busting it and reaching the top, and was given a voucher to go through a travel agency for our vacation. After making a few phone calls, the conclusion was that most of the vacations were to destinations like the Caribbean islands, etc., and that didn't really appeal to us for a few reasons...namely $3,000 won't get a family of 6 very much of a vacation if flights and resorts are involved! We wanted to stretch the money as far as we could. He talked with his employer and explained our feelings, and the employer was gracious enough to allow any who wanted to pay for their own vacation and then turn in receipts for reimbursement. That's when planning started to get fun!

Long story short, the kids really wanted to go back to the Smoky Mts. We hadn't been since I was pregnant for Allison. After all the plans were made and the kids had to wait for what seemed like forever (8 months!), the time for our vacation finally rolled around. We had scheduled it for the very last thing in the summer, and for that I am so thankful!  When arranging the timing, we had no idea I would be recouperating from a broken ankle.  God was definitely watching out for us. 

Our cabin was perfect.  It was two story with two master suites, a game room, two beautiful decks, two hot tubs, a jacuzzi, and access to a nice inground pool at the bottom of the mountain.

Wish I had taken all the pics with my "real" camera.  This was the
accurate color in the cabin.  It was spectacular.

Now for some washed out cell pics.  :-(

 

 

We enjoyed a perfect blend of rest, entertainment, and family fun. 

Playing in a mountain brook...

 

 

 

Seeing the wildlife in Cade's Cove - the goal is to always see a black bear, and this time a bear was our first wildlife sighting! 

 





 Lots of rides and go-carts!

 

Getting ready to have a steak at Logan's...

 



The Aquarium is usually on our list.  What a fun, cool place!

 

 

Notice Kait's reaction to her dad playing with sea life...

Inside the penguin house

The tunnel is always the best part, although the girls really
liked the mermaid show this time.

Dixie Stampede...

 

And Ripley's Odditorium in Gatlinburg...

My guys don't seem very tall...

Thanks to John Dillinger, Lima will always be famous.  :-)

Who's up for some deep fried oreos? 

Hangin' out at the race tracks...again.  :-)

Amazing lunch at the Old Mill

...with homemade ice cream

Mmmmmm

 Toward the end of the trip, we bought wristbands for the Nascar Speedpark.  We weren't disappointed there! Hours of fun, and then we were able to leave to get dinner and do a little shopping, and come back for more rides.

Greg and Alli in the tiny pink car...lol.

 

 

 

 

 Back to Gatlinburg for Ripley's 5D Theater...

And then to the Guiness Book of World Records...

World's tallest living woman...she has Greg beat!

 

 We all agree...our favorite part of the vacation, hands down, was the cabin.  We had considered splitting up the time and money and going on two trips, but it was so restful to be able to spend 9 days and 8 nights at one location.  And it was pretty nice to turn in a stack of receipts and receive a check to cover all the fun we'd just had! 

 

And that's why they call them the Smoky Mountains.