Here comes the...Kylan!

There he is, tux and all! (I had to start with that picture even though it is out of order--his laughs and smiles are so contagious!)

So we drove late Thursday night to Goshen. Ky surprisingly stayed awake through most of the trip--and for once, driving through Chicago was not that bad. We made it in about 4.5 hours. Here is a key to driving late at night with an awake child--toys that have lights. Ky played with two light up toys and my cell phone--and it kept him happy.

Friday morning we got up early--thanks to Ky --and went to the Amish store. We stocked up on all sorts of good stuff---spices, wheat flour, etc... It was a very long trip to the Amish store though, since construction made things difficult. In fact, we cut it very close to being late for the rehearsal dinner.

At rehearsal dinner, Ky got to meet his Great G'ma Irvin, Great Uncle Don & Great Aunt Sally, as well as G'pa Irvin. It was neat seeing my family. I have only met my Aunt Sally once and have never met my Uncle Don so I was excited. Ky spent some special bonding time with G.U. Don at the piano.

Joel and Jamie were like any antsy couple the day before there wedding. They appeared somewhat calm and collected, yet you could tell they were a bit concerned about how everything was going to pull together.

Ky did not like waiting in line to walk into the place where the ceremony was to be held. He was a very antsy ring bearer. When it came time for him to practice, he sat down several times in the aisle (not a good first impression.) I had to pick him up and push him to move. After we got to our seats and they practiced the ceremony, Kylan did not want to sit down. (He was hungry so this was a bit difficult.) He discovered that there were a lot of things to play with. For example, he discovered the blinds on a window located near the stage--and how much noise they make. He also discovered that the skirt of the stage was held on merely by velcro. These were not good things. Rob and I knew we were going to have to make sure to have things to keep him occupied during the ceremony.

After that, all was well. We ate some much needed pizza and we went back to my brother Joel's house so he could leave us instructions on taking care of his dog the next day (since he would be a bit too busy too.) BTW--did I mention what a beautiful house my brother has...he built it and him and Jamie picked out everything for it. Anyway--while I got doggy instructions, Ky spent more time with GG'ma Irvin and enjoyed watching the fish. And I do have to brag about my G'ma here--93 years old and the woman moves faster than a rabbit. She kept one step ahead of Kylan the whole time. It was great to see her. She moved to New York to live with her daughter(Sally) and so I don't get to see her when I visit Indiana anymore.

DDAY--

Ky had a great morning. G'ma Irvin gave him a present--a caterpillar pull toy--and he loved pulling it around. He also had fun playing in Bear's crate--DON"T WORRY--he put himself in there and closed the door. We would never do that! Don't think such bad thoughts!!! Personally, I think Ky was just taunting the dog.

Anyway, Ky went down for an early nap and we had to wake him and take him to the hall to change. We figured the less time in the tux before the ceremony the better. (Less time to mess it up.) We were lucky. We got to dress Ky in the same room as the bride--so we got a sneak peek. She was/is beautiful! The perfect dress for the perfect girl! (YEAH I AM GETTING A SISTER!)

Before the ceremony, KY walked around and showed his duds off to everyone. He also got to meet some other relatives he (and I) had never met---Great Great Aunt Mickey & third cousin Gretchen (I think I have that right.)

He also got to meet his great Aunt Char and great Uncle Frank and 2nd Cousin Katie and 3rd cousin Jade. (I hope I got that right too.) Boy extended family get complicated.

So what were all the brothers doing....Jeff was reading a verse for the ceremony. He arrived cool and calm. John & James were the ushers--and I have to say they looked more like bouncers the way they stood in the door with their arms crossed and donned sunglasses. They are a funny pair.

Okay--so ceremony time came--and everyone was walking in well. Ky had to walk with the flower girl (with my guidance.) It was his (our) turn--but something happened--no one came to pull out the aisle runner--some confusion....So off we went anyway. It was very funny. The flower girl tossed her petals and Ky tried his best to stomp on them as he walked down the aisle. Everything was going well. I was so proud of my little boy for walking the line. We passed my brother (groom) and were making our way to our seats when i heard a "SKEEEEEE". Ky had casually extended his arm and reached for the skirt on the stage and YANKED it off. The little booger!!! Well, I repaired it and quickly sent Ky to his Dad's awaiting arms.

Phew! So the ceremony went well. There was an extended amount of time as the bride awaited her aisle runner (As Joel said--"we paid for that aisle runner and we were going to make sure it was used!") , but she made it up the aisle and arrived happily into the arms of my brother. There was also a small incident with one of the groomsmen...

Rob and I were sitting by the groomsmen (directly behind them) I was videotaping the ceremony when I noticed the last groomsman --we'll call him Harry (to hide any future humiliation) began to sway. Rob also noticed, but his arms were full with Kylan. I was looking to see if anyone else was noticing in order to catch him and Rob began to Snap his fingers as Harry began to fall. Everything at this moment was a bit of a blur--but thank goodness the other groomsmen caught him before he fell off the stage (he was at the edge.) I at some point had stood up and gotten behind him--but what was I going to do--give him something softer to fall on?

Anyway like I said the ceremony went well. The rest of the groomsmen kept an eye on Harry for the rest of the ceremony--and even Rob went up and stood behind him for a little while, just in case he was about to faint again.

Okay--so this is a really long blog entry at this point and I really need to wrap things up...so...

Yes that is a picture of my brother doing the chicken dance--and yes I will hold this over his head for the rest of his life, his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren will all see it.

I got an action shot of Kylan playing peek-a-boo..his favorite game in the whole world.

Ky tried to make a living being a part of a three man band--but that did not last long. No tips.

Yes I have pics of the groomsmen vandalizing the groom's car (which they accidentally dented).

Ky was exhausted by the end of the day.

We spent the night at Joel & Jamie's and they came back early the next morning and woke us up? What kind of wedding night was that!?

We spent the remainder of the morning with them and then spent early afternoon with G'ma Irvin, then stopped at G'ma & G'pa VanderHedyen for a cup of Iced tea. Ky is a klepto and stole a key to their fireplace. Somehow he discreetly placed it in the diaper bag when no one was looking--so I had to mail it back when we got home and discovered it.

We then visited my Uncle Ricky in the hospital on the way out. Not too much to say. It is hard to see a loved one slowly dying, yet selfishly I am still glad he is here. I am also glad that he has met Kylan, yet I am sad that Kylan will not remember him.

And lastly--and I saved this for last on purpose. Over the weekend, we found out that we will be returning to Goshen in a few weeks. My older younger brother (are you following me?) is now engaged and will be getting married on September 1st--his beautiful bride's birthday. He says that he is her birthday present. Yes a very quick wedding. Is the proposal a surprise---no...The date--YES! A six week engagement. I guess they don't mess around. So that is why there are a couple special pics of them above. Two sisters in two months...I had to wait almost a quarter of a century for one sister and now I have two more in two months. So here's to Jeffrey and Sarah!