Anniversary Harvest

We wanted to eat cake. Really we did. A wedding cake that was frozen in time so that a momentous day could be celebrated one year later. Instead, we harvested grapes and made grape juice as we stayed up way past bedtimes and then no one was hungry for wedding cake and I am not sure where the evening (or the cake) went.

I am not sure where the last year went either. A year ago today this is what we looked like, what we were doing. The day was much like today. Sunny, a little chilly, but a beautiful Fall day with friends and family. A good day, one of the best ever.

One year... 365 days...8760 hours. No matter how you look at it, the time flew by. Now the newlyweds aren't so "newly" but they are still blissfully wed. And as much as I loved the wedding day, the days since have been sweet as well. Not perfect because life gets busy, work gets in the way and sometimes the silence stretches on too long, but I look forward to the Sunday afternoons when we are all together to enjoy the laziness, the random text messages that say (although maybe not in these exact words) "I'm thinking about you", the birthday suppers, the "hey, are you at home" moments, and the "Can I stop by?"kind of days.

Yes, life goes on. Wedding days are full of promise, full of what the future holds, and hearts full to the point of overflowing. The days after have those days of crazy love, wonderful Saturdays spent together, the knowing that "goodbye" can simply be "goodnight" and the parting need not happen. Yes, life continues to be good and what the wedding day planted is now being harvested.

A year ago, we were dressed up, looking fine. Today, it is more relaxed, both in the pace and the style.

Instead of rushing to get hair styled, nails filed and makeup in place ready for smiles, I hit pause. I thought about grapes. 

I mean, its not every day that pink shoes fit the ticket and the other day, instead of setting up Morguen Toole with a vintage popcorn and candy bar, setting up table decorations and decorating the church, Lisa-Anna and I picked grapes. Another kind of harvest.

The vines were loaded. I don't think we even made a dent in what was there. Yeah, kinda like life. 

Life comes at us fully loaded. I just might make a dent. 

Did I mention that sometimes grape juice making can get a little messy? Maybe not in your house, but in my house, oh yeah. It gets ugly. All it takes is one rogue hose spraying scalding grape juice and well, you can see for yourself. But messy though it may be and even though the evening got later and later and soon it was in the wee hours of the morning, the results are worth it.

Okay, another life analogy. I can't help it. Life can get messy and ugly too sometimes. Not just in the big ways, but in the little things like bad moods, sour attitudes, harsh words that can't be erased….

Just like those hot spritzes of grape juice that spattered all over my stove. When they land on your skin, they burn. It hurts.

Now, how do I put all that together? Weddings, wonderful days, grape picking???

It's like this. Each day is given to us. Some days are for planting seeds, other days are for gathering the harvest in. Many days, it's just about letting life grow us. Waiting. Watching. Wondering. Hoping. Praying. Crying. Laughing. Resting.

Today I am remembering a good day. I've seen growth and it is good. Sweet. Like grapes. And this is only the first year's yield.

Love,
Dianne

Being A Mother-In-Law, umm Love

Yesterday my daughter-in-law Lisa-Anna and I made plans to go to a local antique boutique. Located in an upstairs room of Blue Moon Antiques, it was a treasure room of vintage apparel that the owner has collected since she was 11 years old. I believe she is a kindred spirit. 

(By the way, this is not the owner)

As I pulled into Aaron and Lisa-Anna's driveway I had the oddest sensation. I-Am-The-Mother-In-Law. 

I mean, I knew it before , but it was just this feeling of wondering if this is how my mom feels when she pulls into my driveway. It really got me thinking about this role and what it means. 

First, I brought the sweet couple a few scones (Pumpkin Scones with a Maple Pumpkin Glaze) to enjoy.

This was not because I don't think her cooking (or his for that matter) is "good enough", but because I just wanted to share. She actually bakes more than me as evidenced by the freshly baked, still steaming, apple pie on their stove. 

Rule #1: Recognize the awesome cook that your daughter-in-law is. She has her own style, her own flair and does not need my advice on cooking. Unless she asks. 

She apologized that her house was messy. 

Rule #2: Never comment that their house is messy, because it really doesn't matter. She has seen my house at its less-than-finest. Okay, okay, it was a total pigsty and she had to wallow through it. So, her housekeeping skills are not in question. At all. 

Getting in the car, we went the few miles to Blue Moon Antiques. After browsing through the elaborate wardrobes, vintage dinnerware, fainting couches, and coffee mills we went upstairs. Met by flapper hats, beaded and flowered, white gowns reminiscent of Anne of Green Gables, and dresses that every housewife of the 1950's would have coveted mixed in with long elegant gloves and dainty evening bags…..ah, it was wonderful. 

Rule #3: Be thankful for the fun moments shared with the ones we love. And that definitely includes this new daughter of mine. Be prepared to sometimes just have random-ish moments just simply because. 

Rule #4: No matter what she chooses to wear, never imply that she should dress more like yourself. She is unique. Especially in a Granny Square Sweater. So much color. So much interesting. 

I prefer the vintage, but slightly boring, dress. Where is that 1950's girdle when I need it?
We found one dress and it's owner had a waist that measured 24-26 inches. Like mine was. When I was 8. And the kilt Amy tried on? Let's just say that the lassie that wore it had a waist about the size of Ryan's.

 Rule #5: Have fun and spend time with the newest addition to your family, but give them the space they need to become their own family unit too. 

Rule #6: Be available to give guidance and advice if needed.

Rule #7: Say "Thank You"and "I love you"  and never just assume that they know how thankful you are for them and what they mean to you. 

Lisa-Anna,
Yeah, I'm the "Mother-in-Law" but as a friend of mine likes to say, and I prefer, let's go with "Mother-in-Love" instead. I don't have this all figured out, but I am thankful that we were friends long before the proposal. I don't want to be over-the-top in giving advice or the opposite in never saying anything at all.  I, along with Leo, support you and Aaron 100% and you are welcome in our home anytime. Don't knock, just come on in. That's something I know I loved about my own Mom-in-Law. I could drop in anytime and I knew I was always welcome. And I never needed to knock. So, as we continue to transition into this role, I may make mistakes and I may hurt feelings. I hope not, but if it happens let's figure it out. Because in the end, I believe we are kindred spirits too.

Love,
Dianne

A "Few" More Wedding Favorites

~Just a "few" more special moments of The Day~

~My Boys~

~Loving on my baby~

~Getting another kiss from the Maid of Honor~

(Why does he look like he is liking this one better than mine?!)

~Classy & Sassy Adrienne~

~The Maust Family~

~Just The Siblings~

~The Migliore's~

~The Flores Family~

~The Darwin Bender Family~

~With Pap~

~With Great Grandma Bender~

~A brother-sister moment~ 

~The Morguen Toole Company~

~The Reception aka The Celebration~

~And the new Mr. & Mrs. Maust were away…

let the adventure begin…~

3 days later…Wedding Reflections

I don't know if I have words to fully express my feelings and emotions of this past week, and especially Saturday.  I mean, how does one say "this was one of the highlights of my life" in a way that shows how incredibly overflowing with love, pride and joy I am feeling? I am not sure I can. At least not adequately.

Let's just say that 3 days later, I am doing just as a wise woman told me to do.

She said, "Marinate in it."

I am doing just this as I let the feelings just be what they want to be, and enjoying them. This wedding day of my eldest son is one I want to remember always. That being said, I am so thankful to all the unofficial photographers that day that have shared their pictures on Facebook. I did not want to carry a camera or phone that day; I wanted to just be the mother of the groom.


The groom.
So handsome.
So nervous, so afraid he'd pass out or throw up in front of everybody, but yet so brave doing this thing that he so wanted to do with his whole heart and being, but wasn't so keen on all the eyes on him and his bride.
His commitment to God and his commitment to his bride go hand-in-hand. As he spoke his vows to her, I was blown away but his passion and his love for both.
This boy, now man, of mine is a man I am proud of.
I thought my buttons would pop off my dress, I was that proud of the man he has become.

He stood and waited for her, his lovely bride that he was seeing for the first time as his bride. Any tears were not ones of sadness, but of sweet love and overwhelming inexpressible emotion. 

His bride. She was beyond beautiful in my eyes, both inside and out; I can't even imagine what Aaron was feeling at that moment.

Before that moment, I was pretty cool. Happy, but not teary; that had all been happening the day before. Then Anita, Lisa-Anna's mother, and I lit the candles on either side of the unity candle. She was emotional. We hugged and somehow ended up sitting together.

But I think it was meant to be. I will never forget the moment as we sat watching our children commit their lives together, when she leaned over and whispered, " Your son really loves my daughter." Not a question, but a statement. Whatever doubts both families had in the beginning about this young couple who came from completely different backgrounds and had to learn about each other, many times from 6 hours apart, were completely dispelled once and for all. To see it that day, it was undeniable that these two were meant to be. 

You saw it as they went about Lighting the Unity Candle...

It was undeniable as they washed each other's feet as a symbol of serving one another as Christ serves the Church...

It was there when they laughed together when the groom's shoe wouldn't go back on after the foot-washing, leaving him shoeless, but not really caring...

It was there as they spoke their personal vows to each other, then as they recited the formal vows, saying "I do."...

Then the moment came when they looked at each other, barely containing their joy as Pastor Joe, by the power invested in him, pronounced them husband and wife and they turned to face their family and friends, all there to support them this day.

 Time to celebrate! Off to the reception, down the road in Meyersdale where all awaited the arrival of Mr & Mrs Maust. For the first time, appearing as a married couple...

Before even getting seated, they had their first dance. Be still my mother's heart. Could this be my son out there dancing? One word. Beautiful. Okay, two words. Touching. Maybe three. Romantic.

All too soon and moving too quickly for this Mother Bear who wanted to absorb every moment, and not soon enough for the groom and his bride, the cake was cut, the bouquet was tossed, the toasts were made….

…and they were headed off, as the newly wed Mr & Mrs Maust to their honeymoon. Awwwww.
May they live, if not always happily ever after, but in grace as they learn to live, to love, to laugh, to cry, always together.

Sigh. I still can't adequately say what I feel. But, what a day it was. It was better than I ever imagined it to be. A day to remember.

Love,
Dianne, aka Mother of the Groom