Deep in the Heart of Texas

Last Thursday, thanks to Dave's brother Kyle and his fiance Megan getting married, we took a family adventure to Dave's beloved homeland, Texas - where the Sonic's are bigger. I'll have a hard time driving the 22 hours down again after flying: we left the house at seven thirty and were in Texas amongst friends by three. We didn't even strictly need the M&M's and Snickers I packed as snacks, it was that fast, but what's a plane ride without those, right? Thursday evening we went to Texas A&M Gardens for the wedding rehearsal followed by a delicious barbecue dinner. We stayed with Patti and Joe Smith in Arlington and spent several late nights laughing and catching up. They are two of the nicest people I've ever met and share a well-honed sense of humor. Basically, to know them is to love them. Even though Joe might greet you with something like, "Hey, have you put on weight?" when you are pregnant... They also have five huge cats: Tundra, Kodiac, Little Man, The White Cat, and Fatty Wrangler - the alpha male of the whole world - who were kind enough to tolerate Riley's friendly advances.
Friday afternoon we went to a cookout at Kyle and Megan's house and had fun getting to know Megan's family a little better. At their house they play ping pong with the energy most people put into to contact sports, which is pretty entertaining to watch too! After lunch we took Riley to the biggest zoo I've ever been to, in Fort Worth. We walked for miles and took pictures of beautiful, exotic animals, none of which Riley seemed to enjoy as much as house cats. She did get excited about the flamingos, probably because they make funny noises and are pink and stinky, like her! Just kidding, our daughter always smells like roses. That evening we went to out with Joe and Pat to celebrate our anniversaries. Not the real ones, but the Friday the 13th ones. Dave and I were married on Friday the 13th and Joe and Pat broke up on Friday the 13th and Pat received flowers from Joe every Friday the 13th following till they got back together and married, on Friday the 13th. So we partied.
*Groomsmen Ryan, Ryan, Charlie, and brothers Brian, Mark, and Dave








Saturday was wedding day! The venue was Texas A&M Gardens, a beautiful reception center about an hour away. We picked up Dave's brother, Mark, and his two children on our way and had a nice visit with them. Well, we adults did, but his three-year old son, Memphis, was seated next to Riley and couldn't get away from her (she loves to touch people, that one), so we kept hearing him growl, "Stop touching me!" The bridal party had to be there for pictures at four so Riley and I dropped them off and then went to pick up some allergy medicine for me - Texas is beautiful and green but I'm allergic to it. At six o'clock the ceremony started and we watched Kyle and Megan vow to love each other their whole lives long. It was a very nice wedding and reception. Not just tasteful and well-organized, but the bride and groom were so happy and the guests so happy for them that it made for a very festive, congenial atmosphere. Riley was thrilled. You would be too if you were so adored - I felt like the mother of a rock star, the way people kept complimenting and photographing her! At the reception there was a unity candle lit, toasts given, a delicious dinner and wedding cake (two!), and lots of boogying on the dance floor. We couldn't stay till the end to see them off - unfortunately a baby's good will doesn't last much past bed time. It was bitter-sweet there at the end: sad to say goodby but it was on such a happy note.
*Memorial table for Dave (and the groom's) mom.
















*Riley's boyfriend, Braden
Sunday we went to church with the Smiths and visited away the rest of the day and then Monday it was back to Utah for us. The trip was a raging success and I only have one complaint: that we don't get to see these people more often! But it sure does make our time with them all the sweeter.