Tired Mama: Wedding, Flower Girl, New Toy, and Mother's Day...

What a fun weekend! It was my niece Ashley's wedding weekend. Ashley is my god-daughter and Brynlee is Ashley's god-daughter and she asked Brynlee to be Flower Girl at her wedding. Brynlee was quite excited all the time leading up to the wedding.

I took Friday off from work and got to take Brynlee to the bride's breakfast at Perkins. I let Brynlee choose what she wanted from the kids menu. She didn't pick the pancake plate with the pancakes placed to look like a Teddy Bear. She didn't choose the pancakes all sprinkled with colorful sprinkles and a dollop of whipped cream on top. She picked the plate with 5 plain silver dollar size pancakes. When they came she put her butter on - the big tab of butter that came with them on about 2 of the pancakes and announced that she needs more butter. She asked if she could put her own syrup on. She did with gusto (leaving the jar half empty) and started eating. A few minutes later she pointed to the syrup container and said, "Mom, look! Who used all that syrup!?" Hmmm...I wonder. It was fun to be able to go to Ash's breakfast.

After we got back from breakfast I cut Brynlee's hair. I cut quite a bit of hair off. She has had quite thin hair and several months ago a whole new bunch of hair has been growing, so she had 2 layers of hair. I cut it so that all the thin long hair was off and now it looks so much thicker and healthier. She looks so cute.

Friday evening we went to rehearsal. I told Brynlee if people ask her who cut her hair she should say Ginger. She just giggled and told me, "No, you cut it." So when we got to rehearsal Becky asked who cut her hair and I asked Brynlee, "Did Ginger cut it?" Brynlee giggled at me, but didn't say anything. Later Becky heard us talking about it with someone else and she said she really thought someone named Ginger had cut it. Brynlee did really good at rehearsal. There were 2 flower girls and they hit it off and had fun together. We got home quite late. My adorable nieces (Tonya, Dawn, Caitlin, Karisa, & Brianna) had called and asked if a they could come and stay the night. I got my girls to sleep and the big girls got here about 10:15. Gregg and I stayed up so late talking with the girls. What fun! I don't get to see my nieces often enough. They are growing up and have their own lives. I do understand, but we sure enjoyed having them.

Saturday, Brynlee and I had to be at the church quite early so that she could have her hair done and be ready for pictures at 3:00. Tiffany worked on her hair and did such a cute job. Her hair turned out soooo cute! Brynlee told me in the morning and several times during the day Saturday that she's scared. I didn't make too much of a big deal out of it. She was watching the people come in and about 15 minutes before the wedding started she told me to hold her. I did and she started crying. She was crying quite loud and telling me she is too scared and she doesn't want to be flower girl. She doesn't want to do it. I brought her into the bride's room and held her and tried to comfort her as she sobbed with tears streaming down her cheeks. Then terrible mama that I am, I asked her if I could get her something if she does it. I asked her what she wants and she sobbed out, "I wa..hant a Baaarbie pool, but Daaa..aad said I couldn't have one." I told her I think Dad will let her have one. The other flower girl's mom said she had a whole pack of gum she could give to each of the girls if they walked up and did their flower girl job. She was still teary eyed when I had to go sit down. I didn't know if I would see one or two flower girls walking up the aisle.

She did it. Oh, was she scared, but she did it. She was not smiling the whole way up the aisle. No one else knew how scared she was, but I could see it. She got up to the front and up to her spot and stood there so nicely. About 5 minutes after she got up there I could tell she remembered that there was a piece of tape she should be standing on - she looked down at her feet and lifted one up and moved over an inch. I could tell she was relaxing then. Pretty soon she turns her head around and looks at me and I smiled real big and she smiled at me, then a bit later she turned her head around again and gave me a little wave. She was ok. I had told her to try to not stand with her legs stiff the hold time she is up there, because she might faint. I saw her at one time bend her knees and then bob up and down a little bit, not real noticeable. After the wedding she told me, "Mom, I was standing up there with my legs locked." I asked her if that was when she had bent her knees, and she said it was. Sometimes I swear she doesn't hear a word I say - she does hear :-) She stood up there so straight and cute during the whole wedding. She knew when to turn, except once, I think Kara had to remind her to turn. She and the other flower girl walked back down the aisle so cute. She just pranced around the church all evening so happy and had so much fun.

On Thursday, Gregg called me at work and told me that he had gone to a garage sale, and with his gift of gab started talking about some books they were selling and the topic got to China and adoption. They have done mission work around the world and they want to go and work in an orphanage in China. Well, the man started getting out a bounce-about (one of those thing that you blow hot air in and it puffs up and kids jump in it). Gregg asked how much he was gonna sell it for. The man said, "You can have it." Oh, my gosh - it's a gold mine. When he called me I thought it would be a small one. It's really big and has an area for jumping, then a wall you climb up and a slide out to the yard. I have been so sad that we lost the trampoline in the storm (although I was always nervous because of liability with the neighbors). It was so good for Meikiina to jump on it when we had it and she really missed it. This has been just lovely! All the neighbor kids are wanting to be in it. What a gift!

On Sunday I got to be wished a happy Mother's Day by my lovely nieces that were here, and of course by my lovely daughters and Gregg. The girls left about noon and I had a very relaxing rest of the day. We did light our birth family candle on Sunday morning in honor of our birth mothers in China. I think of them a lot and in a very special way on Mother's Day. Thank you birth mothers and thank you God!