Wedding day

SO life has been rather busy since we arrived back from the US, doing the best things, but blogging has definitely taken a back seat-I still have to finish our time in the States!! I am resolved to catch myself up so I can share all that God has been doing here in Spain lately-some pretty exciting stuff!!

This is my last wedding post and I definitely saved the best for last-the actual wedding day. Being in my sisters wedding was SUCH a privilege for me and I enjoyed it second only to my own wedding day. To be so intimately involved in a wedding was such a joy!! 

We started the beautiful day out eating a breakfast of bagels (especially special because we can't buy bagels here in Spain) on the beach. It was definitely surreal that the big day had finally arrived!!

It was super fun getting ready and being behind the scenes with Emily as she got ready. Emily was the perfect bride, totally peaceful and tranquil throughout the day! 

Us girls got to help her into her dress; she made a very beautiful bride and it was such a treat to be such a part of her day!!

Her and Ryan exchanged love letters and gifts before the big reveal. Very sweet!

The boys did very well for the pictures and looked extra cute with their sign :)

The ladies of our family; I guess we all kind of look alike!

The original Lawler siblings

SO cute

And then before we knew it, all the primping and fussing and pictures and rushing around was over and it was time to start the ceremony!! There's no pics here of the boys walking down the aisle, but they did great. Once they started. They were bribed with candy and knew that Uncle Ryan had Starbursts waiting for them in his pocket. They walked out to the back of the aisle and Coen took one look at everybody and the long aisle ahead of them and wouldn't start down the aisle. Oh boy. Thankfully the wedding planner just took his hand and got him started; Cael kept walking and Coen thankfully followed. They made it down great, dutifully got their candy and ate it sitting next to Gus quite peacefully throughout the ceremony. 

And then it was time for the beautiful reception. We enjoyed the time very much! The pics for the reception don't really need a description; you can see the various events. 

Leaving!! The time flew by and it was time to say goodbye before we knew it!! It was a georgous wedding. Emily was a stunning bride. And the day was absolutely perfect but over with way too quickly-tho isn't that how it always is. Time flies when you're having fun and that was one of the best days. EVER!!

Rehearsal

The day before the "Big day" was super fun, filled with more errands and getting things done at Emily's house before we went to the wedding venue. Before we knew it, the day passed so soon and we were all on our way to the hotel in Los Osos, which was right on the beach, where we would stay for the next two nights. 

We got situated in our rooms and then it was time to rehearse!

It was a beautiful venue and a georgous day!!

The boys did well in rehearsal but I was pretty nervous that they would actually make it down the aisle, sign intact. 

After a fun and productive rehearsal, off we went to rehearsal dinner. So fun!!

The happy couple!!

Finally home

Today, we have officially been back in Spain a week. And what a week it has been!

Our return flight was rather eventful: we were 45 minutes late in leaving LAX and then, due to storms on the East Coast, we couldn't land in New York, but instead landed in Cleveland for a few hours, until the storm in New York cleared. Unfortunately, by the time we landed, we had missed our connecting flight. And, that particular airline only flies to Madrid once a day! So, they put us up in a hotel for the night, which was kind of an adventure without toiletries or clean clothes. The next day, we took the latest shuttle back to the airport but still had to wait 11 hours in the Newark airport, before we took off. The flight kept getting delayed because of all the storms, and I seriously felt like we were never going to leave, but live in that airport!!

Thankfully, the actual flight went pretty well. Coen slept from about 10 minutes after take off, until I woke him up when we landed, 8 hours later. Cael had a slight fever and vomited a few times, but it was thankfully in the paper bag provided, so nobody was covered in vomit like our flight into New York. As we were descending to Madrid, we opened the window and I saw the fields of Spain from above; as I gazed upon the wheat colored squares and brick houses and villages, immediately I felt a sense of peace that we were finally home.

Driving through Spain the 4 hours until we reached León was surreal. We stopped to go to the bathroom and walking through the restaurant to to go to the back, the bathrooms, I took a deep breath and inhaled the wonderful smell of Spain! Gus and I have noticed this smell these past few days, as we have been walking the streets. It's amazing how each country has its own smell and it's something you recognize after you have lived there for a while, and it's something that welcomes you home after being gone. *note, this smell is not a bad smell at all! Just one that is particular to Spain. Love it!

The first few days of being home were kind of a blur. I woke up at 4 am every night for the first 5 nights; love that jet lag! It was such a peaceful feeling to unpack our suitcases and put everything away, after living out of them for over 3 months. The boys rediscovered their room, their toys, and their bed with great glee! They were very happy to be reunited, especially with their toys, of course.

Even though I've been pretty tired and feel rather out of it, there has been this overwhelming sense of peace and contentedness to be home. Knowing that this is where God has called us to be. There truly is no place like home!

Wedding post part 1

Wow I have just been lagging on the blogging over here! Our time in the States is almost up, and I think 3 months of insanely busy activity is finally catching up to me! I am tired and definitely a bit less productive! 

But a few weeks ago, my baby sister got married! It was a momentous occasion for so many reasons and I've a few posts about this event! She lives and got married in San Luis Obispo, which is about 3 hours north of LA. We were originally going to drive up on Friday, the day before the wedding, but some plans changed and we decided to drive up on Wednesday night. I literally washed our clothes from our time in Nashville and threw everything back in the luggage, and we were out the door within less than 24 hours after arriving in LA! So fun!!

Our boys were totally excited to be with Uncle Ryan! They have this special bond with him that is just so precious!!

Emily and I sat for a few hours Wednesday night, planning out the next few days and everything that needed to get done. It was so fun and absolute craziness!!

One order of business the next day was picking up the boys clothes for the wedding. Here is a sneak peek at their cuteness!!

After that, we spent a few hours running around for those last minute errands. It was so fun and crazy! Definitely a very fond memory for me!!

One very momentous part of the wedding was having all of us siblings together for the first time in over 10 years. My brother lives in Florida and we haven't seen him since he got married and had 2 cute girls. For two nights, we were all under the same roof and it was so fun and absolute bedlam :)!! With 5 kids and 8 adults in a 3 bedroom house, it was a little crazy. But we pulled out a few air mattresses and had so much fun together! We really enjoyed our time together as a family!!!

On Thursday we girls all went and got our nails done. So fun! I love my sisters so much and had such a great time of bonding and togetherness before the big day!!

The women of the family, including my sister in law. 

Stay tuned for part 2 and the rehearsal!