We’ve been off school for four days now–Thursday through Sunday. On Thursday I was up getting ready when I heard it on the radio. Mombo got up, and because I don’t believe anything without at least one confirmation, we looked on tv and found out it was true. Then the phone call came for final confirmation. It had not started to snow yet. I did go back to bed and after a while fell asleep. When I awakened, it had indeed started to snow. So I spent most of the day grading the notebooks I had procrastinated on. Then I painted some of the walls in our newly remodeled upstairs at the Hall. Mombo did not go with me to pick out the paint, so I wasn’t sure what colors to get. I’m not very confident when it comes to making decisions on behalf of the Clan–too much room for criticism. But then I saw the names of two colors–pita bread and honey butter–and I made my decision. Now I’m finished painting the walls upstairs! 2 coats! That’s what snow days will do for you!

Happy Birthday, Chippy. I toasted Caitlan and Kyle for the both of us a few nights ago. You would have liked the toast since it was about the reading Joe Palmiotto did at our wedding.

“The Skin Horse had lived longer in the nursery than any of the others. He was so old that his brown coat was bald in patches and showed the seams underneath, and most of the hairs in his tail had been pulled out to string bead necklaces. He was wise, for he had seen a long succession of mechanical toys arrive to boast and swagger, and by-and-by break their mainsprings and pass away, and he knew that they were only toys, and would never turn into anything else. For nursery magic is very strange and wonderful, and only those playthings that are old and wise and experienced like the Skin Horse understand all about it.

“What is REAL?” asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. “Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?”

“Real isn’t how you are made,” said the Skin Horse. “It’s a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.”

“Does it hurt?” asked the Rabbit.

“Sometimes,” said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. “When you are Real you don’t mind being hurt.”

“Does it happen all at once, like being wound up,” he asked, “or bit by bit?”

“It doesn’t happen all at once,” said the Skin Horse. “You become. It takes a long time. That’s why it doesn’t happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”

I wished them to be shabby and have their hair loved off and their eyes drop out and their joints to become loose together. I know you’ll understand.

The next two days were a whirlwind. Thanks to Ian’s taxi service, we got Tim and Sara and John and Gail to the airport. It was so wonderful to have them all here. We had a lovely breakfast of broccoli quiche at Rocking Horse Manor before saying our good-byes. As people stopped by to see us, we were able to walk them through the B&B that had become our home for a few days. It was so nice to have Pops and Edie, the Miller family, Father Pat, and Lindsey and Chris stay there with us as well. Our hosts, John and Ricardo, even came to the wedding and partied with us! Mombo left with James and Susan, but before heading out after them, John and Dana called to see if we needed their help with any last minute clean-up. Boy, did we!! Even though Dana, Randy, Brett, and I stayed and boxed things up early that morning after the band went home, there still was a lot to do, and I had to meet the liquor man so that he could pick up the left-overs. Thank heavens for Brendan, Kara, Ian, uJ, and aD. We loaded cars to the brim and met the newly-weds at their apt. to unload gifts and some of the other stuff–we couldn’t take it all home! It was good to see them one more time before they headed for sunny Cabo san Lucas. John and Dana decided to stay the night with us at the Hampton, and we watched the ballgame and vegged out (unfortunately Cincinnati lost). The next day saw us lunching Asian with Brendan and Kara before taking them to the airport. It was so hard to say good-by to my Oregonians. Luckily John drove Mombo’s car back so the I only had the Camry. I ended up at K&KK’s apartment and watched another ballgame as I tried to straighten things up a little for them. I waited and waited for Ian to return (I was to take him to the airport the next morning), but he was a no show. It didn’t help that we had both let our phones go dead and had no way to charge them. Finally at about midnight, I got on facebook and through interfacing with Dana, Brendan, and Maria, got Ian safely into the apartment, despite his slightly inebriated state. I took him to the airport the next morning, and thus my last chick was again out of my nest. I headed back to Kelley Ridge to unload multiple vehicles and think about all the fun and hard work that had transpired during the past week. It was so wonderful to be with my children. I miss them. My, how I miss them . . . .

After a beautiful wedding officiated over by Fr. Pat Stewart and during which the bride and groom pledged to be each others’ servants by washing each others’ feet, we had our pictures taken and then walked through the cold to the reception hall. Brendan and Ian were the mc’s for the evening. They introduced the groomsmen and bridesmaids and then the newly wedded Mr. and Mrs. Kyle and Caitlan Miller. There were food stations set up by the caterer with tasty treats from around the world to commemorate the couple’s world travels. After toasts from me, Andy, and Holly and Rita clothed in the dress-up gowns they had played with Caitlan in, they cut the cake, toasted with their special beer, danced with mother and godfather, and threw away the bouquet and garter to Andy and Holly respectively (best man and one of the maids of honor). The night went on with much dancing, drinking and visiting after the jazz band arrived. KK and K even changed clothes into their New Year’s Eve Party attire. Kent set up a count-down timer, and at the stroke of midnight, everyone raised their glasses of champagne, toasted the New Year, sang Auld Lang Syne, and got rained on by the balloon drop Brendan has so ably engineered (Ian blew up most of the balloons, but Randy dunked most of them). The guys had decorated the Corolla with cans and shoe polish. We all lighted sparklers and saw the couple off into the night. I couldn’t believe it. My little Looby-Loo was now Sadie, Sadie, Married Lady.

The day started with a delicious breakfast of yogurt parfaits and cheese souffle at the Rocking Horse Manor. Alyx came to do KK’s hair, and what a beautiful job she did! It looked just gorgeous. The girlies then took her to get her make-up done at Clinique. I wanted to go along, but I had last minute things to do at the reception hall, etc. I wish I could have been more available to Caitlan–I felt like I needed to be in three places or more at once! Caitlan and Kyle had decided not to see each other, but I was in communication with both via cell phone trying to make sure forgotten items got taken care of. I know they both needed each other for reassurance, but they stuck to their decision. The photographer arrived and seemed to be everywhere, taking pictures of the boys and then of the girls, first at the Manor, and then at the Church. At times it felt like a circus, and I know everything was getting to Caitlan. But finally we were at the church in the girlies’ room eating snacks, and trying to steam out the wrinkles on KK’s dress and in her face. The guests were arriving as we snuck into the back room of the church waiting to enter. The music began and we lit the girls’ candles. Then KK went outside in the cold so that she could enter through the vestibule without her groom seeing her. We didn’t know if the little “snowflake girls” would walk up the aisle, but Juliana and Tori were just perfect in their little red velvet gowns. And then I took the arm of my beautiful daughter, dressed in the gown Monica made to fit her perfectly. On her bodice was the lace that trimmed my veil in 1975 as I walked down the aisle to meet her father. The wedding march began and we walked together, all smiles, toward Kyle whose face was lit up with his love for Caitlan. A kiss on her cheek, a kiss on his, I placed her hand in his, and sat down by my mom, to watch the sacrament which joined my lovely daughter to her mate for life. I shed no tears. My heart was filled with happiness.

Reception Preparation and Rehearsal Day!! We were at the hall at St. Louis Bertrand by 9 a.m. to meet the liquor man and start decorating. It was truly a community effort between the Miller family, the Adkins-Wood family, and the friends and wedding party of Kyle and Caitlan. KK escaped with Holly and other friends to get her bikini was and manicure/pedicure. By late afternoon, the room had been transformed into a New’s Year’s Eve wonderland of twinkle lights and gold/silver/black/red accents. We rushed to get ready for the rehearsal and then found out that the church had scheduled another event immediately after, so we had no time to spare. This made KK even more nervous, but Father Pat prioritized what needed to be said to those who needed to be there, and we left for Bistro 301 to have a really delicious rehearsal dinner provided by the Millers. Then to the Rocking Horse Manor B and B where our hosts John and Ricardo told us to be ready for breakfast at 9:30 a.m. We all hit the pillows exhausted.

With Brendan, Ian, and Kara’s help we packed both cars full of stuff to go to Louisville for Caitlan and Kyle’s wedding, including her wedding dress, cape, etc. I decided to go up earlier that they, since they decided to meet Simon and Monica in Lexington to see the new Sherlock Holmes movie. I would have enjoyed seeing it, but was nervous about waiting too late to make the drive to L-ville. By the time I did get there, I checked into the Hampton Inn downtown and decided not to go to KK and K’s apt. since they were going out to dinner with Sarah and Tim and then going to bed. I couldn’t sleep so waited up until the 1 a.m. arrival of the other kids. Apparently there had bee some kind of adventure after hours in the movie theatre involving lost keys which delayed them. Well, anyway, the countdown to New Year’s Eve has truly begun.

I was up early to go to the eye doctor in Versailles. Then back to KR to clean up, get decorations for reception together, etc. Brendan and Kara took me into Richmond to meet Jerry for dinner at Outback, and we caught up on the past few months while BCA and KN returned the shoes I bought him for Christmas to Belk (half size too small). They were going to stop by and see Deb, too, but time got away from them. BCA did take KN to the Gardens to experience wings and later asked me to stop there to get them some of the seasoning. I guess they were a hit.

Caitlan, Ian and I went to Mass at St. William while Kyle drove off to Huntington, WV to pick up Tim and Sarah, Caitlan’s friends from Oxford. They had been in the states visiting friends in Pennsylvania since December 17th. Now they will be in Kentucky for Kyle and Caitlan’s wedding. Brendan and Kara slept in, trying to destroy the cold germs in their bodies. Then they headed off to Simpsonville to see John, Amanda, and Baby Jude. Ian took Caitlan and me to Sharon’s house where she and Martha hosted a bridesmaids’ tea for Caitlan and her girlies (Sarah, Rita, Christi, Melissa, Holly, and Lindsey).

It was absolutely lovely, and everyone had a good time, especially eating the yummy tea sandwiches, dried cherry scones with jam that Sara brought from England, and brownie sundaes. Mombo, Jeanne, Dana Miller, Brook, Kamara and I were glad we got invited, too.

Afterward, Tim and Sara came back to Kelley Ridge where Brendan and Kara had prepared a dinner of ham hash and salad with strawberries and granny smith apples topped with fresh croutons and poppy seed dressing. We sat by the fire and talked because Caitlan and Kyle decided to delay their departure for Louisville when it started to snow. It was so calm and pleasant–the calm before the storm, perhaps?

Happy Boxing Day! And Kwanzaa, too! We had fun getting ready for our friends to come over for our traditional Kelley Ridge Christmas Open House. This year, as last, we had it on Boxing Day. And this year, as last, we combined Adkins–Willett Christmas with our Open House. We scaled down a bit, what with wedding preparations happening fast and furious, but a good time was had by all.

The kids helped me clean up and cook.

We had “While You Were Sleeping,” Caitlan’s and my fave Christmas movie, on while we worked. Brendan made his signature roasted rosemary potatoes. They fixed up the basement for game playing, made a fire, and put together our light-up animated deer figures for outside. When Verla and Pat and family (including Andrew’s girlfriend, Ann) arrived, Verla also cooked. My present from her was a little white piano porcelain candy dish and my favorites–ranch flavored oyster crackers! Simon also brought us a delicious Cabernet from Mexico. Ian created the mulled wine and spiced cider. The mulled wine was such a hit that he had to make seconds! After a little while, Kyle’s family (Kent, Dana, Brook, Randy, and Kamara) arrived for a visit. Kamara liked my singing Santa hat and the wind chimes on the deck.

They left and then Jim and Beth arrived. About this time we were having Caitlan’s last wedding dress fitting by seamstress extraordinaire Monica, so all the boys were banished to the downstairs to play games, although some of them snuck up a few times to get food. Ann and Kara joined them. John, Dana, and Marty arrived, too, and Dana brought some delicious fresh pineapple rolled in coconut. Ian should have felt transported back to his island. I also loved the bottle of olive oil that Beth brought us–it was from a cooperative of Jewish and Arab women. The kids played lots of games and ended up back upstairs to play an giant group game of STAR WARS Trivial Pursuit after the dress-trying-on was finished.

I had to try both of my dresses on standing next to KK, and the guests helped me decide on which one to wear in the wedding based on how they looked on me and also how they looked next to Caitlan’s beautiful dressy dress. I was sure glad to have their help, because I have been unable to decided since we bought them. Verla even altered the top for me right there and then! It was such a fun time. What wonderful friends and family we have!