The one nice thing with more free time is you look forward to the big events you have had on the schedule for months. That big event was Donnie Dulle's wedding to Lindsey Kirk in Phoenix on April 9. We were fortunate enough to have Donnie go to college at the University of Redlands and freshman year he spent a lot of time around the house. Not sure if he enjoyed our company or the fact that we had free laundry, good home cooked meals or just that it was not the dorm. He may be the first and only person to ever say that the Vessey house is a quite relaxing place. We got in our fare share of baseball games and got to see the Dulle clan a good amount in those few years. So the Vessey's have been looking forward to this wedding!!
The trip started out with the quick (ok 7 hour drive to Arizona). Being not that far we decided to drive it, I road tripped it with Brooke and her boyfriend Nik from San Diego. For being as far as it was we had a good time- had a few random stops and Brooke had purchased plenty of snacks.. The weather on the other hand was crazy. In those 300 miles through the desert we had rain, hale, snow, a rainbow and then just a beautiful cloudless sky. Once we finally arrived we had all of 5 minutes to get changed and head to the rehearsal dinner that was held at Tommy Bahama's Restaurant. It was a fun event and we got to hear some great stories about Donnie and Lindsey and see all the family who had flown in from all over the country.
At the rehearsal dinner
After the rehearsal dinner I got to spend some time hangout out with my siblings at the hotel. I am very fortunate in that I get to see them pretty often but I still have missed things just being done and so busy. So the more time I get with them the better. Brennan had been in San Francisco for the week with work and was flying in to Phoenix for the weekend. He had one of the last flights in Friday night.
Saturday morning we all met at breakfast and decided we would head to old Scottsdale for the afternoon and then come back get ready and head over to the wedding. It may not have been our best idea of the weekend, but we still had a fun time and ended up rushing to get ready for the wedding. The weather was trying to stay away from rain but the clouds were not promising as we headed to the wedding. But no matter the weather we knew we were in for a party!!! And that is exactly what we got.
The ceremony was very beautiful. Emotions ran high for everyone and the love that was felt was something that is hard to describe. Since Mikayla is Donnie's favorite cousin (or so she claims) she was asked to read during the ceremony. I thought she might get nervous, but not at all she nailed it. She sounded great!!
My Aunt and Uncle- 2 very inspiring people!! Keep kicking butt Uncle Don
Cousin Donnie and Aunt Kay
KK reading during the ceremony
"After 6 years of practicing being best friends" they finally made the jump and got MARRIED!!!
After the ceremony there was a nice cocktail hour which was spent mingling with family and catching up on every one's lives. Then we headed back over for dinner and a fun filled reception.
Brennan and I were seated at a table 19 with my cousin David and his wife Staci (Live in San Fran, who we are looking forward to seeing very soon at graduation) my cousin Jimmy and his wife Lindsey (DC) as well as my cousin Laura and her husband Ryan (St. Louis). We had a great time enjoying dinner and laughing up a storm. We also played a bit of musical chairs, during the cocktail hour it became very cold and rainy. Since it was outside under a large tent by the time dinner came we were all excited to get back into the huge tent with walls hoping it would be warmer. Brennan and I snagged the seats near where they were pumping in hot air, however within minutes I was sweating. So every few minutes we would all switch seats to warm up and then cool down. Our table would later be invaded by relatives who were freezing.
The reception area
Donnie and the Vessey's
Brennan and I were seated at a table 19 with my cousin David and his wife Staci (Live in San Fran, who we are looking forward to seeing very soon at graduation) my cousin Jimmy and his wife Lindsey (DC) as well as my cousin Laura and her husband Ryan (St. Louis). We had a great time enjoying dinner and laughing up a storm. We also played a bit of musical chairs, during the cocktail hour it became very cold and rainy. Since it was outside under a large tent by the time dinner came we were all excited to get back into the huge tent with walls hoping it would be warmer. Brennan and I snagged the seats near where they were pumping in hot air, however within minutes I was sweating. So every few minutes we would all switch seats to warm up and then cool down. Our table would later be invaded by relatives who were freezing.
Brooke and KK with our cousin Molly and Mary Grace
All the females with Grandma and Grandpa and our newest addition Lindsey Dulle :)
Once dinner was over and the music started it was an all out party. There are some parts of the evening that will not be mentioned in this blog... But needless to say we all had a great time. We danced the night away. The Vessey family attempted to close the place down and we did just that. With the party still in full swing when the band was done, we all managed to get them to do an encore. With some help from the University of Redlands crew.. It was awesome!!
This Midwestern boy now represents LA I guess. haha
The boys : )
<3 my sisters
So if a picture does not tell a thousand words, the Vessey's had a wonderful time at the wedding.
To the Kirk's for all your hospitality, thank you!
To the Dulle's thank you!
To Donnie and Lindsey CONGRATULATIONS we are all so happy for you. And your wedding is going down in the record books. Rain or shine you guys can through one heck of a party.
Brennan's and I would not end our fun filled trip to Phoenix Saturday evening. Sunday I got to meet some of Brennan's family. His grandpa lives out in Phoenix and we would spend the afternoon watching baseball, chatting and having a great lunch. I see where Brennan gets his good looks and great charm. We would then head over and spend some time with his Uncle who also lives in the area. It was nice to have a relaxing day and spend it with some wonderful people.
Brennan with his grandpa
For everyone else Monday was back to the grind but Brennan and I were still on our mini AZ vacation. We left Phoenix Monday morning and would have a very adventurous trip back to LA. See Brennan enjoys stopping at gas stations purchasing a few snacks.. Me not so much. I am a lets get there kinda person. He kept reminding me we had no where to be, but I cant help it. We did stop in a weird town of Quartzite before the California border for lunch. We ate in what looked to be the only restaurant in town and you could tell we were considered the outcasts. Never the less it leaves us with a funny story to tell. The place also had a Jerky shop next door and we stopped in. You can see from the picture below that Brennan could not pass up the urge to try some different jerky's. All of which I will say were pretty good...
Creepy restaurant. I took the picture while driving away, so they could not see me.
Brennan and his jerky- Alligator, Pork and Venison (deer for us Cali people)
It was one heck of a weekend with memories to last a lifetime. So for all my time waiting around doing a whole lot of nothing.. I did a whole lot of activities in those 3 days..
Again Congratulations to the amazing couple!!!
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