Michigan, Indiana, & The Road Home

While we really wanted some Chicago pizza, it just wasn't in the cards.  Thursday was rainy and yucky, and none of the pizza places opened until 11.  Plus cooking time for the pizza.  So we opted to head to New Buffalo, MI for lunch!

The Stray Dog

Beach

Family selfie

After lunch and a quick tour of the beach, we headed to our hotel in Mishawaka.  Cooper had (thankfully) fallen asleep in the car, so we sat in the parking lot for a while until he woke up.  After a checking in and unloading all the stuff from our car (which was a lot!), we headed to Richard & Katie's house.  Most of the guys were already there.  We hadn't seen most of them since Coop was born.  Having a kid changes so much, but we still had a good time!  Of course, I was chasing a toddler the whole time, so I think John had more fun. ha!  After putting Coop in bed, J went back for glow in the dark wiffle ball.

The next morning, the guys were going to play golf, so Coop & I went blueberry picking!

HE LOVED IT!

"Carry buck[et] self."

I had a good time watching him.  He enjoyed picking the berries, and I let him do it by himself.  I picked a few, but it was so cute to watch him.  He told me when he was done, and he carried the bucket all the way back to the barn himself.  After blueberry picking, we swam for a bit, then headed to the mall and played on the playground inside.  It was muggy, so I didn't really want to go to the park outside.  Nap, then rehearsal and dinner... then back to bed.  Saturday morning we just spent at the hotel laying around and packing up a few things before heading to the church.  We hung around for a bit, then left J while we went back to the hotel for a nap.  Then it was wedding time!!  Coop wanted to be with daddy, so he wasn't being very still or quiet, but we still survived the ceremony.  We had a couple of hours before the reception started, so we went to South Bend.

Touchdown Jesus!

Coop and a squirrel having a stare down 

Then to the reception we went!  We had pasta for supper, then it was dancing time!  This was Cooper's favorite part!!

Dancing with Daddy and "Unc Richard"

Coop found a dancing buddy

After the wedding, we went to bed dreading the 9 hour drive home.  Coop actually did really well.  We didn't even need to break out the DVD player!  We had Culver's for lunch, since J just cannot get enough of it. :)  We also made a pit stop in Bowling Green.

We made it home and were happy to be back in our own beds.  It was a great trip though. :)

Wedding Pictures

Kate Kate's cousin took pictures at Marion & Steven's wedding, and we were able to get a CD of the images.  Here they are!

Seeing how gorgeous everything was makes me anxious to see the professional pictures, but we have to wait a few more weeks.  I'm sure Marion is even more anxious!

Wedding Weekend!

What a great weekend we had in Mississippi!  We left Thursday when J got home to head to Southaven.  We opted to drive part of the way so Cooper could get the max sleep possible since we wanted him to make it down the aisle!

Sharing Cheerios with Ollie

Surprisingly, Cooper did GREAT in the car!  We didn't even have to break out the DVD player (but you better believe we had it just in case!)  We got to the hotel about 11:45.  Coop got to hang out for a while then went to lunch with the guys.  I headed off to the bridesmaid luncheon and to get my nails done.  Marion had an appointment for us, but it didn't seem to matter too much.  Kate (one of the other bridesmaids) and I didn't leave until after 5.  Then we had to fight traffic, get ready, and be at the rehearsal at 6!  Whew!

Playing peek-a-boo with Uncle Davy

We got Coop settled in for the night (or rather until he woke up and refused to go back to sleep until 2 hours later...), and headed down to the lobby since all the family was filtering in from around the South.  We had a good time catching up for everyone.  :)

Saturday, I met Sophie at the park since I hadn't seen her in probably five years!  Cooper played and we talked.  It was just like I had seen her yesterday.  Our time was cut short by the need for lunch, so we said goodbye and went back to the hotel.  J and Uncle Davy took Coop to Academy sports for a few minutes, then we ate at Penn's.  Once we got back, we put Coop down for a nap, and I headed for the venue.  Unfortunately, my phone stayed at the hotel, so the wedding pictures I have are all from other people.  Oh well!

Watching TV while KK ironed his tux

swinging in the park

Riding on the fish (he LOVED it)

Driving the fire truck

The Morrows

After Cooper's nap, KK brought him to the venue, and he got dressed for pictures.  It wasn't too cold outside for pictures, and I know they turned out great.  I can't wait to see them all, but we have to wait 4-6 weeks! 

Kisses in the reception area before the ceremony

(The pictures from here on are in a random order.. sorry).  The wedding was BEAUTIFUL!  Cooper did make it down the aisle, but wasn't able to sit still through the ceremony.  He threw his pillow down the aisle.  It was so cute.  Of course, pretty much anything he did was going to be cute. :)

Breakfast Sunday morning

Coop and Granddaddy

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Selfie in the bridal suite while we wait for the ceremony to start!

Reception time!

The food.  Y'all.  The food.was.AMAZING.  I had a soft shelled crab slider, pasta with a seafood sauce, this AWESOME seafood dip with crackers, pork tenderloin, and probably some other things.  It was delish!  Coop ate up the tortellini.  Bad mommy forgot a sippy cup, so momma's cup had to do.  Coop made the rounds and played with pretty much every one there, I think.  Besides Marion and Steven, he was the star of the show!

drinking from mommy's glass

Me and Marion

After the wedding, we got Coop settled in bed for a few hours, then visited some more.  Coop being up at night + a long (but fun!) day meant we headed to bed somewhat early.  Sunday we enjoyed a leisurely breakfast and hit the road back to TN.