April in May

We've had a LOT of rain this May... sort of like April usually is around here. I'm not complaining... it makes it easier to pull the many weeds from the flower beds... and the grass sure is green!

The Month of April was a busy one for us. Our (only) daughter Leah Joelle got married, i turned 50, and Jim and i took a trip to Berlin Germany! So, now i'll tell a little about our April '08 (in May).

Leah married Julian Santiago Gonzalez in Arlington VA on April 4, 2008. They became engaged over Christmas '07 and told us about the wedding plans just before Easter. It was a civil ceremony done by a lovely attorney named Carla in an outdoor courtyard beside her office building. The wedding was quickly arranged, (although they had been discussing the idea for a while), in order to speed up the visa process for Julian so that he wouldn't lose his (very good) job with Brothers Concrete where he's an estimator.

Jim and I flew out on the now infamous Skybus airline to Richmond where we rented a car for the 2 hour drive up to Annandale. Julian's host parents from Athens, Anne and Tom Walker, drove out the next day. Four of Julian and Leah's friends from the area joined us for the ceremony as well as Julian's Pastor Paul.

Leah and i drove about 30 mins. from the apt. to a friend's home business to get her hair done in the morning. The afternoon was filled with lunch with the Walker's and getting ready at the apt. I bought leah an 'overcoat' at the local thrift shop so she could hide her dress from Julian to surprise him at the cermony.

All was on schedule as we made our way to the ceremony in two cars: Jim, Tom and Julian in one and Anne, Leah and me in the other, to the courthouse office to meet the attorney. Just as we all stepped out of the cars - 1/2 hour ahead of schedule - Julian asked Leah if she had brought the necessary paperwork... their looks confirmed that in the commotion of the day, neither one had remembered the all important documents! SO- in rush hour traffic (4:30pm) Julian made his way back to the apt., stopping on the way for gas! The attorney was very gracious to wait for us as she had paperwork to do in her office. The rest of us spent our time in the office's main hallway just hanging out, talking and taking pictures! Some of the other people in the building weren't amused at our little gathering. When Julian finally returned, papers in hand, the gig was on !

The weather had been wet, but it cleared up nicely for the 1/2 hour of the ceremony and pics!
God is Good! All the Time!

The next day we met the newlyweds & the Walker's & Nereida for brunch in Arlington... yum!
After saying our goodbyes Jim and i drove thru DC trying to find a place to park to get out and walk amongst the cherry blossoms... but we had NO luck! Had to drive by the beautiful scene and the WWII memorial without the chance to get out and look!
So--- we took the scenic route back to Richmond - along the shore - getting there in plenty of time for our return flight home..... only to find that our airlne no longer existed! How rude!
After weighing our options - bus, another high-priced flight to somewhere in Ohio, or car rental - we decided to rent a car (after just returning the other one) and start the long journey home. We made it to the edge of the mountain range and stopped for the night at a seedy Super 8 motel. On the road the next day - lovely weather.... finally got to Columbus and picked up our car from the airport lot. Jim drove the rental over to where the sign said the office was, and i followed in our car. The (much) smaller sign said that the office had moved....down the road near the Eastland Mall! When we finally found the office, it was closed. We filled out the paperwork and left the key in the drop box and drove the final leg home to Sidney. An exhausting trip! We're still attempting to get reimbursed for the flight we were dumped from!