Jeni & Tom’s Wedding Party in PA

I wrote this blog about the wedding and lost it when I spilled a cup of hot coffee onto my motherboard. Hate when that happens.  They (Geek Squad) are trying to retrieve my writings from my fried computer, but I know I can’t count on it. I’ll try to recapture the feelings, sights, tastes, and sounds of our time in Erie which is Tom’s home town. 

Kay, Tom’s Mom, and Alan, her husband, picked us up at the airport.  They live very close to the airport and every amenity, yet they were in a beautiful neighborhood that was so quiet and beautiful.  All the lawns were so well manicured. The grass was more like golf course grass than the type grass we have in Florida.  The house is large and I was surprised to find it was the same size as ours in FL.  I think it is the way it’s designed that makes it look larger.  The feeling was warm,homey and inviting.  The smells coming from the ovens helped with that, too. 

The first night there we had dinner at Kay and Alan’s with just the family invited.  What a dinner it was.  Kay is a wonderful cook and so are ALL her sisters.  160; We had met Chris and George and Lynn and Dave on the cruise we took with them.  We were able to meet Mary Jane and her husband, Joe, this time as well. 
Back to food.  Kay made beef stew on this  very cold day but she cooked it in pumpkins.  She cut the tops off, cleaned the seeds out, rubbed the outside with olive oil that would give the pumpkins  brown/gold sheen that looked as good as it smelled and tasted. Yum!   I look forward to trying it myself.  There were also homemade pies and desserts made by the family. 

Dale and Barb are long time family friends who are more like family.
Dale grew a huge pumpkin that weighed about two hundred pounds.  What an amazing thing to see.  The guys brought it in on a sling and we were so afraid they would drop it. 

Bill and I stayed with Chris (Kay’s sister) and George.  They recently moved about three or four houses down from Kay and Alan and their house and grounds were just as stunning.  Their backyard backs up to a creek and there are two bridges that cross it.  It’s like a painting with all the beautiful flowers and trees.  Chris is a wonderful cook too, so we had plenty to eat there as well. 

It was wonderful getting to know everyone better and getting to be more a part of this incredible family.  I feel like I’ve always known them. 

Now to the reason for our trip there…a celebration of Jeni and Tom’s marriage.  I am so thankful for Tom and for his whole family in our lives.  We are so blessed.  Thanks Jeni for making our lives more.  We love seeing Tom and Jeni together. They are such a loving and handsome couple.  Being with them makes me feel so happy for them and for us as well.We are always happy when our children are, I know. 

The next day, Saturday, Kay and Alan had brunch at their home after we had coffee at Chris and George’s.They had an egg casserole and a coffee cake to die for.  Fresh fruit, juice, coffee, and homemade sausage casserole and cinnamon buns. Yum.  I was in heaven, pure and simple.  I wish I had taken photos of their grounds. The settings were beautiful and we even saw a deer outside. They back up to a wild life preserve and it’s a dream. 

Pam, Tom’s sister, took Jeni and I shopping and also for a tour of the place they grew up and their schools and the college they all graduated from, Mercyhurst.  The college campus was breathtaking.  I’m so glad we got to see where they grew up and places that we hear them talk about.  The shopping was really good, too. Pam and I got a make up application at Macy’s so we were ready for the party before we even got back home.:) It was fun getting to know Pam better, too.  I knew she was a great wife and mother but now I know how much fun she can be one on one as well. 

The party was held at a beautiful place on the grounds of Mercyhurst (I think) called Sunset Inn. I ‘ll find out from Jeni to make sure. I was kind of in a fog through the whole thing. The night after dinner, Alan and Kay taught us some dance steps for dances that we could all do at the party.  They were line dance type like the Electric Slide only there was a bit of the Cha Cha Cha and other dances.  I have never been to a party when so many were dancing.  Alan and Kay dance like they are floating on air.  I don’t even pretend to know how to dance but  dance I did. LOL  LOL 

The food was great with lots of choices and the cake was white on white traditional. The flowers were white roses and everything was simply beautiful. 

I don’t know the song Jeni and Tom danced their first dance to (I’ll find out), or what the song was when the groom danced with his mother. That’s always such a touching thing for me to see.  I do know that Jeni chose “Daddy’s Hands” for her dance with her dad and then the DJ announced that Tom would dance to “It’s a Wonderful World”.  What a perfect song to sing to. I’ll never forget dancing with my handsome son in law and being so proud of him and my daughter and the life they have together. 

We met so  many of Tom’s family, coaches, and old friends from as far back as elementary school, college roommates, and friends of the family.  What a joy to meet each of them and to be at this family celebration. 

Bill and I enjoyed every minute and still hum the songs and do a few dance steps (just a few slides), and we still bask in the beauty of that time in Erie that went by way to fast.  I can’t wait to get back there and explore some more. They aren’t that far from Niagara Falls!  Bill went touring with Alan and George and they went to see the trout swimming upstream. I thought it was only salmon that did that. There were just rows of fishermen there. 

I’m so glad to be a part of this family and I feel very much a part of them and their lives. They make everyone feel that way. They are sure opening up our lives to places and people we would never have been to or met. We are blessed.