Thirty Days to Go!

Now that my Wedding To Do list only has a few things left, I am getting excited! I'm not having a wedding of the scale most of you brides are planning: we have been married 38 years but in 30 days, we will have the Catholic wedding ceremony we couldn't have back then. It will be a small traditional ceremony in the middle of our church's regular Sunday morning Mass. That afternoon, my MOH (and dearest friend) and her husband, who is also the photographer, are hosting our wedding dinner, for the 8 of us: the Bridge and Groom, MOH and hubby, the priest, our Best Man who is our son, and his 2 young children. Today, I ordered the flowers: a small traditional bouquet for me, a wrist corsage for MOH, boutonnieres for the men, a little basket of flowers for our granddaughter who's 8, and a bouquet for the altar at church. I also finalized the cake with another close girlfriend who is a retired baker: white tiered cake with cannoli cream filling, butter cream frosting, pink sugar roses, topped with our original Precious Moments Bride and Groom figurine. We changed our "honeymoon" plans a bit: we'll stay at a nearby Marriott the night of the wedding, then proceed on for 2 days in PA Dutch country. (We'd planned a longer trip in New England but for a large variety of reasons, not the least of which is how long our son, who lives 5 states away, can stay in our house and take care of our dog, we've postponed it.) All that's left are making my hair and nail appointments which I'll do tomorrow. And next week, when hubby returns from an out of town project and can now focus on the wedding, he'll need some alterations to his new suit as he lost weight, and he needs new shoes. Now for the largest problem: will our son/Best Man, and his kids be able to get here in time. Long story short: he's divorced from the mom who, against law and their agreement, moved to another state, and he's in a custody battle to get full custody of his kids, a boy 12 and girl nearly 9. She's being difficult about having the kids go to him that weekend because, although it's not HIS weekend with him, it's the last day of school and according to the agreement, he gets his kids for the summer - which they spend here with us. Due to the expense and his limited time off from work, our son can't just come for the wedding then go back home and then bring the kids up. So, right now our largest worry is if our son and grandkids can be here for our wedding. So while I nail down the last few details, I pray that our son can arrange to be here with his kids and stay long enough for hubby and I to have a few days away. Thanks for "listening'" and good luck to you all! PS: Take it from an "old married lady" who is blessed to get a 2nd change to marry the man I love, remember that the important thing is the marriage, not the wedding. Don't let the details and the planning be the ultimate goal. You all want a special day and I'm sure you deserve it, but please remember that what happens after the wedding is what you'll want to have forever.