12 Years and 344 Days Ago Today

The theme of today's packing seems to be our wedding.

First I found the poster N and D, K's kids, made for my shower. I didn't really want a shower, but K and some other friends insisted, so we decided to have a travel-themed shower which ended up being lots of fun. The poster had a landscape with flowers and stickers of globes, airplanes, and teddy bears holding globes. At the top, in a combination of stickers and writing, it says "BEKS SHAWR ONLY GRONUPE WUMIN AT N---S AND D---S HOUSE." I think N must have done the writing which is that kindergarten kind of block print. N just finished her first year of college.

Then I was packing shoes and I found my wedding shoes, the most expensive shoes I ever bought, not to mention the most expensive shoes I ever wore once. I thought about getting rid of them, because let's face it, I will never again wear cream-colored satin pumps with pointy heels and toes. But I didn't because, well, because they're my wedding shoes. I might give them to the kids for dress-up, though.

Then I was packing some photo albums, including the proofs of our wedding pictures which I stopped to look at. We have an album with maybe 80 pictures that the girls love to look at, so those images are all seared into my brain. But this was everything: me looking pinched in the pictures with my (no longer) step-mother, and her looking even more pinched; shots of every single moment of the ceremony; endless shots of people talking and drinking on the lawn; lots of food; lots of dancing; couples stealing kisses; children running on the lawn at dusk; people I'd forgotten were there and was so happy to see.

They're the kind of pictures that just make you want to do a Blue Skidoo right into them. It was such a great wedding: everyone was beautiful and happy, and the weather was perfect, and the garden was blooming, and the food was delicious, and the band was loud, and the dancing was wild. I even still like my dress!