Lindsey's wedding

 Earlier today we attended our friend Lindsey's wedding. I t was in Titusville at the "Birdsong Barn"
The directions were something like" Go up 95, exit onto RT 50. Take the first left and follow that road down till you see the sign for BINGO. That's where you turn and go down the street to the barn. Kind of similar to the area around the entrance to The Mackey House.....complete with it's own RV campground....although the ones today were set a bit back from the road.
The drive in was not as long as the entrance to The Mackey House. We followed the signs to the parking area.

Entrance

                                  Jumping forward...here's Lindsey and Marc saying their vows.

Cake! Simple but nice looking...and tasty too.

"altar"

 Looking back towards the barn from where we were seated for the wedding. Apparently one bride bought the curtains for her wedding...and left them for others to use. They will stay up until someone asks to have them removed. I think they made a big difference to the look of the place.



The tables sat 6-8 people. Each one had a "theme" of sorts...we were seated at' Marriage"

Cool old case to collect the cards for the couple.

Wall where table assignments were given. Each table had a "theme"; as I mentioned...like Memories, Vows, Marriage,Wishes...to name a few It looked like this area could double as a photo booth area....There was the back "wall", a bay of hay...perfect size for sitting on and this bike.

 Some decorations were already in place...other touches were added by Lindsey.
It was a nice afternoon/evening...we did not get any rain from scattered showers moving through the general area.Temperatures were close to the record high...and when the clouds parted it was down right hot!
We were waiting and waiting...thinking..."Something must be up???? but what? Turns out the groom's ring was missing. They tore the room apart for several minutes and then decided to wait till later to look again.
Due to the hold-up...the ceremony was delayed a few minutes....but when they started ...everything went well. I ran into one girl who was a  former classmate of Brenna's...and in my Brownie troop....her mom spotted me first...introduced herself...and then when she showed me her daughter...I recognized her. I had seen her from the start and thought she looked very familiar...but I couldn't place her.
The barn venue made for some interesting clothing choices for the guests... and some were super casual. I always enjoy seeing what people think is appropriate....
They had a bar for beer and soft drinks...and the two signature drinks.
Lindsey's...a champagne and kir cocktail. Marc's....a golden oak Rum and Ginger Ale.
We sat with Glenn and Kathy...Kathy and I were getting ideas for the weddings coming up...ours in May...theirs in December. The decorations were simple and sweet. Lindsey did most of the extra touches herself. The rental was all day...so they got there early this morning and set up all the decorations...the ones in addition to the permanent ones that is.
More tomorrow.................................................................................................................

Making Plans

 We left Sunday for a weekend trip to Hilton Head and Savannah. We had planned to meet Megan and Marcus back in Savannah to go over final plans with the people at the Mackey House...or more specifically...with Dave...who is going to be the DJ/MC for the day.As it turns out Marcus's grandparents are in Hilton Head for a few months...so our plan was to go meet Megan and Marcus and stay one night at their place. Because of the timing...we decided to spend the first night here

as a celebration of our 31st anniversary. John made the reservation. We realized after we talked to Megan that we were staying right across the street from the townhouse Marcus's grandparents were staying in. (That made it very easy for us to find their place the next day.)
The Inn was great. The staff was very friendly and the room was great! we had a view of the 9th hole.

coffee and tea on each floor in the morning

this lovely shot is me in the robe...sipping the complimentary champagne brought to us by the staff for our anniversary

they were working on the new pool right outside our window. It doesn't look like it's going to be done before the big Golf Tournament in March...but what do I know...

We walked down to the lighthouse to watch the sunset. Normally these rockers are full...but it was  unusually chilly out. We did have fun listening to a group of people staying in a room just above the street...they were playing "Name That Tune"

They were also obviously drunk...it was pretty funny listening to them....however I don't think we heard any one song in it's entirety. (reminded me of my brother David..."Listen to this...and this, and this..." haha)
 After the sunset we went inside for a drink. We saw an interesting cast of of characters in there...a couple who had been there for a while....if you know what I mean...and then some guy and his three kids. He told us all that his wife was Irish...he got to name his son...Dan...she named the girls Aoife and Aiylish (I think....) (pronounced Eefa and Aylish.) He said he would give anyone who could guess how to spell his daughter's name $100.00. We were all calling out spellings...and of course none of us got it right. We all had some good laughs. I had seen that name written...but never knew what the pronunciation was.

view out the back of the townhouse the grandparents were staying in

                   Alligator statue outside the restaurant we all went to for dinner Monday night.
Tuesday morning John and I, and Marcus and Megan headed down to Savannah for our meeting.
I think John was afraid I was going to get all worked up when I talked to the DJ....He thought he was going to have to be a referee...geez...I'm not that bad! haha I did however have our complete play list...in the order we (I) think will work best. Mind you this list has been carefully planned out...I want everyone there to hear at least one song that they recognize. It took a little doing...but Megan and I managed to convey to him that he didn't have to play it in that exact order...but we wanted him to play only the songs on the list. He could rearrange them as needed to keep things going. He made some suggestions to Megan...some she liked...a lot she did not. And before long I think he realized we had a plan...we just needed him to carry it out..... I guess the bottom line is....so if the play list stinks...it's my fault.....but I am confident that it's going to be fun. The first few songs we have planned should get people going. If not...they just don't want to dance! haha.... Megan and I are on the same page...she likes the same music I do...and she approved the list. Marcus doesn't dance much.. .not yet anyway...haha...he said his family doesn't dance much...so the Burton gang is going to motivate them! We are going to dance and have so much fun...that everyone will get up and dance before the night is over! That's my goal! and Dave is the guy to pull it off....I hope. The meeting went well...we finalized several things...we know what our plans are...and we are ready to go. We'll have a rehearsal the day before...nothing too involved...but just making sure everyone knows where to be...where to go...etc. Everything else is under control....it was a good meeting. We headed home after that...M & M headed to town to file  for their marriage license and then back to Hilton Head for the rest of the week. They meet with the caterer later this week. So...things are moving along.
Tomorrow...back to reality....but at least I get to start the day with the kids....tomorrow's theme...DOGS. It's kind of nice for the week to start on Thursday.  :)

The Sea Glass Inn if Open for business!

 Our friends have been working for the last few years to try to get this Bed and Breakfast place open.They've been collecting antiques and assorted furniture and linens, waiting for the day they could put it all together and make their dream come true.

 They had one original house to remodel and then  they built a separate building in the back that has 6 rooms. The Town of Melbourne Beach is notorious for making things very difficult. It seemed like one stumbling block after another but they are ready for business! Tonight was an Open House. It was fun to go see the place finished and ready for guests...when I last saw it John was working on tile in all the bathrooms. That was about a year ago.

 The pictures loaded onto the blog in an order all their own...so I'm going to go with it. I moved a few around...but then just decided it doesn't really matter. This is one of the rooms in the back (new) building. It has a door that can be opened to connect into the next room for a family/group.

 This is another downstairs room. I like this bed! and the soft green color of the room.

Loft room. This bed is downstairs,,,,

sofa bed up in the loft. Fun room!

view of stairs from back patio

pool in back corner of patio

at the other end is this fire pit. I didn't want to take a picture of the whole area...there were people sitting around the "fire"

near the pool

This room is in the original house. The floor has a gentle slope to it...you can feel the age. But I like it!

 It is next to the small dining area. Very cozy.....you can eat here...or take your meal outside.

here's that room I like again

This room is also in the older part of the building.

Tub area and small "closet.".....and just out of the photo is the newer bathroom with toilet and shower. This room has a small porch that faces west. A great room to watch the sunset over the Melbourne Beach Pier. It has this small sitting area with TV. This room is situated above the kitchen/dining area.
Everyone admired John's tile work. It all looked great. I was so impressed with everything Jeanne and Richard have done to the place. It was a long time coming...but they have customers/guests coming February 21st! I am so happy for them.

A View of the Skies

 Here's what it looks like around here lately. This was the morning sky this past weekend.

 And here's the sky at sunset last night. Cool clouds on the move...highlighted by the setting sun. Looking west........................................................................................

and then looking east

Super Sunday

The day started off with an early morning walk...where we crossed paths with some of the 2400 (!) runners in the Melbourne and Beaches Marathon. The half marathoners were about 1/2 way through their course and the full marathoners were on their second "loop". You could kind of tell who the serious runners were...the skinny, but muscled people...they all looked like they were moving along at a pretty good pace when we saw them run by between mile markers 20 & 21.( We knew it was the group going for the long haul...because we saw our friend Angela go by.)
While they ran on, we went to have breakfast...haha It was chilly this morning...so I was wearing my long sleeved Steelers t-shirt. We were in line at the Blueberry Muffin when our friend Lynn said "It's Super Sunday! Who're you rooting for?" I said "The Steelers!" The girl next to me in line had on a team team too...she said "The Bears!" John said "The Dolphins!" Guy two down said "The Chargers!"...and we all laughed. So who are we rooting for...who knows...I think I'm leaning towards The Ravens (they beat my team after all...) It reminds me of the year the Steelers really wanted to win it for Jerome Bettis who was retiring. The Ravens have  been lucky...and sometimes that luck is just what it takes to put you over the top.
(and I liked the story I heard on NPR this week when Jacobi Jones' mother made a New Orleans style lunch (dinner?) for 150 team members this past week. (because Jerome Bettis's mother did the same thing one year when The Steelers were in Detroit.(speaking of Jerome....how did he NOT get in the Hall of Fame?????)
Well...the Ravens WON and what a great game to watch! Beyonce had a cool half time show...that light display was AMAZING ....but I personally think maybe that's what caused the power outage...hah.
 I've had a song on my mind lately...for some unknown reason...Pat Travers- "Boom Boom...Out go the Lights"...maybe it was a premonition...haha. That was definitely a strange twist.....thought it was going to cost the Ravens the game...but they pulled off the win in perfect style...with skill and lots of luck...which is fitting since that's how they got to the Super Bowl in the first place!
The best part of the night was a visit from Chuck and Pat. It was GREAT to see Pat out of the house. She is in a battle for her life right now...and chemo is taking it's toll. Her cancer is kind of a rare form of Lymphoma...and aggressive...but she was in good health before it hit and the doctors have been able to be aggressive in fighting the cancer. That's great...but it's not easy....even for someone who was strong to begin with. I've been sending notes and cards...but this was the first time I've seen Pat since it all started and it was so nice to see her. I know it was not easy for her to agree to join us...but Gayle assured her the group would be small and we would all wash our hands and keep our distance as needed...and she hesitated at first...but she came! We were happy and I think she was too. So for me that was the biggest win of the night!