Mr. and Mrs. Joshua Horak

Yep, it's official - my brother is a married man, and had the most beautiful wedding on Saturday!!! Aren't they CUTE?!?! This is why I've been MIA for the past week or so. We had just the most amazing weekend as a family - these last few days were ones we will remember forever. The boys and I packed up last Wednesday and headed to my mom and dad's in Spearfish and stayed until yesterday afternoon (yes, the boys missed 3 days of school, but it was well worth it). While there we got to do all the stuff we love to do together as a family - big family dinners, shopping, planning, visiting with extended family, being entertained by the kids and totally loving seeing Josh so happy on the biggest day of his life. The wedding went off without a hitch - just beautiful and perfect, and so filled with love. I won't get into ALL the details, but here are some highlights:

• Jack and Noah were ushers, and part of their duties included escorting the mother of the bride (Julie) down the aisle - - well, at rehearsal on Friday night, we're all lined up, ready to practice the processional, and Jack, the little nut, smacks Julie on the rear end!?! Thankfully she is a wonderfully sweet woman, and got a kick out of him. I however, was mortified . . . .
• The Buffalo Jump Steakhouse and Saloon in Beulah, WY (location of the groom's dinner) is a VERY cool place - we'll be frequenting that place in the future!
• Having 10 women all getting their hair done together in the same room is actually a lot of fun - never would have thought . . . .
• I LOVED reconnecting with my aunts/uncles/cousins - I adore them and wish I could see them more often;
• It was so heartwarming seeing how much my brother is loved by so many people . . .
• Noah was IN LOVE with his tux - it's so interesting to see this little piece of his personality - he loved wearing it, so much so that we couldn't hardly get him to take the jacket off at the reception. He especially loved the SHOES.
• Noah was also entranced by Marcy - he just would sit and stare at her - it was so cute;
• Jack . . . well . . . . see below for the story on Jack . . . . oh my word.
• Mark had explained to the boys that sometimes people cry at weddings because they are happy (so they wouldn't be concerned) . . . at the end of the evening, Noah told Mark "I think I saw mommy getting happy during her speech to Josh and Marcy." :)

Here's "a few" of the 260 pictures I took over the weekend - WARNING - there are a lot, so I apologize ahead of time. Here's Cayel (Marcy's son) at the rehearsal - as you can see he's really into it: :)

Here's the rehearsal bouquet I made Marcy - mainly out of bows and ribbons from her shower, but I also had to add some "Josh flavor" to it (pheasant feathers) . . . .
My sister and her husband, Marcy and Josh, and me and Mark at rehearsal . . .
At the groom's dinner my dad supplied cigars for everyone after we ate. This was the coolest place - this is out behind the restaurant - they have a HUGE bonfire pit with tables around it. The happy couple:
My dad and Josh . . .
Josh and Mark . . .
My cute mom and dad . . . .
The morning of the wedding - this is hair and makeup central -
Here's the back of MY hair for those of you who like details . . . although this is after 4 hours of dancing, so I'm not sure it's an accurate representation . . ? It was sprayed so much it was like concrete - I probably could have slept in it.


My handsome boys, all ready to go . . .

The Four Happy Campers -

Noah and Jack, at their posts, ready to hand out programs . . . .

My sister and I at a "pit stop" between the ceremony and reception :) . . . .

Josh changed his cream vest and tie after the ceremony to the "Mossy Oak" version, which he claimed was more comfortable. With him, I believe it.

The boys warming up the dance floor . . .

The boys had the best time playing with this 6'9" groomsman - they just loved him.

Okay, so here's the story on Jack - whatever happened to him during this dance was unbelieveable. He became the entertainment - we are now totally convinced he will be some kind of performer when he grows up! He turned into a dancing fool with absolutely hilarious moves, and ended up with most everyone on the dance floor in a big circle around him. People were just rolling, he was so funny. I truly didn't know whether to die of embarassment or laugh, so I opted for the latter. I was laughing so hard I was crying. There just aren't words to describe it - he was just unreal. He went HARD through about 8 songs (including the likes of "Baby Got Back" - oh my) and then we finally pulled him off the floor, a sweaty and exhausted mess. Noah was out there the whole time too, dancing away, but wasn't about to be the center of attention! They finally headed to bed around 10:45. Mark and I were in such shock over the whole thing, we don't even have one picture or any video of it - I'm hoping the videographer got some footage. It was something we will NEVER forget.

The dollar dance . . . . (that's Mark)

Noah with Marcy - is he stinkin' cute or what?

And so is Jack!

Noah and Grandpa . . . .

The three most handsome men on the planet!

Now recovery mode sets in. We are exhausted. Uggh. The past week, no . . . make that the past FEW weeks, are a complete blur - being at home today seemed very strange to me - not a good sign! It's kind of a bummer that so many things are over - summer, the Olympics (yep, we were addicted), the wedding, the RNC (anyone see Palin speak? She ROCKS!) - now what do we do? Ha, nevermind - school, PTA, soccer, Awana, sorority, I start a bible study this week, our list goes on. Even though we've had a ton of fun, I think we're all ready for some sort of normalcy to return to this household.

Today I allowed myself a lounging day - cuddled in on the couch with my laptop and worked on pictures, napped and watched TV all day. It was AWESOME and so needed. May have to do it again tomorrow. But then that's it. Maybe.