MAJOR UPDATES

Oh I am so behind.. .. ..

I will work furthest back to current.

THE WEDDING
So the wedding was good. The day was long. The boys and I left out of the house around 10 a.m. I had to finish up the rest of the favors Friday night/Saturday morning so I got a later start than I wanted. We got up there in plenty of time, however we had to stop and get the groom and the kids. So fast-forward .... It's one-thirty and we arrive to set up the hall. Wedding is at three. AH! But I got all the tables set up and ready to go. The groom and I leave the hall to head to the wedding. We get there at 2:50 (the wedding is at 3:00, did I mention that??). So I send him to get dressed and check on the bride ... who is still getting make-up done and doesn't have the dress on yet. Okay, groom is safe. Long story short, we were running back and forth, pinning boutonnieres and checking on this-and-that, and finally started the wedding at 3:30. It was over by 3:45.. .. .. Off to the reception hall to set up all the food (it was brought in by family, big pot luck...). Okay, so the rest is pretty much standard wedding stuff. Except these few highlights.. .. ..
* The wedding topper - fell, crashed and burned, broke in pieces. OOPS.
*The toast ... um, eventually it was done...
*Karaoke - 'Nuff said
and the most awesomest part ....
*The wedding crasher. OH YEA, they had one. Some random dude totally crashed and helped himself to four plates of food. As he was being asked to leave he grabbed a handful of favors for the road!!! haha, it was great!!

It was a very long day ... got back at 10:30 at night. But the bride was BEAUTIFUL and happy and it was a good day!!

ST. PATTY'S DAY
So on St. Patty's Day I attempted corned beef cabbage. It went well ... it was good. But the following Sunday we had our traditional dinner with our family friend (second mom). It was fantastic. Super fantastic ... and her signature homemade-all-from-scratch apple pie for dessert. That was the only reason for this blurb ... the pie is blog-worthy!!

WORK
So boring, but such a big part of what's going on in my life right now. Being on the union has its good and bad ... and it's the same thing - Knowing it all and knowing it first. Things are gloomy. Fifty-five people are losing their jobs. Golden handshakes and voluntary severances are being pushed. Furlough days are a hopeful option. Though my position is safe it's still very disheartening to see people you know, employees of 10+ years in some cases, up to lose their jobs. It's heartbreaking. Everything will be final by June 30. Honestly, at this point, I just can't wait for it to be over and done .. .. ..

VEGAS BABY!!
This last weekend we went to Vegas for my friends 30th birthday!!! OMS it was an AMAZING trip! The two girls I met up with are my Jr. High bestest friends (J & K). I am horrible and didn't maintain good contact with them ... thank goodness they have forgiven me and invited me to join them for the birthday celebration. Friday afternoon we got into Vegas and I dropped the kids off with the ex (read next blurb for those details). I met up with everyone at the hotel and we were STARVING. So we headed over to Planet Hollywood for dinner ... yum!! Afterwards we decided to get the drink on and went to Kahunaville in our hotel (Treasure Island). Holy wow, what a good time. Free shots, bubbling and smoking drinks, screaming, and getting lei-d. Good times! Our dear birthday girl K needed bread. LOL. So we split up and she and J went to get bread (which later was described as HORRIBLE). I went to find the guys who were playing Roulette and proceeded to lose all of M's money (sorry sweets). We finally all caught up again and headed out on the strip to walk. We didn't make it far ... landed at Margaritaville!! We got the signature LONG cups of frozen margaritas. Here's a quick recap of the rest of the night ... J and I were dancing most of the time, trying to avoid being vomited on by college boy who was bouncing like the Teen Spirit video. M almost fell asleep in the nachos and later puked on D. We made C the pimp-daddy of Vegas with a few college boys (Don't mess it up man!!). And we all collapsed out at ... um 3??4?? Uh, I don't remember!! Saturday we went to the Rio for brunch. Yummilicious!! After that we all meandered around, some took naps, and some did ... nevermind. =) That evening we all went to Mystere at the TI. It was an AMAZING show!!!! The strength and acrobatics was awe-striking and the comedy had everyone busting up. Afterwards we went to eat and then ... to eat again!! We ended up at the Venetian for dessert. Oh yummmmmy creme brule! and chocolate cake! and bananas foster! and banana cream pie! Oh yes, we ate like rock stars!!! We all retired for the night after that. Mostly because we were leaving the next day ... partially I think because we were all too full to do anything else!!! Sunday morning it was time to go ... BUT not before BIRTHDAY CAKE!! J bought K the MOST AMAZING birthday cake. It was from Jean-Philippe ... and shaped just like a coach purse!! It was a beautiful pink and had all the detailing, down to the tag and stitching! There were flowers next to it that were gorgeous. All edible!! The cake ... OMS the cake ... a decadent chocolate that melted in your mouth. The filling was hazelnut praline crunch. Words cannot describe how FANTASTIC it was. When I get pics I will upload them ... a must see!! The only bad part of the whole weekend was that it had to end. It was so amazing to see my friends again and meet their significant others. I miss them already. But we have a date for July! Get ready K!! Your turn to lay on the table!!! hehe. And, yes, that's the abridged version of the trip. Because what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas (or ends up on the Internet, according to the shuttle driver. At least here I can edit what it says!! As long as it's not on myspace or yourspace, right??!!

THE BOYS VISIT IN VEGAS
Overall they said they had a good visit with the ex. That's all I am allowed to say on the subject.

AND LOVE
Is a beautiful, wonderful, amazing thing. Absence DOES make the heart grow fonder and love does heal.