Where do we go from here?

This is going to be a long post, but that's because there's been a lot going on in the past couple of weeks or so. My brother, Alex, just got married to his 4 1/2 year sweetheart Venera on Saturday. What a day! Everything went so beautifully and it seems as if there wasn't one thing that went wrong. God truly blessed us on that day. The week before the wedding was filled with excitement and lots of little things to do to make sure everything would be perfect.

The first thing exciting that happened was Venera's biological brother, Mars, coming here from Belgium. Along with him came his brother Peter. These two were so much fun to be with and I'm going to miss them very much! We took Mars to a cheeseburger place call Fuddruckers and boy did he like it. We always learned something new about his life in Belgium when we were around him. Then there's Peter. Let me tell you, he is quite the dancer! He was always smiling when I saw him and he was always making a joke. I feel very blessed to have met these two guys and I hope they come and visit again soon.

On Sunday, the 21st, the whole Watkins/Hardin family went out to eat at Marty's. There, I met Alec, Venera's other biological brother. He is one of the funniest, craziest, weirdest kids I have ever met. haha He was also quite the dancer, but in a different way. ;) I had a blast dancing with him at the reception. I hope to see him again soon, seeing as how he lives really close to us.

Then of course, there was Christmas. It was hard to get into the Christmas spirit with the wedding being two days later, but I think we managed pretty well. We still did our usual stuff, which helped. On Christmas Eve, we brought Venera and Mars to church and then to my aunt's house for our usual gathering. There was a lot of people, a lot of food and a lot of fun. I'm glad that we were able to share it with Venera and Mars. Then on Christmas, we went to my moms' parent's house at night with Venera. That night is always a highlight of my Christmas.

The Friday after Christmas, it was time for the wedding rehearsal. Everything went very smoothly there and it was a really good time. After that, we went to Wells Street Tavern for dinner. The food there was excellent and everyone had a great time. Mike and Pat Wieloch did leave pretty quickly though, because they were really sick and looked like corpses. Rianne was also sick, so she stayed in the car to sleep, then came and joined us after everyone ate. I'm happy to say that those three got better on time for the wedding and they all had their color back in their faces.

Saturday was wedding day! The first thing on the agenda was hair. My mom, sisters and I went to a salon with the rest of the bridesmaids and the bride. We had it all to ourselves, so it was a really fun morning. Hectic, but fun. Then, we went to the church to get ready. One thing that I had trouble with was make-up. I never wear make-up, but I had to do it all by myself! I think I did a pretty good job though...so I was told. After everyone was dressed, there was a lot of sitting around, waiting for the big moment. I was getting so excited and nervous! It was finally time for us to walk down that isle. We all got down without a hitch. When Venera came down, she was absolutely gorgeous! Alex's face was glowing as she was walking towards him. When she got up there, everything was smooth sailing from there. It was the perfect wedding.

After it was over, we had to go through about two hours of pictures (fun and not fun at the same time). When that was done, we headed out to the hotel for the reception. So much fun! I finally got to sit at the head table, something I've wanted to do all my life. Dinner was good, then dancing. I've never had so much fun dancing before. The band was amazing and it seemed like I always had someone to dance with. I got to dance with Alex, Alec and Peter. I never got a chance to dance with Mars, which I'm pretty bummed about, but it was still a great time! I also got to see Mark, my neighbor, who I haven't seen in quite a few years. We talked for a long time, which was really nice. If I could pick one night to live over again, it would be that night.

The next day was the gift opening. After that, good-byes. I hate those. It was really sad seeing everyone leave and seeing everything come to an end. I never got to say good-bye to Mars and Peter, but that's why we have the wonderful Internet machine. After the wedding weekend, it's time to get back into the normal, daily, routine. I'm already finding it hard to do. There's nothing to do now but wait for the next adventure that God brings into my life and live the life He has given me.

Showing hope -
~Katie~

Pic 1: Venera and Alex Hardin. Pic 2: Venera, Alec, Mars. Pic 3: Me and Peter. Pic 4: Me and Mars. Pic 5: Rianne and me.