Heaven loves families/Jacob's wedding

Now that we were in Elk Grove, CA, it was time to get down to some wedding business.  First stop, Men's Wearhouse.  And can I say that we were really appreciative of the warm weather.  When we all piled into the store, and they told us we had to go to the store across the large parking lot and down a ways we weren't even mad.  We just walked Stoker style on over there (That means there was a bit of singing and dancing and shenanigans along the way.) There's nothing like a guy in a tux.  They all looked snazzy.

After that task was complete we went to Alexa's home to be with her family who had kindly invited all the family members travelling from out of town for delicious lasagna, garlic bread, salad and dessert.  (I know I talk about food a lot, but it's a favorite detail of my life.)  The next activity was Jacob's bachelor party.  We made it great, (like Mormon's do) Aaron and Clarissa invited us to their suite. We played games with the family, took some couch pictures to capture the memories and then went to bed early.  Wild and crazy, I know.

The next morning it was show time.  Our job was to show up dressed and pressed with the groom on time.  I think there may be something to dressing for the day's events at the beginning of the day and not trying to bring clothes to change into.  As far as I could tell, everyone had all the right shoes, socks, shirts, dresses, etc. and we were at the right place at the right time.  It was a solid start to a wonderful day..

The ceremony, once again, was beautiful.  We saw some family friends from a long time ago and got to spend more precious time with cherished family members. The weather was sunny and mild with a slight breeze.  We took a lot of pictures, had Chicago Fire for lunch, rested in the hotel for an hour and then headed to the reception.

Brandon and Mallory's cuties

We got Nathan and Ariane!
They were unavailable at the last wedding due
to finals and winter storms which kept
Ariane from making it to UT.

Sisters

The reception was at Viscaya in Sacramento.  We watched a cute video of Jacob and Alexa. We ate mashed potato martinis and pie, danced a lot, played with glow sticks and sent the newlyweds on their way with sparklers.  It was the best New Year's Eve party I've ever been to.

<3

Very polite cake feeding.  Made a mother proud.

Newlyweds tearin' up the dance floor

Dancing with this sweet granddaughter.
She even let me use her magnificent wand.
What fun flower girl flowers.

awesome cousins

Newlyweds from 2011

What a happy blessing for parents to have 2  more children married well.  My life is blessed beyond measure.

After the reception, we had one last New Year's Eve Activity.  Paul's sister Cathy taught us how to play "Left, Center, Right".  Typically it would be played with chips, but Cathy is very generous so we played it with quarters and dollars.  When the games ended we all had  quarters for laundry and tolls except Joseph who actually got the dollars.  I guess that's fine because he's the student having a new baby.  Yay for buying diapers.  Thanks, Cathy, for the fun.

The next day we flew home without incident.  My good friend, Rebecca, picked us up from the airport and delivered us to our door and we were done.

Goodbye cute newlyweds!

My tired little traveler girl on the way to the airport.

There was one little travelling surprise a few days later.  My daughter-in-law, Erica, had to get out of St. Louis early before a winter storm hit.  She flew to Atlanta instead of Savannah and rented a car.  While I know that was extremely inconvenient for her, I felt blessed to see all my family members (except Daniel who's deployed) over the Christmas season.  Heavenly Father is kind.

And now we're looking forward to a fantastic 2014 because life is fantastic.

Heaven loves families/ Aaron's wedding

So on Dec. 20th (Aaron's wedding day) we started the day with breakfast, compliments of John Lilienthal, and Joseph and Eliza Erickson, at Joseph's aunt's house.  It was actually the same place we gathered for Eliza's wedding only this time the hostess wasn't related to the bride and groom.  A million thanks to her for her kindness and generosity.

The wedding wasn't until 2:00 which made for a relaxed morning with plenty of time to get dressed, find shoes, identify what clothing items I had failed to bring, find emergency replacements, and get the groom to the temple.  That's when I started to relax and enjoy the blessing of having a child being married to a wonderful girl with a great family for eternity.  As if life wasn't good enough, there was a little bonus when I saw my college friend and roommate from my home stake in the waiting room.

The ceremony was wonderful in a place filled with beauty and forever and people we love and abundant smiles and happiness. Afterwards there were pictures in the frosty air.  Pictures to remind us of being together and how much we love each other and how we should try harder to be together more often.

Dana Rees, Clarissa Rees Stoker, Aaron Stoker

Andrew Stoker, Mary Miller Jones (sister), Stephanie Moore Stoker (sister-in-law)

Rebecca, Mallory Dickson Stoker 

Janet Miller (mom) Aaron, Rob Miller (Dad)

Me, Paul, Barbara Stoker Ford (Paul's sister), Clarissa, Aaron, John Stoker (Paul's brother), Stephanie, Don Stoker (Paul's brother)

Next came a family dinner.  Clarissa's family and friends had decorated and set everything up so beautifully.  There was the slightest amount of excitement when we were at the church waiting for the caterer, and I got a message on my phone saying the caterer was at the church waiting for us. Just a little misunderstanding.   Minutes later the food was laid out and smelled delicious. I like feeding starving people.  They always love your food. Some astute brother-in-laws noticed that there was no water and no cups.  If I have a caterer, do I actually need to provide cups and water?  Apparently.  Luckily, Mormons know their way around a church building and pitchers and cups were located and we were in business.

Andrew, Brandon, Rebecca (children)

It was fun to visit with everyone in a relaxed setting before the big shindig (reception.)  Speaking of brother-in-laws, Paul's brother almost got the chance to be a really big helper when the caterer mistook him for Paul and started to give him the bill.  So close.

The final event was the reception at the Bella Vista in Lindon, UT.  The reception was wonderful. We ate cheesecake and watched polynesian dancing and danced and sang a little.  My favorite parts were talking to my own personal friends, seeing Aaron and his new bride so happy, dancing with my son, and watching all the cute kareoke-ers (not me).  We sent the couple off with sparklers.  No one got burned, and the day was done.  Most important day in the life of my 4th born son-check.

Eliza, Paul, Rebecca

Alexa Rodgerson Stoker, Jacob Stoker

Andrew, Brandon