Once upon two times, there were two summer weddings...

One of the weddings happened many, many, many years ago, back in 1974, and the other wedding happened not so very long ago -- back in 1998...

The strange thing is that many things in both weddings were the same:

The bride was the same...

The fact that both weddings happened in Sonoma County, Northern California was the same...

Many of the friends in attendance were the same...

And the fact that everybody who went to both weddings seemed to have a good time was the same...

I will tell the stories of these two weddings since, in both of them, I was the bride... ;o)

Back in 1974, I took a photo of a group of my dearest friends in the whole world at the reception after my wedding (I "colorized" my best friend...):

Here's a color photo of three of my best girlfriends with my best friend in the center of the photograph from the reception in 1974:

Here's a photo from 1998, taken a couple of nights before the wedding, in my living room showing my best friend (center) and two of my other very, very good friends who were also pictured in the first (black and white) photo above:

Here are a couple of photos of my daughter (center), my best friend (right) and other very good friend (same as above photo) taken in the parking lot of the restaurant where we had the rehearsal dinner:

This next photo was taken at the rehearsal dinner in 1998. That's me in the center making the funny face (I do that a lot...), my best friend on my right, my daughter and my other friend on my left:

I call this photo: "OMG, Joan! Karma actually ate something GREEN!" (note salad in front of her... It's a "teenager joke"...)

This next photo I call "The Most Beautiful Photo I Ever Saw" because it shows all of us four friends who, up until that day in 1998, hadn't been in the same place at the same time for 24 YEARS. It was taken the morning of the wedding ceremony:

This next photo was also taken the morning before the wedding started... I don't WHAT my best friend (left) was doing here... It looks like she was performing her version of "Hamlet's Soliloquy" ("To be or NOT to be...") for the wife of another one of Hubby's best friends (right) with Hubby's best friend (center) looking on... LOL!

Next is a "photo-collage" of random wedding pix from the wedding in 1998... (Hubby's son is pictured in the photo at the top:

Here is me as the bride in 1998... (I made the bouquet myself!! ;o) ) I always joke that there was a curse upon me that went:

"On your wedding day, it will be 104-degrees in the shade and you will so fat that you will have to wear a wedding dress that would fit Roseanne..."

It really WAS 104-degrees in the shade that day... You can probably tell... As far as me being FAT, well, you have eyes... ROFL!

And here is a photo taken after the wedding ceremony in 1998 showing Hubby (right) and me (left) sharing a toast -- my daughter is between us:

Well... Despite the "curse" and the fact that the first wedding back in 1974 didn't work out so good... They were BOTH great days...

Friends and family are EVERYTHING in this world... Hold onto yours TIGHTLY!

(That's my very best advice... ;o) )

luv,

jean