Montana and Katie's Wedding - At the Temple

I finally got some of the photos taken of Montana and Katie and entourage at the Rexburg Temple on their wedding day. (post written in April but backposted to be with the previous wedding post.)

Montana and Katie with Montana's siblings. As you can tell, the little boys were not too excited about standing in the cold for pictures. Charles pose is classic Charles. Oh, my.

With Mom and Dad

With Grandma and Grandpa Welch

With the Welch clan…Michele, Haley and Justin, Kyle, Nicole and Alyson, Nate and Lori, Allie

I'm so thankful that so many made the effort and took the time to come support Montana and Katie on this special day.

*I should have cropped these pictures but I'm not going to go back and do that. We'll just have to enjoy the pictures of purses and bags and coats on the benches. ;)

Idaho Trip - Montana and Katie's Wedding Feb 2016

We left on Thursday, Feb 4 to head to Idaho for the wedding of Montana and Katie. We stayed in Price at Hugh's house with Mom and Hugh that first night, then drove on to Rexburg on Friday. We headed to the church to help set up the dinner. Katie had a plan and put us all to work, hanging streamers, backdrops, lights and setting tables and such. It was pretty much a trial run for the actual reception that would be held in Post Falls next week.
After everything was as set up as could be, the guys moved into the empty part of the gym for a friendly game of basketball. Montana had set it up, thinking it was a great way for the two families to mix and get to know each other.
Most of the other women left but I stayed around with the kids and watched…babies and basketball.

Clockwise from left-Montana, Katie's brother Logan, Ford, Jordan, Katie's brother McKay, and Curtis

Allie came with us and helped me entertain the little guys
Here she's drawing on the chalkboard with James

Emerson and Soren playing video games

Charlie…looks like he's doing a weird dance...

when he's really just kicking a basketball in a strange way.

not much to occupy the kids...

Allie finally got in and played with the guys. I was proud of her!

Emerson likes to take selfies :)

I have no idea who won, but they played for probably an hour...

Katie's dad, Scott is in the green shirt

good save, Montana!

After the basketball game we drove back to Idaho Falls to our hotel. For some reason it's about 1/2 the cost to stay in IF, so we usually get a hotel there when we go visit. This time we were at the Hampton Inn by the mall. We are becoming quite familiar with that area, since this is our third time staying there!

We had two rooms, one for all the girls and one for C and I and the boys. We found out upon arriving that one of the rooms was a handicap room and was huge. The girls had gone there first, but we made them switch with us since we had one more person than they did. And it was perfect because the little couch made out into a bed, so everyone had a spot and slept comfortably. So nice!!

James made himself right at home, comfy in the bed, watching a bit of TV

We love the breakfast options that hotels offer these days. So many choices of yummy stuff!
Juice is always a hit too, since we rarely have it at home.

Our large room!

On Saturday, we got ourselves ready and headed back to Rexburg. We didn't have to be at the temple until 1ish so it was nice not to have to rush. We went to Jordan and Lindsey's and I gave Emerson a haircut. He looks so much older now! Funny how that works. 

We headed to the temple and there we were able to be a part of a wonderful ceremony where Montana and Katie made sacred covenants and were sealed as a family for time and all eternity. I didn't take any pictures at the temple. It was cold and windy and we all just wanted to get to the church and warm up. (I will post some when I can get some from Katie.) 

There were many friends, family and loved ones who came to share this day with Montana and Katie. We are blessed to have large families who love and support each other. 

From our family, the following attended: Mom and Hugh, Kyle, Nicole and Allyson, Nate, Lori and Holly, Michele, Haley and Justin, Mom and Dad Welch. I hope that Montana and Katie felt loved!

We had a nice family dinner/reception following the temple sealing. It was quite casual and relaxing. Which was good. I was worried about Katie the night before. She seemed really tired. I hope it went ok for her and she was happy with it. She is a very creative girl and had put together a very awesome vintage theme. We had a taco bar and it was yummy, as was the cake Katie's mom had made. It had real frosting, not nasty fondant!

Mr and Mrs Welch cutting their wedding cake!

Sadie and her buddy, Emerson. He really latched on to her.

some of the eligible girls waiting for the bouquet...

We went to Jordan and Lindsey's to say goodbye to them and found this cute sight. What sweet little faces!

Cute cousins in the tub!

 Then we drove to a U-Haul place to pick up a trailer because for some reason it just wouldn't be a trip to Idaho without some car trouble. :/ Thankfully, this time it wasn't us, but Nate. His car broke down on Saturday and he and Curtis had spent a lot of time between the sealing and the dinner arranging for a trailer, then finding that it was a belt and getting it changed and taking the trailer back…but as we cleaned up the dinner, we got a call saying it had broken down again and they were leaving it in Blackfoot and going home with Kyle and Nicole. So we had to get the trailer again and pick it up on Sunday morning on our way home. When we got to the gas station off the freeway in Blackfoot where it was we found that it was locked. Nate had left the fob under the seat and it had locked itself. So we had to call a locksmith to come open it up for us. That was a 1/2 hour wait. While we waited we wandered around, used the bathrooms in the gas station and skated on the ice in the parking lot. I think by now poor Allie was wondering why she had come with us. Such adventures.

enjoying the sunshine

Strike a pose

The craziness of traveling with the Welches

I do have some beautiful daughters….

We finally were able to load the car up and head down the freeway. But we could not go any faster than 50 miles an hour or the trailer would start to fishtail. So it was a very loooooooonnnnnngggg day, taking us 7-8 hours to get from Idaho Falls to Lindon where we dropped it off at the Mercedes dealership so he could have it repaired the next day. By this time we were all a bit stir-crazy and the thought of 4 more hours in the car was just too much, so we got another motel room for the night and stayed in Provo. Oh, good. Another hotel breakfast with waffles and plenty of bacon!

my baby boys…

After a stop at Sam's Club to reload on cheese and butter, we headed home. Oh how happy we were to see the Abajo Mountains come into view! Such a welcome sight.

(this car trouble thing is becoming a disturbing pattern. Perhaps we shouldn't go to Idaho anymore ;) )

Our first glimpse of the "Blues" (Abajo Mts)

Grandma B ties the Knot

On my birthday, I got this picture in a text….

A "Prairie Diamond" on my mom's finger with these words:

"Have an announcement to make. it is official! No date set but it will happen. I am very happy hope you will be too! Love you all mom"

Here's the backstory:

After my dad died in Dec 2011, I wondered whether Mom would ever date or remarry. A few months after Dad's passing I asked her if she had ever thought of dating. She wasn't very open to the idea at that point, she was still concerned about the cancer coming back and was doing ok being on her own. I told her then that I wanted her to know that if she ever did want to date and get remarried, that I was all for it and wouldn't cause an issue. That I just wanted her to be happy, however that came about.

A year or two ago Stacy mentioned to me that she thought Mom ought to date Bro. Kirkham, a widower in her ward. I told her "Good Luck!" I didn't think there was much chance of Mom being interested. Although Bro. Kirkham had lived in Blanding for a lot of years and Mom actually knew who he was and they had all been in Jeep Patrol together in the 70s. 

Stacy mentioned it to Mom, but it went nowhere. In Dec 2014, we went to Price for Aysha's mission report and Mom told me this is when she had a change of heart. She told me that she had become aware that living alone was not fun. She was always the 5th wheel and had to go home alone from the Fort every night. She also told me that she was noticing that she was getting really selfish because she didn't have to help, serve or care for anyone but herself. And she didn't like that. So after church in Price as we were driving back to Stacy's house, she saw an older man walking down the sidewalk alone and thought it was Bro. Kirkham and at that moment she was overcome with a sense of sympathy for him, having to go to an empty house and make his own food, wash his own clothes and be alone. She just felt so bad for him. After that she looked up his number and called him.

They corresponded off and on for several months. I remember Mom telling me she had called him, but then it didn't seem to go anywhere, so I didn't think much of it. 

Then when I went with her in Sept to Aysha and Chase's wedding and reception, she said to me, "Don't be surprised if Hugh comes to the reception." And he did. And they talked a lot and we actually went to his home and he showed us some things he'd been telling Mom about. And we took him some cantaloupe we had picked up in Green River. It was an interesting experience, almost being a chaperone for my mom. ;)

 Then Hugh started spending time in Bluff, helping at the Fort. (I'll have to share all the crazy details of this courtship at some other point. But there were so many things bringing them together.)

So when I got the text about being engaged I was not all that surprised. Although a couple of my sisters were. Mom hadn't said much so it pretty much came out of the blue for them. 

I'm still so happy they finally realized that they could spend their older years together and neither of them has to be lonely anymore. They are almost 2 peas in a pod. The kicker for me was the fact they they both have the SAME Bernina sewing machine! It's meant to be!!!

They are very happy and are enjoying life together!

So here's their wedding story:

They set the date for the Saturday after Thanksgiving. They just did a simple ceremony in Hugh's ward building, then had a party with pie and ice cream and root beer floats. Mom asked me to make some tags to put on the lanterns that would be on the tables. She wanted them to say "You Light Up My Life" So I pulled out my stamping supplies and figured out a design and got crafty. Haven't done that in ages and it was fun. :)

We all drove up to Price on Friday after having Thanksgiving at our house. We all stayed in the Holiday Inn Express that night. 

Letting the kids swim Friday night, even though we forgot swimsuits…
James in the hot tub

Soren with Ethan and Ane. Caught midair...

James and Nina

Poor Charlie had on long fleece pants, but that didn't stop him.

What would I do without big siblings helping little siblings?

On Saturday morning we went to the Church and got things set up and ready for the wedding/party. We were able to meet all of Hugh's children, (I now have 5 step-brothers and 1 step-sister, so strange.) and lots of his grandkids. He has a nice family. With all of us there, it was quite the crowd!

My awesome family waiting for the ceremony 

cute kids! and grandkids!

Mom sharing her part of their story!

After sharing how they got to this point, Mom and Hugh were married by Hugh's former Stake President, Pres. Potter. Although he's no longer a stake president he was able to marry them because of his elected position in the government. He did a good job. He also knows Mom because his mother-in-law is one of Mom's good friends who lived in Blanding. So many connections.

Officially Mr and Mrs Kirkham
(We still call her Grandma B)

Grandma asked Cambria and Allie to sing "You Light Up My Life" at her wedding. They were incredibly nervous to perform in front of people, especially strangers, but they did it!

Then Hugh had a few words to say and then put on his song for Mom…

"You Made Me Love You, I Didn't Want to Do It." by Al Jolson. 

Oh, how we all laughed! 

Sharing their first dance as a married couple...

James and his 'Co-Op Pop"
They brought up cases of Root beer from the Fort for the root beer floats.

Nina and James dancing, Aysha in red skirt, Ford and Shiala.
There were games for the kids to help keep them occupied.

It was a lovely day and I'm so happy for my mom and Hugh. I hope they have many more years together. It's so nice to see them both happy. Mom almost glows! It's amazing what a marriage relationship can bring to life. Nothing can take the place of that relationship.

Of course, they both drove their cars to the church. So there are two cars with "JUST MARRIED" on them!