back from down east

so we had a little surprise in store this weekend. for the past few months, my dad and his fiancee joy have been planning a small wedding. we had to keep it a secret, though, so as not to stress out my grandma. they were able to hold it at the assisted living facility down near my grandparents, a gorgeous place called snug harbor. my great-aunt esther, who will be 100 this year, has lived there for the past few years.

of course, it wouldn't be a mason wedding without carl coming to officiate. he and mary ellen came down, and with a crowd of about fifteen, we had our wedding.

a few pictures from the afternoon...

hanging out beforehand.


rachel, mary ellen and me. we called ourselves "the bridesmaids" since we all showed up in teal.
alan during the ceremony. he looks very pensive.
grandma and grandaddy afterwards.

during the ceremony--i was the photographer, and justin the videographer!and of course, it wouldn't be a wedding without cake!

we were able to spend some time with my grandparents and the rest of the family afterwards back at their house. before it got too late, though, and the weather too stormy, we headed back towards the beach. justin and i took advantage of our last wedding of the year (this was number 8 for me, folks, number 8 since may) and splurged on a night at the sheraton at atlantic beach. it was wonderfully relaxing and we fully enjoyed the indoor pool and the pier-side restaurant.

on our way back, though, i had to stop a few times to take some pictures. justin remarked recently after his last trip to WV about how he misses seeing mountains on the horizon. me...i miss this. there's just something about the "down east" area that calls to me, and it is uniquely beautiful like no other area of north carolina.
and the sunset! oh the sunset...
sunday, we got up and enjoyed at delicious breakfast at the four corners diner, where we ran into dad and joy (who were also spending the night at the beach) and were able to eat with them. after getting back home, it was laundry, grocery shopping, choir practice, some quick cooking and then thanksgiving dinner at church. there's nothing quite like sharing a meal with 200 other church members and getting to hear what everyone's thankful for.

we picked up pepper, who again stayed at dianne's house and loved every minute of it. her coat continues to get longer and shaggier, so i think we're going to check out some grooming services sometime soon. i had thought about taking her to the beach this weekend, but with the wedding and not knowing how long it would take and where we might eat, etc., we decided it was easier to leave her at home.

this'll be a busy week as we're preparing for the thanksgiving holidays and getting ready to head back up to west virginia next wednesday. enjoy the rest of the pictures from this weekend on flickr!