Successful 4th of July

Thanks to my cousin Dan and his beautiful new wife Maria, Jacob and I celebrated the holiday weekend in the mitten state. This was the second wedding Jacob, and I have been to since our own wedding, and it’s a very different experience to go to a wedding married than going single or dating and especially engaged.

So here is my list of why going to weddings as a completely married lady is way better than not being married:

• You don’t have to catch the garter. Or in my case, pretend to try to catch the bouquet while actively trying not to catch the garter. It’s actually pretty easy to not catch a bouque. But now I don’t even have to get my butt out on the dance floor to the tune of All the Single Ladies.
• I can give actual advice to the bride. The best advice I got was to take a few minutes throughout the day and take everything in. This is advice I will be passing on.
• Weddings are no longer events to be lived up to. I can’t get any ideas or tips or inspiration. I’ve already planned my perfect day. I set the bar for summer 2011. It was pretty high. Good luck to any future brides (aka my sister) who need to live up to my wedding.
• There are no awkward comments from distant relatives to both me and my significant other on when we’ll be walking down the aisle. Now we just get questions about when we’re going to produce a grand-grandchild for my grandma. We’ve been married a month people. Let’s be realistic here.

So the moral of the story…. Being married is awesome. And I’m so happy for my new cousin-in-law Maria who can now join me with silently judging all the single ladies vying for position to catch the garter. Only she’s really nice. So she may just sit there smiling while I secretly judge. And that’s why we love her.

My grat list for the holiday weekend (because sharing your gratitudes is important):

• Spring Lake with my sis and future brother-in-law!!!
• Flouting the river and NOT getting sun burned. Thank you SPF 70.
• Aunt Annette’s buckeye balls on the wedding desert table.
• Not having to catch the bouquet. (I’m really happy about this if you can’t tell).
• Really complicated board games. That I'm good at.