Parenting Builds Character: Coco's Wedding

On June 18th, our family of 5 sprung out of bed nice and early, Chad ran off to get his hair cut, and I washed and fed and dressed three darling gents for a very exciting wedding! Our beloved Coco was tying the knot and Miles was the lucky fellow.

Courtney has been near and dear to our hearts for a long time! I met her when she was in high school and worked at the church. She was in the youth group. I got to know her better when she became as student leader and I met with her on occasion. And then about a month after Chad and I got married, we led a mission trip to Mexico and Courtney was on our team. She became our adopted daughter then-- we loved her! Her heart is incredible and keeps getting better with time, she is absolutely beautiful inside and out, and she loves Jesus.

Well Courtney then became Max's first sitter. That's right, at 6 teeny tiny weeks old, I began leaving him, my precious boy, with her 2 days a week. 2 long days, as I learned what is was like to be a mom and how to best set up his schedule and how to leave him, and as Coco had to learn right along with me. There are days I would ask for her opinion and input and days when we were both frustrated with how to get him to sleep- but whatever it was, it made us both fall in love with our Max. And if you have children, then you know that anytime you leave your child with anyone, you are telling them just how much you trust them and just how much you value them. And when it's a newborn, it's amplified times forty thousand.

So as Courtney is at our house during the week, she is falling more and more in love with a young man. Miles is a character- if you've met him, you'll never forget it. He's very confident in who he is, he loves the Lord and isn't afraid of anyone knowing it, and this man is gifted beyond belief in many many arenas. Again, he was a student in the youth group, long before him and Courtney were an item, and it has been so cool to watch him mature and grow into the man that would eventually still our Courtney's heart. It's been so fun to watch them wait on each other and be "just friends"-- and then to start dating and then to goo-goo gaa-gaa... their love story really amazing. If you're around them too long, you find yourself looking for something salty to cut the sweet!

So needless to say, we were ecstatic to be up and dressing for the occasion. (The only downside is that now that Coco is an adult, she no longer has time to keep our boys-- it's like catch 22!) The wedding was very sweet, displaying Truth and giving all the glory to God. Now it was outside, and it was hot as hades (although I am not complaining because Chad and I had the same kind of wedding and our guests melted!) which made me thank Jack repetitively for coming early because I was supposed to be pregnant- ahhhh! And then the reception was so pretty- the flowers, the tables, and the cupcakes-- and the food was so yummy! Courtney and her mom did an incredible job planning it. And this goes without saying, but Courtney was DROP DEAD gorgeous. And her dress made her look like a bride from a magazine. Here goes the play by play:

En route:

And we got there in plenty of time to get seated and wait for the ceremony-- score!

[caption id="attachment_1739" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="The groom and best man, Samer, headed down the aisle"]

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[caption id="attachment_1737" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="The Bride and her Daddy walking down the aisle- look at the emotion on her face, love it!"]