A marriage and Mickey...

Yeah, I said the bride was young... but not THAT young!

That's Bri as a little one, back in the days when she loved to dress up like a bride, and her family could get her to do anything by telling her it was what brides did. Too cute, no? As Cindy said, they should have known she'd walk down the aisle early....

The wedding was really lovely. The bride was breathtaking, and yes, as I predicted, I welled up when I first saw her with her dad in the chapel. The groom cried. The bridesmaids cried. The bride's big burly uncles cried, as did her dad, when she started to get choked up while saying her vows. Miraculously, Cindy, who was performing the ceremony (!!), managed to hold it together...which is a good thing because she'd ordered me to say something funny to stop her tears if she DID start crying. And I really didn't want to be the asshole who heckled the officiant during the ceremony. (Instead, I was the dork who danced with the bride during the money dance at the reception, instead of the groom... because, hell, I wanted to dance with her! I'm guessing there were people watching who said to themselves, "Well, she IS from San Francisco...." Whatever.)
Cindy did a fantastic job, with just the right amount of solemnity and love. And I got all teary again when Bri gave her a kiss at the end of the ceremony. Sweet.

Cindy was also in charge of making the wedding cake. Or should I say, wedding cakes. It was supposed to be a three-tiered cake (separate tiers), with two side cakes. That's five, right?
She made ten.
Five of them didn't turn out properly, for reasons we could not understand. They looked like souffles, and ended up overdone around the edges. Those ended up in the trash.
So we spent most of Saturday making cake after cake after cake. And, did I mention the cake making?
Then we decorated them. Those of you who know me are aware that I have no crafts talents whatsoever, and yet, I was put on dot duty. You know, like polka dots. On the sides of the cakes. Yeah.
Here's hoping there were no close-up photos taken of the damned dots. Which looked a lot like spikes.

And I'm not sure how this happened, but at the reception, I ended up at a table of troublemakers. I mean, you know I'm so well-behaved and appropriate at all times. Heh.
We kept stealing the champagne off the service tables -- I don't think I'm the one who started this, but I won't name Janet names -- until we got into trouble. The wedding and reception were held at a resort that's on an Indian reservation (Barona, in case you were wondering), and there are all sorts of rules governing alcohol there. So the bottles couldn't be on the table. Oopsie.

And while Cindy made it through the ceremony without tears, she didn't make the drive home without them. Not only did Bri get married, but she's moving to Arizona with her new hubby this week. She's the only member of her family to live so far away from the rest of the clan, and since Cindy helped raise her, well, it's hard to her to take. It's a huge change for everyone.

The bride and groom seemed very happy and very much in love, and that was really wonderful to see. Watching them reminded me of what it was like to be head over heels. I hope to feel that again someday.

The following day, I was off to the Happiest Place on Earth, where the crowds were light and the waits for the rides were thankfully short. That Fast Pass thing may be the smartest thing Disney has ever done. I think I may have spent the better part of a week, over the course of my lifetime, waiting in long lines at Disneyland. This time? I don't think I waited longer than half an hour for ANY ride. And most of the waits were much shorter than that (and provided a great opportunity for us to catch up on each other's lives). Also, the newly revamped Space Mountain? AWE. SOME. (It's been my fave Disney ride since it opened in the mid-70s, when Julie and I would get off the ride, then get right back into line again. Repeatedly.)
Also loved the Tower of Terror at California Adventure. It really is terrifying. The California Screaming coaster is cool too.

Hey, when did they start selling pickle spears and turkey legs as snacks at Disneyland? Aren't those weird things to eat while strolling around an amusement park? I guess it makes sense if you're Henry VIII, but the rest of us? Not so much.

There are just not enough opportunities in adulthood to scream and laugh at the same time, and that's what Monday was all about. Good times. The whole trip was a good time.