Whirlwind Weekend!

After a few weekends on the quieter side, I knew I had a busy one coming up.  All week I tried to prepare, be it pulling out cold weather clothes, starting my packing extra early, or even just taking zinc when it appeared I had a cold brewing, so I could hopefully keep it at bay at least until the important stuff was done.  Jacob finished off his last twice-per-week basketball games (all losses in this season after winning the championship in the last one...boo), and I had my bible study, and before we knew it, Friday had arrived.  It was time for another Meliora Weekend at work!

The big difference this year is that I was just working on Friday.  Saturday is usually a big day with a full work schedule, but this year I'd be off to my cousin's wedding!  As a result, I booked up Friday as much as I could.  It was a cool, cloudy day when I got on campus at 9am, and it was still relatively quiet.  Definitely felt like the calm before the storm (but thankfully not a literal one, after a bunch of rain the prior couple days, we needed it dry!)...

I took a seat at my first spot, the Annual Giving table in the student union.  It's always a lovely view from there!

After a couple hours at the table, I did a four hour shift across the way at registration.  Despite some technological challenges, it was a relatively fun shift, just chatting with colleagues and checking in registrants.  After four hours on my feet (minus a quick lunch) I was getting pretty tired, but there was no rest for the weary as I had a 4+ hour golf cart shift ahead.  It wouldn't have been so bad except that it was rather cold out.  It was cloudy and in the upper 40s, and despite some layers, it was still rather bone-chilling.  I did what I could to stay warm and busy, though there were definitely some lulls in takers for my services.  I did take some very nice people around the campus--to their parked cars, to their favorite spots on campus, to registration--and I tried to stay occupied in the meantime by taking a few pictures...

The "Meliora" letters up by the library are a favorite photo op.  It's been a couple years since I've been up close and personal with them, so this would have to do.

I'm such a big fan of Oktoberfest, so this new beer garden for young alumni was one of my favorite spots.  The faux wood floors and walls were cool, and the German themed decor was spot on!

The ferris wheel is another favorite spot.  I enjoyed my ride last year, but this was as close as I got this time.

The sunset shaped up to be quite lovely.

I took a detour to try to get a better view of it, and these clouds over the Interfaith Chapel were about the best I could get.

I took a break about this time to visit the restroom, warm up, and grab a warm beverage, and when I came out, I saw this:

Doesn't get much prettier than that to finish off the day!

I continued to drive around until about 7:30, when it got too dark for my golf cart to be safe.  I didn't realize until about 6:30 that it didn't have headlights at all, and by then it seemed silly to take the time to trade it in, since I wouldn't be out much past dark anyway.  I was very relieved to finish up, get warm, grab some dinner, and head home to finish packing.  We had a fun weekend ahead!

We had to be up rather early the next morning, as we had to be on the road by 9:30 or so and had a couple errands to do prior to that.  By some miracle, we actually got out of town on time!  We snagged some lunch along the way, and then dropped the kids off at Craig's parents en route to our final destination, Allegany State Park!

I knew when my cousin got engaged last winter that it would probably not be a traditional wedding.  Brian is an outdoorsman, and his sweet fiancée Laura seemed to take to it pretty quickly, as well.  Our extended family usually does a fall camping trip each year, and I guess this year's sort of morphed into the wedding weekend.  Of course, with my work schedule, we couldn't get there until Saturday, which was just as well since Friday was so cold--and the night was even colder!  My parents' cabin (more on that in a bit) didn't have built-in heat, so they had to make do with layers and a space heater they brought with them.  We arrived in the early afternoon and stopped at their cabin so I could unload my stuff.  Craig would be leaving that night because he had to pick up the kids and head back to Rochester for Jacob's basketball tryouts the next morning.  I was going to stay and enjoy the rest of the wedding, then work my way back to town via my parents and my cousin Lori.  The cabin was, shall we say, rustic.  However, it was close to the bathrooms, and the view outside of it was lovely.

After finally deciding on an outfit that fit the occasion and the weather--which was a much more pleasant sunny and 60--we were off to the wedding at the amphitheater down the road.  I liked this one tree that sort of stuck out from those around it at the back of the site.

The ceremony was very simple--one maid of honor, one best man, a flower "gram" (Laura's spunky grandma handed out flowers up the aisle), and a doggie ring bearer, which I half expected given how much they love their sweet girl Mollie!  Oh, and our Uncle Jeff, who is Brian's best camping and hiking buddy, officiated the ceremony!  Keep in mind that less than four months ago he was stuck in a hospital with a broken femur, shattered elbow, and broken ribs after a bike accident.  He's made an amazing recovery, and he did a great job!

What a lovely day it was...just warm enough, and such a pretty venue.  It was a very sweet ceremony.

She's wearing a scarf that said, "My humans are getting married!"  She was such a good girl--not a peep out of her!

Laura looked stunning, and Brian wore his late father's hat.  Casual, yes, but it was very "them".

Man and wife!

As for me, it was nice to get some kid-free time with this guy...

After a quick stop at the general store for Craig to get some sinus medicine (which led to the discovery of seemingly the only place in the park with Wi-Fi, since cell coverage is nil), we headed to the reception.  What a gorgeous spot it was, right along the lake.  I was sort of obsessed with this little tree that had super red leaves in contrast to being mostly green.

The venue was also pretty perfect.  Besides the amazing view outside, the views inside were lovely, as well.

Perfect blend of elegant and rustic

And yes, a shelf full of cupcakes (and side racks of cookies and mini pies) counts as a lovely view!

The outside view was so pretty.  I just never got tired of it.

Even the back of the venue was pretty.

The reception was lovely.  The happy couple really made everyone else smile.

The details were adorable.  The father-daughter dance featured her father and two uncles who had major roles in raising her, which sent most of the room into tears.  In the photo below, the G over the fireplace had their last name and wedding date on it.  The backpacks flanking the fireplace had "Just Married" signs on them.  Their head table was on the rustic barrel.  And the fire was helpful in keeping the room warm!

The lake views were lovely, even as the sun went down.

It was a fabulous night full of lots of shenanigans!  Crazy contests, crazy dancing, but lots of love all around!

After the reception there was a campfire at one of the cabins (a very nice one, actually--it had heat, a bathroom, and two bedrooms).  We headed back to my parents' cabin just before 11.  Of course, once before the campfire and once after, I saw a mouse run along the wall and the window sill.  Ewwwww.  Between that, and being super full and having to pee constantly (seriously, it was annoying, and the bathroom was a minute walk up the path), I didn't have a very good night's sleep.  Luckily the space heater kept the cabin warm enough (to the point that I sometimes woke up too warm in my many layers), but the bed wasn't very comfortable.  It was rustic, for sure, but it was fine.

It had a wood stove...which of course we weren't outdoorsy enough to use!

It at least had a fridge and range, plus four beds, but that was literally about it.

On the bright side, the outdoor space was lovely.  It was a cool and damp but pleasant morning, so I threw on some boots and walked out into the stream.

I'm going to guess the leaves weren't quite where the newlyweds would have liked when they planned the wedding, but there were still some pretty colors...

Even looking back toward our cabin as we left, the colors made for a pretty sight...

Some color was visible, too, as we drove out of the park.

This is a view of the reception site from across the lake.

All in all, it was a great weekend.  Tiring, mind you, but great.  I spent part of the day Sunday at my parents' watching the Bills game (yay, they're 4-1!) and finally got back to Rochester around dinner time with Lori and Mollie the dog, who is staying with Lori while Brian and Laura are honeymooning.  I think the rough night of sleep was my undoing, however, as the cold I'd been successfully fighting off all week finally started to hit me later on Sunday.  Oh, well.  It avoided the events I needed it to avoid, so it could have been far worse!  Now we're halfway through the week already and looking ahead to the long holiday weekend.  I think everyone is relieved to have a couple days off of school (and a day off of work for each of us).  We do have one great adventure coming, as well, so stay tuned!