Love is patient

On June 19th 2010 Tyler Bennett patiently waited at the front of a quiet church for his bride. The music crescendo and the audience arose. Tyler shifted nervously. Finally the doors swung open and there she was. Stacie was radiant! She was smiling from ear to ear. Gentle tears fell down Ty's cheeks as God's promises were brought to life in that moment!

As a bridesmaid and a close observer of the day, my heart jumped for joy as I watched Tyler. Tyler is my brother in law but he was first a very dear friend/older brother. 13 years ago I met Tyler Bennett. He was outgoing, carefree and brought dozens of handsome boys (including my husband) into my house. It didn't matter if Ty and I were planning a children's event for CLA or cruising White Rock I was always guaranteed a good time with him!! As the years passed one by one our friends got married. Even though this was hard for Ty; he was patient. He knew his Mom, PP, Chad & I and many, many others were praying for his bride. He never complained just carried on.

It has been amazing for me watching Tyler fall in love with Stacie! I know he has all the tools to be an amazing husband and father one day. So, Tyler and Stacie my prayer for you is to always seek Jesus for direction! You've probably heard this a lot. Just know that life and relationships get really hard. However, the moment you take it to Jesus, everything gets a lot simpler. Have a lot of fun together in every area of your marriage. Never stop trying new things or just being silly together. Know that Chad & I are always here for you! We love you so much and are grateful we're family.

If you're tired and you know it clap your hands...*CLAP, CLAP*

The time honored tradition know as the stagette, bachelorette party or hen party. For most of us it brings up great memories of our own wedding. All the laughter and fun we shared with our team of excited bridesmaids and friends. We celebrated my sister in law to be last night!

We started off with a surprise lingerie shower at my house. This was definitely memorable thanks to our 2 surprise guests. Oh gosh! From there Stacie and some of her bridesmaids all headed out for pedicures. Then it was back to my house to get ready to go downtown.

Now that I'm a stay at home mom I had spent the night before preparing for the lingerie shower. I stayed up baking and cleaning til 1 AM to make sure everything was perfect. I hadn't thought for a moment what I'd wear to the stagette. As I walked into my closet yesterday a slight panic settled over me. A quick glance over my shoulder confirmed that all my sister in laws looked hot...I mean HOT! OK don't panic Trisha, after all you're on day 3 of Jillian Michael's Shred. You're not totally a desperate housewife you can still roll with these girls. I quickly grabbed my 4 inch heels and assembled my outfit. Confirming nods from the sisters tell me my outfit is ok. Phewf!

It was such a beautiful night and as we cruised into the city I knew it was going to be a great night! The fabulous Angela was the event planner for the city fun. We all hoped into cabs and headed over to a very artistic Caribbean restaurant. The food was delicious and we were all having a great time! Stacie looked beautiful as always. From there we headed to Honey's for some dancing. That's when the panic returned. Don't get me wrong I LOVE to dance! Secretly I feel like a pea size Beyonce lives inside of me. However, I have a child, I don't go out dancing. I'll work it at the occasional wedding or maybe by myself in my car. The panic quickly turns to full blown fear when I remember "Oh crap, I'm wearing 4 inch heels." Thankfully, the DJ was AMAZING! It was like he took my ipod and went through my play list. The pea size Beyonce inside me sprung to action and I was dancing! The dancing turned to glowing which then turned to full on sweating. It wasn't pretty but man was it fun!!!

Every single one of the girls there had big smiles on their faces and we truly celebrated with Stacie. From there we headed to Earls for some yummy treats and then walked back to my in laws house for a slumber party.

When I woke up this morning after my solid 4 hours of sleep, I glanced at myself in the mirror and wondered if hemorrhoid cream really did shrink bags? That was one tired mommy starring back at me. :) Even now, as the clock on the computer reads 8:17 I'm seriously hoping in 15 minutes I'll be tucked in bed.

It was a fabulous night! I'm so excited for their wedding. 6 more days!!! YEAH!