there’s nothing that brings a family (or more accurately, TWO families) together like a good wedding, isn’t that the truth? and when the groom is james, well, you know it’s going to be fun times.
we all convened in annapolis a couple of days early, so as to have some time to hang out together and i’m so glad we did that. it gave us time to enjoy the town and to do some relaxing, touristy stuff together.
our first day, we hit the pavement early and did some walking, checking out neighborhoods from the harbor up to the state house, stopping for lunch along the way.
james was able to join us for part of the day—haha, mostly the part that included lunch, since he had a lot of running around to do.
after a short siesta back at the hotel, we dropped my mom off for the rehearsal at the calvert house, where the wedding was to take place on friday evening
the place was all abustle, with the last details for the event pulling together—heh, except for the people who were stuck in traffic that evening.
my new niece diana, the bride, is a history teacher and the music for the ceremonies was was provided by these students of hers, who are self-taught musicians and very good.
while the wedding party was rehearsing, david and i headed out to the airport to pick up my niece susan who flew in to represent the texas hansons (you met them a few times, haha).
we are so glad she could make it in—she was the prettiest guest at the wedding and it was a real treat to spend a few days with her.
the next day dawned a little cloudy, but not rainy, so we all headed out once again to explore.
we do not even try to hide the fact that we’re a fairly geeky—ok, even nerdy—family. we are those people that get sick on rides at the fair, but just loooove a good museum and consider the dictionary a fun read.
so when my mom suggested we tour the naval academy, we all agreed pretty eagerly that it would be a good way to wile away the hours preceding the wedding (told you).
of course, this field trip provided several opportunities for nice family photos—here we all are waiting for the lunchtime roll call to begin at the residence hall.
now i know that the family resemblance might be hard to detect (snort), but it’s there in the nuances, yes? haha, it was great to spend time with my cousin and my aunt that day (center of the photo); i hadn’t seen margaret in at least twenty years, i think.
out of the whole day, the coolest thing we saw was the lunchtime roll call, which takes place in front of the residence hall each day at noon. all 4500-odd midshipmen are called to order at this time before they are allowed to march to lunch.
at around 10 minutes to 12:00 they begin to straggle into the square and over the next few minutes, a chatty crowd builds
just after the clock strikes 12 noon, they are called to order and each battalion reports.
(look how straight their shoes are lined up—i couldn’t help but notice)
next the flags emerge from the front entrance
there are a few fancy moves with swords and flags (sorry, i’m not sure what you call this activity—is is color guard?).
then the band starts to play and they all turn to begin filing in to make their way to the dining hall
it’s very, very exciting to watch the precision with which they perform this duty—and i love ceremonies, so this stuff is right up my alley.
the courtyard empties and in seemingly no time
the band is left standing alone.
then they tuck their instruments under their arms and head inside as well.
and the square is returned to its normal quietude . . .
we actually went inside the residence hall right afterward to learn about how the recruits live while they are at the school.
unlike them, we got to exit through the front door as graduates of our little tour (of course we did—i told you we were geeky).
we spent a little more time on campus, but soon it was time to head back and get ready for the wedding celebration.
aunts and uncles arrived by the hour
david and i got a chance to dress up in evening wear for a change, which we enjoyed, though i have very few photos to prove it. we made our way to the calvert house once again and this time it was no rehearsal—it was the real thing.
diana was ravishing and james was dapper—they made a beautiful couple at the altar
there they go—i love the back view of diana’s dress.
inside, the wedding party did photo duty while we had cocktails on the terrace
i like this photo of me wearing the trevi shawl—it goes perfectly with my skirt and was just the thing for that evening’s events, when the heat of the day finally subsided.
my brother and his wife, mun, with the newlyweds (i know; we don’t look anything alike, do we??)
davy and james have been best friends since the age of five years—that’s saying a lot when you consider how often they moved as the children of navy men. but my brother was frequently stationed with david’s dad, so the boys actually lived all over the world together. it’s a wonderful story of friendship . . . and they have both grown into such terrific young men.
the rest of the evening slipped by so quickly—dinner was terrific with table partners that were a lot of fun. the music and dancing got everyone up and bouncing around right afterward
that guy on the right?? you know him—he’s the guy that lives to to go to weddings and have a great time. he danced all night and now it looks like he’s training someone new . . .
the cakes were delicious—so clever to serve several different types to choose from; i like that touch (i picked carrot cake, yum).
a lovely time was had by all.
the next day, more family time with my sister and her family—we didn’t have them along at the naval academy, but on saturday, we all went for a boat ride together
we couldn’t resist.
there was a good bit of knitting as well this weekend, but i think i’ll show you all of that next time.
what i think you’ll want to know now is who won the book giveaway, right??
well congratulations to our friend jody, a longtime reader and commentor; i’m really glad she finally won something.
and a happy labor day to all of you . . i’ll be back soon; there’s much more to catch up on. see you later . . .
32 thoughts on “good times”
Oh, it looks like a wonderful trip – I love weddings 🙂 And the pictures of the pre-lunch ritual at Annapolis are fabulous! I wonder if they line up their shoes along the bricks or something to get them that even?
Alas, though – now I’m craving cupcakes…
Beautiful wedding! What a wonderful shawl, too. Hope you have more pics to post with you and David dressed up. That skirt is pretty and interesting. Glad you’re having a good time.
Woo hoo!! I won! I won! Thank you very much!! The photos are just lovely and it looks like you had a wonderful time with your family. Your Trevi looked smashing with your wedding outfit. It looks like a good time was had by all. 🙂
Looks like you all had a really lovely bit of family time. The shawl looks wonderful with the skirt; even the patterns work together! We have been busy planning the wedding of our eldest daughter (and middle child), who is marrying next Easter. Such excitement! Loo forward to seeing how the knitting is coming along. Ros
What a beautiful, historic, interesting place for a family to gather for a wedding. It looks like a grand time, and I’m sure you enjoyed seeing so many family members at a happy occasion. I love your shawl with your skirt, too.
What a nice way to mark the end of summer! Your skirt and shawl are simply smashing together. You should add that shot to the pattern pictures. The cupcakes look really yummy 🙂
What a fun-packed time ! ! !
Really enjoyed tagging along.
Thanks for the tours.
Hugs,
Gerry
Lovely wedding!! The bride’s dress is so pretty and I LOVE you brother’s wife’s dress. Weddings are such happy events. 🙂
What a beautiful wedding! And Annapolis is such a lovely old historic town. We moved to Virginia last year after five years in Annapolis, and we just loved the whole area. You didn’t by any chance have the opportunity to visit the LYS, the Yarn Garden, did you? It’s not located downtown, so I’m guessing you didn’t. It’s tiny but *stuffed* with every kind of yarn imaginable — well worth a trip. It sounds like you had a terrific visit, and a great wedding is always wonderful! The bride was just *beautiful.* As was your SIL’s Korean hanbok!
How nice you got to enjoy my little corner of the world. I’m glad “Irene” had the courtesy to move out before you got here!
Gosh. Where to begin. Lovely, lovely wedding. Lovely shawl. Completely charming family. Fun to see your non-look-alike:) brother. Beautiful picture story of the whole thing. And as a bonus, although I’ve been to Annapolis a dozen times before, never have gotten to see the goings-on of the Naval Academy before. You seem to have done it justice. And as a bonus thanks to Laura in the Comments now know about the Yarn Garden. Thanks for a jam-packed very enjoyable post. As usual.
Hi Anne ,I so enjoyed your post on your nephew’s wedding in Annapolis. The pictures were wonderful and your family just great. I can especially appreciate the pictures of the Naval Academy midshipmen, as our son went to the Air Force Academy. I will never forget leaving him there in 1992. My heart was in my throat. However there was no one more proud than I the day he graduated. He still serves as a search and rescue helicopter pilot out of Moffet Air Force Base in San Francisco. Another similarity is that he married an Irish/Korean girl, Jae Mae. They recently climbed Mount Kenya and they sent me some yarn from a local women’s commune. I just sent Jae a scarf I knit her from that yarn for her birthday as. Surprise. I hope she likes it. Well, I’m rambling. Thanks so much for your wonderful blog, and please keep on sharing! Chris
Beautiful pictures. Wonderful wedding. I got a little misty-eyed looking at the wedding pictures. I love the family gathering from all over to be a part of this event.
And I love the fact that your family is like mine – geeks and nerds. I’ll take a museum any day. The Annapolis Naval Academy pictures really touched me too.
Your Trevi was perfect for this, Anne. Perfect!
Awww, what a handsome couple and a beautiful family to boot! I really am enjoying your travels and of course your lovely designs! How exciting!!
What a terrific post! It’s funny – I’ve lived in “Merlin” for over 30 years and have been to Annapolis any number of times – but have never seen the naval academy except for parking in their parking lot! Glad you and your family are “nerds” – my kind of people. What a great day! Love the shawl of course!
A lovely wedding & you look great with that shawl.
how wonderful it all looks anne. the bride is adorable and you look smashing in your missioni-esque skirt and your trevi. alas i am still mourning the theft of my trevi while i was in ethiopia last year. it was even that soft gray…
thanks for sharing your family’s happy occasion with us.
what a wonderful get together…thanks for taking us along…..
What fun to “peek over your shoulder” and enjoy your weekend with you!
And I’m delighted to see your Trevi again, looking stunning. Someone just gifted me with a skein of Sundara FSM in Cobalt over Mediterranean — and I’ve been thinking that it wants to grow up to become a Trevi.
Seeing you wearing yours this weekend clinched the deal!
Great pictures and I loved the stories behind each. Thanks so much for sharing. Now to finish my sweater.
Absolutely Good Times! I’m with you – all about the museums and strolling around looking at neighborhoods and finding great little places to eat! Fun Weekend.
Weddings are a great time to have family catch-up time! You look like you all had a lot of fun! I would have gone for the carrot cake too – my absolute favourite! The shawl and skirt look gorrrrrrgeous together!
what beautiful pictures of the family – looks like everyone was truly enjoying themselves! I live somewhat near Annapolis – only been on 1 boat tour! We have another one we want to do – so pretty out that way. Your family is like mine – I’m adopted, my sister’s adopted (from Korea) and no one in our family looks alike!
Congratulations to the new bride and groom – just beautiful!
what a lovely couple! I am so happy for james and diana.
The shawl was perfect with your outfit!
Oh, Anne! I love your stories about your family. They sound warm, loud, and hilarious, just like mine.
If you’re ever in Houston, I would love to treat you to dinner. I know a restaurant that I think would entertain you muchly.
Congratulations to James and his new bride! Loved the strategic photos Anne! And I loved seeing the cadets, and reading your description of their roll call. So cool! And I just can’t help it. I have to say it. . . . only ONE cupcake?????
Congratulations to the newlyweds!! Thanks for the neat pictures and the tour of the academy. I love your family – they look like fun!
I am so glad you had a good time in my hometown! It is a lovely old city. 🙂
And congratulations to the newly married couple.
Congratulations to the happy couple! I had a wedding packed Summer as well since two of my cousins got married this June and August respectively (brother and sister… my poor Aunt and Uncle!)
I love the Navy Academy… so beautiful. But I can’t watch the midshipmen without getting a little misty… my Dad was class of 58 and he’s made sure to instill a lot of good feelings about his alma mater. We’ve gone to visit/tour several times. You have to see a football game too some time… everytime Navy scores the cannons fire and the plebes have to run out on the field and do pushups!
Beautiful wedding, beautiful family, beautiful memories! Family gatherings are the best!
It was great to see photos of your family, David peeking from behind and you looked marvelous. I do hope that you have a special picture of David and you together…all dressed up.
It is always exciting to go along on another Anne adventure.
Glad you had a good time in Annapolis–it’s fun to see what others think of my city when they come visit! 🙂
And Annapolis weddings are great–my sister got married in the Naval Academy chapel…..
Wonderful! It was a lovely wedding and looks like such a fun trip! My husband went to the Naval Academy and he took me back there one year. Fabulous town and fascinating place. 🙂
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