The Ring Bearer

This past weekend we did something I’ve never done before…we went to a wedding! My Aunt Stacy married Kevin, which now means that I have another Uncle. Which I think is so cool! But I have to admit, I didn’t always feel that way…

A couple weeks before the wedding Mama and Daddy kept talking about it a lot…”Stacy & Kevin special day…blah blah blah” “Ranch…blah..Wedding…” “Rings; Pillows… Special Outfit…” STOP, HOLD UP. “What was this about a special outfit?!” That last part got my alarm bells ringing. Grandma came over with a fancy outfit that everyone was sooo excited about, but no one bothered to ask me if I wanted to wear it (which I didn’t). And then, my parents got me cowboy boots which they thought were so cool (and even though I did too) I wouldn’t admit it since they didn’t ask me first. So, even though the ranch part sounded pretty neat, I didn’t understand what all the fuss was about.

One night Mama made me stomp around in my boots holding this pillow-type thing with paper-clips tied to it and would say, “Okay, walk to me! Now hand me the rings!” (What rings Mama? They’re paper-clips!) But, she was so excited I felt like it was right to make her happy.

When we got up to the ranch on Saturday it was really cold and rainy, and there were lots of people all around. They all seemed to know who I was, even though I didn’t know everyone I was meeting. I started to feel like a celebrity, and that this whole weekend was about me. But every time I would try to prove it was about me, Mama would tell me that it was not about me, that this was Aunt Stacy’s Big Day, not Jingles! (No offense Aunt Stacy, but what makes you so special?)

On that first day, Grandma wanted to practice this ring business with me too. “Ok, hold this pillow (which was nicer, but still had no rings) and walk this way”. You might think I’m joking here, but I’ve got video to prove it.

Then, the next day was the OFFICIAL WEDDING DAY and I could tell everyone was excited. We got up early and had breakfast, went fishing, and then after that Daddy went horseback riding. We went to watch him and his horse “Dolly” for little while, and I know Mama wanted me to get on a pony too, but I just wasn’t in the mood. Instead we went up for a snack, and then Mama said we should take an early nap because this “Big Day” was ahead of us.

After the nap, we all took showers, and while I was distracted with the iPhone game, Mama dressed me up in that special outfit I told you about earlier. Gah! No! I made them take the vest and the tie off, but they were so stubborn about making me keep my shirt and pants on. What was the big deal with this outfit anyway!? But, then I saw that Mama and Daddy were getting all dressed up too, I mean, Mama looked like a girl! She was wearing a dress! And Daddy looked pretty awesome in his vest and tie, so I figured what the heck. They weren’t melting from their clothes, so I probably wouldn’t either. I even agreed to the cowboy boots.

Once we got outside, I suddenly understood the big deal. You should have seen the attention that I got! Grandma and Grandpa were so proud of me, and everyone said how cute I looked (I had to correct them and tell them I was handsome – I’d expect Grown-Ups to know better) and suddenly I appreciated this special outfit.

We went to take pictures with Aunt Stacy and soon-to-be Uncle Kevin, and when I saw how pretty she looked, then I understood why it was her day and not mine. I mean, I might be the Prince, but she was the Queen.

Grandpa and The Queen

We went to practice with that silly pillow again, only this time it had rings on it, and the mystery man I was supposed to hand them to – Duffy – he was there too, so it finally started to make sense. Although, unlike the day before, there were a lot of chairs there, and some mention of ‘people will be sitting’ and I didn’t quite like the sound of that.

So, here’s how it went down… I was too nervous to walk down that aisle with all those people so I made Daddy carry me. At first, I didn’t like that either, but we started to walk with Grandma (who looked like a Purple Princess) down the aisle and when I saw Mama at the front smiling and all pretty, it made me smile and get excited. I started to use that pillow to waive to her and other people, because I wanted to make sure they saw me! Then we went to the front row like we had practiced and I sat down between Mama and Daddy. But I was so excited to be there, it was hard to contain my words. But my parents told me that I shouldn’t speak and we should listen to Duffy, Stacy and Kevin at the front. But when I couldn’t speak, then I had to do something to share my excitement so I threw the pillow at Grandma since I knew how much she liked it. That made Grandma and Mama do this strange silent laugh, while Daddy pretended to be angry at me, but silently. And then, I heard Duffy say those magic words… “Jingle, can you please bring me the rings?” and suddenly I remembered my job, and I ran up there all by myself to hand him the pillow with the rings. I did it!!

And just when I thought that was the coolest part, I saw about 100 horses run up the hill behind Stacy and Kevin. Luckily, the ceremony ended about that time, so Daddy and I ran off to the horse stables to see what was going on down there.

The rest of the day kind of passed in a blur. There was food, and lots of people, but I just wanted to play with Daddy. I was also getting tired of being all dressed up, so Daddy and I went back to change and take a Dora break. When we returned, it was dinner time and then after that Mama and Daddy left me with some other kids to play and they went off for a little bit. I thought when they picked me up, they would take me to bed, but they surprised me and took me dancing! This made me very happy, because I had told Mama that I wanted to dance and I thought that they forgot. But, they didn’t, and I danced in a big group for the very first time ever!

The rest of the party was a blur

Bustin' a Move

Dear Aunt Stacy and Uncle Kevin,

Thank you for throwing such a big party and planning a fun weekend at the ranch. I had a lot more fun then I expected, and don’t tell Mama and Daddy, but I even enjoyed getting dressed up. Stacy, you were pretty like a Queen, and Kevin, I will admit – that you looked even handsomer than I did.

Love, Jingle

My New Uncle Kevin