30 Years in 30 Weeks - edition 23

So, I didn't waste much time being engaged. Before I even went back to school in January for my final semester, Mom and I went to a Bridal Show in Houston. I had my heart set on a dress I wanted, but, of course, once I put it on it looked horrible. Pale girls in white dresses just look like walking lips. I finally found one that I liked and that was it. I returned to San Marcos to finish school and do my student teaching while Mom and her friends used my wedding as their "trial run" for many, many weddings to come.

I really enjoyed my student teaching experience. I worked in the little town of Lockhart with three wonderful teachers. I moved out of my private apartment and in with my friend, Sylvia. I wasn't able to work many hours at HEB that semester, so I needed to save some money some how.

After graduation in May, I packed up and moved back home. For about a month, I worked in Shepherd assisting at the school in the Curriculum Department. Chris wasn't able to attend my graduation because he was in California for some training. He made it home about two weeks before our wedding - just in time for all sorts of stuff to go crazy. One of his second cousins was supposed to perform our wedding ceremony. Suddenly, he decided that he didn't want to do it. UGH. (just so you know, I've still never met this second cousin and really don't even remember his name) At this point, Chris and I were on our way to Odessa (a 10+ hour drive) to pick up his niece so she could be our flower girl. My mom jumped to the rescue (as normal) and found someone to officiate the wedding.

Our wedding day is a total blur to me. This is what I remember:
~It was hot
~I didn't eat all day
~It was hot
~My hair fell and we had to return to the salon to get it fixed again
~It was hot
~Chris' brother was *this*close* to seating his mom and dad together in the church (they were going through a NASTY divorce and this would NOT have been good)
~I was so happy that my friend, Amy and her mom came (see my earlier 30 in 30 posts for the full story)

Did I mention how hot it was? Evidently some squirrels had a little fun chewing some electrical wires connected to the a/c units the night before. And it's Texas. And it's the middle of June. I remember standing at the altar and whispering to Chris, "you blow on me and I'll blow on you." Mrs. Havard said that wasn't appropriate wedding talk, but...IT WAS HOT! ;0) I even have a picture of us praying and you can obviously tell I was blowing down the front of my dress. When we finally made it to the end of the ceremony and it was time for us to kiss, I remember Steve (the best man) telling us to hurry up. Mind you, we're Baptist...the ceremony wasn't *that* long!

So we got married. Chris was stationed at Ft. Hood so we moved to Temple. That fall, I got my first "big girl job" teaching at Rosebud-Lott High School. Never heard of it? Me neither.