Wedding photo overload!!!

And finally the wedding!

We made a error however, by leaving some of our suitcases at Takumi's house (because the rental car wouldn't hold everything) and realized that our wedding finery was an hour and a half away from us.  No way to go back and get it, and no way (the roads were so bad) for Takumi to come to our AirBnb and deliver it and no place for us to change at the venue (which Leiya had scoped out for us at the rehearsal the day before.)  We ended up meeting Takumi and Julieta and our suitcase at a Target parking lot and Tetsu changed in the car and I changed in a Target bathroom!  

But we made it... though I'm afraid I don't remember the name of the venue.  

Outdoors, grassy lawns above us, chairs laid out under big trees.  

Leiya was in the wedding party but she had set out dress clothes for Luka and Tony had found a nearly matching hat and bow tie so that he and Luka could be look-alikes.

Takumi played "doorman".

Julieta and I sat and enjoyed ourselves...  and for the next few hours Tetsu played photographer as he couldn't talk with anyone anyway and he found lots to photograph.  (More than 800 photographs!)

No photos allowed during the actual ceremony but the pastor (whom I later discovered I'd known when Takumi and Leiya had gone to vacation Bible school in California when they were in grade school!) waited for the wedding party under a huge oak tree.

A nice touch was that Justin (the groom) came down the long walkway with both his mother and father and Kiana also was escorted by both my brother and Marcy.

And here we are after the ceremony.

Colin, my nephew, and Leiya were paired.

My brother and Marcy.

I was so happy to see my brother looking so good as he has had health problems.

Greeting everyone on the patio right after the wedding.  You will notice my brother is smiling throughout most of this day!  He is known for his grumpy look but his happiness overflowed.  I was told that he and I are more and more looking like each other in our old age!

Luka made a splash in his dandy outfit.

The wedding party.   Kiana has always been a sort of goth gal and she wanted her wedding in black and dark purple.  (And I'd made her a black quilt which was a good choice.)

With the parents.  Three years ago when Leiya got married, Justin traveled back to Michigan with my brother's family for Leiya's wedding and he did most of the driving when we went to Indiana and Niagra Falls so Tetsu and I felt like we'd really gotten to know him.  I'm so glad that he has joined our family and I let his parents know it!

My children all together.

There were so many people to meet and talk to.  I was happy to find old friends and make new ones, but it was just nice to spend time with family too.

It got cold as the evening progressed so us gals all put on coats that (except for Julieta) didn't do much for style.

I so love this photo of Takumi and Julieta!

The reception buffet was held on another tier of the patio.

Look at that dessert table!!

There was dancing.

My brother was still smiling!

A bonfire.

Some wild Latin dancing.  I didn't know Takumi could dance!

A crazy photo booth.

Finally a photo with the bride.

Father and son.

And a last photo that we actually got to this wedding!