A Colorado Wedding

At the end of June we hopped on a plane in Lousville and headed for the Rocky Mountains. It was time for the celebration of Suzy and Brian's wedding. And while our checked bag decided to take a side trip to Dallas, we didn't miss a beat and got up to Winter Park in plenty of time to enjoy all the weekend had to offer.


Our first event was a Bowes family dinner at Alberto's. It was good Italian cuisine and our table of twelve enjoyed it immensely. Of course the company was better than the food, and Callie was particularly happy to be in between Michael and Brendan (in Callie's terms, "my cousins!")



The parents of the bride started beaming the moment they saw Suzy and didn't stop the whole weekend long. They were impressed, as were we all, with all of the effort Suzy and Brian put into the preparations for their wedding. Indeed, our car on the ride up to the mountains contained our bags, a wedding dress, boxes of self-grown wheat grass, origami flowers, and much more. Needless to say, it was filled up with all sorts of goodies the bride and groom had put together for the occasion.




Taffy and Jay weren't the only ones beaming. Suzy looked absolutely fabulous as she walked down the aisle. It was fitting to see Suzy in a wedding dress in the great outdoors and the setting was truly beautiful. Unfortunately, the weather did not fully cooperate with the wedding plans. Although Suzy and Brian can endure quite a bit, as the rain began to fall they decided that it was best to take the ceremony inside.



It is not everyone who can say they had an outdoor-indoor wedding. And honestly, the change of venue did not disrupt the magic of the day at all. Everyone took it in stride and understood that the day was about Suzy and Brian, and the temperamental Colorado weather couldn't take that away. The ceremony was wonderful, and before you could say I do, they did, and they were married!



As you can see from this picture, Suzy and Brian make a very attractive and photogenic couple. And if you look closely into their eyes, you can also see that they are ready to dance and live it up!



The best man (Micah) and the matron of honor (our very own Katie Balestracci) gave funny and touching toasts, Suzy and Brian showed off the results of their dancing lessons, and everyone got to partake of the sundae bar. And then the party really began.


Callie enjoyed some one on one time with her Aunt Suzy throughout the festivities. Unfortunately Callie was unwilling to fully let loose on the dance floor. But she wanted to watch everyone else boogie down. It might take a while for Callie to show her dancing skills in public, which is too bad, because she does have some moves.




Although the ceremony made it official that Brian is now a part of our family, we can honestly say that he joined our crazy crew last Christmas when he made his first appearance at the annual sibling dinner in Connecticut. And we must admit that his presence helped lead to the very first sibling dinner "after party" at the Balestracci residence.



And the above pictures only provides some of the highlights from a great weekend of family and fun. We had an amazing time meeting Suzy and Brian's friends, and Brian's family in particular. It is too bad the party had to finally come to an end.


However, when one party ends you have to start planning for the next one. Pictured here, for all the world to see, is John's Uncle Tommy making a pinky-swear promise with Sarah. What is that promise, you may ask. Well, after years of dropping not so subtle hints, we decided to get Tommy and Terry to commit to a visit to horse country. Or at the very least, we got Tommy to commit to a very public promise that we will remind him of as often as possible until he makes his first appearance in the Bluegrass.