There are definitely worst places to spend a beautiful Labor Day weekend than lakeside in Vermont. This particular lake was in Fairlee, and the lakeside accommodations were compliments of an all boys' summer camp that has been in operation since the early 1900s. For this weekend, however, it was the site of a wedding. We traveled up to Vermont to celebrate the union of John's cousin Emily and her fiancé Eli.
Within minutes of our arrival we put on our swimsuits and headed down to the lake. There was a great dock, clear water, and a lot of time to sit around and talk. The gang was all there, including John's cousins from Minnesota and Kansas. This set the tone for a fun-filled weekend that seemed to have every detail planned out. Eli and Emily definitely made sure that their guests were active and entertained.
Speaking of active and entertained, Uncle Chris was in his element and ensured his nieces were full of giggles and smiles all weekend long. Our meals were provided family style in the main cafeteria, which was wonderfully decorated with lights, as you can see in the background of the picture. We say cafeteria, but like all the buildings in the camp it had more of a rustic feel and the food was quite tasty.
We spent quite a bit of time in that building, but most of that time was spent talking as opposed to eating. It is not often that all of the Bowes, Peltier, and Malpino clans are together, so there is a lot of catching up that goes on. And when people change drastically over the years, like the young man to the right, such catching up is very important.
Here we see the wonderful parents of the bride, John's Uncle Joe and Aunt Debbie. Although they had tasks that they needed to accomplish throughout the wedding weekend, they made a point of getting in good visits with their family and soaking in the moment. They are truly special people and it was great to watch how happy they were for their daughter.
Unfortunately Michael couldn't make the trip to the wedding because he could not get away from Penn State, but Brendan made sure that at least one of us was looking fashionable on the day of the wedding. With his new haircut and bowtie his aunts clearly found him irresistible. And he thought he was pretty cool as well, sporting his Top Gun shades to keep the glare from hurting his baby blues.
Michael was not the only one missing, for Carrie and Matthew Peltier, along with Karen and Nate Peltier, were unable to get away for the weekend. Claire and her father Ted represented Kansas well, however, and Dan (pictured here) was a perfectly suitable escort for his daughters Lucy and Anna. Clare, Lucy, and Anna were all flower girls in the wedding, so there was no way they were going to miss it.
The ceremony itself was equal parts touching and hilarious. The officiant was none other than Emily's brother James, and he was quite masterful in providing the right touch of solemnity to go with the jokes he delivered with much charisma. James did a wonderful job, and it was also very apparent that Eli and Emily had certain things that they wanted to happen to make the ceremony their own. The setting was beautiful, the bride and groom were charming, and it was simply a great time overall.
We couldn't pass up the opportunity to snap a photo of three of the four Peltier kids. As we said before, it is hard to get all the families together because all told we live in seven different states separated by thousands of miles. It is obvious that they enjoyed the time together.
The reception was held in a barn on the premises and all the folks who put in the hours to decorate the site should be commended. It looked like it came out of a magazine, and when the sun set and you looked at it all from outside, the glow of the lights made it all look magical.
Zoey and Reese are certainly kindred spirits and we quickly discovered that they both have a love for dancing. You should invite them to your wedding if you have any concerns about getting people on the dance floor at the reception. They were spinning, jumping, and boogieing like nobody's business. Callie chose to enjoy the kid's camp that was held in a separate building during the reception. She got to watch movies, play games, and hang out without parents. Sometimes the three years that separate our two girls make a big difference.
We could not have asked for better weather that weekend, and though the wedding was done, the fun was not. We had another entire day to hang out on the lake. All the girls got more and more comfortable with walking the docks and swimming, and they also took advantage of the family around them. Nana Banana was in seventh heaven and beamed every time one of her grandkids stopped by for a snuggle.
Speaking of comfortable, Callie was leaping all over the place by the third day. We could not convince her to tread into the deeper waters, but at least she was willing to fling herself off of the dock. Slowly but surely, we are working on getting her past her water fears, and slowly but surely she is coming around.
One of our last activities of the weekend was a quaint canoe trip. We were hoping to have a more involved adventure around the lake, but the lifeguards had other plans. They insisted we stay in sight, and despite Sarah's deepest desires we heeded their calls. The whole weekend was a blast, and we bookended our trip to the Vermont Country Deli that had delicious sandwiches and other treats. No doubt we will visit Vermont again, and we can only hope the next trip is as fun as this one was.
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