Monday, July 15, 2013

that time i ran away from home . . . as the mom

dear emily,

i'm not sure if shelby has told you this one, but six weeks before her wedding
i ran away from home.

all five kids were home the entire summer we planned her perfect day.    there
was constant activity, a little anxiety, and clamour . . . from me not shelby.
she was an angel.

it being my first wedding and all, i set the bar pretty high for myself, read
every book on wedding etiquette,  and still managed to make a gazillion
mistakes.    after lecturing telling my family to be sure to tip the delivery
man, i tipped an old family friend's daughter.   she was horrified.

my sister in law, in her deep southern accent,  said, "lea, while shelby is
writing all her thank you notes, you're writing all your apology notes."

the lady who ordered our invitations kept sending the lists back with "you
can NOT address a formal invitation with 'ma and pa kettle.'"

the door bell rang 100 times a day.   there were fittings and shootings.   i
shot the caterer, church photographer (not ace) , and wedding planner . . .
then i packed an over night back and left for the nearest hotel (it was either
that or the psych ward.)    my family received this text:   "i will be home
tomorrow,  maybe.   don't call or text me.   feel free to shoot anybody you
like."

love,
lea

ps.  "but jonah ran away from the Lord and headed to tarshish."  jonah 1:3

17 comments:

Meg said...

LOL! Yep, I feel that way about planning weddings too. It's a little nuts. Loved this story, it was too funny! :)

Debbie said...

haha I thoroughly enjoyed this. I remember well those feelings right before my daughter's wedding. Running away for a while was a GREAT idea, haha. Enjoy your week!

Farm Girl said...

Well since I am barely out of this stage yet, I couldn't laugh because I was too close too shooting everyone. I should have run away too that sounds like a great idea and maybe next time I will.
It is such a blessing to get to do it but such a bigger blessing when every thing is finished and time marches on. You are so cute.

rondalahonda said...

I'm always thinking a little runaway would be good. I'd sure like to try it anyway.

http://bitsandpieces-sonja.blogspot.com/ said...

You trumped me on this one, the one thing I never thought about... was running away! It's a no brainer. My family would have probably loved it!!

Vee said...

I'm thinking of running away almost daily. Like Jonah, though, I'd find that there's no place to hide. Love how you pull a story together!

GratefulPrayerThankfulHeart said...

I like Vee's comment as there just might have been a hundred times I wished I could run away :)

Blondie's Journal said...

I hear ya! My daughter just got married in May and those weeks leading up to it were frantic and let's just say I wasn't always on my best behavior. If I had run away, they would have applauded! ;-)

XO,
Jane

Elizabeth "Libby" Day said...

You, my friend, have my admiration! How many of us has wanted to run away and never actually had the nerve or opportunity. You did it!

Darcie said...

Oh groan! Can't they all just elope? JK....but looking back, and knowing the person I am today...it would have just been my husband and I. End of Story.

Janettessage.blogspot.com said...

too funny..as I was texting and emailing back and forth with my son for his wedding in September, which is in Italy, I thought I would just run away.
Well the first of our weddings I was pregnant with Benjamin...so can you imagine the mix of hormones and emotions?
Great post...as always!

bbb said...

perfect timing on this post. pack your bag for august. i'm taking you with me!

bbb said...

perfect timing on this post. pack your bag for august. i'm taking you with me!

Cinnamon said...

Oh my! That was funny! I see all the humor and seriousness in it. A night away...that must have been bliss (or a bit of sanity) for you :-)

~Cinnamon

Single and Sane said...

I'd love to have been a fly on the wall when they realized you had gone. Or when you came home, for that matter. They must have been stunned!

Thistle Cove Farm said...

I think life would be more wonderful if we'd run away more frequently. It tends to give a fresh perspective.

Texas "T" said...

I LOVE this!...and the wedding was amazing!