Wedding Night at the Motor Inn

I'm posting this from the computer in the waiting room of the transplant center. We arrived at 7:30 this morning so Derrek and Chris could go through all of the tests one more time just to be sure. Then, this afternoon, I think they have a class to sit through. The class is actually why Wanda and I came along today - just to have another set of ears on what to expect after surgery. I'll keep you posted throughout the day with surgery time, length, etc. We don't have any idea about any of that yet!



The best part of the last 24 hours, however, is that Chris and Wanda got married yesterday! (Click on Sprouting Daisies on my sidebar for pics from Cassell). Only a few people knew it was happening but it was a private ceremony and I'm sooooo happy for them. They just decided to do it last week and got their marriage license, found someone to do the marrying and a place this weekend. Yesterday was slightly a stressful day already but adding a wedding to the mix almost proved too much for Wanda (until after the ceremony - she's still glowing this morning). We were trying to get a hotel for last night, she had to get a ring, and figure out what Alli would wear. I'm sure she probably grouted some tile or cleaned something yesterday at the new house too sometime during the day.(I did help a little by steaming Chris's clothes. The wedding probably wouldn't have happened without me.) Anyway, around 3:30, Wanda was STRESSED. I mean I was a little stressed just because I had to work and I was thinking about all I had to do to get ready to come to San Antonio. Wanda had a few more things on her list! I think she bought a ring for Chris at 3:15 that ended up being too big because she got one of the biggest sizes just to be sure it would go on). Alli was trying on a bunch of stuff at Root. Wanda was trying to remember everything she needed for the wedding and thinking of all she needed to pack for San Antonio. But thank the Lord, around 4:30 they were married and all of those little worries seemed to disappear.



I'm so glad because we all decided to go to dinner at August E's and actually take the evening to celebrate an occasion that we've all dreamed about for Chris and Wanda. We took our time and laughed and reminisced and made wedding (Bridezilla) and surgery jokes with a group of great friends and family and forgot about packing and being on a schedule for a few hours. Two of Derrek and Chris's friends, Craig and Tony really wanted to keep "celebrating" after dinner. Well they said they were "holding a vigil" for Chris and Derrek. This morning, Tony let us know the vigil went very well and we should feel good about everything!

Unfortunately, when the fun ended, we had to pack up and head to San Antonio. When I'm rushed to pack, I tend to overpack. Well, I overpack anyway, but this was rushed, thoughtless overpacking. So, who knows, what I packed. I did bring lots of comfy elastic waist pants so I should be good.

I offered to book the hotel earlier in the day to take one more thing off of Wanda's list and she suggested the Oak Hills Motor Inn. http://www.samedcenterhotel.com/ (I'll post my own pictures later today when I can use my laptop). I looked at it on hotels.com thinking, uh, surely this is not really where she wants to stay. Not that I'm a huge hotel snob or anything but even the pictures they post on their website to PROMOTE the hotel, don't do a good job of covering up the old carpet, flat pillows and dated curtains. She said she had stayed there before and it was, at least, clean. But it was cheap and really close to the hospital. It was also sort of challenging to get a room with all of the evacuees in San Antonio. I called her one more time to be sure and we decided to just book one night there just in case we don't like it and then we could move today. And moving, we will be. I mean you'll see how depressing the room is just by looking but the spots on the carpet and the airplane pillows on the bed just made depressing feel destitute. I think one of our pillows didn't even have a pillow case on it. (Derrek slept on that one). The lights were all unreasonably dim, I'm sure, to hide what we might see in good light. We didn't get there until after midnight so, at that point, there was no point in hunting for new place.

I'm glad Chris & Wanda spent their wedding night there so we can laugh about it for a really long time! Luckily, they didn't care about the hotel but it's still REAL funny.

No matter where they spent the night, the fact that they are married is all that really matters. They've been trying to plan a wedding for long time now and I'm glad they just did it without fanfare. I know they've felt married and been committed in that way for a long time, but today it all feels right. It was the perfect start to such a big week.