They were married under a hundred-year-old oak tree on the outskirts of Houston, with ribbons hanging down like Spanish moss. It was Saturday afternoon, May 29, and 90 degrees outside. No problem. There was ice water for the guests, and a flute quartet played, next to petunias in deep purple, Ashley's color.
Both Michael and I snapped all the pieces of the wedding ceremony,
including:
Vincent and Janice, as parents of the groom...
the mother of the bride...
The bridesmaids and groomsmen, including Charlotte and Tony, Ben and Daniel...
the groom (Joshua) with the "minister"--his bishop...
and, finally, the bride and her father, exchanging last hugs and kisses before she became a married lady.
The bishop read the ceremony....
and Ashley and Joshua each read their own promises and hopes.
Then, the ceremony was all over...
And everyone posed for pictures.
Joshua and Ashley will be sealed in the Salt Lake Temple on December 29, as Vincent and Janice travel here with their family on a skiing vacation. Ashley will then have been a member of the Church for a year.
The night before the wedding, Janice and Vincent hosted a rehearsal dinner in their elegant garden. Nancy, Charlotte, and Janice had spent two days, just cooking.
Charlotte decorated the tables and arranged the flowers.
There were buffet tables for appetizers, dessert, and the entree--herbed shrimp with quinoa/corn cakes and bean salsa,
Friday night, June 4, Dave and I drove to the cabin for dinner with our friends, the Emmers and Wildes. We stayed overnight, and woke to a bright green, spring-filled world.
There were even daffodils planted by Grandpa Spendlove in years past.
Someday, maybe we'll take down the "Spend Love Nest" sign, but not yet.
Dave showed me, with pride, the pile of lumber he created from demolishing the sagging fence around our lot.
Then, we were off on a 4-wheeler ride around Pine Mountain...
pausing for views of the mountains across the valley...
and picturesque barns and fences.
Saturday evening, Dave and I drove to Saltaire...
to watch the sunset over the Great Salt Lake.
There was a concert by the rock group, "Corn," that we would have attended, if it weren't for the $40 ticket price, the discordant sounds floating out the windows, the solid wall of people in the darkened concert hall, and the fact that no one there was older than 25.
When we told Michael we nearly attended a "Corn" concert, he was very silent. "I wouldn't have thought that would appeal to you," he finally said. "Those guys scream and tear their hair out." Another time. Instead, we walked through the muck and sand to the edge of the Great Salt Lake.
We savored the exquisite views of water, sky, and Antelope Island.
We finished our date with an old favorite, salad at Cinegrill. 
Early on Saturday, Michael and I slipped off to the "Wall of Water". It was just outside the boundaries of Michael's mission, so he heard about it but never got to visit during the two years he lived in Houston. Some missionaries disobeyed the rules and went there, and it was all the more alluring because it was forbidden! There was a truly Texas-sized building next to the Wall of Water.
