04/28/2026
The tent is gone, the leftover cupcakes have been eaten, the abandoned "dress" is hanging on a rack in my family room, and the house is littered with boxes and baskets of snacks and unopened drinks. 72 bud vases full of flowers adorn every available surface in my house, a beautiful reminder of a perfect weekend. We've spent 9 months getting ready for this wedding, and now the farm is quiet again. This morning as I watched the guys take down the tent, fold up the chairs, and put the tables on the truck, I felt nothing but peace about it all. It could not have been a better weekend. All of the hundreds of hours of work (and let's not talk about the money), the construction projects, the endless to do lists, the constant stress, and the sleepless nights were worth it all when I saw my baby girl in that dress with a giant smile on her face as soon as she saw the love of her life waiting for her at the end of the aisle. When they danced their first dance as man and wife, I cried like a baby, knowing in my heart she had found the right one. We couldn't be more happy for them both. The speeches were all amazing and heartfelt. We loved Pastor Zach, and to hear how much my baby was loved already by her new family made my heart full. We (The Ebelings and us) are truly blessed with these new additions to our families. We couldn't have picked a better man than George (Joey) for our Kate. I thank God for that.
Wade drove back to OU tonight and will be working construction in Athens all summer. Kate and Joey made it safely to Japan and are all moved into their new apartment in Cincinnati. Jeff is ready to get back to training for his next Ironman in September. I think I'll get back on my horse tomorrow for the first time since December (when this wedding took over my life). I thought maybe I'd be sad when it was all over, but I'm not. I think I'm ready for my own new chapter to begin!