I almost titled it "An Embarrassment of Riches." Christmas was a mixed bag this year. We got a good solid 19 day break from school, including a week before Christmas. So we got plenty of time to just hang out as a core group. Then we traveled for the south Arkansas tour. It felt rushed like it always does but it was still almost a week from home. We had nice visits with everyone. Jared and his girls were only in town for one day so we didn't get much time with them. Holly and the AZ crew weren't able to make it at all this year so that was a bummer too. It was also our first Christmas without toys, which Jenna celebrated but kind of struck me with melancholy. Happy holidays to everyone. I sincerely hope it was filled with love and joy.
Big Weekend for the Rotton's
Wow! When you have 4 kids, 9 grandchildren and spouses, and 7 great grandchildren it would seem next to impossible to get everyone together, but that is exactly what we did. I can't remember the last time all of us could get together. We had people fly in, drive in, and just come down the road a bit. The occassion? Fae Rotton-Mamaw, the matriarch of our family, turned 80!
It was a great weekend. Lots of good food and I got to see so many good friends that just don't live close enough. Noah got to spend a lot of quality time with his aunt Holly and his great-aunts Amanda and Sue who he gets to see so rarely. We even had a photographer come and take a picture of all 30 or so of us. Here's a shot of Mamaw with her great-grandchildren.
Congrats Holly and Mark!!!
It's always nice to see people you love happy, but this weekend was spent watching my baby sister postively glow. We came out to Tucson to watch her get married with practically everyone I'm related to. It was a unique mixing of two completely different cultures when the entire families meshed the past 3 days but it felt we'd known each other forever. We fly home tomorrow or today as I look at the clock now and of course any trip over 2 time zones is hard but factoring in Arizona in June, a 3 year old with relatives all around, and 3 days of open bars and...I can't wait to get home :)
I'm not going to get all mushy because frankly Holly wrote me the most touching letter I've ever received and the emotion of telling you how proud and happy I am for her is a little raw on the emotion meter right now. I will say the wedding was absolutely beautiful. Outside at sundown looking out over the desert was a sight to see. Watching Noah come down the aisle with the rings had me beaming from ear to ear. Seeing my Dad dance to a fast song for the first time in the 35+ years I've been on this earth still has me speechless. In fact I felt like I was in a MasterCard commercial last night.
Another memory was watching my Mamaw sit on the front row crying. I've now stood for 5 weddings in our family and I can remember looking at Mamaw in each one of them. This time I knew she was thinking about Papaw and that made me happy and sad at the same time. You can argue the validity of that paradigm but I'm sticking to the story.
I did get choked up during the ceremony. I can't help it. I'm a sap when people write their own vows. When Holly got choked up at the end of hers I know I looked like a leaky kitchen sink-drip, drip, drip. I didn't wipe my eyes and my back was partially to the people so I thought I was safe, but I was wrong some of Holly's coworkers came to me during the reception to say "That was so sweet when you cried." My man pride was hurting so I went out and killed a coyote in the desert with my bare hands (obviously BS but we did see a coyote during the pictures after the ceremony).
I didn't get to give a toast. Only the best man and matron of honor got to toast after the ceremony. If I had I would have said this:
I still call Holly my "Baby Sister." My wife who is the same age finds this odd, but she's obviously a girl and doesn't know what its like to have a little sister tagging along behind you growing up. Testosterone does crazy things to the male brain and having a "baby sister" was the first thing I ever felt was my responsibility to protect. I was never the mother bear type but believe me, I hurt when she hurt. I haven't lived with my parents since I was 18. I haven't lived with my older sister since she was 18. Holly and I have lived together twice as adults. We were not always good roommates but we were always good friends. As the years have gone by I would have told you I knew Holly better than anyone else in this world. I think the opposite is true as well. After watching her and Mark's relationship grow over the past few years I can say this- Mark brings out the best in my baby sister. She has never been this happy and she has never been this beautiful. I'm proud to pass the role of her protector over to Mark because she deserves all the happiness this world has to offer and she finally found it.
Cheers!
