Wedding Weekend Extravaganza!

Guys.  The last week has been nuts.  In case you didn't know, we're moving in two weeks.  But in ADDITION to that, Scott left to start his new role last weekend (and to close on our new house), my baby brother got married on Saturday, and I was on my own with 6 kids to fly out to Utah early last Wednesday morning to be there for the festivities.  Woo hoo!!!  Sounds like so much fun, right???  Hahahaha.

 I'm sure you can imagine the number of looks and comments I got while traveling solo with 6 kids.  Hahaha.  Thankfully, they were all positive and encouraging comments even if I did get a few annoyed looks during certain toddler meltdowns. 

 The seating arrangement:  Jane, Isaac, and I were on one row together...

 Grace and Sophie were across the aisle from us...

And Ethan and Alex were a couple of rows behind them.

The flight out to Utah was half fine and half a nightmare, but those 30 minutes of SCREAMING toddler on a packed plane were enough to set my stress levels to stratospheric heights.  To be fair, it wasn't as bad as it could have been, but let's just say I'd rather drive the 20+ hours out to Utah than ever get on a plane with Isaac again.  Haha.  Once we landed in Salt Lake, we met up with Emily and her crew and once Freddie was off of work, we all went down to the construction sites where their new houses are going to be built!  Can I just say how super jealous I am that they'll be living less than a mile from each other???

 Walking over to Pearce's school to check her out and then playing on the playground during recess was a hit!

 Hahahaha...those faces!

Playing Hide and Seek in the model home.

3 Hansen sibs plus 9 Hansen grandkids equals so much fun!

We finished off our day by joining Jacob and Kaitlin for dinner at Culver's before heading over to Scott's parents house to crash for the night.  An extra bonus to our weekend wedding trip, was that Scott's brother Adam and his family had driven up as well for a wedding of their OWN.  Their oldest got married on Friday morning in Salt Lake and being out here for my brother's wedding gave us the added lagniappe of being able to attend Abby's as well!  Adam and Susi plus their kids were staying at Grandma and Grandpa's, too, and my kids were excited to be able to hang out with their Las Vegas cousins who we don't get to see as often.

 Kaitlin is now an insta-Aunt to 14 nieces and nephews!!! 

 Jacob had the little boys captivated by something on his phone...

 While Kaitlin entertained the girls.

Las Vegas cousins!

Thankfully, Scott flew into town late Thursday night and we were able to have lots and lots of fun family time over the next few days as we celebrated the wedding weekend extravaganza all together!  (And even more thankfully, Scott flew back home with us on Sunday night and I'm no longer on my own with all 6 kids!!!).

Since I took almost 200 pictures during the 5 days we were out in Utah, I'm pretty sure it would be best to spread them out over more than one blog post.  Hahaha.  I'll close tonight's post with all the pictures and activities leading up to Jacob and Kaitlin's Main Event on Saturday night.

Up first?  Abby's wedding on Friday morning!  Kemper and Abby got married in the Salt Lake Temple on Friday morning, and Scott and I wisely chose to leave our kids back home at grandma and grandpa's so that we could enjoy the sealing without worrying about 6 crazy kids, loose and wandering around Temple Square while we were inside.  It was an absolutely gorgeous day, and really special to be back in the same exact place where Scott and I tied the knot 16 years ago on a similarly beautiful day in April of 2002.

 (It was also Adam's birthday the day before Abby's wedding.)

 Cute little Lucy with her flower crown.

 And twinsie Ella with her matching flower crown.

 Adam and Susi's family, with the addition of Kemper and Joe -- Sydney's fiancee.

 (Sydney and Joe are getting married next month in Logan.)

Another nephew -- Jake -- caught a ride with us up to Salt Lake.

Ella helped Jane get her fake nails glued on for the wedding.  ;)

After the wedding, there was a small luncheon at the Olive Garden a few blocks away and by the time we were finished eating and back down in Orem, it was almost time to meet up at The Brick Oven in Provo for Jacob and Kaitlin's "rehearsal dinner."  Dinner was a little wild and crazy in the designated kid banquet room, but it was still great to all be together and see how cute and happy the lovebirds were together and to meet Kaitlin's family as well.

There may or may not have been a mini rivalry brewing between these two hilarious toddlers, with each one vying for Uncle DoDo's attention.  Hahahahahaha.  Let's just say that Freddie is certainly a favorite.  :)

We finished our evening off at a nearby park, with a continued Hansen family mini reunion (minus Laura and her family who didn't get in until later that night), and it was the perfect way to end the night.  The kids were able to run around and play while the rest of us were able to sit around and visit.  It was practically perfect in every way.  The only thing that would have made it MORE perfect was if Laura and Trevor and Everett could have been there as well!  :)

Since Jacob and Kaitlin's wedding wasn't until Saturday evening, we had some free time on Saturday morning/afternoon to hit up BYU and the bookstore and eat chocolate covered cinnamon bears to our hearts' content.  Hahahaha.  I was also able to snag a last minute gift for the lovebirds (a framed painting by an artist that I knew Jacob really liked and Tenzi, since Jacob told me that they both like games, too).  Once we were back from campus, it was nice to have a little downtime to chill and do nothing before needing to get all dressed up and ready for the wedding extravaganza that evening.

BYU!

"Calm and Stars" by Yongsung Kim

I'll save the rest of the pictures and stories for a post of it's own, but I can't close this one without leaving a FEW sneak peaks of the beaming couple on their special day.  :)

 The newlyweds!