The Federal Hill Street Festival!

After we returned from our adventurous trip to Connecticut on Friday, we spent Saturday getting the dogs from daycare and walking and playing with them. We also had lunch with friends Tom and Robert who drove over from Gaithersburg. On Sunday June 29th, after a nice breakfast at Panera Bread, and a long dog walk over to the local farmer's market, we went to a street festival.
(PHOTO: Tom and Rob at the festival)
Jane and Steve had helped organize the Federal Hill Jazz Street Festival in Baltimore, so Jeff from VA joined us for the fun. There was a lot to see and do, and here are some photos from it.
(PHOTO: Tom and Jeff listening to a band)

(PHOTO: These teenage boys really had talent at the festival. They sang "Six Days on the Road" and did a great job).
(PHOTO: Tom acting goofy at one of the many booths at the festival. Funny!)
(PHOTO: Jeff and Tom looking at a selection of hats at a booth. No sale!)

Wedding Video - Part 2- conclusion

Here's the conclusion to our wedding on video. Thanks again to our friend Colleen who video taped it on her camera. We are forever thankful.
We actually held the ceremony in Ralph and Rich's Italian Restaurant in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and they pulled these curtains as room dividers to give us a private room. It was incredible. They also had classical music piped in, and it all sounded like it was part of the ceremony. It was all wonderful, and again, we thank all of our family and friends who made the long trip to Connecticut. We also thank the restaurant (and the food was incredible) and the clerk at City Hall, and our friends Mike and Amy who came in from Minnesota- Mike married us. That was a tremendous life-long gift we will always cherish.

Short Video of our Ceremony (part 1)

Our ceremony was short - and we have two of the three parts on video, thanks to our friend Colleen, who was there and thought to record it! We are so appreciative. The second segment (the one that didn't get recorded) was the one of our vows, but the beginning and endings of the ceremony we do have and will treasure. Here's the first part of it, and our friend Mike is the minister who married us.

It's Official! We're Married!

(PHOTO: L to R: Rob, Mike the minister, Tom)
It's Official! Tom and I are married! Yesterday in Bridgeport, Connecticut was the BIGGEST, BEST DAY of our lives! We filled out the paperwork at City Hall (and the woman at the counter in the records/licenses department was great and organized. She even joked about joining us at the restaurant for lunch.
We exchanged vows in Ralph and Rich's Italian Restaurant around the corner from City Hall. Rob's brother Doug got a recommendation of the restaurant from the Bridgeport Mayor's office - and it was perfect. The managers gave us a private room, where our friend Mike B. performed the ceremony.
(PHOTO: Our rings!)
We were so joined by a small group of family and friends who drove down from Massachusetts. It couldn't have been any better.
(PHOTO: Jeff from Virginia drove up with us from Maryland and he was our ring bearer!) More later... (Thanks to Rob's sister-in-law, Dawn for these photos... and other photos and videos coming from Colleen and others...)

Little Natalie's Good Luck Wish for Our Marriage

Our friends Colleen and Todd of Massachusetts had their daughter Natalie give us a video congratulations for our wedding day. It's so cute!

Today We Get Married in Connecticut!

Well, the big countdown is over. Today is the day we take our vows in Connecticut (because it's the closest state that will allow us to legally marry). Here's a picture from our trip to Maine/New Hampshire last month that we think is appropriate for today!
We're planning on having it outside in a park around the corner from City Hall at noontime, if the thunderstorms hold off!

To give you a feel for today, here's a link to pics of Tom and I at Jim and Ed's wedding in NH last month: http://picasaweb.google.com/EKJK08/BuzzTom#

One Day on the Big Countdown!

Special guest hinter: Jeff from Virginia...Tomorrow is the big day!

2 Days to Go!!

2 Days to go...Watch the video for another clue...although it was tough to get one out of this bunch!

3 Days to Go: The Video Countdown

The "3 days to go" hint to the big event is the work of Franklin the Dachshund and Dolly the Weimaraner today. Can you understand dog? :)

TMJ and Nails

Two quick thoughts this morning: TMJ and toenails. Nope, they're not related!
NAILING THE NAILS- First, a funny story about doggy toenails that happened this morning. I don't like cutting our dog's toenails/claws and they don't like it either. However, it was time for a trim for our Weimaraner, Dolly. So, while they were sitting on their bed in the kitchen after Tom left for work (and I was getting ready) I had some time to trim their nails. As soon as I took out the clipper, Franklin, our dachshund, ran into the bedroom and hid under the bed! Dolly lay on her bed and let me clip her nails awaiting her treats. It wasn't until after Franklin heard me put the clippers away that he slinked back out into the kitchen. :)
TMJ PAIN REDUCTION! "Popping Jaw" - If you have Tempomandibular blah-blah you know that one of the joints in your jaw pops out when you open your mouth too wide. I have it, and have had it for 20 years, so going to the dentist is unpleasant, because your jaw sometimes pops and stays open. Over the past 2 weeks, I've had pain in what feels like three lower teeth (one is a dead tooth/root canal) and my jaw joint, so I've been trying to figure out what's going on. I happened to mention it to the chiropractor I've been seeing for my neck and he said Chiropractors treat TMJ. DUH! I didn't even think about it. So he showed me an exercise to stretch the mouth muscle that pulls the jaw out of the socket, and loosen the muscle. IT WORKED! After 2 days, no more headaches, no tooth pain. That tension the mouth muscle put on the gums, created pain around the teeth. Wow.
If you have TMJ, open your mouth and stick your index finger against the back part of your cheek. You'll feel a muscle that stretches across from top back to front bottom. Push on that and stretch it. It will relax the muscle and pain!

4 Days to Go...Clue #2

Okay, Okay, we've read your comments... no gowns! But...another hint. :) Ooops! Ran out of time to write more... we've gotta walk Dolly and Franklin before the sun goes down. Enjoy our 2nd video clue. :)

The Countdown is ON!

We've got something important to announce... and it's happening on Friday. Here's a video hint...