Friday - April 24th Rehearsal Dinner
After getting to Bellingham, WA after work, late on the 23rd 
Janelle and I had a chance to get a little extra sleep, have some breakfast and then get rolling on the day. As the ladies went off for a trial hair appointment followed by nails at a local salon the boys hung out at the rental home my parents had in Bellingham for the weekend. Napping with the nieces and just taking it easy was just what the doctor ordered on this afternoon. After reconnecting we have some time to just relax before heading out to freshen up and get ready for the first major event of the wedding weekend, the rehearsal dinner. We decided on a local place we had actually not gone to before, the Chuckanut Brewery and Kitchen. A little bit of a stretch as we really did not even know what the food would be like but it cer
tainly made for a unique location and some regional flair. We got there to a nice ovation from the ~30 friends and family awaiting us in in our covered space outside the brewery. My folks had added some nice decorations to the tables with pictures of Janelle and I along with some cool potted flowers that are going to have a home in my home flower beds in the next few weeks. Everyone had a tix for one for the beers made right on site and we all ordered from a menu we decided on from their base fare. Everything tasted great and the pizza I chose was good as was the tuna from what Janelle told me. ;-) 
To help out with everyone getting to know one another we had made up a stylized "flow chart" so people could see how everyone was related. The fun pics at least made for some fun conversation. Thanks to my sister Michelle for helping put the piece together for the evening, people really seemed to enjoy it. I h
ad also put together a small trivia contest with questions about Janelle and I. It was fun to emcee the short game around the festivities with the winners getting some bride and groom-shaped rubber ducks!! We also received a really nice toast from my sister-in-lay Amy (Janelle's cousin) and my brother John. Very heartfelt and fun, thanks a ton guys. My sister also read a simple blessing from my mother, much as at my brother's wedding she needed someone else to read to avoid the tears, very sweet from the mam-bear!! It was great to get a chance to see so many of my childhood friends and family in the form of the whole Allen and Madden families who had been so close to us growing up in Flagstaff, AZ as a boy. As per usual when this group rallies together there was lots of laughs, just a few pics (shocker!!) and stories to be had by all. 
According to our best recollection it had been 10-12 years since all of the 3 families had been together in their entirety. What fun!! We even had a few rounds of the local train running right by our location, the track was within 20 feet of one end of the covered area we were in. What a shocker and quite loud. However it was a 
great treat for the kiddies there and they all eagerly anticipated the follow-up train after the first had passed. After a few more beers, hugs, and a little dessert (I had the nice chocolate mousse) the crowd drifted off to get some sleep for the big day to follow. We also we able to transfer into our nice room at the Chrysalis Inn and Spa. What a gorgeous view and location to get ready for the big day. More pics of this locale to come!! Thanks everyone for making the rehearsal dinner such a success and for the Weaver units (Strode and Judy) for hosting the first night of fun.
Janelle and I had a chance to get a little extra sleep, have some breakfast and then get rolling on the day. As the ladies went off for a trial hair appointment followed by nails at a local salon the boys hung out at the rental home my parents had in Bellingham for the weekend. Napping with the nieces and just taking it easy was just what the doctor ordered on this afternoon. After reconnecting we have some time to just relax before heading out to freshen up and get ready for the first major event of the wedding weekend, the rehearsal dinner. We decided on a local place we had actually not gone to before, the Chuckanut Brewery and Kitchen. A little bit of a stretch as we really did not even know what the food would be like but it cer
tainly made for a unique location and some regional flair. We got there to a nice ovation from the ~30 friends and family awaiting us in in our covered space outside the brewery. My folks had added some nice decorations to the tables with pictures of Janelle and I along with some cool potted flowers that are going to have a home in my home flower beds in the next few weeks. Everyone had a tix for one for the beers made right on site and we all ordered from a menu we decided on from their base fare. Everything tasted great and the pizza I chose was good as was the tuna from what Janelle told me. ;-) 
To help out with everyone getting to know one another we had made up a stylized "flow chart" so people could see how everyone was related. The fun pics at least made for some fun conversation. Thanks to my sister Michelle for helping put the piece together for the evening, people really seemed to enjoy it. I h
ad also put together a small trivia contest with questions about Janelle and I. It was fun to emcee the short game around the festivities with the winners getting some bride and groom-shaped rubber ducks!! We also received a really nice toast from my sister-in-lay Amy (Janelle's cousin) and my brother John. Very heartfelt and fun, thanks a ton guys. My sister also read a simple blessing from my mother, much as at my brother's wedding she needed someone else to read to avoid the tears, very sweet from the mam-bear!! It was great to get a chance to see so many of my childhood friends and family in the form of the whole Allen and Madden families who had been so close to us growing up in Flagstaff, AZ as a boy. As per usual when this group rallies together there was lots of laughs, just a few pics (shocker!!) and stories to be had by all. 
According to our best recollection it had been 10-12 years since all of the 3 families had been together in their entirety. What fun!! We even had a few rounds of the local train running right by our location, the track was within 20 feet of one end of the covered area we were in. What a shocker and quite loud. However it was a 
great treat for the kiddies there and they all eagerly anticipated the follow-up train after the first had passed. After a few more beers, hugs, and a little dessert (I had the nice chocolate mousse) the crowd drifted off to get some sleep for the big day to follow. We also we able to transfer into our nice room at the Chrysalis Inn and Spa. What a gorgeous view and location to get ready for the big day. More pics of this locale to come!! Thanks everyone for making the rehearsal dinner such a success and for the Weaver units (Strode and Judy) for hosting the first night of fun.
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