YoonJu & Nate Wedding

#5 got married this past Sunday. My coonskin-cap-wearing-cowboy-history-buff-brother finally grew up, put on a stylish suit, and married the girl of his dreams. 

My sisters and I got to join the wedding party and help with hair and make-up. 

YoonJu and her mom had a traditional Korean dress made for my mom to wear to the wedding. The details were so pretty and my Mom was honored and delighted to wear it.

The bride was beautiful in every way!

Soo, the Maid of Honor, was so sweet and so pretty. 

Lalia was a bridesmaid, and of course as beautiful as ever.

 Missi brought us coffee, so that made her beautiful, too. lol!

The first gown YoonJu wore was a traditional Korean Hanbok.

The groom also wore traditional Korean wear for the first part.

We took pictures before the ceremony at the Korean Bell of Friendship in San Pedro where the ceremony was held.

We didn't have all the sisters with us, but we had our favorites! (Just kidding Brandi and Marissa!).

I got to decorate the cake with the flowers, so of course I had to take a picture of it. :-)

The reception was at Michael's Tuscany Room--plenty of Italian flair!

 Congratulations YoonJu and Nate! You make a lovely couple and we're so happy for you both!

The Days Before the Wedding

Chris and I took a little getaway to San Pedro, California, to celebrate my brother's wedding. We were only there for a few days, but somehow we managed breakfast out with my siblings, surfing, shopping, checking out the tourist spots, and long strolls on the beach - not to mention bachelor/bachelorette parties, rehearsals, rehearsal lunch, and the WEDDING!

One of our favorite family traditions is the sister hazing we inflict upon incoming sisters. YoonJu had to complete four assignments before we accepted her in to the sisterhood.

The first challenge was that she had to arm wrestle each of the sisters, including the nieces!

We also competed amongst ourselves to see who was strongest. Jo was the strongest of us all!

Then we did a blindfold taste test where YoonJu had to guess what traditional Italian foods she was tasting.

Prosciutto, dried black olives, artichoke hearts, pecorino romano, anchovies, ladyfingers, lupini beans, fennel seed, mascarpone, citron, and cannoli were on the menu. 

After the taste test, we made YoonJu write a song to Nathaniel in four different languages (she speaks more than four languages). And then we filmed it and posted it on social media. After the song she had to pose us all and do the mannequin challenge - posting it on her social media afterwards.

Once she made it through all of these challenges, we finally had her repeat the vow of sisterhood over a flame.

Welcome to the sisterhood YoonJu!

Our initiation isn't complete without a round of prayers to bless the marriage.

The house we stayed at was two blocks from the ocean. I got a couple of walks down to the pier in and one short run.

The night before the wedding we were all pretty full of energy!

Last minute preparations, with stolen glances and big smiles all throughout!

Trying to get back into the swing of things . . .

I spent a whole week in Michigan at my parent's house with 9 of my siblings (one sibling has his own house nearby, so he stayed there), their spouses, and their children for my brother's wedding. By the end of the week, we also had two cousins and two friends staying with us. Made for a grand total of 29 people under one roof. My parents have a large house, so we didn't feel cramped, but meal times and the 42 person wedding after party made us realize just how big our family is and how much bigger we're growing!

Here are some of us girls just before the rehearsal dinner started. 

I wore this black jumpsuit I found at T.J. Maxx for only $12!

For the wedding I had my sister braid a crown braid around my head, and the girls wore matching dresses from The Children's Place.

My dress is from Modcloth.

Three of my sisters wore blue/turquoise maxi dresses that were so pretty!

The wedding was a picnic lunch wedding, with whimsical decor and plenty of personality!

The bride and groom were beaming all day!

It was so good to see friends we haven't seen in a while!

 

I just got back Monday and am scrambling to get back into a routine since we will be on the road again soon for a Florida vacation. I hope to get some posts up, but it will be hit or miss for a while.

In other news, it's my baby girl's 8 month Birthday today!