On Wednesday, September 21, 2011, my Mom (Colleen McCorkle) married Arnold Jackmond!! It was quite a surprise to all of their combined kids but we are all THRILLED, none-the-less!!
Instead of having a wedding with all their combined family present, they went to the courthouse and did it all by themselves!!
They decided to have a celebration of their marriage on January 21, 2012 in the clubhouse where they live in Valencia, California. I was able to fly down there and be part of the extravaganza (but sadly, nobody else from my immediate family could come). My sister, Cyndi, was also able to fly down from Washington, which was great!!!
I flew in on Wednesday, January 18th, so I could be there a few days early to help with the preparation!
Here's a picture of my Mom, Cathy and myself getting ready to go have lunch and go shopping for the party!
Relaxing at home that night with Mom and Arnold!
Besides the wedding celebration, I came to California to see how my sister Cathy was doing! She was diagnosed with breast cancer and is undergoing radiation treatments. Her prognosis looks really encouraging ... they were able to remove all the cancer and get clean margins all around it with a lumpectomy but she must undergo daily radiation treatments for 7 weeks. She looks great but the treatments make her tired ... I've been really worried about her!
Here she is at the treatment center. You get checked-in and then wait for your name to come up on the big screen .... getting to and from the treatment center (in Hollywood) and waiting for her name to appear on the screen, took up much more time than her treatment that was complete in less than 10 minutes. CRAZY!
Friday afternoon, Cathy, Mom and I went to the grocery store and then Mom and I went to Costco and ran around getting stuff for the party. Cathy and Bruce went to the airport to pick up my other sister, Cyndi. We all met back at the club house to figure everything out.
We headed back to Mom's place, loaded up all the vehicles with all the stuff and
went back to decorate.
The party was on Saturday from 2:00pm to 6:00pm. We ended up having almost 60 people there. Friends from Mom's work and lots of family. A fun bunch of people to help them celebrate and feel loved!
The "Bride and Groom"
Arnold surprised her with a corsage. He was tickling her to get her to smile ...
she not big on showing her teeth!!!
Getting everything all set-up!
Laurie Raab (Weston's girlfriend) made a picture collage
with fun pictures from the past.
Nephew, Weston Middleton and Sister Cyndi Huson
Cousin Pam Jerpe and my Mom
Nephew Brian Thompson, Amanda and their youngest son, Jude
.
My friends Karen Murphy and Kit Miller from way back
during my High School years!
Hadn't seen Karen for 17 years or more!
Another high school friend, Heather Hale Barron on the left.
Funny story ... I always thought Heather and Karen knew each other because we were all friends around the same time. Turns out they never met until the party -- CRAZY!!!
Colleen's Daughters
Catherine Thompson, Mom and Arnold, Sherrill Naylor and Cyndi Huson
Arnold's Daughters
Sherri Willingham, Mom & Arnold, Chelsea Jackmond & Christi Russ
(Other daughter Raquel and her family couldn't make the party
because they missed their flight out of Chicago, due to a bad storm),
Arnold also has a son that couldn't make it.
All of the "Grand-children" that were at the party!
Max, Scarlett, Lauren, Olivia, Penelope, Weston, Aja, Eric
Weston Middleton and His Girlfriend Laurie Raab
Random shots of family and friends.
We had a surprise for Mom .... we arranged for her brother, Jean McCorkle and his wife Mary (who live up in Washington State) to give a toast via Skype. It was great!!!!
The parties over ... lots of stuff to haul home!
A great success!!!
My sisters and I went to my Mom's to sleep after the party
along with my cousin Pam. We were ALL so tired!!
The next morning ... Mom treated us to
Chinese Massages!
They don't just do your feet, but your whole body!
It was FANTASTIC!!!!
It was a great trip but went by much too fast!!!
