Collecting Vintage Christmas

I love Christmas...everything about it. I especially love that it is an entire month dedicated (or should be) to our Savior's birth. But, I also enjoy the St. Nicholas part too, and items that evoke thoughts of simpler times, like vintage Christmas.


I think I started with Santa mugs, and then books and on to figurines. My favorite items are by Holt Howard. I search out Christmas at yard sales, flea markets, antique malls & Ebay throughout the year. My girls have generally teased and made fun of me until about a year ago and I won Jill over to collecting Angels.

About 8 years ago Jeff found me an adorable set of 8 placecard holders and since then he has found me 2 more sets.

I have an adorable bobblehead Santa with an open sack that I fill with candy canes, many of my figures are salt and pepper shakers. One Santa's bag is a bank. I also have Santa mugs in every size and shape.

I have a few vintage Christmas books, my favorite is How Come Christmas by Roark Bradford, copyright 1930 and is illustrated with woodcuts. It's a mingled story of 'modern day', the baby Jesus, Sandy Claus, Methuselah and Moses.

An excerpt from How Come Christmas: Well, hyar we is, chilluns, and hyar hit is Christmas. Now we all knows we's hyar 'cause hit's Christmas, don't we? But what I want to know is, who gonter tell me how come hit's Christmas?

When shopping for vintage Christmas look for items in good overall condition, no chips or breaks and stay away from items that have been repainted. Also, try to purchase items that still have their original box, many of mine still have their boxes that are like a cardboard jewelry box with Christmas designs printed on the box. Also check for their original labels on the bottom, signatures such as HH (Holt Howard) and sometimes even original price tags are intact on the bottom of the figures. What about price? I have paid as little as a .25 for a small mug but as much as $7 for a small HH mug. Figures like the bobblehead Santa and the Santa with Mrs. Claus, sleigh and reindeer or the stage coach Santa NOEL could be more than $50.

Merry Christmas and Happy Collecting!

Julie

Julie's thoughts on Julie/Julia

I have been so busy at work lately, to much playing for me that I haven't been posting! Any how I realized that I have quite a few posts unfinished and in draft status. So I am going to try to finish a few.... so here's one.

Julie the Book/Movie Critic Strikes Again............

Julie/Julia

I didn't like it, not one bit. Not the movie, nor the book. I would have much preferred the love story between Julia & Paul Child. I love to cook and read blogs but not Julie Powell's. My Book Club read the book, and I just didn't like Julie Powell's character, I guess I don't like Julie Powell. Mmm. That doesn't sound very nice does it, after all she is a real person. I just didn't care for her from the very beginning of the book. I didn't like the fact that she was selling her 'eggs' to pay her credit card bill or the way she talked about the 911 families, or the how she treated her husband. Or the way she would just begin to swear like a sailor for no apparent reason. She just didn't seem wholesome to me. I guess I don't know a lot about Julia Child, but I envision my grandmother or something when I would watch her cook on PBS, very down to earth & wholesome. Let's just say... it wasn't my 'plate of beef bourguignon'.

Gigi, don't go!

That's what my girl said to me as I hugged and kissed her goodbye last night as we left her at her new house. It just tore my heart right out of my chest. She just kept sobbing, Gigi, don't go! Jill texted me on the ride home and said she had finally calmed down, her Mommy had given her milk & tunes. That's my girl.

Violet's Gigi~

btw, I am still swaying from my cruise! pics coming soon.

We raced Ida home... and we won!

Just a quick note that we did survive the cruise. It was extremely rough seas but, we had a great time. I have lots to talk about, but today is for working and tonight is for visiting my Violet girl in her new home!

tata for now,

Julie

A new adventure across the sea....

Ok, I am about to call it a night. My friend, Tara has already been delivered to my house by her husband and son and we are soooooooo excited for our adventure to begin. Tomorrow at 6am sharp my sister will pick us up and we will have just one more stop to make... to pick up Sendy. Then it's off to the Port of Galveston! There we will hook up with 40 other friends to sail to the Caribbean. I am taking the dell mini, but I don't know if I will be able to post anything while on board the ship. But, I will definitely post when I get back.

I will be missing my fella, as I don't like to travel without him, but somebody's gotta stay here and spoil that Violet girl for me while I am gone.

I'm Packing Again....

<-------My Fairy Violet!

It has been a crazy few months for Jeff and I. It sort of feels like we have been living in suitcases. I am about to reach my 10th night on Hotels.com since March, and we didn't even use it when we went to Comanche or New England. So that's about 19 hotels stays since March. That has to be some kind of record for us.

This trip I will be venturing out on my own without my fella. He says it will be good for me, but I still wish he were going. So I am once again packing a bag. I am excited to spend 5 days/4 nights with 44 of my nearest & dearest. I just hope there isn't any girl drama! ;)

I return on Monday evening and on Saturday, Jeff & I and a couple of dear friends are going to the Children's Christmas Toy Fundraiser called the 'Margarita Ball' and after all that dancing we're planning on dinner downtown and so we are staying over in Sundance Square for the night. That should be fun too, love to get all dressed up and spin around the dance floor with Jeff. It's kinda like a prom for grown-ups! But better still..... it helps kids gets toys for Christmas!

Then the next Thursday - Saturday I am off on a Mission Trip to Laredo, TX. It's actually a vision trip to learn about the needs and how we can partner with other organizations already serving in the area. I am excited about it.

Then it will be time for Thanksgiving and my Violet girl should just about have a room of her own by then. Her parents are house hunting and my girl apparently has to go with them! That's ok, they need their family time. Besides soon it will be time for the Big Family Trip, leaving a few days after Christmas for a whole week in a lodge at the Coast. Reading books and playing on the beach and fishing all night! Great fun. I am blessed beyond measure.

100% American, or pretty darn close

This is my dad, Frank Lawrence Thomas, wasn't he handsome? He looks a lot like my little brother, Jim.

I am a genealogy buff, like my dad. But, I am not very good at it. My cousin is much better than I am. I wish I had more time to spend on it but I haven't lately, but he has been busy. Just a little trivia I would like to share with you in memory of my dad.

Here you go Daddy, you were right.... as close to 100% American as you can get.

My lineage on my father's side. American born since 1611!

John Thomas, 1611, born Queens Creek, York County, VA
John Thomas, (year uncertain)
William Thomas, 1660
John Thomas, 1710
Owen Thomas, 1740
Jonathon Thomas, 1762
William Thomas, 1790
William Thomas, 1810
Asbury Thomas, 1833
Joseph Thomas, 1862
Frank Thomas, 1886
Frank Thomas, 1925 (my dad)
Julie, 1962 (me)



My grandparents,
sitting, Frank Thomas, Sr.
standing, Dealvia Thomas
circa 1925


ps - Violet is the 15th generation American born!

Everything you need to know... is on YouTube

Got up this morning with a dead battery. I knew it was coming, it has been slow to start for a week or so. Of course, this morning I was parked behind Jordan in the drive and Jill was parked on the other side and she was .... of course running late for her school commute to Denton. So we did some finageling and got her car out without too much damage to the grass. Any how, my Knight in Shining Armour came home from work to change out the battery, but try as he might he couldn't figure out how to get the battery out of my PT Cruiser. It was trapped! So, I told him I would go look it up on the internet. Viole'! Everything you want to know... or not know is on YouTube.

Sleeping......it use to be my favorite hobby.

But now it never comes to visit any more.

At first, I thought it was just because I was uncomfortable sleeping because of my arm... you remember. Then my arm started feeling better, or maybe I just got use to it hurting. But, I still couldn't sleep. Then Jill got engaged and we were in full wedding swing, but the wedding came and went and .......... still no sleep. Jeff and I went on a wonderful vacation to Maine.......still no sleep. Seriously, I mean no sleep, maybe 2 hours all broken up at best and some nights, NONE. I have tried everything, Tylenol PM keeps me awake, Sleep MD makes me want to throw up. So, I finally went to the Dr. He prescribed Ambien. I read all those side effects, and said so what, I am TIRED! I took that silly pill for 3 weeks straight before it did me any good and now I am out. I called and begged the pharmacy, nothin'. Then I called and begged the Doc and after 3 days, EUREKA! It's not the greatest sleep I've ever had, not even close.... but I am able to function again. It still takes me about 2 hours to fall asleep after I take it and that is only with ear plugs in. Boy, getting older stinks. Don't like it! As my sweet Violet would say. Don't like it!

Tired in Texas

More about Insomnia

Road Trips & Kenny Wayne, 2009

Jeff and I have once again embarked on what is now known as our 'Annual Pilgrimage' to see the Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band. We began our trip on Thursday afternoon driving to the half way point between Mansfield and Vicksburg, MS... Bossier City, LA. We had plans for dinner, I know how shocking that is for most of you! We wanted to go to the Cypress Inn, nestled on a beautiful lake in Bossier City. Well, apparently the original burned down about four years ago and it is now nestled in a strip mall. The catfish was ok, just.... ok. And of course, the ambience is gone. It was nice enough though. When we got to the hotel to check in they wanted a $100 cash deposit 'just in case we decide to fill the in-room hot tub with jello shots'. Seriously that is what the clerk said to me. Did a little gambling at the casino, lost about $30 in a penny slot machine. I am NOT a gambler. Ok, we are not going to talk anymore about that.

Friday we got up and drove the final 3 hours to Vicksburg. Stopped at a Love's along the way and the first thing Jeff did was lock our only set of keys in the car. But something magical happened... a sweet LA Highway Patrol officer came along within about 5 minutes and got them out for FREE! Then we were on our way again. We stopped for lunch somewhere around Monroe and had BBQ. Yep, BBQ. Mmmm good. We stopped at a new place called Bodacious BBQ. Not a very unique name, but the Q was good. As we were about to get into our car the 'pit master' walked over to us and asked us how it was? We told him we thoroughly enjoyed it, he said this was their 5th week open. It's nice to see small food places thriving. Three cheers for the little guy!

We arrived safely in Vicksburg, and I must say the only thing this town has going for it is a couple of casinos and a giant cemetary. We tried our best, but we couldn't find anything to do. Found one or two antique shops, but nothing we even thought twice about buying. Saw a show at the Bottleneck Blues Bar on Friday. A group called Ugli Stick, just back from a USO Tour, they were good. If they ever come to Texas I would go and see them again.

Saturday was Jeff's birthday and it was all about the KWS show that night. We were super excited because the venue (Bottleneck Blues Bar) was so small and we had VIP seating. Sure enough we were up close and personal. Kenny & Noah and the guys put on an awesome show. After the show we went up to the steak house in the casino for a celebratory birthday dinner, Kenny was there too! Ok, ok, he wasn't exactly sitting at our table or anything, but he was there. Next morning when Jeff went down to get coffee at the hotel Kenny was there too. It was a great weekend.

Ok, as for next year.... Kenny please play somewhere close to Texas. Please ! Even though right now I can see on your calendar you will be in New Orleans and that looks like the closest, at least we can fly there for a decent price. So until then Kenny, take care!

Last Year's Pilgrimage.

Oh Heavenly Day

Absoutely beautiful photos by our fabulous photographers, Joel & Laura Malone . I cannot brag on them enough, they were delightful to work with, and their work speaks volumes as to their talent.

In this pic you can see the aisle decor for the outside ceremony. I purchased small shepherd hooks from Jo-Ann's on sale for about $2 each. Then bought the mason jars at Walmart by the case. Then used ribbon that I purchased online to dress them up. They had 3 gorgeous roses bundled together inside the jar. (Total per hook, roses & all... about $6 each) They were beautiful and worked well with the beauty of the courtyard. This beautiful picture is a special edit by Joel & Laura shows the beautiful bouquet that Jill's high school friend (FlourFlower) made and my own handiwork is Matt and all the fellas bouts.


Laura snapped this sweet pic just after my sister gave Jill my mother's vintage amethyst ring to wear for the ceremony. The girls have all decided that although it now belongs to Jussy (my mom's gift to her before she died) that they all want to wear it to their weddings, something old, new, borrowed and well... kinda blue depending on the light. And Nanny will be beautifully
represented in spirit too.

This is a great picture of the girls. Didn't their sundresses turn out beautifully? You can see my bridesmaids bouquets along with the one from FlowerFlour. They look great together. I got great tips and inspiration from the flower shop I used. I will definitely do it again.

ps - aren't the girls shoes tooooo cute!

Our NEW family.

We couldn't be more pleased with how the day turned out,
it was a beautiful celebration of love, hope, faith and happiness.

The most precious flower girl ever, notice her mommy standing by.

So sweet.

That's all for now. I am going to share some of my other tips and tricks for personalizing a wedding in the near future.

Tata for now,
Violet's Gigi

All photos Joel and Laura Malone

Jeff made me steal a woman's purse....

Friday, my much anticipated passport arrived in the mail! Coincidentally, Jeff and I were headed off on a trip to San Antonio. No you don't need a passport to travel to SA. As we were driving down I35 we passed through Hillsboro. When in Hillsboro I am always reminded of another time Jeff and I were there.......and Jeff made me steal a woman's purse.

It was August, 2000, Jeff and I were headed for a long weekend to Fredericksburg for our 20th anniversary. It was our first trip away from the girls. Did you hear that correctly, first trip together away! My inlaws came to stay with the girls, ages 8-16 or so. Any how, we started our trip early in the morning and decided to stop at Shoney's in Hillsboro for breakfast. We had been sitting there for some time when Jeff noticed the couple sitting across from us had left the restaurant and the woman had left her purse sitting on the table. He said, 'Julie, that woman left her purse. Go get it off the table run it out to the parking lot.' So, being the obedient, dutiful wife (LOL) that I am, I did just that. I went across the restaurant, snatched up the woman's purse and took off running out into the parking lot. Mmmm, there is something wrong with this picture. There I stood in the Shoney's parking lot looking for some woman..... my only description of her was that, well.... she didn't have a purse. To say the least after about 5 minutes, I didn't find her. I went back into the restaurant fully prepared to hand the purse over to the cashier when much to my surprise there sat Jeff, red faced..... you see the couple had not left the restaurant as Jeff had thought.... they had merely gone to the buffet line! I had no choice, but to walk over to their table and give her purse back. They sat there dumbfounded, they didn't even realize it was missing. I had stolen it right before their eyes. Jeff and I were so embarrassed. The couple were really good sports about it and bought the whole story, after all it was so pathetic they had to.

I vow to never again feel peer pressure from my husband and steal a purse.

Elephants and Tigers and Horsies, oh my!

Last night BumBum and I took Violet to the Greatest Show on Earth... The Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus. You might remember that we also took the whole gang last year to the Shrine Circus. This year however, it was only the three of us. Violet is crazy about elephants and horses right now. She was such fun. She was in sensory overload... so were we.

There are two major differences between the Shrine Circus that we attended last year and this one. Costumes & price! That lovely little light up thingy cost me a whopping $22 bucks. I bought a slightly smaller version last year at the Shine Circus for $8. Snowcones and cotton candy were $12 each last night. But our girl only had eyes for... corn dog, popcorn, nachos (note the cheese still on her sweet face) & sugared pecans. This girl loves nuts. Yes, dinner at the circus set us back about $65 bucks. But when you only have one grand girl, it's worth it. Someday when I have a truck loads of these babies, I'm gonna have to rethink my spending habits. But somthing tells me they aren't going to suffer any. This Gigi is gonna spoil them all rotten..... and then quietly send them back to their mommies!

Gettin' ready to cruise....

I am going today to get my passport. I am so excited! I am been assured that I don't necessarily have to have it for my cruise will all the girls in November, but I don't want to take any chances. Besides, as my dear friend, Barbara says "you should never be without one, because you never know what opportunities might arise". And she is right. So world travel... here I come!

Days 7 & 8.... a bluuurrrrr

We are home safe and sound from our trip to beautiful New England. After 7.5 hours & 3 flights aboard the same aircraft we arrived in Dallas on Tuesday afternoon. Southwest insists that they have direct flights, but as near as I can tell Manchester, NH to Orlando, FL to New Orleans, LA to Dallas, TX is not a direct route!

I joked and said that I was going to eat lobster three times a day. Truth is I never did that and only ate it twice one time. That was enough. It was quite enjoyable, but they constantly wanted to serve it with fries and truth is.... that got old quick. We did have delicious food on numerous occassions.

Our favorite had to be at Red's Eats in Wiscasset, ME which was featured on the FoodNetwork. This was the restaurant (er.. shack) the entire trip was planned around. Yes, we traveled 2500 miles one way to eat here. We were afraid it might not be worth all the hype... we were wrong. It was delectable. They don't dress the lobster rolls at Red's. It comes plain on a warm toasted bun and you get to choose whether you want mayo or buttah! It was devine!

29th Anniversary.... Day 6

Bubble Rock, elev. 14,000 ft
Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, ME

Cadillac Mountain, elev. 16,000 ft.
Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, ME

New England... Day 5

We began our day at the Coastal Coffee House & Internet Cafe just a few blocks down from our campground in picturesque Searsport. The shop is just a tiny coffeehouse but came highly recommended by a lady at the bathhouse. We packed up the mini and decided to try it for breakfast. I ordered Dave's Fire in the Hole. An everything bagel toasted perfectly with a sort of spanish omelet with spicy sausage and peppers and a couple different types of hot sauce. Any how...it was great. So good in fact we went back for lunch and ordered lobster rolls to go so we could picnic on the beach. The owner remembered us and called us the Texas Bluebonnets. What fun.

When we went back for lunch to the little cafe' had about 6 customers on Harleys they were Canadian and were speaking french. The funny part was that they kept opening and closing the screen door that led to the outside dining area... they finaly turned to us and in english said ' we just love that sound' it was the squeaky screen door. French Canadians are everywhere. At home the second language is Spanish. Here when you use the ATM it prompts English or Francis?

We stopped at a few antique shops Jeff bought a sign. Headed on up to Penobscot Narrow Bridge and Fort Knox. We went up the tower at Penobscot which was equilavent to 42 stories and could see for miles. It was a beautiful day. Then we toured Fort Knox. No money there...

Then we headed back to Searsport which is just lovely and ordered our lobster rolls to go and had a picnic on the beach.

After we got back to the campground we decided to take a hike. We walked the water's edge which is not sandy. It is what they call craggy, full of rocks, large and small, much of it granite. The hike took us about 1 mile to Moose Point State Park in search of wild blueberries. We didn't find any, but hiked on out to Moose Point proper and then back again, about 3 miles. We had just enough time to clean up and get ready for our Lobster Bake on the beach.

The campground has a lobster bake on Saturdays and it is only by inadvance ticket purchase. Jeff ordered our tickets when he reserved the campground. There were about 20 or so of us eating down on the beach. The meal began with steamed mussels that were harvested straight out of the bay earlier in the day. I decided you can eat anything if you dip it in melted butter. I tried a few, ok maybe more than a few about 6. I left the rest for Jeff. He enjoyed them all. We got to know our fellow campers, a young couple from upstate NY that had just arrived about an hour earlier, and a family of 6 from Chattanooga. We had a fabulous meal. They unloaded the lobster which had been steamed in an outdoor brick oven. The lobster was covered by seaweed, which they called rockweed which is what they make MSG from. They told us that because the seaweed is a natual flavor enhancer and it is what the lobster is blanketed in it would be tastier. They were right. It was by far the best lobster we have had the entire trip. Our meal included all the clams & mussels we could eat, homemade bread, baked potatoes and corn on the cob. Followed by homemade peach/blueberry cobbler and ice cream from a local dairy.

I am now on laundry duty and Jeff is playing with fire. This will be our last night in Searsport as tomorrow begins our trek southward toward Manchester and then home again. We are having a wonderful time, will greatly miss New England.

BTW, everyone that we have encountered whether it has been service personnel, cafe owners, vacationers, etc has been wonderful, northerner and southerner alike... and a few Canadians too!

Travel New England sometime soon, you will love it!

Got Lobstah?

Howdy from New England ... Day 4

I am exhausted after today's activities but I wanted to share with you what we have been up to day:

• Woke up @ the campground, showered and headed for the festival in Rockland
• Drove through Camden, location of the apartment Katherine Heigl's character lived in in the movie 27 dresses
• Went to the Festival ate lots of lobster, had our picture made with King Neptune & a giant Lobster
• Walked around this lovely little town
• Drove over to the Breakwater Lighthouse and walked the 3 miles in the drizzle to get to it, but it was worth it, we packed tennis shoes and rain panchos
• Arrived back at our campsite to find that it had been raining HARD all day
• Went to a hole in the wall restaurant in Searsport, called Captain Shorty's and had the best all you can eat Fish Fry EVER!
• Came back to the campsite to find it still RAINING
• Played a little table tennis with Jeff in the rec room
• Came back to the tent and settled in for the night, it's cool outside, slightly raining, but comfortable and dry in our tent. I am sitting here on an air mattress using a battery operated lantern and typing this from my new Dell mini, which I wasn't too sure about before we left but am crazy about it now.
• Just realized today that we are only about 200 miles from the Canadian border.
  
• Having a great time in Maine, wish you were here.
  

New England ... Day 3

Today we awoke in New Hampshire and packed our belongings and headed for Maine. You had no idea how close all these little states are, they are crammed right up next to each other and when you are driving you just weave in an out of them. Our first stop today was a Starbucks in Portsmouth. Just an adorable little town on the coast where the Declaration of Independence was read.

Next we stopped in York. I have ancestors that were born, raised and buried there. I wanted to find their gravesites, but I had already been told earlier in the week that I wouldn't find their graves. They were buried on one of these small islands and erosion has washed most of the graves away (era 1650 - 1700) and add to the fact that there were no stone masons here during that time for markers to be made. That was disappointing, but it was exciting as well. You see my great grandfather X8 & 9 are from the Isle of Shoals, just off the coast of Maine @ York. I did get to copy a number of books that had some information about them and a few more clues about them. I know one was a butcher and that they were colorful characters. Mmmm, I wonder if I am anything like them?

We stopped for lunch in Cape Elizabeth at Two Points Lighthouse. Delicious lobster rolls. Here is a photo of my lunch. Note the picture with the quarter next to it. I wanted to show you how big this sandwich really is... not very big for $13. It was a little pricey, but look at the view. We ate outside with a beautiful view of the Cape with a lighthouses on either side of us. It's Wicked Awesome! To quote a local phrase.

On to Searsport. This was quite a drive, but it will put us very close to Rockland (which is all booked up for the weekend). When we booked this trip we didn't realize that we would be here during the 62nd Lobster Festival in Rockland, but we were very happily surprised. We arrive at this little campground for our first night of tent camping. We unpacked our suitcase complete with tent, 2 sleeping bags, sheets, lantern, flashlights, tablecloth, rain panchos, 4 pillows and bug spray. Which was the first thing that got used. Set it all up and realized that we were maybe 50 yards from the ocean. Beautiful. Jeff started a fire and cooked us a delicious dinner of ..... hot dogs. That's ok, it's the first meal we have had in 3 days that hasn't included seafood and since we are hitting the festival tomorrow, we decided to take a break. It was a great meal complete with s'mores. This campground has WiFi which is great. It is not a large campground and a little quirky... just like us. We are going to sleep tonight under the tall pines and stars.

(Me at our campsite on my dell mini)

Let's chat again tomorrow... same time, same channel.

julie

Hello from New England

Jeff and I have begun our adventure.
Day 1: Travel from Dallas to St. Louis to Philly to Manchester!
Day 2: Spent the day at Hampton Beach and then dined on fresh lobster.
Day 3: Leaving New Hampshire and heading for the coast of Maine.

We had no idea that New Hampshire had so much to offer the summer traveler. Everything is beautiful and green and lush. I can't even describe it... it's a little like northern California and Colorado all rolled into one but with a beautiful beach thrown in.

Jeff and I stopped off this morning in Portsmouth on our way to Searport. That is our next camping destination. Yes we are camping our way through New England! So far we have stayed in a pretty rough cabin but tonight begins tent camping. It rained last night and more showers are expected. We are ready for it. We are going to Two Points Lighthouse in Cape Elizabeth today.

Jeff asked me if I wanted to stop at Starbucks down on the old market square and get on the net, I said sure. He said you wanna stay about an hour? I said I don't know, can we. He said 'Baby you get to make all the rules on this trip'! WhooWeee!

This picture was taken at the Wakeda Campground in Hampton Falls, NH. When we saw it we just cracked up, with both the doors open and the flower box and looking all cute.

Tata for now,
Julie & Jeff

Happy Birthday Again?

I am once again celebrating the anniversary of my 29 birthday! That's all I have to say about that. Had a great day and felt much loved!



<--Engagement picture, Winter 1979

You will remember a few weeks ago I posted a picture of Jill trying on my wedding dress and many of you asked if I would post a picture of me wearing it. I was so young. Omgoodness! I turned 18 on a Friday and then got married on Saturday of following week!



<-- Check out that hat!

Here is another picture at the wedding. Check out Jeff's glasses and white tux! So 1980! It was an outdoor wedding at FW's Botanical Gardens and it was one of the hottest day on record 111 degrees, the heat wave began on June 23 and ended on August 3 with 42 consecutive days in a row of 100+ temps. That Summer people began wearing shirts that read 'I survived the Texas Heat Wave'. Yep, we got married outside at high noon! Our minister (Jeff's Grandfather) almost passed out from the heat, and our little flower girl fainted! It was hot! But luckily, the reception was down the street at a local hotel and we got to cool off a bit. That was 29 years ago! Boy, how times flies.