Here Comes The Bride!

It finally came...Rochelle and Steve's wedding! They were married this past weekend and what an amazing weekend to be back in Pittsburgh AND to be a part of their special day.

Background: Rochelle is my "Little" sister from my sorority. We've been friends for over 10 years and even though I've moved away, we've managed to remain great friends. She asked me to be a part of her wedding and asked Riley to be her flower girl. We couldn't have been more ecstatic.

Present: The wedding weekend arrived and honestly, things couldn't have gone better. I am convinced that we brought the nice weather with us, because Pittsburgh was warm and sunny on both Friday and Saturday. Rochelle treated us to manicures and pedicures on Friday afternoon -- in preparation for the big day. The next morning, we all headed to Izzazu for hair and make-up...which, you would have thought that Riley was in Heaven. She was so stinkin' excited for her hair to be curly and to wear blush and lip gloss.

She did great. The stylist burnt her ear (oh yeah, with the curling iron -- and you girls know how badly that hurts!), but Riley braved it and made it through the rest of the session. After I saw what the make-up person did to my face, I opted to do Riley's make-up myself. And Riley looked gorgeous...

As I realize these pictures are out of order, I'll just describe them to ya...here are Steve and Rochelle with the flower girl.

And here is the happy couple with the ring bearer, Johnny, and Riley. The kids had a blast together, even though it took them 10 minutes to finally say hi to one another...

Steve and Riley -- what can I say about these two? They have an amazing little connection and have so much fun together...

Okay, so now for the juicy pictures...my Little...I can't tell you how beautiful she looked that day. I would never be able to give it justice and the pictures I have surely don't show how amazing she looked...Steve and Rochelle just make the most adorable couple!

The wedding ceremony was at St. Mary of the Mount on Mt. Washington.

And the reception was at South Hills Country Club. Ryan and I actually were shocked at how Riley was that night. We had spent months prior, telling her to not be embarrassed (she is easily mortified in public) and that she was going to have to dance. She agreed, but we still weren't sure if she'd actually get up or if she'd spend the entire night pouting at the table. Our girl came alive that night. This little person we'd been waiting for, just came out and it thrilled us. She danced all night...and I mean all night. She spent more time on the dance floor than I did...and if you know me, I barely leave the dance floor (only to pee, baby, only to pee). But she danced with almost anyone that would move to the beat with her and she had a blast.

We thought she'd have to leave by 9, but the girl outlasted us...we stayed until the band stopped playing...it was so much fun!

And this blog post wouldn't be complete if I didn't post a picture of Riley with her girl, Megan. Megan fell in love with Riley and they bonded almost immediately...I think Riley actually spent more time with Megan, than she did with me the entire wedding...such girly girls!

So now, my Little and her new hubby are on their honeymoon...and as sad as I am that the weekend and time with them is over -- I couldn't be happier for their life to start together. They make a wonderful couple and we just love them so much.

Congrats Steve and Rochelle!