Before I go on about our Rehearsal Dinner I will share that I managed to twist my ankle pretty good the week before the wedding...only me! My alter-ego Maggie "Klutzbach" had to make one last appearance before the wedding and my name change I guess - lol! Believe it or not, this little accident didn't even happen at boot camp! It happened right before as I was leaving the house one morning. Man, did it hurt! I somehow missed a step, jumped and landed all of my weight on my left ankle. I remember falling to the ground and just grabbing my foot in pain. I contemplated not going to boot-camp (I always thought of excuses to not go that early in the morning, this was my most legitimate yet!) but I mustered up all of my strength and went. I really shouldn't have because I think it got even more messed up. I just couldn't imagine not going to boot camp the week of my wedding. Well, I didn't go from then on.
A few weeks prior my boss, Tony, had given Patrick a device called "Game Ready". Tony used to sell them and had a few extras. He had been trying to give Patrick one since I got hired, and Patrick always declined, even though he would borrow them from the Steelers when he was with them. The last game of last season Patrick had landed funny on his hip and finally took Tony up on the offer. Thank goodness he did, because I've used the dang device more then he has!! I first had to use it for a pulled muscle in my arm and then of course all of wedding week on my bum ankle. Check me out...
I told Tony I was renaming the device "Wedding Ready" - lol! With many prayers and the "Wedding Ready" I was able to wear heels to the Rehearsal Dinner. It was seriously questionable days prior!
It's funny because my mother-in-law twisted her ankle the week before her wedding! Linda was a gymnast and landed funny while doing a flip. She said her ankle was the size of a soft-ball! I believe it was same foot too! I guess that's what happens when you marry one of those Bailey boys! LOL!
Our Rehearsal Dinner day was beautiful! The sun was shining and it was about 70 degrees! Unquestionably warm weather for a Pittsburgh March! I'm so happy the weather was nice, because a lot of our out-of-town guests came in on Friday, so they at least got to enjoy the beautiful weather we all know Pittsburgh has in it when it wants to!
It was so nice to see so many friends that we hadn't seen in so long. It was also so nice to meet a lot of Patrick's friends that I had only heard about!! I had never met his two groomsmen, Steve and Michael. Both were just as nice as I had expected them to be! Patrick was spot on when describing both of them!
It was kind of surreal at church, I had envisioned the wedding taking place there so many times - it finally was here! I think I pinched myself at least once!
It was nice to see all of my family and friends meshing so well with Patricks. If we were worried about anyone it was the little ones - lol! Weeks before the wedding I asked my youngest niece, Addie, if she would walk down the aisle. Every time I would ask she would say "yes". So as you can imagine I was very anxious to see if she would hold true to her word....
Patrick's cousin, Codey, was so sweet! He totally carried her down the aisle! Addie laughed and laughed! It was quite adorable! (This isn't how she actually walked down the aisle for the real deal lol!)
There is a tradition that the bride has to carry all the bows from her bridal shower when she walks down the aisle at the rehearsal...I must say, I had quite the "bow-quet" :-)
Below are some pictures from our time at church...
After church we traveled to Wexford, PA for the dinner. As I mentioned before we had it at Patron's, which is Mexican cuisine. Everything turned out really well! The food was great and the margaritas were flowing...I think everyone enjoyed themselves! Especially little miss Adelaide who housed three pieces of cake!!! No joke! Look for yourself, she can barely walk from the sugar-high! LOL!
It was fun to say thank you to those who helped make our wedding such a success...
Each groomsman got a globe that Patrick found and loved! It opens and holds bar ware. The bottom of the stand holds favorite liqueurs. I'm not going to lie...we need to get one of these! 
Patrick's parents have collected Lladro pretty much their entire relationship so it was a no brainer to get them a piece to help along their collection! We also got them an etched frame with our wedding invitation on one side and our photo on the other :-) 
My mom fell in love with the Wilton Armetale pieces I registered for so it seemed only natural she get her very first piece from us! 
My dad has always wanted a pair of cowboy boots and said he was going to buy himself a pair while in Texas for our reception there. We surprise him by letting him know we would be buying them for him!
Each flowergirl got a pearl bracelet that we got them from Etsy.com. We also got them their glitterie
Our ring bears each got their very own Bailey jersey...both boys were pretty stoked to get them! Patrick and I decided to share our gifts to each other with everyone instead of doing them on the wedding day. I wanted to publicly thank my man for making all my dreams come true! I told him "We've been waiting for these days for a long time, and this is the time of our lives, and I promise to love you until the end of time." You better believe my Dukie knew he was getting a watch - lol!
Patrick also made a little riddle but I wasn't as smart about his though. Patrick explained to everyone that he's not too proud to say it, but we met at a bar - as that wasn't his ideal place to meet his wife. He went on to say that he met a gem there and this gift signified that. Dumbfounded and giddy I opened the bag...
To find this...!
I was shocked! I had ALWAYS wanted a pearl, as the name Maggie means pearl. I had always hinted at how fitting it would be for me to have one - lol! Patrick is pretty deep about things at times and explained that the bar equaled the ugly clam shell and I equaled the pearl inside...insert "aww" right there! :-)
The Sweeney's capped off our night with some shots of tequila with a side of marriage advice...I think they really just wanted to see if we knew how to take a shot of tequila...I know I surprised my brother-in-law when I said "lick it, slam it, suck it" - lol! Please notice the look of my face...priceless!
It was a fabulous night, filled with fabulous family, friends and memories. Enjoy a few more snapshots from our special day :-)
After dinner Patrick and some of his groomsmen retreated to our place for a make-shift Bachelor party. They kept it PG (no literally, Patrick's parents were upstairs the whole time - lol!) and flew some mini-helicopters in the basement. While one flew, the others fired mini-nurf-guns at the chopper. From what I heard, they all had a blast and Patrick's idea was a big hit!
Meanwhile, my mom, sister, Baby Teddy and I headed to the Inn On Negley for what should have been a relaxing nights sleep - haha! My mom ended up having to leave because she had my dads set of keys with her. Katie didn't sleep at all because she took a sleeping pill that back-fired on her - lol! And if you asked me Baby Teddy didn't sleep too well either...but Katie insists that was a good nights sleep for him...hmm! I take that as a sign that I am in no hurry for a little one quite yet - lol!
Next blog find out what time I woke up and all about our wedding day :-) Trust me, it was filled with all kinds of twists, turns and surprises...I don't think you'll want to miss it! Stay tuned!
lovely story maggie! i am so happy for you! Congratulations!
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