As you can imagine, I took a lot of photos; I've tried to pick a few from the different times throughout the weekend, but there are . . . more than a few. Hope you enjoy looking!Mom flew out several days before the wedding and after spending a few days with Noelle, Andy and the kids, she and Noelle came down to Bakersfield (Andy flew down to Temecula on Friday evening).
Mom teaching Noelle & I how to crochet a dishcloth
On Friday morning, we headed to Temecula so that we could be there for the rehearsal at Wilson Creek Winery
April helped, but the rest of us (Mom, Dad, Noelle, Jessica & I) browsed the shop and did a tasting.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch . . . Dad's sous-chefs were hard at work slicing and dicing.
Dad brought Jackie this apron back from the winery. Ha!
To say we ate well during the weekend would be an understatement in the extreme (thanks for feeding all of us so well, Dad!!)
Can you see Ben Coffin's sculpted watermelon?
Friday was also Peter's birthday--Happy birthday!!
As the sun went down we enjoyed the lit patio in the back of the house
Ben & Pei giving gifts to Mom & Dad
Ben with his attendants Bamberg (Ben) & Devin, who are proudly displaying their cigar boxes
Pei with her attendants Marie & Ruffy after opening their gifts
After the gifts, some sat around the bonfire and chatted . . .
and others played Rock Band!
It was a great evening and lots of fun. And the weather was perfect all weekend long!Saturday Pei and Ben did not see each other or talk before the wedding. We spent the day at the house the family rented together, enjoying the gorgeous day in the pool.
Isn't this what living in California is supposed to be like??
A little series of exciting entrances into the pool (forgive the plethora of pool pics--it was just such a stunning day):April's Cannonball
Ben's Barrel Roll
Erik's Cannonball
Andy's Swirl & Drop
Noelle's Perfect Pike
Enjoying the hot tub
Some people didn't want to get wet . . . but that didn't always matter.
Ben & Jackie judge the Handstand Contest
Mom & April judged from the hot tub
Ms. Jessica joined us while Peter worked on his words for the ceremony
A little later in the day Ben was busy with the cake
It was not only stunningly beautiful, it was delicious! I took a picture of Ben & April with the finished cake at the reception, but I think I must have had someone else's camera--it's not in my pictures. :-/
Time for the groom to head to Wilson Creek!
While he spent a couple of hours with Devin, Bamberg and Pete, and then got ready for the ceremony, we sat on the balcony and enjoyed the breeze and a glass of champagne.
Then it was time for us to get ready to go!
We tried to be a credit to those who brought us up by hand . . .
April had my camera during the ceremony. Who says I can't just attend an event without taking pictures? Who says my fingers were twitching and I kept poking her in the back to take more shots? :-)The groom awaiting his bride
Here comes the bride! Pei looked absolutely gorgeous.
Peter did a great job with the ceremony and homily
Love their grins :-)
Mr. & Mrs. Ryder!
There were purple fans on our chairs to shade us from the sun and bubbles to blow as the newlyweds exited. 
Everyone also went home with a little bottle of the delicious Almond Champagne for which Wilson Creek is famous (I tried my best to make that sentence grammatically correct but I must say it does sound awkward).
The ceremony followed by a fun (and delicious) dinner and reception.Dad & Jackie
Mom & Jessica
May Mr. & Mrs. Ryder have many, many years of love and joy together!
Suddenly it was time to go home! How time flies.Lucky for us, our fun wasn't over just yet. Dad & Jackie are staying to do some visiting in California for the week before heading back and they drove up to our house for a couple of days.
April and Ben also made a quick trip up on Sunday night and headed back to Pasadena after an early lunch on Monday.
It was fun that they got to see our house and meet the pets!
Dad also worked while he was here. He put in a bunch of light fixtures and changed out a pile of outlets and switches we've had waiting around for several months, and Jackie helped me pick out replacements for a spot I've been struggling with (yes, I ended that sentence with a preposition--my humblest apologies).
I'll have to post pictures, but I had to draw the line somewhere on this post!! We also managed to play some dominoes, visit and relax a little in between all the projects (sorry for overworking you, Dad!) Today they headed to San Francisco to see Jackie's nephew and family; tomorrow they will drive to Sacramento to spend some time with Noelle & Andy.We'll spend the next couple of days getting the house back in order and packing--we leave for Wisconsin early Sunday morning (and believe me, we'll be glad to go . . . the temperatures are on the rise and it's supposed to be in the low 100s the next few of days). :-/
And now my dear ones, it is 2:00 a.m. and I am signing off!
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