More Wedding Photos: The Ceremony

I took a bit of a break from posting wedding photos because I didn't want people to get too tired of looking at them.  But, I still have a bunch I want to share so I thought I'd post a few more.  These ones are on our actual ceremony - sorry this post is a bit long, hope you don't get bored.

I thought long and hard about what we were going to include in our wedding ceremony.  I read a bunch of books on ceremonies and traditions and readings, etc.  I really wanted the ceremony to reflect hubs and me - to really illustrate (mainly to us) what we wanted to bring to our marriage.  I didn't want just a plain, traditional ceremony because already we weren't plain and traditional - we were two people from two very different countries and two very different cultures.  That alone meant our ceremony had to reflect our cultures.

To include Honduran culture, I wanted to have an arras ceremony.  Now, you'd think that all I'd have to do is ask hubs about this.  I came across it on another blog about a girl who also married a Honduran.  So, I ask hubs about the ceremony, what it included, what it meant, etc.  What was his response?  He'd never heard of it.  Figures.  He couldn't seem to recall any Honduran wedding traditions.  He insists there aren't any.

I decide to forge ahead with the arras ceremony anyway and do some investigation (and some creative thinking...).  What I ended up finding was that the arras ceremony is sort of like saying, "What's mine is yours, and what's yours is mine."  There were MANY other interpretations, the majority were like a dowry kind of thing, but it was my wedding so I chose my own interpretation, and I like the "mine is yours" idea.

Here's some photos:

{the coins sitting on top of the bag}

{hubs pouring the coins into my hands}

{hubs saying his arras vows}

We also had two readings - one from the Book of Ruth in the Bible and the other from The Prophet by Kahlil Kibran.

My mom did the one from the Book of Ruth.  I really liked this reading because of the specific part where is says "your people shall be my people".  I felt that resonated with our bi-cultural, bi-country union.  Here's the entire reading:

And Ruth said, "Entreat me not to leave you or to return from following you; for where you go I will go and where you lodge I will lodge; your people shall be my people and your God my God; where you die I will die and there will I be buried. May the lord do so to me and more also if even death parts me from you.

And here's my beautiful Mom:

And my aunt read from The Prophet.  What was best about this is my aunt had given The Prophet to my mom as a birthday present for her 16th birthday while they were traveling through Europe together as young adults.  I had this EXACT book and had read from it for as long as I can remember.  So, it was nice to have my aunt read from the book she had given my mom.  I also really like the emphasis on joining together in marriage but not loosing yourself in the marriage.  For an independent girl like myself, this is important.  Here's the reading:

Then Almitra spoke again and said, And what of Marriage, Master?
And he answered saying:
You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore.
You shall be together when the white wings of death scatter your days.
Ay, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.
But let there be spaces in your togetherness,
And let the winds of the heavens dance between you.
Love one another, but make not a bond of love:
Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.
Fill each others cup but drink not from one cup.
Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf.
Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone,
Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music.
Give your hearts, but not into each others keeping.
For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts.
And stand together yet not too near together:
For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each others shadow.

 And here's my beautiful Aunt:

And, the last thing we did was "Jumping the Broom".  I came across this in my wedding research and LOVED it.  My mom made the broom from maple twigs she found in the yard, then as people arrived at the church they tied ribbons on it to decorate it.  At the end of the ceremony, once we had kissed, my good friend Brenda placed the broom in front of us, hubs and I held hands, and JUMPED over the broom on our way out of the church.  It symbolized us jumping into our new life together and starting our life clean and free (swept clean from the broom, of course). 

Here's a photo of us jumping:

And if you're wondering what that white thing is in my hubs's mouth - IT'S GUM!!!  Yes, my hubs chomped on gum during our wedding.  How formal, right??

A Review of My Wedding: My Girls

My maid of honor and bridesmaids were a-mazing.  Not only did they throw me a fabulous bridal shower, they helped me out so much throughout my super-short wedding planning.  I couldn't have done it without them.  My maid of honor was my older sister and my younger sister was a bridesmaid.  My other bridesmaid was my best friend from college.  I love them all so much and I'll never be able to thank them for all they did. 

My adorable flower girl was my niece - she's always cuter than words!

My mom made her dress - it is so perfect.

These are the boots I bought for them...

so we could do this...

Hanging out with the cows, in the mud...

...of course I forgot to get myself boots so my shoes and dress got filthy!

And here we're trying to get a ride back to the wedding!!

Thanks girls for making my wedding day so special -

and for taking pictures with cows!

A Review of My Wedding: What the Hubs Wore

Looking through the photos, there are not too many itemizing the different things hubs wore.  I don't think most men spend as much time picking out their tuxes as women do picking out their dresses.  However, I think that hubby's suit was a bit special.  He'd never had a suit before in his life.  He'd never actually owned any pants that weren't jeans and shoes that weren't boots or flipflops.

My dad decided that as part of his gift he was going to take hubs out to Men's Warehouse and buy him a new suit for the wedding (we decided on a suit and not a formal tux).  It was the nicest thing ever - and hubs was really touched that someone would do something like that for him.

My dad ended up buying him TWO suits!  Plus two shirts, two ties, 3 pairs of socks, and dress shoes.  Yes, it was an expensive shopping spree.  My dad then spent the rest of his time here (they live 10 hours away and were here for my bridal shower, niece's bday, and hubby's arrival) trying to teach hubs how to tie his tie.  As you can see by the pics - hubs didn't figure it out completely.  My dad was more than happy to help him get it right for his big day.

I know I'm a bit biased, but I think hubs looked especially handsome the day of the wedding....

A Review of My Wedding: What I Wore

I blogged about wedding dress shopping on my other blog, 365 Days of Happiness, because shopping for wedding dresses is always a spot of happiness.  However, I only posted photos of the dresses I didn't buy.  Here's the dress I did buy:

I love it, of course - that's why I bought it.  It's a Maggie Sottero and was called Ireland.  It actually looks kind of Irish, or like what you might wear if you got married in Ireland.  I always swore I wouldn't get married in a strapless dress and although I LOVED this dress, I did feel like it was falling down all night.  Luckily it didn't.  It was a pretty simple dress with beautiful crystal and an empire waist.

Now - it looks kinda easy to put on - but don't be fooled.  There were like 100 buttons that had to be buttoned.  And I was a bit demanding - making my bridesmaids help me put it on, then unbutton it all and tie the corset tighter, then after the ceremony I made them do it again.  Hey - I didn't want a wardrobe malfunction on my wedding night!!

Please don't say anything about my fat hanging over the back of the dress.  I was not compelled to work out much before my big day.
Here's what it looked like all put on:

Notice my bridesmaid STILL button the buttons....

As for my shoes - I decided to go with a non-traditional color of blue.  I posted a pick of my wedding shoes on my other blog so I won't bore you with them too much.  I loved them though and if I were more fashionable I would probably wear them more often.

And now for our rings.  For pretty much my entire life I have not really understood the desire to buy real diamonds and gems.  I've done just fine with fake stuff.  My engagement ring, being bought in Honduras, is thin gold with cubic zirconia or something.  To tell you the truth, no one notices.  People compliment me on it all the time and talk about how much money my husband must have spent on it.  Only I know the truth - and him.  For our wedding rings I saw no point in spending thousands of dollars that we didn't have on a piece of metal to put on my finger (I know, I'm so romantic).  Especially since I've lost my engagement ring three times and two of those times I never found it and it had to be replaced.  So, going with my past follies, I knew it was a bad idea to invest so much money on something so easily lost.  However, I actually love the rings we bought.  It was a crazy night because we waited until the very last minute (a week before the wedding) to stop by Sears and search out the rings.  I pretty much had to take the only ring they had in my size because we didn't have time to order one.  Hubs actually found one he really liked and since his fingers are normal size (and not toothpicks like mine), his size was always available.  But although it doesn't sound romantic, it feels as special as a ring with diamonds and white gold that we designed ourselves and ordered at Edward Arthur Jewelry.

No matter what the cost, a wedding ring is as special as they come.  I loved everything I wore on my wedding day - I've never felt so beautiful and done up in my life.

A Review of My Wedding: Table Tents, Guest Trees, and More

This was one of my most special and amazing parts of my wedding:

Our Guest Tree.

I had been browsing wedding blogs in my spare time and found a picture of a guest tree.

Instead of signing names, guests put a thumbprint on a tree and signed there name above their print.

I LOVED IT!!

However, I don't draw and don't know anyone who does.

At least in real life.

However, my bloggie friend Shellbell from Chapped Lips and All is an amazing artist.

So, although I wasn't sure she'd do it or how much it would cost,

I sent her an email and asked if there was any way I could commission her to paint me a guest tree.

And because she's SOO amazing, she offered to do it for free.  And mail it for free.

As a wedding gift.

Except I had never even met her so she didn't have any reason to send me a gift.

Except that she's amazing and the nicest person ever.

I couldn't have ever imagined a better tree.  It was PERFECT.

And everyone loved the idea.

And now we have it framed and look at it all the time.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you Shellbell.

These were my table tents.  I wanted to keep as many things homemade and Vermontish rather than professional and expensive-looking.  My mom found this drawing on a coaster from a Vermont artist and we copied the image (of a maple sugar house, of course) onto table tent cards. 

My bridesmaid Sarah and I wrote the table assignments and names on each card...

the night before the wedding!

Talk about last minute.

And something even funnier?

I missed Table 2 - so there was only Table 1, and then Tables 3-7.

Yeah - whoops!!

And this was my little welcome table.  You can see the beautiful Guest Tree before people thumbprinted it, and the lysol whipes to clean their little thumbs.  Also, on the top of the little mountain is the instructions for the guest tree - made my my wonderful aunt.

I loved the little table all set up.

So pretty.

I couldn't have done this without Shellbell, my aunt, my amazing mom, my dad (he printed out all the little tents) and Sarah.

Thank you!!!

A Review of My Wedding: The Church

Every since I thought about marrying my hubs, I envisioned us getting married in the Catholic church.  I was raised Catholic and although I stopped going to church regularly in high school, I still think of myself as Catholic.  And I still felt like to be really married I needed to be married in the church.

Well, apparently the Church didn't really want that.  Since I was getting married in Vermont, I spoke with the priest at the church close to my parents house.  He wasn't too interested in marrying us.  The Catholic church requires that couples wanting to get married attend marriage classes, meet with the priest, and pass a compatability test.  Hubs and I had less than three months between his arrival and our marriage and the priest just didn't think there was enough time.  There were many stumbling blocks, like hubs not being baptized, not speaking English, etc.  I think maybe if we'd belong to that church they might have tried harder, but this priest pretty much told me he wouldn't put forth the effort and he even wondered how compatable we were. 

What did that mean?  The Catholic church was out.

However, I didn't want to give up on getting married in a church so I decided to get married in the church across the street from my reception location. 

Middlebury Congregational Church. 

I loved it.  It was the perfect Vermont/New England church. 

It was so quaint that I didn't even really need to decorate it. 

Although my dream of being married in the Catholic church didn't work out, I'm really glad that I had the opportunity to get married in a church.

And one so beautful.

Thank you church!!!

And thank you guest for filling the church with your presence and support.

A Review of My Wedding: The Cake Topper

So, I thought rather than put a bunch of photos on my blog and make people sort through 400 photos, I'd break them up and feature a few photos and then the story behind them.  Obviously you won't see EVERY photo of my wedding, but most likely you aren't my mom (one of the few people interested in all 484 photos) and so just a few photos will suffice. 

So, my first set of photos is of my cake topper.

I LOVED my cake topper.  It was one of my favorite things that I did for my wedding.  I'll admit, it cost an arm and a leg but I don't regret for one second spending more money on my cake topper than my shoes. 

My co-worker is the person who inspired me to look beyond regular cake toppers.  She had a giraffe and squirl as her topper.  So, I searched etsy.com and found Sophia's Workshop.  She made customized clay cake toppers.

And she did an AMAZING JOB.  All I did was send her photos of me and the hubs.  Then I sent her a photos of the bus that we met on and said I wanted it incorporated on the topper.  Oh, and I wanted a Peace Corps flag in my hand. 

This is what she came up with:

Isn't it so wonderful!  I love it.

We turned out so cute.  Doesn't it look just like us???

DJ, Dress Fitting, Ceremony Vows

{source, unknown}

Wowzers has a lot been happening in the wedding department these last few days...and I'm sure it's just gonna get crazier.  Now that we have such a short amount of time before the big day, I'm realizing just how much I have left to do. 

A LOT.

My dad booked a DJ so that's a bit of a relief.  I can stop downloading iTunes songs to play at the reception.  Plus, someone can introduce us and things of that nature.  And maybe make everyone do YMCA and Limbo - fun wedding favorites.... :-)  Ooohh, and the Chicken Dance.

I also had my last dress fitting.  I have pretty much given up on losing weight and toning up for the wedding.  What ya see is what ya get - I think I'm a good 5 pounds heavier than I was when I started my diet.  Haha.  And I haven't lifted a weight in who knows how many years - maybe since my sisters wedding in 2008...  Oh wait, I think I lifted one up at Target to see the price and then set it right back down. 

My nails are hopeless too.  Sorry nails - you lose.  Oh wait, what am I talking about - I don't have any nails.  I seem to have eaten them all off.  Again.  That was a no-win goal if I've ever seen one!

What else have I been working on??  Oh my ceremony and translations.  I finally translated the vows, the ring exchange, and the Arras Ceremony into Spanish.  We are not doing the entire ceremony in Spanish and since Ivan already knows what everything means - since I've asked him about everything a gazillion times - he doesn't need a translation the day of.  Along with the Las Arras, we are also incorporating a Jumping the Broom ceremony which I am quite excited about.  It seems that it is mainly an African American tradition, but I think it's really cool so I'm incorporating it into my ceremony.  I like the idea of borrowing traditions from other cultures and working them into my ceremony.

Other exciting news - my cake topper is done!!  Sophia did an AMAZING job and I LOVE it.  I can't wait to show you.  I have pics but I kinda want it to be a surprise at the wedding so you'll have to wait.  It's great though - you will love it.

Ok, I guess I'll stop with the update.  There's a bunch more stuff going on and I'm super excited about all of it and getting a little stressed about it too. 

Wedding = gray hairs!!

RSVP Tears

No one told me how sad I would be when people people RSVPed "no".

Thank yous and Shoes!!

All this snow we've gotten has allowed me to get TONS of stuff done.  I got my invitations mailed out, updated my wedding website, and have FINALLY gotten my thank you cards written for the amazing shower my bridesmaids threw me.  I know, it's taken me a month to do them.  It actually took me three weeks to buy the cards and then a week to write them - so if I had had them earlier I may have gotten them done earlier, right???  Of course.

However, after all this snow and all this time off I got all my beautiful cards written.  Most people hate writing thank you cards - but I actually like it.  I was really looking forward to writing these cards because I was so touched that so many people came to my shower.  I wanted to let them all know how much it meant to me.  It warmed my little heart.  Hopefully they realize it.

In addition to getting those cards written and in the mail - I also bought my WEDDING SHOES!!  I'm so happpy/excited/relieved!!  I didn't want the standard white/ivory sparkly/shiny/lacy wedding shoe.  I wanted something different, something that would stand out and say HELLO, I'M GETTING MARRIED.  Yet, something that on a random day would say HELLO, I'M A REGULAR SHOE!!

So, I got a bright blue shoe.  It will be my "something blue".  I was thinking either red or blue, but saw these blues ones and decided to go with them.  They are great.  Not too high (since I NEVER wear heels and don't want to fall on my wedding day) but hopefully high enough that I look taller and more elegant in my dress.  We'll see about that.  It'll take a bit more than 2 inches to make me look tall.  But, here they are (and yes, that's a Great American Cookie box - yummy, yummy!):

Thank you for finding me Nine West shoes. 

You made my day!!

Lots of snow = Invitations Completed

I DID IT!!

Ahh, the invitations are finally done!!  After many hours of printing, assembling, stamping, and sealing, the majority of invitations are completed.  Don't get too excited though - we've been snowed in and the Post Office has been closed so I haven't actually gotten a chance to mail them.  I know - how unfair!  However, I'm hoping that the Post Office is open today because I need to get a few more stamps, make sure that they don't weigh more than the $0.44 stamps I put on them, and then send them on their way.

I feel soooo relieved that these invitations are done.  Now, I just gotta hope some people decide to come to my wedding and that they haven't forgotten about it.

What's left on my check list, you might be thinking??

* Hair appointment *

* Make-up appointment *

* Dress fitting *

* Purchase wedding shoes and undergarments *

* Buy lovely gift for my parents *

* Manicure appointments *

* Get marriage license *

* Flowers for Bridesmaids *

* Decide on flavor and appearance of cake *

* Settle on ceremony details *

* Other things I can't remember right now *

Ok, so I still have a lot to do, but it's finally coming together! 

Woo-hoo!!!

Officiant, check!!

{addison county courthouse}

I am happy to say that we have settled on an officiant.  Someone is going to marry us.  Since this is vital, I am very relieved that it has been decided.  I tried really hard to find a bilingual officiant, someone who could do the ceremony in both Spanish and English, but in Vermont, this proved to be impossible.  However, Annie Alexander-Kramer is next best.  Her son-in-law is Puerto Rican and speaks fluent Spanish and can practice with her.  Ivan and I will work on tranlsating the vows and ring exchange ceremony and then we'll be all set.  I know it won't be perfect, but at least Ivan will understand what he's "promising" to do for the rest of our life together.  Which I think is kinda important.  She also had some good ideas for personalizing the service and adding things in, which I was happy about.  I don't want to go overboard on the ceremony, but I'd like to have a few things that are special to just Ivan and me.  We'll see how that works out.

Also, Ivan has picked his best man or caballero: my Uncle Mike!!  They got along really well while he was visiting and so it worked out just right.  Ivan's family can't make the wedding (cost and visas), so it's nice that he'll have someone he knows with him and supporting him throughout the wedding.  THANK YOU UNCLE MIKE - Ivan and I really appreciate it and are touched that you're doing this for us.

Hmm, not much else to report on the wedding front.  This weekend I'm determined to get the invites out. 

I will get it done.  I will get it done.  I will get it done.

Contracts Signed and Mailed

Ok, so maybe the signing of contracts isn't the most exciting blog post, but it's exciting to me to have something official, and in writing.  Plus, some money put down (thank you mom and dad) that says - please don't change your mind.  Don't worry - I'm not planning on changing my mind - with or without the contract.  Everyday, I love Ivan more.

So, I've officially mailed the contract to Middlebury Inn and to the photographer, Randy Morris Photography. 

A little about the photographer...
 I had had a dream photographer, someone I was really wishing could photograph my wedding - Michelle Arlotta Photography.  I had seen her blog and just fell in love with her artistic wedding photos.  However, she turned out to be too expensive.  Although she gave me a great price (we had a mutual friend in common), I still couldn't justify spending half my wedding budget on photos. 

Enter Randy Morris.  He's Middlebury's photography and has done a few weddings for them.  To tell you the truth, at first I wasn't super excited.  I really wanted Michelle.  But, then I met Randy when I went to Middlebury and he seemed really nice and excited and creative.  So, I decided to forgo Michelle and go with Randy.

Now, I super happy that I did.  Randy is giving us a great price of under $1000 (8 hours of photography, a fun/formal day-after session, a photo album of proofs, a DVD with all the photos, a DVD slideshow to music, and then he loads the edited photos onto a website like SnapFish and we can order them for cheap).  Plus, I'm really excited about the fun/formal session - we get to get all dressed up again and then we take photos in crazy places...like drinking coffee, ice skating, riding bikes, etc.  He's really willing to work with us and go into Burlington and all kinds of stuff, which I'm really excited about.

So, in the end, I'm glad I'm going with Randy.  I'm just hoping he has some special skills because I'm not very photogenic and I want at least a few good photos....

And now, I really gotta get these invitations done or no one is going to show up!!!!

Cake Topper

Ok - so the wedding is in such a short time so I'm trying to do EVERYTHING at pretty much the last minute.  I was a bit nervous to start things early just in case we had problems with the visa or something.  I didn't want to have everything set up and then have to cancel or postpone it - so I just had a bunch of ideas saved on the computer, ready to implement the minute Ivan got here.  However, once Ivan got here I realized my time was limited and I never really got to the implementatin stage.  So, now I'm a bit rushed and trying to do everything at once.  Oh well - what's life without a little excitement and procrastination, right!! 

So, as I sit here, packing for ANOTHER trip to Oregon, I am also trying to get invitations done (since we finally confirmed the location of the ceremony and the time) and order things for the wedding.  I officially ordered our custom cake topper!  I am really excited about this.  My co-worker had a great custom cake topper and I thought it would be fun to have something other than a bird or two people (who usually are the same skin tone - which Ivan and are are not).  So, I ordered a cartoony-style custom cake topper of us from Sophia's Workshop on Etsy.  Here is an example:

This one is of a traditional Chinese wedding, which Ivan and I are not having, but I sent photos of us and some ideas for props that reflect our personality.  So, although ours will be very different from this one, you can get the idea of the custom possibilities.  I am really excited to see the sketch Sophia comes up with!!

I also ordered some fun things for my bridesmaids, but since they sometimes read this blog I can't divulge - but I'm SUPER excited about them!!!

Middlebury Congregational Church

Yeah - it's settled.  We finally have a place to get married.  The reception has been set for a while, but I was still going back and forth on the actual ceremony.  My lifelong wedding dream was to get married in the Catholic church, since I'm Catholic.  I wanted a full mass and then the wedding, done by a priest.  I was excited about the marriage classes that we would have to take and the preparation that goes into getting married in the Catholic faith.  However, my dreams were dashed when the priest in Vermont told me that there was NO WAY Ivan and I had enough time to prepare for a Catholic wedding and that it would take at least 6 months.  Plus, he didn't seem to believe we would pass the compatibility test and there was no way to find out since apparently it didn't come in Spanish.  So, after this VERY discouraging converstaion, I gave up my hope of being married in the Catholic church.

However, I shyly mentioned my dream to the wedding planner at Middlebury Inn and she suggested a very nice church located just across the street from Middlebury Inn.  The Middlebury Congregational Church.

So, I headed over to check it out (on the web that is) and read the bio of the Pastor and find any information about the little church. What I particularly like about the church was the affiirmation statement:

"This church regards all persons with equal respect and concern.  It is open to and affirming of all persons, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, economic status, age, nationality, marital status, or physical, mental, or emotional disability."

I mean, right then and there, it is way more accepting than the Catholic church and maybe they wouldn't have any problems marrying an American and her Spanish-speaking Honduran - with or without a compatibility test.  Don't get me wrong, I would still like to have my marriage blessed in the Catholic church, maybe back here at home where we have a Spanish-speaking priest, but for now, this little church seems perfect.

Thank you little church, for being right across the street from Middlebury Inn and for allowing us to marry inside your doors.

Bridal Shower Bliss

My fabulous sisters and amazing friend threw me a beautiful Bridal Shower.

I love Bridal Showers - at least planning them and going to them.  And now that I had mine, I love having them too. 

I must admit it felt a little weird being the center of attention and trying to talk with everyone and making sure they all knew how important it was to me that they made the effort to come.

The theme of the shower was Honey and Bees.  My sisters and friend had the cutest stuff and great decorations.  They should really go into a business - everything was so cute.  The invitations, above, said "Kattrina found her HONEY" and all the favors were little jars of honey, honey candies, and those honey stick things.  And Cathie, my sister's sister in law, made little stickers to put on candy that said "Bride to Bee" except the Bee was a sticker of a bee.  SOOOO CUTE.

I know some people think Bridal Showers are stupid/cheesy, and others that they are just an excuse to get presents - but I loved the idea of getting all my girlfriends together and hanging out while playing fun games (yes, I think bridal shower games are fun).  Presents are fun too (especially when you need EVERYTHING), but of course they are an added benefit. 

What was even more great was that everyone got to meet Ivan.  He came up to the shower to help me open presents so eveyone got a chance to see him (and if they spoke Spanish, to chat with him).

Here are some fun pics (these are just from my camera, when I get other photos, I'll post them too):

{yummy cupcakes my sister got - they were honey cinnamon and had little marzapan bees on them}

{the winners of the hot potato game}

THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH

ELIZABETH,

MELISSA,

AND SARAH

FOR A

WONDERFUL BRIDAL SHOWER!!

I loved every minute!!

Wedding Proposal

This is so adorable!  Ivan's proposal was not quite as romantic as this...  I'll tell ya about it one day.  In the meantime, take a look at this one!

{via A Cup of Jo}

And finally - a location!

So, I think I settled on a location and I am quite happy with it.  Thanks Mom, for helping me out!  I can't tell you the exact location yet, but the town looked like this in 1909: