Montana Wedding

Friday, Sep 18: We ate breakfast at our motel in Missoula, then Kathleen, Amy and I drove the 100 miles to Glacier International Airport in Kalispell to meet Jay and Danielle. The five of us piled into our rental SUV, stopped for lunch and some beach time in nearby Whitefish, then drove 45 minutes west to Star Meadows Ranch, where Niky and Dom’s wedding was being held. We settled into to our comfy A-frame in the woods, then went down the winding gravel road to a welcome campfire, where we caught up with family, made a few new friends and ate s'mores around the large fire pit. Map link: Star Meadows Ranch

Bonus Question: What is an interrobang? (answer at end of post)

Saturday, Sep 19: After a morning Zumba dance session for Kathleen, Danielle and Amy, we all attended a pre-wedding brunch, then relaxed at the A-frame until it was time to put on our fancy clothes for the ceremony. My brother, Matt, was the officiant—he did an incredible job and was coincidentally celebrating his 34th wedding anniversary with his wife Sue, who walked Niky down the aisle with her dog, Shadow. The ceremony was held outdoors overlooking a stunning valley, in front of about 125 guests. After Niky and Dom exchanged vows and rings, it was time for photos, cocktails, dinner, speeches and dancing. There was an after party that included more dancing and mechanical bull riding, which surprisingly attracted riders of all ages; from under 10 to over 60. 

Hard-boiled eggs from Niky’s chickens

Sunday, Sep 20: We were all awake by 7:00 AM, got dressed and went down the hill to the main pavilion, where leftovers from yesterday’s brunch made for a decent breakfast. We said goodbye to Niky and Dom and families, stopped for lunch, groceries and some beach time in Whitefish, then drove another 20 miles to our rental cabin in Coram, outside the western entrance to Glacier National Park. The Airbnb owner’s directions through the crisscrossed, backwoods roads made no sense and we got lost—thankfully it was daylight and a friendly construction worker nearby helped us out, and we eventually found the way to a cozy, secluded modern cabin, with a lovely front porch. We grilled burgers and vegetables for dinner, watched the sunset behind the mountains and slept well in the comfortable beds. 

 

Bonus Question Answer: An interrobang is a non-standard punctuation mark that contains a question mark and an exclamation point. It is used at the end of a sentence to express both a question and surprise, disbelief or excitement. That’s amazing, right?!