Man, it’s Wednesday already?!

The week is flying by and we are all still in recovery mode over here. Well, recovery mode would imply that there aren’t other things going on. But we’ve been slapped back to reality while attempting to recover. Which is probably why it’s Wednesday and I’m just now logging on to share a recap of our wonderful weekend in Minnesota for Becky and Ben’s wedding!

Friday

Mom, Dad, Ishu, and I drove the 6 hours there on Friday morning. We planned to have Ankur fly there after work in the evening. And it all worked out perfectly. (Minus the fact that I navigated us to the wrong airport. And then Ishu pooped while we were at the wrong airport prolonging us even more. Whoops).

Eventually, we picked Ankur up, dropped the parents off at the hotel, and then made our way over to the lake for the Roast n’ Toast event.

All the events were at her dad’s house in Lake Elmo and it was absolutely beautiful. I was so excited to squeeze Becky and all the other women’s circle goddesses. It’s been way too long, but this was the perfect reunion. And I was so happy to be alongside some of my favorite ladies as we showered Becky with love.

S’mores were had, fireworks were launched, and everyone said the sweetest, funniest things about the bride and the groom. All the kind things that were “roasted” and “toasted” about Becky resonated so deeply because anyone who knows her could imagine her doing any and all of the things people shared.

We ducked out early because the three of us were exhausted (still recovering from Juna and Sherene’s shaadi!). And we gladly handed Ishu over to his Dadi and Babaji so we could get a full night’s rest.

Saturday

Saturday morning, the family had breakfast at Woodbury Cafe. After breakfast, they dropped me off to do morning yoga with the ladies and they took Ishu to the playground.

This was the best part of the weekend for me.

It was perfectly Becky to have something grounding and calming before jumping into wedding mode.

And, quite honestly, I think all weddings need to start with a little yoga and deep breathing. As we lay there, under the trees, listening to them sway with the wind, along with the sound of birds and bugs, I just felt so lucky to be a part of this group.

I probably have hundreds of blog posts sharing my love and gratitude for our women’s circle group back in San Jose. It was the thing that carried me through some of the really hard days while working at Rocketship back in 2013-2016. And it was one of the highlights of the quarantine when we checked in via Zoom.

We are all over the place now. But being there reminded me how easy it is to fall back into that immediate comfort. It’s like we pick up right where we left off and I think it’s pretty rare to find people you can do that with.

After brunch, we went to go check out the Mall of America. Which is absolutely insane and I don’t get how there’s an entire amusement park in the center of it. Malls are generally a little overstimulating for me. But this took it to a whole new level.

We did a lap, stopped in a store, got a milk tea boba, and then left to go back to the hotel.

Ankur and I quickly got ready, thanked Mom and Dad for hanging on to Ishu for the evening, and then left to go celebrate Ben and Becky!

The ceremony was so beautiful. Her sister officiated the wedding and was so funny the entire time. Lani did a grounding to get everyone present before the ceremony kicked off. And Sheena did community vows where we all eagerly called back, “WE DO!”

It was a short 30-minute ceremony, but so lovely. With the backdrop of the lake and their community of people watching them share their vows, it felt so intimate and I really do feel so honored to get to be a part of their special day.

When the ceremony was over, we had a short cocktail hour right there and then the reception began. The speeches were so fun to listen to; they made me laugh and cry and have all the emotions.

And then we released lanterns over the lake which was giving all us California people major anxiety because FIRE SO CLOSE TO TREES?!

But, clearly, it was a non-issue in Minnesota and it was so, SO BEAUTIFUL.

Ankur and I also felt so lucky to have Mom and Dad be with Ishu. Knowing he was safe and loved and taken care of made us that much more able to enjoy the evening.

We felt so happy to be a part of their union and feel so special to be a part of their community.

Congratulations to the newlyweds!

Sunday

There was a Lake Day event on Sunday, but because we drove and Ankur had work early the next morning, we needed to get on the road.

Driving back was a little harder with the rain and the toddler that wouldn’t go to sleep. But, it was made a little happier by our pitstop at Bella Goose! I was worried that my memories of the coffee would be better than the actual coffee. But, nope. It was delicious. I loved it just as much this time as I did last time.

And that’s it! We made it home, I started work this week, and we’ve got Mom and Dad here with us ’til Sunday.

This weekend, we are all going to Shaun and Nisha’s wedding reception. And then no traveling ’til November. Phew.

Hope you all had a great weekend and are enjoying this final week of summer!