You’ll never guess who we had dinner with Friday night. I’d give you three guesses but you probably won’t need them.
Nathan and Meagan (AKA Meganate) went to Williamsburg, VA last week for their tenth anniversary. It was just a hop, skip and a jump for all of us to meet halfway for dinner.
Sarah was on the job to help Gage get his food cut up. (He’s going to the doctor today to have his finger x-rayed and possibly have the stitches removed.)
As part of her anniversary gift, Meagan asked Gage’s mom, Casey, to make mugs for her and Nathan in their favorite colors. They both love handmade mugs so they were a big hit. (The reason they happened to have them at the restaurant is that Gage and Sarah picked them up from his mom the last time they visited and hand-delivered them.)
During dinner, they told us a little bit about their week. One of their first dates was to Busch Gardens so they went back again for their anniversary, except this time they were wearing two t-shirts that they’d had made up. The small print over the “J” says, “Nathan and Meagan” and then “Just Married.” Underneath that was, “Ten years ago.”
They said the t-shirts got a good number of reactions and comments. Some people looked like they couldn’t believe they had been married that long. Others offered cheery congrats. One guy (who was there with his girlfriend) sidled up to them and said, “Maybe it’s about time I propose to her!”
All in all, the t-shirts were a big hit.
We also asked them to tell some of their stories of when they first started dating. One of those stories they couldn’t quite agree on: Meagan remembers Nathan asking her to be his girlfriend while driving by a certain gas station in Winter Haven while Nathan remembers asking her the question in the parking lot of that gas station. The important thing was that he asked!
We were talking about their earliest days of dating and Sarah recalled that Steve and I paid her fifty cents to go down to the living room to chaperone them while he and I went to bed. Sarah said she remembered the amount because she was so excited about getting a Honey Bun from the vending machine at school with her earnings.
She actually could have made money from both ends if she made Nathan pay her a dollar not to chaperone. But as far as we know, the chaperoning got done and the big bucks got paid.
Nathan and Meagan said that in order to keep them busy, I assigned them the task of selling some of our books on Amazon which back in 2008 was nothing like the Amazon we have now. It’s mind-blowing how much it’s grown ( Trivia question: Did you know Amazon was originally called Cadabra, short for Abracadabra? But then they thought the name sounded too much like cadaver so they changed it.)
At any rate, moving from Amazon back to dinner: we had such a great evening of sharing good food and memories. I’m so thankful for my family
And speaking of family, I had to share this photo I just found.
Doesn’t Snowy look just like a stuffed animal? And look at Sarah’s curls!
On a different subject, this guy landed in Urgent Care on Saturday.
He was out mowing the front yard and was visited one wee ground bee. Steve immediately felt burning in his hands, his lower lip started feeling numb, and he started getting welts under his arms and around his waist. Two Benadryl and two prednisone didn’t have much effect, so he pulled out the ol’ EpiPen and gave himself a two-hundred-dollar shot.
And then it was off to Urgent Care for an injection of prednisone and observation. Thankfully, the fact that he only got one sting and not several made all the difference.
Okay. It’s now time to move on to today’s wedding album. Enjoy!
Steve’s socks!! 😆😂🤣💕💕💕
Kim,
That’s so funny. You readers noticed them before I did!
How fun that you could meet Nate and Meagan for dinner! The mugs are beautiful
I hope Gage’s doctor appointment went well and that he was able to get his stiches removed.
And so sorry that Steve got stung again, glad that he had his epi pen! As a former pharmacy tech you may want to check if Steve’s doctor has an coupons from the drug company. You can also check with the drug company directly to see if they can offer some financial assistance. I know they are expensive.
The wedding pictures are gorgeous!
Heather,
Yes, I definitely need to find a less expensive option. I talked to his pharmacist recently and he is going to look for coupons. I hadn’t thought about contacting the company directly to ask for financial assistance; thanks for that tip!
Goodness, poor Steve!
I love that you all had a meal together. I love the photos. And I love the mugs!
Just love this post =)
Blessings!
Krista,
It was special indeed to get to have that meal with our four kids! What a treasure to spend time together.
Dear Becky, thanks for another wonderful blog complete with beautiful photos… I enjoyed all of them! But two of my favorites were Sarah with her lovely curls, and the wedding photo of Pastor Steve showing off his argyle socks! (I can hear Pastor Steve saying, “Who but Fred would have noticed my socks?!”) When it comes to gentlemen’s fashions, Pastor Steve leads the pack! 🙂 ~ Fred & Lucy
Fred and Lucy,
I didn’t even notice that Steve was showing off his socks till you mentioned it. Thanks for pointing out my husband’s wacky ways. 🙂
What is the significance of the swords?
Dale,
I have passed that question on to Sarah and Gage; one of them should be showing up with an answer here soon. 🙂
The swords are a long held tradition of the Long family. Instead of explaining further, I thought I’d share a portion of the transcript from the ceremony.
“Unity Sword Ceremony and Communion.
Sword of Manhood:
At the age of 13, Gage’s father, Pastor Stacy Long, bestowed upon him a sword. This symbol was given to represent stepping into christ-like manhood, and was to be a continual reminder of his authority under the covenant of God. This tradition has been carried on to each of the five brothers upon their thirteenth birthdays, so they stand behind him as brothers in arms to back the weight of his pledge to his bride. His manhood will now belong to the princess Sarah. Much like a knight, he will forever more guard, protect, and serve her within the Lord’s holy kingdom.
Purity ring:
When Sarah was about 16 years old, she realized the importance of patience in dating and purity in courtship. She picked out a ring that would remind her to wait and pray for her future husband and has worn it on her right hand ever since. Now that she has found the man that she has chosen to spend the rest of her life with, she will tie her ring to the hilt of his sword, as a symbol of her womanhood and his manhood becoming one. She’ll now wear her engagement and wedding rings to remind her of the way her king honors and cares for her, as a queen.
Gage, what do you pledge?
“You have my sword.”
Sarah, what do you pledge?
“You have my honor.”
-Sage (Sarah & Gage)
Happy Anniversary to Nathan and Megan! The photos are wonderful! So sorry Steve had another bee encounter, hopefully those bees will a thing of the past very soon! How wonderful for the family get together.
Cindy,
I love the bees that make honey but don’t love so much the bees that live in the ground and chase my hubby around the yard. Glad this time wasn’t as bad!
So sorry Steve had another encounter with a bee! Glad he had the epi-pen available this time.
The pictures are all beautiful. Especially like the one when Steve sees Sarah for the first time. I’ve seen a sneak peek of 7 pictures for my niece’s wedding. Looking forward to more, especially the one where Kevin sees Charlotte.
Glad you got to have dinner with Nathan and Meagan. I know it’s hard having your kids living so far away.
Phyllis,
Yes, those first look photos (either the dad or the husband seeing the bride) are special beyond words. I know you’re looking forward to your own peaks at the sneak peeks!
Loved this post, well, except the part about the bee sting!
The pictures were awesome – as usual – from the anniversary/family dinner to the wedding pictures! Your family is so photogenic!
I would like to hear more about the ceremony of the sword for the Long boys.
Suzanne,
I’ll pass your request on to Sarah and Gage; they can explain it better than I can.:-)
But it’s been a VERY special tradition for their family.
It’s true. Gifting a sword is one of the Long family’s most cherished traditions. Sarah and I would like to start the story off with the transcript from our ceremony since we believe it’s what explains it best.
Unity Sword Ceremony and Communion.
“Sword of Manhood:
At the age of 13, Gage’s father, Pastor Stacy Long, bestowed upon him a sword. This symbol was given to represent stepping into christ-like manhood, and was to be a continual reminder of his authority under the covenant of God. This tradition has been carried on to each of the five brothers upon their thirteenth birthdays, so they stand behind him as brothers in arms to back the weight of his pledge to his bride. His manhood will now belong to the princess Sarah. Much like a knight, he will forever more guard, protect, and serve her within the Lord’s holy kingdom.
Purity ring:
When Sarah was about 16 years old, she realized the importance of patience in dating and purity in courtship. She picked out a ring that would remind her to wait and pray for her future husband and has worn it on her right hand ever since. Now that she has found the man that she has chosen to spend the rest of her life with, she will tie her ring to the hilt of his sword, as a symbol of her womanhood and his manhood becoming one. She’ll now wear her engagement and wedding rings to remind her of the way her king honors and cares for her, as a queen.
Gage, what do you pledge?
“You have my sword.”
Sarah, what do you pledge?
“You have my honor.’”
[unquote] It’s true. Five of the six brothers have been given a sword so far; only the youngest remains. It was Stacy Long’s idea to do his own version of ancient Israeli tradition of calling the young men into manhood. It’s probably one of the most identity affirming things that has been done for me. It felt only natural to dedicate that special manhood to such a darling Princess of the island realm.
-Sage
I think this might be my favorite Smithellaneous post! The second photo of Pastor Steve and Nathan is so nice, a proud father indeed. Love the story of Sarah collecting 50 cents for chaperoning Nathan and Meagan! The photo of Sarah and Summer is adorable. Love the black and white photo of Sarah and Gage leaving the church. Very sorry to hear that Pastor Steve was stung again. Thank you Becky for once again allowing us to spend time with your family.
Gloria,
We appreciate you hanging out with us over here in Manteo. Thanks for such an encouraging comment.!
What a fun post – except for Steve’s bee encounter! I’m so glad this one wasn’t quite as serious. I loved hearing stories from the early days of Meganate and their shirts were so cute!! I love the colors of their mugs. And of course the pictures were amazing!! A couple of my favorites were Sarah & her curls (you are right, Snowy looks just like a stuffed animal in this) and Sarah & Gage with Vernie. You have quite the photogenic family! I hope you all have a wonderful, blessed week!!
Sue Ellen,
I think the photo of Sarah and Gage and Vernie truly was extra special. So much love in those faces!
Thank you for more sharing more of the gorgeous wedding photos! It looks like you all had a great time at dinner with all of your kids!
It seems like Steve’s reactions are getting worse? Scary that the epi-pen didn’t even work! I’d be watching him like a hawk whenever he’s outside. I’m sure glad he’s ok!
Gayle,
I think the EpiPen did its job but the directions on the box say that even when you use it, you should still go straight to a doctor since sometimes beesting effects can appear minutes or hours after the original sting.
We have a guy coming in to eradicate that ground hive. Steve had been steering clear of it but one of them flew across the yard and found him!
I’m… Feeling a bit worried about your husband. 😄
Perhaps it’s time to enlist a neighborhood teen to do the mowing?!?
Ellen,
Well, our first line of defense will be to get the nest eradicated. He had been staying far from it, but one of them still found him!
So glad you all were able to get together. I’m a fan of Meagan’s new(?) look. Her hair looks pretty and her glasses are spot on. Congratulations to them!
Poor Steve, allergy shots might be helpful if he’s determined to continue the yard work in the years to come 🙂
Love the mugs!
I LOVE Meagan’s new look too!!! It sooooo flatters her!
Ellen,
I know. Isn’t she so pretty!
Lesley,
Meagan just gets prettier and prettier as the years by go. She’s always had such a good sense of style.
Yes, allergy shots would be worth investigating. I hate for Steve to have to spend his whole life on the alert for those wicked winged creatures.
I loved every pic, jot and tittle of this post! 🥰
So sorry Steve had to go to ER again, but glad he was ok. Might need to hire a teenager to do the lawn for a while!
Love, Deb
Deb,
I’ve never had anyone love every jot and tittle of my post. I’m honored!
How wonderful to get to spend some extra time with Nathan & Meagan! Congrats to them on their 10th anniversary!!
The mugs are just beautiful!
The wedding pictures just keep coming and I LOVE seeing them! Your photographer did an amazing job!
Poor Steve…..I’m so glad that this one didn’t turn out like the last one!
Lee Anne,
Thanks for all your encouraging words. And yes, I agree, the photographer went above and beyond with all the moments she captured. We are grateful.
I too have an anaphylactic reaction to bee stings. The good news is that through the years, my reaction has become less and less severe. The doctors think that I am building an immune resistance to the stings, and I may actually not require the Epi-pen soon. My first bee sting happened when I was 12. All I remember is being loaded into an ambulance. I avoid bees at all cost but have had a few stings through the years. Based on Steve’s current rate of stinging he should be out of his EpiPen by the end of the year. 😁
I am happy To see that the newlyweds and not so newlyweds are all enjoying life. Isn’t it a blessing to get to hang out with our adult kids?
Lisa,
Yes, hanging out with adult kids is fun. I’m still not sure how we got to this point where my oldest is about to turn 31 years old and my youngest is a new bride. I miss the days when we were paying Sarah money to chaperone! 🙂
So glad to hear your bee sting reactions are gradually lessening. VERY happy news for you.
what a wonderful 10th celebration. great looking mugs. Snowy is absolutely adorable.
steve needs to bee careful with his lawn care.
Mrs. Pam,
Yes, I had forgotten just how adorable Snowy was! Miss that little fella.
I think Steve might need to start doing allergy shots to build a resistance to bee stings. I had a family member do this and it has worked quite well. He’s no longer in the ER for each bee sting. Poor Steve.
Paige,
It’s good to hear that you know of someone who has had good results with allergy shots. Do you know how many times a week/month they had to be done?