A Guy, A Girl and Two Skirts

The moment you've all been waiting for ... our very own Kyle Petersen wearing a kilt!!! He wears it quite well, I might add. Must be his Scottish blood ...


[Plenty more where this came from ... I am charging $5 per copy if anyone wants official bribe material.] :)

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So, we are finally both back in the country and full of the most amazing memories and pictures, ever! We had an absolutely outstanding time in Europe ... but it is nice to be home.

We will do our best to give you a taste of our travels in several blogs over the next couple weeks. All I can tell you is that the pictures are amazing, but just don't do it justice - I recommend you all plan a trip to get over there someday. It's worth it. I might have a Coach bag (or two) and more shoes than I know what to do with, but the bulk of my money goes toward experiences, not material things. 10 years from now, will I look back and think, "Boy, did I love that black leather purse I carried around in 2010?" No ... but we will never forget the beautiful wedding in Scotland, all the people we met, friends we visited, places we saw and memories that we made on our European adventure of 2010.


I'm going to focus this posting on the wedding in Scotland. Again, the impetus for our trip was the wedding of our dear friends Russell and Fiona that we met on our honeymoon in Jamaica. We were honored to share their special day, but it also gave us the kick in the pants we needed to take a European vacation together ... and, to get Kyle in a kilt!


Here's Kyle getting fitted for his kilt the day before the wedding ... jeans and all. He was such a good sport about the whole thing. I think he was secretly excited to wear a skirt, but don't tell him I said that. :)

Rehearsal dinner the night before ... not a typical Scottish tradition, but Fiona grew up for a while in the states so they adopted a little American flavor. Kyle tried haggis for the first time! Father of the Bride is on the far right and the couple in the back middle are Russell's parents.

Here's the wedding location ... Dundas Castle. Just stunning, from the outside and inside.

Here we are at the top of the castle during our explorations when we arrived at the castle. We were like little kids running around to see everything. We stayed in the Buttercup Room, which was just "lovely." (After hearing this word so frequently in the UK, I've decided I need to use it more often. And "brilliant" is another adjective I'm bringing back to the states. Much more classy than "awesome" and "cool," don't you agree?)

Here's Kyle getting all suited up. Right down to the special tie of the shoe.

We had a short panic attack when we realized that they didn't show Kyle how to put the tie on and everyone else seemed to have a clip on. Cruel joke to give the American the old fashioned kind! We ran into their wedding coordinator who graciously helped us out. Check out his ear piece. This guy was no joke ... like the wedding planner, Franck, played by Martin Short in Father of the Bride - classic.

Kyle and the groom before the ceremony. Handsome couple.

The ceremony was held in the Auld Keep ... fitting 60 people, max. Braveheart was playing as we waited for the ceremony to begin ... gave me the chills.

The happy couple after they were officially announced as husband and wife!

One of the few differences between this celebration and most American weddings we have attended ... they cut the cake with a sword! I'm sure Kyle would have loved to do that back in Door County!

Our dinner table, following a fantastic cocktail hour. We sat with aunts, uncles and family friends. Everyone was so welcoming. Not more than 2 minutes after we sat down, Jock (the man to my left,) passed around a flask of whisky!

Here we are at the bar during the reception. Several more people arrived for the party and dancing in the evening. Do you see how many kilts I am surrounded by?!?! Lucky girl, I know.

The evening started with a live band playing traditional music, and Kyle and I got pulled up on the dance floor to learn several traditional group dance. But the later hours in the night were accompanied by all the classics we would hear back home ... here's Kyle and Russell rocking out to Journey.

And here's our customary photo with the happy couple that we like to get at all the weddings we attend. Good lookin' crew.

The celebration ended with a night cap in the library before retreating to our rooms. We were greeted with a tasty Scottish breakfast in the morning before leaving the castle. What an absolutely amazing celebration and unforgettable experience! We are so happy for our friends Russell and Fiona and grateful to them for inviting us to share their special day. We only wish we had met sooner so that they could have partied at our wedding in Wisconsin!