Best. Wedding. Weekend. Ever.

Seriously. We were in Syracuse, New York, for a good friend's wedding last weekend and it was...wait for it...AWESOME. We had such a great time. [Note: I'm working really hard here to not add an exclamation point after each sentence.] 

Sweet Grayson stayed with Aunt Shawna, Uncle Ray, and Cousins Wes and Ashton while Rob, Brandon [aka Lil' B], and I flew along with Brandon's [aka Big B] mother, Marietta, to Syracuse....and Watertown [?!?] on Thursday. More on Watertown in a minute.

Grayson with the Brake men

This was also a momentous occasion because it was Lil' B's first airplane ride. We packed a backpack full of goodies to help with air pressure (sippy cup, DumDums, snacks) and activities to keep him occupied (coloring books, stickers, plastic animals, and the always handy iPhone). He did so well! He didn't cry at all on take-off or landing! He slept during a couple flights and was only cranky on the very last flight home. We were so pleased!

Rob's best friend [who is more like a brother to him and a bro-in-law to me] married the ever-lovely Theresa on Saturday. We flew out there Thursday and had some major delays in Chicago which resulted in the airlines cancelling our flight to Syracuse. [Wha?!?] Our goal was to get Marietta there first, so we got her booked on the last flight to Syracuse that day. We, on the other hand, flew to the smallest airport I've ever landed at. It was a one-gate airport in Watertown, New York. Fortunately, it was only about 45 minutes from Syracuse and Big B was able to run up pick us up before heading to Syracuse's airport and picking up his mom! [I still don't get how we landed before her!]

We made it to dinner on Thursday night just in time to meet some of the bridesmaids, the other groomsmen, and some of Theresa's family.

Friday was a busy day with mani\pedi's, errands [Lil' B got the wrong size tie with his suit rental!], checking in to the hotel [the historic and green Jefferson Clinton Hotel], and rehearsal. After the rehearsal, most of us stopped by The Blue Tusk for a drink while on our way to the rehearsal dinner at Benjamin's on Franklin. I'm pretty much in love with these two bars, because they both had Woodchuck on the menu!!

The rehearsal dinner was indoor/outdoor. Brandon was free to roam since he was pretty much contained in the patio area. He also found any and all water puddles from an earlier rain. Great.

Mother of the groom

Lil' B and Big B having some Dinosaur BBQ

Brandon hanging out on the patio

Theresa and Rob overseeing Brandon opening his ring bearer gift

 Big B, Rob, and some others went to Five Guys Burgers the day of the wedding. I stayed back with Lil' B so he could get a good nap in before the big event. Rob so kindly brought me my first Five Guys Bacon Burger. Yum!

Here I am all wrapped up in my fly-away and perusing Pinterest while the ring bearer napped in the background

 So, I didn't get alot of pictures of Rob or Brandon in their suits on wedding day. The wedding photographer was at rehearsal, rehearsal dinner, the wedding, and the reception. She even stayed late for most events and I'm sure she got lots of great shots!

The only shot I got of B in his suit. Not a  happy camper for awhile.

Bride and Groom's first dance in the lobby of the Landmark Theatre

Brandon and Maia taking a break on the staircase

The rest of the photos are of the interior of the theatre. It was a great place for a wedding! There was very little need for additional decoration, it was so grand!