Water balloons As well as football and frisbees, partying at the rehearsal barbecue included water balloons and Scottish Country dancing (well, Strip the Willow). It was a great chance for Ned and Kats' friends from Macalister where they both studied and Boston where they now live, and families from out of town, to catch up and get to know each other. The water balloons took some filling - Sarah and I got very wet - but proved hilarious. What a competitive bunch!

Battenkill River float - two sisters and a niece

Fun time after the wedding saw Cheryl, Sandra and Sarah, our niece, take a float down the Battenkill River. Rodney elected to stay on dry land and record the event for posterity, though the camera battery died half way through!

For my part, I didn't realise that floating involved getting wet. I imagined that the tubes had a bottom - well they did but it was mesh, so rear ends did get wet. Cheryl went for total immersion when she didn't quite make it beneath an overhanging branch.

As the surge in river level had subsided, the water level was perfect for floating - we didn't have to get out once to get overselves over sandbanks. Though we did get becalmed in whirlpools a couple of times.

The wedding The first drops of rain fell as we took our seats for the ceremony. A few minutes later, as proceedings got under way, the heavens opened and we adjourned to the marquee. Apparently it always rains like this at Palinski weddings. Needless to say, the downpour didn't dampen proceedings. The flow chart for the Battenkill River shows just how much the heavens opened. The river rose six feet in just a few hours.

Wedding in New York State Ned, Sandra's nephew, and Kat were married at Kat's home in Cambridge, New York State, on 28 June. Cheryl, Sandra's sister rented the Long Lodge for the faimily to hang out for a while together, help with wedding preparations, party and have fun. It was a perfect spot. Cook outs were the norm, deer wandered by in the early morning and there was loads of space for everyone to do as they pleased. Relax in a hammock, go for a hike or float down the river.