The Last Days of Summer

Happy Monday, Lovelies! What a weekend we had - Friday I had a good ole' fashioned sleepover with my dear friend Parris because Chris was out of town, Saturday we took a much needed shopping trip for new Fall clothes and Sunday our friends tied the knot. Overall, a delightful few days!

Thought I would share a few pics from the Van Unen's {beautiful} wedding festivities -

{Announcing, for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Van Unen}

{So much joy}

{Absolutely adore her hair}

{Friends~we're all married now!}

{First dance}

Hope you enjoyed the last official weekend of Summer!

Wedding Weekend!

This weekend we have the pleasure of seeing our sweet friends Dan and Nicole get married! Their intimate outdoor ceremony will take place Sunday morning, followed by a brunch reception. Doesn't that sound lovely (I'm a complete sucker for brunch!)?! Can't wait to celebrate with the happy couple as they become Mr. and Mrs.!

Have an amazing weekend!

image/April Smith photography
via/Elizabeth Anne Designs

Midwest Bound

Woohoo! This afternoon I am off to Illinois for my cousin's wedding. A highly anticipated trip because I get to see my extended family and meet my new baby brother! I am especially looking forward to "girls day" with my aunts and cousins on Saturday, where I'll be teaching a yoga class.

It should be a fun-filled few days, though I'm going to miss my sweet husband who is staying behind this time. But don't worry about him as his weekend will be occupied with the new Madden that came out Tuesday.

Have a lovely few days and see you next week!



image/via

2

Two years ago today I married my best friend. And I am still completely smitten with him!

Gardenias

Of all the smells in the world, the one that tops my list is the gardenia!

On a kind of random note, out of nowhere today, I kept getting whiffs of gardenia and every single time it flooded me with sweet and blissful memories of our wedding, as I had them in my hair on our wedding day. (I think I may have accidentaly sprayed some Marc Jacobs perfume on the sweater I'm wearing today, which would explain the random whiffs I kept getting)

While I was on the website for the Pacifica solid perfumes I posted yesterday, I came across this description for their Tahitian Gardenia scent:

"The Gardenia is the most nostalgic flower, whose enthralling vintage perfume has the power to conjure up memories in an instant. Gardenias are said to be the blossoms of love."

How fitting is that?!

Weekend Bliss

Good morning lovely friends! I hope your weekend treated you wonderfully!

I am so very thankful for a long weekend followed by a two day week! The past few days were very full, but with delightful things!

It began with Harvest Festival fun with my mom, mother-in-law, and Chris' step-grandma, Lupe. I found several Christmas gifts and even a few things for myself. An afternoon of shopping followed by Cheesecake Factory for lunch is my idea of a great day off!

If I have not already indulged the fact that my husband spoils me, you will know once I tell you how our date night began. Around 6pm I heard a knock on the door and found Chris holding a bunch of flowers, a skinny latte and Norah Jones' new CD!! Never underestimate the joy that comes from sweet surprises for no reason at all!



Saturday evening we attended a wedding. Chris works with both the bride and groom and he's been saying how he thinks I will really like them. Finally getting to meet them I would have to agree they are a very sweet couple! I am such a sap for weddings, and this was only enhanced as they played the song I walked down the isle to at our wedding (Somewhere Over The Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwo Ole'). I may have shed a few happy tears!

There was a slight change of plans Sunday. Originally, Chris and I were going to the Raiders game with his Dad and Uncle, but realizing that I need to take my certification exam before the holidays hit, I decided to stay home and make sure I'm well prepared. I really would have enjoyed being at the game, but time is slipping away from me and I want to get this test out of the way! I am trying to schedule the exam for this Wednesday so it won't be a distraction during Thanksgiving. You should be proud, despite the temptation from our mothers to join them at the Mandarin Festival yesterday, I opted to get my workout out of the way and study, study, study. Although I still ended up with a 5lb bag of mandarines:) They take such good care of us!

And on a VERY exciting note, after a year of researching, planning for and finding the very best deal, Chris and I purchased this...


Our new Samsung 50in plasma will be at our door next Monday! I have to admit, I am more excited than I expected to be! Of course, Chris' excitement was no surprise at all!

And finally, last night I purchased Silk Nog! I buy one carton every season and savor it all month! Not being a fan of regular egg nog, I was delighted to find this lighter, less sweet substitute and now find myself looking forward to it every year!



Hope you have a very merry Monday!

That's A Lot Of Days!

Out of nowhere today I decided to pull up our wedding website. I had no idea it was still active! Anyway, I looked at the wedding counter and it says Chris and I have been married for 481 days! Kinda seems like a long time when you put it that way:) Naturally, I began reminiscing about that magnificent day...

I think I speak for both of us when I say we still feel this giddy!

Dreaming of Far Away Places...

Sunshine, tropical breeze, humidity, mid 70's, gardenia filling the air...

Are you with me? I am dreaming of Hawaii this morning! And until I was 10 years old, I had the privelege of experiencing these things every day. Yep, I once called this popular vacation spot my home:)

I can honestly say that Hawaii is my "happy place". There is simply nothing like it and its laid back atmosphere. After all, most of my childhood memories and our wedding (and honeymoon) took place there:):):)

So, what's got paradise on my mind this morning? Well, I should probably confess something to you...When I get ready in the morning I have the tendency to watch Saved by the Bell:) Don't laugh, I mean, what else is on from four to five in the morning?? This mornings episode just happened to be filmed there:) In addition to my grade school throw back, my coworker is currently in Maui on his honeymoon. So you can see how my mind could drift to such things.

I can't wait to visit again, but until then I'll leave you with some sweet memories...




Honeymoon!




Happy Tuesday!

Wedding photos by: Stephen Ludwig ludwighawaii.com

The Deed is Done!

Well guys, the deed is done and Emily and Mark are MARRIED!!! Em made a gorgeous bride and I was so happy to take part in such a special day with her and her new husband! I feel sure they will make each other very happy. I look forward to hearing about the many exciting things they experience the next few weeks, months and years to come! Congratulations to the DeLews!!! You guys are loved!

PS~ Yes, I cried!

Here are some pics of the weekend:

The lovely couple at rehearsal

With the bride at rehearsal dinner

Hehe, my hair for the wedding

Gorgeous bride in her gorgeous dress


Woot!!



With my fantabulous husband!!!


Some of the bridesmaids!! I'm so glad I got to meet you lovely ladies!

I love this picture of Em and Mark dancing!




Although I had a blast celebrating the last few days, I am so glad to have another two days to recoup before going back to work!

Funny story I have to share! I have mentioned before how I can't send my husband to the store without him buying something off the list, right? While running errands last week, he found it necessary to bring home some ShamWOWs:) I am still laughing about his purchase as I am looking at the box still sitting on our desk. Oh how that man makes me happy!

For your viewing pleasure:



Enjoy the rest of your weekend!!

New Kid on the Block

There is a new little addition to our family...Chris' parents got a puppy!! He is a cutie little chihuahua/shitzu mix and his name is Mochi. He spent a few hours at our house last night trying to get accustomed to our beast:) Thankfully, Abby and Mochi are on pretty friendly terms, but I am a bit worried Abby could get too playful and crush the little guy! He is like 4 lbs max! Obviously, we're gonna have to pay very close attention to the two of them.

Isn't he a cutie pie?!




Anyway, lots to do in the next week and a half! Emily and Mark are coming into town this weekend and getting married!! I can't believe their wedding is almost here. I feel like it was just Chris and Me saying our "I Do's"!

Hope the last half of your week is fabulous! I know mine will be...Chris is bringing me coffee at his break:)

Happy Wednesday!

10 Wonderful Months

Can you believe it? Today marks ten months since our wedding!! Wow!

It blows my mind how quickly the time has passed, but you know what they say, time flies when you're having fun:)

The greatest thing is, these past months have only been a mere drop in the bucked compared to the lifetime of adventures and wonderful milestones we have yet to share! I can't wait to see what the future holds for us!

My sweet husband, I cannot imaging sharing my life with anybody else! You are Wonderful!!

I love you!

Allow Me to Catch You Up...

My current mood: refreshed, content and happy.

This is good considering my recent moods have been: grumpy, tired and sick!

I have missed blogging, but have just had no time:(

A quick recap of our last three weeks:

* We went to Santa Cruz and the Sharks game with Chris' Dad. So much fun!
*Chris got sick
*Chris got me sick on a week I couldn't take off work because my boss was out and we were really busy:(
*I was still sick on Valentine's Day and the entire weekend that we spent at a cabin in Tahoe with Chris' Dad, step mom and brothers:(
*We bought an awesome new couch and decided it would our Valentine's gift to each other!
*We are currently crammed in a tiny living space with too much furniture since we haven't posted the old couch on Craig's list yet.
*I feel fabulous since I finally got my hair done last week.
*In the last two weeks my brother turned 4, my sister, Audrey turned 3 and my sister, Ava turned 2!!
*I finally spent time with my sweet friend, Parris and saw the movie "Confessions of a Shopaholic", which was fantastic and I highly recommend it to anyone who LOVED the book like I did!
*We watched "Changeling" last night. Also very good but slightly disturbing.
*In addition to all this, we have been really busy dealing with house stuff:) I will wait to disclose anything until something is for sure!

This weekend we have had some much needed catch up time to relax. Yesterday marked 8 months since our wedding! I had already planned on making a yummy dinner, which ended up being a perfect opportunity to celebrate! I really can't believe it has already been a better part of a year! The time has flown by and has been absolutely wonderful! Here are some pics of our tasty diner:)

On Marriage...

My heart is heavy tonight as our upstairs neighbors are rapidly becoming a statistic. I am referring to a divorce. My mind is completely a blank as I try to imagine how a couple who were just married in August of last year can be ending their marriage after only five months.

This evening we came home to our neighbor, *Sam, packing his car. With much confusion, Chris and I looked at each other. As he walked down the stairs, Sam said with obvious disdain in his voice, "I'm moving. We're getting a divorce". Just like that. As I stood there baffled, all I could stutter were a few "I'm so sorry's" and uncomfortably shuffled inside. A moment later Sam came knocking on our door and for about 20 minutes he stood there telling us about the problems he and his wife have been having the last few months. Months! Didn't they just get married! For the sake of their privacy, I will not disclose the details, but I can tell you that my heart is hurting for both of them right now.

Let me take you back to the weekend we moved Chris into our apartment. It was a beautiful, sunny day in May and I was as giddy as could be. Our neighbors, Sam and *Amy were very quick to introduce themselves and give us all of the useful tips we could possibly need. We instantly felt at home. The four of us shared how we were both getting married later in the year. The best thing about them was how much they LOVED Abby and better yet, she loved them. Whenever they walk by our patio, they coo over Abby as she slobbers all over their happy faces.

So what went wrong? Did they think getting married would make everything better? Change their financial situation? Make them stop fighting?

I can only give my own humble thoughts about this sad situation. It's got me thinking about marriage and how the world view's this union with such shallow sentiment.

My mind goes back to June 21; our wedding day. I can remember the vows exchanged between my husband and myself and I can assure you that they were not made out of mere loving feelings and hopes that we would always have butterflies for each other. I will say this one time and let me make myself very clear...Marriage is a PROMISE and not to be taken lightly! I hope it has never been unclear that while I post blogs about our love and how lucky we are to have each other, our life is not perfect and we have difficult times like everyone else. However, we have made a choice to stick together through those rough patches. We will not give up on our marriage when (I say when and not if) things get hard. Why do so many couples miss that? What is it about our culture that makes us feel so entitled to comfort?

Forgive my rant, but I find it hard to understand how half of all marriages end in divorce. The only conclusion I can come to is this: Marriage was meant to be between three people. Husband, Wife and God. He must be the rock on which we build our foundation or it will crumble.

Please don't disregard me as an ignorant newlywed, but rather a woman who seeks to make the Lord my first Love and my husband my second. We are all capable of the same choices, which is why we must fix our eyes on the Lord. If anything, please take away that I believe marriage is a loving commitment intended to last until we leave this world.

*Names have been changed for privacy

Fall, Love...what could be better?

You may have noticed that we haven't posed in two weeks. We have been crazy busy! So, what have we been up to? We had our first rain of the season on Friday October 3. I was beyond pleased to spend our date night in the comfort of our little home watching movies, sipping tea and snuggling up in our jammies. I love this time of year. It always makes me sentimental and gleeful.

Snuggling. You can see Abby's tongue in this picture:)

That weekend we went to the Eggplant Festival in Loomis. I have been looking forward to going for about 2 months. I just love Fall-ish festivals! We also went to a wedding that weekend. Chris' cousin Luke got married! Yay! I love weddings!! It was the first wedding we have been to since our own and I have to admit, I got a bit teary-eyed:) And finally, we tried out a new church on Sunday. We love our home church, but we just want to make sure it is the best possible place for us and that we don't just stay somewhere because it is comfortable.

So this past week was even more eventful than the one before! Chris' best friend, Brad got married!!! We were both in the wedding, so the days leading up to the wedding were very busy. Friday night were the bachelor/bachelorette parties and boy, did we have a good time! I think I will choose not to disclose the details of the bachelorette bash..somethings are just better left unsaid;) On Saturday, the ladies were pampered with manis and pedis and a delicious breakfast...yum! I again was reminiscent about the fun I had with my amazing bridesmaids the days leading up to my own wedding. What an amazing blessing to have such wonderful friends to celebrate such special times with! I love you, girls!! Anyway, Sunday was the big day and what a beautiful one it turned out to be! I am so happy for our friends. They definetely made me cry! They are so perfect for each other and I look forward to learning the tricks of being a newly married couple with them!

So, there it is, our last few weeks. And, I am not seeing the next few slow down any time soon. We're okay with that though, we like to be a couple on the move:)

Love and blessings,
Kate