Featured!

Exciting news! Our wedding photographer just emailed me to let me know that our wedding is featured on Artfully Wed today! Perfect timing I guess, seeing as we just celebrated one year of marriage. You can check out the feature, which includes a few words from me, here.

Wedding Wednesdays : My Fave Wedding Day Memories

In celebration of G and I's first anniversary as husband and wife, I thought I'd take a stroll down memory lane and share my top five moments from our wedding day, plus one "best-worst" honorable mention.

The first look.

Even though the straps of my heels kept getting stuck to my dress, which kept getting stuck on nails in the wood deck, the first look was a wonderful (if comedic) moment. G’s reaction was a bit quieter than I expected it to be. When he turned around he just smiled, and then tried to hold back the tears. While we only had a few minutes alone, I think those few minutes helped calm our nerves and it was nice to be able to actually talk to each other, compliment each other, hug and kiss—the things you can’t really do during the ceremony!

Words with my dad.

Right before the walk down the aisle, I had a few precious minutes alone with my dad, who was just a big teddy bear on my wedding day, so emotional and nostalgic. Worried about my hair and my dress, I asked, “Do I look OK?” My dad didn’t miss a beat, replying that I looked like a supermodel. Later, during our father-daughter dance, he had me blubbering like a baby as he recalled his memories of me, as a baby. It was beautiful and perfect, even if I was ugly-crying the whole way through. 

Walking down the aisle.

As my father walked me down the aisle, to the Goo Goo Dolls song “Come to Me,” the scene before me was mostly a blur. It happened so quick! But I do specifically remember seeing my friend Stephanie absolutely beaming with joy for me. Next I saw my soon-to-be husband, wiping away tears as they fell from his eyes, despite having already seen me in my dress—proving that first looks do not in the least take away from the seeing-your-bride-walk-down-the-aisle experience.

The ceremony.

G and I wholeheartedly agree that the best part of our wedding day was the ceremony. It was so important to me that the ceremony be personal, meaningful and really reflect the significance of what we were doing—pledging to love, honor, support and cherish each other, forever. That’s why I took on the task of writing the ceremony, including a hand fasting ritual and a wine blending ceremony, and carefully selected two readings, one sweet and one funny. The pinnacle moment, however, was when G and I shared the vows we had written for each other. A close runner-up was when my groom slipped me a tissue just as our officiant-friend read the words, “These are the hands that will wipe away the tears from your eyes…” Perfect timing!

Our second dance.

While our first dance, to Train’s “Marry Me,” was certainly special, I felt infinitely more comfortable during our second dance. To kickstart the reception, the DJ put on John Legend’s “All of You” and our friends and family quickly joined us on the dance floor, making us feel less like the ice sculpture the reception revolves around and more like part of a great party.

The best-worst moment: 
When my hubby & his boys "broke" the dance floor.

It’s a year later and I don’t yet find this as funny as people assured me I would one day, but it was definitely a memorable moment that guests still talk about! G had already gained a reputation for his enthusiastic moves and one-armed push-up to the Isley Brothers song “Shout!” but he took his fame to a whole new level during our wedding reception. Now, it wasn’t really his fault, but as G and his groomsmen jumped up and down on the lower deck, our dance floor, one of the planks began to bend and bow. It didn’t actually crack and no one got hurt (thank goodness) but the lower deck with our sweetheart table was basically off-limits after that and the dance floor was moved to the upper deck. Suffice to say, we weren’t thrilled, but we have an interesting story to tell and some fun photos from what is now his most infamous “Shout!” performance.

(Photos by heidi-o-photo)

San Diego Days

During our big California trip, when the hubs and I cruised down to San Diego to see a couple of good friends get hitched, we decided to stay a few extra days and make a long weekend of it, to soak up as much time in our beloved city, the place we fell in love (and got married ourselves!) as possible. G had been more homesick for SD than even he knew, telling me that when he got off the plane at Lindbergh Field he instantly felt like he was at home.

(One day we'll return for good, baby. One day!)

There is much to do and explore in San Diego, so even though G lived there for five years and I for one, we can always find new places to go and see and taste and do. While we visited a few familiar haunts—Mission Bay, Pacific Beach—we checked out some new-to-us eateries, too. (In case it wasn't already abundantly clear: we love to eat and drink.) Here's a few photos, if you'd like to see...

Our friends (family, really) kindly opened up their BayHo house to us for the weekend. This is the view from their back deck. Isn't it incredible? Beats staying at a hotel! Great view and great company.

For dinner the first night, the day before the wedding, G and I went casual and visited a place we'd passed by so many times while living in San Diego but I had never actually been to: PB Fish Shop. It is a relatively small establishment on Garnet Avenue and, like always, the inside and outside patio were packed to the gills. (Bad pun intended.) But there is a good reason; the food is incredible. Super fresh fish prepared any way you like. I hadn't eaten all day so I went big and ordered a plate of fried Mahi Mahi (which I promptly doused in lemon juice and malt vinegar), coleslaw and macaroni salad. Despite the fact that the fillet was as big as a brick, I ate every bite. So good.

Friday was dedicated to wedding festivities, and on Saturday the newlyweds invited all their family and friends to a picnic at Sunset Point Park, located right on Mission Bay. The weather was perfect, it was an absolutely gorgeous day, and looking out on the water all I could think was, "I wish I was on a boat." Not usually an activity I long for but it was just so beautiful out. So I jokingly told the hubs to put "get a boat" on his retirement to-do list.

After soaking up every drop of sun at the park, a group of us were craving Mexican food so we took a short drive over to Casa Guadalajara in Old Town San Diego. G and I love historic Old Town; it's where we had our engagement photos taken! The vibrant neighborhood boasts many wonderful Mexican restaurants—I've been to Cafe Coyote, Miguel's Cocina, Fred's Mexican Cafe and Rockin' Baja—but I had never been to the colorful, large and prominently-located Casa Guadalajara. I was sadly still full from lunch so I just ordered a cup of the albondigas soup, but it was delicious. As were the margaritas. I definitely plan to return one day for a real meal.

On Monday, our final day in San Diego, we decided to go back to Pacific Beach since it was just down the road from our friends' house in BayHo. First, we stopped for brunch at Crushed a new, sweet little restaurant bar featuring killer drinks, small plates and of course, a selection of sweet and savory brunch bites. G ordered up a bloody mary while I simply had to try a mimosa flight. All three glasses were tasty but the Lavender Love easily edged out the Rosemary+Grapefruit and Blood Orange+Pomegranate concoctions. To eat, the hubs and I decided to satisfy our need for salt and sugar by sharing both The SoCal omelette and the absolutely divine Nutella Banana pancakes.

Completely stuffed, we decided to walk off breakfast with a stroll along the beach, by Crystal Pier. G took my best friend and I here when we visited him over Labor Day 2011, the weekend that revealed to us that we could be more than just friends. (The story of us, here, including a photo of us that we tried to recreate, below.) So it was a wonderful, full-circle kind of feeling walking the boardwalk hand in hand, thinking of all that has happened since that day three-and-a-half years ago. Eventually, we made it to The Wood (formerly known as Beachwood), so we popped in for one last drink, a bit longer to admire the view, before saying adios to San Diego and heading back to Simi Valley.

Wedding Wednesdays : Bright & Cheery San Diego I Do's

This past Friday, G and I had the pleasure of returning back to our beloved San Diego to witness the wedding of two dear friends, Casie and Clay, who tied the knot bayside in Marina Village.

Claysie, as the pair is affectionately called, is the sweetest, most fun-loving couple around, and their big day was a total reflection of their upbeat personalities. The color palette featured bright and cheery hues—pink, yellow, orange, blue, green... All the colors of the rainbow! Guests were even invited to pick up a pair of neon sunnies upon arrival, to don during the waterfront, outdoor ceremony. And they were needed, because it was a gorgeous, sunshiny SoCal afternoon. Casie and Clay could not have ordered more beautiful weather for their wedding day.

The ceremony and reception details had a rustic and handmade touch. Burlap-wrapped mason jars filled with an assortment of blooms lined the aisle. Casie wore a stunning lace gown with an open back, showing off her slim figure, and her bridesmaids complimented her dress in vibrant blue lace frocks. Inside the light and airy reception room, burlap runners, colorful napkins and candles dressed up the round white tables, which featured DIY centerpieces (similar to ours!) made in part by the bride and groom: wood slices topped with wildflower-filled mason jars. Clay even crafted the rustic, wood slice table numbers!

Other fun details included personalized cocktail napkins, a "wall" of photos illuminated by twinkle lights and a Jenga guestbook where friends and family could leave short words of wisdom or advice for the newlyweds on one of the game's wooden tiles. In addition to dancing up a storm, the hubby and I had a blast watching Casie and Clay warm up the crowd by playing the shoe game (wish we had done that!), and later playing Bingo, one of C&C's favorite pastimes and party games. It is now my firm opinion that no wedding is complete without a few rounds of Bingo.

It was a beautiful wedding full of love and joy and we were so happy to be a part of it. Now, a few photos from the day, if you'd like to see...

After the stress of planning our wedding last year, it was so wonderful to just be a guest. You can dance more, drink more, relax more! Luckily, Casie and Clay seemed to thoroughly enjoy themselves during their wedding though. That is my wish for every bride and groom. And we have one more wedding to attend before we head back to Florida: My best friend's wedding! You can bet I was taking mental notes when Casie's maid of honor gave her speech (she totally rocked it). Nine days to go and counting!