June 2015 Recap

Are you ready for another photo-heavy post? June was a really busy month for us with lots happening.

At the beginning of the month, we visited Ohio. 

Shortly after getting back, I ran my first half marathon and braved the expo the day before with the kiddos at lunch/nap time. Madeleine was unsure of the gecko, and Elliott was focused on his snack.

It was the hottest June on record, so we spent a fair bit of time doing this. 

Elliott discovered built-in musical instruments, and Madeleine happily joined in the (loud) fun.

Madeleine loved picking (wild) raspberries from our backyard at every opportunity. I love anything that bears fruit and requires nothing of me. 

We celebrated Father's Day by inviting a favorite chef to make dinner for us and another couple. Yum is an understatement.

"I need some help, Mummy. Elliott wants to wear these." And so it begins.

We thoroughly enjoyed hosting our cousins (my first cousin and his family), including taking them to our wedding site at Gas Works Park. 

Around town, Elliott was incredibly patient to adjust naps or take them on the go.

Standing on the steps where we said our vows had a lot of extra meaning given that it was the day of the (awesome) SCOTUS decision clarifying marriage. 

The birthday girl jumped for joy at riding a ferry for her birthday. 

Once she opened her bike helmet, she refused to take it off, even during birthday cake time.

I will never tire of this. 

...or this.

Summer, must you go so fast?

Summer Update I

About a month ago, I shared our summer bucket list. We've ticked a few things off of our list and had a few non-list adventures as well. Here's a look at how our summer is shaping up so far:

• ZOO: We took Madeleine to the zoo for her birthday. She slept in that morning, so we didn't get as much pre-nap zoo time as we had anticipated...and we got caught in an utter downpour (unusual for Seattle and very unusual for Seattle in summer) as we were trying to make our way back to the car. We came away without a single photo, but it was really fun and somewhere I expect us to revisit...maybe during maternity/paternity leave time. (Ok, now I'm getting really ambitious, huh?)

• FIVE YEARS OF MARRIAGE: George and I celebrated our anniversary with our annual dinner at Canlis. Each of us had independently contacted the restaurant to make special arrangements, so I was greeted with a beautiful long stem rose at table number 1 and the pastry chef had prepared a unique version of pavlova (filled with berry compote!) for our dessert. Perhaps the most special moment was the one that we couldn't possibly have planned - it happened when my eyes filled with tears because the pianist was playing Forrest Gump Suite, the very same notes to which I walked down the aisle and married my one and only five short years ago. 

• HAVE A NIGHT AWAY: We decided a while back that our anniversary would be the perfect time to take one night in the city while our babysitter stayed home with Madeleine. I can't speak for George, but I found it remarkably easy to fall back into our couple (rather than family) dynamic with constant chattering and plenty of doing nothing at all. Because we were downtown on the night of the super moon, we went back to Kerry Park (where we took some of our wedding photos) to join the hoards of people checking out the best view in the city. Of course, we were both happy to come home to a very happy toddler the next day...and even happier to learn that she had no separation anxiety from us (after a rough week in childcare). 

• LAVENDER FARM PHOTO SHOOT: I chose the hottest part of one of the hottest days of this hot summer to suggest we head down to the lavender farm for photos, but it was still great fun. As soon as we opened the car doors, the beautiful lavender aroma filled my nostrils. We had a nice time wandering around the lavender before enjoying some ice cream in the shade and then running through the sprinkler, and we even got to share it with Grandma Pat! This is truly one of Woodinville's hidden gems! 

What does the bee say?

• BAKE A PEACH/PEACH-BERRY PIE: Peaches are just now in season enough to make a pie, and this past weekend was the perfect time to do so as we had Kiwi cousins visiting from Australia. I'm still hoping to make another one before the end of the summer. 

• MADELEINE'S HORSE ENCOUNTER: The day before her birthday, I took Madeleine to the barn where our friend, Jessica, boards her horse. Jessica graciously showed us around the barn and introduced us to all the horses. Madeleine wasn't quite ready to sit on any of the horses, but she was happy to touch the gear (saddle, reins, stirrups, etc.), learn about what they were eating, master the proper way to pet a horse's nose, and practice talking to them. I caught this cute video of her calling horses, though I was too busy keeping her from getting too cuddly to take any other photos. 

• HOST GRANDMA PAT: Madeleine's Grandma Pat came to visit for her birthday, and she got to enjoy lots of cuddles and Grandma reading time. It wasn't on the list, but it sure has been one of the highlights of Madeleine's summer! 

• PLAY AT ALKI BEACH: Also not on the list but a summer highlight was the morning we spent at Alki Beach playing with our friends, Kelly, Cooper, and Nicholas. The day was far cooler than we anticipated, but that didn't stop Madeleine from wanting to dive into Puget Sound. I was really fortunate that we went on a day George had off from work so that he could chase her and swoop in after her just before she got completely drenched. 

How are you spending your summer thus far?  

Better News

I have good news for a change...

• David was released from the hospital today and is now recovering under my mother's watchful eye. He'll be returning for regular check-ups to get through this round of healing and then schedule the next surgeries.

• The bar exam begins two weeks from today. Eeek! These last two weeks give me a half day to one day per subject to make sure I have everything down...and for some subjects, I definitely need every minute. You won't be hearing much, if anything, from me until it's over as I've taken myself off of Facebook and generally out of communication to focus on my finishing touches.

• George and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary this past weekend. On Saturday night, we returned to Canlis for dinner, a tradition we hope to keep for many years to come. On Sunday, we spent the evening at a riesling tasting at Chateau Ste. Michelle. We had an excellent time tasting riesling (and some sauvignon blanc and pinot noir) from around the world, though I admit we spent a lot of time hovering around the New Zealand tent and a fair bit of time at the Oregon table. Most of all, I loved getting to hang onto my sweetie's arm all night. Am I a lucky gal or what?!

What do I do with my dress?

Photos by Evantide Photography. Cropping by ALKS.

My wedding dress is still hanging...ok, jammed...in the closet in my craft room. I'm still undecided on what I should do with it now that our wedding day has come and gone.

I love the idea of doing a trash-the-dress photo shoot, especially something fun like snowboarding or SCUBA diving. However, it seems a shame to just destroy the dress, and would I just throw it away after the photo shoot? While I'm not crazy about totally destroying my dress, I'm also unsure about cleaning and preserving my dress. It would need a lot of cleaning after being stepped on by my loving groom and being dragged around Kerry Park and Gas Works Park. Even if I do preserve it, is it ever going to be put to use again? I'm certain that any daughter I might have is not going to want to wear my dress. If I'm only going to keep the dress in a box for the rest of my life, why should I spend more than half of what the dress cost and use environmentally harmful chemicals to preserve it? I am totally willing to donate it to someone who can't afford a dress. But, let's face it: my dress wasn't that expensive, and it's going to cost someone almost as much to clean and alter the dress as it cost to buy the dress new.

I've heard some pretty creative ideas for the dress, like making a Christmas tree skirt or two out of it. As much as I loved the pick-up skirt on my dress, I'm not sure that I want a "pick-up" tree skirt. I've also heard that it could be made into a christening gown for our future children. For a number of reasons, this isn't really in the running. This morning, Wedinator gave me another creative idea for my dress:

Source

In all seriousness, I know that I need to do something with my dress soon before it starts to yellow. At this point, I'm seriously considering cutting out some of the best parts of the dress to save (for what, I have no idea), and throwing away the rest, or else donating the dress. Help! What did you do with your wedding dress?

Be Thankful Every Day

George's mum has given us permission to share her reading from our wedding day (below). It was such an honor to have our mothers take such an important role in the ceremony uniting us as a married couple.

Be Thankful Every Day
by Patricia Harvey

This is a special day, when two are joined as one
I love my new daughter, Amanda, I’ll always love you George
Care for each other, be faithful till the end
Follow what’s in your heart, may you always stay best friends

It’s the start of your new life , as husband & wife
Hope the good days outshine the bad
May laughter brighten the sad
Know I’m here for you, to help or just talk to
Believe in each other
I’ll always be your Mother (Mum)

The day will be here soon, when you’ll have children to love
God will watch over you, love and comfort you
Pray for patience and wisdom, to give each other your best
I’ll always be your mother, it fills my life with happiness
My tears are filled with love, for you & Amanda
You are a caring son, I’ll forever be proud of you
Cherish Amanda, always share your love

It’s the start of your new life
Believe in each other and
Be thankful every day you have together

Pray every day
For Christ is always with you.
God be your comfort, your strength
God be your hope and support
God be your light and your way
And the Blessing of God,
Creator, Redeemer and Giver of life,
Remain with you now and forever.

Amen

First Look at Professional Photos

Did we mention that Aaron and Meg of Evantide Photography rock? They do! They happily shot for 12 hours straight on our wedding morning/day/night, and they've managed to pull together a lovely collection of photos for a sneak peek on their blog in less than three days. I'll rave more about these two later. In the mean time, head over to their blog and check it out!!

Evantide Photography Blog

Musings

Some of you requested a copy of our vows and the heartfelt presentations our mothers gave. We'll start with my mom's words:

Musings by Janie Gildersleeve

Musings are defined as calm, lengthy reflections; the process of giving serious thought to something. Musings best describes my words for you today, George and Amanda.

You have decided that your love for one another is important enough to make a life long commitment. Take your commitment seriously. Cherish and honor your commitment. Make your relationship a life priority.

I challenge you today with two scriptures:

The first is Ecclesiastes 4:9 & 10. “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their work. For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion.” Focus on and learn from the positive examples you both have in your lives. You, Amanda, have grandparents in their 61st year of marriage. Be patient with one another. Although you have been together for years, there will be many new discoveries in the days and years ahead. Grow personally. Grow as a couple. Keep romance alive. Be best friends. Be encourager's of one another. Gary Chapman, in his book The Five Love Languages, describes couple interactions and ways of relating to our spouse. Learn each others' love language....do you love to be touched?....do you more value a gift?....do you most appreciate words of affirmation or the gift of another's time?...what about being surprised by a chore being done without asking? I challenge you, George, to ask Amanda---as David often asks me----these three questions. What can I do to be a better husband? What can I do to make your life easier? How can I help you? Amanda, ask the same of George.

The second verse I give you as a challenge is Ephesians 4:26. It simply says, “Do not let the sun go down on your anger.” Don't be afraid to apologize. Likewise, learn to forgive. Communicate. Communicate. Communicate. Talk about differences and disagreements as they surface. Deal with them and don't let them fester. Also, celebrate and share your joys, successes and accomplishments. Work hard at your marriage but don't allow your marriage to become work. Steven Covey, author of 7 Habits for Highly Effective People, speaks of emotional bank accounts and how relationally we should strive to keep this account balance high. Deposits are made by acts of kindness and acceptance as well as words of praise. Make regular deposits in your marital bank account. George, Amanda continually praises you for your support of her and the kindnesses & respect you show her daily. You already have a head start on this account!

Amanda, you have always been my traveler. By your picture in the family room is a plaque that says, “Though distance may come between a mother and her child, the bond that holds them close will never weaken. The love they share will never be more than a memory apart.” Amanda and George, wherever you go, wherever life takes you, we will continue to make and share special memories. God bless your marriage. I love you both.

Love, Mama

Groom's View

Anybody who reads this blog regularly will know I don't usually post... OK, this would be the first time ever. (I have a draft ranting about the bathroom remodels somewhere, but I never finished it). Our wedding seems a suitable occasion for me to break my silence.

ALKS gave a good synopsis of events and will no doubt be posting some of the details, including some of the vendors who did an absolutely amazing job on the day.

All in all everything went perfectly (well, less a few hitches with transportation, but, shhhh, don't tell ALKS). The weather could not have turned out better, my concerns about crowds at the park getting in the way turned out to be totally unfounded, the limo and bus drivers knew how to deal with the circuitous route to Canlis, ...

While great, none of this stuff really matters... what is important is that ALKS and I were able to celebrate our commitment, our relationship, and our marriage with the friends and family who mean so much to us. She is a wonderful, wonderful woman and I cannot think of anything better than being married to her, and spending the rest of our lives together.

Wedding Synopsis

I hesitate to review the wedding so soon, but I don't know when I'm next going to have the opportunity write about it. This morning, I was reminded that my summer exam is just more than 10 days away...so I need to concentrate on that starting tomorrow morning. In the mean time, here is a very general overview of our day:

Morning and Pictures

On Friday night, George stayed at our house with Pierre, Peter, and Heath while I stayed downtown at Hotel Andra with Denaye. From all accounts, the boys had a pretty smooth morning. They ran ahead of schedule and arrived downtown well before 12noon. Denaye and I had coffee and breakfast with my mom and George's mum, Pat, picked up the flowers, had our hair done, and had our make-up done. One o'clock arrived quickly!

On the way down the elevator, I was suddenly filled with emotion. George was waiting just a few steps away with his back to me, and I could not hold back tears any longer. We shared a tender moment, and then joined our wedding party for a walk through the lobby filled with our family. It was picture time!

My cousin, Kristi, took this photo from the lobby below during our first look:

First, we went to Kerry Park. It wasn't part of our original plan, but we couldn't pass up the best view in the city on one of the clearest days of the summer. I can't wait to see the photos!! After that, we went to Gasworks to take lots of pictures on the hill and around the equipment. By the time we'd been taking pictures in the hot sun for two hours, we were ready for a rest. On one hand, I wish I would have felt "fresh" for the ceremony, but I think the reduced nerves of having seen each other was worth it.

Ceremony

The guys took on their greeting role while I went to the limo for air conditioning and a lot of nerve control. This was, by far, the slowest part of the day for me. It seemed to take forever for 4:45pm to arrive! Finally, our friend, Theresa, signaled that it was time to line up...so, I joined the parents, lined them up, and prepared for the longest walk of my life. Really - the aisle was way too long. By the time I approached the chairs, I desperately wanted to break into a run...but I resisted.

Our friend, dive instructor, and real estate agent, Fred, officiated over the ceremony. Although Pierre tells me that a nice man in a boat drove by just after the start and yelled "don't do it," I didn't really see anything during the ceremony aside from George's eyes. Fred started with a nice message, which was followed by tender readings by our mothers. We asked each of them to prepare something as part of the ceremony, and they both came through with fantastic and emotional readings. Yes, I lost several tears. From there, George and I shared our surprise declarations of love for each other, said our I do's, recited our vows, and exchanged rings. It felt both unique and like we were joining a large club. I feel even more like that with our shiny new rings. Cool!

Our photographers, Aaron and Meg of Evantide Photography, took control to capture a few (undoubtedly fantastic) photos of the entire group and a collection of family photos. It all went smoothly and more quickly than I expected. In that time, though, the sky filled with beautiful clouds, so George and I called our grandparents and posed for an extra set of photos while everyone else went on to the reception cocktail hour.

Reception

We arrived at Canlis with just a few minutes to enjoy the final round of drinks and appetizers before sitting down for dinner. As usual, everything was fantastic. I was particularly excited by the surprise sangria and the short ribs.

The evening included soup (seafood chowder), salad (Canlis salad without egg), choice of salmon or filet mignon, and fresh pavlova. All of the food was delicious and enjoyed by the masses. We also had pinot grigio and cabernet savignon flowing. As always, Canlis provided superb service. No one had water glasses less than 100% full; the whole party was served within 5 minutes of each other for each course; and each table was served in its entirety at once. They really took care of us!

We had some spectacular speeches as well. Peter was the master of ceremonies, and he did a great job reading the crowd and playing to it. Both of our fathers gave speeches, along with Pierre and Denaye. I laughed a lot, cried a lot, and even put my hands on my face...so it was a great success!

Truly, I felt like the time between arriving at and leaving the reception was five minutes rather than five hours. Everyone told me that it'd fly, and they were 100% accurate. We did, however, get a chance to eat our dinner, so that was a real treat. Now, I just have to find a way for us to re-create having many of our friends in a beautiful room more often!

I'm not the one to ask for a neutral opinion of the day, but I thought it went off fabulously. Aside from not getting to spend much time with most people and having the day go by so quickly, I felt like George and I were really able to enjoy the day. I've been assured that marriage is different than dating or engagement, so I know we'll be in for some changes. Nonetheless, I also feel like we've been seriously committed for a while now, so yesterday was just as much about celebrating that commitment as it was about starting a new commitment.

I look forward to passing along photos and some of the details we included in our special day.

Pre-Wedding Week

We had a fabulous time on our wedding day yesterday, but more on that later.

The week before the wedding was full of friends, family, and the creation of the most amazing memories! It was great to spend time with our out-of-town friends and local friends, and I really enjoyed watching the two groups become friends in their own right. We also enjoyed introducing our parents to one another and watching them bond.

Since I can hardly begin to describe all that we managed to fit into the week, I'll just tell the story with photos (excluding our respective nights out).

Seattle summer:

A visit or two to the ceremony site:
A soaking wet hike:

Many good meals, good wine, and good laughs:
Rock Band fun:

Checking out bridges, buildings, and other engineered structures:

Bleeding Heart

Although most of our life, at the moment, revolves around the wedding, there are other things that also need our attention...like the garden. This morning, I was putting cow poo and mulch on our flowers, and I noticed our first bloom in the perennial border that Pat planted for us. It's a fuchsia, but at first I thought it was a bleeding heart.

I asked Pat to include a bleeding heart and a few other flowers from my childhood in our garden; I'm so glad that she did. Bleeding hearts remind me of my Uncle Wayne. When I was a kid, I spent time during the summer on the farm where he and my Aunt Sherry raised sheep. I remember going home from one particular visit with the start of a bleeding heart, though I never had success getting it to grow.

In July of 1996, Uncle Wayne passed away suddenly and unexpectedly from a heart attack. There are times in my life when his absence feels overwhelming. Over the past few months, I've been thinking about him and how his nieces were like the daughters he never had; he called us his "gurls." This has been a very special year for us with Kristi's wedding a couple of months ago and mine next week. Although the emptiness left by Uncle Wayne's death makes my heart ache, I'm so glad that Aunt Sherry is able to be part of our special days. Although it's the fuchsia, and not the bleeding heart, that is blooming, I still feel like Uncle Wayne is watching us from afar and smiling down upon us.


**UPDATE**
My mom assures me that the bleeding heart Uncle Wayne gave me years ago was a success and still lives and blooms at the west end of her house. So, apparently Uncle Wayne is watching out all the way from Ohio.

Monumental

Today was a monumental day in the life of our weddidng. First, I got a call from my dear cousin, Shannon, wishing me happy 10 days until the wedding. Woah!

Next, I finished the last wedding craft project: our just-in-case-we-forget-our-vows books (a few pages of white cardstock in between black cardstock, laced like the programs). It wasn't a significant project, which is why I left it to the end. Perhaps they'll find a place in our wedding scrapbook, since we'll each handwrite our surprise love declarations, but we could certainly get married without having made these little guys. It still feels really good to know that I've reached the end. We are soooo excited for the wedding that it's nice to have some light at the end of the tunnel!

Most importantly, George and I are now the proud owners of a license to get married in King County. That's right - with our signatures and those of our officiant and witnesses (following the declaration that we each take the other as husband/wife and following the three-day waiting period), we will officially be married.

Marriage is a fundamental right and, we believe, a civil right. Because not all people are afforded this very precious right, we appreciate it that much more. It was shockingly easy to procure the license; we just had to pay $64 and fill out a very basic form with name, address, parents' name, and a little declaratory paragraph. We hope that one day (soon), it'll be that easy for any individual to gain access to this very important right, regardless of gender or sexual orientation.

Brilliant Sun

I've said I'm not going to check the weather for our wedding day until just before the wedding because there is no need to worry about something I can't change. However, upon realizing that the wedding is LESS THAN TWO WEEKS away (thus within the 15-day forecast), I decided to take a quick look. Knowing that our forecasts usually change right up to the day and are rarely accurate, I told myself not to worry if the forecast was for rain...or for high temps...or for low temps...or really anything other than perfect.

Look at what I found:


Not just sunny, but brilliant sun. Not too hot. Not too cold. PERFECT. I feel like I just checked my grades expecting a C and ending up with an A. You better believe that I will be keeping my fingers crossed that our day actually ends up with the predicted weather. Please...

Guestbook Forewarning

Start thinking of the advice, memories, and stories you want to share with us!

Don't worry - we'll provide you with some paper, pens, and even a camera at the reception.

Labor of Love

Every wedding (at least every wedding that includes DIY elements) has a labor of love - you know, that project that seems so simple but ends up taking a ton of time or just generally being difficult and will be worth it as long as it's appreciated. Meet our programs:

The design process evolved over months until I had just the right wording, font, layout, size, etc. When I finally decided to take the plunge and print to cardstock, everything started out really smoothly. There were no major printing issues. In fact, I started printing after dinner one night (7:30pm) and had all of the pages printed and cut into their respective pieces before going to bed that night. Heck, I thought, if it's this easy, I should be able to assemble them in the morning before I stop for lunch. Wrong.

In the process of assembling these babies, I've killed two (two!) hole punches and spent way too much quality vision trying to get all of my holes aligned and trying to weave the ribbon when the holes weren't perfect (most of the time).

That was early last week. Tonight, I won. I mean, I finished the programs. Now that they're all resting in their home-for-a-few-more-weeks, I feel significantly better about this whole wedding planning thing.

In case you're curious, here are the final statistics relating to the programs:

50 programs
7 layers of paper per program (x 50 programs = 350 layers of paper)
3 holes per program (x punched in 3 sets x 50 programs = 450 holes punched)
1 ribbon per program (x 50 programs = 50 ribbons...each double weaved and trimmed)
25 pieces of paper x 2 cuts per page x 7 layers of paper = 350 cuts to get paper the right size
1 large hole punch per program
1 sticker per program

At least one guest who really appreciates them = it's all worth it.

Ribbon Graveyard

I seem to always end up with the same amount (too little) left at the end of a roll:

Showered!

This morning, my friend, Samantha, threw me a fabulous bridal shower with some of my local girls. I always enjoy the opportunity to hang out with friends from different circles at the same time, so it was quite the treat! We ate, drank mimosas, played fun games, opened presents, made a faux bouquet for the rehearsal, and played with Sam and Brian's new dog, Gizmo. Thank you, all!

Here are some photos to tell the story:

Above: Amanda, Jeni, Anne

Note: Jessica was behind the camera, so we missed capturing her beautiful smile. :-(
Below: Sam, Theresa, Seon