Shannon's Wedding 10.13.12

One of my best friends and roommates from college got married and I got to be a bridesmaid.  The wedding was at the LDS Temple in Mesa, Arizona.  Except for some ill-fitting shoes, the wedding was beautiful and the weather was just right.

Mesa Temple

Eric and Shannon, the happy couple

Bridesmaids

Shannon and I

What a gorgeous cake!

Can you believe this groom's cake?!

Congratulations Shannon & Eric!

Rachel's Wedding

My sister's roommate Rachel got married in California and I tagged along.  It was great to see friends and family and have a mini-vacation.

Beautiful Newport Beach LDS temple

 

Rachel & Kane, the gorgeous bride and groom

Me and Lindsay

Lindsay and cousin Kellyn--they were bridesmaids

Me and Lindsay with cousin Catherine

 

 We loved seeing Cath and catching up on tv, movies, and her california adventures.  It's a bummer that we don't live closer!

First time at Sprinkles.

Gelato next door--I've never seen so many flavors!

Dying over the cuteness.

I got red velvet and coconut.  I enjoyed them slowly and loved every bit.

 I had lunch at Bruxie with my college roommate, Whitney and had such a great time catching up.  We talked blogs--including her awesome blog, Eat Sleep Cuddle, fashion, and food, and ate amazing waffle sandwiches.  And of course, we did not take any pictures.

 I stayed with my Aunt Valorie and Uncle Brad in Fountain Valley and got to take a ride in my uncle's Studebaker.

                I also got to see my D.C. roommate Meg and finally meet her little guy, Boston.

                                                      This little flirt is the cutest ever.


 Side note: this was the first time I used a rental car and the first time I went through a toll booth.  Turns out I paid the toll incorrectly and my rental car company gave me up to the feds.  I explained what happened and they dropped all of the charges.  Yay!

But seriously, California was awesome and did a pretty good job of making me want to live there. 

kellyn's wedding

My cousin Kellyn got married in the Oakland California LDS Temple.  I was able to fly down with my mom and dad and cousin.  My sister was also a bridesmaid.  It was a quick weekend but so great to see family and celebrate Kellyn & Glen. 

Kellyn & Glen

Oakland Temple

Kellyn & Bridemaids

Wedding Party

View from the top of the Temple

Such a beautiful dress!

i'm not getting married, but . . .

. . . i was doing some spring cleaning today on my computer, browsing through my files of photos i've grabbed from various websites and stumbled across this post from alyson at unruly things and remembered how in love i am with her ring.

quick detour/explanation: in college, when girls would look at rings and proclaim "this is the one i want" and say it loudly enough for all roommates to hear so that future fiances could be steered in the appropriate direction, i never had that moment. nothing ever won me over. this might have been a little bit because after seeing "Blood Diamond," the traditional diamond solitaire felt inappropriate. i eventually decided i was probably more of a pearl person, but i still wasn't super in love with the idea.

back to alyson's post. seeing how stunning a nontraditional engagement ring can be inspired me to do a little searching and find some "this is so me" options.



[alyson's ring. the hammered gold band, the smoky grey stone? sigh.]


[grey diamond ring from erie basin.com]


[black diamond ring from melissajoymanning.com]


now, who knows? by the time my opinion on engagement rings actually matters, i will have probably changed my mind three more times. but at least i know what i want today. that's worth mentioning.