Trip Update Status

So several of you (the whole two that read this thing) have asked when I was planning on updating the blog with info about our big trip. The answer= this weekend! Be prepared, my friends, for a post on each major location. We took over a 1000 photos so it's going to be a challenge for me to narrow it down to a select few. :/ I've skimmed through the pictures and, as much as I love them, nothing can truly capture all the beauty that surrounded us. I can't wait to share them with you!

Okay, so I couldn't wait. Here are three:

Chris on the world famous Old Course at St. Andrews. This is the "birthplace of golf" so Chris was SO happy we made the detour to visit. :)

In West Princes Street Gardens. Edinburgh Castle sitting atop the rock behind me.

Tower Bridge in London

MANY MORE TO COME!!! :)

Preparing for Ryan's Big Shindig!

So, my beautiful buddy, Ryan, is having a big birthday celebration to ring in her 29th year and she asked if I could help with one of the many cute ideas she had for her bash. Basically, she is going to have a photo of herself holding a paper with each guest's name on it (as shown above and below), place it in a frame and that will the name place card for everyone. Great idea, right?!

Chris, Ryan and I drove to downtown McKinney and had our shoot at various locations in the square. Although we started a tad later than we hoped (meaning I had to take more than half of the photos in the dark with my flash), I'm still pleased with the results. Now I just need to finish editing them so they'll be ready for her party next weekend.

We can't wait, Ryan!!! :) 9/9/09 and 29! Woo! Hoo!

Singing and Playing

So the weekend of August 7th - 9th was pretty busy for us! To kick off the weekend, I had a gig with my band at Watters Creek, an outdoor shopping area in Allen, TX that Friday. If you live in the North Dallas area or in the surrounding burbs, and haven't already, you should definitely check Watters Creek out. Lots of fun shops, restaurants and live music on Friday nights.

The band was set up to play outside near the creek across from some restaurants with patios and a lawn where the audience could sit, listen and have a picnic if they so desired. I was a little concerned with performing in the heat (it was 99 degrees outside that day), but we were fortunate enough to get shade from the building behind us.

I was so excited to have so many familiar faces in the audience! As much as it makes me nervous to have my friends and family in the crowd, it also makes me feel special. :) So a big thank you to all of you who went to the show. Hope you enjoyed it because we (the band) had a fantabulous time!

Julianne, McKenzie and Tyler, our adorable nieces and nephew, watching the show

Matt and Jamie Saathoff (Christopher's sis and bro-in-law), Chris' mommy, and JD and Misty Thayer (Christopher's sis and bro-in-law) sitting on the lawn during the gig

PS- I witnessed a duck murder another duck (the one I had, in the brief time we were there, deemed my favorite due to his swollen, yet cute beak that wouldn't close all the way...it gave him character). :( Chris tried to save him, but it was all in vain. The poor thing had a deformity and had to be put down that night. Poor Rupert (yes, we named him), rest in peace my little ducky friend.

Chris holding Rupert before the vet took him

Ryan came in town that weekend as well (in time to make some of the gig, too). Friday we had dinner at Cheesecake Factory (yum!) after the gig. Saturday Chris and I had Mattie's shoot in the morning so Ryan chilled out with Shamrock and began getting ready for her big photo op (a separate post for that coming soon). After her session, we rushed home, changed and met with our friend, Scott Caldwell. Scott's an old friend from high school who now lives in Plano. After hanging at the reunion a few weeks ago, we vowed to make more of an effort to see each other since we live so close to one another. Ryan's visit gave us a great excuse to reunite once again. :) Sunday I worked on Mattie's pictures and continued to finalize the details of our trip while Ryan picked out her favorite photos for her party. Later that day we all had dinner at Chuy's.

Chris and I had a great last weekend in the states with our friends and family. Ireland, Scotland and England coming up next!!!! :)

DUBLIN!

Hi, all! Well, Chris, my parents and I made it safely here to Ireland! Don't want to spoil all the stories, so I'm not going to go into all the details right now. Just wanted to pop in to say hello to everyone! Wish you could all be here to join in the fun! See you when we get back! :)

Mattie's Turning ONE!

So next week Miss Matelyn Vietti will be turning the big 0-1! Matt and Ginny (her parents and our friends) asked if we would be interested in taking a couple photos for her upcoming birthday bash. Being that she was our very first model, Chris and I had to do something to show our appreciation so we, of course, said yes!

As usual, she was her lovely, bubbly self and totally working it for the camera. I'm still working on the last few, but here's a taste of her birthday shoot :

Not to brag, but I think this photo deserves to be in a baby ad. She is SO CUTE!

Trust me, there are SO many good shots of her, but my blog was not cooperating with me in getting them loaded so I just picked my two personal favs...

Thanks to Matt and Ginny for allowing Chris and I to be such a big part in capturing Mattie's special moments. :)

Having Our Cake and Eating It, Too!

Although I had been warned by a few married friends that the whole experience was overrated, I still wanted to save the top tier of our wedding cake and eat it on our first anniversary. I mean, come on...it's tradition! So Chris and I stuck to our guns and kept our cake in our freezer for the entire year.

Yesterday being our big day, we were finally able to see how the cake held up over the past year. I was worried about how it would look after being thawed, but I was pleasantly surprised with how well preserved it was. See for yourself~



So being the "photo whore" that I am, I suggested we set up the camera and take a few photos to capture this momentous occasion. Below are photos from our little cake shoot. :)

Our official anniversary photo

Digging in

Our cheesy shot...I'm not ashamed of it ;)

To all those yet to be married readers, I would definitely recommend keeping the top tier of your cake, if at all possible. Ours was actually still pretty tasty and it was nice to be able to, literally, have a piece of something from our wedding day! :)

One Year Ago...

Chris and I said, "I Do!"

Our first kiss as a married couple :)

I can't believe a year has passed since Chris and I became husband and wife. It's a strange way to describe it, but when I think about our wedding, it does seem like quite a bit of time has gone by since planning for and being a part of our big day. On the other hand, it feels like Chris and I just got married a couple of months ago...

Thinking back to our wedding day, I can't tell you how relaxed and calm I was. Even when my hair appointment was pushed back an hour and I knew there was a chance we'd get to the Cathedral late, I never really freaked out. I knew that marrying Chris would be the best thing I could ever do, so all the small things that occurred just went by without really phasing me.

I still look back with a few "shoulda, coulda, woulda's" but all in all I think Chris and I (with a little help from our families) put together a great event. I admire what we achieved as a couple, as partners, to make our dream wedding come as close to reality as it did.

Now on to what I really wanted to reflect on: my marriage and my wonderful husband. I really am lucky. I don't think I could have imagined a better man to spend my life with. Chris loves me with all of his heart and does everything he can to show it. I mean, how many gals can say that about their husbands? He is the perfect person for me in every way. Of course we have our little spats from time to time, but, after several years of being together (ten in February) we've learned how to work out our issues fairly quickly (which is SOOOO nice).

I am truly grateful to have someone so amazing in my life. A hubby who really gets me, understands and appreciates my quirkiness. I really cherish our relationship and hope that it continues to get better with time.

Christopher Lance- I love you, babe!!! Happy first anniversary as husband and wife!!! :) I really am lucky...

A few photos from ONE YEAR AGO TODAY (my own little trip down memory lane)...

We did it! FINALLY MARRIED!

The Rubios and Castillos united
Our first dance...
Cutting the cake
Driving into the proverbial sunset...