our wedding, part 3

the family

andrew and i were both lucky enough to marry both into awesome families. i might be biased, because i obviously think my family is fabulous... but i am pretty sure anj thinks they are great too. the barretts are also fabulous, though different from my family, they are so giving and gracious and it is so nice to have family close by. the best thing about it all is that our families get along great! we've had dinners and game nights and we are all best of friends. 

i'm so grateful to have two wonderful support systems. i love having two families to love!

not to mention, we both have fabulous extended families too, and plenty of wonderful friends.

check this great group. 

we are married. yippeee!

i will never be able to thank these two wonderful people enough. they have become some of my dearest friends and are full of wisdom and advice. they have given me such wonderful opportunities. i love you mom and dad!

 anj's parents are both wonderful people as well. i have loved getting to know them and growing closer with each visit. i love that they take such interest in my life and always care to know what i am up to, how i am doing in school, and how my family is. ruth, my mother-in-law, also makes the best rolls!

the barrett fam. missing the most recent addition, avery's darling husband curtis! 

 siblings are the best! we both have a younger sister then two younger brothers. 

 the bodines! no missing additions here. (jenn has yet to be swept up by some charming R.M. but who knows how long that will last..) i love these people so much, and i am so grateful for the close relationship we share.  i am also so grateful for how well andrew fits in! 

 more sibling shots. i love the relationship i have with each of these people, whether they are my actual siblings or andrew's. each has their own personality and they all are so fun to be around.

 what would family be without COUSINS? and especially girl cousins! such a great bunch.

 four generations! i felt so blessed to have my beautiful great grandma at my wedding, not many can say that! each of these beautiful ladies is such a great example to me.

 we love our grandparents, and these months of dating and marriage have allowed us to share special times with all of them. living in colorado for andrew's job let me spend time in the garden with my grandma hawes. waffle nights with the harts are some of the best, we can always count on them for laughs, and i consider them best friends. i love the sweet advice grandpa adams gave us about loving each other; i can always tell how much he loves his dear wife, who passed a little while back, and i know she was with us on this special day too. it's always fun to see grandpa barrett whenever we are in salt lake, he always seems so happy to see me and i love that. we are truly blessed to have such amazing grandparents. 

oh how i love them!

 it was the perfect day uniting these two very special families. i again am so grateful for all of their support and love. families are forever, and we really do have some of the best!

p.s. new addition curtis made it into this one! 

i love you all!

our wedding, part 2

just because these are some of my favorite photos from the weekend, i wanted to focus a whole post on

the bridal party

 ^this has got to be one of my favorite pictures. ever. so much joy. it might be faux joy, but nonetheless, it is great. 

first, the ladies.

[side note, i probably could have had 50 bridesmaids, there are so many girls i know and love!]

after an impossible search for matchy-match dresses, i finally decided to each her own! i tried to pick out dresses and accessories that fit each girl, and i was so happy with how it all turned out. how wonderful all these girls were, my best friend from high school, laura, even flew out for the occasion! it was interesting to see how the colors of our wedding morphed and changed as the months passed by. though very different from what i originally imagined, it ended up being perfect.

 next, the men.

the groomsmen were comprised of anj's high school "crew". they are all still around the great salt lake area, so it is fun to get to be with this "great group of guys" when we can. they love their jokes. they love sports. they love each other. you can count on them for a good time. and they all had brown shoes, truly a miracle! 

 i had so much fun with these girls. gotta love a good 'candid' laughing shot. they really are some of my best friends, some of the best examples, and some of the sweetest people i know. 

not sure if i can say the same for these folks... [only joking] but they are extremely good looking.

 this has got to be another fave. kissing = gross

 who jumps better? silly and sassy. i absolutely recommend fun people for bridal parties. check!

 group shots! i love, love, love that my photographer had us traverse this random field behind noah's. it made for some perfect pictures! i also love that five of my six bridesmaids were very much taken. 

 we are so grateful to you for being willing to be a part of our big day, wearing exactly what i told you too, being in countless pictures, dancing at the reception and helping out wherever you could. 

our wedding, part 1

         this very day my sweet husband and i have been married for five whole months! and what a wonderful five months they have been. three moves, five weddings, two crazy summer jobs, at least 2,000 miles of driving, one online class, the start of a new semester, 33.5 credit hours between the two of us, three cannon center dinners (thanks jenn!), and all kinds of other crazy and new adventures have brought us closer together every day. i love being married and i am so lucky to have a husband who loves me and shows it, who works so hard to support us, who takes school seriously, and who is just all around the best and makes me so happy. the past five months have truly been the best five months of my life, here's to many, many, many more.

okay, enough of the cheese.

in honor of five months, and considering it's about time, i want to take a few days to blog about our wedding. a seriously perfect day. so here we go.. part I

the reception

we broke from the norm and had our reception the night before, and it was such a good decision. it allowed us to have tons of time to prepare and then have tons of fun, and let us focus on the importance and the beauty of the wedding the next day.

our reception was everything i dreamed it could and would be. with the help of so many family members and friends, it all came together perfectly.

i'll start off with the details..

lanterns, twine globes and tissue paper flowers hung from every inch of the ceiling, and succulents and citrus made the floral arrangements really pop.

 shades of brown and beige, peach and sage, creamy whites and hints of yellow and orange made for a classy atmosphere that was equal parts elegant and fun. a sweet and savory crepe bar kept everyone satisfied. [over 1,000 crepes were made!]

it just looked perfect.

wedding mad libs, the photobooth, and sour patch watermelon favors were little details that i thought added a fun and unique touch. i loved having a chance to display our beautiful engagement and bridal pictures.

our first look..

despite a few close calls, i managed to keep the dress a surprise until right before the reception. though the tradition is technically for the groom to not see the dress until the wedding, we did the best we could. his first time seeing the dress was a perfect moment i want to remember forever. it was just me and anj (and the photographer) on the secluded balcony, and as i stepped out and he opened his eyes, i felt so beautiful and so happy. he was so surprised and excited! the pictures don't quite do it justice but it really is such a beautiful memory!

 now for the people... 

oh how grateful i am to all those who came out to support us, and those who sent their love from far away. (i'm also grateful to those who showed up the next night too... woops!) it was amazing to see how many people came to celebrate with us, and how much fun we all had. 

 so much joy and laughter. little girls dancing, litle boys being silly, it was fun for all ages!

 and i think everyone could feel the love. love for each other, love for us, and the love between me and andrew. so many hugs and smiles!

we had SUCH an amazing bridal party. they were all so fun, and helped out wherever they could.

plus they are all really good looking. (more to come on them)

now for the fun...

hello. our reception was so fun. it was a celebration. it was sunshine and happiness. and that is exactly what i wanted. i just wanted everyone to have so much fun! and i think, i hope, they all did.

i also wanted to dance. lots. we hired a live jazz band and i really think that made it! everyone was dancing and showing off their best moves.

our first dance was perfect. we decided to dance to a styx song, lady, and we asked the band to rev it up for us. they told me that in their rehearsal it had "evolved into a beautiful latin love song", and we had no idea what to expect. the latin vibe was a little random, but it fit us. i loved dancing with my very-soon-to-be husband and it was just so fun. we laughed a lot. we're really good dancers.

there was so much dancing...

and so much love!

 dancing with my dad was also a special moment. i think it was the first and last time, and i loved it.

 i'm not sure if noah's has seen a better party. it really was a blast.

 even up to our 'faux' exit.

so many pictures, all take by the lovely Rebekah Westover, who did a magnificent job. i think she really captured how much fun everyone had. thanks for letting me document the celebration of our marriage. hopefully it wasn't too much. 

happy five months to us.

keep portland weird. plus wedded bliss.

part I

leaving my husband for a day or two isn't my favorite thing, in fact, it might be my least.

so it was a great debate whether or not i should leave for portland a day early in order to have a fun day of sightseeing with my friends brandalyn and shelby. (you can ask anj, it really was a GREAT debate) in the end i decided it would be okay, and though i missed my anj quite a bit, it really was a wonderful day! so here are first some images from my little portland getaway...

flowers and green everywhere!

instagrammin'

 we hit the food carts for lunch. apparently it's the 'thing' to do. 

cheap, tasty food from a cart? in every variety. i'll take it.

 then we did one thing i was probably most excited about... we went to voodoo doughnuts!

the line was out the door, but it was worth the wait.

 i might have been a little TOO excited about eating a doughnut.. but not as excited as the people behind us in line. 

 i couldn't resist the rainbow swirl. and the maple bacon? surprisingly tasty.

don't forget about those famous glitter brick walls.

 then we ran across the street to escape the creepy monkey dancing man and to take a picture with this classic sign!

portland to me: bikes, crazy monkey men, food carts, fun. love it!

part II

welcome to part II, where i talk about my best friend's wedding. i am so excited for my dearest friend mindy, because she was sealed for time and eternity to her darling love robbie in one of the most beautiful temples and surrounded by family and friends. they are so loved! it was the perfect wedding: she was absolutely beautiful, he looked so handsome, the dress was exquisite, the reception was the perfect mix of elegance and fun, there was even a fake getaway on a golf cart and a real getaway on a motorcycle! they are now off on a new adventure in hawaii, but until mindy decides she needs to start blogging, i figured i better share some pictures of this wondrous weekend. i love love. i love this couple. i love that my husband came to the reception. and who doesn't love weddings? 

we started off the morning making bridesmaids bouquets!

and then felt the joy as mind and robb were sealed and then greeted by all kinds of fam ad friends.

loved being with these beautiful ladies. 

 but most of all seeing how happy mindy was! (and is!)

 fake golf cart getaway.

 so in love!

 don't they just look good?

 had to have the bride take a shot of the post-party crew!

 the next night was their beautiful reception back in washington!

 little homemade details made it so fun!

the old marrieds and the newest newlyweds!

 can't lie my favorite part was probably the disco ball hanging from the basketball hoop..

 and then they escaped by motorcycle and rode it all the way to hawaii! 

it was such a blast and i am so excited for their new adventure! much love to you both.

sorry for such an overwhelming post. it probably should have been two, but it was all one weekend, right?