Receiving this gem this morning was the perfect start to my day...
Kristine & Nicholas Wedding Highlights - Our Lady of the Rosary & The Prado Balboa Park from nr3videoproductions on Vimeo.
Of course I love each and every second of it, but there just a few snippets that make me smile, laugh and cry just a bit more.
1:06- The I Do's. Probably my most favorite of Nick and I since it is essentially what the whole day was about.
1:37- The sassy look I give to Nick while we're kneeling on the altar just makes me giggle. Through all the emotions, fancy clothes, rehearsed lines and fake eye lashes...in that moment we forget it all and are just ourselves.
1:52- Taking the picture underneath the Little Italy sign was so fun! Our videographer, John, had the guys walk out into the street first to "create a wall" and stop traffic, and then the gals ran in! Jumping up and down in those heels was no fun, though! But it's a great, great shot.
2:04- Artistically, this is one of my favorite shots. Brian taking a picture of us getting our picture taken in the rain by Maurice!
4:35- My favorite move with Gen on the dance floor! That and when he actually shows emotion at 3:44.
4:50- Jeremy werking it!
And pretty much all the snippets of the wedding party together! And of course I loved my dad's speech! I can't wait to see the full video and hear all of what he had to say.
Much thanks and praise to John and Norma of NR3 Video Productions! They were great to work with, made us feel comfortable, and just treated us like family. They are awesome in every single way.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Friday, December 31, 2010
Before 2010 Comes to a Close...
It's fitting that as I write this there are tons of fireworks going off outside our house right now. :)
At long last, Nick and I are finally married!
I had planned on writing this right after the wedding. But with family in town, spontaneous trip to Disneyland, Thanksgiving, an overseas flight to Germany that was delayed and sidetracked due to snow, jet lag, 3 days of catching up on sleep, migraines, holidays, snow, snow, migraines and snow, I was a tad delayed in getting to our blog. But finally, here I am.
2010, or as we will forever know it, the year of the wedding, is dwindling to a close. It's been quite a year for us, but we are thankful that the last few months have been crazy fun and memorable and that we can say 2010 went out with a bang.
Our wedding turned out to be more amazing that we could have ever imagined it to be, even with the buckets of rain that poured down all day! I remember Genesis and I looking out the window when we woke up on our wedding morning and thinking, "Wow...that is a lot of rain." Cut to all of us singing Alanis Morisette's famous hook, "It's like ray-ee-aaaaiiiin....on your weddin' day..." loud all morning while we were getting hair and make up done.
And actually, we stopped singing that and started singing along to The Sound of Music since it was playing while we were getting ready! For those who don't know, The Sound of Music was my grandmother's favorite movie and we used to watch it with her all the time. Years later we still watch it and sing along to it, and I wanted to honor her memory and the memories of my family that morning with our favorite musical. And besides, who doesn't love a good sing-along?
The rain made the day so much more fun. All the girls trying to get in and out of the limo, running into the church, jumping over puddles trying to avoid getting wet feet. I can't wait to see the video of all of us running through Balboa Park when it REALLY started to pour! Our photographer was really inspired by the rain and was able to capture beautiful and unique photos that we only would have been able to get with the weather that day.
There are so many things I want to say about the wedding. But it all boils down to the fact that it just really, really helped us to realize how much we love our friends and family. I was so touched that so many people came in from all over to spend that weekend with us. And I absolutely love how many new friendships and connections have stemmed from our wedding! Being away from everyone for the past few years really heightened just how much I missed everyone. So to be in a room filled with so much love, beauty, inspiration, and joy...I can't even put into words what I felt and still feel. My heart was simply overflowing with love.
When I gave my little thank you speech, I wanted to thank more people for all they did to help with our wedding, especially my bridesmaids, but my fear of public speaking got the better of me that night, as did my emotions. So here is my special thanks to some of the most phenomenal women in my life:
To my cousin Lisa: Where do I begin? Thank you for being a sister to me. Thank you for letting me follow you around when I was a kid and thank you for continuing to be an inspiration to me now. Whenever I attempt to become a writer, activist, or a strong voice in something I believe in and I start to doubt myself, I simply ask, "What would Lisa do?" I miss the days when I would hang out with you in Benicia and then drive in your Honda to UC Davis. I wish we had more time together these days, but I'm thankful for the time that we do have. Thank you for being there on my wedding day, and thank you for the emergency kit, snacks, and water that helped us all throughout the day!
To my cousin-in-law Krista: It's been a blast getting to know you better over the past year and a half. Thank you so much for effortlessly jumping into our group and being there for our wedding. You mean so much to Nick and I and I'm thankful you were there to represent his side of the family that day. And we were so happy that you would drive down from Vegas to be there for our wedding events and bridesmaids shopping trips! Your dedication and love was and is a truly a blessing, and we are both thankful to have a wonderful person like you to call family.
To Rachel: Thank you for the crazy night of fun that I will always remember and cherish, despite all the alcohol! That night ranks up there as one of the most memorable and fun, so thank you for taking the time to put it all together for me. You could have just made it a simple party, but instead you went to the extra mile and made it totally luxurious and VIP, and it was just the perfect way to let off some stress and steam before the wedding! You are a gem of a friend and I am thankful for you in my life.
To Jen: If it weren't for you, the flower girls wouldn't have looked as fab as they did! Haha thank you SO much for helping me out with the flower girl dresses. It was so hard to plan a wedding from overseas, but it was great to know that I had friends like you to call on for help.You've been such a loyal friend over the years and I am so happy and blessed to have you in my life.
To Quyen: Thank God you had your wedding before I did because you prepared me for all the stress that I didn't know I would go through! I was so thankful that I had you to call on to cry with, vent to, laugh with and bitch with. Thank you for being my ear of support and my shoulder to cry on when things got a little too crazy. And of course, thanks for the beautiful hankies! Did any of the bridesmaids actually use them? Haha!
To Janel: To my fellow skinny bitch in training and member of Club 24, I'm most thankful that you were my workout buddy throughout all the wedding madness! Some of the best times I had in SD the past few months were our gym and smoothie outings. I wish so much that I was still there so we could keep working out together (with Frankie, of course!)- it was the best motivation and so much fun. And thanks a bunch for being there to help with the bridesmaids stuff like centerpieces and cake tasting!
To Genesis: My heart still breaks over the fact that you couldn't stand on my side at the wedding. But, I suppose we should have expected that from an Italian Catholic church that dared to say no to my mother when she explained why you belonged on MY side. For what it's worth, we all knew what side you should have been on! I can't even begin to start to say thank you for all you have done for me, both as my Man of Honor and best friend. So I'll simply say that I am thankful for absolutely everything you have done and for everything that you are. To Oprah, Glitter, and Gaga....
To Anabel: Our dream wedding never would have happened without you! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, A THOUSAND TIMES THANK YOU for everything you have done for us! Everything from coordinating the limos, organizing our rehearsal dinner, and even measuring my parents' backyard to figure out what size tables we needed for our engagement party! And that doesn't even begin to scratch the surface of all you have done for us. Planning a wedding from overseas was hard, but it was infinitely easier with you there leading the way for us. We owe you the world and so much more. Thank you for being a friend, traveled down the road and back again, your heart is true you're a pal and a confidant. ;)
Still, there is so much I want to say. 41 days later, we are still glowing from all the fun we had on our wedding weekend. I keep saying that I wish we could rewind back and do it all over again, but my husband has reminded me that we should just be thankful and happy that we were so lucky to have a great wedding and that we have so many wonderful people in our lives. And yes, I am happy and thankful. But I'm also still antsy for the next big fun event to celebrate, whatever it might be! ;)
Thank you again to everyone who was a part of our wedding. You are so special and priceless to us and you helped us to create the perfect beginning to our new life together. To sum up the wedding in my husband's words when I asked him what he thought of the wedding, "It was awesome."
And now, I leave you with the song that has become the theme song to our wedding...
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
French Roast, Diamond, and Caged Heat
As sultry is it sounds, those are just the names of the paper and ribbon that is being used for our wedding stationary. But, I can't help but giggle at the names and how apropos they are.
We started this wedding with no specific theme in mind. The only thing we were certain of were our colors- chocolate and rose red. And that was pretty much it. But as we planned and styled, our wedding took on a theme and decor of its own. Somehow our wedding became accented with words like baroque, dark romance, sultry, decadent, and Chocolat.
And then by chance, my matron of honor happened to find this picture. We already had an idea of what our wedding would look and feel like. But this image was the perfect visual and soon became the inspiration for so many things in our wedding.
The dark tones and the Rose petals are kind of a throw back to the day when Nick asked me to be his girlfriend. It was fall, it was chilly, and Nick gave me chocolate and a deep red rose and asked, "Will you be my girlfriend?" The script also reminds me of all the letters we have written throughout the years through boot camp, trainings, deployments, deployments, and more deployments. I think the colors also go well with the fall season, our favorite season, in a way that isn't so...fall-y. Sometimes it can be hard for a bride and groom to find a wedding style that complements them both, so I'm glad Nick and I lucked out and found one that we both love.
I know, what's the big deal over some colors and words. But for some reason, it's taken on a lot of importance for us. Maybe more so me. ;) After being away from our friends and family for so long, and after Nick and I have been together for so many years, we just really want our wedding to be something fabulous and great that represents a part of us that we can share with everyone we love.
So everyone....get ready for chocolate, roses, decadence, french roast, diamonds and apparently caged heat. :)
We started this wedding with no specific theme in mind. The only thing we were certain of were our colors- chocolate and rose red. And that was pretty much it. But as we planned and styled, our wedding took on a theme and decor of its own. Somehow our wedding became accented with words like baroque, dark romance, sultry, decadent, and Chocolat.
And then by chance, my matron of honor happened to find this picture. We already had an idea of what our wedding would look and feel like. But this image was the perfect visual and soon became the inspiration for so many things in our wedding.
The dark tones and the Rose petals are kind of a throw back to the day when Nick asked me to be his girlfriend. It was fall, it was chilly, and Nick gave me chocolate and a deep red rose and asked, "Will you be my girlfriend?" The script also reminds me of all the letters we have written throughout the years through boot camp, trainings, deployments, deployments, and more deployments. I think the colors also go well with the fall season, our favorite season, in a way that isn't so...fall-y. Sometimes it can be hard for a bride and groom to find a wedding style that complements them both, so I'm glad Nick and I lucked out and found one that we both love.
I know, what's the big deal over some colors and words. But for some reason, it's taken on a lot of importance for us. Maybe more so me. ;) After being away from our friends and family for so long, and after Nick and I have been together for so many years, we just really want our wedding to be something fabulous and great that represents a part of us that we can share with everyone we love.
So everyone....get ready for chocolate, roses, decadence, french roast, diamonds and apparently caged heat. :)
Saturday, February 20, 2010
A year ago today...
A year ago today Nick asked me to be his wife and I said yes...
We wanted to do something today to celebrate, but of course Nick has work and can't ask for the night off. But that's just life in the military. So instead I'm at home with the puppy and taking care of some wedding planning arrangements over the wonder of the web.
So where are we one year after the proposal? Well, we are "paperwork married" (more on what that means later), we live in a small village in Germany and are the proud "parents" of our six month old Boston Terrier, Iggy! Nick is at a new command here and expanding his career, and I am back in school getting my Master's Degree. To look at how far we have come in just a year reminds us how blessed we are.
As I write this, I am doing some virtual wedding planning with my "sassters" and MOH's Anabel and Genesis. They are spending their Saturday trekking through San Diego looking at bridesmaids' dresses and suits for the groomsmen, meeting with our potential wedding planner, and sampling some delectable treats at a bakery a wedding planner friend of mine recommended.
And then there are my parents. I convinced them to break away from their usual restaurant choices (Sizzler, for example...) and managed to get them to visit Extraordinary Desserts in Little Italy! My dad's first concern was, "Ay, we'll have to pay for parking!" Yes, dad, that usually happens when you go downtown.
But my dad set aside his über cheap ways and agreed to go. They looked up the menu online are were very excited to go. And since Nick and I will also be needing cupcakes for our wedding reception, mom and pops will check in with this quaint eatery on their petit cupcakes and as well as their vast array of extraordinary desserts.
Nick and I are SO lucky to have my parents and our friends helping with the planning! They are so wonderful and priceless....
Oh and for those who are wondering what paperwork married means, it's a phrase that I came up with. It essentially means that we are legally married on paper, but that we won't truly consider ourselves married until we have our church wedding later this year with all of our friends and family. All 178 of them. And the list keeps growing...
But until then, the planning excitement continues. As does the dieting and extreme workouts. Gotta get wedding dress fierce!
We wanted to do something today to celebrate, but of course Nick has work and can't ask for the night off. But that's just life in the military. So instead I'm at home with the puppy and taking care of some wedding planning arrangements over the wonder of the web.
So where are we one year after the proposal? Well, we are "paperwork married" (more on what that means later), we live in a small village in Germany and are the proud "parents" of our six month old Boston Terrier, Iggy! Nick is at a new command here and expanding his career, and I am back in school getting my Master's Degree. To look at how far we have come in just a year reminds us how blessed we are.
As I write this, I am doing some virtual wedding planning with my "sassters" and MOH's Anabel and Genesis. They are spending their Saturday trekking through San Diego looking at bridesmaids' dresses and suits for the groomsmen, meeting with our potential wedding planner, and sampling some delectable treats at a bakery a wedding planner friend of mine recommended.
And then there are my parents. I convinced them to break away from their usual restaurant choices (Sizzler, for example...) and managed to get them to visit Extraordinary Desserts in Little Italy! My dad's first concern was, "Ay, we'll have to pay for parking!" Yes, dad, that usually happens when you go downtown.
But my dad set aside his über cheap ways and agreed to go. They looked up the menu online are were very excited to go. And since Nick and I will also be needing cupcakes for our wedding reception, mom and pops will check in with this quaint eatery on their petit cupcakes and as well as their vast array of extraordinary desserts.
Nick and I are SO lucky to have my parents and our friends helping with the planning! They are so wonderful and priceless....
Oh and for those who are wondering what paperwork married means, it's a phrase that I came up with. It essentially means that we are legally married on paper, but that we won't truly consider ourselves married until we have our church wedding later this year with all of our friends and family. All 178 of them. And the list keeps growing...
But until then, the planning excitement continues. As does the dieting and extreme workouts. Gotta get wedding dress fierce!
Monday, February 15, 2010
And the wedding planning is in full swish
We are in the new year and the wedding planning is well on its way. Up on our to do list are save the dates, wedding invites, finalizing vendors, starting pre-cana, choosing giveaways, our wedding website, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.
And the biggest thing is also choosing our wedding day couture. We're waiting until we are a little bit closer to the day to choose the actual dresses and menswear so they are still in style, but we already have an idea of what looks we are going for.
I'm absolutely in love with wedding dresses by Jim Hjelm and I would love to wear one on my wedding day. Unfortunately I can't find any stores here that carry Jim Hjelm so I'm going to wait until I'm back in the states to start my dress shopping. Plus, how can I not shop without my mom and bridesmaids? Not to mention, my veil is still at my parents' house! And the veil is the piece de resistance of my entire wedding day ensemble. For most brides, the dress is the centerpiece and everything else comes after it. For me, my veil came first. While my parents were in Spain they passed by a wedding dress boutique and found the perfect one. It's perfect, and I can't wait to unveil it. Ha! But more on the veil at another time..
As for the bridesmaids, we did one bridesmaids dress shopping trip when I was in San Diego, but there is still more looking to do. Luckily I have some stylish and organized girlfriends who I trust to shop without me there. And on my next trip home, hopefully we can make a final decision! Here are some favorite inspirations though:
As for Nick and the groomsmen, we are opting for clean black suits instead of traditional tuxedos. We're thinking skinny chocolate colored ties in varying patterns. But there's still more shopping to do there as well. Here are some style ideas for the men:
And once the dresses and suits are chosen, the accessories will start to flow. I can't wait!
I wish so much that Nick and I could both be in San Diego to be a part of the planning. Anyone that knows me well knows that I love event planning and wanted to make it a career. I still do! So to not be able to be there to plan an event that means so much to Nick and myself is a bummer. But again, we are so fortunate to have incredible friends and parents who are helping us plan everything. In fact, as I write this, my dad, Anabel and Jennifer are on the way to meet with a potential wedding videographer that a friend recommended! I hope it goes well.
In the mean time, I'm trying to track down my grandmother's baking cook book. She has a recipe in there for Chocolate Chiffon Cake that she once told me was, "the best cake ever." In that moment I knew that her chiffon cake would somehow work its way into my wedding someday. My grandmother was and still is a strong influence in our family. And it's only fitting that she be honored on our special day. And what better way to honor her than with cake? And maybe ice cream, too. She always gave us money for ice cream.
Luckily we are knocking out all this planning early so that we won't be so stressed closer to the wedding.
Let's all just say a prayer that Nick won't get deployed...
And the biggest thing is also choosing our wedding day couture. We're waiting until we are a little bit closer to the day to choose the actual dresses and menswear so they are still in style, but we already have an idea of what looks we are going for.
I'm absolutely in love with wedding dresses by Jim Hjelm and I would love to wear one on my wedding day. Unfortunately I can't find any stores here that carry Jim Hjelm so I'm going to wait until I'm back in the states to start my dress shopping. Plus, how can I not shop without my mom and bridesmaids? Not to mention, my veil is still at my parents' house! And the veil is the piece de resistance of my entire wedding day ensemble. For most brides, the dress is the centerpiece and everything else comes after it. For me, my veil came first. While my parents were in Spain they passed by a wedding dress boutique and found the perfect one. It's perfect, and I can't wait to unveil it. Ha! But more on the veil at another time..
As for the bridesmaids, we did one bridesmaids dress shopping trip when I was in San Diego, but there is still more looking to do. Luckily I have some stylish and organized girlfriends who I trust to shop without me there. And on my next trip home, hopefully we can make a final decision! Here are some favorite inspirations though:
As for Nick and the groomsmen, we are opting for clean black suits instead of traditional tuxedos. We're thinking skinny chocolate colored ties in varying patterns. But there's still more shopping to do there as well. Here are some style ideas for the men:
And once the dresses and suits are chosen, the accessories will start to flow. I can't wait!
I wish so much that Nick and I could both be in San Diego to be a part of the planning. Anyone that knows me well knows that I love event planning and wanted to make it a career. I still do! So to not be able to be there to plan an event that means so much to Nick and myself is a bummer. But again, we are so fortunate to have incredible friends and parents who are helping us plan everything. In fact, as I write this, my dad, Anabel and Jennifer are on the way to meet with a potential wedding videographer that a friend recommended! I hope it goes well.
In the mean time, I'm trying to track down my grandmother's baking cook book. She has a recipe in there for Chocolate Chiffon Cake that she once told me was, "the best cake ever." In that moment I knew that her chiffon cake would somehow work its way into my wedding someday. My grandmother was and still is a strong influence in our family. And it's only fitting that she be honored on our special day. And what better way to honor her than with cake? And maybe ice cream, too. She always gave us money for ice cream.
Luckily we are knocking out all this planning early so that we won't be so stressed closer to the wedding.
Let's all just say a prayer that Nick won't get deployed...
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
The Groomsmen
Last, but certainly not least, we introduce you to Nick's Groomsmen! A fabulous and dashing group of fine men.
Matt Goodman
Best Man
Brian Gain
Groomsman
Carlo Lumbad
Groomsman
Mike Tarifa
Groomsman
Louie Tarifa
Groomsman
Jaymar Macasadia
Groomsman
Best Man
Brian Gain
Groomsman
Carlo Lumbad
Groomsman
Mike Tarifa
Groomsman
Louie Tarifa
Groomsman
Jaymar Macasadia
Groomsman
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