Bienvenidos a Mexico!

We got back last month from a lovely trip to Mexico for my friend Tara's wedding. Our resort was located in Mexico's beautiful resort area, just south of Cancún on the coast of the Caribbean Sea. Tara married a wonderful man named Tony, and we couldn't be happier for the two of them. Both the wedding and the trip was fabulous. The resort was GORGEOUS... and massive. To put it simply, everything was so grand! Neverending pools (and sunken-in-the-pool bars), tons of restaurants, and a white sand/crystal clear beach. It was paradise. The all-inclusive thing was too freaking cool--there were restaurant bars and cabana bars everywhere, buffets for any meal, six sit-down restaurants, you name it. We'd get up at 8, head down to the pool for a bloody mary or mimosa, and then hang out there all day. There were fun activities going on all day too, right at the pools: We salsa danced, held a monkey (photo to come), and did water aerobics. Just to name a few.

The ceremony was on our last day there, right before the sun started to set. I boo-hooed the whole time. Then we had a cocktail hour/dancing in a big gazebo in the middle of one of the pools (it was dark at this point, and all the white lights were on), followed by a wonderful dinner at the resort's steakhouse restaurant. After the flight home the next day (I woke up at 3:20 IN THE MORNING), we had to run home, change, and get up to Maggiano's for the in-town reception. Again, such a blast, but what a whirlwind! Tara looked gorgeous (no surprise there), and it was just a really fun trip to go on with the best of friends.

Tara walking with her dad down the "aisle."

The newlyweds

I've never experienced such amazing customer service as we had in Mexico. All those rumors and warnings we heard before traveling there were immediately dispelled. The only problem I had was trying to stop from saying "hola!" and "gracias!" to people when we got back to the States. :)

Two Years!

Ryan and I celebrated our two-year anniversary yesterday (already?!). Two years have never gone by so fast. And like the wonderful husband he is, I received this beautiful arrangement at my office yesterday afternoon:

This weekend we celebrated by going to our favorite restaurant in town, 18 Seaboard, located in downtown Raleigh. Ryan always gets the filet mignon and I always get the salmon; we really should try new menu items, but we go so rarely (in order to appreciate it more), that we can't miss out on our favorites! Not only are the entrees fabulous, but some of the sides are to die for, including the goat cheese smashed red potatoes and cheddar grits. How can you resist that? For dessert, the special creme brulee of the night was pecan pie. Again, how can you resist that?!? They also surprised us with a delicious cake with "Happy Anniversary" scripted in chocolate. I. love. this. restaurant. 

Ryan and I both got crafty with our anniversary gifts to one another this year. He made me this awesome pinning board (that we've now hung in the front halllway), strung with hemp so we can pin mementos, notes, and photos on it as time goes on. How to pin them? Lovely farm red clothespins. I had a custom print framed for him of our beloved North Carolina. There's a white silhouette of the state on a storm-gray background, with a red heart marked on Chapel Hill, where we got married. I like to think the heart encapsulates this entire area: it's where our friends and family are, where we met, where we grew up together, and where we call home to this day.



Not only that, but he gave me a beautiful handmade bag that I had marked on Pinterest. I think he could tell how much I loved it after I screamed upon opening it. Bonus points!!

And finally, here's a few photos to look back on from that wonderful day, 10/17/09. I still get butterflies when I see them. 

My Best Friend's Wedding

No, I'm not speaking of the 1997 Julia Roberts film. Wishin' and hopin' and thinkin' and prayin'. Tomorrow I experience my actual best friend's wedding! Except for a few small differences:

1. My best friend is a girl.
2. I'm not in love with her. (I do love her though!)
3. I'm not a crazy psycho.

Ryan and I got married just about 8 months ago... and now, it seems like I've jumped into a time machine bringing me to my friend Katie's wedding, which is set for tomorrow evening. What happened to winter?!? Spring?!?

Anyways, point being, I'm extremely excited for one of my best gal's to become a "matron" with me. It really is just an amazing experience. Here's Katie and I dancing together at my wedding just 8 months ago. I hope to get a similar photo of us tomorrow night, attire switched. : )

Come to Me

This song, written by Alex Dezen (lead singer of The Damnwells), is ridiculously good and extremely sentimental for me and Ryan... we had our first dance to this for obvious reasons (just listen to it), and so it will always hold a very special place in our hearts. A produced version of the song was put on the newest Damnwells record "One Last Century," but this is where we first heard it. Nothing can beat this intimate video of just Alex singing with his guitar. Enjoy. : )

Buy, Sell, and Live Handmade.

Little bitty Etsy.com is a website that I've been obsessed with for quite some time now. You can buy and sell just about any kind of handmade good, including art, jewelry, stationary, music, furniture.... you name it! It was such a breath of fresh air for me in the midst of our wedding planning. I wish I had known about it from the moment he proposed, for I would have ordered EVERYTHING from here. You know what you're getting is unique and made with care, and best yet, you can work with vendors to personally customize projects for you.

For example, one vendor, Clayin' Around, made a customized cake topper for our wedding cake out of polymer clay of a groom and an eskimo woman... which was an inside joke between Ryan and I (he claims that I look like an eskimo... don't ask!). She sent me multiple photo proofs of the figurine, and once I approved it, I completed the payment and voila! I had our perfect cake topper. It was probably one of our favorite parts of the wedding... and Etsy can take full credit for that. Here's a few more wedding details that were ordered from Etsy:

Our ring bearer carried this little pillow, designed with coordinating patterned fabrics and embellished with ribbons in varying shades of brown. Vendor: bride design

Pear-shaped crystal, ballroom earrings, in smoky silver, with precision facets. The pendants dangle below Swarovski crystal rondelles on sterling silver wire and french hooks. I wore these for the wedding! Vendor: Made by Kalli

Handcrafted flower hair pins using ivory/cream silk hydrangea petals with a freshwater pearl, a white pearl and a Swarovski crystal beaded center. I wore these in my hair. Vendor: kris kreations

Wedding aside, this is my most recent purchase, just for fun! I love the design of the fabric: White with blue flowers silver plated pendant necklace. Made by hand embossing aluminum and then applying fabric to the embossed design. Vendor: Twist 21

As you can see, I LOVE ETSY!