Check-writing never felt this good

Sweet, sweet victory is ours!

And it is SWEET!

It’s been a while, I know...things have been busy!  We spent this weekend on another whirlwind trip to New Jersey and boy, was it worth it.  My upcoming trip to LA this week got canceled at the last minute (a few factors combined to equal “not the best time to go”).  While I was really disappointed to cancel it and miss seeing California, it occurs to me tonight that maybe my guardian sleep angel was looking out for me!  We are both exhausted, and this was essentially my second weekend in a row away from home (Emerson Family Weekend is the most fun way to tire yourself out on the job), but we made it there and back and have a venue to show for it. 

The Sayen House and Garden is ours!  We went, we saw, we put down a deposit.  Beth Giglio, the event coordinator for Rosa’s at Sayen Garden, is phenomenal.  We met her on Halloween--her birthday!--and knew within moments that not only was this the perfect site for our wedding party, but that she was a woman we wanted to work with.

The house is so intimate and full of details that are nothing short of delightful.  I really am over the moon!  I also love that it’s not one big box--in some ways the more separated dining rooms will make seating charts a challenge, but I also think it will be a lot more fun for folks to meander through to the bars or dance floor.  And the grounds...don’t even get me started.  Even on an overcast, drizzly day it was a stunning setting.

In other achievements of the weekend, we’ve booked our photographer--the phenomenally gifted Candace Jeffery of Candace Jeffery Photography.  We haven’t even met in person yet (can’t wait for the engagement shoot!) but looking over the site and blog, I couldn’t be more excited.  Candace seems to find that perfect balance between artistic composition and finding real emotional moments.  Much more to come in the next month or two when we get engagement shots...please check out her site!

Last, but most certainly not least, I reserved our week-long honeymoon at L’Auberge de Sedona.  I’ve really gone back and forth a lot when it comes to my feelings about registries, but hearing all of the activities and expansion packages available there, I’m just flat-out excited now!  Plus, the confirmation used our married names...which gave me chills to look at before I promptly archived the email.  May cannot come soon enough--especially with November in New England so cold, and Arizona so warmly beckoning...

Of course, in the meantime, there is still lots to do.  For tonight, though, my only to-do is heating up some apple cider and finish watching this baseball game (first and only time I’ll be crossing my fingers for the Yankees).

Good night, friends!

Honeymooners

It seems like most couples we know have their sights set on the tropics--not us.  Spa for me, golf for he!  Mix in some sun and we’re good to go.

This Friday night is just what I needed--pizza, candy bar, and an action movie that doesn’t require my rapt attention (Quantum of Solace, in case you’re wondering).  We’re all in our usual spots--George in the armchair, I on the couch with my feet on the table, even though my legs could be out on the chaise lounge if I moved 16 inches to the left, and Willow perched on the arm of the couch within perfect petting distance of that future husband of mine.

Such a lovely-lazy night has me thinking about another series of perfect evenings (and mornings and days, for that matter).  That’s right, I’m thinking honeymoon!  Early on, we Greece was the natural choice.  George has family there, I’ve never been, and we’d be hard-pressed to find a more beautiful destination.  Don’t even get me started on the feta...

Thinking about it more, we decided that Greece is a perfect vacation destination--but not quite what we want for our honeymoon.  We would put too much pressure on ourselves to see and do everything, meet everyone, and make the most out of every minute.  “Agenda” is not a word we want to utter in the few days after our wedding.  No schedules for us; no regrets when we get home that we didn’t pack enough in; no alarm clocks beeping early to get a jump-start on the day.

We agreed that the only requirements for our honeymoon are sun and quiet.  Arizona fit the bill perfectly!  I fell in love with the area on a business trip last January, and its wide-open spaces seem like the perfect place to relax and reflect on our future as a married couple.  Now we just have to find the right resort.