November 2012: Courtney's bridal shower

Courtney and the co-hostesses!  Me, Lisa, Jen, Courtney, Candace, and Shelby
These ladies have been friends with Courtney since middle school!  Lisa and I obviously have been friends with Courtney for much, much longer.  ;)

In November, I flew in to Dallas for a day to co-host a bridal shower for Courtney.  It was a big surprise for Courtney because she didn't know I was going to be there in person!!  She showed up at Candace's house and I opened the door and she lost it.  It was so much fun to surprise her.  

Courtney has so many friends and family that love her!  It was such a joy to celebrate her and so many people were there to share their love for Courtney!

Here are a few pictures I took of the beautiful party.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And some of the family that was there...

 

 

 

 

 

-a

A decade

Brett and I have been married 10 years today. This is the best anniversary yet - it's our first one since having Hank. Our anniversary seems to have so much more meaning now that we can celebrate the beginning of our family rather than just our marriage.

Here are some wedding pictures. Please excuse the quality as our wedding was before digital was all the rage so I had to convert my printed photos into digital ones in order to post these!

Brett is so handsome in this picture if I may say so.

Maids of Honor and Best Man - sweet purple "dusty lilac" dresses!

Cheers to another decade!

-a

9 years

Today is our nine year anniversary!

I did some internet searching on the phrase "nine years" and nothing much comes up. I was going to create a list for you of all the things that take 9 years, but everything was kind of lame. I guess the number 9 is no big deal because 10 is the show stealer. We'll have to wait until next year for that!

For us, 9 years has been wonderful and full of laughter and happiness. It's our last anniversary before the little guy makes his debut!

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Multiple matrimonies

On June 20th, we had three weddings to celebrate but unfortunately, we couldn't attend them all. We went to Nick & Lorianne's here in San Francisco and had a wonderful time. The ceremony was touching and the reception was out of this world gorgeous and creative. It was a great night and we tried to stay until the bride & groom made their exit, but at 1:30am we had to call it a night. Apparently, this party was not ending any time soon. My feet hurt for two days from all the dancing we did.


Our friends Tom & Pam were married the same day up in Washington. From all accounts, this was a fabulous party as well! We were happy we were able to attend their engagement party here in CA back in April.


Last, but not least, Cousin Heidi and Mark were married in Minnesota. It was a family wedding we were very sad to miss but we were able to celebrate with them at their pre-wedding party earlier this month down in Southern California!

Best wishes to all of the newlyweds!

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A happy heart

My trip to Dallas was very special and I have such a happy heart! It was a great trip and I was able to see family and friends.

I went to Dallas for Courtney's birthday but a wedding on the Wilson side of our family was taking place the same weekend so the timing was perfect. OK, technically the timing was not exactly perfect because, Courtney, Lisa, Pete, and I actually missed the wedding ceremony. In the future, I'm pretty sure we'll double check invitations for the start time, but it's all good and no one will every remember because we made it right in time for the Wilson Family photo! Nice!!!

Saturday night after the wedding, we had a big bash for Courtney at The Social House in Dallas. Family and friends came out to celebrate her very last day of her 20's and it was definitely one of the best birthdays Court has ever had! On Sunday, we celebrated her actual birthday with burgers, cupcakes, and wii. Sunday night I got some time with just my mom. You'd think we would use the time to have a nice little meal and enjoy a nice little visit; but instead, I watched my nice little mom play Guitar Hero. She's pretty good and it never stops being hilarious!

It's sometimes so hard to squeeze in visits with friends since I'm usually pretty busy with family but this time I was able to see a couple of my very dear friends. On Friday, I saw Nita and her little nine month old Harper and on Saturday, I got to spend time with Rachel at Courtney's birthday celebration. Both of these gals and their husbands are great friends of mine and Brett's so I am truly happy when I get to see them. We miss all of them so much!

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Paulson Family HSM

At our cousin Sarah's wedding reception in February, all of the Paulsons surprised her with a rendition of the final scene from High School Musical. It might seem a little hokey to do a dance from a movie in the middle of a beautiful wedding reception, but the Paulsons love HSM and everyone knew Sarah would love it. The idea for the dance took place many months before the wedding so it's amazing we kept it a secret from her for so long.

Here's the video. Note my solo at the 2:00 mark and Brett's fancy footwork throughout, especially at the 3:00 mark.

If you go watch it on YouTube you can choose to watch it in high quality.



I love watching this video because it was so much fun and everyone in the family learned the dance and the moves - or at least the moves easiest to repeat over and over. Who wouldn't want to dance like a Wildcat?

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A + B = 8

Today, Brett and I have been married for eight years!

Our celebration will have to wait until this weekend when he returns from Texas. Only four more days!

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