Happy Birthday Daniel

You should know that I am lucky enough to have a wonderful boy in my life.



His name is Daniel and he is nine years old today.



Daniel was born when I was 17 years old. We're pretty far apart in age but I couldn't feel closer to him.





And I want to cry when I think about what a wonderful brother he is and all of the joy he's brought to me and my family. Daniel is wise beyond his years. When Andy and I were dating and Daniel was only 4 years old, he asked me a very serious question.

"Is Andy my brother or brother in LAR?"

Three years later and they were brothers in LAR, indeed.







Keep on dancing little brother.

(I've got to go choke back my own tears now. Geez, if I get this choked up over my own brother...how will I handle my own kids? Don't answer that...)

Also can I brag for a second?-Daniel has read the entire Harry Potter series. He is amazing.

Happy 9th birthday to Daniel!

Married for six months!

Man, I've been married for six months already? Time flies when you're having fun!



Andy and I started dating over four years ago. We had been friends (on & off) since 2001/2002. I was always attracted to Andy's personality.



He was so much like me. We are both shy and nervous about letting people in. I always felt comfortable with Andy though.



So I basically asked him on a date and we've been together ever since. Getting married was definitely a highlight but I think our future holds so much more.



When I was younger, my mom told me that it was important to marry someone who was your best friend. I always thought being best friends with a boyfriend was unnecessary because I've always had plenty of friends around. As I get older, I realize what she meant. In the past six months, I've needed a friend and a shoulder to cry on several times and Andy has always been right there.



We've only been married six months but we've already been to Italy, Las Vegas (twice!), Oregon, San Francisco, Virginia, North Carolina and San Diego. We've also dealt with unemployment, a death in the family and other things that would test any relationship.



But we've survived it and come back stronger than ever. I feel more loved than I ever have in my entire life. I have someone who will laugh at my stupid jokes, share my triumphs and encourage me to be the best person I can be. Who wouldn't want that?



So I encourage all of you whether you are in a relationship or not...to not be afraid of telling someone that you love them. Life is too short not to. I'm glad I told Andy!

Can't wait till our one year anniversary!

So tell me; are you in love?

(A food-related post will follow this one shortly. Once I recover from melting into a pile of goo while writing this post. Sorry if the cheesiness lost any of you back there!)

Our wedding ceremony

Hey everyone! Since we are still unpacking from our move on Saturday, I decided to continue posting wedding pictures, why not?

Love is having three ridiculously handsome groomsmen. I love these guys.

Love is having your best friend tell you that you looked like a pug walking down the aisle! LOL! I couldn't agree with her more! Look at that cryface.

Tiffany (my best friend and Maid of Honor) spent a ridiculous amount of time making these placecards by hand.

I loved the chocolate brown against the green grass.

The aisle.

Our wedding ceremony was beautiful. I hate trying to sum it up in one word but if I had to...beautiful would do the trick. I was so overcome with emotion not only because I was about to marry the love of my life, but I was surrounded by people that loved me. I have such a supportive family and wonderful friends. People came to California from as far away as Chicago!

I thought our florist did a great job matching the girl's bouquets to their dresses. Each bridesmaid had a different accent color.

Here I am walking down the aisle with both parents. I cried like a baby! So did my mom....I loved being able to walk down with both of them. I figure, they both raised me so they should both "give me away." I have always had a close relationship with my parents and I wanted them both to know how important their blessing was to me. (Who am I kidding? They were begging Andy to take me away from them!)

Andy waiting at the end of the aisle. We opted for a first look so he actually saw me before this! I will post those pictures soon. If you can handle the lovefest.

Andy cried at the ceremony as well. A lot. Just one of the many reasons why I love him.

All pictures taken by Chelsea Elizabeth Photography.