Lawn Ornaments

We decided to stick around for a day instead of jetting off to our honeymoon right after the wedding. We didn't leave until Monday morning, which gave us all day Sunday to clean up, relax, sleep off the festivities, eat leftovers, and spend some quality time with friends and family who we rarely get to see and who come from far away to be there. The boys mostly slept, but I spent hours relaxing under the tents and talking with my grandparents, aunts, old family friends, and my lovely Australian girlfriends I met in England. I'm really glad we had that time. I got to ask couples who have been married for decades about their weddings and the life decisions they made so long ago. It's a scary thing, making these life decisions. Deciding where to live and what to do to earn a living. Everyone just does what's best for them at the time and eventually things work out. I just have to be patient, keep working hard and stay positive, and eventually Jeffery and I will have the house with the big kitchen and garden and puppies and kitties running around and there will always be flowers.

Every wedding should have a photo booth.

One of my favorite elements at the wedding was our photo booth. My mother has a collection of  antique quilts, which happened to match my wedding colors, and we hung them on the clothesline and set my camera up on a tripod under a sunbrella. (A sheet would also work as a backdrop.) It was a really fun place for people to congregate around and it was a great way for me to get photos of most of my guests.

Gratitude can be overwhelming.

I am so grateful to the people who helped make my wedding a success. But I am burdened by the thought of not being able to articulate my appreciation to every person who worked so hard to make it happen. It is going to take me a long time to thank everyone for their help and this is the only way I know how to put it out in the universe any sooner. So, thank you, everyone. For your hours of work. For all the advice. For the support. For listening to me and smiling and staying positive. A wedding is a ton of work, and no bride should do it alone. Here are some photos documenting what went down on the days leading up to it.

{Photo credit: Edmund Ng}

{Photo credit: Jeffery Curry}

{Photo credit: Jeffery Curry}

{Photo credit: Jeffery Curry}

{Photo credit: John Wagenet}

{Photo credit: John Wagenet}

{Photo credit: John Wagenet}

Hundreds more man hours went into canning lilikoi butter for favors, sewing napkins, cooking food and desserts, and preparing the yard. It is absolutely astounding. All of the work that our friends and family put into our day is the greatest gift we could ever receive. So thank you all again!

Some Photos from the Ceremony

Two weeks ago we got married under the monkeypod tree in my parent's front yard in Hilo. Our long time friend and neighbor, John, captured these photos from the ceremony. They are too beautiful not to share.

My mom looks absolutely beautiful in this photo. And I love how our musician, Rupert Tripp Jr, was captured mid-song. The boys' expressions are priceless.

Lee is Marina's best friend. She officiated at my parents' wedding in 1984, and 28 years later, she officiated at ours. I love how her crown of maidenhair ferns blends perfectly into the treeline. She is mother nature. I also love Jeffery's intense concentration while placing the ring on my finger.

I really like being married to him. Kauai honeymoon photos coming soon!

Married!

(Photo credit: Jesse Phillips)

We did it, and it was amazing. A perfect day. We are overwhelmed with gratitude and happiness and feel so lucky to have the friends and family we do who made it all come together. And we are very much looking forward to some alone time on Kauai. There are many more photos to see and stories to tell. Stay tuned, this is only the beginning!

Orchidland

The other day, Jeffery and I accompanied my mom to a neighbor's orchid farm to pick out orchids for the wedding. It was one of the most magical places I have ever been.

We wandered through the six greenhouses like kids in a candy store, admiring rare varieties and petting the beautiful dark tabby kitty that lived there.

This was our final bounty. Happy orchids, happy kitty, happy Roseann and Jeffery.

Hawaii, Days Three and Four

Sunday was the calm before the storm. It was the day our guests started arriving, and we spent a leisurely morning enjoying simple comforts.

{Reading and coffee}

{Waffles with kumquat apple sauce and a fried egg from the hens}

{Mochi and Nala}

And then we went to the beach!

At the beach we ran into our friend Maile, and boy has she grown! We can't wait to see her in her party dress at the wedding.

Every day has been so beautiful, we just hope it lasts.

Hawaii, Day Two

Harvest.

{Wealth of starfruit}

{Yesterday we collected 16 eggs...}

{...which went into making nearly two gallons of lilikoi butter.}

{counting plates}

{Ladybird. Can you tell I love that tree?}

{

Filthy Farmgirl

soaps}

{Orchids and eggplant at Farmer's market}

{Downtown Hilo and snow-capped Mauna Kea} 

We got a lot done yesterday, but there is still a ton to do, and guests start arriving today. Happy Sunday, everyone!

Hawaii, Day One

We flew in on a perfect day and my mom burst into tears as soon as she saw us. And so I couldn't help but cry too, right outside baggage claim. It's been really difficult planning the wedding with an ocean between us, and we have been counting the days until we could be together. And now we are here, and it's exactly how it should be. Mother and daughter talking garters and nail polish and necklaces and photos and flowers. It is so exciting to be putting together all of the pieces we have been talking about for months.

Here are some things we came home to:

{Nala and the Monkey Pod Tree}

{Waiting to be planted}

{Mochi and a Mum}

{Waiting for dinner}

I'm bursting! This week is going to fly by, especially with more and more of my favorite people arriving each day. My goal is to savor every moment.

Freesias in the Morning

I had an epiphany the other day. I realized that if I want to have fresh flowers in my house, I can have them. And I can have whatever type I want because I work next door to an amazing flower shop. So I went to the flower shop on my lunch break and informed the lovely ladies that I wanted to purchase some stems, and how much were the peonies? Today, $10 each. Ouch. Ornamental cabbage? $4 each. So I settled on four stems of freesia, because they were beautiful and at $1.50 per stem I could afford to get a small bunch. And they really pack the punch because each stem has so many blossoms. (Reason #178 why we should move to Oakland: when we have a yard we can grow our own flowers, which is so much more satisfying and costs a lot less than buying them.)

Aren't they pretty? I even forgot them at work that night, but they revived themselves in the morning when I gave them a drink. I displayed them in one of my only remaining aqua colored bottles. The rest were boxed up in bubble wrap and have safely arrived at my parents' house. This time tomorrow Jeffery and I will be on a plane there as well.