I can't even fathom 40 years of marriage

Way back in May...May 23 to be exact, my parents celebrated forty years of marriage.

They are the most difficult people to do anything special for...because they somehow end up giving back to their kids tenfold whatever is given to them.

So, instead of something material, we decided to put together a book of memories for our parents. Since there are four of us kids, each of us wrote up the top ten most vivid memories...either of our childhood or adult life...with one or both of our parents...siblings present or not. Knowing that some of the memories--like time spent in Sunriver--would be duplicated, it was pretty fun seeing what everyone came up with.

Our parents put us first and continue to put us first even though all of us are grown and married. We did everything as a family, always. We sat down to dinner every night growing up, and when sports interfered, a hot dinner was always waiting in the oven. When we started fighting through dinner, as siblings and teenagers do, we began watching Jeopardy while eating, and I swear that's when my love of trivia began. My parents didn't leave us much--I can remember only one occurrence when we had a babysitter. I know there were a few more, but they just chose us over most everything else. Maybe to a fault sometimes. Nonetheless, they were and are shining examples of parents.

Thanks for sticking together through it all, Dad and Mom. We are beyond blessed. Happy happy anniversary, again...just a few months late.

Um. I don't know why I can't rotate this photo. Christmas cookie decorating. If you can see my face, I'm super stoked to be eating frosting!

And I can't rotate this one either. Ugh. This was B.K. (Before Kate)...Joe and Elizabeth's birthday at Farrell's. 

1 year down; a lifetime to go

I promised myself I'd post about our anniversary before I couldn't say it happened "last month" anymore. I'm really pushing it, writing this June 30.

But summer's been too uncharacteristically non-Portland drizzle so far, and we've been soaking in every moment, holding our collective breath that it won't rain tomorrow. We've been pretty darn lucky, and we hope that streak will continue through mid-October.

I haven't spent too many evenings at the computer now that I've got the hang of my not-so-new-anymore job. I did have a couple of late nights of freelance work, but those kind of make me feel alive in a way..pushing my limits and working until I fall asleep, or during the wee morning hours when no one, not even the cat, is rustling around the house.

And this post has taken a turn away from why I sat down to write.

Taylor and I celebrated one whopping year of marriage May 3, 2014. How the pages of the calendar turned so fast during those twelve months, I'll never really know, but from what I hear about the future, time just keeps speeding itself up.

Since we married on a Friday night, Saturday was all ours this year, and we decided we would create a day of favorites, and let our passions be our guide. We planned a trip to my favorite city of Austin the following week, coinciding with a work trip for Taylor (score!), so we didn't want to leave town on our big day. In fact, we really and truly didn't want to leave our house. Although we moved in in late-January, with Tax Season and some intermittent travel, we hadn't spent a whole ton of time together in our home.

I took a deep breath the moment I awoke, and I felt that special warm feeling in my belly that accompanies a birthday or Christmas. It felt like a holiday, but such a personal one. Sleeping in is such a treat for us, as Saturdays typically involve some sort of marathon workout in the morning. We almost didn't know what to do without the alarm clock chiming. Almost. We exchanged traditional first anniversary paper gifts, and then we decided to roll out of bed for make coffee and think about running.

Time was ticking on our day, so we opted for a quick bite so we could optimize our ideas for agenda items. First, we wanted to hit the Italian coffee shop up the street that not many people know about. Each drink is prepared with such precision, infused with sheer artistry. We had been wanting to visit this coffee shop since we moved into the neighborhood, and we checked that line item right off our list.

Then we decided more than anything we wanted to get our yard in order for the spring and early summer. We picked up a push lawnmower and headed to the local nursery for plants and flowers. Our little yard isn't much, but we have a raised bed, and we were determined to fill in all the empty spaces in the yard with edibles or other intriguing plants. Taylor wanted to grow hops up the pergola, not for any other reason than for the aesthetics. So, we planted, weeded, and trimmed our yard to near perfection that afternoon.

It was a truly serendipitous day. Even a trip to a different grocery store than our typical led to a free fiesta in the parking lot, complimentary roses at the entrance, and a beer tasting to boot. I told Taylor it felt like people knew it was "our" day, even though it was just coincidence.

We squeezed in a quick trip to the gym before we headed out to wine country for a multi-course meal at an adorable French restaurant we'd heard much buzz about. We were semi-planning for a farm-to-table dinner, but luckily we pulled the plug on that idea ahead of the torrential rains that graced the Portland area that evening. We were lucky with the weather while we planted, but boy did the clouds open up as the sun went down.

The owner of the petite restaurant also happened to be our waiter, and we outlasted all the other patrons for an intimate experience. We tried all the specialties, and we sampled all the desserts on the menu. It was perfect. There's no other word to describe it. And afterward, when the rest of the small town went to sleep, we sauntered across the street to a cafe, which provided live folk music and the friendliest, most welcoming strangers.

I didn't want the night to end because the entire day was so magical. We knew we would have a good time not matter how we chose to celebrate our anniversary, and following the day as it unfolded before us ended up being the most perfect plan of all.
 
I feel so fortunate to have found my other half in Taylor. Someone who balances me and supports me. Someone who challenges me and also just lets me be me. Someone who drives me crazy and yet elates me. We certainly do not agree on everything, but we know how to compromise (most of the time), and each other's happiness is our ultimate goal on a daily basis. I know the best is yet to come, and I am blessed to be able to experience it with Taylor. And for that I say, thank you, Taylor. I love you!

Why did I feel I had to take a pic of the parking lot party? You can't even tell what's going on in this pic, but I love that our anniversary coincides with the Cinco de Mayo holiday weekend. 

We literally could not fit any more plants into our truck. 

You should see this bed now. 

And these hops! Whoosh!

The dramatic "before and after" photos are definitely needed! 

From the most thoughtful Kelley. These lasted for weeks. Hats off to Sammy's.

Of course we had champs at one point during the day.

Taylor loves ending a fancy dinner with espresso. And I do, too. 

If your name's not Taylor or Kate, you don't belong at this wedding

I kid. I kid. Um. Not really?

OK. This blog post has been sitting in my drafts for weeks. And weeks. And weeks.

{Le sigh.}

Ladies and gentlemen, my BBFF (boy best friend forever) Jesse Taylor married his love, Taylor Kate McGinley. And thus, when we get together from now on, it'll be Taylor & Kate, along with Jesse Taylor & Taylor Kate Taylor. And yes, for those of you who are keeping up, her name is now Mrs. Taylor Taylor.

We flew in to San Diego and were whisked away by my biggest sis, Liza, to her home on the beach for a whirlwind wedding weekend. J & T wed in Laguna Beach, and hello! I actually had a role in the ceremony. Helping Jesse with his homework all those years finally paid off. 

Taylor (the bride) looked fabulous in the poufiest (is that a word?), most fun wedding dress, and Jesse looked so handsome. His dad served as the officiant and gave me one heck of an introduction before my reading. I miss his family, and wish I could be around them more often. I love his sisters, and they always make me feel like one of the bunch. Taylor's family wasn't half-bad, either. I mean...when the father of the bride is out doing splits on the dance floor you know this family's a fun bunch.

*My* Taylor (I know...it's hard to keep it all straight, huh?) and I loved this wedding because it was fairly small, so it felt like everyone got to know each other. And. Bonus. We got to see our family, too.

We are so thrilled Jesse found his Taylor, and we anticipate many-an-adventure with these two in the future. Love you both!  XOXO

Please note the second reader! 

Mother-son twist & shout.

Her dad actually did the splits a couple times during their father-daughter dance.

So here you have, Taylor, Kate, Taylor Kate Taylor, and Jesse Taylor. 

Fun fact: Taylor and I knew each other in college. We took a summer school class together, and she dated a guy I went to high school with...who lived above me in the Providence Court apartments. She never knew my bestie, Jesse, way back then. 

Sister time in Carlsbad.

J and J hitting the waves. 

Uncle Taylor push-ups before juicing and doughnuts. 

Oh hi, Hazel D. Whatcha got there?

Good bye, So-Cal. See you soon. 

I left my heart in Texas...once again

I know I've written about this before, but when I met Taylor I was dead-set on moving back to Austin. I still miss it almost every single day. 

Fortunately, Taylor has fallen just a little bit in love with my our Austin friends and the capital of Texas, too. Although we didn't get back there last spring, we took a nice long weekend trip to soak up Central Texas, and to celebrate with Andrea and Blake as they tied the knot.

Jenny and Mike were, once again, amazing hosts, as were Kevyn and Josh. Although it seems like we did one million things, I felt like we really got to relax and enjoy our friends without rushing from one thing to another.

Taylor's an excellent travel agent, and he's scheduled us on red-eye flights the last two times we've traveled to Austin. We now have a little routine down, including heading straight to TacoDeli for breakfast tacos with Karina, then to Mellow Johnny's bike shop for a new T-shirt for Taylor, and finally on to Whole Foods for a special treat and some people watching for me. We take a little nap at Chez Davidson before a weekend full of fun activities begins. 

This time, our trip included the following: pedicures with the girls at Embellish (where they serve vino, a must)...drinks, dinner, and newlywed therapy at Contigo with Jenny and Mike (fun card anyone? chore list?)...TMG run group with Ricky and the old gang...more breakfast tacos...lunch with the bride and our fearless hosts...TOP GOLF!...Eastside Pie with John and Fer...Amy's Ice Creams...a long run for Taylor with the group and a trot through Tarrytown pour moi...breakfast with the Doyles at Magnolia Cafe...prepping for the wedding and breaking a shower head (that's for another post, though)...the wedding of Andrea and Blake...out on the town with the bride, groom, and fun friends from across Texas...CASH CAB...pumpkin spice lattes and a decadent Sunday morning brunch (love that this has become tradition)...a mid-afternoon snack and porch sitting with Karina and Jason at Red's...a house-warming (well, for us!) cooking challenge with Kevyn and Josh...more run group...more breakfast tacos...and an unplanned trip to a Hill Country winery with Karina...topped off with Rudy's barbecue...and one last trip to Amy's Ice Creams in the airport.

Whoosh. 

Now. Let me rewind and write a bit about the wedding. 

Andrea and Blake celebrated their marriage at a gorgeous chapel and rang in their reception at the County Line, a barbecue restaurant on Lake Austin. The setting was absolutely perfect. But, what's more perfect is their story. These two met back in elementary school, but they didn't reconnect until just about a year-and-a-half ago. Both are native Austinites, something that's becoming quite rare in the transplant-infested city, and they lived and worked so close to each other...but never crossed paths. After Blake's cycling buddies convinced him to get on Facebook, the site suggested he become friends with Andrea. After a few clicks and a couple messages, the two met up for lunch on South Congress near their offices. The rest is pretty much history. 

As an aside, I'd just like to gloat a bit about what an absolutely amazing person Andrea is and shout from the rooftops how happy I am she's found her forever with Blake. Andrea and I become friends about a year after I moved to Austin, and I think our friendship continues to grow and strengthen with every passing year. She's genuine, thoughtful, and just gorgeous. She's smart, savvy, and oh so caring. I feel so blessed to know Andrea. And, she lives just nine houses from my other dear friend, Jenny. These ladies have been through some serious ups and downs with me, and they've made more than one trek out to Portland to visit. I can never express my thanks enough to them. 

And back to the wedding...Andrea had been in and to a zillion weddings, much like I had before my wedding. She knew exactly what she wanted for her wedding, and it was perfect. From the programs to the music to the flowers and the food...everything was elegant and simple, thoughtfully chosen and lovingly shared with a select group of people, all beaming with pride to witness this marriage.

Thanks for including Taylor and me in your big day, Andrea and Blake. We can't wait to watch your lives unfold together, and we anxiously await our next adventure together. XOXO

(Photos are out of order...trying to get this posted!)

Don't let age fool you. All of these runners could kick your booty.

Insta-beautiful!