Easter 2013

The bad news: Easter 2013 fell on a Sunday during Tax Season.  

The good news: Easter 2014 falls on April 20.

The annual Sunriver Easter extravaganza just never gets old. Neither does hunting for eggs at ages 28, 29, and 30 as the three of us in attendance did. It will be nice to share this very special family tradition with Taylor next year. I'm already looking forward to it.

Bullet points:

• Nonstop food, including an update to the traditional eggs-in-a-nest coconut cupcakes.
• Pure relaxation.
• Long, long river loop run.
• Nonstop food.
• Sunshine.
• Pastor Jack, Beve, and the thought-provoking Good Friday service. 
• The Lady's stories of partying with Bill Walton back in the day.
• The Lady's subsequent confession of the falsity of the aforementioned claim.
• Working from home "on location."
• Hot tubbing.
• Maverick-ing.
• Barney's first family trip to SR.
• The longest Easter vigil service in the history of Central Oregon Easter vigil services on record.
• Family time at its finest.

Taylor's parents were over in the area as well as Team Schader, but sadly it didn't work out to see either.

We've been going to Sunriver for Easter since forever. We spend a lot of time reflecting on the passion of our Lord and celebrating His resurrection. 

He is risen! Hallelujah! 

Not a lot of photos this year.

Barney's first ROCK PIC.

The year of the wedding: Salem (my big bro Joe's!) edition

The weather gods were saving the hottest day of the year for August 20, the day my big brother Joseph married Sara on her mother and stepfather's property on the Willamette River in Salem, Oregon. Obviously, this wedding has been the most-anticipated of the numerous ceremonies and parties of the summer.

I don't even know where to start with this blog post, or just what to say.

I laughed, cried, played BINGO, sweat (sweated?) a lot (and as such, became a firm believer and supporter of Spanx), shimmied and shook a tambourine on stage with the wedding band (secret dream come true!), danced with my dad, ruined two pair of shoes (for good reason), ate a lot, toasted a ton, sampled about seventeen different kinds of cookies, tore through three pieces of wedding cake (probably embarrassing my boyfriend), reunited with many family friends, felt truly proud of my brother, and really missed one of my two big sisters as she and her hubby were unable attend the celebration because they are days away from adding yet another member to our ever-growing family.

Of course I left my camera charging in my bedroom the night of the rehearsal dinner. Hopefully one of the bridesmaids will send me pics so I can try to recreate the evening via photos. It was epic. My mom outdid herself. I didn't think it was possible, but she did. She catered a complete dinner from Portland to Salem. She gave it a "picnic" theme, but she also incorporated some of Joe and Sara's favorite things, like popcorn, peanuts, M&Ms, games (we played BINGO and had a raffle), and I can't believe it's taken me this long to mention the cookie bar. My mom baked all summer long...literally. There were about fifteen different kinds of cookies, arranged on different trays, alongside little Chinese take-out boxes donning a photo of the bride and groom so people could take home the treats as a favor.

The actual wedding did not disappoint, either. It was interesting having a brother get married after going through the process with two sisters. With their weddings, I knew exactly how everything was going to shake out, but there were a lot of surprises at Joe's wedding. Sara looked beautiful, Joe looked very handsome (in his slim-fit pants), and the bridesmaid and groomsmen ensembles turned out perfect. I think Sara pulled off her "rustic elegance" theme quite well.

Let's let some photos do the talking, shall we? I'll contribute more words later...

Cookie bar preps...early Friday morning in Portland.

Take-home favor boxes for the cookie bar.

My mom recovered six additional varieties of cookies in the freezer the week after the wedding... 

So many salads, so little time.

Lizey crowning the princess bride and Joe figuring out his giant bow tie. 

The groom as he arrived to the wedding site. Dave came all the way from Shanghai!

The beautiful bride on the balcony.

Some of the bridesmaids kicking back before the wedding.

A not-so-flattering pic of me and the happy groom.

Missing our sister, Stefanie...there in spirit, every moment of the way thanks to Elizabeth's iPhone.

Just missing the MOH.

Joe's 'men...friends from childhood, elementary, high school, and post-grad.

Campbell wore little Toms just like Uncle Joe, Big Poppi, and all of the groomsmen. C and Leo wore gingham shirts, coincidentally matching "Uncle" Taylor, too.

Cutest little chunker.

How beautiful does my mom look?!

Campbell loved following Taylor around.

My dad and Pastor Jack (who also married Stefanie and Jordan) embracing after my dad's tear-filled father of the groom speech. He really brought down the house.

Joe and his golfing four-some: Dennis, Glenn, and our dad.

Fun facts: Joe went to our parents' house for a refresher on dancing while Sara YouTubed videos of couples dancing their first dance. 

These two took 30+ years of dance lessons. They really shine at weddings.

The ol' "lead and follow" dance move.

Mom and "Mr. Smooth" aka Dave.

Obligatory couple-shot.

And another.

Sneak peek

Not sure when I'll have a chance to blog about my big bro Joe's wedding...but it was epic!

Time flies by fives

Five years ago, I didn’t want to leave the comfortable confines of my high school. I had a blast. I thought those were the best years of my life. I tried to pack everything I could into four years. I met the greatest group of girls my freshman year, and even though I transferred schools after then, we’ve never lost touch. In retrospect, transitioning to a new high school was probably what shaped my outlook on life. I promised myself I wouldn’t fall into a clique or limit myself to certain classes or activities. As a result, I played three sports, had several leadership positions and a diverse group of friends. I surrounded myself with great people, I loved going to school, and I didn’t think anything could top those years. When my senior year rolled around, I started getting scholarship offers to play basketball in college. I didn’t, however, neglect my other sports or commitments. I especially enjoyed being the editor of my school newspaper. I knew then that I wanted to study journalism in college. I figured I would find a school that was the perfect fit for the whole me, not just the athlete in me. As a result, I chose Washington State University. Before I started getting recruited, I had never really followed college sports, and I had to pull out a map to find Pullman, Wash. I was nervous and excited to leave Portland, but if you asked me then, I would have never guessed all that I would experience in the four years to come.