Sneak peek

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

A much-needed taste of Texas in PDX

I've tried to spread my love of Texas "Red Dirt" country music all over the Portland metropolitan area and even up to Seattle.

Some of my friends have really glommed on to the musical genre, including my bestie Emily and her hubby Greg. The two of them heard my favorite band, the Randy Rogers Band, was coming to Seattle, so they invited me up to join in the fun. Unfortunately, the concert fell on a Monday, and after a long weekend in the San Juans, I just wasn't up for it.

Luckily, I had a second chance.

My good friend and high school hoops teammate Whitney just moved back to Portland from Sherman, Texas. While in the Lone Star State, Whit also acquired a love of RRB, so she was privy to the fact that the band was making its way down the West Coast, stopping at the Crystal Ballroom Tuesday.

Yeehaw! I counted the minutes until I could see Randy, Brady, and the boys, and I was not disappointed.

Mickey and the Motorcars opened, and then Randy followed. He played for about an hour and a half, and we were maybe three rows deep, right in the middle. It was like he was singing directly to me. He was singing directly to me. I could tell by the way he kept tossing his guitar pick in my direction (although I never ended up catching it).

I know it's dark, but can you see my ear-to-ear grin? I'm RIGHT IN FRONT OF RANDY ROGERS!

I go through waves of extreme homesickness for my beloved Austin (would you still classify it as homesickness, even if it's not technically my home?). This was just what the doctor ordered.

The year of the wedding: San Juan Island edition

Words cannot express what a magical weekend we encountered in the San Juans for Katie and Greg's nuptials. I'll let some photos do the talking, but even then...not enough.

Katie and I met in math class our freshman year of high school. I will never forget thinking her Abercrombie clothes and Doc Marten boots were so cool. She was super quite, but I knew she seemed like my type of girl. I think I introduced myself and asked if she wanted to sit by my bestie Kelley and me at lunch. I am scratching my head wondering if this is the correct chronology...but I'm going to roll with it even if it's not. Soon after, we teamed up with middle school friends Mariel and Matea, and the five of us became inseparable...that is, until I transferred high schools after our first year.

I may have missed out on a few in-house memories, but these four friends have been a phenomenal support group for the last twelve years. Holy cow. Twelve years. We have been through more than so much together. There's been college visits, mending broken hearts, trips to Germany, vacations to Texas, cheering on our girl Mariel in two Olympic games, toasting to Matea--the first to get married, celebrating the return of Kelley from her overseas adventures, and how can I forget to mention the formation of the Cake Brigade?

Katie's two older sisters and the four of us friends stood beside her as she married her best friend in one of the most beautiful settings God's created. Mariel, Kelley, and I made nine cakes for the reception. I was a nervous wreck for the two weeks leading up to the wedding because I was so worried about these cakes. We froze them, packed them, put them on a ferry...so much could have gone wrong, but it didn't. They turned out perfectly, just as every other piece of the Hedrick wedding weekend did.

The night before the wedding, Greg's parents hosted an authentic crab feed at Snug Harbor. I'm licking my lips just thinking about it. I know I could ramble on and on about this wedding, especially because it could have been--and should have been--the featured wedding in an issue of  Martha Stewart Living. It was breath-taking.  

Katie and Greg have been together almost eight years, and their bond of friendship and love is unmatched. Cheers to the Hedricks on their new adventure! I love you two!

JUST A SNEAK PEEK of some of the >250 pics I snapped...my computer is not cooperating, and I am running out the door. More (and captions) to come!

The view from our little cabin in Snug Harbor, nestled between Roche Harbor and Friday Harbor.

The above-mentioned cabin.

Mariel and Mike on the sweetest swing I've seen. Cup holders and all!

Let the defrosting begin!

The Cake Brigade!

Wedding headquarters.

An artichoke plant. Seriously!

Jumping for joy in our aprons...don't ask!

Hey Kell...is that a fascinator or Katie's rehearsal bouquet? Looks like you're not sure either.

Despite all her efforts to pass off responsibility claiming incapability, Kell mastered her first official frosts.

Making bouquets in the basement.

And centerpieces...

Speaking of centerpieces, check out these from the rehearsal dinner. Love the newspaper tablecloths.

Matea's favorite campfire band.

Everybody's new best friend, Duane, introducing me to grilled oysters on crackers. Not too shabby!

Fresh crab and tri-tip. I. Was. In. Heaven. Mmm.

Rocket, Matea, and the bride!

Prepping. It's nice to have a hair stylist in the group. 

Reading cards from the bride right before the ceremony. So thoughtful.

Rocket in his tux. Too cute for words. He was so good the entire ceremony.

The bride and me. Have I mentioned she and her mother MADE her wedding gown? Cuh-ray-zee!

Nerves kicking in?

Cute.

I can't speak for Mariel and Kell, but I took a TON of photos of the cakes. I am so proud of us for pulling it all together. This was definitely the Cake Brigade's finest hour.

We're just missing the bride. Friends for life.

Mariel and Mike. Cute couple alert! 

Getting ready for her MOH speech. She killed it!

Katie did a wonderful job addressing the crowd. So out of character for our humble friend.

Tres leches in your face!

Don't worry...we tried every single flavor of those cakes. Yum!

Decorating the get-away truck! 8-13-11: Never forget, OK?

I'm Yours!

Great idea--mother-son and father-daughter duo dance.

Lilypads, bee stings, and other Xterra obstacles

Taylor competed in the Xterra Black Diamond triathlon up near Seattle Yesterday. (He prefers these off-road races to the traditional road races, although he dabbles in those too, of course.)

I served as support crew, and as a post-race treat for all my hard work, we got to visit with my bestie Emily and her hubby Greg at their cute home in Redmond.

I had a lot of fun following him all day long. I had no problem keeping busy.

First, I watched him arrange his gear in the transition area and made myself useful by helping him squeeze into his wetsuit.

Once the race started, I tried to keep track of him swimming, but all of the athletes looked the same swimming in Lake Sawyer. I spotted him as he made his way out of the water and sprinted back to the transition area to give him some motivational words and a bit of encouragement...that, and I couldn't wait to tell him how the dude with the big beer belly was the winner of the swim! I'm sure that was encouraging, right?! 

Then, I bushwhacked through the forest to catch a glimpse (as well as a couple of pics) of him bike past all the twerps who finished before him on the swim. 

I can't forget to mention how much I enjoyed cheering for him on the run. I made friends with the race volunteers, and I got several of them in on the, "Oooh yeah! Lookin' goooood, Taylor!" and "Lookin' hottttt" cheers I belted from the top of my lungs every time he ran by us.

He did so well, and I am totally proud of the guy. He finished second in his age group and twenty-third overall. I think this is a huge accomplishment. 

Here's a few of the numerous photos I took over the weekend...

Poor Taylor. I'm always making him smile to fulfill my documentation desires. Here we are at Red Robin for the pre-race dinner. We stayed in Federal Way in strip mall city, so we had plenty of chain restaurant options, and neither of us had been to a Red Robin in so long. After dinner, we remembered just why. :-/

211 on the left calf; 27 on the right.

Making his way to the oh-so-exclusive transition area. No paparazzi allowed. 

Duh! There's always a loophole! Here he is setting up!

And here he is embarrassed I keep snapping pics. Tried to do it in stealth mode, but he saw...so that's why it's blurry.

"Let's see. Have I forgotten anything? I've got my socks, shoes, Gu, Camelback..."

Hey! Check me out!

"Kate! Seriously! Stop taking pictures and help me with the zipper."

"That little island seems pretty far away."

Go Taylor! Go Taylor! Go!

And...he's out of the water!

Transitioning...

This guy tore it up on the bike.

I didn't get photos of the second transition, but I did capture this!

Is that a smile I see? Are you having fun???

Take it off!!!

Done!

"Give me that Gatorade, and get me some pasta!"

"You're really and truly not done taking pictures yet?"

Yay Taylor!

I am so proud of this guy!

And...I forgot to take any pics when we were at Emily and Greg's house...totally kicking myself now! I tried to snap one when we were driving away, but she sprayed the hose to avoid the photo op. Thanks to the Lagreids for hosting a wonderful post-race barbecue in their adorable new house. I can't believe after almost a year, Em finally got to meet Taylor.

Gotcha, girlfriend!