It’s Been a Loooong Time!!!

Whew!  It’s been soooo long since my last post!  But what a busy time it’s been!  On May 30th, 2010, I graduated from med school.  My family & I stayed at a B&B in Northeast, PA, where we ate waaaay too much, chatted, and ate some more. 

The arena where the graduation was located was hot.  Real hot.  It was 96 outside and they refused to turn on the air conditioning…so no one was surprised when the announcer lady passed clean out on the stage!  Everyone stopped for a moment and watched as she was fanned and pulled to a chair after she woke back up.  It was, really, surreal.  Honestly, they charged us $500/semester for “graduation fees;” you’d think they could afford some AC.  It feels good, though- I’m done. DONE. DONE!!!  Such freedom!

Two days later, my fiance and I headed to Cancun, Mexico and then caught a ride to Playa del Carmen for the wedding of two of our friends!  It was so beautiful & relaxing there- we were on an all-inclusive resort…every want, need, and desire was met.  Champagne for breakfast, wine at meals, slushy drinks on the beach or by the pool…a girl could get used to that life!  Again…I ate waaaaay too much.  But sooo happy about it! 

Their wedding was beautiful & the bride could not have looked more relaxed.  Her colors were aqua & red (sound familiar? Ours are Aqua, light pink, coral, & red…so of course I loved this wedding!)…and everyone just seemed so happy and relaxed.  I am convinced that this is the way vacations should be. 

The day before their wedding, the bride & groom arranged an excursion for all their friends.  We went to the Tulum ruins, ran a zip line, snorkeled in the dos ojos cenotes caves, snorkeled in the ocean with sea turtles, and snorkled in a lagoon with tropical fish!  It was a full but exciting day! 

Reluctantly we flew home to PA before heading to CA for yet another wedding…only 2 days later.  The wedding was held in Lodi, CA in a garden, although I believe it was to have a vineyard/winery feel to it, which it did.  I was a bridesmaid in this one and my fiance was a groomsman, although we were not paired together.  The colors were berry and eggplant with touches of periwinkle, and it turned out beautiful. 

We drove to Napa Valley (2 hours northwest) for the weekend with another couple, where we wine tasted and dined and wine tasted some more.  Some of the most delcious wine I have ever had is from Napa Valley- I can’t say enough about the illustrious Alpha Omega winery…just to say, wow! 

We went to large, well known wineries and small, unique ones.  The larger ones offered tours, classes, and festivals- very helpful for first-time Napa Valley goers.  We even took a “Wine tasting basics” class at the Robert Mondavi winery, which I found immensely interesting and helpful.  I would definitely recommend the class to anyone, excluding the wine connoisseurs, of course.  On Friday, we went to Folie a Deux, Alpha Omega, Hope & Grace, Girard Vineyards.  On Saturday, we went to the Robert Mondavi educational class, Plumpjack, Beringer for a Wine & Cheese fesitval, Praguer Porthouse, and Domaine Carneros for the Art of Sparkling Wine Tour.  Honestly, were I to go again, I probably would not go to more than just 3 or 4 wineries in a day- it’s just so exhausting, and the appointments begin to bog you down, especially if one tasting runs late.  Absolutely fabulous time, spent about a grand on wines, joined too many wine clubs, and would do it all again in a heartbeat! 

We flew back to PA, again reluctantly, on a red-eye from Sacramento.  We had about 3 days, and then we were off again, this time to Savannah for tying up some loose ends for our own wedding.  Oh, and I am just BURSTING to tell all of the fabulous details….but I can’t spoil the surprise for my wedding guests!  So I’ll just have to wait…

On Thursday, we flew in, and met with the florist, Heidi.  She is so sweet!  We decided on flowers for the wedding and talked about some options.  On Friday, we got our Marriage License!!!!  We’re officially allowed to get married!!! Wohoo!!!  Then, we went cake tasting at 2 different bakeries…and here’s the dilemma:  the first bakery, Art Cakes, will make the cake in the right color, flavor, and is able to deliver it on Sunday morning, but it’s twice as much as the 2nd bakery: Baker’s Pride.  The 2nd bakery will make a good, but not great, tasting cake, but will not make it in any color (only white), and will not deliver on a Sunday, BUT it costs HALF of the other cake.  So which to do?  My gut says Art Cakes…any thoughts?

We also met with the Reverend and my hair/makeup artist, and did a run through of my wedding day hair & makeup (!!!), all in a day’s work.  On Saturday, we checked out Hilton Head Island and drove back to Savannah by dinnertime, when we tasted our Wedding Menu at the Olde Pink House, which was delicious, of course! 

Sunday brought our engagement photos with our sweet Photographer, Erin.  They were so much fun, and they turned out so much prettier than I even imagined!!  There were 2 sets: the first one was set in Leopold’s Ice Cream Shop, and we had a 40’s/50’s feel to it with the outfits/makeup…and the second one was a little more glamorous, set outside of the Savannah Theater- he wore a suit & bowtie, and I wore a long formal dress with a pillbox hat & birdcage veil!  I should post pics….when I get them!

So now I am finally home, preparing in the next week to start my residency.  It has been a crazy, crazy month- but now it’s time to get back to life, as usual….well, sort of!   😉

xoxo
lauren

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