Montero Wedding

Well this day has been a long, long time coming...

 

Tara and Andrew finally got hitched!

 

 

Stewart and I went down to San Diego last weekend for two glorious days to celebrate the marriage of these two love birds.

 

The festivities took place at this adorable location called Shelter Island (San Diego's Hawaiian aisle). Stew and I stayed at the Best Western Island Palms Hotel, right next to the Kona Kai Resort and Marina, where the wedding took place. We were shocked at how nice our accommodations were! Our room was lovely, with a little patio out front and a view of the water right across the street and a walking path that went along the water down the length of the island.

 

We were so excited to be on vacation -- kid free! -- for almost three whole days!

 

Champagne mani/pedis and a Mexican rehearsal dinner (complete with tequila shots) kicked off the weekend festivities.

 

Tara is one of my oldest and dearest friends. We met in college when we were just 21-year-old babies. After forming a quick bond, throughout the years our friendship has grown and stood the test of time... so many adventures we'll always remember (plus a few we'd rather forget).

 

Tara is one of those constant friends in my life where days, weeks, or even months can go by where we don't see each other, but the second we're reunited it's as if no time has passed at all. She has been there for me through graduations, breakups, relocations, and family disasters. She stood beside me at my wedding and was one of the very first people to meet my firstborn son.

 

I'm so grateful that I can consider her a lifelong friend, and I was so excited to celebrate with her as she devoted her life to her own Prince Charming.

 

It was quite a weekend! 

 

Wedding day and the countdown is on... I made those bouquets with the help of the other bridesmaids, and I was pretty pleased with how they turned out! What do you think?

 

The lovely bride gets help from her momma and sister as she gets into her dress. It's almost time!

 

 

How to kill time while you're waiting to walk down the aisle? Selfies, of course!

Picture time! Check out those adorable flower girls...

I was so proud to stand next to her during such an important moment in her life.

 

The wedding took place on the beach in front of the marina, and it was the first time I've ever gotten to walk down the aisle barefoot! The ceremony, was lovely -- short and sweet.

And here they are for the first time -- The Monteros!

Cocktail hour on the patio overlooking the marina. Beach weddings are definitely where it's at!

This may have been the most epic cake-smashing I've ever seen. Andrew was still blowing frosting out of his nose the next morning.

The first dance -- always my favorite part of a wedding reception.

And then we really got the party started. For a smaller wedding, we managed to orchestrate a pretty epic dance party (an open bar always helps facilitate that), and we partied until the hotel shut us down.

 

But that didn't mean a dip in the pool wasn't in order for the bride and her bridesmaids. YOLO!

And where was Ryder all weekend?

 

He spent a few days with Grandpa and Nana, and also got to see his Aunt Nichole, Uncle Aaron, cousins Sophia and Aubrey, Great Grandpa and Great Grandma, and Great Grandma Sally.

 

He was very busy!

This was the first time we had ever left Ryder for two consecutive nights before, and I admit I had a lot of anxiety about it. But I knew he was in the best hands possible and having a great time, so I tried to let it go and enjoy our weekend away.

 

 We sure missed that little guy, though!

 

Overall it was such a refreshing, wonderful weekend, and I'm so glad we got to celebrate with our friends. We wish them all the luck and love in the world as they start this new adventure together.

 

Cheers to the Monteros!

Weekend Update - Camping and Thomas the Train

Ryder and I had a fun little weekend planned.

Stewart was scheduled to work on Saturday, so we decided to tag along with my parents on a camping trip to Riffe Lake, near Mossyrock. My parents recently traded in their motorhome for a new trailer, and we were excited to try it out for the first time.

 

After several weeks of temperatures in the 90s, I was simultaneously relieved and bummed out to see the semi-dreary forecast for our little getaway. Of course, things like clouds and rain don't bother little kids, so Ryder had a blast regardless.

We got the last available campsite in the whole place, which meant it wasn't the most incredible, but luckily we were right across from a big grass field and just a stone's throw away from the lake. Check out the new truck and new trailer (plus two scooters hidden behind the tent)! Riffe Lake is surrounded by miles of trails, waterfalls, and scenic lookouts, and we had fun scooting around scoping things out.

 

It really doesn't take a lot to entertain a child. Give him a sandy beach and he's happy for hours...

Making his mark on the new trailer.

Camping with a toddler is easy as long as you have the right equipment. I absolutely love this portable high chair that collapses down to basically nothing. It attaches easily to campground picnic tables.

Hanging out with Grandpa, Uncle AJ, and Morgan (and avoiding one of the intermittent rain showers).

Swinging with Nana — his favorite!

Seriously, Ryder is in love with rocks, sand, and dirt. He'll spend an afternoon just working on moving a pile of pebbles from one location to another...

We were so excited to let Ryder try out this new floatie, even though the weather wasn't as hot as we had anticipated. Luckily my little water baby didn't mind the cold at all. He did, however, insist on bringing his rock along in the water.

Everyone pitches in at camp! Ryder was such a good helper assisting Uncle AJ and Morgan with the dishes.

Christening the bathtub in the new trailer. It's just the right size for this dirty little boy!

This is such a cool campground! I definitely encourage you to check it out if you're in the area.

Ryder made friends with some other campers and spent one afternoon practicing his bean bag toss skills. He's almost good enough to take on Daddy now...

 

We headed home around bedtime on Saturday night so that we could spend the day as a family on Sunday. We had tickets to a Day Out with Thomas the Train at the Northwest Railway Museum. It included the unique opportunity to take a ride with the classic storybook engine, Thomas the Tank Engine, up to Snoqualmie Falls. We also enjoyed pizza and ice cream, games and activities.

 

Despite this photo, I promise Ryder had a good time.

 

First train ride with Daddy.

 I originally thought that Ryder might be a little young to appreciate the event (and we really just decided to attend because a bunch of other firefighter families were going), but we all ended up having so much fun!

How was your weekend?

 

Year Four

Another year has passed here at Life As Always.

 

Things have definitely changed drastically in the past 12 months. I only blogged 82 times, compared to the previous year's 184 posts. That's a pretty steep decline, and I've definitely felt the effects as my stats have decreased and my comments and followers have dwindled. It makes me sad. But there's also no way in hell I could have found the time or energy for additional posts. At the end of the day, I just don't have anything left to give.

 

As I said a few months back, my blog is both a reflection and an extension of my life, and I've worked incredibly hard for almost ten years now to create what it is today. I treasure this space, and value it as a detailed record of the person who I was, am, and will become.

 

Life As Always will continue to be a lifestyle blog. But now that I'm a mom, the majority of my life is centered on raising my son, and that will be reflected in my writing (as well as the time and energy I have available to actually sit down and write).

 

Even though I only blog about five times a month now (instead of five times a week), I still work very hard on each and every post, and I hope that I've managed to keep some of you entertained.

 

So without further ado, here are some of this year's highlights...

 

• I continued to write monthly update letters to Ryder for his first year.
• We celebrated all of Ryder's first major holidays: Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter. I made sure to keep track of our holiday traditions so we can continue them in the future.
• We celebrated Stewart's 34th birthday, and threw a huge Cinco de Mayo fiesta for Ryder's first birthday.
• We watched tons of our good friends get married: Jillian and Robert, Brett and Haley, Amanda and Kevin, and Carolina and Eren.
• We took Ryder on his first airplane ride: A family vacation to Hawaii with my parents and little brother.
• Ryder went on his first camping trip at Mayfield Lake with a large group of family and friends.
• We closed out the summer with an Alway trip to Priest Lake.
• I went back to work following my four-month maternity leave, which was a bit of an adjustment, and I shared my secrets to pumping and working.
• We started the Seahawks football season with a bang, this time with our own little mascot in tow.
• A good friend took some amazing family photos for us when Ryder was four months old.
• I took a trip down memory lane and remembered how much fun dating in Seattle can be.
• We said goodbye to Liesbeth and Doug.
• I hosted a Bunco party with some friends.
• Ryder got to spend quality time bonding with his cousins.
• The Seahawks made it to the Super Bowl again! Sadly the outcome was not the same.
• We took Ryder on his first ski trip to White Pass, where he went snowshoeing and snowboarding.
• I invited other parents to guest post for Life As Always, and published some super insightful, heartfelt posts about fertility problems and imperfect parenting.
• I shared how to make a month's worth of freezer meals in a single day.
• Stew's English cousins came to stay for a few days, and we saw the sights in Seattle like proper tourists.
• We took Ryder to his first Sounders game and his first Mariners game. We've been grooming our little sports fan from birth...
• I wrote a letter to my future self, outlining all my hopes and dreams for life five years from now.
• I did some thinking about this blog, my writing process, and becoming a "mommy blogger".
• I also did a lot of personal reflecting on topics like the emotional rollercoaster of being a mother, hardships parents face, mommy guilt, what I really do while the baby is napping, and the reality of just how much I talk about poop.
• And I shared the secrets to our marriage.

 

This first year of being parents has been a wild ride, and it certainly hasn't been without challenges. To those of you who've continued to follow along on our journey, thank you — we're so glad you're here, and hope that you'll continue to follow along.

 

Here's to luck and love. We continue to look forward to what the future has in store.

 

 

Happy Birthday, America!

 

We hope that everyone had a safe and happy Fourth of July!

 

The littlest Alway didn't quite make it until the fireworks started, but there's always next year...