Our First Anniversary Celebration

On Saturday May 4 Zac and I celebrated our one year anniversary. It's incredible how quickly this year has gone by. We weren't sure if we were going to end up at the hospital on our anniversary since Zane could be arriving at anytime, so we opted not to make plans that were too crazy. We weren't going to be heading out of town and obviously being nine months pregnant wine or beer tasting was out of the question. (Ha ha.) And we didn't want to have some incredibly expensive dinner at a restaurant. (I don't have any cute dresses that fit as dresses anymore, anyway.) We talked about what to do for our anniversary as it grew closer and after realizing that this could potentially be the last full day that we both had together just the two of us (Zac works 5-6 days a week) we thought that it would be wonderful to have a romantic day at home.

We knew that no matter what we ended up doing throughout the day, at the end of the night we wanted to cut into the top tier of our wedding cake. The small red velvet cake wth buttercream frosting had been wrapped up tight in our freezer for the last 365 days.

We were happy to find that when we finally unwrapped it from the box and set it out to thaw that it had held up very well. It had only lost a few of its pearl details and still looked gorgeous and tasty.

Zac thought that it would be fantastic to recreate the dinner from our wedding. We had an amazing dinner that evening so I was all for it! We looked up the menu we had chosen from our venue and made a shopping list. The day before our anniversary while I laid in bed resting with my feet up, Zac went grocery shopping and spent the afternoon prepping food for our anniversary dinner before he headed off to work for the night. (I seriously have the most amazing husband ever!)

Zac and I spent the afternoon of our anniversary hanging out together. It was nice to have an entire day to spend with my love. For lunch we enjoyed a recreation of appetizers served at our cocktail hour. The bbq meatballs were fantastic! We pulled out our guestbook that was made up of photos from our photobooth. Guests were able to take pictures in the booth and leave messages for us. Our photographer, Tess, of Van's Studio caught the fun and excitement over at the photobooth. It was a big hit and we were so happy that we had it at the reception.  

Zac and I were cracking up as we looked through the guestbook. The faces that were being made, the costumes, and the comments are all priceless. It's such a fantastic keepsake from our wedding.

That evening, Zac started dinner and I pulled out our anniversary china we received as a wedding gift (Mikasa Love Story dinnerware found here) and our wedding toasting flutes (Waterford Wishes Happy Celebrations found here) for the occasion.

Before dinner Zac and I sat down to watch our wedding video. At 5:00pm (the same time that our wedding was scheduled to begin) we pressed play and took in the whole day. (Check out our wedding video at the end of the blog post here or our highlights video in this post here.) I can't explain how happy we are that we have this record of our wedding. It was so great to be able to watch us say our vows to one another and remember how excited we were on that day.

Dinner was AMAZING! Zac did a fantastic job recreating the meal. The salmon, the steak...everything was delicious! Zac will have to pass his cooking skills on to Zane because that is not a skill he will be able to pick up from me. When we had finished dinner we used the cake knife from our wedding to cut into our cake. The Michael Buble station on Pandora had been playing throughout our dinner. Right as we cut the cake "Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch" by The Temptations started. We laughed because this was the song that played when we cut the cake at our wedding. Nicely done Pandora...nicely done.

When dinner and dessert were complete it was time to exchange gifts. The first anniversary is traditionally the paper anniversary. I'm not going to lie. This had me quite stumped for a while. I like to think that I'm a pretty good gift giver but when restricted to a material I felt a little lost. Giftcards were lame and most were plastic anyways. There were no concerts or events coming up that I could get tickets for. With baby on the way buying train tickets for a trip out of town was not a smart idea. In the end I turned to Pinterest for some ideas (big shocker!). I found a fantastic idea (and I'm ashamed to say that I didn't bookmark the link!)....a gift that kept on giving. For Zac, I created a "Sunday Jar". In the jar I placed 52 pieces of scrapbook paper. On each paper there are date ideas, gifts, treats, activities, etc.. Each Sunday, Zac will be able to pick out a paper from the jar to redeem that day or to use throughout the week. The papers have things like: get a bag of coffee, go for a family walk, Daddy needs a new shirt, beer tasting date with the wifey, lazy day in bed. I was happy that Zac's smile got bigger and bigger as he read through each piece of paper in the jar. He pulled his first one, "get a new book" the following day.

Next was my turn. Zac had me stay downstairs in the dining room while he ran upstairs to get my gift. A few minutes had passed and I was beginning to wonder what was taking him so long. A few minutes after that he came down with a smile on his face and extended a hand for me to take. He asked me to close my eyes and he carefully led me up the stairs. Once we reached the top of the stairs and made a right I knew that we were headed into Zane's room. I stood in what I could only assume was the middle of the room for a few moments with my eyes closed as I waited for permission to open them and take a peek at what Zac had in store. I could hear Zac moving around and after smelling matches I knew that he was lighting candles. Soon I could hear "A Kiss to Build A Dream On" (the song we had our first dance to) and Zac told me that I could open my eyes. There in front of me was Zac on one knee, holding out a ring box, a "Marry Me!" banner hung behind him. I couldn't help but cry. Here was my husband, proposing all over again in the same way that he had proposed the first time, using the exact same banner. (I had no idea that he still had it.) (Read all about how Zac proposed here and see how he surprised me a year later here.) I was so blown away by the romantic gesture that I hadn't even taken a good look at my ring.

Zac explained that the banner was the paper part of my gift. The other part of my gift was the addition of a band to my ring that represented our first year of marriage and our first baby. He said he hoped I didn't mind that he killed two birds with one stone giving me something that was both an anniversary gift and a push present all in one. I told him he killed three birds....no Mother's Day gift needed! The ring is absolutely stunning. My poor hands are still crazy swollen and unfortunately the ring only fits on my pinky right now. I can't wait until my hands go back to normal and I can wear this gorgeous, sparkly number on my hand again. I've missed it these last ten weeks. Zac thought that I for sure knew what my gift was. As we were watching our wedding video I had made a comment about how pretty my ring was and how much I missed wearing it. He figured that I had found my empty ring box and put it together that he was adding a band to it. He was wrong. I had no idea... I just really love my ring!

We ended our evening relaxing in bed together watching a movie. I've been exhausted lately and at around 8:30 my eyes started to feel heavy. We got a good giggle thinking that we were laying in bed when at that time one year before we were getting the party started on the dance floor at our reception. Next year we'll probably be having our bedtime routine with our almost one year old.

I couldn't have asked for a better year or a more perfect anniversary with my Zac. I know that we only have more great things in store for us. I'm so lucky to have him!

Happy Anniversary

It is an unbelievable thought that 365 days have passed since I walked down the wysteria lane aisle at Wolf Lakes Park and Zac and I vowed in front of all of our friends and family to spend the rest of our lives together. It was an amazing day. The weather was beautiful, the grounds were gorgeous, and we were surrounded by so much love and happiness.

The morning of the wedding, the girls and I were picked up by a Jaguar limo (read about finding the rental here) that took us to the venue.

We arrived early in the morning and had plenty of time to get our hair and makeup done, drink champagne, and chat.

I felt very calm as we were getting ready. It wasn't until ten minutes before we were supposed to start the wedding that I started to freak out. I got a little clammy and thought for sure that I was going to throw up.

Everyone got a good laugh at my nerves. It wasn't the idea of marrying Zac that had me feeling sick. I couldn't have been more ready to marry my love. I've been in a few weddings but this was different, because it was mine. There was no doubt that eyes were going to be on me and that definitely freaked me out. Thankfully I had my girls to keep me laughing.

Before we knew it the time had come for the girls to line up because the boys were arriving on the boat.

I was shaking at the top of the ramp that led down to the ceremony space until I caught a glimpse of the boys coming off of the boat and saw my Zac take his place. After that I was fine. I remembered what we were doing and while I appreciated all of the people who had come out to support us and celebrate our love, Zac was the only one that mattered at that moment.

Our ceremony was just perfect. I seriously forgot that there were a bunch of people sitting in an audience listening to us. Zac and I held hands and I felt like it was just the two of us, talking to one another.

As part of the ceremony, Zac and I wrote notes to one another in addition to taking vows. It was an opportunity for us to tell each other how much we loved and appreciated one another and express how we each felt about our relationship.

I was the first to share my note with Zac:

My sweet Zac,

Seven years ago we went on a spontaneous first date. After spending 24 somewhat adventurous hours with you, I knew that it was pretty special, but I had no idea that it was the beginning of something THIS special. For the last seven years you have been my best friend, my lover, the constant in my life, and my home. But most importantly, you make me feel happier and more loved than I ever imagined possible. I am honored today to become your wife, the future mother of your children, and always your partner in any adventure we encounter. Thank you for loving me.

Zac's letter came next. I've always known him to be sweet and eloquent and although I expected him to say something amazing, I was still blown away by his message:

When I started writing my note to you, I began it like I always do with "Hi Sparkles!". I've probably done hundreds of notes that began that way, with your nickname, without ever thinking about where that nickname came from. How, seven years ago, my car broken down, sitting on the side of the road, middle of the night, you came out with a friend to sit and wait with me. We sat there in a comfortable silence with our chins on our knees and as the cars would drive by the lights would reflect off the pavement, the paint, and your shoes. Your psychedelic, sequined, super sparkly shoes. I had only just learned that the girl I'd been texting all week, the girl that I had called "mystery texter" because she wouldn't give me her name, was you. And as I sat there, half blinded by the neon spangles, I thought that "Sparkles" was a better fit. Seven years, two cars, and 47 pairs of shoes later, you still bring the color and the light in my life and are still the most interesting thing in the room, the side of the road, or anywhere. Our relationship has been comfortable and natural, devoid of hard decisions. Even at the beginning, the questions like "Should I call her back?" or "Do you think she'll want to go out again tomorrow night?" or "Should we move in together?" were so easy and so obvious, I never even asked them. I don't decide to breathe or to love you, Sparkles. I just do.

I mean seriously! How could I not cry after that?!

After our notes to one another, we exchanged rings and vows and sealed the deal with a kiss. Then it was time to celebrate!

It's been an amazing year and I'm so grateful for the wonderful relationship that I have with my Zac. As he said in his note to me, our relationship has always been comfortable. There is no doubt that we love each other but equally important, we LIKE each other and have respect for one another. I can't imagine my life without him and I'm so excited that our family is expanding.

Today we will be celebrating by cutting into the top tier of our wedding cake (wasn't it so pretty!) and enjoying a sparkling beverage in our toasting flutes. Though we have a bottle of almond champagne from our wedding chilling in our wine fridge, we'll be waiting to pop the cork until after our little one arrives. Some non alcoholic bubbly will have to do instead. We'll also be watching our wedding video. Thanks to Ahwahnee Films we have a wonderful record of our special day. (Check out how we came to find them here and hire them here.) We are so glad that we found such an amazing videographer to capture our day and couldn't be happier with the work that he did. To make it even better Aaron was fun to work with and we feel like we've made a new friend at the end of it. We highly recommend hiring a videographer. The end result was definitely worth the cost. Ahwahnee Films is based out of Orange County. If you're able to, you should check them out!

If you would like to check out the video and have 30 minutes to spare, just click on this link: Our Wedding Video (The video is private but we don't mind. You'll just need the password: enjoy)

If you would prefer to just check out the highlights from our wedding feel free to watch the ten minute version of the video in this post here. (No password needed.)

We hope you enjoy a glimpse into our day and I'll be sure to share more of our wedding details later. May your day be filled with as much love and happiness as ours is!

Our Rehearsal and Rehearsal Dinner

It was on this day last year that Zac and I headed out to Wolf Lakes Park with our families and bridal party for our wedding rehearsal. We were both very excited that the time had finally come to get this show on the road.

The rehearsal went very smoothly and ended pretty quickly. After the it was over, Zac and I had invited our clan back to our home for a backyard fiesta themed rehearsal dinner.

Zac had worked hard to get the back dock completed over the last few months. The cement had been poured, the pond was finished, and the seating had been built. On their last visit, Zac's parents had brought up this amazing sign as a gift for the area. The "Zac & Cristina's Cantina" sign went perfectly in the space!

We had set up a few tables and chairs in the backyard with bright yellow linen, sombrero centerpieces, and bright multi-colored floral arrangements.

All of the decorations, including the multi-colored lanterns that were hung from the awning, doubled as decor for the post wedding day brunch on Saturday. As Saturday was Cinco de Mayo we thought that it would only be fitting to have a fiesta theme for the event. Making the rehearsal dinner the same theme we were able to get all of the decor and set up complete the day before the wedding and it was all still in place and looking great for the brunch two days later. We knew that we might be a little tired after the wedding so keeping set up minimal for the brunch was fantastic!

At the dinner we all had time to relax a little and enjoy some food and margaritas. Zac and I also gave out some gifts to our bridal party, officiant, and parents.It meant so much to have all of these people participate in our day. All but two people from our bridal party live out of town so we felt pretty lucky that they could all make it to the rehearsal.

For my girls, I had large men's button down white shirts embroidered on the pocket with their initials. They wore these shirts while getting ready the next day along with a pair of boxer shorts that I included in their gift bags.

They also received personalized wooden hangers that I made for their dresses. The hangers went pretty well with the "Mrs. Chapman" hanger I had ordered from Etsy for my own dress.

The parents received frames. Zac is the last one in his family to get married. We thought that his parents would love a frame filled with photos from all of the weddings in their family. The first photo was from their wedding, followed by a photo of his sister Sarah's wedding, a photo from his brother Eric's wedding, and a blank spot ready for a photo from our wedding. From their faces when the gift was opened, we think they liked it.

I am the first one in my family to get married and my parents don't have any photos from their wedding so our gift to them was a little different. My mom is quite the picture lady and we knew that she would want to display a bunch of pictures from our wedding as soon as possible. We left 3 of the 4 spots open for her to fill as she desired. In the first spot we placed a printed saying: "Today a bride, tomorrow a wife, always your little girl."

The rehearsal evening was a fun night and made Zac and I both pretty excited for the next day. We're so glad that everyone from our bridal party and both of our families were able to make it out that evening to share in the rehearsal and enjoy some yummy fiesta food. We were also super grateful that our videographers from Ahwahnee Films, were able to capture the whole night.

Once the sun set and the night came to an end I said goodbye to Zac as he headed to the hotel with his groomsmen since the girls and I had a bridesmaid slumber party planned at the house. I had a difficult time sleeping that evening. I was far too excited for the next day.