more weddings and birthdays

July has been filled with weddings and birthday parties. I am actually looking forward to August because we don't have anything planned...yet.

A wonderful friend of mine got married on Saturday. It was great to see all my friends! I feel like now that everyone is getting married and starting families, we don't get to see each other as much. I remember when we used to see each other every weekend, whether it was eating at a restaurant, hanging out at a friend's house, watching sports or going out to a show or club in LA. I miss those carefree days. Balancing mamahood and a social life has been a struggle but something I'm working on.

Jamie (not me, the bride) looked gorgeous as always!

They used Aww Snap! Photo Booth for their wedding. I thought it was pretty awesome that they posted all the photos onto Facebook almost immediately so you can share them. 

On Sunday, we went to a 1st birthday party. It started off as a gloomy day, it rained for a few minutes but it didn't stay long. Once the sun came out, everyone was ready to party!

The adults started dancing, so Brookie decided to show them her dance moves. #turnup 

Great music, good food and beautiful people. Everyone had a good time! 

After the birthday party we headed over to Venice and walked around Abbot Kinney. We were meeting with friends for a little get together. This was actually our first time walking through Abbot Kinney and we loved the vibe! We're definitely going back to take more photos!

Toms' flagship store was pretty cool. It's a coffee shop/store/hang out with your laptop, dogs or friends. I love the decor, it embodies the Toms brand and what they stand for. I've always been a fan of Toms shoes and it's amazing that they're able to successfully use fashion to change the lives of others. 

It was another fun and very tiring weekend!

busy saturday

Today was the first day of swim lessons and we made it on time at 9 am! That is an accomplishment for this mama. Most mothers know that getting out of the house, without looking like a complete mess and not forgetting anything, is a production.

Ok, maybe I should of combed her hair.

This is the first time I've actually seen a photo of myself in a bathing suit. It's not a pleasant sight, but it's reality and I hope it motivates me to start working out. I actually weigh less than I did before I was pregnant, but I'm just a walking body of fat. No muscles and out of shape. Finding time and extra energy to work out has been my mission impossible for the past 14 months. I need to search for tips on how other mamas do it or maybe I need to stop being so lazy.

After the swim lesson, we rushed home to get ready. I had an Optometrist appointment and we had a baptism and 1st birthday party to attend to. We were unable to make it to the baptism. Sadly, there just wasn't enough time to do everything today.

This is such a pretty cake! It is definitely Pinterest worthy. 

Cheers to another fun Saturday!

wedding bells are ringing

| 07.05.14 |
Dress rehearsal time!

This was Brookie's first wedding as a flower girl! 

The 1st toast to the happy couple! Cheers to #ashcob!

Ashley and Jacob gave presents to their groomsmen and bridal party. They were so generous and thoughtful in every present. Brookie absolutely loved her gifts! It was like Christmas and her 1st birthday all over again! 

| 07.06.14 |
Ashley & Jacob's Wedding Day!

The bridal party and the flower girls were given these shirts with their initials on it and matching shorts. It was such a cute idea! 

Ashley's brother, Vince, and her Goddaughter, Morgan. She has grown up into a beautiful and confident, young lady.

Ok, so here comes the moment this mama has been waiting for. I was honestly more nervous than she was. As you can see, Jathan and to nudge her halfway. Little did I know, until Jathan came to sit with us and told me, that the camera stand that was next to me from the videographer was blocking her view so she was unable to see me. My anxiety set in when I noticed her pause and I thought I heard someone say, "Jamie, you should go get her." So I ran over and walked with her the rest of the way. Ugh! Mama failed.

My mama note for flower girl duties: "RELAX! She'll do great!" I replay this moment over and over again in my head, I should of stood in the middle of the aisle behind the camera and let her walk towards me! But my anxiety got the best of me and I didn't think it through. It would of made a much better wedding ceremony video moment if I had just thought it through! Trust me, I'm still beating myself up for this one.

**Ashley and Jacob, my apologies in advance for video bombing your wedding ceremony. Please pretend I didn't do that.

The beautiful bride with her father.

A couple who has fun together, stays together. These two are definitely meant to be together!

They're officially husband and wife! Congratulations to the beautiful couple!

When each guest arrived at their seat, there was a handwritten personal note from the bride and groom. They did such an amazing job with everything! You can tell how much love they put into every detail. The day was about them but they managed to make every single person feel special.

Representing in our BCBG dresses, a big thank you to Bryan for helping us look pretty!

Macaroons from the dessert bar. Everything was delicious but the dessert was a special treat because Ashley's brother had them made from his pastry chef. Vince is an awesome chef and I always look forward to eating whatever he brings to our family gatherings. 

Brookie changed in her PJs (given as one of the gifts from Ashley and Jacob) and danced until the party ended! My little one stayed up! She didn't want to miss a moment. 

A huge thank you to Ashley and Jacob for letting our little one be a part of their special day! We feel so honored and blessed that they included her in the bridal party. Thank you for everything they've done to accomodate us. We love them dearly and look forward to watching their love grow. 

fireworks

To celebrate America's Independence Day, we decided to go to Marina Del Rey to watch fireworks. We figured Brookie would love to see fireworks in person for the first time. We arrived there around 4pm to get a good spot and set up a picnic since we knew it was going to be crowded.

Of course, getting my 14-month-old to stay at our picnic spot was nearly impossible.  So I let her walk around the park a few times, saying "Hi" and "Bye" to everyone she met along the way. My mama note for this adventure: "Next time bring more food, a tent and grill, if possible." I was starving walking by everyone's feasts that they were cooking up.

The show started at 9pm so we were waiting for quite some time. 

As for the fireworks, Jathan had his tripod ready to capture the moment we've been waiting hours for. As soon as it began, we realized that the tree that was right in front of us, was blocking the entire show! We rushed to the bottom, but there were way too many people plus we didn't want to trample over those who were already sitting in their perfect spot. We squeezed in somewhere and we were able to see the show but of course, Brookie wasn't impressed. She was too tired (it was her bedtime) to care what was going on in front of us. We headed back to the car and waited for an hour to get out of the parking lot. My 2nd mama note: "Do not park in the designated parking lot." Jathan and I ended up watching Avengers on Netflix while we waited in the car. We're just glad we finally made it home safely.