Squadron Ball (9.28.12)

Last night, Brad's squadron had a military ball. It was my first ever and it was actually a lot of fun. I loved getting to be with Brad all night and get to know the guys he works with a little better. He has some great guys in his Squadron and we have been really blessed with his boss, his platoon and his co-workers.

The military ball was in Amberg, so about 30 minutes from us. Brad had to wear his dress blues ... (I love them) ... and we got all dressed up! 

This is my wonderful friend Charee. She is pretty amazing and gorgeous! Our husbands are in the same squadron and they are in our ward. They have become wonderful friends in such a short amount of time of us being here. 

After the "social hour" they start the program. They present the colors and then they do this Grog Ceremony. Quite frankly, it's disgusting. But, maybe that's only because I don't drink. They pour in like 10 different types of alcohol into the bowl. Each alcohol represents an accomplishment for the squadron over the past 200 some years (WWI, WWII, Desert Storm ... etc) So, they pour in tequila, wine, beer & who knows what else ... all the soldiers chant and cheer as they do it and take a chug for themselves before pouring the rest into the bowl. Then they mix it up and everyone gets a chance to sample the Grog. *gross, gross, gross* I smelled some of it and holy cow, I think I got a little drunk just from smelling it. The soldiers sure loved it though. 

See the sock? Apparently it wasn't gross enough just having an assortment of alcohol, so the Sergeant had to add his sock. Yep. Disgusting. 

Then, they do the toasts and we eat food (which was delicious!) after dinner the Commanding officers speak for a couple minutes and then they bring out the DJ and you can dance the night away. We didn't stay too long after the dancing starting but, it was a really fun night. 

Here is Brad with all the officers in his Troop. I have really come to love these guys and appreciate the work relationship Brad has with them. His CO, Cap't Voch is a great boss and thankfully Brad will be moving with him next month to a different troop. 

(Back Row: Lt. Lewis, Lt. Triller, Lt. Anderson, Lt. Speigel, Lt. Jensen Front Row: Cap't Voch, Lt. Duarte, 1st Sgt Quan) 

This is Brad and his good friend Josue. They have been good friends since Brad first got here at the beginning of the year. 

The first of many military balls ... I am sure! Such a fun night with my Mister.

Wedding Reception

So ... I love weddings. I love planning them. I love being at them. I love being a part of them. I love decorating for them. I just love weddings. So, when I was given the chance to plan a second wedding, I was giddy. I had already had plans floating around in my mind for months (before I even met Brad). I knew I wanted a Summer wedding, lemons used somehow, red as my color and red gerber daises in my bouquet. And, thanks to Pinterest, I was able to plan the perfect wedding. Well, I thought it was perfect ... that's all that matters, right? Thankfully, the basement apartment I was living in came with the perk of having an amazing (really amazing) backyard. When the landlords found out I was engaged they told me I could use the backyard for the reception. It was perfect! 

We did a really laid back reception. We didn't have a line. We didn't do anything formal. We just mingled and laughed with our guests. It made it so perfect. The only "formal" thing I wanted to do was have our 'first dance' together so, we dance to "Only You Can Love Me This Way" by: Keith Urban. I loved our reception and it came together exactly how I wanted. I guess 5 months of crazy planning pays off in the end! 

{we had cheesecake squares, lemon cookies & fruit kabobs}

{these super cute girls are from my old ward in Lehi, they came to "bus" the tables} 

{thankfully ... all our kiddos were entertained!} 

{my sweet Grandma Davies} 

{I seriously was so tired of standing!} 

{I guess we're really awesome parents because we totally forgot to say bye to Kason when we left so, we run through the sparklers, say adios and then he came running after us crying. I don't think he realized we were leaving for good right then ... and we didn't even think to say bye to him. I felt absolutely horrible. But, I guess right after we left, he was totally fine. Parents of the year, I tell ya!} 

Wedding Pictures

I absolutely *loved* our wedding photographer. She is the cousin of some friend's of mine in Arizona. She was amazing. She was the exact photographer and style I wanted. 

Heather Telford

Here are some of my favorite shots from the temple ... it's hard narrowing it down to just these few!

Isn't he such a little stud!?

We were so blessed to have an amazing outpouring of love and support on our wedding day! 

These girls are amazing. I miss them!

And this girl? She is one in a million. It's as if the Lord knew I needed a sister and then, he gave me Kristin. I love her. 

And I absolutely loved my bouquet. It was perfect!

I love my mister. 

I want to get married again. To the same man. Over and over and over again ... our day was absolutely perfect.