One Year!

We have FINALLY made it to the ONE YEAR mark until our wedding! I didn't think we would ever get here (jk haha)! Our first wedding date was August 4, but we switched our venue and date before we reached that date so we never officially made it to any one year mark until today! People may think we are crazy for changing our wedding venue and our wedding date but now that its all said and done we are 110% confident with our decision! Was it a little scary/overwhelming at the time...YES, but it was SO worth it! We are BOTH soooo excited to be able to have our wedding at the amazing venue Rancho Las Lomas, which is where I have always dreamed of having it since the day I first heard about it. The lady I used to nanny for told me about it before we even got engaged and so I of course immediately went and googled it and fell in love, but it was out of my parent's budget so I immediately disregarded it, even though it was ALWAYS in the back of my mind. I was watching My Fair Wedding on netflix one day and he did a dream wedding for someone and it was at Rancho! It kept coming back to me like it was some sort of sign! haha Bobby knew that that's where I REALLY deep down wanted to get married so he wasn't going to let me settle, he wanted to give me the wedding of my dreams so we decided we would make it happen...and so we are :))

I can't wait to walk down the aisle FINALLY and marry my best friend. We have waited years, will be together for 11.5 almost 12 years by the time we tie the knot and engaged for 25 and some change months! Most engagements are only 12-18 months long, ours definitely trumps that but it just makes it all that more exciting for our big day to actually arrive and here we are at the one year mark already! The first year actually FLEW by and I honestly couldn't even imagine having our wedding this summer, I am REALLY glad we decided to wait until after he graduates it makes it so much easier and this way we were/are able to do everything that we want and make it perfect for us! It's still going to be somewhat challenging planning certain things from 3,000 miles away but I am SO excited to actually be able TO plan! We already have our venue, catering, and photographer, and are currently working on our dj, wedding coordinator, flowers, and videographer. Oh and I ordered my dress of course! :) Once we get these big things taken care of it will all be the smaller details and the fun stuff! I am so excited, I can't wait to see how it all comes together. I just know this year is going to FLY and before we know it it will be our wedding day and that's going to FLY too so I just want us to enjoy this process because we only get one shot at it and we are doing it exactly how WE want it.

Let the countdown continue!!! <33

My First Juice

So we bought a juicer on Amazon on Monday and it arrived today! ( I love Amazon). We decided to opt for a less expensive one for now since we are newbies and want to be sure it is something we will stick with so we didn't want to invest in an expensive one if we don't do it as much as we anticipate. We bought a Breville that was rated #1 on Amazon and it was only $100 which wasn't bad. We ate SO bad while we were in CA and our wedding is now a year away (exactly tomorrow) so we are now in sweating for the wedding mode, so we decided it would be a good idea to get a juicer since it is a fast easy way to fit in all of fruits and veggies! Bobby literally won't eat veggies and barely eats fruit so this is a great way for him to get both in (especially veggies) quick and easy! I plan to buy some sort of container to juice a bunch and store it in the fridge so we can just pour a glass when we need/want some, which will be great for him since I know he won't be doing most of the juicing anyways lol

Anyway, I went online and glanced through some recipes and picked out some main ingredients and grabbed them at the store. The instruction manual also listed a bunch of recipes which is nice so I will be able to use those as well! For my first juice I kind of just picked some things and threw them in there. I picked strawberries, kiwi, carrots, apple, cucumber, and spinach. It turned out super yummy! I think I am quickly going to become obsessed with juicing which definitely isn't a bad thing! I am excited to try new recipes and hopefully soon enough I will become a pro ;)  Tomorrow...back to the gym after over a month off (tsk tsk) yikes!!

the more color the better! :)

doesn't look good but it tastes great!

Back to the Grind

We finally made it back to Rochester at 4am this morning after a long 5 day journey (for the second time) from California. This time wasn't as bad because we were able to ride together and had no REAL rush to get back. We were able to stop and take our time for the most part. We stopped in Wyoming for a day so Bobby could get some business done, and it was a nice break after driving 15 hours straight. The middle of the country (Wyoming, Nebsraska, Iowa) is pretty much all exactly the same...a whole lot of nothing so we couldn't wait to get through there.

Our only other major stop was in Chicago yesterday! We stopped and got a hotel Saturday night about 45 minutes outside of Chicago and then went into the city for about 5 hours and explore as much as we could. We roamed the magnificent mile (their version of 5th ave in NYC) and ate some delicious, authentic Chicago style pizza (which blows NYC pizza out of the water in my opinion). We walked all the way to Lake Michigan where there was some sort of air show going on, we aren't exactly sure what it was about but it pretty cool! On our walk back to the car we decided to stop into a couple store we are thinking about registering at for our wedding and browse to see what caught our eye. The Crate & Barrel there was amazing and 5 stories!

We left around 5pm and had a 650 mile drive ahead of us. With all of our stops it made it a little longer, plus we lost an hour. We slept in late today which felt amazing in our own bed! It was so nice to finally walk through the door of our apartment and not be driving anymore. It feels great to be back and I am ready to get back into a normal routine. I go back to work tomorrow and Wednesday so I am excited for that :) No baby Gabels YET! I am also SO ready to get back to the gym and eating right, we bought a juicer which should be here Wednesday and we are going to do some sort of juice detox/cleanse because it is BEYOND needed! I gained back all of my weight that I had lost before going out there and I am so ready to get in wedding shape! Bobby starts classes in a few weeks as well so soon enough we will back to the regular grind!

So as much as the driving for days and days isn't ideal, and it kind of sucks at times. There are good things that come from it. I get to spend quality, uninterrupted (for the most part) time with Bobby, which during school is hard to get. We never get sick of each other and it just proves more and more that he is my BEST friend and how lucky I am to have him. It made me fall in love with him even more than I already am. We discussed the most random topics. We still learn more about each other (yes even after 10+ years). We figured out a lot about what we want for our wedding. Made some decisions. Talk about our future. And more. On top of ALL of that, I got to see parts of the country I have never seen before with my best friend and those are memories that we will have forever and for all of that I am happy. :)

Some pictures I took along the way:

Wyoming roads

Corn. Nebraska

ridiculous gift shop with no exit to get to it in NE.

Omaha

Casey,Iowa. Bored much?

Iowa. 

Inside the truck stop. There were 2 others! It lived up to world's biggest!

Chicago.

Old house amidst modern buildings, coolest thing we saw I think.

Air Show.

Lake Michigan

Hancock Tower

Entering Notre Dame

On the Road

We are officially on the road back to Rochester as of yesterday. We had planned on leaving yesterday morning, but we had some friends over the night before and were hanging out drinking late so that definitely didn't happen. Packing always ends up taking way longer than we anticipate too so we didn't get on the road until 5pm! lol Bobby had to be in Wyoming today because there was a chance that he was going to have a meeting today, but it ended up being tomorrow. We drove basically all through the night, stopping once at 6:45am about 3 hours outside of Lander, WY (our destination) so Bobby could sleep and then I drove the rest of the way. We got to Lander around 11:30 am, straight up exhausted! But, this way we get to relax a day and get a good nights sleep. Then tomorrow Bobby has a meeting at 10 am and 1pm and then we will head out right after his last meeting. Our next stop is going to be Omaha,Nebraska. At least that is only about an 8 hour drive, vs the 16 hour drive we did yesterday/today. The rest of our trip won't be rushed so it will be a lot better. I just have to be back for work by Monday (for work Tuesday) which is easily doable with the time that we have left. Our planned stops are Omaha and Chicago next and then just straight to Rochester. Since we have some extra time maybe we will find another place to stop between Chicago and Rochester, although I don't know that there is anywhere worth stopping at, but we will see!

It will be nice to be back in our own space finally and get back to a normal routine. Megan (Julia's mom) should be having her babies anytime, unless she makes it to her due date. She has a scheduled C-section September 15 so we will see! I am excited to meet those little ones! :)

We Booked!

Today was our booking appointment at Rancho Las Lomas....now its OFFICIAL! I am seriously overwhelmed with joy and excitement and also a little bit of disbelief. I never in a million years dreamed I would be having my wedding there, but I AM and I am just SO excited and feel so blessed to be able to! After we signed our contract and paid our deposit we walked around and took some more pictures. We also discussed where we would want to set up the DJ, our table, the cake, escort cards, etc which was nice because we could visualize the set up a little bit while we were able to be there, at least get somewhat of an idea of how it would be arranged. I fall in love with this place more and more every time I see it I wish I could take and show my parents and bridesmaids too, I just know they would love it too (which they do from the pictures, but in person is so much more amazing!).

On our walk we stopped and talked to the parrots, and they talked back (a little) haha It was so funny I just love parrots that actually talk! They are so people friendly when we walked up to their cage they came right over to say hello (literally they said hello!). Then we walked to the tigers again to hopefully catch them out of their shaded/enclosed area. We thought we were out of luck, but when we started walking away one of them came out literally for 30 seconds JUST to show off. He walked around the outside twice, put on a little show, and then walked right back into the shaded spot it was too funny, a little scary, but very cool! They're HUGE! I seriously can't WAIT for our big day, I just know it's going to be absolutely perfect! Rancho Las Lomas has a wonderful staff and great vendors who we will be working with very closely to make our dreams a reality!


Here are some pictures from today!

Where we will say I DO! 

Fountain in cocktail hour area

adorable little swing

view from the Teatro

Bridal Suite :)

another way from cocktail hour to Teatro super cute inside

our buddy

24 Carrots

Today we had our food tasting with RLL's preferred catering company, 24 Carrots Catering. They are the premiere catering company in Orange County, and the tasting definitely proved that. As I mentioned before we picked out a variety of appetizers, salads, entrees, and sides to try and then they added some other ones they thought we might like as well. We ended up liking more of the ones they through in than the ones we had picked, but really all of their food was delicious and their presentation is great as well! They had a slide show running on the tv mounted on the wall during the tasting and we got to see pictures from the numerous weddings they have done at RLL, and they are all stunning. We had no doubts that their food would be wonderful and the girl Nicole who we would be working with is great as well, we all really clicked which was great!

I am really wanting to use 24 Carrots, but there is another option that we have as well with another event company that has put together a wonderfully priced all-inclusive deal and it's making it really hard to decide. We save a substantial amount of money going with the not-24 Carrots company, but we risk the wedding reception running not as smooth. We have 110% confidence in 24 Carrots, but are still lacking some in the other. We are going to really weigh out our options over the next week or two and try to make some negotiations to see what one will fit within our budget the best and see what/if we will have to cut anything from our wedding list. This is the hard, not fun part of wedding planning, but definitely necessary.

Tomorrow we officially book our venue Rancho Las Lomas and have an appointment at 10am! I can't wait just to see the venue again, I absolutely love it there! I am going to take more pictures (because I missed quite a few spots) and really think about how to use the space as far as set up goes and make some notes. I don't know the next time I will be back out here so I definitely need to think harder about it tomorrow. I will be very happy to have that taken care of though before we take off Wednesday morning. I am sad to leave California of course, but very much looking forward to getting back into a normal routine. I am also ready for the school year to start so we are that much closer to it being over! haha

Catering is TBC....

Bridesmaid Dress Success!

I am 99% sure we have found THE dress for the bridesmaids! I had been having the hardest time finding the perfect color dress and dress combo but I believe we have found a winner! The dress that I originally loved, but they didn't have the right color, just came out with new colors and one of them is the perfect color for our wedding and I am SO excited about it! Laura happened to be visiting her family down here this weekend so we met up for coffee and then went to a bridal store in Orange (which is amazing btw) and found the dress in their store so she could try it on. We loved it! I have sent pictures to the other girls and they agree its totally perfect so as long as the color is spot on that will be the one they order! I thought I wanted to have them in different dresses at the beginning but I changed my mind, they all love the same one anyway so it makes it easy! Since the color is so new the bridal store didn't have the swatch there yet, but they are going to order it from the designer and mail it to me so I will have it in a few weeks. I am actually glad I am able to do that because then I will have the swatch to be able to match it to other things like Mackenzie's Jr. Bridesmaid dress and probably a million other things too.

I am so glad we almost have the BM dresses checked off the list, one less thing to worry about later on down the road! Monday we have another tasting with our venue's preferred catering company. We picked out a bunch of stuff to try and we are very excited for that! Then tuesday we sign our lives away (again LOL) and officially book our venue! Our new wedding date is August 23, 2013! And I just now thought about this while I was sitting here talking to Laura today and I thought it was so cool! Our dating anniversary is December 23 and now our wedding anniversary is going to be August 23....BOTH the 23rd! Bobby didn't think it was as cool as I did but I just think it's meant to be because I didn't even think about that when we picked the day....I just thought well it's the day before Bobby's birthday so he can never forget our anniversary LOL ;)

Life's a Beach

We are coming down to our last few days in SoCal, and it's really sad! Today was a super hot 102 degree day so we decided to take advantage and hit the beach! The saying "you don't know what you have until it's gone" is SO true. We definitely took for granted all of the amazing things SoCal has to offer (like the beach) while we were living here, but now that we are living in Rochester we definitely do everything we didn't do while we lived here when we come back to visit. This trip has not been as relaxing as I thought it would be, it has actually been ridiculously jam packed full of things but I wouldn't have it any other way. We have a super busy last couple of days next week so we wanted to use today to go relax in the sand at our favorite beach at the Montage in Laguna. There were some crazy big waves when we got there that were literally wiping out people's chairs and towels, it was pretty funny and I was glad we were far enough back. After laying out we decided to take a walk down the beach a ways and I decided I wanted to snap some pictures to capture our happiness at one of our favorite places to be :)

Our new Wedding date! save it ;) 

love my best friend <3

I really am sad we have to leave next week, I am going to miss it SO much! Especially because I don't know the next time we will be back down here before he graduates, or if we even will! I am hoping and crossing my fingers we will be able to come home for Christmas this year since last year we war in Rochester and it was quite miserable to be honest so hopefully we can make it happen, it would definitely help me out with wedding stuff too! Guess we will see!

7 months is TOO long!

I will never ever go 7 months without getting my hair cut/colored again! Oh my goodness haha! Up until today I hadn't had my hair touched since the end of January, can you say ROOTS?! Luckily my natural hair isn't TOO TOO far off from what I dye it, but I definitely had that "trendy" ombre going on....not a fan especially since you could see the strawberry color in my hair...Bobby wasn't liking that too much lol My normal girl out here is gone for the summer so I asked her if she knew anyone who could do it and she gave me over to a girl at her salon who is taking over her clients while she is gone. My first thought was man now I have to pay full price, but NO I still got my friend discount that I normally get SCORE! $80 for a cut and full high lights you just can't beat that! :) So was able to get in today (the same day I called) for an appointment and now I am one happy girl!!!

fresh blonde locks=one happy girl!:) 

Also! The girl who did my hair does bridal hair all the time so I am thinking about using her for my wedding and for the wedding party. She also has connections to other vendors that we still need so she is going to email me their information! Always good to know people who know people when you're planning a wedding! :)

Etter Boys

I finally got to see my Calvin and Austin Etter on Saturday! Bobby and I drove to Pleasanton Saturday morning to spend the day with the Etter family and it was SO good seeing them! They weren't home when we got there, but got there like 5 minutes after and they jumped out of the car and right into our arms...Austin to me and Calvin to Bobby how it usually is haha. I love so much that they love Bobby so much, and I know he loves it too! He loves those boys ALMOST as much as me;) Right away Aus grabs my hand and has to "show me something"...his new big boy bunk bed that him and his brother share. He was connected to my hip the whole day, and when Austin was napping Calvin was. I miss them so much, they are the cutest, sweeties, craziest boys in the world and so so so lovable! They have both gotten SO big, most noticeably Austin! He is almost as tall as Calvin and is talking SO much more than last time I saw him, and so much better! It's amazing that jump from 2-3 years old they grow SO much and learn so much I feel like I missed out on a ton but I am just so happy that they were as excited to see us as we were to see them.

Around 5 we had plans to meet up with Laura and Kyle for dinner nearby since they live in Fremont which is about 20 minutes away. It worked out really well I miss them too! It sucks not living by your best friends, not only not living by them, but living SO far away! You really learn to cherish the time you do have with them. I never have enough time with my friends, Laura is going to be in SoCal this weekend though so we are going to meet up again for some girl time and really catch up and talk. It's better with out the boys :P.

Bobby had to fly to Denver for business last minute EARLY this morning, so I took them to the Sacramento airport at 4am today, and I went and visited the Etters again! :) I was so glad I got to spend a whole extra day with them that I didn't expect. I miss them already! Bobby was supposed to fly back to so cal Thursday, but ended up getting on a flight tonight! So his cousin is going to pick him up...I already had told my mom I would meet her for a mani/pedi over here in Stockton where I am staying so I will still meet her for that tomorrow morning then just drive down right after. I will more than likely get stuck in LA traffic but oh well...I am not driving by myself at night so I will just deal with it. I am glad Bobby got to come home a couple days early though so we can enjoy our final days in California together and take care of some major wedding things as well.

The time here has gone by WAY too fast, I knew it would go by fast but not THIS fast! We will probably head out (driving) back to NY next Wednesday or Thursday so I can get back to work by the following Tuesday. I am not really looking forward to that drive, but hopefully it won't be so bad. I fully intend on enjoying our final week in CA though it has been a GREAT, but chaotic and jam packed visit thus far and probably won't let up!

Meeting Miss H

Yesterday I finally got to meet my bestie's beautiful baby girl Harlow Adriana! Our trips ended up overlapping by one day thank goodness, so I was able to drive over to Concord and spend their last day in NorCal with them. I hadn't seen Laura since her baby shower in February, and had only "met" Harlow via facetime, she is such a doll! She was napping when I got there, but woke up soon after. It's truly amazing seeing my best friend be a mom, she's such a good mommy! Laura, Adam, Harlow, and I went to lunch at Tomatina in Walnut Creek for lunch (which took FOREVER) and by that time it was time to head back to her mom's because they had some family pictures set up and H needed a nap. I was just so happy to be able to spend some time with Laura I hate living so far away from each other, especially now that she has a little one that I just want to see everyday! We came to the realization that we probably won't see each other until my bridal shower, and by that time H will be a year old (slightly over) and walking! So crazy, and so sad! :( I can't wait until the day that we are living in the same state again at least!!! She took some pictures on her camera of H and me and all 3 of us and once she posts those I will put them up :) I miss them already!!!

The Dress is Ordered!

Yesterday morning I flew into Sacramento, had some lunch with my mom, and then went and finally ordered my wedding dress!!! None of the bridal stores in the area carried my specific gown in their stores so I had to have one of them ship the sample to them so I could try it on again with my mom there and order it. It was the trunk show sample, so it was a little bit beat up, the one I had tried on in NY was brand spankin new and my size so it fit perfectly, this one was a whole size too big and a bit dingey.Despite that, it was still the beautiful perfect-for-me dress I remembered and I again didn't want to take it off! I am so glad my mom was able to see it in person because up until then she had only seen it in pictures, and pictures really never do anything justice. She loved it! She agreed it was totally "me" and that made me even more confident in my choice! I seriously can't even believe that I just ordered my WEDDING dress! I have seriously waited YEARS to be able to plan our wedding and now I am finally at the point of being able to! I didn't really ask when it would come in; 1) because its still over a year till our wedding and 2) because it will probably come in while I am still in NY. It is typical for a gown to take 6-8 months to come in so that would put it at February at the earliest and April at the latest which really would be perfect because I am planning on having my bridal shower in April or May, so it will work out whichever way it happens they said they can hang on to it for however long, they know I live out of state right now. Anyway, thats a huge check off the list...and still many, many more to go but I am so excited about marking that one off! :) YAY!