sweet wedding...

What a beautiful wedding it was. We are now back in CT, after a wonderful weekend in Carmel Valley & Marina, CA at Bernadette & Todd's wedding - and a fabulous visit in the Bay Area. B&T had a great wedding, and they have such wonderful friends that we had the pleasure of laughing, dancing, and slaving in the heat with to set up for the reception. Now I am back prepping for Guyana. I think perhaps I am slightly in denial about my nearing departure. But, I may also just have been slowly prepping mentally, a bit each day, for some time now. We shall see...

Pacific Grove

and see below, from Carmel Valley...

Carmel Valley, CA

This morning I find myself in a lovely hotel room adjacent to a beautiful beach in Marina, CA. For the past few days Taylor & I have been "down south," spending some time in Marina, Monterey, Pacific Grove, and Carmel Valley. We are here to celebrate the beautiful union of our friends Bernadette & Todd. Yesterday we, along with many of their very warm and great friends, spent the day decorating a barn-like building at the Hidden Valley Music Seminar in Carmel Valley. This is the site where the wedding reception will take place today. The temperatures reached a high of, it was rumored, 107 degrees. Luckily for those of you who know about humidity, there was none, so the heat was much more bearable. BUT- it was a very hot day all the same. The details that Bern & Todd have thought of for the wedding is incredible. The barn had its own Cinderella story, as we transformed the interiors under the direction of the married-couple-to-be. Following this, and several cold showers, we all went to the rehearsal dinner, which included bocce ball, croquet, and amazing food... Today is the big day!

Already a loyal supporter

I am a convert

Lovely Bay Area... back again

It has officially been about two years since we lived in the Bay Area- and, most surprisingly, we have not been back since we left until now. We have been staying at the lovely Brown Kidde's home in Rockridge (my favortie) in Oakland. Heather & Jon have truly welcomed us into their home for the past week where we have spent beautiful, sun-filled days frequenting our old favorite spots. Such spots include Cole Coffee, Saul's, Zachary's, Cafe Fanny, and of course, San Francisco, where we visited Tartine, ZaZie's, and my new favorite, Blue Bottle Coffee. Have you noticed most of these places are coffee shops, go figure... We also went to Point Reyes Peninsula and spent a day on the beach- we went hiking in the Redwoods right here in Oakland. Some things I am loving the most, being with Heather & Jon, the smell of jasmine, the smell of the Eucalyptus trees, seeing JoAnn & Don and their family, being on vacation with Taylor, the landscape, the fog, the sun, sipping coffee at sidewalk cafes...