October 30-31, 2015
Written October 31+
Dear Diary, Friends, and Families,Written October 31+
It has been awhile since we have been to a wedding, so we had been looking forward to this Friday afternoon ceremony and celebration. Alexis, the daughter of Marianne's long-time friend Rita, was tying the knot with Lane, in about as romantic a setting as one could imagine. The event was held at the Hyatt Carmel Highlands on a patio hanging out over the Pacific coastline.
Weddings are made for photos, so I'll let the pictures tell the story.
    All dressed up, we went past the pool to the cliff side patio. |
  Rita made her grand(mother) entrance and the happy brides made their own. |
   The ceremony included both ring exchange and, courtesy of Alexis' dad Peter, a Scottish tradition of a cord to symbolize union and commitment. (And the source of the "tie the knot" wedding expression.) After the ceremony, the rest of us toasted the new couple. |
The Reception       Receptions are all about friends and relatives chatting and catching up. We had lots of catching up to do with both old and new friends.    A group picture, a cake cutting, and a playful roast by Alexis' brother Patrick.   The evening ended with dancing. |
After a restful overnight and breakfast with Klare and Jack, we headed up to Los Gatos for a Halloween celebration with Ava and Sam. Actually, there would be two parties, one with the Rahimi family and one with a passel of friends. Here's what we saw:
 Even mom's get costumed.    Uncle Ali's front (grave) yard and a pinata. Fun.    Ava and Sam   Cousins, small and not-quite-small     Grandparents, aunts, and uncles |
The
second party had tons of costumed folks, but for some reason I did not
take many pictures. Maybe I was intimidated by the crowd of
strangers, although we have now seen most of them at various
friends-of-Ava-and-Sam gatherings. Next year I'll do better.   While our crew invaded the neighborhood, Marianne and I stayed home to welcome other invaders. |
So, that was the weekend excitement. All that was left was an uneventful Sunday drive home.
Once home, we had plenty to do, preparing for a trip back east to see Ryan, Sean, and their mom and dad. It has been awhile and I'm sure they've grown!
But, that's the next story.
John and Marianne