Well, now that I've gotten my photos developed, there's no excuse for not
updating my webpage...
I left Christchurch on the 4th of July, had about a day in Honolulu
passing through, and arrived in Denver, CO midafternoon on July 6th. In
Honolulu, I did a wee bit of sun-worshipping on Waikiki Beach, and visited
the Honolulu Zoo and the Waikiki Aquarium. The aquarium was definitely my
favorite! To see the pics from the zoo, you'll have to make a visit to my
Animals page.
While I was in Denver, I stayed with an ex-roommate from CSU, Shannon.
What a sweetie! See pictures below. We left Denver Thursday afternoon
for Cortez - had an excellent drive down, good weather, good company, who
could ask for more?! A wee bit of road construction just to add that
element of frustration but other than that an excellent trip...wildflowers
along the road, etc. We stayed in Cortez with another ex-roommate, Donna,
and her family. Good fun! Friday afternoon we (the bridesmaids and
friends) decorated the church for Jenni and Efrain's wedding on Saturday,
and rehearsal was in the evening, followed by a scrumptious barbeque for
the wedding party out at Jenni's family's house. Had a great time
catching up, and meeting people I'd only heard heaps about from the girls
but never met. Good to finally have faces to put with names!

Here are some of the wedding party at the bbq following rehearsal. From
left: Leslie, Kelly, Logan (in the little orange shirt, Kelly's little
one), Shannon, Donna (in blue), and Marisa. Jenni and her mom are further
to the right.

The happy bride and groom-to-be!

Jenni and Leslie looking as cute as ever!

Shannon and Jenni doing the next ad for Colgate..
And then the big day arrived, Saturday, July 12, 2003. While the boys
played golf, the girls finished up the decorations for the reception and
did all the tables outside, early in the morning so we didn't get too hot.
Pictures started at 3 for those of us not saying the vows, and the wedding
ceremony at 5:15. The ceremony was wonderful, somehow a lot shorter than
I was expecting (not a bad thing)...I cried lots...it was just so cute and
perfect! Anyway, enough of that mushy stuff. Here are some before pics
of the day, in no particular order.

The back of Jenni's dress, isn't it absolutely gorgeous? She had it made,
and it was the most perfect dress for her!

The bridesmaids, waiting for our go at pictures. Just missing one,
Jessica, Jenni's sister...probably helping make sure everything was
perfect for Jenni and Efrain's pics together! L-R: Katie (Jenni's
sister), Kelly, Donna, Marisa, Katie, and moi.

Don't exhale!!!

Katie on the left, and Jen showing us those gorgeous
pearly-whites...probably happy the day's finally here and she can stop
giving herself migraines!

Donna and I smiling for the camera...

Such a great picture of Shannon and I, in the foyer area. We're so cute
(and modest)!
And then the reception...we had yummy Navajo tacos for dinner, thanks to
Efrain's family and friends. I miss them, been way too long since I had
one! And excellent cake, and music and dancing...Efrain and Jenni's first
dance was to "I Cross My Heart" by George Strait, so cute. I so wished Al
were there to dance with! Anyway, here are some photos from the
reception...and if you are in any of these that I've posted on this page,
I will be sending you a copy, just don't expect it for a few weeks.
:o)

The four roommates, now half married and half not, how exciting! And to
think I'm wearing heels, what a shorty-pants I am!

Efrain and Jenni's first dance...how cute!

Another good one of Shannon and Jenni!

And another good one of Shannon and me...perhaps the key to a good picture
is having Shannon in it!
Then one last random picture from the way back home, of Treasure Falls on
Wolf Creek Pass, aren't they pretty?

We drove back to Denver Sunday afternoon, the day after the wedding. I
then spent the next few days there with Shannon, and then flew out to
Vancouver. I stayed there a couple days with relatives, Mom's sister and
her family.

Here they are, L-R: Robin, Rebecca, Jim, Kelly (above), and Amy, at Garry
Point Park near where they live.

Amy and I 3/4 of the way up Grouse Grind, feeling the pain.

However, despite the pain, the view from the top of Grouse Mountain was so
worth it! And the gondola ride down was pretty cool too!

Rebecca and I after a rousing game of hide-and-seek!

Unfortunately, a fuzzy picture of Mt. Baker (in WA), on a nice clear
evening at Garry Point Park.
Then I left Vancouver early in the morning on the 20th, and arrived back
in Christchurch the 22nd. An excellent trip, wouldn't have missed it for
the entire world!
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