One of my favorite things to do is explore. It’s exciting getting myself lost (just as long as I can find my way afterwards), experiencing the culture around me, and feeling free to be inspired. This morning, as Christopher and I walked out into the crisp morning cold, I told him I was excited to photograph and not feel the pressure of “getting the shots”. I could take photos of post-its if I wanted to… and I did. We had a late breakfast, then headed out toward the old town of Nuremberg.

Fun Fact: The old city of Nuremberg is embedded in the center of the greater Nuremberg area and is surrounded by the old wall that originally acted as the city gate. Within the old city is a bunch of historical landmarks that include two giant churches and a castle…. all built in the 1500s. We visited all of them!

It’s amazing how deep the european culture runs. I love it. Here are a few pictures from today’s adventures…..

Funny story about this pic…. Chris was quite confused reading the title of this book. He thought it was some sort of anti-fitness book. But in fact, it’s not…. Mike and Jasmin were quite amused by that…

There are few young couples who know the depth of love Brian and Megan do. Something happens in a love story when hardships put mountains in the way… it refines things down to what really matters and forces you to find courage from beyond yourself to make the climb. If you didn’t get a chance to read their story, you can find it here… it’s pretty amazing. So on their wedding day, they celebrated a new chapter in their love story, but they also celebrated reaching the pinnacle of a mountain.  Their wedding day was a joyful triumph and such a stark reminder that love wins… always.

Just as Megan planned it, the details of the wedding day came together flawlessly to create wedding day perfection. I have to say how thoroughly impressed I was at her attention to detail and her overall vision. Cori from Events by Cori was the mastermind throughout the day, making sure that everything flowed peacefully and beautifully as Megan’s pieces came together. Here are my favorites from the day….

Brian was STOKED on his wedding day…. it was hard to keep this groom from smiling! And he was so sweet throughout the day as little moments here and there impressed their “realness” on his heart. He married the absolute woman of his dreams and he knew it! Look at that grin!

Casa Romantica was such a great place to have a wedding! Not only was it GORGEOUS, but it’s cool knowing it’s such a historic location in Southern Orange County. And the balcony where the ceremonies take place overlooked the San Clemente Pier… such a great view! I highly recommend this place…

This was such a beautiful, meaningful, and FUN wedding to be a part of… and I couldn’t have done it without my dream team, Christopher and Amanda! Thank you, with all my heart, for all your help and patience with me…. I couldn’t dream for a better team!

Also, many thanks go to all the wonderful vendors who came together to make Brian and Megan’s day a dream! Wedding Planning: Events by Cori, Venue: Casa Romantica, Catering: Iva Lee’s Catering, Hair: Salon Incognito, Makeup: Makeup by Berit, DJ: Essential Mobile Music, Florist: Flower Company of San Clemente, Custom Invitations: Li’K Designs, Cake: It’s All About the Cake

Last year, November marked the time of year when Christopher decided to sport a mustache. (You can view last year’s mustache here.) I thought maybe it had gotten out of his system, but one morning early in the month, I walked into the kitchen to find a mustached man eating Christopher’s breakfast. “Wonderful,” I thought. “Here we go again.”

Well, I’ll have you know that he was encouraged by our friends Jeff and Trevor, who spent the month of November “mustache-edly” clad in support of our dear friend John Riedl as he continues to battle cancer. “It’s for a good cause,” I told myself. And it was. These three endured many awkward stares, pesky leftover food crumbs, and repulsed wives…. and to celebrate the end, they decided to take some “gross mustache photos.” And they were indeed gross…. here’s the results of the shoot …. (Please Note: This is not normal attire for any of these men. They’re usually very respectable…..)

Once we were done with the gross mustache shots, we moved onto a more serious and pretty family photo of the Clinard Clan.

And then we got crazy again….

I’m sorry to see November already far past, but I’m glad to have a mustache-less husband for another year. Way to go boys… you did good.

Aside from the mountain of work and the broken foot escapades, these past 5 months of married life have been pretty cool. Getting to know each other’s sleeping patterns, cleaning habits, and scheduling preferences has been a challenge, but a fun one because we get to do it together as husband and wife. I’ve always hoped and dreamed my first holiday season as a wife would include things like hearty laughs by a crackling fire with hot chocolate and gingerbread, decorating the perfect tree together, making Martha Stewart-worthy cookies for our family and friends, and staying up late at night watching the Christmas lights on our tree dance on the ceiling. I’m excited to make our own traditions and memories this year…. our first Christmas. And while I know nothing ends up going as planned, and nobodys’ holidays are perfect, I still can’t help but be giddy and smiley as we near the holidays.

We started off our holiday traditions with our annual Christmas tree hunting…. but this year, we got to hunt for our own tree! While the rest of my family ran off to find their tree, Christopher and I got to traipse around the farm looking for a tree for two. We found our tree and took some photos….

This happens to be Christopher’s reaction to my incessant documentation of our “firsts”…. we’re working on it….

And the happy couple with our tree…

Then we met up with my family and took some more photos. This is what I like to call a “perspective of the Christmas tree” photo…. If the Christmas trees had eyes, this is what we think they might see…

And… on another note… I’ve successfully fulfilled one of my “good wife” duties… making my first homemade holiday wreath! What do you think? I’m pretty excited about it and I’m sure I’ll continue to share as more holiday adventures unfold.