Christmas in San Francisco

This year, Todd and I spent Thanksgiving and his 27th birthday in Connecticut and New Jersey with our families, and spent Christmas just with each other in San Francisco. Since we're moving to LA over the summer, we figured it'd be our last chance to celebrate the holiday here.

A few weeks ago, we headed to Rancho Siempre Verde, a Christmas tree farm near Santa Cruz, and chopped down our tree. Here it is all gussied up the day after Christmas (with all of our loot displayed beneath it!):

Todd had to work for a few hours on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, but we still managed to have a fabulous time. On Christmas Eve day, I picked up a cherry pie and a chocolate cream pie at Marie Calendar's. When Todd got home that night, we made homemade apple stuffing and had a wonderful little feast. The next morning Christmas dawned sunny and cold.

We opened our stockings (we each had two since mom sent us stocking stuffers as well!), and then opened so many thoughtful and great gifts from family and each other.

After all the gift opening, with only an hour until Todd had to leave for work, we drove to Pacifica to Rockaway Beach. We found a flat rock bordering the beach, with a lovely view of the crashing waves in the sunlight, and had a slice of cherry pie (with whipped cream) using our brand-new sporks (a gift from mom, they even included a knife). It was a great moment. After the pie, we crossed a little creek pouring into the sea, and climbed to a rocky outcropping above the beach. Then we drove back and Todd headed to work.

Not wanting to just relax inside on such a beautiful day, after saying goodbye to Todd, I drove back to the beach, and went on a real hike along the cliffside path. I found a comfortable rock extremely high up, settled down, and spent the afternoon reading and basking in the sunlight. Then I hiked back down, and before I knew it, Todd was home and we were enjoying the last hours of Christmas together.

It was an unusual and fun way to spend Christmas, but next year we're looking forward to spending it with mom and my East Coast relatives again, since we haven't done that for a couple of years!

We both got some thoroughly awesome gifts this year, which need to be given their due credit here.

Behold, the terrific assortment:

A little closer:

And of the other side:
My top eight gifts (in no particular order):

1. Recipe Book (from Grandma): Anyone who knows me well knows that my favorite thing in the world to eat is Grandma Bib's apple pie. It blows all other pies completely out of the water. This year, she baked one just for me at Thanksgiving, which I got to share with Todd's family. Grandma's gift to Todd and I was a small three-ring recipe binder which included not only her outstanding, top-secret recipe for the World's Best Apple Pie, but also all of her Christmas cookie recipes (she normally makes about twenty varieties, to put in tins to give to friends, veterans, and family over the holidays), and even recipes for breads, appetizers, and vegetarian entrees. It was such a thoroughly thoughtful and perfect gift. Way to go, Grandma!

2. Lett's of London hot pink 2010 calendar book, with all birthdays and important dates written in (from mom): I'm slightly scatterbrained about remembering birthdays and such, and life is bound to be hectic the last semester of law school. Mom gave me this awesome book with all the important dates already inscribed, so I'll be sure not to forget any! This will surely come in handy many times over, and I look forward to using it.

3. Massage Envy three-month gift subscription (from Todd): Law school is stressful. Job searching is stressful. Stress makes my body ache. Thus, Todd gave me the perfect solution: three months worth of relaxing, hourlong, full-body massages! I can't wait. Plus, there's a Massage Envy less than a mile from our place!

4. Awesome books (cheating because I got several which I love, but that's okay)(from various people): I received P.D. James' new book about detective fiction (woo-hoo!), Dave Eggers' screen adaptation of Where The Wild Things Are, the hard bound edition of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (now with 30% more zombies), and a graphic novel of The Hound of the Baskervilles. Looking forward to diving into all of them...

5. Hand-blown Golden Gate bridge glass ornament (from Flora): So lovely, so delicate. She's such a thoughtful step-sister, and I'm so glad we're in each other's lives. I can't wait to take out this ornament next year, when we're back in LA, and remember all the great memories we've made up in the Bay Area.

6. Adorable animal candle holders and thin rainbow candles (from Mom): We found these together in a store in Kennebunkport, Maine over Thanksgiving. The candleholder set features a brontosaurus, alligator, shark, and whale, among others. Mom teased that she would give Todd and I one holder for each of our children's birthdays when we had them. I said I didn't want to wait that long! So she gave all of them to us this year, and we're looking forward to using them :-)

7. Fawlty Towers 30th Anniversary Set (from Dad and Ann): I can never get enough of the series, even though I've seen every episode four million times. This new edition features interviews with cast members and other cool extras.

8. The Art of Simple Food cookbook by Alice Waters (from Todd's parents): They gave this to me when we celebrated Hanukkah together at Thanksgiving. It's such a beautiful book, and I'm definitely planning several meals using recipes from it.

The final one is not really a gift, since Todd and I purchased it together using a gift card from Tiffany & Co. that we received for our wedding. It's a simple and elegant right-hand ring called Crown of Hearts, by Paloma Picasso. I'd been eyeing it for awhile. You can see it here: http://www.tiffany.com/Shopping/Item.aspx?fromGrid=1&sku=GRP01974&mcat=148207&cid=563630&search_params=s+5-p+4-c+563630-r+101424400-x+-n+6-ri+-ni+0-t+.

I love it, and have worn it every day since getting it!

And here's an ornament we added to our tree this year: a 2009 Mickey and Minnie frame with a picture of us on our wedding day. We will look at this ornament 50 years from now, when it's slightly battered, and the photo is faded, and think, "How happy we've been since that long-ago beginning..."

Wedding Favorite #2: Kiss, Interrupted

It's nauseating, but even after 3 1/2 years together, Todd and I are still a very kissy couple. I'd like to say that I expect it to die off over the next few decades (at least in order to keep our friends from gagging!) but honestly, I think it's just one of the ways we communicate as a couple. Sorry, friends ;-).

During the ceremony was no different. After one part of the officiant's reading, in the first ten minutes or so of the ceremony, we just naturally and without thinking, leaned in for a quick kiss. And the officiant caught us! She told us, semi-jokingly, that we weren't allowed to kiss until the end, when we'd be married. The first photo captures our guilty sidelong glances at her after we'd been caught. Chrissie's expression is priceless! I loved that almost-kiss because to me, it showed how both of us were just so focused on each other and our love, that we forgot that everyone else existed for a second! It was such a sweet, silly moment, but it's one I'll remember always...

And the ending kiss was that much sweeter when we finally got to do it! There was even a laugh from our guests as our officiant said to Todd, "Now, you may kiss your wife!"

Wedding Favorite #1: First Look

Step 1: Calm, cool, and collected:

Step 2: Uh-oh! The dress is on, the mind is racing, and the chest is...splotching?!

Step 3: Momentary splotching disaster averted with some meditative breathing. I look a lot more relaxed than I feel!

Step 4: Phew! My sweet makes all my worries melt away :-)

**** So - I thought of a *great* way to dive into recapping the wedding/honeymoon/east coast celebration. Instead of doing long, meandering posts (as is my wont) and never finishing (or starting!) the actual recaps, I'm just going to pick a few favorites memories/stories/moments from each event to highlight. ****

My first "favorite": seeing Todd for the first time the morning of the wedding.

We'd separated shortly after the rehearsal dinner the night before. The morning of the wedding, I woke up early and went down to a beautiful room to relax, get my hair and makeup done, and spend time with my bridesmaids and family over a continental breakfast. Todd, on the other hand, woke up significantly later and headed straight to Disneyland with his groomsmen! They went on Space Mountain and a few other rides and then raced back to our room at the Grand Californian to get ready.

I wasn't nervous at all until it was time to put on the dress. Up until then, I was laughing, playing with my super-cute nephew Kendall, taking pictures, and just enjoying having my hair curled (see photo 1). But once Chrissie, my mom, and the others helped me into my dress, for some reason, I just started thinking about how I'd be up there, in front of all those people, probably crying uncontrollably, and I got a bit flustered. It didn't help that my appetite had remained steady in the weeks before the wedding and my dress wasn't exactly loose. In fact, in the interests of full disclosure, that dress - with it's double corset - was pretty damn tight. I can understand why Victorian ladies were always fainting having to deal with wearing stays and corsets all the time! And with the flusteredness, I got splotchy (see photo 2). I don't mean a lovely, delicate, Elizabethan rose blush type of hue. I mean angry, bright patches of red all over my decolletage area. I also got a little emotional. I started to think about how long we'd both planned and anticipated and envisioned this day, and I burst into tears thinking "Wow, it's finally here!"

After some calming words from the girls, some deep breaths, and sitting down in order to loosen up my diaphragm and allow me to breathe (!), I felt much better (see photo 3). Still, as I walked down the long hall, knowing Todd was waiting at the white piano at the end of it, I felt anxious.

Then I saw him. Saw how wonderful he looked in his tuxedo with the silver vest, his warm smile and eyes so full of love. Really, in that moment, as cheesy as it sounds, every bit of nervousness just evaporated. I realized that nothing mattered except that we were getting married. And that we were getting married because we knew and loved each other so well that how could we not? I just felt a happiness and a peace wash over me as I looked into his eyes. He gave me a beautiful silver bracelet with an "R" on it, and I truly knew that even though we'd become a family long ago, today we were making it official in front of everyone we loved and cared about, and in light of that, what else could possibly matter?

This and That

'Tis the night before Todd and my three month anniversary of being married (woo-hoo! this monthly celebration makes me feel as though I'm in high school again!), and, inspired by the lovely Alison, I've decided to write a little update post on what's been going on since I last left off.

Since September, I've been working full-time at the SF Public Defender, and I've finally had the chance to argue motions and do preliminary hearings on my own. It's exhilarating, scary, interesting, and exhausting.

We took a brief trip to LA about a month ago, which was a whirlwind of fun.

Over the last few weeks, I've been working very, very hard to prepare for the California Association of Criminal Justice (CACJ) trial advocacy competition that took place at the SF Superior Courthouse this past Thursday - Saturday. The Hastings team did really well - we made it to the semi-finals! - but I'm glad that it's over so now I'll have at least one night a week to have a proper dinner at home... At least the case was pretty fascinating - all about an over-eager organ-harvesting doctor who may or may not have hastened his patient's death to retrieve his organs more quickly!

In doing-fun-things-over-the-weekend news, Todd and I went to the Half Moon Bay Pumpkin Festival two weeks ago. We saw 1,600 pound pumpkin, a great home-town parade featuring little kids doing karate and firemen spraying each other with fire hoses, and many pumpkin-flavored things, such as bread, bars, and ice cream. It was a lovely time!

Now that the immediate stress of the trial advocacy competition is over (which I'd made into my "designated object" to avoid dealing with actual, huge stressors!), here is what I'm (most) worried about:

- MPRE Exam (ethics/professional responsibility that I'll be taking this coming March)

- Bar Exam

- Getting a job in LA (AACK - by far, the biggest worry, especially because I have such a narrow interest: becoming a public criminal defense attorney. But, because of the economy, I've decided to broaden my focus: at least for the first few years, working as a staff attorney at the LA Superior Court, or for a small to medium size criminal defense firm, would be fine. Basically, I just need to find a paying position which would be good experience while allowing me to have a bit of a life, and pay back my loans...)

I finally signed up for BarBri, and am also applying for an ABA scholarship to cover some of the cost of the course.

I'm also applying for some staff attorney positions in LA, and will hopefully be able to interview for them sometime in the next few months.

In order to keep my stress level manageable, I've made some "fun" goals for the next couple of months as well:

- to finish blogging about the wedding, and our wonderful East Coast celebration

- to make a giant Christmas list for everyone, and have a great time shopping for them

- to spend some quality time with Todd's and my family when we head back east for Thanksgiving! I'm looking forward to celebrating Todd's birthday, spending a day in NYC, and having some mother-daughter adventures in Boston and Connecticut

- to start on our wedding/honeymoon scrapbook - there's a giant green-striped box just brimming with odds and ends to incorporate

- to use our brand-new KitchenAid stand-mixer at least a few times to make Christmas cookies and other goodies for our work colleagues, and ourselves!

- to keep consistently working out at the gym - I feel great, my clothes fit better, and I want to make sure this habit stays firmly in place

Phew, that post felt very cathartic! Just writing out what one is stressed about has a very calming effect...

Days At Disneyland Before The Wedding

On the Thursday before our Sunday wedding, we drove down to Disneyland, which was smooth sailing until we encountered massive traffic when we were about an hour away, and took another three hours to get there.  However, we arrived a little frazzled but with our sanity intact to be met by Todd's parents, sister and her husband, as well as our VIP Coordinator (woo-hoo!).  We checked into our room, relaxed for a bit, and then had a chill dinner at Tortilla Joe's (where we ate dinner the night of Todd's proposal!) with the family, including Todd's Uncle Chuck and Aunt JoAnne. I think we went into the Park that night, but honestly I can't remember at this point... :-)

We had a long, refreshing night's sleep, and then the next morning, Mom and Grandma arrived!  Before we met up with them, we drove to Men's Wearhouse to pick up everyone's tuxes.  Then, we all went to get manis and pedis at the local Aveda salon.  I also got this sunless tanner/massage thing which was super-relaxing, and went a long way towards evening out my tan lines. 

Grandma, Chrissie, Mom, and I in the salon:

The boys came along too, and Todd was a great sport and even let the salon aesthetician clean up his 'brows! Now that's love :-)  We all then had a lunch at this great little sports bar with really gourmet food -- we had this warmed goat cheese, and soft pretzels with delicious dipping sauces - yum! Okay, maybe I should have been more concerned about fitting into my wedding dress, but hey, a girl's got to enjoy herself...

That afternoon, everyone pulled together and helped us finish our place-card project, which involved cutting out and organizing about two hundred leaves in two shades of green:

That evening, we had a great dinner with Mom, Grandma, Todd's family, and my Uncle Steve and Aunt Lisa, and their two kids (and my junior bridesmaids) Taylor and Hayley, at this fabulous Spanish restaurant called Catal.  We ate on a beautiful breezy terrace and it was wonderful to all be together.  Afterwards, we went to Disneyland, and watched the fireworks near Storybook Canal Boats.  Altogether, a magical evening.

The next day, we woke up bright and early and had our rehearsal in the Rose Court Garden.  Our coordinator, Herta, and wedding planner, Traci, were both there, and it was great to see Traci again after a few months!  Herta was amazingly thorough and we went through the ceremony so many times that it was like clockwork.   I did get quite emotional.  It was just that I couldn't believe that tomorrow, in the same time and place, I would be getting married! 

Next up? Todd and I headed to our room to finish up letters to our parents and the bridal party.  When we got there, we opened the door and discovered our room had been filled with colorful balloons, and on the bed was a big black and white photo of Mickey and Minnie, signed by them, saying congratulations to us!  What a special touch!

After our break, Todd went on a secret errand with his best man, Brian, and later joined me and our friends down at the huge, fun pool area of the Grand Californian.  We went in the jacuzzi, down the water-slide, and just waded around chatting.  It was such a calm, fun time.  Only after this pool-side relaxing did time seem to accelerate to warp speed.  Before we knew it, it was time to get dressed for our rehearsal dinner at Naples!

I believe this is a photo of Josh plunging into the pool:

The entire Terrazzo at Naples had been beautifully set up for our Rehearsal Dinner.  Long trestle tables were soon filled with delicious dishes such as the famed (at least in our household!) Quattro Formaggio pizza, various pastas, roasted chicken, and for dessert, tiramisu and chocolate torta.  As it got dark, all the twinkle lights stood out even more, and the evening breezes swept through.

Marcelo pretending to chow down:

It was a fun, joyful, fantastic evening.  Todd's dad, Todd, and his Uncle Chuck made speeches. I'll admit I cried :-). Everyone picked up their out-of-town bags as they left.  Then, Todd went off with his groomsmen for a little apple martini-flavored fun at ESPN SportsZone, and Chrissie and I had a our brand of fun by going out shopping while leaving a note hinting at a more devious outing... ;-)

Todd and I at the rehearsal dinner:

When the boys returned, we all said goodnight, and Chrissie, mom, and I had a sleepover in my room, in which we watched Fawlty Towers (my fave!), talked, and just enjoyed spending time together.

When I awoke the next morning at a chipper 6 am (ish), I couldn't wait to see (and, of course, marry) Todd!

Holy Moly - We're Married!

Here a few teasers :-)

Rick (Todd's dad) helping him get ready on the morning of our wedding:

In the interests of full disclosure, my ugly cry face listening Todd's heart-melting vows:

My "Dad, what the HECK are you doing?" face during our father-daughter dance. 

To be honest, I loved every (embarrassing) minute of it:

A rare sitting-down-together-at-our-sweetheart-table moment.  Check out our Sleeping Beauty Castle framed photo, my bouquet, and our delicious pre-cake vanilla creme brulees:

During our first dance, to Jakob Dylan's "Something Good This Way Comes." 

You can never kiss your new husband too much:

Todd and I have been married for a little more than month now, and this has been the most hectic little-more-than-a-month in recent memory.

We've already received over 1,000 printed photos (and two discs of them to print more ourselves and upload/share) from our photographer (and been asked to choose 80 of these for our album, which is actually going to be bound in Italy!), gotten the as-yet-unwatched DVD of our pre-ceremony, ceremony, pre-reception, and tiny slice of reception from our videographer, written massive amounts of thank-you notes, gone on a truly spectacular honeymoon to Paris and London, started work and school (yay for me making it to 3L!), changed my name on everything but my passport, and just this past weekend were the guests of honor at our wonderful East Coast Celebration, where we partied long into the night, and I finally got a taste of a few Jewish wedding traditions, including dancing the horah, and being hoisted up onto a chair, and being heartily congratulated with "Mazel Tov!"

It will probably take me about three years to finish the recaps (kidding, I hope!) and I need to find a blogging site where I can load more photos to each post...but hope you enjoy the teasers for now, and I promise to be more consistent on this blog now that all the hubbub is finally simmering down :-)

Part Two of Getting Things Done

Exhibit 5: Rose petal cones!  These were a cinch ('though I was covered in hot glue by the end of it).  Basically, I took assorted shades of blue heavy-weight paper, folded them into cone shapes, and hot glued them in place.

(Sorry for the blurry photo)  I then punched decorative flower holes in them, and hot glued varied blue ribbons to either side.  Now, they'll be ready for our florist to hang on the chairs and fill with yellow rose petals before the ceremony!

Exhibit 6: In addition to finishing the other paper products (menus, welcome letters, leaf placecards to put on the apples), we also finished our programs!  They went from this:

to this: (front cover)

(back cover)

(Inside not shown for privacy's sake :-) 

So, there you have it!

We packed up the car this morning, in addition to doing a few more last-minute projects.  Tomorrow, we'll hit the road early and be at Disneyland by the early afternoon to enjoy a few days of R & R before our Sunday wedding.  We'll be bringing the laptop but something tells me we'll be a little too busy to check e-mails/ update blogs, etc.  

So I will post in this blog on the flip side, when I am finally, officially Mrs. Rosenfelt (oh my god, that sounds like Todd's mother!)... erm... Mrs. Emily Rosenfelt ;-)

Wish us luck!