Welcome Baby Clare!

My brother, Thomas, and his wife, Amy welcomed a new baby into their family on January 20th! Baby girl #2 for these guys. She is a most beautiful baby girl with tons of dark hair, cute chubby cheeks, lovely long fingers and toes, and rosy red lips.

Our kids were so excited to meet their new cousin baby Clare Elizabeth!

Baby Clare is grandchild #7 for my parents. It is so exciting to watch this family grow. 7 cousins in the Duran family! Here's the score so far:

Boys: 4 Girls: 3

It's the little things that matter...

All those small details are what go into all that wedding planning. It took a year for Jordan and Stephanie to see their vision for their wedding, make decisions, and carry it out. We got to help out with some of the decorating and desserts at the ceremony and reception. Here are some pictures for you to enjoy (and for us to remember!) all of those details:

The Ceremony

The Wedding Clothes
(Check out those rhinestones that line her veil and Jordan's black & white shoes!)

Notice how the rouching on Stephanie's gown is repeated in the dress that Lizzie wore. Details details!!

Jackson felt so handsome in his bow-tie and boutineer, and all the guys (Jeremy too!) got to wear a HOT PINK tie!!

The Bridal Party

Maid of Honor, Bridesmaids, Groomsmen, Trevor as Best Man, Logan as Ring Bearer, Lizzie as Flower Girl

The Reception & Decor

This last bit of fun was a treat for everyone! The candy table was a hit! The table itself was darling - complete with tag labels and little scoopers for each candy. We saw more adults coming back for seconds and thirds than children!

It was a beautiful day that ended with a rockin' fun party. The wedding itself was the most meaningful part of the day, but what made it feel even more special were all those little things that were all in the details...

Jordan & Stephanie got married!!

October 9, 2010

Jordan and Stephanie said, "I do" last Saturday. They had a one year engagement (it was an eternity!!) and we were all so happy that their wedding day had arrived. Jordan looked handsome in his black tux. Stephanie looked beautiful in her white gown. They both professed their love for each other in their vows and shared some chuckles through the ceremony. Everything was perfect.

Congrats to the new Mr. & Mrs. Duran. We love you guys. And we are thrilled to see you begin your new life together!

La Familia Duran

We were together at Shaver for one night at Family Camp. Everyone came up to watch the fireworks show and we took the opportunity for a family picture. Yeah, we are all lookin' our campin' best! Camping clothes, no make-up, all enjoying that unescapeable thin layer of dust - I wouldn't say they were exactly the best conditions for a "nice" photo op. The picture itself turned out fine, we all are great at situating ourselves so we can all see the camera and putting on our picture smiles. But, you know what I like - the coordinated outfits, the nicely combed hair, the perfect lighting and background... Those are the kind of portraits I can enlarge to a 20 x 30 inch print at Costco and hang on my wall for years to come.

The last time we took a family picture like that was at Marcos & Melody's wedding. That was over 4 years ago! (See?! Don't the coordinated outfits and nice lighting make all the difference? I definitely think so.) We've had some new babies born in the last couple of years and there are our fantastic spouses that also need to be included in this Family Portrait. I'm going to push for a new one this year for Christmas (after Jordan's wedding - oooh! maybe AT Jordan's wedding!) - let's see if I can make that happen.

Pier Fishing

One of Trevor's favorite summer activities is fishing. He LOVES to get out there with a fishing pole and wait for a great bite. or a nibble. or anything for that matter. He was fully anticipating our pier fishing experience before we left town last week for our Pismo Beach trip. He had to wait a few days before we actually made it out to the pier, but in the end it was soooo worth it. He caught the first fish of the evening!

Everyone caught a fish! As a right of passage, you must HOLD the fish you caught, nice and firm around it's belly so it doesn't flop away, for the camera. Yeah, Lizzie couldn't do it.

Jordan was an animal fisherman! He caught 2 fish at once! And I just love the look of pure joy on my dad's face as he proudly held his catch (before he tossed it right back into the ocean).

Here's the bucket o' fish at the end of the night. Yummy, right. The fish were only half alive in that bucket. They'd flop around trying to get free - sometimes they would flop out of the bucket, scales flying everywhere, women screaming for dear life, until a manly man would pick up the fish and throw it back in there. Bella had a great time splashing around in that fishy water. Check out Gramma Elizabeth's face as she's holding Bella aka "fish fingers".

Make sure to stay tuned for another story about this bucket o' fish...

Trevor's pier fishing dreams came true once again. And we all enjoyed a nice evening being together. Nice weather. Beautiful sunset. Good company. Great fishing memories.