Maki and Craig elected to have a “first look” where they saw each other before the ceremony. These first two shots are there first moments together on their wedding day.

We took some pictures in front of the Santa Monica Pier.

They had the cutest place cards. They were snowflake ornament/picture frames on a wire tree. They were so sweet…they had one for Jenny and me!

The centerpieces for the cocktail hour and reception were all potted plants and herbs. At the end of the night, they let everyone take them home! I love how eco-friendly it was…and it looked really nice.

They handed the mothers and grandmothers roses during the ceremony. It was a little emotional.

Spying on their guests during the cocktail hour:

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The slideshow from both days: THE SLIDESHOW!!!!!

I loved these huge yellow chairs, there really BRIGHT!

I was afraid that there was going to be a lot of people there on a Saturday but there was hardly anyone, so we snuck into a cabana for a couple pictures.

Then we went inside, where all the real magic is. The interior designer for the Viceroy is a genius.

This is one of my favorites from the whole day:

I love these little stools…they remind me of XOXO. Cute.

Um…HELLO MODEL!!!

I’m posting this picture because it’s one of my favorites, but also because someone needs to buy me that green dresser!

In case you missed it —> THE SLIDESHOW!!

Thank you guys for allowing me to capture this important time in your lives! I can’t wait to see you again at your wedding at the Alisal Ranch in Solvang!

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I love Cirque Du Soleil. A LOT. I’ve been to so many shows now. Whenever we go to Vegas we try to fit one in, and whenever the traveling shows are in the area we have to go! This last weekend, we went to Kooza in Santa Monica. I love Santa Monica, I used to go down there all the time, now I’m an old grandma and all the traffic forces me to stay in Ventura County! Although, I must say LA traffic is surely creeping up this way. I must also say that I am now officially off topic. Cirque Du Soleil. Is. Awesome! The Kooza show was featured as being ON the Santa Monica Pier and I kept trying to figure out in my head how that was going to work because the pier is quite full already. Well, it’s slightly off to the side of the pier (how cool would it have been to actually be on the pier??) in the parking lot. Kooza was very good, but Mike and I both noticed how there seems to be a lot of emphasis on safety now, which is so boring! It was fun when you would watch the stunts without harnesses and nets and be like “OMG that guy could have totally died if he didn’t do that right!” But as always it was still a great show. I don’t want to give away too much because I know at least two people who are going to see it. I will say it was probably the greatest contortionist show I’ve ever seen and the greatest by far juggler. I’m pretty sure all four of these performers are part alien. Now, I know first hand that photography IS NOT ALLOWED IN CIRQUE DU SOLEIL…those guys are all over you in a second if you whip out a camera, even at intermission! So I don’t have any photos from inside but I do have some iPhone pics of us.

And here are a few pictures from past Cirque Du Soleil shows we’ve seen. This one is Alegria. We saw this one when we were out in New York a few years ago. Probably in 2005 or 2006. One of my favorites for sure. And the only soundtrack we ever purchased; the music was the best in this one. We still listen to it every so often. I can’t wait to see this one again.

Ok, so this so isn’t the best picture ever. My eyes look a little scary. But this was in the Revolution Bar waiting for LOVE. I’m sitting in the “u” of “Revolution” which I thought was pretty cool.

This is what Mike looks like every I saw “let me take this [touristy] picture of you.” So frustrating! LOOK LIKE YOU ENJOY LIFE, MAN!

I LOVED LOVE! My BF did not so much enjoy it, though, so take my recommendations with a grain of salt. I’m a huge Beatles fan. I want to see this one again eventually.

There was a lot of cool stuff to take pictures of waiting for LOVE.

KA. I loved KA. My sister didn’t like it that much. I did. There’s this thing that happens with the stage where you’re like WHOA!

This is just a picture of Mike in New York. Has nothing to do with Cirque Du Soleil but I accidentally pulled it when looking for Cirque pictures so I’m including it.

The first Cirque show I went to was Varekai and I still think it was one of my favorites. I went down with my niece, Tiara, to San Diego. Since I had never gone before I wasn’t sure if it was the kind of thing Mike would enjoy so I took Tiara and we both loved it. This one is in Russia right now, so I won’t be seeing it anytime soon, but I hope it makes it’s way over here again!

Mike and I have also seen Zumanity and Quidam but I can’t seem to find any pictures from these events. We paid for a luxury loveseat for Zumanity which was comfy, but overall we really didn’t enjoy that show very much. I really liked Quidam, they have these four young asian girls that do an AWESOME act…so talented! Every time I see a Cirque show I just imagine what the lives are like of these incredible performers and how awesome it is that they get to live out their passion at such an amazing venue. Maybe in the future I’ll break down all the Broadway shows I’ve seen. I love going to see great shows!!

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