please note

since the wedding is completed and normal life is trying to resume, most of the wedding posts to come will be on my other blog, www.rachelthurston.blogspot.com.

my photography blog is the blog I post on daily (or should), so go there to see recent shenanigans.

ps. we love being married.

the best of the best

we can't thank the people that helped with our wedding enough. like I said in the previous post we had an amazing crew.

fernando- who makes the al pastor tacos hands down. he is available for parties and works out of a little convenience store in pasadena ca. (909) 873-0703, cell (626) 278-6327. 1135 n. summit ave. pasadena ca 91103. he was a lucky find.

the fry girls- our guests are still talking about the mini donuts we had as dessert. I only wish I had eaten more!!! thanks for all your deliciousness.

el gallo giro- best horchata in orange county. we bought a little too much...but thanks to rob and cori for picking it up.

summit catering- pam was a dream to work with and did a great job supplying us with salads, drinks and mac n cheese for the kiddos. also they worked hand in hand with the rentals which helped a lot!

signature party rentals- the delivered to the sand, were timely and had competitive rates.

jonathan canlas- photographed our wedding and took loads of stress off me. I know I will have fantastic wedding images and that was one of the most important things for us. jon, we love you man. thanks for being so easy to work with and for making all those" you're going to die when you see these" expressions.

leo patrone- photographer who rocked our our whole wedding day with a holga camera. Thank you so much for coming along and taking such amazingly artistic photographs. we love them!

jared purrington- our good friend and illustrator who created the masterpiece we used as our invitation. he creates some of our favorite art. thanks purr. bear hug.

penelope's- penny, made my amazing layered skirt that flounced around the wedding. she doesn't have a website yet, but is located in SLC and does beautiful work. 801-582-5010. 1670 e 1300 s, salt lake city ut 84105.

mom- for staying up till the wee hours of the night sewing so that I had a top to wear with my skirt. I was stressed and anxious and you were calm and agreeable. thanks for loving me and knowing how to sew. what will my daughters do?! I better take some classes.

oc wholesale flowers- this is a wholesale shop (you have to have a business license to purchase flowers through them), who made my flower dreams come true...for next to nothing!! thank you natalie for helping me pick put the perfect flowers. I wish I lived closer so I could buy bundles of fresh flowers weekly.

the beach house- this location is private and not available to rent, but I had to give a shout out to paul and missy for letting us use it. all we both ever wanted was a party on the beach, and because of you we got it.

there are loads of others to thank.....friends who helped with set up, lights, smore's, the fire, cleanup, music, salsa, parking, friends and family poster, showers, bachelor party, driving, our parents generosity...

oh, and we have to thank the weather. a sunny, warm day in the middle of a rain week?...amazing.

If anyone has any questions about any of the people we hired or wants more information please let us know. we highly recommend all of them.

leo's holga

we were spoiled rotten with some of the best of the best on our wedding day. in our opinion, best locations, best food, best guests and best photographers.

leo patrone came along with jon canlas and shot our whole wedding on his holga. how awesome is that? these are 3 of my favorites, but you can see more on his blog here.

leo we are obsessed with your images and with you. love a photographer with an accent.

can't wait to show off some of jon's photos....

back to reality

(ilha de boipeba)

we are back from our honeymoon to brazil..... sort of. I am in what I like to call "honeymoon hibernation". I can't seem to shake the need to sip cool drinks and laze about however I please.

we had a great time exploring brazil. I shot only and all film and I can't wait to share some of my favorites with you.....and I will... as soon as I take a nap and lay in the sun some more.

today I am wife

off to brazil!! be back in a couple weeks! xo.

last minute details

only a couple days away!!!

weather-

as of the forecast today we should expect high of 65 low of 45.....abundant sunshine!!! bring a sweater for when it gets cool and sunglasses for the bright beach....should be a beautiful day.

what to wear-

most guest will be in sunday dress/casual dressy....skirts, nice suits. keep in mind you may want to walk on the sand/water so wear shoes you can kick off or don't mind getting sandy. remember to bring a light jacket or sweater for the evening.

day of parking contact-

our dear friend jared wall has offered to be the go to man for day of parking issues/questions for the reception. please call him or his wife if you need help:

jared wall- 949-290-1318
lindsay wall- 949-351-3143

important information!!! please read

Dearest wedding guests,

The wedding is only about a week away! Time for the nitty gritty details.

Here is some important driving and parking information so pay close attention...


Ceremony Information:

The exact address to the Newport Beach Temple is:

2300 Bonita Canyon Drive
Newport Beach, CA

here is a map to the temple. simply enter in your starting location and it will give you step by step directions to get there.

If you are attending the temple ceremony you need to be there at 12:30pm. ceremony starting at 1pm.

ALL immediate family must be there after the ceremony for photos (even if you are not attending the ceremony). Please be there no later than 1:30 to insure you are there when we come out of the temple. There is a waiting area inside the front doors of the temple. Parking is free and on the temple grounds. Dress is sunday best...casual dressy.

The ceremony and photos afterward should all be finished by 2:30pm.


Reception Information:

The exact address to the beach house is:

100 Monte Carlo Dr
Laguna Beach, CA 92651

here is a map to the reception site. simply enter in your starting location and it will give you step by step directions to get there.

Reception starts at 4pm. Please arrive on time to make parking easier.

The reception is in the private Irvine Cove community and not Emerald Bay community. If you go to the Emerald Bay Gate they will not let you in. I am making this correction on the blog as well.

Since Irvine Cove is a private community you can only enter if your name is at the gate. Passes to get into the community and parking are limited so we had to assign just certain people passes. This was no easy task. All the people who are not assigned passes should know someone on the parking list they can carpool into the community with. We know this is kind of a pain, but it's a small price to pay to be able to have our party in such a beautiful location.
Please look over the list of names and contact somebody you may think you can drive in with.
If you have questions or problems with this please contact either me or grant.

-Those who are assigned a pass, must be in the car, but don't have to be the driver.
-Give the gate attendant the pass holders name and tell them you are a visitor of PAUL WHITE.
-They should then give you a pass to put on your dash and let you enter.
- follow your mapped directions till you reach the top of the drive. look for white balloons to indicate where this spot is.
- someone will be there to help you know where to park.
- those with elderly, kids or cars with needed supplies should all be able to park fairly close to the house entrance.

pass list:

*Janett Thurston
*Wright W. Thurston
*Evelyn Henriksen
*Mary Lou Smoot
*Lloyd Porter
*Nancy Winter
*Corky Peters
*Darren Porter
*Amy Ellis
*Michelle Neilson
*Matt Smith
*Cameron Kelly
*Caroline King
*Julia Bender
* Laura Chabries
*Emily Hatch
*Nick Odom
*Benny Hansen
*Nikki Affleck
*Rob Colson
*Damian Dayton
*Jenni Bushman
*Keith Paugh
*Rob Atkinson
*Ryan Bunker
*Monti Smith
*Jared Wall
*Matt Jones
*Dustin Morrison
*Abe Gardner
* Jon Canlas


Remember if you try to enter the community without a pass holder, they will NOT let you in.

That's all for now! Remember to check the wedding blog at www.grantandrachelswedding.blogspot.com to see updated information.

We love you all and will see you next week!

-Rachel and Grant

photo gallery

invites are out! and in case you miss the small text telling you there are photos of us online, here is the link to our timeline gallery.

eye to eye

did a little photo shoot for a wedding surprise we are putting together. shot these in my bathtub. yep. sitting on a stool in the tub. can't deny the light in the loo.

to gift or not to gift

...that is the question.

here's the deal, we can't believe all the people that are making the effort to be at our wedding. the time, money, travel arrangements, sitters, time off, etc...so really we already feel like your gift to us is making the effort to be with us on our wedding day.

despite us saying this numerous times, there are still a few people who want to contribute a gift. we in no way expect gifts...but are grateful and overwhelmed at the love and support our friends and family want to give.

here's what we did...we set up a honeymoon registry fund. we have plans to travel in brazil for 2 weeks after the wedding and thought it could be fun for those wanting to give gifts to contribute to this adventure.

if interested you can visit our honeymoon registry here or here, http://www.honeyfund.com/wedding/grantandrachel.

if you aren't interested in the honeymoon fund, make it easy on yourself.....gift cards. I know this seems like a thoughtless way out, but believe me when I say grant and I will NOT feel this way. although we didn't register for specific tangible items (except for the 20 chocolate stuffed churros we will be eating in brazil), you may still want your gift to fit in a box....get us whatever you want. we expect nothing and will be thrilled with everything. we really just feel like the best gift will be seeing as many of you as we can on march 7th.

does this help? feel free to ask questions if needed.

love,
rachel and grant

honeymoon in brazil!

the tickets are booked! we are flying to rio the day after our wedding for 2 weeks! a little bit of city, a little bit of giant waterfall and a lot of beach. we wanted to go someone where neither of us had been and somewhere were we could explore and relax. I think brazil will work just fine.

anyone been there? any great suggestions? what not to miss? what food to eat? usually I am in charge of travel as grant doesn't handle online forms and airports quite as well, but he is helping with this trip (he must!) AND he is booking the honeymoon night all by himself. I am so proud of him.

wedding color palette

(photos from the knot and project wedding)

we are hoping for a lot of white and green with spots of yellow and teal. do I smell springtime?

looking for hammocks

If anyone has one or knows of someone who may have one, let us know! We are on the hunt for hammocks we can borrow. As many as we can find would be great. We have an idea...

(side note: the hammock has to be one that comes with a stand...not the kind you tie to a tree)

keeping it small

Because we are wanting a very intimate wedding, we are trying to keep the guest list around 100 people. This means that if you were invited as a "single" guest, you were intended to come as a "single" guest (unless of course you are married or engaged).

There have been some questions and we weren't sure everyone knew how small of a wedding we were really having. Our hope is that this will ensure the intimacy we both wanted on our wedding day.

If any of you have a question about who is invited or if you can come with additional people, please ask us to see if we can accommodate.

Thanks!

good advice

There are hundreds of wedding blogs..most of which feed you full of ideas of how a wedding should be. There is one wedding blog however that I think touches on details that should matter, 2000 dollar wedding. here is an excerpt from one entry:

"My wish for you—when you look back at those photos—is for you to think:

Look at how relaxed I was. Fully present in the moment. Basking in it. Soaking it in. I was not saturated in stress.

My shoes and dress were comfortable enough for dancing. My beauty radiated out of me; it was not applied to me.

I got to spend quality time with my friends and family. I was myself, not a show. In fact, I was my fullest expression of self.

I do not remember whether the invitations were letterpress or whether the flowers at the ceremony were the same ones at the reception.

The wedding favors or the fanciness of the food did not make memories. The sincerity did. The connection did. The time together did.

It did not matter whether every last detail conformed to the signature colors. Instead of saying, "What a beautiful bouquet," the guests said, "What a beautiful love."

This is my wish to you, dear brides, as you pore over wedding magazines and read daily blogs. Some of it matters. Most of it does not. Casting your net in the wrong direction will most surely mean you miss the things you most dearly want to catch.

May your wedding be just one sincere, authentic, happiest day in a long line of many.

This is my wish to you.

All my best,

Sara"

Thank you Sara. We agree. We don't think it is the end all to great days, we know it will be one sincere, authentic, happy day in a long line of many.

welcome to our wedding blog

here we hope you can find information to help make the pilgrimage to our wedding a full success. check back often to see updates.

can't wait to see all of you 2 months from today!

Inquiring minds want to know...

when did you first meet?

g: Matt and Heather Smith's wedding in the summer of 2005. Rachel was the photographer at their wedding. I thought she was beautiful. I saw her again a couple of years later working at the Apple Store in Salt Lake City, and then on New Year's Eve 2006-7, I saw her at church and she chatted me up and I acted very nonchalant even though secretly, I was already becoming obsessed. After a sweaty New Year's Eve dance party and some talk of her maybe moving to southern California I got really obsessed.

r: we first met when I was shooting matt and heather smith's wedding in june of 2005. the exact date was june 17th 2005 at the wedding dinner (although I don't really remember him that well)... we then re-met, both single, new years week of 2007. we were acquaintances at this point, but kind of seeing each other in a new light.

when was your first date?

g: I'm embarrassed to say the first official date (meaning I paid and we went "out' somewhere) was months after we first kissed. We went out for Thai food at Sawadi in Salt Lake City and we were already so familiar with each other that we were holding hands across the table.

r: hmmm....hard to say. by the time we went to "dinner" together for the first time, we were already holding hands and dating exclusively. our friendship/courtship started over hundreds of emails and a few trips to see each other since I was living in SLC and he was in LA. We kind of skipped "getting to know you" dating thanks to the emails.

who kissed who first?

g: I kissed her first but after a long night of intense nervousness. I really clam up when I like a girl. It was the hottest thing since hot lava.

r: grant kissed me and then I kissed grant. it was pretty much like fireworks.

when were "I love you's" said?

g: We were in her room at her apartment in Newport Beach. I knew I loved her weeks before this. We were just kissing and cuddling and talking and I just had to tell her.

r: he told me on a normal night, doing normal stuff. I proceeded to ask all sorts of questions like. " how do you know"?, "how long have you known"....and after a few weeks of freaking out, I returned the sentiment while we were putting together ikea furniture (which I believe is every couples most romantic moment).

did rachel move to california for grant?

g: Definitely not. If you know Rachel, she has dreams and goes after them, and one of those was to "live near the beach." So she moved near the beach. And, she loves warm weather.

r: NO!....the decision had almost been made before anything had happened, but once the crushing and the fireworks started, it did make my decision easier. by the time I moved we both had it pretty bad for each other. the timing was pretty amazing.

what does the other person smell like?

g: Rachel smells so good. She thinks she smells bad sometimes but she never does. Her skin usually smells Queen Helene Cocoa Butter lotion mixed with her own delightful scent and some purple perfume that I can never remember the name of. Her hair and her skin always smell amazing to me.

r: grant usually smells like rugged man...or his deodorant. NEVER smell his workout shorts post workout and steer clear after any dairy products have been ingested. other than those times, he smells like irish spring soap and deliciousness (grant informed me it is not irish spring, but lever 2000..works for me).

where will you live after you're married?

g: At Rachel's little blue house in Culver City, CA for a little while and then we want to go live in Spain for a year.

r: my little blue house in culver city, but we are thinking of moving international before parenthood. anyone want to visit us in spain?

where have you traveled together?

g: Peru, Salt Lake City, Seattle, Dallas/Fort Worth, New York, San Francisco, and various work days in and around Southern California

r: peru, san fransisco, texas, new york, utah, mexico, laughlin nevada and porterville...to name a few.

why did you date "so long"?

g: Is 2 years long? Rachel wasn't ready to get married.

r: I have to see another persons "crazy" before I can know whether I want to commit. I waited a really long time to see his "crazy".. so far no luck. I can't wait forever!

who looks more like ellen degeneres?

g: I do. It's embarrassing. I never knew I did until Rachel told me so and sometimes I have to admit I look more like Ellen than Ellen does.

r: hard question....GRANT!

what are your favorite things to do together?

g: Make good food. Eat good food. Eat bacon. Go to the Griffith Observatory. Go to museums. Go to the beach. Cuddle, whether she can admit it or not. Walk around in Rachel's neighborhood. Jump on the trampoline in her backyard. Dance to HipHop music while we brush our teeth. Listen to This American Life while driving in the car. Watch the Food Network (especially Jaime Oliver), Lost, 30 Rock, and The Office.

r: we love watching movies (who doesn't), being somewhere new together, exploring new eatery's, costco outings, star gazing, cooking together, long drives listening to "this american life", taking pictures, having really long conversations about unanswerable questions that I pose to grant after midnight and holding hands in church.

what about marriage are you most excited for?

g: Making Rachel my wife. Calling Rachel my wife. Marrying up, way up. Not living in different places but only going home to one home. Turning in my V-card. Having Rachel document our awesome life in beautiful pictures. Moving forward and upward. Traveling more, building a home, planting gardens, having kids that look and act like Rachel.

r: I am really excited to kiss him goodbye every morning knowing that at the end of each work day he will be coming back to me (even though I will miss him the second he leaves). I am excited to take on all forms of life together as a team. moving, mistakes, triumphs, rain storms, accomplishments, children...children that look like grant as a 3yr old. seriously? how can one person be so adorable? I am excited to be able to check this big decision off my list and be able to focus on the rest of living. I feel so blessed he is choosing me and I just want to help create the happiest possible life for us.

what about marriage are you most nervous about?

g: Closet space--it's in short supply at her place. Rachel sometimes gets bossy in the kitchen. Remembering to be romantic because it's not my nature.

r: space invasion! I like my big bed! also the thought that at any moment he might rearrange the fridge. what if I can't find something!?

what do you want your wedding day to be like?

g: Simple and fun. I want Rachel to feel beautiful. I want us to be relaxed. I want us to share it with our most intimate family and friends. I want everyone to believe in us. I want warm weather and really tasty food. I want heartfelt words and smiles and tears and feelings. I want good music and some fun dancing.

r: peaceful and full of love. I want plenty of time to hug everyone and plenty of time for conversation. I want to celebrate with the people I love the most. I want everyone to be able to feel the love and friendship grant and I share. I want to feel present. I want to look into grant's eyes a lot. when the day is over I hope everyone will look back and say "that was a good day".

what is the most important part of the wedding day for you?

g: Being sealed in the temple is first. Next is sharing the day with each other and with the people who matter most to us.

r: definitely the ceremony and the temple time. everything else is extra.

what percentage do you think you are lovers and what percentage friends?

g: 60% Lovers, 40% friends.

r: I think we are 40% lovers and 60% friends....but it varies. when he dances we are 90% lovers and 10% friends.

places to stay

Here are some hotels we know are near the ceremony and reception site. We have personally only set foot in the Island Hotel (which is beautiful and across the street from Fashion Island mall), thanks to the Smith's. The other suggestions are purely based on reasonable pricing and location.

Feel free to search google, priceline.com, orbitz.com, kayak.com or hotels.com, for more options.

***(If you are related to Amy Ellis, contact her about accommodations.)

Newport Beach Area, close to Temple and Airport

*Some hotels will charge $15-20/day for parking

Hyatt Regency Newport Beach $360 +

The Island Hotel $199 +

Newport Beach Marriott Hotel & Spa $190 +

Newport Beach Marriott Bayview‎ $150 +

Radisson Newport Beach Hotel $120 +

Embassy Suites $120 +

Extended StayAmerica Orange County - John Wayne Airport $70 +

Laguna Beach Hotels

Inn at Laguna Beach $212 +

Casa Laguna $250 +

Seven4One $140 +

Pacific Edge Laguna Beach $110 +

things to do

Orange County Area

Disneyland- We love pirates of the caribbean, dole whips, big thunder mountain and churros!!

San Clemente Beaches- They rule. Grant can give tons of suggestions if you want to surf. Way better than LA beaches. There is a great seafood restaurant right on the pier called fishermans and if you can snag a table outside, you can watch the the surfers and the sunset as you dig in to a pot of steamed mussels.

San Juan Capistrano- We love this little town. The train station is great and the Misson is beautiful. Grab some Pedro's tacos while you are there.

Balboa Island- Cute little island in the middle of Newport Beach. Known for frozen bananas and quaint shops.

Crystal Cove- Nature preserve and tide pools.


Los Angeles Area

We both live in LA so we obviously spend a little bit more time in this area. It's only about an hour away from Orange County (given there is no traffic) and has some great things to see...

Griffith Observatory- If you are into stars and city lights you will never want to leave. Nestled up next to the "Hollywood" sign, this planetarium has amazing telescopes and breathtaking views of Los Angeles........also it's where we got engaged!

Museums- The Getty and LACMA are 2 of our favorites.

Sony Studios- formally MGM Studios is located RIGHT next to where we will be living in Culver City (west LA). It could be fun to do a tour.

Venice Canals- also in west LA, there are canals right in the middle of the city of Venice. It would be worth the drive over the bridges to see the beautiful homes right on the canals edge. Once we drove through and the neighborhood was watching a movie on a screen attached to one of the bridges while floating in boats and laying on lounge chairs. After grab dinner at the "Pasta Factory" for the BEST meat lasagna.

Santa Monica Pier- has shopping close by on the 3rd street promenade, beach and carnival complete with ferris wheel on the pier.

Hollywood Stuff- the Chinese theater, the Hollywood walk of fame (see the "stars"), corner of Hollywood and Vine, the Kodak Theater (you can park near this.. central to everything).


San Diego Area

I know most people aren't planning on staying or visiting San Diego, but just in case...

Balboa Park- We are kind of obsessed with this place. The Spanish architecture, fountains, space museum and gardens are gorgeous. Plan at least a few hours to walk through the park.

Old Town- full of great homemade tortillas and historical shops and buildings. I bought homemade pumpkin butter and apple butter at the trading post last time I was there. Yummy.

Gas Lamp District- In the middle of downtown, full of shops, restaurants and only a few blocks from the water.

Military Bases- Most of you will not be able to enjoy these unless you or someone you are with is in the military and as access to bases.....which is a shame because the NEX is tax free! and there are men and woman in uniforms and the gas is cheaper. I (Rachel) grew up going to these with my Grandpa and Grandma Thurston. Great memories. Miramar is right next to Toby's Tacos....the best al pastor tacos in southern California.

what to eat