Best. Year. Ever.

Although it's a tiny bit late, its time to pay tribute to the smartest, sweetest, funniest man in the world who I've been married to for ONE YEAR! Yikes how time flies! I have often heard that 'the first year is the hardest', if that's really the case I am in for the happiest life of that any human has ever lived!

I made this funny little video for David so we could always remember our first year. Brace yourself, it's very.... authentic.

To celebrate, we stayed in a fancy hotel called the Davenport where we ate fancy meals in ballrooms and had the BEST time feeling fancy.

It is crazy that all this was one year ago:

Lauren {+} David // San Diego Temple + Reception Highlights

I LOVE you David Parker and i Always will!

A little story..

I love my family, I especially love having so many sisters. My sister Savannah is 6 years younger than me and is the cutest little lady on this continent. I have waited a couple months to post this story because I  thought she might be embarrassed, but I just decided I need to have a record of it on the blog. So here is my journal entry:

Since it was our last night in town, all of us girls went out to dinner. When we were on our way back home from dinner, we stopped at the Schwartz's house to pick up the twins. While Mom and Jackie went inside, Savannah and I were waiting in the car chatting. We we wandered onto the topic of In-Laws and that conversation somehow morphed into a discussion of what it would be like if your husband didn't have a family or if they had all died. Morbid? Yes, but it was a typical sisters-can-talk-about-anything sort of a conversation. We were sort of giggling at the strange scenarios we were coming up with. Finally, our talk began to take a humorously serious tone as we started talking about how I can never even hold a grudge against David because I think about how sad I would be if he died. I said that if David died I would NEVER be able to remarry. Savannah said "you don't really know that, do you?" and I said yes I do. Even if he died tomorrow I could never remarry. Savannah said but then you couldn't have any kids and you'd be completely alone? And I said that it doesn't matter, I could never marry anyone else because I already KNOW that there is no way I could love any other person anywhere near the way I love David.

She quietly whispered "that is so romantic. It makes me want to cry". We started cracking up that our random car conversation had gotten so deep. The laughing died down a bit as a  series of little tears started splurging from her eyes.  "Seriously, that is so beautiful," she said sobbing and laughing. It was the cutest thing that has ever happened to me. (Although when my mom and Jackie finally came out to the car, they thought I had hurt her because she had a red face and so many tears!).

i am so grateful that my family can be together forever because we are a bunch of eccentric nut cases that really do belong together. i love that even my little sisters can see the happiness and love that a temple marriage can bring.

My boyfriend.

I can't help but be sentimental today. Exactly one year ago today, I picked David up from the airport and he said "you're my girlfriend". It may seem odd that it wasn't posed as a question, but if you've read any of the "Her Side" tab, you know that it was (a little too) obvious-- it didn't even need to be a question. 

i LOVE my DAVID PARKER.

In my mind I built up this fabulously perfect creature, after only spying on him in chemistry lab. I was lucky enough that the more I got to know him, the more fabulous and more perfect i realized he was. I remember chatting with my friends long before meeting David, about how it was not possible to have a super good guy, who just adores you, AND also is SUPER hot. It seemed like if you wanted a man that was super good looking, then he couldn't also be humble, kind, and fun. I thought it was a trade off. Thus all of my dates pre-David were evaluated based on a cost benefit analysis... I was sure you couldn't have it all. 

The great news is: I really got to have it all.

I remember sitting on the floor of Cody Melnyk's (crazy sweet) house at lunch on a school day (before we were engaged). David and I had Ochem in two hours so we were just chatting and giggling. We skipped class. (I can't believe it either). My first skipped class at BYU all because I just couldn't get enough of him, I wanted to hear more stories about his friends, his turtle, his mom's cheesecake, anything and everything he said I just wanted to soak in everything about him. We sat on that floor for 7 and 1/2 hours. No eating, no TV, no phones, just us. 

He's the best entertainment there is.

So today I am grateful for a husband who i ADORE. He puts a little tingle in my heart every time I think of him. The same tingle that I got when i was told i was his girlfriend.

post-wedding life.

Being married is the best thing ever. ok actually David P is the best thing ever! here's a little bit of what has been going on since the wedding...

1. Just loving being married and wearing this fancy little thing around. He picked it out himself... which makes me very confident in my choice of husband!

2. We went on a cruise for our honeymoon! Unfortunately I am already hooked on traveling with my husband... which will have to wait until school's not sucking up all of our funds... So in about 12 years, we'll be back!

Catalina Island

Formal night on the cruise.

Mexico!

3. On our one month anniversary, David surprised me by taking me... country dancing! The people there regard this type of dance as a precious art form, to be taken very seriously... and as you can see, we do too.

4. Celebrating David's birthday! We went out to lunch with a bunch of David's pal's. Addison, our niece, loves David... why? because evevvvryone loves David!

5. We have been bonding with each other's families by various methods. Here's cute cute david singing savannah's favorite jam for her.

6. As a wedding gift, Savy got us tickets to David's favorite, Taylor Swift! No really, he knows every song.

In case you didn't get to come...

Here is the video of our wedding in San Diego, and the reception after!


Lauren {+} David // San Diego Temple + Reception Highlights

Best. Day. Ever. August 13 2011.

A little video of our day:   http://vimeo.com/27951460

Married life is THE best. So good, that I've been too busy loving my new husband that I never even posted about our wedding! But now that I finally have the pictures, it's time!

    I never thought I would get married, I never thought I would find someone that I thought was just the best looking man in America, and I certainly never thought I would find someone that I would want to be glued to forever and ever. I happen to have a small problem when it comes to making decisions, I am that lady who stands in an aisle of a store for an hour trying to decide which color of water bottle to buy because I just know if I choose the pink, someday I'll wish I had chosen the blue. But here's the thing, I love David, he is the funniest, sweetest, smartest man in the universe, the easiest choice I ever made was to say yes to marrying that perfect creature! 

     August 13, 2011, I woke up at 8:30 in San Diego. I was so so nervous. No, no, not about getting married! But about how my hair would turn out! You see, I had nothing to be worried about when it came to marrying that little cutie, who is now my husband (booyah!). Actually, after my hair and makeup were all done, the only things I was worried about were taken care of, and I was so calm. Unfortunately, I didn't give David that same luxury because I was a liiiittle late to meet him at the temple. Oh, I also forgot my phone at the hotel, so he couldn't get ahold of me........ But, once I finally showed up, it was perfect. 

     The San Diego Temple is The most beautiful place on Earth. As a little girl my favorite primary song was "I Love to see the Temple," I wanted to be married in the temple more than anything in the world. I'm kind of crazy, and very superstitious which is why every time I held my breath in a tunnel, every eyelash kissed and thrown behind my back, and every time the clock turned to 11:11, my wish was the same. I would repeat in my mind. "I wish that someday I will be married in the temple." To me, the being able to go to the temple is like having life insurance. No matter what happens in life, if you are worthy to enter in to the temple, everything will be ok. As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, we believe that by being married in the temple, David and I are sealed together for time and all eternity. And let me tell you what, I am SO glad that I have eternity to be with my David P, just for this lifetime is not enough.

Walking out of the temple, right after we were married.

We were just a tiny bit happy... Hooray! Just call us the Parker's!

                                              I love my cousins!... and aren't they cute?

Even Derek showed how proud he was!

                                   Even my mission cousin's made it to the wedding! Love them!

David played me a song that he wrote for me. Could the man be any cuter?

The San Diego Reception-

                                                                 Candy Table. Yumm.

                                                               

Moscow Reception-

Thank you Mom P and Dad P for the most perfect wedding of all time!!