The real reason Bryan enjoyed our trip to Santa Fe

The real reason Bryan enjoyed our trip to Santa Fe - sure, there was the escape from Amarillo, the delicious food, the slower pace, the time with his lovely wife...

But there is part of me that acknowledges that all of those fabulous experiences may not have been the highlight of Bryan's trip to Santa Fe.

You see, deep in the heart of every sound man is the desire to have more gear. More speakers, more microphones, more power amps, bigger sound consoles, more power...

Until one day, they realize that they need a stage. Yes, Bryan has entered that phase of his sound career that tempts him to want to purchase a stage of his very own. So much so, that he tried to detour our weekend getaway to the town in Colorado that manufactures a particular brand of stage so he could see one up close.

While, it's true that this desired stage is simple (so simple an 8th grader can assemble it in one hour) to assemble and thus appealing to an aging sound man - it's not a likely purchase in the near future for this newlywed couple. But a boy can, he dream.

So, imagine the sound man's delight when after hours of travel, and hours of roaming the international Folk Art Market he eyed the object of his desires.

Yes, I think we may have centered in on the reason that Bryan enjoyed our trip to Santa Fe.

I love my sound man. :)

International Folk Art Market

Earlier this month, Bryan and I took an impromptu road trip to Santa Fe. If the trip had been less impromptu we might have known that the International Folk Art Market was being held in town - causing a shortage of hotel rooms, a massive activity on Museum Hill, and leaving few people in the plaza.

The display of artisans at the market was incredible.

And every bit of Museum Hill was festively decorated. the volunteers must have spent many days decorating the grounds in preparation for this event. (And found a good deal on tinsel after Christmas last year!)

Dining Recommendation in Santa Fe

On our recent anniversary trip to Santa Fe we were lucky enough to receive a recommendation to dine at the Chocolate Maven. True, it was not easy to find the Chocolate Maven (who would expect to find such chocolate delicacies in a warehouse style building nestled between a car repair shop and an Akido studio?) Once we entered the Chocolate Maven we knew the search was worth the brunch we were about to eat.

Believe it or not, Bryan ate a sandwhich for breakfast - he claims it was delish. I enjoyed Eggs Blackstone (Free range eggs poached to order, layered with avocado, locally grown tomato, chipotle chile sauce, and hollandaise sauce.) Yummy, Yummy, yummy in the tummy.

Ok, but honestly, how could we eat at an establishment called the Chocolate Maven and not eat something containing chocolate.

So we did.

Belgian Chocolate Torte.

Goodness gracious, o mio, o myo.

Eat it. You must.

Next time you are in Santa Fe, go to the Chocolate Maven.

Top Layer of Our Wedding Cake

Before our wedding, Bryan and I had heard the tales of many other couples sharing a bite of their wedding cake on the evening of their first wedding anniversary. The tradition seemed like a fun idea to us, so we made plans to preserve the top layer of our cake for our anniversary.

Many couples had told us that the cake was not so tasty a year after the event, but the tradition was worth it. Our cake tasted so delicious on the day of the wedding that we figured even if it tasted a fraction as good as the original it still probably couldn't be a bad thing. After we finished working on our anniversary, we returned home to sample some of our wedding cake. Perhaps we were a bit excited (hmm, or maybe it was the excitement of reclaiming that precious space in the freezer that had been occupied for a year?)

Sadly during the thawing process the icing slid off of the cake. We were not discouraged, we carried on and took a fork to the cake.

If the icing had not slid off, you would have been able to read that the top layer said, "Dare to Love Completely."

For the record, 1-year-old icing is tasty. ;-)

The cake looks a bit destroyed, because we quickly realized that the top half of the cake and the outside of the bottom layer was not so tasty - but the inside of the bottom layer was still quite delicious.

Oh, the things we do for the sake of tradition. Here's to many more anniversaries my love.

Anniversary Celebrations

Bryan and I selected our marriage date of July 4 for a few reasons - some of which may seem silly to y'all. Our first date was on November 4, 2007. While we were dating, Bryan always tried to do something special on the 4th of the month, in fact, he proposed on November 4, 2008. When we thought about a date for our wedding, Bryan thought it might be a good idea (and easier for him) if we married on the 4th of a month. We also thought it might be best to marry in the summer because it would be easier for my family to travel from the midwest in the summer.

So, the calendar search began. It didn't take long for me to discover that the only 4th in the summer of 2009 that fell on a weekend was July 4. I asked Bryan if he thought that it would be crazy to marry on the 4th of July. We thought about it and both agreed that there would be no better date to celebrate our marriage.

At the time, we also had an honest conversation about how we would be spending our anniversaries for many years to come. Bryan is a sound man, and wanted to make a go of the audio company. We agreed that we could do this - but knew it also meant that our anniversaries for many years would be spent with Bryan doing some sort of outdoor event. In fact, we joked that if he did not have a gig on the 4th of July that there would be bigger problems in the marriage - July 4, is the one day every sound man should be able to find a gig.


And so, we spent our first anniversary as husband and wife - doing what we do - providing a sound system for a 4th of July party in the Colonies. I worked as Bryan's stage hand for the day. :) Honestly, I loved this gig - it was an easy, low stress kind of gig. Precisely the type of gig needed on our anniversary.

We enjoyed the music of local band AFK, and eventually (after a several hour delay) enjoyed the Amarillo Fireworks display.

Not a bad way to celebrate - Bryan jokes that the whole country celebrates with us.

Here's to many more celebrations!

My wonderful husband

My wonderful and loving husband, he spoils me.

Every day. He reminds me of how blessed I really am. I am so grateful that he is my husband, my partner, my soulmate, my everything.

I love you hun.