Jonathan & Alece

Last weekend my cousin Jonathan was married and I was fortunate enough to be able to help with the photography. The event took place in Orange County, at the country club where Jonathan works (and where the two of them met). The venue, the ceremony, and the happy couple were all just stunning.

What a sweetheart! Our whole family fell in love with Alece the instant we met her.

Bridesmaids stand by during a photo shoot

Her entrance




Breathtaking
Best Man and Maid of Honor skip into the grand entrance
Victory!
Jonathan and his sister, Tavia, tear up the dance floor.A sparkling send-off.

girl-cat in the closet

Dick took this and I love it.

more delicious wine!

I just went through the photos on Dick's camera and decided to post a few of my favorites.

Yum!
Ladies in grape vinesI don't know why I was giving her the pouty-face
day 2

Lovely ladies

And finally, one of the last places we went was to Alex's Red Barn Winery. This was probably one of my favorite wine-tasting experiences of the weekend. Kathy was our designated driver on day-2, so she read up on the history of the place while the three of us tasted. Apparently the winery has only been around a few years and is owned by husband and wife, Alex and Lise Yakut. Our guess is that Lise is the woman (shown below) who took care of us. She actually walked us through the process of the tasting so we got a real appreciation for the wine - which was absolutely delicious. In hindsight, we're not sure if the wine tasted so great because the experience was so enjoyable, or if it really was better wine as well. We'd like to think it's the latter.

Happy Birthday Lillian!

This last weekend Lillian, Kathy, Dick and I went wine tasting in Temeula. Saturday we were on a tour bus that took us to about four wineries.

Here's Kathy and Lillian before the effects have kicked in.
Here we are at Wilson Creek winery.
Then we went to Ponte. The service wasn't great, but Kathy certainly enjoyed the gift shop, as you can see below. (note the wine beginning to kick-in)

Here's a pleasant photo of aluminum siding with some plants. This was outside the Maurice Car'rie winery. How do you pronounce Car'rie anyway?This was outside Mount Palomar Winery. The wine and service here were really great.Dick and Lillian inside the Mount Palomar winery.
Later that evening, Lillian's sister and her husband drove the girls up to Fish House Vera Cruz for Lillian's birthday dinner.Here's Dick taking a photo of a really cool-looking eel at the resaurant.
This lady doesn't seem so sure about the eel.
Brianna and Lillian.
Jasmin --- can't remember how to spell her name - I'm thinking it's without the 'e'

Sheila & Patrick

Shelia and Patrick were married on July 1st at the Darlington House in La Jolla.

I loved the non-traditional touches that Leslie added, like the tropical floral arrangements.

a lovely saturday afternoon

Saturday we had brunch with Lillian and her girls at Red Sails in Shelter Island, followed by a slow three-mile walk.

Here's a shot of the outside of a boll weevil restaurant. I just liked the texture and color next to the palm trees.

The best part about brunch is...

take cover!

Brianna on a swing
Dick on a rhino

downright quirky

i couldn't resist grabbing the wide angle when i saw her like this today.
so goofy and yet so adorable.

Shogun with friends

... last week. Delicious as always!