Fun weddin stuff

 I love these lying down photos...so cute!

 

Stunning!

The most wonderful wedding website is www.oncewed.com !  Check out some of the cutest, crafty, natural weddings...love it!
Finally...all that is OUT of my system.  Time to focus on new beginning, a new island, and a new life...

Spose di Gio

I love LOVE <3
Looking at wedding stuff is so fun...here are some of the beautiful things I found while browsing through the lots and lots of wedding/bridal stuff online.

Italian designer Spose di Gio... This designer had the most gorgeous wedding dresses!
Don't worry...they are impossible to get.  Only need to be imported from Italy, and only cost between $2,000-10,000.  I was over it pretty fast. 

Be wed!

Adam and I finally had our chance for a wedding ceremony, or 'blessing', and celebration/farewell afterwards.  Planned at the last minute, everything was so last minute.  But it turned out to be a great time.  We had a very small gathering for a blessing of our marriage before we made our entrance into the Candler Field Museum in a '59 Corvette playing 'Love You Madly' by Cake...love that!  We also had a blast after the celebration for another mini-celebration on the parent back porch for some guitar playing and conversation with our best friends and family.  Such a wonderful day/evening!
Here are some pictures...not 'THE' pictures but photos that friends took throughout the event.  The real pics will be posted later when the lovely photographer, Katie Anderson, is finished editing.  Her website http://pinkshoephoto.com/

Check it out!

  My best friend surprised me at the wedding!  She came all the way from Portland, and the entire time I didn't think she was coming.  awesome!

 We seriously have awesome friends!

A lot of these photos are from Adam's brother, Jon's Iphone.  Thanks bro-in-law!

Oki doki...

We made it to Okinawa!  Finally!

 After a lot of hours of traveling, weird jet lag, a waiting period until Adam arrived...we are finally together...in a teeny tiny little hotel apartment for the next month.  We will start our meetings and orientations on Monday.  As for right now, we are exploring and snoring.  Exploring the base, eating shrimp fried rice, getting used to the humid tropical climate.  Snoring because we are not yet adjusted to the 12 hour time change...our body clocks are going haywire. but we made it!!!!!  And we are SO excited.  We have already started Rosetta Stone Japanese...total immersion, ready go!

3..2..1.. BLAST OFF

 

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3

At 9:40 in the morning, I fly to Washington DC, 2 1/2 hours later, I will be on a plane to Tokyo, 14 hours later, I will board a plane for Okinawa...3 hours later...this time two days from now (we are traveling into the future), I will be checking into the Shogun Inn on Kadena Air Base waiting for my husband to arrive a few hours after me.  Now is the time...And there is no better time than now!

Blessing Ceremony

Adam and I weren't really able to have a wedding.  Back in August we went to the courthouse in TX and became legally married...We didn't know if we would get the chance to have a ceremony because of the Air Force schedule.  But we finally got it figured out and planned, last minute!  Literally!

We are having a very small and intimate ceremony to bless our marriage.  It will take place in my parents backyard, in front of my Mom's lush and blooming gardens.  We will serve mint juleps and lemonade after the short ceremony.  Then we are driving over in my Dad's 59 Corvette to the venue for the reception...Candler Field Museum, home to some very old and famous airplanes and cars.  Dancing, Food, Biplane Rides, Fun...Can't wait to celebrate with everyone and say our goodbyes!

Roku! 6! Go! 5!

Portuguese port

Roku means 6!  We decided that when we get a dog in Japan we might name him Roku...sounds cool.

5 more days and we will be flying to Japan...on the 27th we fly out, possibly flying separately, but still arriving in Okinawa around the same time.  YES!  So ready!

Hachi, Shichi!

Hachi 8

 

 Off the coast of Sorrento, Italy

Guanacaste, Costa Rica...a fabulous place

Shichi 7

9 nine nueve ku

 

Walkin on Aruba

10.. really??

 

Camping in The Cohutta Wilderness, GA.  Sunset.

12, 11 more!

 

 Both of these photos were taken just outside of Bariloche, Argentina.  The Patagonia Mountains are so breathtaking, and the scenery changes around every mountain.  Loved this place...something magical is happening there.

Air Force Training Graduation

 

(whew, I'm a lucky woman!)

Adam graduated today from Aircraft Metals Technology.  He is a welder, a machinist and an amazing soldier!  So proud of him!  The ceremony was wonderful this morning.  Lt. Colonel Graham made a truly great speech.  It was especially moving when he expressed to the airmen...

From this point they will go on to their next bases, take what they've learned and utilize their new talents; but they will not wake up every morning and go to work at a regular job.  They will wake up every morning and serve their country on one of the greatest teams in the world, The United States Air Force, protecting and maintaining the freedoms of this nation. 

Proud of you Airman Fillman.  We salute you !

C O U N Tdown 13 mas

Charleston, SC

Ok..13 days to go this time...we're back on track.  That's actually Adam's countdown.

My countdown may look more like 13 days + 6 to 8 weeks.  In that extra month, I want to t r a v e l !

14 days woopwoop!

Packing packing packing...I have to keep reminding myself that I can't pack things according to what may or may not get lost in the mail.  That is something that I cannot foresee; I never truly tapped into the psychic sphere.  I never regretted it until now.  haha..jokes.

14 more days!!! 

It didn't take long to realize that the majority of my favorite photos are either from Portugal or Argentina, favorite photos from my favorite countries.  So much beauty, amazing people, natural landscapes that take your breath away...It would make any photographer a bit trigger happy with their camera. 
This was taken from on top of the snowy peak of Cerro Campanario, Argentina.  Maybe after we leave Okinawa, we could live on that little island in the middle of Nahuel Huapi...island hopping here we come.

15 days to go!

15 days until J A P A N..

But actually, it will be 4 more days until we are out of T E X A S!  Nothing against Texas...but we are sooo ready to get out of Wichita Falls. 
We are also ready for a small wedding ceremony and mega reception with our closest friends and family in G A !  So much is going on!!!  Photos to come!  (if anyone reading this would like to join in the festivities, email me! The only requirement is to dance, dance dance!!!)

WEBsite

 

www.LensMission.com

Visit my photography site!  A great compilation of all my photos.

I am so ready to add the Okinawa collection!

Weddingbliss

My sister-in-law, Emily, was married in a beautiful ceremony yesterday.  I was honored to stand with her as a bridesmaid during the ceremony...She was gorgeous and glowing.  We danced all night. 
It's incredible to see an old married couple, our grandparents, bustin a move on the dancefloor.  It was so memorable.  I only wish that Adam could have been there to see it.

 

The bridesmaids wore simple black J.Crew dresses and we had green peonies and blushing orchids which made a nice spring contrast.  Such a cute dress, I will totally wear again.  Such a blast!

Oh yes..counting down!

This will always amaze me...
Blue Grotto in Capri, Italy...this was taken inside of a cave...we were in a boat and came through that small hole.  When we got inside and our eyes adjusted to the light, you could see that the rock walls were floating on the surface of the water and the sunlight from outside creating an illuminating blue glow.  LOVE
Oh yeah...16 +2 days to go!!!

18 and 17 for the countdown!

 Irish boy, Irish jersey, Irish Sea, Ireland

Bariloche, Argentina

Nineteen dizzays

 

Lagos, Portugal...coolest tree ever, lighthouse in the background

Wildlife Refuge