Happy Independence Day from San Diego...

Happy Independence Day 2008 from San Diego!
We had a pretty busy day today (even though I did not feel I did, but Erik tells me I am crazy- or at least rolls his eyes in such a manner that I infer this :-P). We headed up to Hob Knob Hill for breakfast (mmmm!). Erik had the corn beef omelette I had spinach and bacon quiche. Very good as usual- we always recommend this place! Then we came back to the hotel got my camera bag and headed off down to Seaport Village area. We decided (or rather Erik, because I am indecisive) to go on a Seal tour. You know the vehicles, the amphibious ones that do the tours. It was actually very nice and we had a lot of cool things pointed out to us. I got to see sea lions, which totally made my day! After the Seal tour, we headed to the USS Midway for a tour. It was hotter than all get-up in the ship so we were only wondering on board for a couple of hours- the flight deck was super hot! After that we caught the trolley back up to Fifth Avenue and had lunch at Fred's Mexican. After lunch we headed back to the hotel for a siesta and then got ready for our night of fireworks. We had purchased tickets for viewing the fireworks from the boats at the Maritime Museum. They had BBQ food and dessert setup on the Berkley Steamboat and we sat out on the front part of the boat and waited for it to get dark and enjoyed an excellent fireworks display. I would say it certainly rivals Washington, D.C.'s. Once the show was completed we worked our way back to the trolley, but that was packed so we headed to the hotel on foot. The rest of the evening will be spent sleeping, in preparation for our trip to Temecula tomorrow. So this concludes our day in the harbor area folks :)

San Diego Day 1 & Day 2...

Wednesday, July 2nd, 2008
We left BWI at 7:40 am (on time!) flying Southwest for San Diego. We arrived around 11:05am (Pacific Time- 3 hours behind Eastern). Headed over to Dollar rental to pick-up our car and that took what felt like forever, and kind of was. Erik waited 45 minutes in line to get our car and, well once that was done our adventure begins. We headed straight for our hotel (the same one we stayed at last time we were here)- The Ramada St. James Hotel. Check-in was quick, got up to our room, unpacked and then headed for Old Town. A trolley stop is not far from our hotel so we decided to use the mass transit and see how things went. And it was successful, we made it to Old Town and then was on the hunt for lunch. Toccarra, of course, made Erik stop at a couple of little stores before we finally landed for lunch at the Coyote Cafe. Which we highly recommend to all! I got a margarita (see picture below) and Erik got a beer- then we both had a mixture of Mexican foods. I must say I had the best taco a partially Irish girl could want- a potato taco! I was in heaven and Erik was soooo jealous I got it (don't worry I was kind and let him try it :D). After lunch we walked around for quite a bit and took the train back to the hotel. I would like to say we did something so extremely adventuresome after that- but- we just fell asleep. It's a good thing though, Day 2 was much more involved!

Toccarra with a Padre Margarita!

Thursday, July 3rd, 2008

We got up early to head out for Legoland California! We got to Legoland around 9:15ish and purchased our tickets. Gates do not open until 10, so we chilled out and watched all the kids there. Meanwhile, I think Erik was figuring out just what Lego products he wanted :D. Once in, we took a little cruise on a boat, hit Mini-USA, the Block of Fame, Legoland Art, Knight's Challenge, Got Some Ice Cream (which was d-lish), road the Dragon Coaster, Mini-golfing, Land of Adventure, Technic Rollercoaster, Bionic Something or Other ride, Saw a 3-D movie, Grabbed Some Pizza, Dinosaur Coaster, Shopped by the lb for Legos, Picked up our Dragon Coaster Picture, Headed out to the "Big Shop" for some other Lego related purchases. Below you will find a picture of some of our adventures at Legoland. Afterwards we headed south to La Jolla. Had dinner at the Crab Catcher with a spectacular view of La Jolla Coves. After dinner we walked down to the point and watched the sunset. Once the sunset we headed back to the hotel. We had to make a quick trip to the 7-eleven for sun burn relief (because we forgot to pack sunscreen!) and some snacks. Came back and chilled on the rooftop a little and that is about where we wrapped our evenings up.

Erik and The Scream

Kick-butt Lego Dragon!

Erik with his Eiffel Tower Purchase!

And it was done...

So, on October 13, 2007, Erik Dolatowski and Toccarra Murphy united in marriage. No cold feet and no one ran away. The worst thing that happened was we forgot the boutonnières. I would write more but the whole point of this is so that I can segway into updating this blog with things we are doing now. Later I shall update with a link to wedding pictures and all that fun stuff.

Continued Update...

Okay, so here is another update for everyone. The wedding dress I ended up picking out is below:


I also purchased a matching clutch (image below). Not that most of the guys care about this - but hey I can be girlie sometimes too!

As I had mentioned before here is an image of the types of flowers we selected the other day:

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Circus Roses
(Bride and Bridesmaid Bouquets)

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Burgundy Hypericum Berries
(Bridemaid Bouquet)

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Feather Eucalyptus
(Bridesmaid Bouquet)

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Alstromeria
(Groomsmen)

When I get other things done I shall post them. Until then, catch me by phone.

Update...

Well alot has changed and nothing all at once. I changed what wedding dress I plan on wearing - because, well I am so indecisive. Seeing as I purchased the dresses I do have off of ebay- another one wasn't really that much. However, if you know anyone who wants a wedding dress I got some for sale :-D

Other than that, this last Sunday I ordered flowers for the wedding. Wegmans will be making the flowers for the wedding. They are going to be a mix of flowers, but most will like in the orange colors. The bridesmaid bouquets have circus roses and hypericum berries- mine will have circus roses, burgundy spray roses and yellow calla lillies - boutineers will have astro (can't remember - will have to look up) and corsages will have white and orange roses.

There are some other details to still nail down, those being:
(1) Chair Rentals
(2) Wedding Day Transportation (If we decide to do this)
(3) Ceremony Music
(4) Reception Music
(5) Ceremony Programs
(6) Invitations (I am working on right now)
(7) The Ceremony
(8) A few pieces of wedding apparel yet to find:
-Groomsmen Shoes
-Bridesmaid Shoes
-Hair Jewelry
-Jewelry

Well this is all I can write for now - will write more later.

Table Centerpieces..

Well I have finally decided on a table centerpiece. I have gone all over the board with this one, but now I can calm down and relax. Below is a picture of the centerpieces I ordered and received yesterday. I will have to buy or make stands for them to ensure they stand the whole time - that should not be too difficult. I will probably pick out some nice votive holders and place those around the wheat and that is it. Now I just had an idea of putting laterns out as well - with the table number painted on the latern (hmmm...I will have to think on that one some more).

As far as bridesmaid dresses go - I know I need to call you Dana. I will I promise. It will probably be this weekend though. Okay, well I have to get back to work. I figured I would post this during my break and hopefully keep everyone happy! :-D

Updates...

Bridesmaid dresses:
I think we have a winner and that would be Alfred Sung's B206 in expresso. So it looks like we can get ordering them and see what we have to worry about next.

Wedding Cake:
We decided on a flavor and style of wedding cake. That being carrot cake with cream cheese frosting and it will be a cupcake wedding cake!

Rentals:
Rented linens from "Dove Linens" in Glen Burnie. They were really nice and had a great assortment. We decided on an ivory linen with a walnut pin tuck overlay. It looks really nice - now I just have to find a centerpiece that looks just as nice! :)

Let me see - I think that is about it for right now. When I get more I shall add to it or if I remember to upload more pictures I shall (that probably will not be until the weekend). Well I have a headache so I think I shall be off to bed. Feel free to leave a comment!