lemonade picture no. 2

Kent proposed to me on August 1, 2007, late at night after a fancy dinner in his parents' sparkling treehouse. (Yes, I meant to say sparkling. Christmas lights, tiki torches, candles, and a sky full of stars.) The next morning we jumped in the car and drove to Monterey.

That day is still one of the best I've ever had. We called and texted every person we knew during the drive, and it was so fun to be in the car, both of us on our phones, sneaking knowing smiles at each other. We had big big news and oh the excitement of sharing it!

Monterey Aquarium, Bubba Gumps, Cannery Row. In my newly-engaged the-world-revolves-around-us state of mind I felt like every person we saw was staring at the shining (if perhaps a few sizes too big) ring on my finger.

Yes, I wanted to tell them, this handsome man here-he's all mine. And, did you see this ring? He picked it out all on his own. Do you see how amazing he is?

We stood in line to see a show at the aquarium. It was something about recently discovered deep water creatures. Translucent-skinned fish with large glowing eyes and microscopic creatures living symbiotically. To us, the show was hilarious.

To us, everything was hilarious. We were getting married-our lives couldn't get any happier.

We drove to a stretch of beach. White sand speckled with waxy green groundcover. We drew pictures in the sand with driftwood sticks. We hugged and kissed (more than a little but not too much!)

I set my camera on a perch of jacket-draped driftwood, set the timer. This picture has
always been my favorite of me and Kent.