A Sneak Peek...

The back of my wedding dress. Its under the destination collection, first page. Its the Loralee style. I bought it from Low's in Brinkley, AR. I got a great deal, because I purchased the sample.
My hot pink shoes!!! In case you were wondering, they are actually comfortable.

Our wedding website

I finally setup our wedding website. Its still a work in progress, so keep checking back perodically for additional details.

http://mooreandvillanova.ourwedding.com/

Who wants pancakes? This girl!!!

I love pancakes. They are my favorite breakfast food. I would eat them everyday if I could. Of course, they not the healthiest thing you can eat. Since I'm trying to slim down for my beach wedding, I can't indulge in them like I used to. Luckily I found a great recipe for a healthier version of pancakes. I stumbled on the big red pot through Laura "Armstrong" Shacmut's blog. Betheny is the blogger and she always has great recipes and coupon updates. I altered the recipe slightly to suit my tastes. I used 100% whole wheat, instead of 3/4 wheat, 1/2 all purpose flour. I top my pancakes with Cary's Sugar Free syrup. Its delicious and low calorie. I also added strawberries and whipped cream for a little indulgence. It is the weekend after all.

http://thebigredpot.blogspot.com/2010/01/harvest-and-grain-pancakes.html

The Calm After the Storm

A couple of weeks ago Los Angeles was hit with a "huge storm". At least it was huge in LA standards. Apparently 4 inches is a bit too much. It caused several mudslides in the foothills where the fires destroyed the vegetation. Its kind of weird to have people evacuated from their homes because of rain. Most people just stayed put, because they knew it was ridiculous to leave bc of rain. Also I notice they shut down the outdoor escalators, why I have no idea. There is no other city in the world that shuts down escalators because of rain. Well anyway, after the storm Patrick and I rode out to the beach. The great thing about having alot of rain, it clears out the smog and you can see for miles and miles. I like the fact that I can stand on the beach and see snow covered mountains in the distance. Not that I would ever go near a snow covered mountain. If you know me, you know I'm not a ski or snowboard type of girl. Here are a few pics we took on our bike ride. Enjoy;)

This is the little land bridge that goes out into ocean, it separates the marina from Playa Vista beach. You can see the Conoco plan in the background.

Happy Groundhog's Day!!!
Punxsatawney Phil saw his shadow yesterday, which means six more weeks of winter! Boo, that means more days of 66 degrees sunny days. Haha. I guess in California Groundhog Day doesn't have that much celebrity. One of my work friends, D. Nichols, made these yummy brownies with little groundhogs made out of candy. They were super cute, and everyone loved them! I don't have a picture of the ones Dana made, but here is her inspiration photo. So cute! She used almond joy minis, raisinets, good n' plentys, and lots of gel icing.

Once in a Blue Moon...

A blue moon is the "extra" full moon in years that have thirteen full moons. Its also the phrase used to describe a rare event. Well another rare event occurred on December 31, 2009 besides the blue moon. Patrick proposed to me at 11:34 PM on New Year's Eve at the Fess Parker Doubletree Resort in Santa Barbara, CA.

We arrived home from Philadelphia the night of the 29th. We spent all day on the 30th getting unpacked and wrapping our gifts to each other. I made meatloaf for dinner (at Patrick's request). We exchanged gifts and I notice a box that I've never seen before. I opened it to reveal a file folder with a color printout of the Fess Parker Resort. I was at loss for words and couldn't process why Patrick would wrap a color printout. He told me that he made arrangements for us to stay at the Fess Parker for NYE weekend. I thought it was odd that Patrick would surprise me with a trip, but we did the same trip the year before so it wasn't too strange. We drive up the next day, NYE with a car full of wine and Adrianne in the backseat. We roll up to the Fess Parker, and I notice that it takes Patrick longer than usual to check in. This is clue number two for anyone keeping count. That night we go out for dinner at Seagrass, which is very good by the way. We get a cab around 11:20 and head back to the resort. Patrick lets me go ahead of him and open the door to the room. Then I see it...

Hundreds of red rose petals scattered in the hallway leading to the bed which has a huge heart made out of roses. That was clue number three, and I finally figured it out. Patrick is going to propose!!! He immediately pulls something out of his laptop bag (Yes his PwC Laptop bag). Once I put everything together, I started to get really excited. My heart was pounding, and I started the "Mandi Bounce". He got down on one knee and opened the box. I saw the most beautiful diamond glittering in its little red box. Before Patrick could finish his proposal, I ripped the ring out with catlike reflexes. I put it on, it fits perfectly. How did he know I wear a size 5? I proceed to jump for joy and scream like a banshee. I'm beyond happy, elated, and excited. Even Adrianne is jumping. I eventually calm down, and we open the bubbly and watch the ball drop on TV. I was truly surprised, and it was the best NYE of my life. I will never forget the night I got engaged once in a blue moon.