Honeymoon!!!

We didn't go on our honeymoon right away, we waited until my sister went into labor with our niece Halle Marie Lafontaine. (I'll talk about that in my next blog) We drove all they way to Beaverton, Oregon for our Honeymoon! It took us a day to get there and about two days to get back. We made a few stops on the way through California and had a blast! 

Our first stop was at the General Patton Museum in California, just passed the Arizona boarder. It was pretty cool but I think Isaac appreciated it more than I did. I liked seeing the Vietnam wall as my father is Vietnam veteran. After that stop we continued on our journey through California. There were some beautiful areas of California and some not so pretty spots. We mostly just drove on through, only stopping for a potty break here and there. 

Driving through Sacramento, CA heading into the mountains... What a gorgeous view that was. We drove north and through Shasta Mountain in the middle of night/early morning. We had to stop to nap because Isaac didn't like my driving! LOL he couldn't relax and sleep while I took the wheel. But...What can I say. :)

Long road trips tend to affect your sanity after awhile! LOL 

Welcome to Oregon! Nice green trees and it was actually sunny when we got there! We drove through Salem, OR where I got to show Isaac some of the hotspots I used to frequent when I was living there, including my old work. It was fun to remissness. After driving through Salem we headed back north up the I-5 towards Beaverton, OR. We made it and checked into our hotel that was within walking distance to my sisters house. At this point we were playing the waiting game for Miss Halle to show up. 

The night we arrived we went down to the harbor in Portland, OR to get some dinner and walk around. It was so beautiful at night and we really enjoyed it! 

Isaac loved Oregon! The next couple of days we enjoyed our new niece before resuming our honeymoon. We dove to the Oregon coast hit a few cool scenic spots along the way and a couple of places along the beach stopping at Moe's restaurant for lunch. (mmmm clam chowder!)  It was cloudy and drizzly but just what Isaac loved! We had a great time walking along the beach and looking at the sea lions. On the way back we drove through Monmouth & Independence, OR where i grew up. It was very fun to share with Isaac a little piece of my childhood and show him where I used to live, go to school, where I used to hang out, etc...

The next day/stop was Multnomah Falls. These waterfalls are truly amazing and gorgeous! It was a long hike up to the top but we made it! We enjoyed the exercise and the views!

Yup...We went all the way to the top of this bad boy!

All the way at the top. This is the water fall spilling over!

They built a platform out over the falls so that you could look down! It was quite a site! We were so proud of ourselves for making it to the top! But man were we sore!!!!

Back down at the bottom and totally soaked! The rain combined with the mist from the falls it was quite wet! LOL But it felt so good after that hike!

We did it!!!



We spent a few more days in Oregon spending time with family and our new niece then started our long journey back home. The drive back to Arizona was a lot harder then the drive to Oregon. I think it was because we were so tired from our vacation that we didn't do as well in the car. We were able to stop in Weaverville, CA to spend the night with Isaac's Aunt Cindy and visit with them for a little bit. We also stopped at a restaurant for a couple hours for lunch and souvenirs. We finally made it back to Arizona in one piece and still happily married. LOL :P

First comes Love, then comes Marriage.....

Now I get to talk about the WEDDING! Truly the best day of my life! And I hope Isaac's too! :)

We got Married April 3, 2010 on a gorgeous Arizona, sunny, breezy day! I was so happy it turned out to be the perfect temperature, not too hot and not too cold. We had a nice breeze roll in, and since it was an outside wedding, it felt perfect! (And boy was I worried! As any Bride is wont to do. LOL)  The decorations turned out perfect and I have many family members to thank for that! Isaac's cousin David (groomsmen) was nice enough to get his wife at the time Abby to do our flowers and they are exactly as I pictured them! Purple and White daisies (my favorite flower) with purple and white carnations. Just wonderful!

All the decorations set the mood and made the wedding feel so warm! Isaac and I put together and decorated our wedding arch, Ally Wheeler (Isaac's cousin-in-law) decorated the chairs, and help set up chairs. We were married in Goodyear, AZ at Star Point Resident Club at Estrella Mountain Ranch where my parents live. It was the most Romantic setting and we got married right next to the lake! My father walked me down the aisle just like I had always dreamed and for me it was very touching.

You know a girl dreams of her wedding her whole life and I can honestly say my dream came true! A brother and good friend of ours read one of my favorite passages from the Bible regarding love and marriage and I remember it every time we have our lows. Thank you Mark Ellison for being a part of our Ceremony!

(1 Corinthians 13:4-8) Love is long-suffering and kind. Love is not jealous, it does not brag, does not get puffed up, 5 does not behave indecently, does not look for its  own interests, does not become provoked. It does not keep account of the injury. 6 It does not rejoice over unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth. 7 It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails.




During the ceremony we did what is called a "sand ceremony" that symbolizes our two lives joining together as one. I had purple sand and Isaac had yellow sand, and we poured our sand into one jar mixes the two together. It was pretty cool! (Funny thing happened to that mixed sand after the wedding on the way home. Isaac slammed on the breaks in the car and I lost my hold on it. The sand spilled all over the floor of the car!! LOL But we put it all back in the jar, it was just a lot more mixed after that!) 

We signed our Marriage certificate in front of everyone during the ceremony with Isaac's cousin Jake signing as his witness and my Sister Tia signing as mine.

  After the ceremony the whole wedding party went and got their picture taken. Isaac's groomsmen were; Jake Wheeler (Best Man), Charles McCormick (Groomsmen), David Gardner (Groomsmen), and Byron Flores (Groomsmen) What a bunch of handsome guys they were!

The bridal party consisted of my sister Tia Lafontaine (Maid of Honor), Vanessa Dorrance (bridesmaid), Allie Wheeler (bridesmaid), and Wendy Lopez (bridesmaid). 

I had my niece Lana Lopez as my flower girl and she did an amazing job!!! I was so proud to have her be a part of our wedding! She was so cute in her dress, and when she littered the aisle with her flowers she was so precise! She just had to get it just perfect! It was worth the wait when she made it to the end! LOL

Our first dance was to Elvis "Fool's Rush In". We loved that song from the start of our dating and just knew it was going to be "our song". It was so sweet, and always makes me teary eyed.

Isaac and His mother Nancy danced to a song by Allison Krouse. "Baby Mine" This is the sweetest song and I always imagine myself singing or listening to this song while rocking my own baby. Oh no, here I go again getting all teary eyed! 

My father and I danced to Hartlands "I loved her first". That was a really hard dance to get through, let me tell you! It was so hard not to cry. I love you Daddy!

After the special dances, it was time to cut the cake! Now I know I am bad....But I smashed the cake in his face!!! LOL He was a good boy and didn't retaliate! It might have something to do with my mom who told Isaac that she would kill him if he smashed me with the cake! 

I was very particular about our cake! And it turned out pretty perfect! We ordered it from Bashas if you can believe it. They did a great job! Purple and white! Abby used some of the purple and white daisies to decorate it as well! It was so perfect!

I just have to thank Jehovah for bringing this special man into my life and all the people that came with him! I could not have asked for a better husband! He tries so hard and never gives up trying to make me happy! My in-laws are just fantastic and I couldn't have asked for nicer in-laws. Isaac is responsible for helping me gain a closer relationship with God and I love him dearly! 

Our dating life

When we were dating we had a blast together! We still have fun together, but when you first meet that one person that you can just be yourself around, the fun is limitless!! One of my fondest memories of dating Isaac was our adventures. The very first adventure we had together was a 4-wheeling trip we went on with Isaac, me, Isaac's friend Andrew, Cousins David & Stephen, and one other person I can't remember. We went out to the middle of the Desert to go off-roading. It was so fun, exciting, and a little bit scary! LOL But I had a blast!

This was at the top of a ridge and the view was gorgeous! There were so many trails and huge hills we went up. We even went up what they call "widow maker". Although I'm told its not so much of a widow maker any more due to being run down so much. :) All in all it was a blast! 
Another fun thing we did when we were dating and still while we are married is shooting. There's just something awesome about firing a gun. We have shot a lot of guns together! ;)

I don't remember what this gun is called, but I remember it was LOUD! This thing echoed off the side of the mountain for miles! It was a blast shooting it! Isaac had to plug my ears for me with ear plugs already in, it was so loud! LOL

Even the smaller guns can be fun too! :)

I loved this gun and I wish we still had it! It was so much fun to shoot!!! AR-15 baby!

Another one of our favorites is quading!! We love to take our Quads out to the desert and just ride, ride, ride! What a blast! 

This was Isaac's

This was mine!

 I guess its safe to say we love the outdoors! We also love camping, although we've only gone on one camping trip together, (that's another blog) we would love to go again!!

Blogging again

I didn't do very well the first time around blogging very often. :( I decided to try again because it can be very therapeutic. So lets see....We are the McCormicks, we were married April 3, 2010 after dating for 1 year. Our courtship was very quick but we knew we wanted to be together so we saw no reason to wait. 

Us During our Dating days....

We have two dogs, Daphne who is a German/Australian Shepherd mix, and Jaxon who is a pure bred Siberian Husky. They are our loves, our children if you will, and we love them dearly! We got Daphne while we were dating when she was just 6 weeks old. 

  

5 months later we decided to get another dog and found our Jaxon on craigslist. The owners said he wasn't getting any attention and they were leaving him outside all the time. We just knew we had to rescue him and give him a loving home! It was a rough start, but we made it work and we can't imagine our lives without these two smart, playful and unique dogs! 

Well this was us in the beginning, just starting off our lives together. We will go on to having many memories together. Some that have already happened, and some that are still yet to come! Stay tuned!