when life takes over...good times!

our east coast mini-vacation was jam packed with everything east coast. lakes, lobster boils, preppy men in khakis, hiking....you could practically smell the Patagonia, L.L. Bean, and Vera Bradley from the plane.
Thursday, we arrived in new hampshire and headed to Perkins Pond where my mom lives. james and i took a little kayak cruise to get the lay of the land. luckily, the kayaks could be powered with your feet, so hands were free to hold beverages...

you could practically hear the pond neighbors whispering wondering and who the california adults dressed like kids were...
james loves it. I'M ON A BOAT!the kayaks proved to be not only good fun, but great swimming escorts! seeing as how i have a half ironman this weekend, i felt obligated to swim around the lake a few times. mom was happy to escort..thanks, mom!
we also did our fair share of waterskiing and wakeboarding on the pond. i showed james how it's done. and my mom and gary showed us both how it's done.

later it was time for bonfires, an awesome dinner, and a sunset cruise around the lake. not bad for day 1!

friday we headed up to Stowe, VT for one of my Vanderbilt friend and yes, sorority sister's, wedding...we settled in and i got to hang out with my buddies and they finally got to meet james ( i think they approve!). after a fun rehersal dinner, we stayed out way past bedtime...
somehow, we managed to get up in time for a bike hike up Mt. Mansfield, one of VT's highest peaks...here's the little cali-hiker:

that trail was aptly named as you found yourself wondering, "Why the F did we go this way?" it was rocky and steep!some bozo at the top "took" our picture, but when we got home, we realized she had no skills and didn't take the summit pics. oh well, i got one of james just starting down...

we barely made it back in time to get ready for the 5:00 service...look at my chicken- all dressed up! i was a reader in the wedding, and public speaking is NOT good for me, but i totally nailed it! actually not true, chicken said i talked really fast. but, i made good eye contact with the bride and she was tearing up, so i felt like i did a nice job. after the wedding, the monsoons began. it was ridiculous pouring, pelting sheets of rain for a couple hours. luckily the reception was fully tented and part was in a converted barn, so we were dry, but you could tell the bride and her mom were a little less than pleased. finally the rain stopped, and everyone ran outside, grabbed umbrellas and stared in awe...


the rainbow was a FULL arch, lucky charms style and lit up the sky. the whole thing made for some great pictures...
after the rainbow lifted everyone's spirits, we got to business...
care for a dirty martini? or two?

i swear i was just holding the second one for martha.
after another late night, we got some sleep, woke up for a run along the river, and headed over to the hangover helper BBQ..... the BBQ was great, except they also served leftover wedding cake. so that brought my cake total to 3 pieces, not to mention the ben & jerry's (it WAS vermont after all). maybe not so smart race week. but i LOVE wedding cake. clearly.
a last meetup with the college friends (me, janine, martha)
after the BBQ we headed back to the Pond for another day of waterskiing, swimming, running, eating, and pond cruising with my mom..
the vay-ca was awesome thanks to mom and gary and the happy couple...
this one says it all... i've never seen two people so in love, but i'll tell you, she's got her hands full!