Chris + Megan Sitting in a Tree...

Movin' Out!

2011-10-04T11:46:00.000-07:00

We are saying goodbye to our lovely one bedroom in Los Gatos.

The first of our boxes are packed, and we're set to leave for our new three bedroom home in Gilroy. We are the proud owners of a lawn, two car garage, and a fireplace. Our move in date is tentatively November 1st, but we have to move out of our place to have the carpets cleaned and walls painted so we can get some renters.

Oh! We're going to be landlords too! Life is full of new experiences these days.

Chris

2010 Chris' Birthday Trip to Disneyland For the First Day of Hollweentime Extravaganza!

2010-10-05T07:33:00.000-07:00

This past September 17th weekend we took a bit of family trip to Anaheim, CA to visit Disneyland.

September 17th marks both my birthday and the first day of Holloweentime at the park. Not sure which one is cooler.

Actually I am sure. Disneyland's Holloweentime beats all.

The area between the Disneyland entrance and the entrance to California Adventure is designed with bricks --

Such as this one. One of our wedding gifts. It's located on the Disneyland side of the plaza, so next time you're at the park, check it out.

This is my dad, relaxing at the Grand Californian while we wait for Mike and Janet to check in. Just imagine him sitting, but instead of there, here --

The Tower of Terror! He wasn't up for the ride, but Mike, Janet, Marsha, Megan and I went up and up and up and down and down and down in that thing.

That's us. Back row.

We caught the World of Color, a water and light show at California Adventure. My lil' camera didn't do so well with all the contrast of light and dark, but this would have been my favorite shot no matter how well the others came out.

Some friends came out on Sunday and well stayed until the fireworks shot over Big Thunder Railroad.

Disneyland knows how to put on a show.

And there it is, an all to brief rundown of "2010 Chris' Birthday Trip to Disneyland For the First Day of Holloweentime Extravaganza."

- Chris

FINALLY!!

2010-07-23T13:41:00.001-07:00

At long last the pictures have arrived.

You can check them out here and perhaps order a few if you would like:
http://www.pictage.com/794390

Or you can go to Chris' flickr page:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/17596088@N00/sets/72157624427750409/

ON WITH THE SHOW...

2010-07-21T09:49:00.000-07:00

My father in law pointed out last night that it has been far too long since we have posted anything new and I totally agree.

Here's a brief overview of our Honeymoon. We'll post a link to wedding pictures as soon as we get them (hopefully that will be this week).

We got special buttons:

Chris wore his with pride:

We saw Pooh:

And Woodie and Jessie:

And then I got sick which was no fun:

But we powered through and everything turned out fine! After all, it is the Happiest Place on Earth!

- Megan

IT'S A DONE DEAL!

2010-05-16T20:18:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, May 15th 2010, the day we had planned for, waited anxiously for, arrived. All the planning that began that day on Jekyll Island Georgia when I first proposed paid off. There were a lot of facets of this day that had been planned months ago, from the large scale items such as the food, tents, location, and flowers. There were also countless details like the plum napkins at the dinner tables and the cocktail hour music that were decided and probably ignored by the crowd.

First up, Megan had her bride photos.

And of course she looked amazingly beautiful.

I stood back and snapped a few photos with my iPhone. In all the lists of stuff to remember to bring, I forgot to keep tabs on my camera. It didn't matter. The day happened so fast I doubt I would have taken any more pictures than I did with my phone.

In a matter of hours it was over, we were married, had a blast, and saying our goodbyes to all of our awesome guests - such as my grandma.

It was a rare, unique day. There are thousands of weddings every weekend of every year, but this one was ours with our friends and family and I cannot think of anything that would have made it any better.

It was perfect. Wonderful.

There are a ton of people who helped it come together and even more who contributed to it being as special as it was. Most of all we have to send our greatest love and thanks to my new in-laws Mike & Janet Thompson, my parents Jerry & Mary and step-parents Marsha & Irwin.

This list will go on, and should go on. The coming weeks there are going to be phone calls and letters written to give thanks and appreciation to those who stood by us in support and gave us their free time and energy.

But now, we are off to Disneyland. Honeymoon time!

NORTON'S VAULT!!!

2010-05-07T08:12:00.000-07:00

We had an engagement party of sorts at the place where we first met...Norton's Vault in San Francisco.

There was dancing:

Singing:

And general merriment:

Dale and Emily had a good time:

As did Zea and Danielle:

And as usual, Brother Bob sat around looking sneaky

There were chats

And a good time was had by all!

LINGERIE SHOWER!

2010-04-21T12:12:00.000-07:00

Danielle threw me an amazing party. Here she is getting the food ready:

And here are Pam and Deb hanging out:

And last but certainly not least, the lovely ladies in their handmade toilet paper wedding gowns.

PARKING

2010-04-12T12:07:00.000-07:00

We will be providing a valet service (Fancy, right?)

If you are staying at the Ramada, shuttles will be leaving the hotel starting at around 10:30.

ENGAGEMENT PHOTOS

2010-02-11T15:20:00.000-08:00

http://www.pictage.com/794160

Here's the link in case you wanted to look at some pictures of us at Fort Point. It's a wild ride. Enjoy.

Event Code: jalufka

WOO HOO!!!

2010-02-11T13:56:00.000-08:00

We got our engagement photos back last night. We'll probably be posting a link soon. Stay tuned.

THINGS TO DO IN THE SOUTHEST OF SOUTH BAYS

2010-02-08T08:04:00.000-08:00

Although it may seem like San Martin is in the middle of nowhere, there really are things to do in the area:

The Outlets:

Wine Tasting:

For the Young'ns:

DIRECTIONS TO THE WEDDING SITE

2010-02-08T07:57:00.000-08:00

If you're coming to our wedding, it may be helpful to know how to get there. The ceremony will be held on May 15, 2010 at 11:30 AM at the Thompson residence, 221 Highland Ave., San Martin, CA.

View Larger Map

FROM SAN FRANCISCO --

Take 101 S. for 72 miles
Take the San Martin Ave. exit
Turn Right on San Martin
Turn Left on Monterey Road
Turn Right on Highland Ave.
221 Highland Ave. is on the Right just past the sign for Harding Ave.

FROM SAN DIEGO --

Take I-5 North
Take exit 403B Gilroy/Hollister/San Jose onto CA-152 W
Turn left on Pacheco Pass Hwy (CA-152)
Take ramp onto US-101 North toward San Jose/Watsonville/CA-152W
Take the Masten Ave Exit
Turn Left on Masten Ave.
Turn Right on Monterey Hwy.
Turn Left on Highland Ave.
221 Highland Ave. is on the Right just past the sign for Harding Ave.

We'll post directions from other starting points, but just wanted to get something up so everyone has an idea of where they're going.

A BRIEF UPDATE

2009-12-23T17:04:00.001-08:00

It's been awhile since an actual "Wedding Update," and I'm sorry to say, this won't be one of those real updates either.

Since the start of the proposal in July we've visited Georgia --

Megan and Mike, the Father-of-the-Bride, posed it up in Savannah, GA --

And got our snaps stalked by bridesmaid Emily, seen here nestled behind Megan's right shoulder.

We've all left the country for South America --

We saw Iguazu Falls in Argentina --

Wandered through Buenos Aires with the coolest future in-laws Mike & Janet --

Saw some jungles --

And met up with Megan's brother Aaron and his wife Rebecca in Montevideo, Uruguay.

Somewhere between the adventures Megan's cousin Kyle stopped in town --

And then we went to Disneyland for a rainy holiday weekend.

We found a store that sold the Mickey Mouse ears that newlyweds on their honeymoon get to wear. Yeah, after trying them on Megan's thrill of wearing them were gone.

Thank you, God.

These photos are only a handful of thousands that I've recently uploaded to Flickr. The account can be found HERE. It was incredibly difficult to choose a small crop to represent each event, so feel free to go through all the photos because really, what's better than photos of someone else's vacations?

So, that was just a brief update of a basically an amazing summer. We are currently working on the invitations and still have the entire ceremony to work out, but it'll happen.

Hope all is well and Happy Holidays!

- Chris + Megan

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

2009-12-06T20:18:00.000-08:00

It's been a long time since a new post, and I've been meaning to post an update about our recent trip to South America with Mike + Janet to visit Aaron + Rebecca in Uruguay, and yes that will come but for now I wanted to share this wonderful card we made --

Merry Holidays & Happy Christmas!

Love

Chris + Megan

MEGAN'S RACE DAY!

2009-10-19T14:26:00.000-07:00

This isn't wedding related, but I wanted to share it anyway. Yesterday Megan ran the Nike Women's Marathon on behalf of Team in Training to benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in San Francisco. I know a lot of you donated to her run to show support, and she did amazing.

Here she approaching the finish line, still full of smiles.

Then she blew by like a flash.

I'm proud of her for doing such and awesome job of running her 13.1 miles and sticking to the training these last few months. I confess that she did skip a day because I prodded her to join me for drinks, so that was my fault. Other than that, she didn't miss a day. (Oh, besides when she was sick. Oops!)

I don't how she was so chipper after waking up at 5AM to get to Union Square and run for almost 4 hours, but she was. That's what makes Megan the best - always so damn chipper!

On the walk back to the car we did notice something a bit odd about her race day running gear --

She had somehow managed to put on two different shoes.

Oh, Megan.

- Chris

CAKE!

2009-10-15T12:36:00.000-07:00

Last week we hosted our very own wedding cake tasting shindig.

Megan brought some pictures of cakes she liked that she found online to show our cake lady, Laurie.
And Laurie brought along this lil' guy, a cake. I forgot the specifics on it. White cake with a lemon custard and raspberry preserves?

It had a thin layer of fondant that was sprayed with orange zest. I think. I didn't take notes, just photos.

But I'm pretty sure it was a hit with ladies, especially since that cake will be one of our tiers.

After the main cake we moved onto a variety of other flavors. German chocolate, fudge, white, spice, and swirl.

And a whole mess of toppings to choose from. In the end, we chose three different combinations for our cake. I'm not sure if that's supposed to be a surprise. Is it? I'll check with Megan on that one.

After a bit of discussion, Laurie did some drawing --

And came up with this --

So our cake should look roughly something that. Square cake, round cake, repeat until you reach the top.

To end the evening we made our cake, the best kind of them all --

One with sausage, peppers, and cheese.

Thanks ladies for coming over to help with the cake tasting!

- Chris

Lodging

2009-09-16T08:14:00.000-07:00

Hey all. Perhaps you've been thinking, thanks for the great wedding info Megan but where am I going to stay during all of these festivities? Or perhaps you're just thinking, I could really care less about someone else's wedding planning. Either way, here are some options for hotels:

This hotel is budget friendly but still very nice and just down the street in Morgan Hill. We have a block of rooms reserved under Thompson/Jalufka for $85 per night for May 13 - May 15 and they will be providing a shuttle service the morning and afternoon of the wedding for guests that stay there. Be sure to book at least 3 weeks prior to our wedding date or you may not get our discounted rate.

If you're looking for something a little more upscale...This is the place for you. Cordevalle may be a bit on the pricey side but it does have the advantage of being literally on the same street as the wedding.

Another good (and inexpensive) choice in Morgan Hill:

We will also be reserving a small block of rooms at the Holiday Inn Express. It's a little nicer than the Ramada but also more expensive at $129 per night.

And yet another:

There are several other options around the area in both Morgan Hill and Gilroy but these are our top choices for now.

Jamon

2009-09-04T10:19:00.000-07:00

As pointed out by my big bro, I failed to mention that there will also most likely be a Jamon carving station at the Spanish table. It will look something like this:

Sweet!

-Megan

The Food

2009-09-02T11:17:00.000-07:00

So we met with the caterer yesterday and I'm getting pretty excited about the ideas she had. At this point we're thinking stations. Probably an Asian station, an Italian station and a Spanish station with paella and tapas ! They actually come out and cook the paella in a 6 ft. pan while everyone is mingling. It should look something like this:

Woohoo! I guess we'll have to wait and see if it all works out.

-Megan

REGISTRY

2009-08-25T15:09:00.000-07:00

If you're wondering where we're registered...

Home Depot gift cards would also be greatly appreciated!!

Met with another vendor today...

2009-08-24T22:06:00.000-07:00

Today Megan and I met with a potential wedding coordinator. Melissa was pretty awesome and calmed Megan down a great deal on the goings on and planning of the Big Day(tm). We met her at Starbucks in Mountain View, where Megan posed with her ever growing Wedding Preparation Binder. It was all discussions of tents, speeches, food, processional, recessional, and lanterns. Both Megan and Melissa shot down my idea of our respective family crests being carried down the aisle on huge poles by our siblings.

I was just trying to brainstorm, ladies. Got to kill that ceremony time somehow.

We celebrated at the Elephant Bar with Diet Cokes and side salads. You gotta stay in shape for the Big Event to come.

Oh, if anyone has any ideas on what should be going on during the ceremony, leave a comment. So far we have --

1. Say, "I do."

That's about it and that won't be taking 20 minutes.

- Chris

One wedding vendor down, more to follow.

2009-08-24T21:57:00.000-07:00

We've made a choice for our wedding photographer, who we oddly enough don't have any pictures of. We met with Randy and Joyce and discussed what we were looking for, and what they did, and decided it was a good fit.

Randy and Joyce photographed our pals Daniel & Mia's wedding awhile back, and we liked what we saw so we gave them a call.

I was sold on their work, especially since they had NO pictures like this --

And nothing as awkward as this --

I don't want to be in a picnic basket or riding a pony in my wedding photos. Oh, also oversized novelty sunglasses are out as well. Sorry guys!

Looking forward to seeing what photographs Randy and Joyce are able to get at the wedding. Should be good.

- Chris

Attempt #1 - Crate & Barrel

2009-08-24T21:44:00.000-07:00

To my surprise, one of the more time consuming and difficult aspects of the marriage business is dealing with the registry. Where to register? What to put on it? What do we have? What do we want? What MIGHT we want, someday, in the future, when our future-selves want household items?

Maybe we'd want a slate cheese board?

For living as long as I have lived, I've never had to have an opinion on what my dish style would be. I think Megan and I figured we were this particular style of dishware people.

Friends, could you imagine yourselves coming over and being served wine in Jordan stemware at the Jalufka-Thompson household?

How about drinking a tall glass of lemonade out of a Dylan 17oz highball glass?

Not to mention enjoying a fine meal at our place with our very own Stanton satin silverware set? Does any of these options scream "Chris & Megan?" I think we pretty much decided "yes" for all of the above. We still have a few more stores to visit, a lot more decisions to make.

Next, we have to figure out what sort of kitchen towels and floor mats say "us" the most. It should be a hoot thinking that one through.

- Chris

Juniors

2009-08-11T07:46:00.000-07:00

We decided that 12 in the bridal party just wasn't enough so we added a few more:

Courtney was also with us in Jekyll Island. This picture was taken on a tour bus in Savannah. I think Courtney, other Junior Zoey, and flower girl Parker will bring sufficient cuteness factor to the party.

- Megan

And then there was one...

2009-08-11T07:43:00.000-07:00

Yet another photo of some lovely bridesmaids:

On the left is bridesmaid Emily with bridesmaid Danielle. This picture was taken while we were on vacation in Jekyll Island Georgia. I'm pretty confident that alcohol was involved.

-Megan

The Parade of Groomsmen PART II

2009-08-10T20:13:00.001-07:00

Here we have Jared Kelly. Another chance meeting I had in the 4th grade. I have a quick memory of us meeting as we walked around the elementary school's field, a generic act of physical fitness we had to do in P.E. at the request of the teacher Mr. Martin.

And here is Jared --

Goofing off at Google when he should be working to change the world.

Jared does in fact work for Google, so let me say this to his current employer-

"Dear Mr. Google,

If by chance you search your employees and get to searching "Jared Kelly" and come across this post, let me just say this, he is an awesome and kind man and to have him at my side when I marry the Coolest Girl in the World (MEGAN!) is an honor.

P.S.

I can shoot my resume off to you if you want. I am in the market to be a part of Global Empire.

Sincerely,

Chris

The Parade of Groomsen PT I

2009-08-10T19:44:00.000-07:00

And now for the GROOMSMEN! It has been decided that they will not be carrying swords or family crests, and nothing will be on fire, but they will be wearing flowers and they'll dress all pretty in matching suits and walk the Bride's ladies down the aisle.

Once again, in no certain order, give a warm welcome to --

Jacob J. Stansky! This picture is from a Sunday afternoon spent at Golden Gate Fields to bet on the ponies. The full adventure of that day can be seen HERE.

Jacob was the first friend I made when I moved from Sacramento to Clayton. We met in the 4th grade in Mrs. Boyle's class at Mt. Diablo Elementary, which is where we studied such classics as...actually...I have no idea of what one learns in the 4th grade. Geography?

We spent many summers riding bikes, breaking stuff in the creek, and we both shared our first jobs washing dishes at Peppino's when we were fifteen. Now, we're both all grown up and I'm incredibly proud to have him along for the ride, at my side, and welcome to the party, Jake. It's about time.

- Chris

THE BEST MAN (Part 2 of 2)

2009-08-09T19:25:00.000-07:00

And here we have Best Man (2 of 2, in no certain order) Gavin Jones.

This particular photo was from my birthday 2005, when we shared an apartment in San Francisco. 1449 48th Avenue apartment 4 to be exact. We were fellow students at the Academy of Art University in the film department and now, neither of us make movies...BUT! We are still friends and now he is my Co-Best Man.

So thank you Gavin for accepting and joining the party. I will be married, and you will be there!

- Chris

THE BEST MAN (1 of 2)

2009-08-09T10:39:00.000-07:00

Allow me to introduce THE BEST MAN (1 of 2), Matthew S. Webb.

Who happens to look exactly like this.

But also happens to bare a slight resemblance to the lead actor in David Lynch's Eraserhead.

I was Matt's best man way back when I was a lad (20? 21?) and drove out to Kansas City to stand at his side. I did a horrible job. I didn't make it to the bachelor party and I totally failed on the toast. I was young and had no idea what my role was supposed to be. I'm older and wiser now, and I know Matt will do a much better job than I did. (Right?)

Thanks again Matt for joining the party.

- Chris

2009-08-06T07:51:00.000-07:00

This is bridesmaid Danielle. She's one cool lady.

-Megan

2009-08-04T15:14:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time bridesmaid Jessica and I lived together in Spain. While there we decided to travel to London, a land of great history and culture. What do we remember most about this trip? This chocolate cake. Here's a pic of Jessica chowing down on some. Seriously it was some damn good cake.

-Megan

2009-08-03T13:10:00.000-07:00

This is bridesmaid Monica. Isn't she lovely folks?

-Megan

Chris + iPhone Sitting in a Tree...

2009-08-03T12:00:00.000-07:00

Chris loves his iPhone. So much so that I thought maybe he should marry it. I made him this photo. He was none too pleased with me.

In your face iPhone!

-Megan

***EDITORIAL NOTE***It is impossible to marry an iPhone, and no one should try it, but ONE should try and marry a smart, funny, and incredible cool lady like Megan. I'm just saying. I got lucky, but if it doesn't work out, "I still have you, iPhone!"

- Staff of CAMSIAT, Chris

2009-08-03T11:57:00.000-07:00

Me and Zea (the other Co-MOH) being as ladylike as ever.

-Megan

2009-08-03T11:52:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of me and Daniella (one of the Co-MOHs) in Los Gatos.

-Megan

THE ONE RING TO RULE THEM ALL!

2009-08-02T16:33:00.000-07:00

We picked up the ring today and it fit like a glove. Or, it fit like a ring. Megan is a perfect size 6 1/2!

She wasn't too happy with my photo work, so she took it upon herself to snap a picture with her cameraphone to send to her parents --

I don't know, I think I did a pretty good job.

At least I did a good job of capturing her attempt at photographing her own hand.

- Chris

So now it begins.

2009-08-02T16:08:00.000-07:00

There are things to do. Tons of things to do actually. Invitations, food menu, flowers, music, etc. We have already decided that we will not be having a clown at the wedding, so that big question has been handled. So Megan and I have made plans to make a list of all the things that we need to do.

In the meantime, here are a few photographs from the trip we took to Jekyll Island, Georgia.

That building in the back on the left is the Jekyll Island Club Hotel, where we had our impromptu engagement dinner.

This is roughly the spot I proposed. No dropping to one knee, but I asked her to be my wife and she said "yes," so I did something right.

- Chris

As of July 30th 2009...

2009-08-02T15:38:00.001-07:00

Chris + Megan are engaged, with a wedding date set for May 15th 2010.

I gave her a ring.

It looks like this.

Kapow!

See you all in '10!

- Chris