Summer recap

Forgive me reader, for I have not been updating the blog regularly. You see, Mike and I have been very busy.

In May, we were in New York City. I spent a few weeks with my favorite people who live too far away from me, and then I graduated from law school.

Three of my favorite long-distance friends (Yi Han, Paavana, and Kyndra) on a cruise on the Hudson River.

Seriously, why did I move away from these people?

It rained sideways during the commencement ceremony. Columbia generously gave out a $4 umbrella to each graduate. And they say a law degree isn't a good value!

Is that soggy regalia I smell?

After graduation, I headed back to Houston to study for the Texas Bar Exam. The three-day exam took place at the end of July. About 25% of out-of-state law students don't pass the exam, which is required to practice law in Texas. So I was a little nervous. Mike was back in Austin at the time, working at the main office of NI and probably being very grateful to not have to deal with bar exam stress. 

Practice MBE day.

Color-coded highlighters. Gross.

I have repressed all memories of the actual exam. It was the most mentally exhausting experience I've ever had. (Spoiler alert: I passed though! More on that later.)

In between studying, I got to catch up with friend in Texas. God bless Texas, and God bless my Texas friends, who always let me pick things up right where we left off nine months ago. They're awesome enough to convince me not to move to Europe full-time.

At Free Press Summer Fest with Melissa.

Fourth of July in Austin. Waiting for fireworks on the S. Congress Bridge.

Midnight House of Pies run with Lily and Rory (and Anna and Sarah!).

Okay they're not really from Houston, but Sarah and Mike came to Houston to get ENGAGED!!!

And of course, there were some furry friends who had missed me while I was away.

Daisy

Lance and Rusty

After the bar exam, though, I was ready for a vacation. So I headed to Peru with Heaven, who also took the Texas Bar Exam (and who's been through just about every important life event with me since age 11).

Don't be fooled by our faces; we hated this place.

I LOVED getting to vacation with Heaven. But I would not go back to Peru. We met a couple of really nice people there, but 95% of our vacation was a series of getting robbed and lied to. Bottom line: if you have to go to Peru, hang out with actual Peruvians and stay away from the entire tourism industry.

By September, we were gearing up for the wedding. I went to Las Vegas for the first time ever with all of my bridesmaids. I didn't expect to like the city so much, but all of the Vegas veterans showed me how much fun it could be. 

Not the real Eiffel Tower.

We also had a bridal shower with my mother's friends, most of whom still can't believe that I'm grown up. 

In my free time during the summer, I ran around planning wedding details. I was so lucky to have my mom with me to help with everything and give advice! In August, she went with me to the campus of Rice University for my bridal portraits. Mike and I met at Rice in 2007, and he proposed there last summer. 

My mom and I at the end of the portrait session.

And then finally, on September 14, it was our wedding day! The hardest thing about weddings are how quickly they fly by. It was hands-down the happiest and most memorable day of my life, and I wanted it to last forever. We felt so overwhelmed by the love of our family and friends, who came from far away just to celebrate with us on our special day. I still don't know how to ever possibly express my gratitude to everyone who went out of their way to be there for us. (Except, of course, to be sure to attend their weddings when the time comes!)

Our family and our best friends (who might as well be family)

What's a wedding without cake?

This is, of course, a blog about our time in France, though. And although this entire post is about our summer outside of France, I'd be remiss if I didn't note that our wedding had plenty of French touches.

La croquembouche!

Des macarons.

As of October, we're back in Paris. (All of us, including the bird and the cat!) And we promise to keep you updated with all of our coming adventures.