March Madness

No bouquet was tossed, no garter thrown (was there a garter?), not a cake to be seen...much less cut and no maid of honor or best man...you call this a wedding? On top of that there was karaoke...WHAT? Karaoke, who's tacky idea was that? Well friends, this was definately Courtney and Cameron's wedding...Created and directed by Courtney; art direction, hair and makeup by Rachel; graphics by Jorge; heavy lifting and transportation by Drew; grandchild wrangling by Maria Clara, Leah, Tyler Rick and Kathleen; key grips: Alicia and Lynn; underwritten and produced by John. (thank you sweetheart for throwing the best party ever!) Of course we would be amiss to not mention all the friends and family that helped and supported us and worried about my sanity...thank you dear, dear friends for your love and support!

While this was not your typical wedding reception, it was one rockin' bash. After the pictures come back I will post them, but for now I wanted to give you a teaser and also share my gratitude for the entire day.

A Great Crescendo

Grandma Maria Clara, Jorge, Rachel and Helena Mia Ambrocio

Since my last post in October so much has happened...a great crescendo in the symphony that is my life. Some of it has been like the scary crescendo in say, a disney movie when the villain is giving chase, but other times it has been when the hero triumphs...such as Thanksgiving dinner with my aunt, uncle and cousins; or when Courtney got engaged; when Jorge and Rachel brought Helena into the world, or when we got together with dear friends we had not seen for a while. I must say, I could not have dreamed of a more beautiful symphony. I have so much to be grateful for. Here are some photos of the people who have made the last few months so special:

Aunt Denie and Uncle Lloyd Turner










Harlan's, us, Blackham's, Conforto's Orme's
These are friends from my Seattle days. I owe so much to them for their love, support, kindness and friendship throughout the years. They all live in the San Diego county area (with the exception of the Harlan's who live in Yorba Linda and soon to be Utah). Kim and Collette Blackham are the cruise directors of the group (additionally, Kim is the "Father of Fun") and had us over for a beautiful Valentine's Day dinner. Dennis Conforto kept us laughing out loud till our sides split sharing the "flame-on" days of scout camping when Steve Orme was the older "more experienced" kid they all looked to for guidance...thanks Steve for teaching the timeless skill of fart lighting! Linda and I were nearly inseperatable in our senior year of high school until the day her mother informed her she was having "too much fun" which apparently is not a good thing. Who knew? Stephan (the yellboy at Queen Anne HS) to my knowledge has always been the solid, straight shooter of the group. He's lucky to be where he is today as he was greatly influenced by Dennis in high school...that could have been bad but it all seemed to work out in the end. We have all been through alot since the good old days on Magnolia (Hold your nose in t he air!) and still our faith is strong and rooted in the strength of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I love you all.

This is our family home evening group. The Sommer's, Mori's and Mosley's. We rotate having dinner and a lesson once a month in each other's homes. We have been doing this since 2001. A lot has happened in those years and we have shared it all. And...they have supported me and loved me and been my great friends along the way There will be more on them in a later post.

So for now I will close. Thanks to all my family and friends who make my life so rich and full of joy and happiness.