Introducing Mr. & Mrs. Pope......

It's official - we did it! This past Saturday, September 30th turned out to be a fabulous day. Robert (Kenui) and I (Makalani) arrived at the courthouse by 11:30am and by 11:40am Judge Jennifer Frey officially prounounced us husband and wife. It was such a beautiful moment as I looked into Kenui's eyes and professed my love for the man I will spend the rest of my life with.

Our weekend started on Friday with the arrival of our beautiful leis direct from Hawaii, a gift from Kenui's sister Kawehi and her family. The evening continued with dinner at one of our favorite local restaurants, Willie Rae's, then on to Crystal's on the Marietta Square to see Larry Griffith perform with Sal, Jack and Charlie Wooten.

After our ceremony we went to our favorite studio, Portrait Innovations, to capture our memories. You can see here what a fabulous job they do. (And as I mentioned in a previous post - they are very reasonable!)

Our friends Bobby and Cheryl hosted a wonderful dinner for us and some of our close friends in their home. A champagne toast, served in engraved flutes from Bobby and Cheryl started the evening off, followed by fabulous appetizers and dinner. Julie painted an beautiful original for our new home.

Anytime the guys, aka Premonition, are together, they can't resist playing a few tunes and this day was no exception.

Next on the agenda, we went with Bobby & Cheryl and Ryan to Crystal's on the Square to see another of our favorite bands, Totally Savage. And of course, the evening ended with the obligatory Indian picture!



Our suite at the Hyatt was gorgeous. Champagne and chocolate covered strawberries courtesy of the GM Peter made it even more special.



To top the weekend off, we went to the Jazz Brunch at the Renaissance Waverly. Great music, wonderful food and the man of my dreams - who could ask for more?



Thank you to all who helped to make our day special.

The Big Day is right around the corner......

and Robert and I couldn't be happier! The past month has been very interesting to say the least....... Continuing our previous 'Lemons' entry, we took a trip to the Cobb County Courthouse to obtain our marriage license. The very same window that you obtain a marriage license is also the one where 'firearms license' applications are submitted. Shotgun wedding anyone?

Completing the form in and of itself was an entertaining experience. It had two separate columns one for the groom and one for the bride, beginning with the expected full name, date of birth, city & state of birth, mother and father's full name. Here's where it gets interesting..... 'relationship', hmmmm...... what state are we in? You know we couldn't resist the Alabama jokes about marrying. But wait! What is the planned date of the marriage? Hmmmm.... we were very tempted to fill in two separate dates to see if the lady at the counter was on her toes - but she didn't seem very happy to even be there, so we decided to get married on the same day.

Now even you can get a bargain price for a marriage licenses in Georgia! Instead of paying the full price of $51, you can take a Qualified Premarital Education Program with at least six hours of instruction involving marital issues and pay a low, low $16!!! Now, Robert and I decided that if we have made it this far in life, and through three & a half years together with no fights - we can 'afford' to pay the full price.

So, you think this story is almost done? Not quite - the folks at the courthouse manage to make this a memorable experience before we ever get to the 'Big Day'. We ask where we can make an appointment to get married on September 30th, and the nice lady sends us across the way to the third floor judicial courtroom. We ask the lady at the window if we can make an appointment to get married, to which she replies, "Oh honey, you don't need no appointment! We do weddings twice a day at noon and at 6pm, seven days a week. Just get here 30 minutes early and you will be good to go!" Yikes - All I can picture is mass weddings done by the Reverend Moon!

Now.... on to Macy's to 'register'. The sales lady was very sweet, but really didn't acknowledge Robert until the very end of the process. It's almost as if he wasn't there. She would ask me a question, at which point I would turn to Robert to confer and she still didn't 'get it'. Finally - during choosing the pieces to complete our New Wave collection, Robert brings up the topic of presentation. Out of the blue she asks if he is a Chef, to which the obvious reply is yes. Whoaa there! Now this man is credible and worthy of her time. Funny how that works, huh?

• OK, so now we have the license, are registered, hmmmm.... oh yes, we need flowers. For those of you who don't know - Robert is Hawaiin, so we decided to get traditional leis. Robert's sister Kawehi and her family are shipping the leis direct from Flowers For Mama in Hawaii.
• Our pictures will be by Portrait Innovations (see previous post for samples of their work)
  
• We decided to go ultra modern with titanium for our wedding rings. Check out this site for more designs.
  

During a trip to NY shortly after we met, I had a street vendor make this picture for Robert. It says "I always knew I would find you."


So, think of us tomorrow as we join in holy matrimony and live happily ever after......

When life hands you lemons.....

make lemonade!

Last Wednesday started off as any normal work day, but it became evident very quickly that this was no ordinary day. My position was eliminated as The Home Depot continues its' efforts to remain profitable in today's highly competitive market. My initial reaction was that I had just been handed a bushel full of

I called Robert at work, and he decided to come home to help me figure out what the heck we should do with this bunch of lemons. What would happen if we squeezed the lemons?

Of course! You get lemonade! And that's what we did, we decided to take a day that started on a sour note, add sugar and there you go - lemonade. We are getting married!

Cheers! After three and a half years together - we decided to go for it.

And contemplating the future? Well, you never know.... I may just open up a lemonade stand! Seriously folks, this is the beginning of another chapter in my career and I am excited about the possibilities.

We ended the day at Turner Field - it was a good day afterall!

Happy Birthday Mommy!

Today, August 12th is your birthday as well as the Drum Corp International Finals! I love you!

Edit: This just in Mommy! The Cavaliers won!!! (why am I telling you? I'll bet you're there with them!)

Portrait Innovations....

is perhaps one of the greatest finds we have made lately. When I told one of my co-workers about the need to have more portraits taken of the kids and grandsons, she suggested this studio to me. OMG!!! Quality, value and speed all wrapped up in one tidy package.

The portraits came out fabulous, the photographer was very patient with everyone from Brayden who needed a little break, to the adults (potentially me) who want to influence the outcome of the session. Even though the studio recommends bringing several changes of clothing to provide variety, we chose to do the very basic-blue jeans, white tees and bare feet to allow the focus to be on us rather than what we were wearing. (not that there is anything at all wrong with that - it just wasn't our intent with this session) They take on average 65 shots, then explain the process at a station with a huge monitor (which Robert and undoubtedly most guys go crazy over). The pricing is explained in detail and the running total is always visible on the screen (for those who are too shy or embarassed to ask). Once we decided on the package we wanted (8 poses) and a total of 4-10x13, 10-8x10, 32-5x7,4-3.5x5, and 32 wallet PLUS the actual CD - the pictures were printed within 30 minutes. Total price with tax? ~ $140!!!!

Check out this link to get a good idea of 'the flow' of the experience. Portrait Innovations

Here are a couple of examples of their work:



Becca and Noe, me(Sheri) with Noe's son Brayden on lap and Robert (Kenui) and Kawika









Bottom line? I highly recommend this studio for all of your portrait needs!

Open Jam, a first for....

Noe, Becca, Kawika and Brayden....

It's never to early to rock!

Favorites from Florida - Pt 1

The day I left Florida was Elijah's doctors appointment. We waited for awhile and he got a little bored.......














He weighed in at a healthy 8lbs 14oz as evidenced below.














Momma, Angela, comforted him throughout his visit...



















That was exhausting, Elijah decided to take a nap

This is wayyyyy cool!

The Red Planet is about to be spectacular!

This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an encounter that will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287. Due to the way Jupiter's gravity tugs on Mars and perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only be certain that Mars has not come this close to Earth in the Last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years before it happens again.

The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest object in the night sky. It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide. At a modest 75-power magnification

Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye.
Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10p.m.
and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m.

By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30a.m. That's pretty convenient to see something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars grow progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month.

Share this with your children and grandchildren.

NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN

NOTICE: Aliens have invaded

We woke up this morning and much to our suprise we found this ALIEN! Please help us to identify this species so we can figure out exactly what to feed it!

UPDATE: We have manage to find out it's name - Akiwak - very strange.........

What to wear when it's 98 degrees -

Your swim suit of course! Where to go? White Waters Theme Park!

Come on in - the water's fine!

Take a swim with Becca and Kawika at the pool. Hard to believe that Robert and I have lived here for years and never have taken a swim. Today is the first day of a wonderful visit with Robert's two youngest children Kawika and Becca - look forward to more pix to document the occaision!

Tio my horsie!

Isn't it funny that just a few days with a few wonderful people can produce so many great memories? Nathan simply loves his Tio Chris, who also just happens to be one of the best horsie rides in town. Chris actually bought Nathan a fabulous stuffed horse, but he paid attention to it for just a few moment before announcing, "Tio my horsie!"

Brotherly Love

The Inagural Performance

of Premonition was held right in front of my very favorite boutique ever, Alechemy this past Saturday afternoon. While it is true that Robert and I woke to the sound of thunder early that morning, the weather did clear up, making it the perfect day for an 'Al Fresco' performance.

Uncle Bob passed out 'Christmas in July' fans, while the guys played Jingle Bells in their Hawaiin shirts.






It was also Rick's birthday, so we had to ask the nearest Marilyn Monroe lookin' woman to serenade him!



The day was complete with dinner at Willie Rae's, one of our favorite eateries on the Square.

Elijah's finally made his debut....

much to Angela's, Mike and the family's joy! He's big, he's cute and he's hungry!

Premonition Debuts at Alchemy...

on the Marietta Square! Be there to witness the first live public performance by Premonition right outside of our favorite boutique, Alchemy.


















What better time to celebrate? Christmas in July and Premonition are both signs of great things to come.

Come on out and check these guys out!

Happy Birthday Michael!

It seems like not so long ago you were a baby boy in my arms.

As you grew you wanted to explore this wonderful world of ours

and then go out on to your own in this adventure called life.

Through it all you will always be my baby boy in my heart.

Happy Birthday Son!

Another woman for Nathan?

Angela, Nathan's Mommy and main woman, is beginning to think that Nathan is seeing (or should I say watching) another woman. In the morning when Nathan used to want to climb in bed to cuddle, he now runs to the living room to watch Dora the Explorer. I even overheard him talking to her the other day while I was on the phone! "Buenos Dias Dora!", Nathan said very excitedly. As long as she continues to teach Nathan, Angela decided that she will not stand in the way of their relationship.

Premonition Rocks!

So you wonder what Robert has been up to lately? Is he making use of his collection of musical instruments? Well friends, family and fans - I have a premonition that he will meet up with some fantastic musicians, get a gig or two and have more fun than is legally allowed! The plus side for me? Happy man and great photo ops!

Check it out for yourself and don't forget to sign the Guest Book while you're there!

Premonition brings you a rich mix of classic rock, wailing blues, and good feet stomping dance music.

Our brand of music is inspired by artists ranging from “Eric Clapton” and his singing rock and blues guitar, to the beat driving, say what you mean “ZZ TOP”, to “Rolling Stones” classics you love.