How We Celebrated Our First Wedding Anniversary

A little ocean view.

A little ice cream.

There was also cake. And a few friends. And a lot of dancing!

I love celebrating wonderful things.

Hugh

Eric's grandfather, Hugh, passed away in March; on Saturday evening there was a beautiful memorial service in his honor. Several people shared stories and memories, many of which made me smile. They talked about his patience, his generosity and his intelligence, and I smiled the entire time. I'm so lucky to have know him. I will remember him fondly, and we're both so grateful that he was with us on our wedding day.

April, Eric + Hugh -- photo by Carolyn Beaudreau

Below, you'll find the thoughts Eric shared at the service.

Hugh Schwarz was a great man. He was polite, patient, humble, generous, and caring. To me he was Grandpa, and he was most of all consistent and reliable.

For my entire life he lived on the Vineyard, wore the same pair of Nantucket reds patched with duct tape, used the same set of trusty binoculars, and always kept a pocket day planner.

When I would be arriving or leaving the Vineyard, Grandpa would be sure to ask me which ferry I was taking and jot it down in that day planner. In all my years of coming and going, even as recently at this past February, he never failed to bring me to or from my chosen ferry. That little day planner was his way of telling me that I was important to him and he would be there for me.

He also had a blue bag. The blue bag was a small duffle bag that contained everything he needed to go on a boat. Charts, flares, oar locks, and keys. Grandpa would put the oar locks and keys in one end of the bag, and then zip it up so that the zipper pull was on that end. That way when he went to dig out the oar locks and keys on his next outing the zipper pull would tell him which end they were on.

Some of my favorite memories involve that blue bag. I remember being about six and driving down to the harbor to go sailing on his boat, Fox. We had to row out to the mooring, and I remember he was a very efficient rower. He had great rhythm and poise and didn’t appear to exert much effort, but Grandpa and I and the blue bag would cruise through the water.

I grew close to him in college when I spent entire summers on the Vineyard and wrote my senior thesis with his help. I had fascinating conversations with him about his career. He would mention, matter-of-factly, that he helped build a processing plant during World War II that was put on a railroad car and shipped to the Russians. I learned about his work on the Manhattan Project and the process which led to the launch of Minute Maid.

We also talked about his personal life. About his first date with Nana when he had laryngitis and couldn’t say a word. He told me about their first apartment in a basement in Brookline with an illegal electric stove that they hid in a closet when the landlord stopped by.

It was through these interactions and conversations that I learned not only had Grandpa done cutting edge engineering under incredible circumstances, but also what a great man he truly was. He was incredibly accomplished yet humble. He was the smartest person I knew, but he didn’t take himself too seriously and was always willing to help others. He also impressed me with his knowledge of current events and the latest technology.

The funny thing was that he never liked to use the latest technology, because he didn’t trust it. He preferred his old Nantucket reds, his trusty binoculars, and his pocket day planner. Those items were consistent and reliable, just like Grandpa.

And there is something remarkably comfortable about those qualities. There were things I didn’t have to worry about, because Grandpa would handle it. And things I didn’t have to know, because Grandpa would know. I can arrive on island and go back in time. I can go back to my childhood by walking over to the garage and finding that same blue bag, with the same oar locks which are always on the side with the zipper pull like they were when I was six.

That’s why is difficult for me to accept that he’s gone. Even at the age of ninety-two, I expected that Grandpa would always be there. And I had that expectation, because for my entire life he always was.

One Month Tulips

Tuesday, April 19th, was one month since our wedding! Holy moly, folks. We've already been married for a month.

And how super sweet was it to come home to a vase full of these pretty orange tulips to celebrate the happy occasion? Answer: SUPER super sweet.

Wedding Day Hair

Well, it happened! Our wedding happened. I can't really believe it, but it's true. The day was an absolute dream, and so much fun! 

I loved everything about it, including my hair. My sister took this photo just before I put the veil on. 

The hair dresser, Melissa, did exactly what I asked, and the style lasted all night long. It even survived my crazy dancing. 

Bouquet From Eric's Family

A week ago, this beautiful bouquet was delivered to our door with a note welcoming me to the Schwarz family. Pretty sweet, right? 

There's something so uplifting about having fresh flowers in the house. Especially orange and yellow ones. They brighten the whole room. There's also something super, duper uplifting about getting welcomed into a new family!  

I took these pictures yesterday, when the sun was streaming through the living room windows and making the bouquet glow.

*Don't forget to check out today's inspiration post over on the ELM blog!

Affianced

He asked. I said yes. Just like that, we became affianced (that's much more fun to say than engaged)! 

Sunday, I accidentally foiled Eric's proposal plans, because I wasn't feeling well. Luckily, we both had Monday off and had planned to spend the day together. We spent the afternoon walking around Beacon Hill. We found some good looking chocolate chip cookies + hot apple cider on Charles Street, and we took our goodies to a sunny spot on The Common.

Then we headed over the the Public Garden to watch the ducks. Eric picked out a nice looking willow tree, and we sat underneath in the shade. The next thing I knew, I was looking at my gramma's engagement ring and he was asking! I said yes right away and then the ring was on my pinky (it needs to be resized). I didn't cry; I just smiled and smiled and smiled -- still smiling -- and so did Eric. 

We had the camera with us, so we decided to take these genuine engagement photos of ourselves (there are a few more here). We propped the camera on its bag and used the remote control to take a series of pictures. Then we both wanted to keep it secret for a little longer, so we didn't head straight home or get out our phones. We just walked around feeling special.

When we did get home, about 2 hours later, it was time to call our families. Having never done this before, we weren't sure what to say or how to say it, and we approached it differently. I blurted out the news ("Hi! We're engaged!"), while Eric seemed to ease into a little ("Hi, how are you? wait for response I have some news: We're engaged!").

You may think 8 years is a long time to wait, but for us it was the perfect amount of time. Nothing else would have felt right to us, and I'm lucky that Eric and I move at the same pace and that neither of us was rushed into this big decision.

We're both incredibly happy and so thankful for all of the enthusiasm from family and friends!