We did it!

Well, we are finally MARRIED! The wedding was beautiful, and I believe everyone had a great time. Eric and I are so very thankful for everyone that helped out! We couldn't have done it without our families and friends! We send out special thanks to Eric's parents, Lynette, my mom, Dawn, Jarrod and Michelle, Aaron, Amy, and Eric Greenhalgh. There was so many people helping that it's nearly impossible to thank everyone. We are also very grateful for our bridesmaids and groomsmen, they all looked great! Thanks everyone! Love Eric and Larissa Jones

Engagement Photos!

The abandoned house that Eric was freaking out about! He made me promise to never go there by myself!

This water was disgusting! This is actually right across the street from my brother's house!

I am so HAPPY! I love Eric so much, and I'm so glad that I got to share these pictures with all of you!

The dress I'm wearing is actually Morgan's, but we found it together!

There were so many flies! They kept landing on us, and it smelt so bad!

Hey Everyone! The wedding is in full speed! We took our engagement photos this past weekend, and they look great. We Would like to send a shout out to Morgan Wood... GREAT JOB ON THE PHOTOS, AND THANK YOU!!!!!! We are getting so excited for the wedding, and hope you are too! Here is a little taste of some of the pictures.

The Finer Things Book Club

A group of friends that I have had for many years has decided to start a book club! I"M SO EXCITED!!! I love to read, which I think I have inherited from my Mom. The book we have decided to start with is The Alchemist written by Paulo Coelho. I have currently only made it to the 14th page, but I can already tell I'm going to like this book. It's about this young boy Santiago, who becomes a shepherd just so that he can get the chance to travel the world. I admire people who drop everything they have, and set out to see the world. I'm looking forward to continuing this book! If anyone is interested in joining a book club, let me know. We will be meeting at the beginning of every month.

Larissa, my light!

Eric here. It's time for another man post. Prepare yourself.

Actually, there will be much less diatribing and sesquipedalians. I just wanted to recount a sweet story (I'm semi-under orders from Larissa though).

You (depending on who exactly YOU refers to) may or may not know that I work as a school bus driver for the high school district. I know what you're thinking. I can hear your thoughts right now. "Eric, thats so cool. Those kids must love you! I wish my bus driver was a young stud like you, not some creepy, fat old man who obsessively wore cut-off shorts and sported a skullet (a mullet on a balding man)." Yes, I've heard it before. But let's just move past that, I have a story to tell.

So, I had a trip driving a cross country team to a place in Chandler, and Larissa came with me! It was great having her with me. Much better that staring into a lonely abiss for 4 hours. We were lucky enough to get ourselves set up in the lounge of a community rec center near the place where I dropped off the team. I had my laptop, and after Larissa and I talked for a while about the wedding and future plans and whatnot, I settled in to do my homework, and Larissa set about the business of taking a nap. It was funny actually. Before Saturday, I had never really noticed Larissa's more feline characteristics. She didn't just take a nap. She pulled a chair over to the corner of the room and opened the window so the sun shined on her just right, then curled up to take a nap. Very cute. I chuckled to myself as she set up her little catnap.

But as she drifted to sleep, I took another look at her, and saw her in a different light. Those of you who know me may recognize that I am a man who is oft given to poetic devices. Well, watching Larissa sleep evoked a flurry of thoughts and words, which I typed down and now post here, for your reading pleasure. I call it, "Larissa, my Light."

Larissa, my light.

Sitting here, just seated so,

I see my soul, so very near.

Basking, glowing. Shimmering so sweet

with iridescent complacency.

And looking on, as lookers do,

I see my life in Navy Blue.

Reclining, sleeping. Constructing pleasant

reenactments of reality.

I’m pensive now, and ponder on

The thoughts I see just breathing on.

Inhale. Exhale. Animations of

a world wrapped in personality.

I begin to feel, rich flames like fire.

I see effulgence reflect desire.

Pining. Sighing. Resplendent rays—

anticipation of serenity.

Listen now. Sounds so dense,

I see peaceful strains of silence.

Flutter. Turn. Soft polyester

abrasions sing carols so brightly.

What do I see here?

That lays claim on thoughts, on feelings, on sound and sight?

The center of my soul and life?

It’s so beautiful.

She’s the woman who will be my wife.

And I love her completely.

I've included a picture of her sleeping, which I took using the webcam on my laptop. I hope you enjoy it. I really do love this girl!

Down by the bay, where hilarity ensues!

Is blogging a woman's sport? In its astoundingly quick rise to popularity among the estrogen-clad members of our species, has it become to them what videogames have been to men since their inception in the 70's?

As a man, writing for the first time on our blog, I would like to say, yes. Yes it is. It is precisely the aforementioned thing. Women excel in this field. Men struggle. I tip my hat to you, ovary-wielding queens of cyberspace journaling.

I promised Larissa I would blog about our fun night last night. Hopefully I adhere to the accepted and appreciated expectations of women worldwide.

Anyway.

Last night, Doug came over to my place so we could work on a video we made with our guy friends, wherein we took a road trip in order to shoot an artificially spawned zombie (that will require another blog post to explain). In the midst of our mirth and merriment, Larissa graced our presence with her cute little smiling face and tall, leggy body. The three of us worked on the video with great pleasure. At some point, however, we got a little sidetracked. How? I'm not sure. Perhaps it was Doug who started it. Or maybe Larissa. Maybe the inner-child housed in our hearts was responsible. Whatever the case, we soon found ourselves singing a beloved grade-school jingle, greatly popularized for its nonsensical lyrics and absurd dependence on a penchant for rhyming. You may remember singing for hours on end about all the things that occurred "Down by the Bay." Yes, where the watermelons grow.

It started simply. Each of us taking turns reciting what we remembered from those blissful days of childish banter. And then magic happened. We were harmonizing. We were dancing. We were laughing. It was like being a kid again (though I suppose it's safe to say that between the three of us, we never really left childhood behind). It suddenly occurred to me that this festival of revelry in which we participated was taking place directly in front of my laptop and webcam. I fired that baby up, and in short order we had our memories preserved. We recorded it and fantasized about the fame we were destined to achieve on YouTube. If we do, you read about it here first!

I learned the next day that our boisterous singing kept my mom (who is nursing a pleasant cold) awake. She said she would have come and told us to knock it off, had it not sounded so amazingly jovial and ecstatic. She was feeling it. Maybe you will too. Maybe you'll find that you watch this video, and your inner child also jumps for joy. I hope so. And if it does, share it. Spread the love. Make absurd rhymes and dance like everyone's dancing with you.

Much love to you all from the Luckiest couple in the world!

Sassy and Sarah

For Sassy's Birthday, Eric and I mad a paper Mache model of her. We took the doll all over Tempe, and took pictures of her. It was a lot of fun, and was very time consuming! We love you Sarah!

A day at the lake!

On Friday a group of us went to the lake! Awesome people + boat and water = So much fun. Let's see...... There was Nathan and Kat, Brian and Rachelle, Brian's brother Eric, Matt Allen, Serena and Kyle, Eric's dad, and Eric and I! It was an amazing day! First we took the boat over to this place to cliff jump, which is probably more dangerous climbing up, than Jumping down. I don't know why, but I am always the one to get injured in any circumstance! Eric and I jumped down together, and when I hit the water I was instantly in more pain than I have ever felt in my life! No joke. I have never had an enema, but what I felt was probably ten times worse then having one! After that we pulled out the tube, and started taking turns showing off our skills. A storm started rolling in, so we decided to bounce out of there. We had planned to have a BBQ, but once we parked the boat, it started to pour down rain. We took the food back to Eric's house, and pigged out! I love how most of my stories involve food, after telling everyone I was starting a diet.

Scavenger Hunt

A few weeks ago, I put a scavenger hunt together for Eric. I owe it all to Laura Fletcher, because without her help, there would probably not be to much creativity! For the first clue I left Eric $10 and told him to go to the thrift store and buy us both something to wear on our date that night. He was then given a mixed CD from the cashier, and his next clue to go to Doug's house! Once he got there, his next clue was taped to the t.v screen, and Doug completely ignored him. I then sent him to Tempe town lake where I had a paper mache doll of my friend Sarah holding a balloon with chocolate candy on the inside. The next clue was on the inside of one of the candy wrappers, but I didn't think about the heat. When Eric found Sarah, the balloon had popped, and chocolate was splattered everywhere! He found his next clue on his car, which told him to meet me at Tempe Marketplace. When he arrived we went back to his house to change into the clothes he had purchased for both of us at the thrift store. Eric just got back from Mexico, and was still caught up in it, which you will be able to tell by the picture. We went to this Ethiopian resturant, which ended up being really gross and expensive. At the end of the night, we went back over to Eric's house and chillaxed. Both having really upset stomachs. Other than the nasty food, the night was really enjoyable.

Arizona HEAT

After leaving work, I couldn't help but notice how dreadfully hot it was outside today. I was on the phone with Eric, talking about some important wedding details, and I realized that the mustang was acting up a little bit. Yes, you may ask, when did you get a mustang? All I have to say is, I'm spoiled. After having a lifetime of being the baby of seven boys, I am now marrying a man that likes to spoil me as well. Eric bought a new Honda civic, and gave me his Mustang. I'm really enjoying it. Anyways, back to my point. I noticed that the car was no longer accelerating! In my mind, the only thing I could think of, was my car was breaking down! Luckily I was on the phone with Eric, and he told me he was on his way! I sat there in the insane heat, waiting. I waited for a pretty long time. Eric finally called me and told me that he was on his way with his Dad. I told him that It might be the gas, because I knew that I needed to fuel up really soon! Eric laughed at me, and said he was pretty sure that's why. He was right! I ran out of gas. It was my first time ever, and I believe I have learned my lesson. I will fill up when I reach the E!

YES! These are my jeans......

Eric doesn't think that I can get back into amazing shape by the time we get married! I am going to prove him wrong. No more junk food for me! Ha Ha, for those that know me, this will be very difficult. I thought I would throw in a picture of Eric wearing MY jeans.... I might need to tone up a little bit, but Eric needs to put on a few pounds. I guess I really shouldn't be complaining. I have a man who will stay in good shape! Love you ERIC!

Aaron's family

My brother Aaron is an amazing brother, His daughters are so beautiful!

Photography

my brother Jarrod, his wife Michelle, and his kids Jaegar, Rylee, Chloe, and Jaxon.

I LOVE PHOTOGRAPHY!! I just thought that I would share a few pictures of my family that I took not to long ago. This isn't my whole family, but this will be a little taste of my style of photography. In time, I will add pictures of the rest of my family, as well as Eric's family. These are pictures of my brothers Aaron and Jarrod, and their families.

The PROPOSAL

Saturday, August 8th....

To understand the entire story, we must start from the very beginning. Saturday was dedicated to my friend Sarah, to celebrate her 20th BIRTHDAY! Even though her actual birthday is on the 10th. Early in the morning, we headed out toward the Salt River to go rappelling! After we did that for a while, we decided to play in the River! Around Lunch time we went to California Pizza Kitchen, and pigged out! Yummy! Once we finished there, Eric informed me that he had some chores to finish at home, and that he would come back over after he was finished(He was actually going home to work on the picnic for his proposal). While Eric was gone, I took a very long nap. AW, I love naps.... While Eric was finishing up, my friend sarah asked me if I would like to take some pictures when Eric returned. I said yes of course, and was positive that Eric would enjoy to take pictures as well. When he came back over, he told me that he had planned a picnic for us at Saguaro Lake. He had also brought his Dad's Jeep, so that we could go Rhomping. The photo shoot ended up lasting longer than he thought, and he started getting very impatient with Sarah, and getting upset. I was oblivious to the fact that the reason he was so upset, was because he wanted to get us to the lake before the sun went down, so he could propose during sunset. I ended up getting frustrated with Eric, and told him that he needed to stop acting like a jerk. He ended up apologizing, but he was still very defensive about the whole situation.

We finally made our way to the lake. By the time we arrived there, the sun was almost gone. We started making our way up this very steep and rocky hill. When we had almost reached the top, THE JEEP BROKE DOWN!!! The clutch was not working, and we couldn't get the Jeep out of gear. To prevent the Jeep from rolling away, we put some huge rocks behind the tires. We decided to have our picnic even though we were pretty much stranded. After we finished eating our homemade pazookies, and drinking our "Jones" soda, we packed everything up. We said a prayer, and started walking. With my sandals on, it made the hike back down very difficult. We eventually made it to the parking lot, where we found this group of guys in a couple of Jeeps. We asked them for some help, and they turned out to know a lot about Jeeps, and were capable of towing us to the parking lot.

Next Eric called his dad to come help us with the Jeep. John told us that he would be on his way in a little bit. While we were waiting, Eric asked me to walk over to the lake with him. We got to the edge of the water, and just as Eric was about to get down on one knee, a skunk surprised us with it's presence. We started moving back very slowly. Once we thought it had left, Eric went over to see if it had really left. As soon as I was about to join him again, another skunk came out, and then another one. Now, we had two skunks between us. One had Eric cornered against the lake, and one was starting to follow me. Luckily they didn't spray us. They finally made enough space for us to get out of there! We then decided to go to the other side of the lake. Just as we were walking over there, I could feel blood filling my underwear. Yes, I had leaked through my tampon! We had been there much longer than planned. Poor Eric, one thing after another. :( We went back to the Jeep so that We could wait for his dad to come, and also bring me a tampon. The only thing keeping my blood from getting everywhere was the kitchen cloth Eric had in the Jeep. I know, GROSS! Finally John arrived, what a relief! He couldn't get the clutch to work, but he could drive it back to Tempe with out using it. It was really dangerous, but it worked. When we got to Eric's house I went inside, and witnessed Eric's Mom having a night terror! The dog was freaking out, and cornered me in the Laundry room. Finally the dog calmed down, and I went outside to tell Eric and his dad what happened... They just laughed, and explained.

Next, Eric told me that he wanted to end this date right, and that I should go hop in the shower, and clean up so that he could take me back out. By this time it was almost midnight. We were talking about how horrible our date had gone so far, and I said "The only thing that could have made this night worse, is if you had been trying to propose to me." How ironic. Eric just laughed it off, and thought that I was rubbing the night in his face, because He thought I had already figured out that he was proposing!

After I got done showering, Eric blind folded me, and drove me to Tempe Town Lake. He had me standing there, and told me to open my eyes. When I did, Eric was on one knee holding a sunflower in one hand, and the ring in his other hand! I said YES of course. Not even two minutes later, the police came and kicked us out of the park! On our way home Eric explained everything to me. Why he was upset about the pictures, and that he thought I knew about the proposal. He thought this because during the day there was multiple times he had left the ring sitting out, and also at our picnic, there was a ring picture on the Jones soda I was drinking that said Mr and Mrs Jones. I don't know how I didn't find out, but I'm very happy it ended up being a surprise.

It might not be the most perfect and romantic story, but it will definatly be remembered! I'm so excited and Happy!