Pink Saturday!

We live in San Francisco and it was just the big Pride celebration weekend, but this post isn't about THAT Pink Saturday. It's about my sister-in-law's engagement party.

Last Saturday Franco's family hosted an engagement party for his sister and her future in-laws. The usual Afghan party traditions were turned up a notch as this was an all-out affair. Fancier than the Afghan weddings I've attended, walking in the room transported you to a pink-themed fantasy land. It was a beautiful way to start a marriage. So, congratulations Barine and Habib! We wish you happiness (and can't imagine what's in store for the wedding :) ).


Photos
Bottom left: Barine and Habib's entrance.
Center: Franco and his dad.
Top right, in one photo: Our niece, excited to grab money from the dance floor (adults will make it rain dollar bills for the little ones).
Bottom right: The Yari clan. (Top row: Franco's sister Shida, Franco. Bottom row: Franco's sister-in-law Sarah, Franco's dad, Franco's brother Ali, his niece.)

A Beautiful Day in SF

The sun is shining and it's actually hot out in the usually cool SF.
Perfect day for a quick bike ride.

Patney Fiesta

Good morning y'all, CoCo here.

This past weekend Franco and I traveled up to Washington state for a Peace Corps reunion. Wait, no... I mean Patrick and Whitney's wedding. (Sorry!) Since they were part of our Peace Corps group, there were inevitably a handful of other ex-volunteers there as well. Put a group of us in the same room and there's always a lot of fun. But let's not let that overshadow the whole point of the weekend: two amazing people getting hitched!

After going to the wrong church initially, we finally made it to the beautiful chapel in Olympia where Patrick and Whitney got married. (Although, we did walk in after the bride. Oops.) Franco and I loved how green Washington is and the church had huge windows behind the alter to show off the area's natural beauty. I almost cried during the ceremony. It was really great to see Patrick and Whitney so happy and making such a huge commitment in front of friends and family.

After the ceremony we headed over to Schilter Family Farm for the reception. It was beautiful. Whitney's family paid perfect attention to the details, from the scrabble-themed garlands to the W&P hot sauce favors. 

Once the bride and groom joined us they took over as bartenders, which was incredibly cute.

Everyone raved about the BBQ dinner and the homemade cupcake dessert. Following tradition, the maid of honor and the best man gave speeches after dinner.

And then, of course, came the dancing! (Can you tell that's my favorite part of a wedding reception?)

And of course there was some goofing-off...

At the end of the reception, Danny and Jen (Peace Corps friends, pictured above with Franco) had a limo pick up the Peace Corps folk, wedding couple included, and we drove around Olympia having fun. And I just happened to have 150 glow sticks in my bag to add to the fun! (Electro-loving party goddess here. Ha!) After our joy ride we dropped off the newlyweds at home.

As if the fairytale wedding and reception weren't enough, Whitney's parents invited all the couple's family and friends over the next morning for coffee and pastries. (I'm not sure how they weren't passed out with exhaustion at that point.) It was the perfect end to an amazing wedding weekend.