Date Night Idea:
Beer Tasting

Vitaliy and I often let our environment inspire date night ideas for us.

On a recent trip to Portland, we couldn’t help but notice the plethora of pubs, lounges, and tap rooms. We realized that if we truly wanted to experience Portland as a local, we needed to do a little beer tasting. And let me tell you, it definitely rivals wine tasting in my book.

We started our tasting at Bailey’s Tap Room. We opted for the smaller glasses so that we could taste in moderation. I loved the big windows at Bailey’s, which gave us street side views of the city while we sipped and savored our drinks. They had board games to enjoy which always keeps a date night fun. And here’s our little tip, bring along your own bar snacks just in case. We had some left over roasted peanuts from our road trip that I grabbed from the car. They were the perfect complement to our brew!

Though we enjoyed Bailey’s, Deschutes Brewery took home the Best Beer award for the night. Our waiter suggested we try the Red Chair, stating that it was the best beer in the world. In the world? We were intrigued by such a statement and after just one taste we could see why. It was fantastic! I paired it with a pretzel with cheese and Vitaliy got a sausage link with sauerkraut. But unlike the beer at Bailey’s, we could have drank the Red Chair without any accompanied snacks. It was that good!

Here are a few other date ideas inspired by Portland:

Enjoy a bike ride downtown.
Try out a hipster hotel.
Visit your city’s famous food joint.

Beer, peanuts and chessDowntown streets of Portland, ORAppetizers and beer at Deschutes Brewery in Portland, ORRed Chair NWPA - Best Beer Ever!Beer bottle light at Bailey's TaproomBailey's Taproom Beer, Portland, ORDeschutes Brewery signAll beers on tap

Adam+Jessica:
Engaged

While politics are often known to divide and separate people, this was not the case for these two.

Adam and Jessica met at a political campaign. Jessica noticed him right away, but it seems that Adam was playing a little “hard to get.” Thankfully, the act was short lived and they soon found themselves in a long distance relationship.

When Adam finally decided to pop the question, he knew he was going to have to orchestrate some very stealth-like moves if he was going to be successful at surprising Jessica. Let’s just call her curious and leave it at that.

Leading up to the big day, there were moments that put the entire operation at risk. But Adam wasn’t easily swayed. He continued on, making sure no detail was overlooked. He decided he would propose to Jessica at a secluded lookout point during a hike with their closest friends. Everyone who needed to know knew. All was in place.

Adam thought everything was in place until he learned the week of the proposal that Jessica didn’t want a proposal in front of others. Too many people were involved to change any of the plans at this stage. He knew that if anything was altered, he ran the risk of alerting Jessica. Adam decided he would figure things out on the hike.

And that’s exactly what he did. During the hike, the group stopped for lunch at the exact lookout point where he wanted to propose. While everyone was settling down for a break, he took the opportunity to go off alone with Jessica down to the rock’s edge. Adam got down on his knee and asked Jessica to marry him. They may have had onlookers from a distance, but there was nobody close enough to hear the intimacy of this moment. It will be forever theirs.

Adam and Jessica, congratulations again! It was so much fun photographing the two of you, as I’m sure you’ll see in the photos. I’m not sure who laughed more – you or us. We are so excited for your upcoming wedding in June. Cheers to celebrating your love!

Adam and Jess laughingDancingTwirlKissTendernessAdam and Jess PortraitCuddle timeLaughter

Victor & Kristin
The Details

Victor and Kristin’s wedding was our last one of 2012.

For that reason alone, it was special, but then they had to go and be all amazing and stuff. I wrote about some of the highlights here.

Besides all of the moments that brought me to tears, I can’t stop thinking about their details. Kristin’s wedding dress was definitely my favorite of the year. It might even be my favorite ever. And I can’t stop telling people about her blue satin flats. Every time she lifted her dress, they peeped out and stole the show. Having the bridesmaids in different shades of blush gave them depth and dimension which only made them prettier. I could go on, but I’ll let you pick your favorites from the photos.

 

THE TEAM:

Makeup Artist: Natalie Johnston

Designer: Sara Bishop

Dress: Pronovias / Trudy’s Brides

Shoes: The Dessy Group

Hair Stylist: Shayla Murphy

Cake: Peeples Baking

Florist: The Blooming Vase

Catering: James Standfield Catering

DJ: PLM Productions

 

 

Bride and groom kissing with bridal party in the background laughing. Main Post Chapel wedding ceremony venue.Close up detail of the groom. Pale pink rose boutonniere on gray suit.Groom holding the bride with a beautiful lace veil hanging on bride's shouldersBeautiful colorful bride's bouquet.Bride's blue shoesBride portraitBlack and white shot of the mermaid wedding dress hanging from a chandelier.Detail of wedding invitations and wedding ringsWedding CakeDetail of bridesmaids and their shoes