Karla and Steve's Stoneleigh Wedding

No point in making excuses as to why I have not blogged. I just have been super busy with work, Ollie's recovery, and life in general. Maybe I will make a better effort, but no promises! I do miss blogging and whoever is still reading this, I am glad you are still around! I know my grandmother Margaret is reading and my father in law (Hi Gary!). To anyone else still clicking on this blog - hello! I hope to start posting more regularly!

This past Friday, one of my best friends, Karla got married! Karla and I met while working together over four years ago and she and I have remained friends along with our other partner in crime Tracy. We only worked together for a couple of months but somehow became fast friends. The joke is that I work places just to make friends. I also ended up meeting Eric though another coworker through this job so I am pretty sure I was meant to work there!

Karla and Steve's wedding was a beautiful boutique hotel in Dallas, The Stoneleigh. Weddings are held in the pent house of the hotel, which used to be an apartment building. It is a very elegant and unique space and perfect for Karla's wedding.

 The bride to be and me - the honeymoon suite was gorgeous! You couldn't ask for a better room to spend your honeymoon in!

 She looked beautiful and SO happy!

 The dress!

 Me, Karla, and Tracy - Triple Trouble! (or at least we were back in the day!)

Tracy and I both were readers in the wedding, which is why we are both wearing black and matching broaches. And how good does my hair look?! Kidding, kinda... I went to to the DryBar and got a mix of the cosmo and the mai tai and at first thought it was too big, too curly, but then it fell and I loved it! It is a very different look for me if you know me well!

 The beautiful bridesmaids. All of their dresses were so pretty - each a different style that fit each girl perfectly. I should also mention this crew is pretty fun!

 Some last minute advice from Dad -  so sweet

 I almost cried but held it together.

 Eric and I

 The reception room.

 Party!

 Posing with Tracy

 It was a dance party - fun fact: Karla used the same DJ that I used in my wedding. It was fun to see him again even if he did remember me as the girl who cried when her wedding was over. Yes I did. I was so sad it was over.

Congratulations to you both! I am so happy I was a part of your special day!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentines's Day from our favorite shorthaired pointer!!

Loches

As we left Chenonceau, we took a back road down towards Loches. After consulting my helpful Rick Steves France book, I discovered we were in luck because Loches has a street market on Wednesdays and Saturdays. It was Wednesday so we decided to stop and see what we could find. The book said it was an overlooked town that makes a good base for drivers who want to see a lot of the Loire Valley region. It is set on the Indre River and is just a quaint town with few tourists.

Chateau de Loches - we did not go in, but the book said it was worth a visit.

 We ended up getting some "saucisson" and "fromage" (cheese), bread, and a great looking pear, and taking it back for a quick little picnic in the car. It really was neat walking around the market and interacting with the locals. If we go back to France, I would love to spend more time in this area visiting the small towns. As much as I loved Paris, it was really neat to be in the smaller towns.

View from our drive. We left Loches and headed south to San Sebastian, Spain. This is as we were getting into Spain I believe. We drove over 5 hours and over 600 kilometers that day!

Chateau de Chenonceau

Our last chateau in the Loire Valley was Chateau de Chenonceau.  It was built in the 15th century in Renaissance style and was built to be arched over the Cher River. This chateau has been maintained perfectly. It was just picture perfect. It is actually known as "the chateaux of the ladies" since it houses numerous famous women over its many centuries.

You approach the chateau down a beautiful tree lined path, then cross over three moats and two bridges to enter. The Marques tower in the front was original from the early 15th century and when the chateau was built in the 16th century, they kept the tower and built the rest of the palace in the same style.

 The chapel survived the vandalism of the French Revolution because the lady of the palace filled it with firewood and when the rioters came all they saw was wood - nothing royal or religious. The windows were blown out during World War II and are replacements done in the 1950s.

 If you looked in the corners you could see the detailed tile floors that used to be all over the chateau.

 There were fresh flowers all over the palace. They were in every room and were absolutely beautiful. This is Diane de Poitiers' bedroom, King Henri II's favorite lady. The four poster bed is from the Renaissance period.

 This is the green study - Catherine de'Medici's study in the 16th century.

 

 The whole palace was impeccably maintained and the kitchen was decorated as it would be in the grand days of the chateau. This was the dining room for employees only.

 A 16th century Italian cabinent.

 The Five Queens Bedroom - given this name in memory of Catherine de' Medici's two daughers and three daughters-in-laws. 

This is a Renaissance fireplace  and the tapestries are part of the 16th century tapestry that illustrates The Life of Samson.

 The river actually marked the border between free and Nazi France during World War II.

 Catherine de' Medici's Garden 

 Diane de Poitiers' Garden

 Second Floor Hall

 That is the old fortified castle and mill that was left when Chenonceau was built.

 There is also a vegetable and flower garden that was fun to walk through and take pictures of the beautiful and unique flowers.

 We couldn't figure out what these were...

Chateau de Chenonceau did not disappoint! We were very impressed by it as we were told we would be. This is one not to miss in the Loire Valley!