melbourne family

of course a trip to melbourne called for family lunch with all of doug's extended family. it has actually been years since we have seen some of them, so it was an amazing, loud catch up! i love his family and feel super lucky to have gained them when we married.



dougs cousin sala (the oldest of the paramore great-grandchildren) made a grab for alex the minute we arrived and put up a good fight to anyone that wanted to take him away... that is truly one of my favourite things about being part of a polynesian family, how much love they have for children - and especially the babies!

this is doug and his fave cousin matt. he was one of the groomsmen at our wedding. these two are hilarious together and i was so happy to sit back and hear them reminisce about this and that.

this is oliveta (named after dougs mum oliveta), she also was getting a good fill of our sweet babe

and this photo had everyone in fits of laughter. doug's cousins have all always joked with him about the fact that he's the only redhead in their generation... only now they've started to have babies with red hair themselves. so... for entertainment value they chucked all the red heads in one photo. 

and this gorgeous kid! he is the cutest! if you find photos of doug as a small child, he is pratically his twin, to the point where some of the cousins refer to him as mini doug. i just wanted to give him the biggest cuddle ever, but he was so shy!

and this. this kills me. this is the four year old page boy in our wedding photos. i can hardly deal with the fact that it's been almost  years since that day. he's named after matt (the fave cousin) and doug and is a great young man. we had a lot of laughs with him too.

it's days like these that make me wish we lived closer, but i know we are all exactly where we are meant to be. melbourne family, we love you! ♥

letitia and jordans wedding

today was a great day. we got to be with one of our very favourite familys, one of those "friends who have become family" familys and watch as their daughter was sealed to her husband for time and all eternity in the melbourne temple. this of course was the whole reason for our trip to melbourne and i am so glad we were able to be there. 

i am so grateful to mum and dad for dropping everything this weekend to be with the "big" kids while we whisked alex away with us. it makes being away that much easier when you know they are being taken care of. alex was an angel. spent most of the time sleeping when he wasn't being doted on by all our friends and dougs family who we are staying with.

doug and one of the lovely bridesmaids tayla. they are all samoan so he lays claim on them as his little sisters. 

and it's become somewhat of a tradition for him to have a photo with these two at every fepulea'i wedding, even though letitia was the bride today, she was more than happy to get in on it.

it was such a lovely day too. the temple ceremony was beautiful and then we were able to spend time with some of the family at the house they were staying at between the temple and the reception. we were certainly being looked after today too. we had someone lined up to cuddle alex while we were in the sealing, someone who wasn't going to be in there, but they ended up running late to the temple. we were certainly in a pickle as we obviously couldn't leave him by himself. as a last desperate attempt, i asked the man at the recommend desk if there was anyone that might be able to hold my baby for a few minutes while i attended the sealing. he ummed and ahhed a little, but said he would ask, just as a worker rushed forward and said she would love to help us. what a blessing! plus, we found out later that this lady was a good friend of the grooms mother. oh was i pleased. i was so scared that one of us would miss it after coming all that way. the world is full of wonderful people if you only know where to look - and the temple is a very good place to start!

each of the guests had one of these wooden name cutouts on their plates at the table. they even had one cut for baby alex which was so sweet. i couldn't resist having a photo of him with it.

having fun at the reception. alex was fast asleep, so we made some time for a selfie or two

the newlyweds letitia and jordan. we heard so much laughter from them today, which makes me sure that they will be very happy together. there is nothing better than being able to laugh with your spouse and be able to mock each other. (in a nice way of course!)

what a cute set up. ♥

us with mr and mrs faamausili. thanks for an amazing day guys. we felt so honoured to be a part of your special day.

letitia even insisted on having a photo with baby alex which i thought was the cutest! she'll be such a good mum one day.

us with our cute babe

♥

jo and thomas got married!

 

last week i went to melbourne to see my beautiful friend jo marry her thomas. it was such a wonderful day and it made me so so happy to share it with them. jo was one of my original girls in young womens in dianella when i was first called - a little 12 year old. i have watched her grow up and taught her countless lessons on eternal marriage only to watch her enter the temple and promise to love thomas for time - and all eternity.

she looked amazing! nothing new. :) absolutely stunning.

i waited with jo's family outside the temple for jo to arrive and couldn't resist taking a picture of them all together - screaming "we love thomas!" such a cute family.

clearly jo loves her new brother in laws. they all seemed to be laughing up a storm.

the stuart family

more stuart antics

jo, thomas and their parents 

me - all rugged up - it was such a cold drizzly day and i must admit we were shivering outside waiting. i can only imagine how nervous jo was when she saw the rain! but it was beautiful nonetheless.

 

i normally take so many photos, but maddie was not well (all week unfortunately) so i had to deal with a few quick snaps... while uncle kris looked after maddie in the car, she was not a happy girl. :(

me and my little pina

thomas and jo's oldest brother. a laugh a minute.

stefan! one of my nursery kids - and jo's youngest brother. total cutie

me and the clearly happy groom. what a brave man!

thomas's parents

and with mum - and dad...

and just some pics of the bride and groom looking perfect

it may have been a drizzly day, but it was beautiful! the melbourne temple is lovely.

maddie waiting patiently in the car for me...

jo let her hair out and added a navy blue bow to her dress before arriving at the reception - and it totally added wow factor. she looked amazing!

that train! amazing.

i know maddie felt like such a celebrity at the wedding... between being brought her own 3 course meal and being doted on by everyone that walked past... she had the most adorable little booster high chair on a big person chair that she perched on and loved every minute. she is so freaking cute.

first dance...

and the first time they had seen maddie since the temple. literally stopped mid dance and ran to her for a cuddle. no wonder she is obsessed with them!

mummy and maddie having some cuddles at the end of the night. such a beautiful day. i was so proud to be there - and was even prouder when jo and thomas asked me to make a speech at the reception. i spent the drive there writing it and even managed to make the poor girl laugh.

i love you both and wish you nothing but the best as you embark on your "happily ever after..."