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 On April 15, Dave and I got married in Bodega Bay on the California coast. We had our ceremony on Bodega Head, a beautiful location surrounded by steep cliffs plunging down into the Pacific Ocean. Dave and I spent the morning sea kayaking around Bodega Head. We played with the wind and the waves, and had a grey whale crossing our path. We took it as a good omen.
  Meanwhile, some of our guests (here Cecile, Vincent and Kolya) were using the time between showers for a walk along the beach, and were helping with preparations for the wedding ceremony and reception. Siri arranged the bridal bouquet.
In the afternoon at about 5pm, the whole group arrived at Bodega Head. A cool wind was blowing, but it didn't rain, and everybody climbed the hill to gather on top.  It was a diverse group of people, and it was fun to have them all here together during this special event. Dana and little Sonja had come from Fairbanks, Alaska. Dave's mom Jean lives in San Francisco - but with lot's of Norwegian blood circulating through her veins!
Claas was playing "Here comes the bride", as we walked up the hill.  Later Karin joined him singing "Somewhere over the rainbow". That was a wonderful contribution and created a very festive ambience. It also fit in very well with the weather.
We had asked our friend Fred to perform the ceremony. He was just the perfect person we could imagine for this task, and he found all the right words.  By the way, his official title was "Deputy Commissioner of Civil Marriages" and he totally lived up to the expectations the State of California and The United States of America had put into him. Casimir brought the rings.
There was more music and -of course- champagne afterwards, and many happy faces despite the freezing temperatures.  Jocelyn and David caught part of the bridal bouquet. It seems that they were quite happy with that! Chris traveled from Oregon to join us for the wedding. She was a very important figure in this, radiating so much good energy, and offering advice and answers for all of our questions, marriage-related or not. Then it was time for some "official" wedding pictures!
 This place is very special to us. We both love the coast, and we met kayaking. That's why we had good reasons to go paddling in the morning!  We played with the wind and the waves, admired the cliffs, and felt very happy. There was the gray whale, which was on its annual migration from Mexico to Alaska. And then, Dave capsized - he probably wasn't looking out to the sea, but just at his future wife, and a wave knocked him over. He rolled back up on his second attempt. How many "bad boys" points was that worth?
 Back at our wedding-vacation home, we had dinner. The main course was the Alaskan sockeye salmon from the Copper river, that Dana had brought in large quantities from her freezer in Fairbanks.  Karin prepared it and it was absolutely delicious, especially together with the good Californian wine. We didn't care too much for a traditional wedding cake, but we cared a lot for the tiramisu that Vincent had created and that was just fabulous. It was a very relaxed evening, with good conversation and good friends - some old, some new.
The next morning, Jean, Siri, Jocelyn and David baked Norwegian pancakes for us. They were so good - especially with fresh fruit.  We are very happy we could spent our wedding day together with family and good friends, even though not all of them but just a few could be there. Thank's to you all, whether you were there in person, or in your thoughts. Thanks to Cecile for the pictures!
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On April 15, Dave and I got married in Bodega Bay on the California coast. We had our ceremony on Bodega Head, a beautiful location surrounded by steep cliffs plunging down into the Pacific Ocean. Dave and I spent the morning sea kayaking around Bodega Head. We played with the wind and the waves, and had a grey whale crossing our path. We took it as a good omen.
Meanwhile, some of our guests (here Cecile, Vincent and Kolya) were using the time between showers for a walk along the beach, and were helping with preparations for the wedding ceremony and reception. Siri arranged the bridal bouquet.
In the afternoon at about 5pm, the whole group arrived at Bodega Head. A cool wind was blowing, but it didn't rain, and everybody climbed the hill to gather on top. 
It was a diverse group of people, and it was fun to have them all here together during this special event. Dana and little Sonja had come from Fairbanks, Alaska. Dave's mom Jean lives in San Francisco - but with lot's of Norwegian blood circulating through her veins!
Claas was playing "Here comes the bride", as we walked up the hill. 
Later Karin joined him singing "Somewhere over the rainbow". That was a wonderful contribution and created a very festive ambience. It also fit in very well with the weather.
We had asked our friend Fred to perform the ceremony. He was just the perfect person we could imagine for this task, and he found all the right words. 
By the way, his official title was "Deputy Commissioner of Civil Marriages" and he totally lived up to the expectations the State of California and The United States of America had put into him. Casimir brought the rings.
There was more music and -of course- champagne afterwards, and many happy faces despite the freezing temperatures. 
Jocelyn and David caught part of the bridal bouquet. It seems that they were quite happy with that! Chris traveled from Oregon to join us for the wedding. She was a very important figure in this, radiating so much good energy, and offering advice and answers for all of our questions, marriage-related or not.
This place is very special to us. We both love the coast, and we met kayaking. That's why we had good reasons to go paddling in the morning! 
We played with the wind and the waves, admired the cliffs, and felt very happy. There was the gray whale, which was on its annual migration from Mexico to Alaska. And then, Dave capsized - he probably wasn't looking out to the sea, but just at his future wife, and a wave knocked him over. He rolled back up on his second attempt. How many "bad boys" points was that worth?
Back at our wedding-vacation home, we had dinner. The main course was the Alaskan sockeye salmon from the Copper river, that Dana had brought in large quantities from her freezer in Fairbanks. 
Karin prepared it and it was absolutely delicious, especially together with the good Californian wine. We didn't care too much for a traditional wedding cake, but we cared a lot for the tiramisu that Vincent had created and that was just fabulous. It was a very relaxed evening, with good conversation and good friends - some old, some new.
The next morning, Jean, Siri, Jocelyn and David baked Norwegian pancakes for us. They were so good - especially with fresh fruit. 
We are very happy we could spent our wedding day together with family and good friends, even though not all of them but just a few could be there. Thank's to you all, whether you were there in person, or in your thoughts.