Our DC Engagement Party

In October, our DC friends gave Kern and me an engagement party.  It was such a fun evening--filled with delicious food, special decorations and most importantly many friends who have been a huge part of our lives for the past few years.

There was a special DC coffee table book that each guest could sign and write a message to us.

Emily & Kern food flags!

Dear and special Ladies...

Many of the hosts and hostesses!

There was a time for a toast!

Twinkle lights on in full force!

Hayley and Zach brought us a giant white chocolate Capitol! 

Emily on the House side; Kern on the Senate side

Thank you, dear friends, for creating such a special evening for us to celebrate with you!

Mississippi Bachelorette Weekend

After a special party on Friday evening, the Mississippi/Tennessee girls that were in the wedding threw me another celebration!

Liz, Mary Jane, me, Sara Tyson, Kay and Kensy

We had a fun and girly lunch at Bon Ami then headed out to Lake Caroline.  It had been raining all weekend and then...the most glorious sky appeared!  And it cooled off.  A Mississippi miracle!

We immediately camped out on the dock and spent several hours just chatting and catching up.  Sweet baby Grey even joined us for the afternoon!  He was the coolest little dude - after a nap, he just laid on the lamb mat and smiled at all of us.  He knows he's adorable.

As the sky gave way to a gorgeous sunset, we finally peeled ourselves off the deck and got ready for fun dinner at the Mermaid Cafe.

It is so refreshing to be able to spend uninterrupted time together.  It reminds me of college days when we all just ended up sitting in Mary Jane and Liz's room for hours and hours doing nothing in particular.  Little did we know that the time we invested in one another then would continue to pay dividends in our ability to easily pick back up where we left off.

Mary Jane and her mom made the most delicious sugar cookies!  The were decorated with phrases like, "Mrs. Hoff" and "Emily and Kern."  And THEN...there were Hello Kitty cookies!

If you're on instagram, we've been using the hashtag #emilyandkern2013 for all our wedding related photos.  Liz started another one this evening:

#misskittyisgettingmarried

Why yes, yes she is!  And she is very excited!

Another big thank you to all the girls for making me feel so special and loved all weekend!

It's officially official!

The invitations are in the mail!

Jackson Engagement Celebration

The engagement season has been sweet for many reasons.  Some of our most treasured moments have been times when we have been surrounded by family and friends.  My parents’ friends hosted a party for Kern and me in Mississippi recently and it was a wonderful evening of hugging old friends and a fun opportunity for Kern to meet people that have been important to me over the years.  It is humbling to be in the presence of so many folks who have known me my entire life—many of whom have loved me throughout my childhood and taught me in Sunday School, shepherded me in high school and who still deeply care about me—and now us.

A dear friend I have known my whole life (and who I used to take art lessons from as a child!) painted the fabulous Mississippi canvas!

My best friends' mother painted the tandem bicycle watercolor painting of us.

There were lovely "E & K" signs everywhere!

The beautiful Linda Richards puts some final touches on the food table!

My favorite people!  Dad, Mom, me, Kern, Jody and Greg.

Kern almost looked at the right camera!

These girls!  Liz, Sara Tyson and Mary Jane were there to help us celebrate!

Sweet grandparents--where would we be without them?

All the siblings, minus Josh and Lee!

Kensy, Kay, Chris, me, Kern

My Gran Fran--lovely as ever!

Mom, me and Aunt Susan

And lastly, Greg and me.  He and I are ready to cut a rug at the wedding!

Words are truly inadequate to thank each person who had a hand in making the evening one we will never forget.  I get sad when I think about the party being over...until I remember that we get to celebrate again at the wedding!

Coming...November 16, 2013

Fifty One Days, Y'all.

1080p from Emily Penn on Vimeo.

Celebrating with Friends

I woke up before my alarm starting ringing on Saturday morning...because I was so excited about getting to spend the day with six of my best friends.  The DC girls who are in our wedding had planned a perfect day, complete with wine tasting, delicious food, quality girl time and cool fall weather.

I always forget how much I love the Virginia countryside until I return.  It's beautiful!

I felt so special with my "Future Mrs. Hoff" sash on all day!

We had an amazing picnic on the edge of a little pond.

When we got back to DC, we had dinner at one of my favorite Italian spots followed by a lovely little party at Laine's apartment.

The treats were amazing!

Let's just say this: there was lots of laughter and a good time was had by all!

Carolyn made my adorable MRS wooden blocks!

"In friendship...we think we have chosen our peers. In reality a few years' difference in the dates of our births, a few more miles between certain houses, the choice of one university instead of another...the accident of a topic being raised or not raised at a first meeting--any of these chances might have kept us apart. But, for a Christian, there are, strictly speaking no chances. A secret master of ceremonies has been at work. Christ, who said to the disciples, you have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, I can truly say to every group of Christian friends, you have not chosen one another but I have chosen you for one another. The friendship is not a reward for our discriminating and good taste in finding one another out. It is the instrument by which God reveals to each of us the beauties of others."

C.S. Lewis