Moral of the Story: 6 things I learned in Santa Barbara

After Carmel, I headed down to Santa Barbara for the wedding of a friend from SMU. I lived next door to her in the sorority house my sophomore year, and we became fast friends. She is one of the sweetest people I know and I was honored to be there to celebrate her wedding! Here are some things I learned after being in Santa Barbara for the weekend:

1. Getting breakfast by yourself is not the worst thing in the world, especially when it's 65 degrees and you're sitting outside. I went to Jeannine's in Montecito and had some amazing eggs benedict and this huge bowl of coffee. I'm like Julia Roberts in Runaway Bride, I love eggs benedict.

2. Never walk where you're not supposed to on a beach. After my breakfast, I decided to venture down to the water. Well, I must have not been paying attention to where I was going because at some point, the beach turned into this rocky, mountainous platform. The next thing I knew, the sandy beach was about 7 feet below me and people were staring as if I weren't supposed to be up there. When the rocky part ended, I had to jump down to get back to the sand. Luckily, I landed on my feet with all the gracefulness of a cat. (JK lols I fell on my side and may have gotten a concussion. I also got all sandy like they do in SEAL training.)

Before the incident.

3. I hope my wedding is as beautiful as this one was. The photos I took don't even do anything justice, but it was a breathtaking scene overlooking the Santa Barbara polo fields and the Pacific Ocean...

...And the couple was so clearly in love and having the best time with each other.



























4. When in doubt at a wedding, just hit the dance floor. Do you need to avoid an awkward new acquaintance? Or get away from a conversation that is about to turn to one of your more embarrassing college experiences? All these and more can be solved with a perfectly timed rendition of Gettin' Jiggy With It.



5. Hosting a brunch for all the guests the next day at a polo match is a good reason not to get too crazy at the reception: you have to see everyone again in broad daylight. I adhered to this new rule of mine, so I enjoyed it thoroughly.

The beautiful bride and me, even more gorgeous flower arrangements, and the polo field. 

6. Sometimes, it just takes a glass of wine to steel yourself when leaving a place as wonderful as Santa Barbara.

It's my birthday on Monday, so I'll probably be out celebrating all weekend (read: trying to forget the fact that I'm about to be 25). Hope you have a good one!