Thursday, December 31, 2009


Happy New Year!

Love’s Equation

I do not know what makes the very old couple I saw on the street today still hold hands, or lean on each other and smile as they shuffle with their bags of Christmas back to their home. I do not know...but I want to. I want to, like a scientist or private investigator, follow them, ask them a million questions about every time they fought and every time they have made up. I want to ask them what they did or didn't say. I want to know....what made the difference.
Perhaps even to pluck a thin grey hair out of each of their heads, look at them under a microscope, to see if Fairies of Longevity and Commitment and True Love and Cheerful Tolerance and Compromise and Compassion and Selfless Service all live in their very DNA. I want to ask them if I can and look at the last fifty years worth of pictures for any clues as to why they still hold hands and smile at each other like the best of friends.
Also, there is a couple, an older couple, who live down the hall from me. In a studio. A nice, clean, but very small studio. I want to say, “How do love each other so much? How have you not killed each other?” They smile too; at each other and at me. Both have such kindness in their eyes.
At times a darker, more cynical part of me thinks that behind closed doors she bugs the crap out of him and he basically ignores her and watches, Who Wants to be a Millionaire and thinks "I coulda married the redhead."
I can tell from their eyes that’s not true. What is true is that they love each other, really, deeply love each other…even like each other.
I can tell, like the strangers I saw walking on the street, they care enough to work at caring.
I think this is no small feat, but that the results are worth every bit of effort.
That’s what their eyes say anyway.
Today a friend's husband demanded a divorce. I want to go to their house too, as an apparition, for a week or so...float around and take notes on what not to do.
Every holiday season I watch It's a Wonderful Life. I have my own copy, and every year I sit holding my breath in painful ecstasy as George Bailey's nose touches Mary Hatch's forehead and he grabs her and says "I don't want any plastics and I don't want any ground floors and I don't want to be married to anyone, ever!" And then he pulls her close, kisses her, holds her tight and says "Mary, oh Mary."
The next scene is their wedding.
In that same movie that I so adore Mary has enough time to have four children, renovate a run-down, two-story house AND run the USO, so I realize it's not exactly based in reality, but what is real for me about it is the power of love when its in its purest, most innocent, selfless form. (I won’t ruin the movie for you by telling you all the beautiful ways this power manifests, but if you haven’t seen it go rent the DVD right this second!)
I do not know the “abiding love” algorithm unraveled and absorbed by the couple on the street, the couple down the hall, or George and Mary, but I do know that no one, including me, should settle for any less.

By Hannah Logan © 2006
thank you miss hannah for sharing this with us, we love it!


Wednesday, December 23, 2009

San Diego Destination Weddings, Easy Elope to San Diego


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So You're Considering a Destination Wedding Package for a Beach Wedding !

More and more couples each year are making the decision to add some adventure into their lives and into their wedding by traveling to a romantic destination to tie the knot. Destination wedding packages exist for every romantic venue you can imagine, whether it's a famous hotel in Italy, a chateau in France, or a mountain top in New Zealand, there is a romantic destination to suit everyone's dreams. One of the most popular and affordable venues for tying the knot turns out to be the beach. That's right, a beach wedding ! Many, many couples and their families consider it to be the most romantic wedding destination of all.

Of course, there are plenty of locations for romantic beach weddings to choose from, like the wonderfully colonial Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, Saint Jean de Luz on the Basque Coast in France, or the beautiful archipelago nation of Seychelles, but if you want to put away your passport and remain in the United States, there is really only one choice, it's Coronado Beach on beautiful Coronado Island here in San Diego, California!

It's accessible by bridge or by land so there is no need to board a boat to get there. Although there is a darling ferry that leaves downtown San Diego nearly every hour most times of the year. Coronado Beach is one of the most sought after locations for beach weddings in the United States.

The views are picture perfect with the ocean on one side and the fabulous world famous Hotel Del Coronado on the other. It's so very picturesque, you'll want to make sure you have a great photos that capture the images and memories of your day. It's the perfect locationfor romantic beach weddings, the climate in San Diego is wonderful year round, as it rarely gets below 60 degrees.

Fees for destination wedding packages vary with the destination, the actual wedding location and the services you would like, as well as the size of your group. Beach weddings can be a real bargain when you compare them to the cost of a traditional wedding ceremony in your neighborhood church or hotel.

There are many variations of packages to choose from, which means that there are destination wedding packages suited to everyone's needs. You'll want to be sure to double check to see what your package includes. For example, will your wedding package include transportation, airline tickets, hotel, food, beverage and tips? Or just the actual wedding day package with ceremony, flowers, photography? Most all destination wedding packages can be found on-line, and you should use common sense when selecting and hiring a service to work with. You'll want to choose a company with a great reputation and lots of happy couples in their midst.

In the end, a destination wedding can mean being able to have a wonderful, charming wedding and still have money to begin your new life together. This can mean a lot to couples who are just starting out, no matter what the economy is like. With so many new couples looking for ways to stretch their budgets, beach weddings are the right choice for starting a new life together as husband and wife. In short, you can have a lovely wedding ceremony performed in a wonderfully romantic exotic location with all the trimmings for much less than you might think.

Couples from all over the world come here to our pristine island of Coronado in Southern California, to vacation, honeymoon and to actually to tie the knot and begin their journey through life together.

You couldn't ask for a more perfect or delightful beginning to this new chapter in your life than being married on the beach in this picture perfect postcard setting.

So, if you have romance in your heart, and a practical side too....you'll want to check out the ultimate in destination weddings, a Coronado Beach Elopement.

We would be honored if you would consider Elope San Diego for your upcoming destination beach wedding or elopement!






Tuesday, December 22, 2009


TaDAh! the most beautiful little baby, sleeping so sweet. ethan christopher, our newest grandchild (proud to be called number six) born December 16, 2009, Bellevue Washington.

Saturday, December 19, 2009

merry christmas from california, sunny san diego beach weddings, christine haslet, steve haslet, elope san diego, san diego destinations weddings, eloping in san diego, holidays at elope san diego, uso, bestfriends.org, best friends, sun diego studios, christine haslet photographer, steve haslet san diego officiant

Merry Christmas from Christine and Steve
at Elope San Diego


Christmas seems to be the time of year when we jump off our treadmill and take stock of every little thing that we are totally and completely grateful for... each of our blessings large and small that we enjoy.

We have work we totally LOVE , clients who appreciate us and let us know that we make their weddings something they'll always treasure.....after 22 years of joining couples.. it's still the best work on the planet!


We have our health and sense of humor as you can see by our silly dog!

We are happy to be able to give back by volunteering throughout the year. We've worked a bit with our local USO (thank you to all the service men and women who are serving on our behalf in the military, REALLY, REALLY, REALLY thank you ! ) The USO at the San Diego Airport and Downtown San Diego USO offer incredible support to our service people that are traveling in and out of San Diego, as well as families that are stationed here.

We were also very happy to be able to support our MOST beloved Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. Christine was delighted to volunteer in Kanab at DogTown and Piggy Paradise for the adventure of her life. Best Friends is the largest no kill animal sanctuary in United States. If
you are an animal lover, it is a place that you must see to believe. The place will surround you in a "cocoon of critter love". We're pretty sure the people who live and work there are part angel. They are located near the Grand Canyon, Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon. There isn't a more beautiful place for all that love and support. It is wonderful to be able to support our critter friends and their caretakers at Best Friends in Kanab, Utah in personal. Both at the animal sanctuary in Kanab and to support the work they do all over the United States. This month, in fact, we also supported and volunteered for the local home show in Point Loma, San Diego for benefit for Best Friend's "No More Homeless Pets" program.

We are grateful for our healthy and growing family. We welcome grandchild number six this week, Ethan Christopher. Okay, to be honest, we feel that we may have failed as parents, just a tiny bit. Our son (we won't name names) didn't seem to grasp the importance of learning how to use a digital camera and email....
so, here we sit... sad grandparents..... FOUR days after the huge event..... we have no pictures to share... ahhhh, the irony of it all. We have heard that he is absolutely gorgeous. Oops, got side tracked just a bit.

Back to the things we are grateful for and want to share.
The people we work with all year long that support us, often taking care of the things we aren't able to do for
ourselves. Like our lovable accountant
Jack Rex at Liberty Tax in Mission Hills. He takes on our most dreaded chore... sales tax, state tax, tax, tax, tax records and takes care of it with a smile :) he can even do that for you too: jack.rex@libertytax.com
Joanna Caro, she is the marriage license wonder woman of
San Diego. If you need a last minute marriage license in San Diego and don't have an appointment or didn't even know that you needed one... she is going to save your bacon! She'll come to the hospital, to the beach or the local coffee shop. You gotta love her. Randy at SunDiegoStudios, he's the photographer we always recommend when we are booked up. He comes through with a smile even on short notice.
We were also so happy to be part of his son's wedding several years ago. Most recently, we just fell in love with Tom Crandall at www.semreportcard.com. He helped us fix a problem we had with Google for the last six months... something the big giant
corporate Google Monster couldn't be bothered with. You're an angel Tom Crandall! We thank you, even our dogs thank you! Tom has a most fabulous blog about marketing on line.

We wish you all a happy holiday and of course,
the happiest year in twenty ten!


x0x0 christine and steve haslet
daphne, and riley our beloved dogs
and abby and beau our beloved kats











PS. Thank you Amanda from Freedom Dog Training for turning our
monster dogs into perfectly behaved angels...you're amazing!!

Sunday, December 13, 2009

San Diego beach weddings. Elope to San Diego. Eloping. Destination Weddings. Beach Weddings. Christine Haslet photographer. Steve Haslet San Diego Officiant.

Affordable Beach Wedding Packages. Fun Wedding Ideas




A Stress Free, FUN Wedding You Ask…. Impossible?

Not if you plan California Destination Beach Wedding !



No, not impossible at all. It really IS possible to plan a stress free wedding. And yes, you heard me right! Let me show you a simple and affordable way to remove so many of the factors from your wedding and wedding planning that cause you stress.


Let's start with the costs of a wedding, as we all know can be one of the largest factors that contribute to a rising stress level. Since planning a free wedding is out of the question for most of us, let's consider some of the things you can do to manage the costs.


Why not start by choosing a location that's fun AND inexpensive? Here in Southern California, we actually have a free place to be married! The beaches in California are public and if you have less than 25 people, you don't even need to have a permit. Coronado Beach, just a few minutes from downtown San Diego California is one of the most beautiful and sought after locations in the United States. In fact, the Travel Channel named it the number one destination wedding site in the United States. The beach next to the Hotel Del Coronado. Think of it, no church to decorate... no pew bows, no flower arrangements……simply the sound of the surf and beautiful sand right at your feet.


By eliminating the church, hall or hotel, and we've significantly reduced the number of guests. You've made two huge strides towards having a stress free day. Only your very closest friends and family are now part of your day.


You will need an officiant, a marriage license, a pretty dress, a couple of rings, some beautiful flowers for a bouquet, a few beautiful photographs and you're set... I promise. Can you feel the wedding stress melting away? You're on track to a stress free wedding. After the ceremony on the beach, a nice little dinner somewhere close by, or if it's in the morning, perhaps a brunch.


We like to think of it as our 21st century elopement. Nothing like climbing out the window and down the trellis in the middle of night. A 21st century planned wedding elopement, with all the style and grace of the grandest wedding around.


You can find beach elopement packages online at many destinations, you may even be able to combine your wedding, honeymoon and vacation all in one. Why not consider finding a nice, warm, affordable, stress free destination like San Diego, California and elope? One of the most gorgeous beaches near San Diego is Coronado beach, just a few miles from downtown San Diego. It's absolutely perfect for your beach wedding, as it's one of the most picturesque beaches in the United States.


We're Steve and Christine Haslet owners of Elope San Diego
a boutique style wedding service, offering a stress free, small elopements for San Diego beach wedding celebrations ...for groups of 25 or fewer on the most beautiful beaches in Coronado, California. Check out our Coronado Elopement packages that include the officiant, photographer, flowers and valet parking for the bride and groom.We've been joining happy couples for 22 years!


For those adventurous enough to explore all of their options for a stress free beach wedding please feel free to check out Elope San Diego for one of the most romantic, stress free weddings around.



Friday, December 11, 2009


elope to coronado beach. elope to san diego.san diego beach weddings. christine haslet photographer. steve haslet officiant.elope san diego

A note from Chris and Christine from their elopement on Coronado Beach, California on November 24th:

Hi Steve and Christine !

We just wanted to offer our deepest thanks for your help this week with our wedding. We were extremely happy with everything. It was exactly what we wanted, a very intimate setting for our marriage, with none of the wedding ceremony headaches. We both really enjoyed meeting with you two and talking, you were both so kind and personable!
Thanks again, we wish you continued success and happiness.

Christopher and Christine Brouch
Oceanside, California
Coronado Beach Elopement Ceremony

Thursday, December 3, 2009


San Diego Beach Weddings ~ Elope to San Diego~Eloping~

Beach Weddings ~ Elopement Packages ~ Christine Haslet


So you're engaged!

All the options for planning your big day are swirling in your head.. you're tying the knot..getting hitched, settling down, plighting one's troth, taking the plunge, becoming husband and wife!

Congratulations are definitely in order

Maybe you've wondered how you'll navigate the planning of the big event and all those special events surrounding the wedding day. His family, your family, his friends, your friends, the budget, the location, the spreadsheets, the graphs, the lists, the disagreements. Where's the romance in that I ask ? It all sounds a bit ominous. We know first hand that entering new uncharted waters can be pretty scary!


Have you considered eloping?


We're here to let you know that more and more couples are eloping these days and loving it. There are SO many advantages to eloping over the traditional wedding. . . .we know you'll want to hear the whole story and make your decision based on all the information you've gathered. We also know that eloping isn't for everyone...it's our hope that when you are making your plans to spend the rest of your lives together. . . the wedding doesn't get in the way !


There is absolutely no shame in eloping, or even thinking about eloping! Couples today are incredibly independent. In many ways couples are looking for a non-traditional way to marry. No longer tied to many of the traditions that have become a bit outdated, eloping has become one of the most popular ways to tie the knot. The advantages of choosing eloping over a traditional wedding are many. Eloping is an adventure, whereas a traditional wedding can quickly become a stress filled, out of control event. Eloping can be a spontaneous, very romantic decision. Think of the time and stress you'll save yourself. You won't need months of planning, or even a wedding planner when you elope. We are one of a handful of services that specialize in elopements and small weddings set in the most beautiful of locations. You can find us listed under elopement packages, beach wedding elopements and San Diego Beach Weddings. If you are thinking about another location like Hawaii or Florida, do a quick check on the internet to see what's available. Just a few clicks and you could be set for a day of fun.


Now....think about combining
a wedding, a honeymoon and a fabulous vacation all at once. . .


Destination weddings on our California beaches are beautiful, simple and truly give you a day to remember. San Diego Beach Weddings are especially beautiful most all times of the year. When you elope, making your commitment to each other "official" can be a lot more fun than you might think. Again, it's so very easy to combine the marriage ceremony with a beautiful beach destination and honeymoon. Avoiding the staggering costs of a chapel, church, reception site and the stress of it all.

Planning an elopement can be really very simple, you need an officiant, Steve is our officiant, he is a person allowed by law to marry you, a non denominational minister. You need a marriage license and usually a witness. (Confidential licenses in California are available and you don't even need a witness ) Our San Diego beach elopement packages provide the little extras- such as flower petals for the sand, a bridal bouquet and beautiful wedding photography. ElopeSanDiego.com provides all of those services with great style.

As you know, the planning of a traditional wedding, it can quickly become so complicated you need to hire a wedding planner just to navigate the process and a bank loan to finance it. Perhaps the traditional wedding comes about as a result of your parent's wishes. Independent couples, or couples who are marrying for a second time won't have to factor this into their decision making process. They may find the idea of a no fuss elopement very enticing! It's a practical, affordable, and relaxing way to wed these days. In short, when you elope, you make all the decisions, not your parents, not your friends...or your children, your guest list is your own. As small as you wish. Couples today can decide that paying for an elopement package makes complete sense to them. A little more fancy than the court house, without the cost… it makes great financial sense. With the current economy, many couples are opting out of the traditional wedding and the debt they may be saddled with for years.

A beach elopement package with Elope San Diego can be purchased for the price of many wedding gowns or the amount that you might spend on just the floral arrangements for a church. If you elope, just think about what you can do with the money you have saved- purchase a nice car, a fancy honeymoon or maybe a down payment on your first home together!

So once you've made the decision to tie the knot, consider eloping, it's really a wonderful, fun, low stress alternative. If you want a terrific destination elopement to begin your life together, think about a San Diego Beach wedding and consider ElopeSanDiego.com for a stylish, affordable day on the beach with the one you love... know that you'll be creating a celebration you'll always cherish!


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