Emily Ruth Dalton was born in Charlotte, NC. But her parents, Mark and Marilee, have never been able to stay put for very long, so she is a Southern Belle, a Yankee Gal, and a California Girl all rolled into one. She's also very much interested in her European (Irish/French/Scandinavian, etc.) roots. 
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Our Registries
For Out-of-Town Guests
NOTE
If you gave us a wedding gift, but have not yet received a thank you note, we are truly sorry. We are ultra-grateful, and have not forgotten you. It has been ridiculously hectic and often sleepless with Em trying to finish her degree (long distance from Marcus the last quarter) and Marcus being not only a resident physician, but also a person who takes ten minutes to write a short paragraph note. He wants to get it just right. Do not despair. With graduation in the past (yay! hurrah!), Emily expects to have all the thank you's written in short order. If July, 2003 has rolled around, and you still haven't gotten one, we probably don't have your address, or your gift got separated from its tag.
EMILY
Em was working on finishing up her BS in Graphic Design, and had a few classes left, plus Spring Quarter at PUC at the time of the wedding. She's currently looking for an internship with a studio, hopefully one that does book or CD covers for some of their clients. Eventually she'd like to do freelance illustration, design, and writing. She would also enjoy designing webpages (Anybody need one?). Hers, emeraldtwilight.com, was still under construction at this transitional time. (Not only was she planning a wedding, she was also in the process of switching computers).
Emily loves learning and thinking about ideas, religions, and cultures, both present and historical. She's almost always available for an adventure, and as a result, she loves travelling, outdoor sports, and flying. She's also fond of art, literature, and music. Oh, and she loves gourmet food--both eating and making it.
Marcus Alan Bryner was born in Loma Linda, CA and grew up in Yreka, CA, where his parents, Urs and Darlene, moved after Urs finished his surgery residency at LLUMC. Dr. Bryner, Senior, is originally from Winterthur, Switzerland, and Marcus often spent summers there with his grandparents when he was younger. MARCUS
In 2000, Marc graduated from Loma Linda University as a Doctor of Medicine. Now, he's a Radiology Resident there and, in less than three years, will be an Interventional Radiologist. That means he will be able to perform surgical operations that are virtually non-invasive, using real-time imaging (i.e. flouroscopy, ultrasound guidance, etc.). It's an exciting field with some very new procedures. If you ask him, he'll tell you more about it.
When he's not at the hospital, he loves skiing, travelling (which, until the wedding, was usually north to see Emily), hiking, water sports, listening to classical music, playing piano, guitar, flute, and working on his webpage, docbryner.com, where he has posted a whole lot of pictures. He's an avid Linux/Unix enthusiast, too.
Basically, Marcus aspires to be a "Rennaissance Man," and know something about and be able to do a little of everything, which, Emily asserts, is why he is so fun and fascinating.
HOW WE MET
Short Version: Marc's mother set us up!
(Very) Long Version:
In Summer of 2001, Emily and her family were traveling north toward Washington State's San Juan Islands for a family reunion. The Daltons decided to stop for a couple of days and stay with their old friends the Hendersons. Mark and Marilee had known Rick and Kay since high school and college days, so Matthew and Kristin Henderson have almost felt like younger siblings to Emily and Julie Dalton.Well, Matt, being the nice young gentleman that he is, decided to introduce his dear friend and next-door-neighbor Carrie Bryner to the Dalton sisters, as she would soon depart for Pacific Union College, where Emily was well-established, and where Julie would be a Freshman. Carrie and the sisters Dalton "hit it off" immediately and began laying plans for the next school year.
Soon after, Carrie decided everyone should come over to her house to see where she lived, and to sample some of her mom Darlene's famous strawberry soy smoothies. The younger folks went tearing off to some other part of the property, and Emily and Marilee hung out with Darlene. She showed them around the house and yard, describing how it had looked when her older daughter Stephanie had been recently married there, then she showed them pictures of her two absent children participating in family fun. Emily mentally noted that her oldest son, Marcus, was rather handsome.
After the photo albums, it was high time for the Daltons to take leave of the Bryners (meanwhile dad Urs had returned from work and was chatting with Mark). Darlene asked Emily what she was going to do with herself for the rest of the summer, after the reunion. Emily replied that mostly she would be working as a nanny for a lovely Merced family, the Scales, and their four lively children, but she was also planning a trip to Southern California to see her Aunt Diane in San Diego, and to visit old friends in the Loma Linda area.
"Oh!" Exclaimed Darlene, "Could you take something to Marcus?" Emily, thinking she was saving Darlene some postage on a care package or something, agreed. It was then that Mrs. Bryner began to search about for something to send, and it occurred to Emily that this was a set-up. She wondered what she'd gotten herself into, and hoped it wouldn't be too awful or embarrassing. (As it turned out, Darlene and Marilee had been conniving collectively)
While Em was in Southern Cal, she conveniently forgot about the ubiquitous box of almonds sliding around in her trunk . . . at least until the next to last day she was there. Then she bravely picked up her good friend Heidi's phone and dialed Marcus' number. He wasn't there, and she wasn't sure what one could tell an answering machine in such a situation. So, she tried again the next day. This time she left a message, giving him her parents number in Merced in case she went north before he had a chance to call. As it turned out, he had been on call the night before, and had gotten home after she stopped trying to reach him (about 10 at night).
Emily did head north that fateful Wednesday night, but as luck (or Providence) would have it, Marcus had been planning to take a trip to Yosemite (about an hour from Merced) a week and a half later with his friends the Catalanos. On his way out of the mountains on Sunday he decided to call the girl who had left the message for him and find out what his mom had sent. (To this day, he still has the message on his answering machine. For some reason he saved it, thinking it was sort of cute and funny. "Hi Marcus, you don't know me, but my name is Emily Dalton, and I met your mom a couple weeks ago, and she sent, uh, something for you . . . .") She had been too embarrassed to say it was only a box of almonds and thus to give away immediately the fact that it was a complete set-up.
So now he called on his cell-phone from the outskirts of Merced, and Emily was helping her dad put down flooring in the attic. She was wearing cut-off jeans and her frizzy ponytail was full of cobwebs. She didn't exactly feel glamourous enough to meet someone, and told him as much. Marcus said, "Hey that's okay, I'm pretty grungey too; I just climbed Half Dome!"
"Well, in that case, come on over, I guess!" And she gave him directions.
In the end, Marcus sat in the kitchen over grape juice talking to Emily and her dad, despite cobwebs and camp grunge. He borrowed one of Mark's guitars, and Emily picked up her dulcimer, and the two of them sang on the front porch for quite awhile, and they nearly forgot about the almonds. They felt almost like old friends from the very beginning.
When Marcus had to climb into his southbound truck, he told Emily she had a beautiful smile and asked when he could see her again.
Looks like he will being seeing her for the rest of his life!
WHEN WE GOT ENGAGED
July 27, 2002, On the last Sabbath of Redwood Campmeeting
THE PROPOSAL
Short Version: surf, sand dunes, summer sunset, single star, sparkling diamond...
Much Longer Version: (WARNING: VERY SAPPY. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK)
Both Marcus' and Emily's parents were at Redwood Campmeeting for the final weedkend. After dinner on that last Sabbath, everyone wanted to know who was going where for the last meeting. Marcus said he and Emily weren't going to any meetings tonight; he was taking her out. Even she didn't know where they were going. But she didn't think much of it, because he frequently likes to surprise her. There's a general rule that the more secretive he is, the better the date! They had talked about going to the beach or taking in a movie they wanted to see, so she suspected one or both of these items might be on the agenda.The sun was a great magenta fireball near the horizon as they eased on to the freeway. Marcus seemed upset that it was so low already. He said, "Oh no, what if the sun's already set when we get to the beach?"
Emily said, "Aha! So we're going to the beach. I'm sure it will still be pretty."
"I wanted it to be perfect," Marcus grumbled.
"Sometimes the colors get even more gorgeous after it sets. Besides look at it now! Just driving along together is fabulous. What spectacular country!" Emily had never really been to the redwoods before this campmeeting.
Marcus seemed distracted. "When does the moon come up?" Emily said it was waning, so probably not until 11 or so. It had been rising when she met him at the Sacramento airport at 10 a few nights earlier. "Oh . . . Darnit! I wanted to give you the moon tonight," Marc quipped.
Emily giggled, "I guess you'll just have to give it to me later."
"Yep, I'll give it to you later. I hope it isn't foggy at the beach."
"Will you please stop grumbling and worrying and enjoy this gorgeous evening, for goodness sakes, Marc. We're together looking at God's artwork in a beautiful place on a lovely evening. Must you be such a curmudgeon?"
"No, you're right. We are together and it is beautiful. I just want everything to be perfect for my princess." He reached for her hand.
"It is," She said, and planted several kisses on his cheek.
They drove through the charming Victorian town of Ferndale as the sun touched the horizon. Another imperfect occurrance, the regular beach access was closed, but the detour brought them successfully back to the winding country road to the ocean. It was a good thing Marcus knew where he was when Emily suggested they just walk instead, because that road was several miles long. Nevertheless, after cruising past quaint old farms with cows and fluffy sheep in the rolling fields, they finally arrived at a parking lot in sight of the sea. And there was no fog, "Just what the doctor ordered," Emily teased. The sun had just dropped into the ocean a few minutes earlier, and the sky was a red explosion above the roiling breakers.
Marc and Em grabbed each other's hand and ran across the dunes to the edge of the waves, and on until they reached the base of some cliffs which reminded Emily of Ireland (the effect Marcus was hoping to achieve). There they stopped and held onto each other, laughing and panting. The sky was dark red, and the only spark of light in it was the bright planet Venus.
"I've been thinking for quite a while now," Marcus said, "And you know I'll never be a poet . . ."
"That's okay, Marcus, I am one, and you're quite fascinating in your own right . . ."
"No Emmie, let me finish! I'll never be a poet, but you know that I love you more than anyone in the world, and . . ."
"Oh my . . . He's proposing to me!" Emily thought. "This is it! This is the moment every girl imagines for such a long time. This is only going to happen once . . . You know, this is pretty much how I always imagined it would be!" And she began to cry.
". . . And all I really want is to make you happy. I mean that." And he got down on one knee and said, "And Emily Dalton, I've decided that I want you to be Emily Bryner. Will you?"
"Yes! Yes Marcus! Wait, are you sure?" Everyone they knew seemed to keep asking both of them whether or not he had asked her to marry him yet. It was as if it was all settled - a done deal, so to speak - and he had been feeling quite pressured. He wanted to be sure it was really his decision, and not just an inevitable fate. She wanted to be sure he was certain he really wanted her.
"I'm sure," He answered. "I'm so sure now. I love you. I just want to be with you. Will you please be my wife?"
"Yes. Yes, of course, Marcus, yes! You know you're the only man I want. You're my prince charming!" He slipped a bright platinum and diamond ring out of his pocket and onto her finger. She collapsed with the surprise and shock of it all. They just lay on the sand laughing and crying and holding onto each other and watching the stars come out . . . and smiling so hard their faces hurt.
And it was all very sappy.
After recomposing themselves, they prayed together and talked for a long time about many things. Then they headed to the supermarket to get some stuff Marc's mom needed for breakfast. He also bought his lady a dozen roses and some Martinelli's in convenient little bottles to toast with in the car on the way back to camp. He said he had been planning for quite a while to ask her at campmeeting, and he thought it would work out nicely since both sets of parents were present and they wouldn't have to decide whom to tell first. He prides himself on being a practical man. That's probably one reason he always has plenty of maps with him everywhere he goes. That way he never gets lost - and never has to ask directions!
This night must have been momentous, because he proceeded to get lost - and not to have a map! It completely slipped his mind that he had driven under the freeway. At first Emily thought he was further surprising her with the scenic route, but when he said, "The freeway must be up here sometime soon," She jogged his memory and told him it was behind them. Thus, they got into camp well after midnight, and everyone except Carrie was asleep. She was in her tent talking in an animated whisper with a friend of hers, so Marcus and Emily went to their separate lodgings and agreed to just wait and see who noticed the ring first.
The next morning everyone had been up for a while, and Emily had been helping Darlene fix breakfast, when Em's dad, Mark, came in to peruse the tofu she was scrambling. "Hey! what's that on your finger?!" He exclaimed.
"What does it look like?" She countered.
"A ring!" He shouted. Darlene ran over, hoping she was not the last to know. She was assured she was only the second to find out, and general mayhem, back-slaps, screams, and excitement prevailed for most of the day.
WHEN & WHERE
October 20, 2002, at 3:00 PM
La Sierra University Seventh-day Adventist Church
4937 Sierra Vista Avenue
Riverside,CA
DIRECTIONS CORRECTIONS
Excavation has ocurred near the location of our nuptials, since La Sierra University recently declared it undesirable to have a road, namely Pierce Street, crossing the campus mall. Pierce Street now dead ends near the administration buildings and resumes on the opposite side of the campus, beside the church. Therefore, the directions included in our wedding invitations must be altered slightly.
The instructions we sent you are still mostly correct, except the last bit, after you exit the 91 freeway. As you head north on Pierce Street, you will come to an intersection (from which you may be able to see the church in the distance to the north). In order to stay on Pierce, you would have to turn left. Don't. Keep going straight onto Riverwalk. Pretty soon (2 lights, I think), you will come to Sierra Vista. Turn left, and proceed down the road until you come to the church (It is on the right).
Short Version: At the intersection of Pierce and Riverwalk, proceed straight (Northeast) onto Riverwalk. Turn left on Sierra Vista and continue on until you reach the church, on the right.
WHY YOU SHOULD HAVE COME
Because we love you and want you to celebrate with us! There was plenty of space, great music, and opportunity for you to offer us advice. It was a beautiful, old-fashioned ceremony with some unique and modern touches.
OUR REGISTRIES
Macy's (Wedding Channel)
Target (Club Wedd)
REI
Thank you so much, all our dear friends who helped make our house livable and homey!
Most of the stuff we still needed was still at Macy's and Target, but we thought it would be fun to register for some camping gear, too (but we never did). Of course we wouldn't want to limit anyone to our registries, either. If there is something in particular that you just know we need or would love to have (gift certificates, subscriptions, books, CD's, tickets, money to pay off our loans, etc., etc.), please give us that instead!
We are always grateful for your prayers, too.
BRIDESMAIDS
Julie Dalton
Rachel Anderson
Heidi Mensink
Shannon Miller
Carrie Bryner
GROOMSMEN
Michael Eby
Joseph Savino
Robert Wells
Benjamin Seaton
FLOWER GIRL
Rachel Scales
RING-BEARER
Jon Pierre Scales
We had an unusual "cake" and light refreshments for the munching and sipping pleasure of our guests after the ceremony. Think of it as a sort of afternoon high tea.
For Our Out-of-Town Guests
What follows is some further information we thought you might find helpful. Please also see the updated directions to the church under "Wedding Info."
LODGING
We hope you enjoyed your own accomodations whether you stayed in a hotel or the home of friends or relatives.
There is a wide range of lodging options around Hospitality Lane in Loma Linda and San Bernardino. The area has many national chain inns, and is only about five minutes drive from Marcus' (and soon to be also Emily's) house; however, it is almost half an hour's drive from the wedding.
Magnolia Avenue in Riverside has a similar array of chain lodgings and restaurants. Tyler Galleria shopping mall, ice and rollerskating rinks and Castle Park (a place with mini golf, arcades and carnival-type rides) are also in this area. It is only five minutes from the church, but around twenty minutes or more from Loma Linda.
We reserved a block of rooms at the Holiday Inn Select (3400 Market Street) in Old Riverside. One of these rooms will only cost you $89 per night, your choice of one king size bed or two doubles, because when we made the reservations the hotel was undergoing renovation. By the end of September, the remodeling was finished and the Inn became a full-service Mariott (complete with fitness center, two restaurants, a pool and spa, and a host of in-room amenities); however, the reservation price still holds. The Inn is located about ten minutes from the LSUSDA Church and fifteen minutes from Loma Linda in an area with a Spanish Mission flavor. There are lots of trees, cute shops, eateries, and a weekly street market in downtown Riverside. Also in walking distance are museums and the historic Mission Inn. If you wish to stay at the Holiday Inn, please email (erdalton@puc.edu) or call Emily ASAP so she can transfer a confirmation number to your name, as there is a limited number of rooms.
A range of other local accomodations follows. This is by no means a comprehensive list. Some of the listings are quite modest, but all are nice enough that we would feel comfortable to stay at them sometime. Additionally, La Sierra U's website lists many nearby lodgings at www.lasierra.edu/visitors/hotels.html.
American Inn
Best Western Inn
Comfort Inn
Days Inn
Dynasty Suites
Econo Lodge
EZ-8 Motel
Holiday Inn Express
La Quinta Inn
Motel 6
Super 8 Motel
Travelodge
FOOD
Marcus and Emily really don't go out to eat very often when we're around his place (soon to be OUR place). We often just head down to Stater Bros. (the supermarket) and get some bread and fruit and cheese. We also love Trader Joe's markets, which have lots of great gourmet and imported foods. Lots of them are ready-to-eat, or easily fixed in a microwave. Costco has great food cheap, too, but there you need a membership.
There are scads of restaurants and motels on or near Hospitality Lane in San Bernardino, a five-minute drive from Loma Linda. Just take the Waterman North exit off of Interstate 10, and it will dump you in that area.
If you want to brave the drive (about an hour and a half) out to Santa Monica, you can see the ocean, and you can dine at one of the many diverse and fun eateries on Third Street Promenade. Most of these have al fresco seating where you can watch the throng of vendors, street performers, and curious visitors until late into the night.
State Street in Redlands has several funky food places, and lots of cute shops. There is an excellent street market on Thursday nights.
Some of our favorite local restaurants include the following:
Cafe Society
The Cheesecake Factory
Delhi Palace
El Burrito
Grape Leaves
Grounds for Enjoyment
The Lotus Garden
Mario's Place
Piemonte's Creamery
Rainforest Cafe
The Rama Garden
Secret Garden Restaurant
ATTRACTIONS
Everyone knows there's tons to do in Southern California. If you can stay a few days, you should. Some of the better attractions (in our opinion) include:
Angeles National Forest/Arcadia area
Angelus Oaks/Forest Falls area
Lake Arrowhead area
Corona del Mar
Disneyland
The Getty Museum
The Hollywood Bowl
Laguna Beach
The Los Angeles Philharmonic
Newport Beach Boardwalk
Palm Springs Tram
Old Town Riverside or Redlands
Santa Monica
Six Flags Magic Mountain
for visiting our wedding page; you can find out more about us at our personal pages, DocBryner.com and EmeraldTwilight.com.
We hope to see you on our big day!
To RSVP or congratulate us, send an email to marcus@docbryner.com or call Darlene (530) 842-1966, Emily or Marilee (209) 725-3033. Thanks again!
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