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Nov. 27th, 2004 05:53 amThis is the day that the Lord has made!
I will rejoice and be glad in it!
Brenda W signing off. :D
I will rejoice and be glad in it!
Brenda W signing off. :D
Looking overhead to the sky.
Nov. 24th, 2004 09:52 amThe sun was shining for the first time in over a week, but now the clouds are back! Why?!?!
Well, this is it. I'm just sitting here waiting for noon. When I come back to work I'll have a new name and a new life. It's totally bizarre. Tomorrow Evan's parents and cousin, and my cousin Tiff (I'm so excited to see her), are coming for Thanksgiving. Everyone else comes in late Friday night or early Saturday morning. I feel bad that all these people are traveling to see us and I'll hardly get to spend any time with any of them...but the family could have come for Thanksgiving and chose not to, so I guess it's equally their fault. Anyway, tomorrow should be a relaxing day. On Friday I'm getting a manicure and a pedicure, and then we're having our bridesmaid lunch (without Em :( ). Then we rehearse. Wow. I feel weird. Still calm and non-nervous, but weird. Evan says it's because you always see getting married as something that will happen someday. Then someday becomes Saturday. :)
My mom just called, and apparently another cousin and his wife are coming. They did not RSVP or indicate through other people that they were coming, and we already gave the final numbers to the country club lady. They just got married last year, so they should know how this works. *sigh* Only three more days and I can stop fighting about stupid things. Do you realize I've been continuously planning or helping to plan a wedding for the last year and a half? When this is over, I can have hobbies and relaxation and an open schedule again. I don't even remember what that's like. One thing that annoyed me on Wedding Channel the other day was the "coming home together" page...it said something like, "Now you can start planning your new life together." Sorry to disappoint them, but God willing, I won't be planning anything else for quite a while.
I keep checking and re-checking and re-printing our honeymoon itinerary. I have this irrational fear that the reservations didn't really go through and we'll show up at the airport to find that we have no tickets - or worse, show up in Jamaica to find that we have no room. But with the amount I paid Travelocity, we better have a plane and a room. I'm just paranoid.
Okay...there's nothing else to say. Danielle, Shelley, Shana and Phillip (and Lawson, Robin, Jeremy, and Addie), I'll see you on Saturday! Yay! Thank you all for your support and encouragement. It means a lot. I may find time for a quick post before the wedding, but otherwise, I'll see all of you on the flip side. :D
Well, this is it. I'm just sitting here waiting for noon. When I come back to work I'll have a new name and a new life. It's totally bizarre. Tomorrow Evan's parents and cousin, and my cousin Tiff (I'm so excited to see her), are coming for Thanksgiving. Everyone else comes in late Friday night or early Saturday morning. I feel bad that all these people are traveling to see us and I'll hardly get to spend any time with any of them...but the family could have come for Thanksgiving and chose not to, so I guess it's equally their fault. Anyway, tomorrow should be a relaxing day. On Friday I'm getting a manicure and a pedicure, and then we're having our bridesmaid lunch (without Em :( ). Then we rehearse. Wow. I feel weird. Still calm and non-nervous, but weird. Evan says it's because you always see getting married as something that will happen someday. Then someday becomes Saturday. :)
My mom just called, and apparently another cousin and his wife are coming. They did not RSVP or indicate through other people that they were coming, and we already gave the final numbers to the country club lady. They just got married last year, so they should know how this works. *sigh* Only three more days and I can stop fighting about stupid things. Do you realize I've been continuously planning or helping to plan a wedding for the last year and a half? When this is over, I can have hobbies and relaxation and an open schedule again. I don't even remember what that's like. One thing that annoyed me on Wedding Channel the other day was the "coming home together" page...it said something like, "Now you can start planning your new life together." Sorry to disappoint them, but God willing, I won't be planning anything else for quite a while.
I keep checking and re-checking and re-printing our honeymoon itinerary. I have this irrational fear that the reservations didn't really go through and we'll show up at the airport to find that we have no tickets - or worse, show up in Jamaica to find that we have no room. But with the amount I paid Travelocity, we better have a plane and a room. I'm just paranoid.
Okay...there's nothing else to say. Danielle, Shelley, Shana and Phillip (and Lawson, Robin, Jeremy, and Addie), I'll see you on Saturday! Yay! Thank you all for your support and encouragement. It means a lot. I may find time for a quick post before the wedding, but otherwise, I'll see all of you on the flip side. :D
Mr. Play it Safe was afraid to fly.
Nov. 23rd, 2004 01:58 pmYay! I just had an impromptu lunch with Casey at our traditional lunch place, because I was having a huge craving for their turkey pita sandwich. It has turkey, Swiss cheese, sprouts, and cucumbers, with ranch dressing to dip it in. SO GOOD. I'm glad we got to go.
It's going to rain on my wedding day. Cue Alanis Morrisette. I had hoped that the sun would shine on me, but that's the risk we take having a wedding on Thanksgiving weekend. It's always either gorgeous or horrible. In fact, the worst tornado to hit Memphis hit on a Thanksgiving weekend...and tore the roof off my church, though it wasn't my church at the time. Oh well, people will still come to the wedding. They'll just need umbrellas.
Last night we took all the decorations over to the country club and finalized the menu and stuff. Then my mom took me to JCPenney and bought me an outfit for the rehearsal, which was very nice and appreciated. She also bought a button-down shirt for Evan, since I was concerned that he wouldn't have enough nice clothes to last our honeymoon. He needs non-T-shirt clothing. Badly. I think I know what he's getting from my entire family for Christmas. :) Anyway, my mom has been driving me nuts in some ways, but really, she spoils me. So does my dad. I don't deserve all that they give me. They've always sacrificed for us kids. I wish they'd take better care of themselves, though. I was reading my book of Cathy comic strips (good stress relief) and Cathy got frustrated because her mom kept trying to give her her sandwich. She was like, "Mom, you're a person too! You deserve to eat a whole sandwich!" That reminded me so much of my mom...she does that all the time. I hope someday I can help my parents the way they've helped me.
We were going to move Evan's dresser and papasan tonight (the only pieces of furniture he's keeping), but there's a 100% chance of rain, so we're doing it tomorrow instead. We both have a half-day tomorrow - this is my last full day of work. It's really quiet here since most people took the week off. Everyone keeps asking what I'm doing here this week, apparently forgetting that I get two weeks' vacation a year (as opposed to most of their four and five weeks) and it's really stupid to use it all at once. Anyway, we moved some of his boxes last night, most of which were full of books. When we get home from Jamaica, I should take a picture to show you what happens when two bookworms marry. It's a little scary. I told him I felt like I was acquiring a used bookstore.
Everyone is also commenting on how calm I am. Should I be worried? Maybe everything hasn't really hit me yet? I don't know. I think our culture has such preconceived notions of how people ought to feel and act when they're about to get married. If I'm a weirdo, I'm happy to be one. :)
It's going to rain on my wedding day. Cue Alanis Morrisette. I had hoped that the sun would shine on me, but that's the risk we take having a wedding on Thanksgiving weekend. It's always either gorgeous or horrible. In fact, the worst tornado to hit Memphis hit on a Thanksgiving weekend...and tore the roof off my church, though it wasn't my church at the time. Oh well, people will still come to the wedding. They'll just need umbrellas.
Last night we took all the decorations over to the country club and finalized the menu and stuff. Then my mom took me to JCPenney and bought me an outfit for the rehearsal, which was very nice and appreciated. She also bought a button-down shirt for Evan, since I was concerned that he wouldn't have enough nice clothes to last our honeymoon. He needs non-T-shirt clothing. Badly. I think I know what he's getting from my entire family for Christmas. :) Anyway, my mom has been driving me nuts in some ways, but really, she spoils me. So does my dad. I don't deserve all that they give me. They've always sacrificed for us kids. I wish they'd take better care of themselves, though. I was reading my book of Cathy comic strips (good stress relief) and Cathy got frustrated because her mom kept trying to give her her sandwich. She was like, "Mom, you're a person too! You deserve to eat a whole sandwich!" That reminded me so much of my mom...she does that all the time. I hope someday I can help my parents the way they've helped me.
We were going to move Evan's dresser and papasan tonight (the only pieces of furniture he's keeping), but there's a 100% chance of rain, so we're doing it tomorrow instead. We both have a half-day tomorrow - this is my last full day of work. It's really quiet here since most people took the week off. Everyone keeps asking what I'm doing here this week, apparently forgetting that I get two weeks' vacation a year (as opposed to most of their four and five weeks) and it's really stupid to use it all at once. Anyway, we moved some of his boxes last night, most of which were full of books. When we get home from Jamaica, I should take a picture to show you what happens when two bookworms marry. It's a little scary. I told him I felt like I was acquiring a used bookstore.
Everyone is also commenting on how calm I am. Should I be worried? Maybe everything hasn't really hit me yet? I don't know. I think our culture has such preconceived notions of how people ought to feel and act when they're about to get married. If I'm a weirdo, I'm happy to be one. :)
Down to the wire.
Nov. 22nd, 2004 02:00 pmI'M GETTING MARRIED ON SATURDAY!!!
I'm just a little excited. :) This is a two-and-a-half day work week for me, and it's a good thing, because my powers of concentration are really limited.
Having looked fine for all five months of my engagement, my hair and skin are now rebelling, and my throat has been hurting since yesterday morning (along with everyone else's in Memphis, apparently). Attention sinuses: it is now TOO LATE to inflame. The window of opportunity has passed. Problems at this stage are NOT OKAY. Fall pollens are not an acceptable excuse. I've been taking vitamins, but would echinacea or other things (
Rachael, I know you mentioned elderberry) make any difference at this point? Also, does anyone know any miracle skin cures? My tried and true baking soda isn't doing much for my awful chin. It's my own fault, since I slept in my makeup Friday night, totally forgetting to wash my face. Dumb, dumb, dumb.So let's talk about this weekend! We had a blast Friday night. I painted a cute plate for us to hang up in the kitchen. We had a great Benihana dinner. When we were done eating, we went to the karaoke room and everyone was gone - they had just closed! My mom pleaded with them to let us do one song, so all of us got up together and sang "Man, I Feel Like A Woman!" LOL. Then we went back to the house and Debra gave me a very special present - she had gotten everyone to write down their favorite memories with me. Even my grandparents had contributed! It was one of the coolest presents ever. I've already read through it three or four times. :) Kathy and MaryElaine stayed to spend the night, so we watched The Prince & Me and worked on the wedding programs until our eyes were crossing. It was nice to spend time with them.
On Saturday we went to my co-worker's wedding. It was great, and we had a lot of fun hanging out with my other co-workers and their husbands. They all seemed to like Evan a lot. :) That took up most of the day. Yesterday, our Sunday school class gave us a congratulations/farewell brunch. It was so nice of them. They also presented us with our platter, an accent plate, and a rice bowl! We hadn't gotten any of those yet, so it was happy and unexpected. The rest of the day, I took care of little things while Evan was at work. It was my last day to relax at home, so I made the most of it.
Gandalf has been so bad for the past week or so. It's no wonder I'm so tired, because he's not letting me sleep. He comes into my room at night and meows this continuous, loud, whiny meow, immediately followed by him crashing into the window blinds and rattling them around. I chase him out and close the door. He comes back and scratches at the door till I let him back in. He behaves just long enough for me to fall asleep again, and then re-starts the cycle. He usually senses when a change is coming or when I'm about to go on a trip, so I guess he's angry. What am I supposed to do? This can't keep going on all week. I need rest.
Happy late birthday to
Britt, Sara, and Carolyn!
Out of the darkness and into the sun.
Nov. 18th, 2004 01:52 pmNine days! We're in single digits!!! :D
I am so keyed up and full of thoughts that I could probably write here all day. I keep thinking of topics to write about. But I don't have time for that, and neither do you. :) People keep asking me, "So, is everything taken care of?" and I really don't know. I'm printing out the programs a few at a time, and we're going to hole-punch and ribbon-tie them on Friday night after my bachelorette party. My mom is still working on the table centerpieces and has rented a unity candle stand. I need to make the pen for our guestbook; I bought a nice black gel pen and a fake rose, and I'll use floral tape to make a flower pen. (Maybe two just in case.) I need to pack for our honeymoon, and I need to finalize who's taking care of Gandalf. I have a manicure/pedicure appointment. I have the presents for my bridesmaids (which I need to wrap, and write cards for). What am I forgetting? Help!
One thing on my agenda, after we come home as Mr. and Mrs. :), will be figuring out ways for me to make money on the side. We got our car insurance quote yesterday, and it wasn't as bad as they had told us - it was worse. The important thing is that we'll still be in the black, but not far enough for my taste. I've been hoping for some sort of upward mobility at work and have been working toward that end, but the signs aren't great. So I need to think of other opportunities in case we get into a pinch. A couple of my friends in the church band play Christmas and Easter programs at other churches and get paid for it. Maybe I'll ask them about that. Right now I don't think I'm good enough to be hired as a professional, but maybe I could be if I practiced more.
Tonight there's an early Thanksgiving dinner with our Thursday night Bible study. It will be fun. I made another pumpkin pie for it, this one from a recipe in one of my new cookbooks. Oh, you know that Southern Living cookbook I was so excited about? It should be called the Weight Gain Cookbook. Seriously. I was reading it last night while Evan watched TV, and the recipes looked so good, but then I'd look at the ingredients and plotz. It was like, "Ooo, look at this shrimp linguine...Two cups of heavy cream?! One cup of butter?!?" It's like that Cooking Light Magazine, which always has something totally unhealthy on the cover, usually involving cheese and bacon. Meanies.
I could go on, but I need to work now. :)
I am so keyed up and full of thoughts that I could probably write here all day. I keep thinking of topics to write about. But I don't have time for that, and neither do you. :) People keep asking me, "So, is everything taken care of?" and I really don't know. I'm printing out the programs a few at a time, and we're going to hole-punch and ribbon-tie them on Friday night after my bachelorette party. My mom is still working on the table centerpieces and has rented a unity candle stand. I need to make the pen for our guestbook; I bought a nice black gel pen and a fake rose, and I'll use floral tape to make a flower pen. (Maybe two just in case.) I need to pack for our honeymoon, and I need to finalize who's taking care of Gandalf. I have a manicure/pedicure appointment. I have the presents for my bridesmaids (which I need to wrap, and write cards for). What am I forgetting? Help!
One thing on my agenda, after we come home as Mr. and Mrs. :), will be figuring out ways for me to make money on the side. We got our car insurance quote yesterday, and it wasn't as bad as they had told us - it was worse. The important thing is that we'll still be in the black, but not far enough for my taste. I've been hoping for some sort of upward mobility at work and have been working toward that end, but the signs aren't great. So I need to think of other opportunities in case we get into a pinch. A couple of my friends in the church band play Christmas and Easter programs at other churches and get paid for it. Maybe I'll ask them about that. Right now I don't think I'm good enough to be hired as a professional, but maybe I could be if I practiced more.
Tonight there's an early Thanksgiving dinner with our Thursday night Bible study. It will be fun. I made another pumpkin pie for it, this one from a recipe in one of my new cookbooks. Oh, you know that Southern Living cookbook I was so excited about? It should be called the Weight Gain Cookbook. Seriously. I was reading it last night while Evan watched TV, and the recipes looked so good, but then I'd look at the ingredients and plotz. It was like, "Ooo, look at this shrimp linguine...Two cups of heavy cream?! One cup of butter?!?" It's like that Cooking Light Magazine, which always has something totally unhealthy on the cover, usually involving cheese and bacon. Meanies.
I could go on, but I need to work now. :)
The man who grows old with me.
Nov. 12th, 2004 02:09 pmI don't have much time to post, but I wanted to share that it's Evan's birthday! He's 25 today. Yay! Thanks, God, for bringing him into the world. :)
This weekend is action-packed. Tonight Evan and I are having our last real date as a non-married couple. In addition to being his birthday, today is also our 14-monthiversary. Not that we'd normally count that, but the coincidence is fun. Tomorrow is his bachelor party (i.e. a bunch of guys playing Halo 2 at Ashley's and consuming mass quantities of meat :)), and Sunday is my church bridal shower, which is my last bridal shower overall.
My other thoughts are wedding complaints you don't want to hear. I spent a full hour on the phone with the church wedding coordinator this morning and got several unpleasant surprises. There are so many rules at our church, I think it may have been better to get married in a field. And things will only get worse from here, planning-wise. To quoteAlissa, ::headexplodey::.
This weekend is action-packed. Tonight Evan and I are having our last real date as a non-married couple. In addition to being his birthday, today is also our 14-monthiversary. Not that we'd normally count that, but the coincidence is fun. Tomorrow is his bachelor party (i.e. a bunch of guys playing Halo 2 at Ashley's and consuming mass quantities of meat :)), and Sunday is my church bridal shower, which is my last bridal shower overall.
My other thoughts are wedding complaints you don't want to hear. I spent a full hour on the phone with the church wedding coordinator this morning and got several unpleasant surprises. There are so many rules at our church, I think it may have been better to get married in a field. And things will only get worse from here, planning-wise. To quote
Alissa, ::headexplodey::.We're a world away from where we started.
Nov. 10th, 2004 03:23 pmAt this point in wedding planning, it comes down to the annoying little things you keep forgetting about...like renting a column to uphold a flower arrangement, getting travelers checks, finding someone to handle the cleanup in the sanctuary. Then there are the annoying big things, like your fiance not packing up his home even though he'll be vacating it in seventeen days, and getting your marriage license, which we still can't do because we have to get our proof-of-counseling form notarized. The government makes it as hard as possible to get proof of counseling, because it means sixty less dollars for them. Every day my moments of panic get more frequent as I realize another thing I haven't done, and cannot get done when I'm at work all day. I have a floating holiday and I normally save it for Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve, but I'm thinking about taking it on Friday. There's too much to do, and it's really hard to concentrate on work when I have all this hanging over my head. I've already screwed something up today. It didn't affect anyone but me, but making mistakes after three years is not the way to impress your boss.
I'm re-reading L.M. Montgomery's Anne books, in order, which I don't think I've ever done. This means having to read Anne of Windy Poplars, which is almost universally acknowledged as the least entertaining book LMM ever wrote. I started it today, and it's pretty tolerable since it's been at least five years since I read it. If you're an Anne fan, which is your favorite and least favorite of the series? I can never decide what my favorite is. Evan makes fun of them. He took one from me the other day, opened it at random, and mocked, "She said 'prosy'!" Oh well. I think Tom Clancy is boring, and Evan's read his entire body of work. We can't agree on everything. :)
It's become hard to get through the day without indulging in a Diet Coke, which is kind of scary.
Hey, you can vote online for the People's Choice Awards. There are lots of good nominees. Do it. Do it now.
I'm re-reading L.M. Montgomery's Anne books, in order, which I don't think I've ever done. This means having to read Anne of Windy Poplars, which is almost universally acknowledged as the least entertaining book LMM ever wrote. I started it today, and it's pretty tolerable since it's been at least five years since I read it. If you're an Anne fan, which is your favorite and least favorite of the series? I can never decide what my favorite is. Evan makes fun of them. He took one from me the other day, opened it at random, and mocked, "She said 'prosy'!" Oh well. I think Tom Clancy is boring, and Evan's read his entire body of work. We can't agree on everything. :)
It's become hard to get through the day without indulging in a Diet Coke, which is kind of scary.
Hey, you can vote online for the People's Choice Awards. There are lots of good nominees. Do it. Do it now.
Caution: whining.
Nov. 8th, 2004 11:34 amSomeone in ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
weddingplans asked a question about Sandals, and the responses are making me nervous. According to some, Sandals is really mediocre, and Jamaica is experiencing political unrest and it's not even safe to leave the resort. Funny how the government websites didn't have any Jamaica travel warnings when I was looking up passport information. I'm not sure whether to believe these people, but I hope they don't know what they're talking about, since the whole thing is already paid for. Sigh.
I bought Evan his Xbox yesterday, for his birthday/wedding present, and he's so excited. I had been excited about making him happy, but as I was paying for it I felt depressed because, as someone told me, "Oh, he'll never pay attention to you again." Of course that's overdramatic, but I figured out by the end of the day that I actually felt threatened by the Xbox. Isn't that ridiculous? I mean, he won't feel threatened when the next Harry Potter book comes out and I'm immersed in that for a week or so. I have issues.
Evan worked all weekend, so I was on my own for a frustrating Saturday of wedding plans. I drove all over the Wolfchase area in search of rehearsal dinner invitations, which only one place had in the right quantity. I made many, many phone calls from my parents' dining room table. I felt like I used to feel when I was writing a particularly boring research paper...lots of sitting and staring into space. Debra called several times asking what we should do for my bachelorette party, and I didn't have any satisfactory ideas, so there's no telling how that will go. It wasn't a very happy day. Yesterday was better, though. After church I stayed in the apartment all day, determined to have a day of rest as God intended. I napped and read and watched some Friends Season 7 and tidied up. I even put the Crock-Pot in its proper place, having decided that I should take out a few wedding presents now to make it less overwhelming later. Most of my appliances are white now. It looks nice. Anyway, I thought I would feel refreshed after yesterday, but I don't.
Two good things, though: We painted the bathroom, so painting time is over. And Evan insisted that I change my disposable contacts, since I was over a month overdue for changing them (on purpose, because I want them to last as long as possible), and the headache I'd had for a week disappeared. He explained what actually happens when you don't change your contacts, and it was scary. I might be less stingy with them from now on.
If you think of it, please pray for Evan to find a better job. He had that interview at Ryan's company, but the guy still hasn't called him back. It would be really nice to get to spend weekends with him. For those of you who are separated often and/or long-term from your spouses, I don't know how you do it.
weddingplans asked a question about Sandals, and the responses are making me nervous. According to some, Sandals is really mediocre, and Jamaica is experiencing political unrest and it's not even safe to leave the resort. Funny how the government websites didn't have any Jamaica travel warnings when I was looking up passport information. I'm not sure whether to believe these people, but I hope they don't know what they're talking about, since the whole thing is already paid for. Sigh.I bought Evan his Xbox yesterday, for his birthday/wedding present, and he's so excited. I had been excited about making him happy, but as I was paying for it I felt depressed because, as someone told me, "Oh, he'll never pay attention to you again." Of course that's overdramatic, but I figured out by the end of the day that I actually felt threatened by the Xbox. Isn't that ridiculous? I mean, he won't feel threatened when the next Harry Potter book comes out and I'm immersed in that for a week or so. I have issues.
Evan worked all weekend, so I was on my own for a frustrating Saturday of wedding plans. I drove all over the Wolfchase area in search of rehearsal dinner invitations, which only one place had in the right quantity. I made many, many phone calls from my parents' dining room table. I felt like I used to feel when I was writing a particularly boring research paper...lots of sitting and staring into space. Debra called several times asking what we should do for my bachelorette party, and I didn't have any satisfactory ideas, so there's no telling how that will go. It wasn't a very happy day. Yesterday was better, though. After church I stayed in the apartment all day, determined to have a day of rest as God intended. I napped and read and watched some Friends Season 7 and tidied up. I even put the Crock-Pot in its proper place, having decided that I should take out a few wedding presents now to make it less overwhelming later. Most of my appliances are white now. It looks nice. Anyway, I thought I would feel refreshed after yesterday, but I don't.
Two good things, though: We painted the bathroom, so painting time is over. And Evan insisted that I change my disposable contacts, since I was over a month overdue for changing them (on purpose, because I want them to last as long as possible), and the headache I'd had for a week disappeared. He explained what actually happens when you don't change your contacts, and it was scary. I might be less stingy with them from now on.
If you think of it, please pray for Evan to find a better job. He had that interview at Ryan's company, but the guy still hasn't called him back. It would be really nice to get to spend weekends with him. For those of you who are separated often and/or long-term from your spouses, I don't know how you do it.
Proud to live in a red state.
Nov. 3rd, 2004 03:28 pmWell, that's over. :D
My mom told me this past weekend that Evan looks like Mark-Paul Gosselaar. In four years I have never noticed that, but it's kind of true. When I mentioned it to him, he says he hears that at least once a week at work. There's proof that you never stop learning about people. How a Screechette like me is getting to marry a studly Zack Morris like him is beyond my understanding. :) We have our second premarital counseling session tonight. He called earlier to ask me what time we were going to "therapy." LOL! Anyway, Robert asked us to prepare a monthly budget, which we did last night. It turned out better than I expected. The funniest part was, at first I only factored in one paycheck (I get paid biweekly) and was practically crying because we were broke before I even got to the grocery column. Then I realized what I had done. Boy, did life look better after that!
The pumpkin pie was a success. I used the recipe off the back of the Kroger canned pumpkin can - anyone have any other tried and true recipes? I'm already looking forward to having more tonight. Hey, it's full of vitamins and stuff.
At lunchtime I went to the mall to get some things for certain people in the wedding. :) I like buying fun presents. This weekend I need to find an Xbox for Evan - it's his combination birthday, wedding, and Christmas present. Oh, and Halo, because there's no point in him having the Xbox otherwise. He's so excited! His birthday is next week. I want to find something else for him as a surprise. He already knows about the other stuff. :)
I am officially addicted to Smallville. The other night they aired what I'm told was the season-one finale, with the tornado, and I just sat there stunned for five minutes after it was over. Oh well...I guess something needed to take the place of Friends.
My mom told me this past weekend that Evan looks like Mark-Paul Gosselaar. In four years I have never noticed that, but it's kind of true. When I mentioned it to him, he says he hears that at least once a week at work. There's proof that you never stop learning about people. How a Screechette like me is getting to marry a studly Zack Morris like him is beyond my understanding. :) We have our second premarital counseling session tonight. He called earlier to ask me what time we were going to "therapy." LOL! Anyway, Robert asked us to prepare a monthly budget, which we did last night. It turned out better than I expected. The funniest part was, at first I only factored in one paycheck (I get paid biweekly) and was practically crying because we were broke before I even got to the grocery column. Then I realized what I had done. Boy, did life look better after that!
The pumpkin pie was a success. I used the recipe off the back of the Kroger canned pumpkin can - anyone have any other tried and true recipes? I'm already looking forward to having more tonight. Hey, it's full of vitamins and stuff.
At lunchtime I went to the mall to get some things for certain people in the wedding. :) I like buying fun presents. This weekend I need to find an Xbox for Evan - it's his combination birthday, wedding, and Christmas present. Oh, and Halo, because there's no point in him having the Xbox otherwise. He's so excited! His birthday is next week. I want to find something else for him as a surprise. He already knows about the other stuff. :)
I am officially addicted to Smallville. The other night they aired what I'm told was the season-one finale, with the tornado, and I just sat there stunned for five minutes after it was over. Oh well...I guess something needed to take the place of Friends.
one more moon cycle
Oct. 27th, 2004 04:26 pmToday is my negative-one-monthiversary! Yay! :D
It occurred to me recently that my constant gushing about the wedding is a little insensitive, so I apologize if it upsets anyone. That's not my intention, obviously. I only get to have this time of my life once (Lord willing), and I can't help but be happy and excited. Plus, I think people prefer gushing to complaining, so for those of you who were around during my complaining years, this is your payback. :)
This morning I ordered our favors, got a final bill from the florist, and made a hair appointment (at last!). I've been thinking about my makeup for the wedding. Our Mary Kay lady is going to do my makeup for free, but I'm not sure I want her to anymore. When we did the trial run, I felt like a cross between Edward Scissorhands and a clown. I probably looked okay, but it was definitely more makeup than I'm used to. I thought it was the new products, but now that I've been applying them myself for two months, I can see that it's just her. I could ask her to be less heavy-handed on the wedding day, but she might not listen. I don't want to offend her - it is really nice of her to do this for free. What should I do?
My flute is fixed and ready for practice tonight. I e-mailed our band guy to let him know, and he sent a nice reply saying that he never worries about my playing. :) The church's paying for the repairs is such a huge blessing. It encourages me because I feel like it's God's way of saying that my playing means something to Him. Our tiny church band has two other flutes - we make up about a third of the band - and I've always felt kind of unnecessary. Now I know I'm not.
I don't know what to do with this new layout. Something just seems wrong about the colors and I don't have the eye to figure out what should be done. Jessica, any advice?
It occurred to me recently that my constant gushing about the wedding is a little insensitive, so I apologize if it upsets anyone. That's not my intention, obviously. I only get to have this time of my life once (Lord willing), and I can't help but be happy and excited. Plus, I think people prefer gushing to complaining, so for those of you who were around during my complaining years, this is your payback. :)
This morning I ordered our favors, got a final bill from the florist, and made a hair appointment (at last!). I've been thinking about my makeup for the wedding. Our Mary Kay lady is going to do my makeup for free, but I'm not sure I want her to anymore. When we did the trial run, I felt like a cross between Edward Scissorhands and a clown. I probably looked okay, but it was definitely more makeup than I'm used to. I thought it was the new products, but now that I've been applying them myself for two months, I can see that it's just her. I could ask her to be less heavy-handed on the wedding day, but she might not listen. I don't want to offend her - it is really nice of her to do this for free. What should I do?
My flute is fixed and ready for practice tonight. I e-mailed our band guy to let him know, and he sent a nice reply saying that he never worries about my playing. :) The church's paying for the repairs is such a huge blessing. It encourages me because I feel like it's God's way of saying that my playing means something to Him. Our tiny church band has two other flutes - we make up about a third of the band - and I've always felt kind of unnecessary. Now I know I'm not.
I don't know what to do with this new layout. Something just seems wrong about the colors and I don't have the eye to figure out what should be done. Jessica, any advice?
Work has been insane this week. It's good to be busy, but sheesh. If I disappear from LJ for days in the near future, don't be concerned. I'm probably just whirling around in a tornado of folders, staples, and database reports.
A lot is on my mind lately. I want to talk about it but can't seem to find the right words. Mostly, I'm overwhelmed with disgust at the way I'm never totally content. God provides for all my needs. I have such a happy life, yet, like Ariel, I want mooooore. I feel dissatisfied with my work, my stuff, my attitude, my status in life. Then people help me out and I feel horribly guilty, because I don't deserve it. I can't believe how selfish and whiny I am sometimes. Evan is wonderful because he not only loves me in spite of all this, but he also shares in my occasional worthless feelings. He joked that they're the emotions of a good Presbyterian. I told him "good Presbyterian" was an oxymoron. :) I love that we talk about that kind of stuff. Anyway, some people don't love me in spite of my annoyingness, and that upsets me and leads to all sorts of other worthless feelings. Please, please don't comment to say that I'm not annoying, because that will only make me feel worse. I'm just sharing.
We got some wedding cake samples from the lady at the country club. One of them was out of this world. It's vanilla with strawberries, which is (similar to) what we requested. The decision on that one was unanimous. Evan wasn't as thrilled with his chocolate cake, but that's because it had a layer of lemon cake, and the combination tasted funny. I'll just ask her to leave the lemon out. Anyway, she said the design I wanted shouldn't be a problem. Yay!
I'm going to Nashville this weekend to see Debra, but I'm not leaving until tomorrow morning. Once I left right after work on Friday, by myself, and by the time I got there I was too exhausted to do anything. Lonely three-hour drives are better in the daytime. I need to load up on good tunes to keep myself occupied.
( Survey from Jessica. )
A lot is on my mind lately. I want to talk about it but can't seem to find the right words. Mostly, I'm overwhelmed with disgust at the way I'm never totally content. God provides for all my needs. I have such a happy life, yet, like Ariel, I want mooooore. I feel dissatisfied with my work, my stuff, my attitude, my status in life. Then people help me out and I feel horribly guilty, because I don't deserve it. I can't believe how selfish and whiny I am sometimes. Evan is wonderful because he not only loves me in spite of all this, but he also shares in my occasional worthless feelings. He joked that they're the emotions of a good Presbyterian. I told him "good Presbyterian" was an oxymoron. :) I love that we talk about that kind of stuff. Anyway, some people don't love me in spite of my annoyingness, and that upsets me and leads to all sorts of other worthless feelings. Please, please don't comment to say that I'm not annoying, because that will only make me feel worse. I'm just sharing.
We got some wedding cake samples from the lady at the country club. One of them was out of this world. It's vanilla with strawberries, which is (similar to) what we requested. The decision on that one was unanimous. Evan wasn't as thrilled with his chocolate cake, but that's because it had a layer of lemon cake, and the combination tasted funny. I'll just ask her to leave the lemon out. Anyway, she said the design I wanted shouldn't be a problem. Yay!
I'm going to Nashville this weekend to see Debra, but I'm not leaving until tomorrow morning. Once I left right after work on Friday, by myself, and by the time I got there I was too exhausted to do anything. Lonely three-hour drives are better in the daytime. I need to load up on good tunes to keep myself occupied.
( Survey from Jessica. )
moving right along
Oct. 7th, 2004 02:30 pmOur premarital counseling went well last night. We went over aspects of the ceremony and a few items from the surveys we filled out. We're going to have two more meetings before the wedding, and the next one will be about finances. Robert asked us to have a realistic budget ready for discussion. This is a good idea and shouldn't be too hard, since we have the Crown Financial Study workbook from our Sunday school class. Anyway, Robert is very encouraging and excited about the wedding, so we both felt really good when we left. When we got home, there was a stack of CDs by the door...Kathy had dropped off our wedding slideshow. Her mom does these Powerpoint DVD slide shows with photos, music and special effects. I was really impressed with the result. It even had a menu! :) So now I have it for the shower on Saturday.
Yeah, I don't think I've mentioned here that my traditional bridal shower is on Saturday. We scheduled it during Debra's fall break so she wouldn't be too overwhelmed. It'll be fun! I'm excited. I keep thinking it's tomorrow, though, because it sort of feels like Friday. (I'll never get my days of the week straight.) Unfortunately, I realized a little while ago that I have nothing to wear to my own bridal shower. Clothes frustrate me sometimes. Like today, I'm wearing an outfit that looked cute in my head, but in reality it's ill-fitting, itchy, and too hot (what happened to our nice fall temperatures?). I want to look like the girl from the Old Navy office commercial. You know, the one with the blazer, lacy tank top, and pants from this page. So cute.
My sister, who has joined the journal world on Xanga (it's more popular at her school than LJ), has asked me to make an announcement here. :) She just got accepted to go on a two-week mission trip to the Ukraine next year. As a fundraiser they're selling candles, and she gets half of the profits. I told her I'd spread the word among my LJ friends who like candles. Go say hello and get info if you're so inclined. :)
Time to get some actual office work done.
Yeah, I don't think I've mentioned here that my traditional bridal shower is on Saturday. We scheduled it during Debra's fall break so she wouldn't be too overwhelmed. It'll be fun! I'm excited. I keep thinking it's tomorrow, though, because it sort of feels like Friday. (I'll never get my days of the week straight.) Unfortunately, I realized a little while ago that I have nothing to wear to my own bridal shower. Clothes frustrate me sometimes. Like today, I'm wearing an outfit that looked cute in my head, but in reality it's ill-fitting, itchy, and too hot (what happened to our nice fall temperatures?). I want to look like the girl from the Old Navy office commercial. You know, the one with the blazer, lacy tank top, and pants from this page. So cute.
My sister, who has joined the journal world on Xanga (it's more popular at her school than LJ), has asked me to make an announcement here. :) She just got accepted to go on a two-week mission trip to the Ukraine next year. As a fundraiser they're selling candles, and she gets half of the profits. I told her I'd spread the word among my LJ friends who like candles. Go say hello and get info if you're so inclined. :)
Time to get some actual office work done.
everything that I wanted
Oct. 6th, 2004 02:32 pmHappy birthday, Maria! I hope it's been a good day!
For the first time in months, I did some scrapbooking last night. I've really been in the mood to create something, so it felt good to cut and paste. :) I worked on my book of me and Evan from meeting to engagement. If I finish it by the wedding, maybe we can display it on a table at the reception! I'd like to get more done on it tonight, but that's not going to happen. We're having our first pre-marital counseling session. I'm looking forward to it and am curious about what we're going to do. Robert said to bring our Bibles, which is a good sign. :)
Changes are coming closer at work. The managers are still interviewing for the two extra coordinator positions. We decided this morning how everyone will be arranged, office-space wise. I'm going to move two cubicles down to be closer to one of my bosses, since it looks like I won't be working for the other one once the new people come (right now I support two people). No one has told me anything for sure, but that's what I suspected anyway. It'll be weird to be in a new cubicle, but after three years, a change of scenery might be nice. I'm just afraid I won't be busy enough once my workload is cut in half. I hate to sit around looking bored (I say as I type an LJ entry).
Bad censorship: One of our radio stations that plays Avril Lavigne's song "My Happy Ending" edits the language so that one of the lines says, "All the fish that you do." It cracks me up. That's like when they edit action movies on TV so that the characters say totally nonsensical things, like "I'm gonna kick your pie."
( What color am I? )
Maria! I hope it's been a good day!For the first time in months, I did some scrapbooking last night. I've really been in the mood to create something, so it felt good to cut and paste. :) I worked on my book of me and Evan from meeting to engagement. If I finish it by the wedding, maybe we can display it on a table at the reception! I'd like to get more done on it tonight, but that's not going to happen. We're having our first pre-marital counseling session. I'm looking forward to it and am curious about what we're going to do. Robert said to bring our Bibles, which is a good sign. :)
Changes are coming closer at work. The managers are still interviewing for the two extra coordinator positions. We decided this morning how everyone will be arranged, office-space wise. I'm going to move two cubicles down to be closer to one of my bosses, since it looks like I won't be working for the other one once the new people come (right now I support two people). No one has told me anything for sure, but that's what I suspected anyway. It'll be weird to be in a new cubicle, but after three years, a change of scenery might be nice. I'm just afraid I won't be busy enough once my workload is cut in half. I hate to sit around looking bored (I say as I type an LJ entry).
Bad censorship: One of our radio stations that plays Avril Lavigne's song "My Happy Ending" edits the language so that one of the lines says, "All the fish that you do." It cracks me up. That's like when they edit action movies on TV so that the characters say totally nonsensical things, like "I'm gonna kick your pie."
( What color am I? )
get this party started
Oct. 1st, 2004 10:34 amYay Friday! This is a good day. It's a free jeans day at work, and I have a sweater, so I'm comfortable here in the meat locker. We're having a free barbecue lunch to celebrate the end of Diversity Week (hey - it means free barbecue!). Then, we're having my work bridal shower this afternoon! It'll be my first bridal shower. I'm very excited. I wish Evan could have come, but even though he asked for today off work, they scheduled him anyway. More proof of how nice and caring his work is: his co-worker's wife had a baby on Wednesday, and on Thursday the guy had to work a double shift. Lovely.
Anyway, this icon is a picture of our china pattern. We're getting the blue plates. It's Noritake.
Tonight I'm hanging out with my mom and we're going to work on my dress! She just called to say she's making baked potatoes for dinner, with mushrooms and onions. I can look forward to that all day. :) Also, I can eat a little more freely for a while, because I got weighed yesterday and I weigh half a pound (hey, no laughing!) under my personal ideal weight. I've been nervous because I thought I was several pounds over it. Never trust a scale off the shelf at Sears.
I've been thinking lately how good it is to be disciplined in certain areas, because then when you don't have to be disciplined, it's so much better. I wouldn't enjoy a hamburger as much if I didn't have to pass it up for salad all the time. I wouldn't enjoy not exercising in favor of sleeping more (which is what I've done all week :P) if I didn't make myself do aerobics all the time. My motivations may not be right, but the end result is the same. :)
My mom got eight RSVPs yesterday. I hope they keep coming! The sooner we know what's going on, the better. Unfortunately, we're having a problem now with single friends (who aren't dating anyone) wanting to bring dates. I'm sure it's uncouth to not do "and guest," but the room can't hold that many people. Plus, all our friends are already going to be there! What more do people want? Now I have to make some calls and explain that if it's just their name on the invitation, then they're the only one invited. It seems like common sense. Maybe I should have used the bridezilla icon for this entry. :( Sometimes I feel like all the wedding is accomplishing is making me seem like an insensitive jerk.
Sorry for all the wedding talk. I hope everyone has a good weekend!
Anyway, this icon is a picture of our china pattern. We're getting the blue plates. It's Noritake.
Tonight I'm hanging out with my mom and we're going to work on my dress! She just called to say she's making baked potatoes for dinner, with mushrooms and onions. I can look forward to that all day. :) Also, I can eat a little more freely for a while, because I got weighed yesterday and I weigh half a pound (hey, no laughing!) under my personal ideal weight. I've been nervous because I thought I was several pounds over it. Never trust a scale off the shelf at Sears.
I've been thinking lately how good it is to be disciplined in certain areas, because then when you don't have to be disciplined, it's so much better. I wouldn't enjoy a hamburger as much if I didn't have to pass it up for salad all the time. I wouldn't enjoy not exercising in favor of sleeping more (which is what I've done all week :P) if I didn't make myself do aerobics all the time. My motivations may not be right, but the end result is the same. :)
My mom got eight RSVPs yesterday. I hope they keep coming! The sooner we know what's going on, the better. Unfortunately, we're having a problem now with single friends (who aren't dating anyone) wanting to bring dates. I'm sure it's uncouth to not do "and guest," but the room can't hold that many people. Plus, all our friends are already going to be there! What more do people want? Now I have to make some calls and explain that if it's just their name on the invitation, then they're the only one invited. It seems like common sense. Maybe I should have used the bridezilla icon for this entry. :( Sometimes I feel like all the wedding is accomplishing is making me seem like an insensitive jerk.
Sorry for all the wedding talk. I hope everyone has a good weekend!
70 days to go
Sep. 20th, 2004 10:25 amA new week, a new lease on life. :) Thanks, everyone, for your encouragement last week. This weekend was very productive, and I'm feeling a lot more sane. We were able to print the wedding invitations (and response cards and return envelopes) ourselves after all, thanks to my dad's knowledge of Microsoft Publisher. On Saturday, I had Debra and Ryan running the printer while Kathy, my mom, and I addressed envelopes. I was surprised and very glad that Kathy came to help. It was the most time I've spent with her since her wedding! Yesterday, Evan and I went back to my parents', where I finished the addressing. Then he and I and my mom sorted, stuffed, and stamped. I was short a few invitations, so as soon as my new box arrives, I can do those and be all ready to send them this coming weekend. What a load off my mind. Thanks, God, for working that out! He is good.
We also had our tasting on Saturday and set the menu. I'm sure you're dying to know, so: we're having beef tenderloin and roasted chicken, with salad, green beans almondine, and new potatoes. The new potatoes are deee-lish. We were supposed to taste cake, but they didn't have one ready, so I'm going back later this week for a to-go box of sample cake. I spent ten minutes describing the filling of Kathy's wedding cake, which is what I really want. My dad, however, keeps pushing for vanilla cake with vanilla filling. How exciting and original. :P
My mom and I also went to Garden Ridge and bought the wedding bubbles, and some fake cranberry stalks (?) for decoration. Our accent color is a dark red, and at a wedding I went to last December, the table centerpieces were glass bowls full of water, with cranberries floating in it. It was really pretty. I decided to use the idea, so now we have sort of a cranberry theme going. I guess it's appropriate for a Thanksgiving weekend. :)
In non-wedding news, I might have to see Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. When I first heard about it, I thought it had to be the worst movie idea since Waterworld (really - Angelina Jolie with an eye patch?!?), but all the reviews are great. Also, I saw Gwyneth Paltrow on the Daily Show last week, and she said she and Jude Law filmed the entire movie in front of a blue screen. So the actors are basically the only real parts of the film. Crazy!
Tonight Evan and I are starting dance lessons. I'll let you know how it goes.
I missJessica.
( Fun ABC survey from Kimma )
We also had our tasting on Saturday and set the menu. I'm sure you're dying to know, so: we're having beef tenderloin and roasted chicken, with salad, green beans almondine, and new potatoes. The new potatoes are deee-lish. We were supposed to taste cake, but they didn't have one ready, so I'm going back later this week for a to-go box of sample cake. I spent ten minutes describing the filling of Kathy's wedding cake, which is what I really want. My dad, however, keeps pushing for vanilla cake with vanilla filling. How exciting and original. :P
My mom and I also went to Garden Ridge and bought the wedding bubbles, and some fake cranberry stalks (?) for decoration. Our accent color is a dark red, and at a wedding I went to last December, the table centerpieces were glass bowls full of water, with cranberries floating in it. It was really pretty. I decided to use the idea, so now we have sort of a cranberry theme going. I guess it's appropriate for a Thanksgiving weekend. :)
In non-wedding news, I might have to see Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. When I first heard about it, I thought it had to be the worst movie idea since Waterworld (really - Angelina Jolie with an eye patch?!?), but all the reviews are great. Also, I saw Gwyneth Paltrow on the Daily Show last week, and she said she and Jude Law filmed the entire movie in front of a blue screen. So the actors are basically the only real parts of the film. Crazy!
Tonight Evan and I are starting dance lessons. I'll let you know how it goes.
I miss
Jessica.( Fun ABC survey from Kimma )
had a bad day again
Sep. 17th, 2004 01:22 pmToday is not going well at all. I started the day with a voicemail from a girl I've mentioned in passing before. She was in RUF with me for years, and I can't even begin to describe her, except that she's destructive and melodramatic, yet thinks everyone loves her. Last night at Bible study, I was talking about bridesmaid stuff with Alli, and this girl got quiet. When I got to work, she had left me a message saying that she was hurt that Alli was in the wedding and not her, because she and I are "so much closer". She said she felt she deserved an explanation or an apology! ?!?!!! The audacity. I was speechless. All I could do was let out a squeak that made my co-workers ask what was wrong. I still haven't responded. I'm tempted to ignore her completely and let her draw her own conclusions. Good grief.
Later, my mom called to suggest that we have the invitations printed at Kinko's tomorrow. I was completely relieved at the thought of not having to print them all myself, but when I went there to get a quote, they told me they can't do wedding invitations that aren't the size of a piece of paper. ??? When was the last time one of you got an 8.5" x 11" wedding invitation? Anyway, I went down the street to a real printer and got a quote from them. It's definitely more expensive than doing it myself, but my parents are going to discuss it. The lady said if I drop them off Monday, I'll have them on Friday. Then I can spent Friday night and Saturday addressing envelopes by myself, and mail them before going toRobin's wedding, which will be eight weeks from our wedding, still. But it's definitely not ideal. I am so, so mad at myself. I must be the stupidest bride in the world. How did I think I was going to print 160 invitations myself? And I might still be doing that. Why didn't I plan for this sooner? I'm sick and tired of worrying about wedding etiquette and what everyone is going to think or say. If people want to judge me based on the quality of my wedding stuff, that's their problem. There are MUCH more important things in the world, and I'd really like to get back to thinking about those things, instead of wasting two hours worrying about the appropriateness of return address labels. No wonder I feel so small-minded lately.
Meanwhile, at work, we're proofing things for the new database system. Proofing is awful. I have done ten items so far and I already want to tear my hair out. There's a bridal shower for my friend Cortney this afternoon, so that should brighten things up. Except that just now, someone asked me whether I had booked the right conference room, and I thought I hadn't and almost started crying. Thankfully, it was okay. Nice to know I did something right today. :P
If you read all that, you get a gold star. I'm sorry for being such a whiner. I do feel better now, though.
Later, my mom called to suggest that we have the invitations printed at Kinko's tomorrow. I was completely relieved at the thought of not having to print them all myself, but when I went there to get a quote, they told me they can't do wedding invitations that aren't the size of a piece of paper. ??? When was the last time one of you got an 8.5" x 11" wedding invitation? Anyway, I went down the street to a real printer and got a quote from them. It's definitely more expensive than doing it myself, but my parents are going to discuss it. The lady said if I drop them off Monday, I'll have them on Friday. Then I can spent Friday night and Saturday addressing envelopes by myself, and mail them before going to
Robin's wedding, which will be eight weeks from our wedding, still. But it's definitely not ideal. I am so, so mad at myself. I must be the stupidest bride in the world. How did I think I was going to print 160 invitations myself? And I might still be doing that. Why didn't I plan for this sooner? I'm sick and tired of worrying about wedding etiquette and what everyone is going to think or say. If people want to judge me based on the quality of my wedding stuff, that's their problem. There are MUCH more important things in the world, and I'd really like to get back to thinking about those things, instead of wasting two hours worrying about the appropriateness of return address labels. No wonder I feel so small-minded lately.Meanwhile, at work, we're proofing things for the new database system. Proofing is awful. I have done ten items so far and I already want to tear my hair out. There's a bridal shower for my friend Cortney this afternoon, so that should brighten things up. Except that just now, someone asked me whether I had booked the right conference room, and I thought I hadn't and almost started crying. Thankfully, it was okay. Nice to know I did something right today. :P
If you read all that, you get a gold star. I'm sorry for being such a whiner. I do feel better now, though.
a weird entry
Sep. 16th, 2004 03:46 pmHi. Earlier, I was panicking about wedding things, but I talked to my mom and now I feel better. It just gets overwhelming. I'm so thankful for my family. Most of the bridal party is busy, so it's basically me and my family doing everything. Evan hasn't been able to help much, either, since they schedule him to close the store all the time. He can't even go to our dinner/cake tasting on Saturday. :( We're shooting for printing and assembling all the invitations after the tasting, to be sent out next Saturday, but who knows if that'll be possible. As for the flowers, we still haven't decided whether to sign Libby or keep looking. We have decided to save by using (nice) fake flowers for all the decorations, which means that my mom and I will soon be buying and making 123898 fake flower arrangements. Yay.
Sometimes I'm ecstatic about being a bride. Sometimes I want to elope. It fluctuates every half hour or so. Lately I'm really frustrated with myself. I'm so oversensitive and selfish and wedding-absorbed. I'm almost always tired and sore. I don't exercise every day, which I need to be doing since I've apparently gained a few pounds. A lot of the planning is fun, but I anticipate it as work because it's just one more thing to do. When will I learn not to stress out? My faith is like a mustard seed.
Tonight a new Bible study is starting at IPC. It's about Christianity and popular culture. I love those kinds of studies. Which reminds me, I need to tape Joey. Who watched it last week? It was okay. It just seems weird to watch Joey without all the others.
Sometimes I'm ecstatic about being a bride. Sometimes I want to elope. It fluctuates every half hour or so. Lately I'm really frustrated with myself. I'm so oversensitive and selfish and wedding-absorbed. I'm almost always tired and sore. I don't exercise every day, which I need to be doing since I've apparently gained a few pounds. A lot of the planning is fun, but I anticipate it as work because it's just one more thing to do. When will I learn not to stress out? My faith is like a mustard seed.
Tonight a new Bible study is starting at IPC. It's about Christianity and popular culture. I love those kinds of studies. Which reminds me, I need to tape Joey. Who watched it last week? It was okay. It just seems weird to watch Joey without all the others.
mixed emotions
Sep. 10th, 2004 02:29 pmThe good thing about business meetings is that when they're over, you really appreciate having a whole day to get things done. It's much more relaxing. I need relaxation, because things keep getting me down today. Some are serious and some are stupid:
- Kathy called last night to tell me that the lady who does all her sewing (and altered my dress for MaryElaine's wedding) died suddenly on Wednesday of a massive heart attack. She was in her early fifties and in great health. This is the second such death I've heard of in the last month or so, and it makes me really nervous. It's shocking to be reminded that you are not too young to lose your parents. :(
- My department is hiring two more coordinators. Since the job posted, I've had several people come over and ask me if I'm leaving. :P With the new people, there will be equal numbers of coordinators and managers, which probably means that I won't be working for one of my bosses anymore. Will I be assigned? Will I have to choose? I don't know which is worse. I'm finally busy, comfortable, and content in my job, and I don't like this at all.
- Wedding planning is driving me crazy. The main goal of this month is to send the invitations, but that requires setting the menu for the reception. I have to figure out the whole flower situation (and probably make a million fake arrangements). I have to finish organizing the wedding slide show and burn it onto a CD for Kathy's mom. I have to figure out how we're going to get rid of all our excess furniture. Oh, and also, Hurricane Ivan is about to tear up our honeymoon location.
- I'm very worried about my Floridian friends and family.
- I'm in such bad shape. Evan and I ran a little on Wednesday night, and then I walked last night even though I was sore. Today my legs hurt. A Lot.
- I just heard that there's a free Tigers party tonight at Newby's and they're giving away 50 pairs of season tickets. Then Jump Little Children is giving a concert! But I'm already committed to going to another party tonight, and I have to go alone because Evan is working late. Also, I'm not going to the game tomorrow - I'm going with Ryan, Luke, and Myla to Goat Days. Don't get me wrong, I'm really pumped about Goat Days (there will be pictures later to help explain why), but I'm sad about missing the game. I feel like so much is going on this fall, and I'm totally missing it.
To make up for all this whining, here are two good things:
- Sunday is Evan's and my anniversary. One year ago, he unexpectedly held my hand on the couch, and in 79 days he'll be holding my hand at the altar. :)
- God is in control. All the time.
- Kathy called last night to tell me that the lady who does all her sewing (and altered my dress for MaryElaine's wedding) died suddenly on Wednesday of a massive heart attack. She was in her early fifties and in great health. This is the second such death I've heard of in the last month or so, and it makes me really nervous. It's shocking to be reminded that you are not too young to lose your parents. :(
- My department is hiring two more coordinators. Since the job posted, I've had several people come over and ask me if I'm leaving. :P With the new people, there will be equal numbers of coordinators and managers, which probably means that I won't be working for one of my bosses anymore. Will I be assigned? Will I have to choose? I don't know which is worse. I'm finally busy, comfortable, and content in my job, and I don't like this at all.
- Wedding planning is driving me crazy. The main goal of this month is to send the invitations, but that requires setting the menu for the reception. I have to figure out the whole flower situation (and probably make a million fake arrangements). I have to finish organizing the wedding slide show and burn it onto a CD for Kathy's mom. I have to figure out how we're going to get rid of all our excess furniture. Oh, and also, Hurricane Ivan is about to tear up our honeymoon location.
- I'm very worried about my Floridian friends and family.
- I'm in such bad shape. Evan and I ran a little on Wednesday night, and then I walked last night even though I was sore. Today my legs hurt. A Lot.
- I just heard that there's a free Tigers party tonight at Newby's and they're giving away 50 pairs of season tickets. Then Jump Little Children is giving a concert! But I'm already committed to going to another party tonight, and I have to go alone because Evan is working late. Also, I'm not going to the game tomorrow - I'm going with Ryan, Luke, and Myla to Goat Days. Don't get me wrong, I'm really pumped about Goat Days (there will be pictures later to help explain why), but I'm sad about missing the game. I feel like so much is going on this fall, and I'm totally missing it.
To make up for all this whining, here are two good things:
- Sunday is Evan's and my anniversary. One year ago, he unexpectedly held my hand on the couch, and in 79 days he'll be holding my hand at the altar. :)
- God is in control. All the time.
marking time
Sep. 7th, 2004 02:04 pmHappy birthday to my cat Gandalf, who is two years old today. I'm planning to give him an extra cat treat. :) Today is also my three-year anniversary at work, for which God gets all the praise. I was hired the day after Labor Day, 2001, exactly one week before 9/11. After the attacks my mother was convinced I would get laid off - last one in, first one out. At another company it might have happened, but I'm still here. Yay God.
This weekend was good. My mom and I met with the florist and really liked her. She just sent me a quote and it's a little high, but I'm going to discuss it with my dad. (Hey, recently married people, any advice on what's average as far as flower costs?) Evan and I went to see Garden State and were impressed. There's plenty of language and not-good stuff, but the overall plot was interesting and managed to be funny, thoughtful, and touching at the same time. The only place it was playing was Studio on the Square, where all the artsy films go, so we saw a bunch of previews for other artsy movies, and now we want to see those too. There's one coming out about a club of existentialists. It looks hilarious.
Saturday was relaxing, and then in the evening Evan, Myla, my old high school friend Kristin, and I went to Wang's for dinner. Then we came back to the apartment and watched Beauty and the Beast. This meant we didn't listen to our football game, which was a shame because the Tigers beat Ole Miss for the second year in a row! This is going to be an awesome season. GO TIGERS GO! (Sorry, Danielle!) On Sunday we took care of some registry stuff and looked at wedding bands. We went to Gordon's, where the people are much nicer, and we'll probably go back and make our purchases there. They had a diamond band for me that was MUCH cheaper than the one at Kay. :) Later we went out to Luke and Myla's and spent a happy night eating and watching Brother Bear. It was Ryan's choice and I actually liked it, but seriously, what does it say about us that we watch so many Disney films? Don't answer that. Anyway, I was glad to have so much friend-time.
Yesterday was Kathy's birthday, so I went to her party at her parents' house. Then I went to my parents'. They're in the process of a massive remodeling and were painting the living room. Unfortunately, my dad doesn't like the new decor, so the atmosphere there wasn't so great. I tried to leave, but that only made them madder, so I ended up lying low until the painting was done. Personally, I think the new colors are awesome. They're using the exact shade of sage green that Evan and I want for our kitchen and bathroom. We're going to paint in October when it's cool enough to open the windows. I can't wait to make the apartment look nicer.
I've mentioned this before, but my work building is also being remodeled. For about a week now they've been doing stuff on the roof. They have an actual truck up there, and they keep driving it back and forth right over our heads. The ceiling visibly bounces every time. Last month, they were working under us on the first floor and kept jamming stuff into the ceiling/floor, so it felt and sounded like we were about to get stabbed from below. I feel so safe. :P Oh, and this week I probably won't be on LJ as much. I have all-day meetings tomorrow and Thursday for training on our new database. So don't fear that the truck has fallen on me.
This weekend was good. My mom and I met with the florist and really liked her. She just sent me a quote and it's a little high, but I'm going to discuss it with my dad. (Hey, recently married people, any advice on what's average as far as flower costs?) Evan and I went to see Garden State and were impressed. There's plenty of language and not-good stuff, but the overall plot was interesting and managed to be funny, thoughtful, and touching at the same time. The only place it was playing was Studio on the Square, where all the artsy films go, so we saw a bunch of previews for other artsy movies, and now we want to see those too. There's one coming out about a club of existentialists. It looks hilarious.
Saturday was relaxing, and then in the evening Evan, Myla, my old high school friend Kristin, and I went to Wang's for dinner. Then we came back to the apartment and watched Beauty and the Beast. This meant we didn't listen to our football game, which was a shame because the Tigers beat Ole Miss for the second year in a row! This is going to be an awesome season. GO TIGERS GO! (Sorry, Danielle!) On Sunday we took care of some registry stuff and looked at wedding bands. We went to Gordon's, where the people are much nicer, and we'll probably go back and make our purchases there. They had a diamond band for me that was MUCH cheaper than the one at Kay. :) Later we went out to Luke and Myla's and spent a happy night eating and watching Brother Bear. It was Ryan's choice and I actually liked it, but seriously, what does it say about us that we watch so many Disney films? Don't answer that. Anyway, I was glad to have so much friend-time.
Yesterday was Kathy's birthday, so I went to her party at her parents' house. Then I went to my parents'. They're in the process of a massive remodeling and were painting the living room. Unfortunately, my dad doesn't like the new decor, so the atmosphere there wasn't so great. I tried to leave, but that only made them madder, so I ended up lying low until the painting was done. Personally, I think the new colors are awesome. They're using the exact shade of sage green that Evan and I want for our kitchen and bathroom. We're going to paint in October when it's cool enough to open the windows. I can't wait to make the apartment look nicer.
I've mentioned this before, but my work building is also being remodeled. For about a week now they've been doing stuff on the roof. They have an actual truck up there, and they keep driving it back and forth right over our heads. The ceiling visibly bounces every time. Last month, they were working under us on the first floor and kept jamming stuff into the ceiling/floor, so it felt and sounded like we were about to get stabbed from below. I feel so safe. :P Oh, and this week I probably won't be on LJ as much. I have all-day meetings tomorrow and Thursday for training on our new database. So don't fear that the truck has fallen on me.
I am strong when I am on your shoulders.
Aug. 19th, 2004 02:17 pm
100 DAYS! Yes, tomorrow we'll be in double digits. I can't believe it. I'm so excited, but sometimes when I think about how soon that is, I get a little freaked out. In a good way, but still. The other day I looked at Evan and said, "You know, it's going to be weird living with you." I mean, what do I know about living with a guy? I moved out of my family's house when my brother was fourteen, so that doesn't count. It'll be an experience. At the same time, it'll be nice to have a tough guy around. Last night I had a horrible encounter with a roach, and Evan stepped right in and took care of it. When I was too freaked later to even go into the kitchen to wash dishes, he did it for me. My hero. :)
I fell in love with a cake yesterday. I'm going to give the picture to the country club and see if they can make it. I showed it to Evan and he went nuts over it, which confirms that it's no ordinary cake- guys don't normally notice pastry aesthetics. :) Also, tonight my wedding makeup artist (aka the Mary Kay lady whom my sister babysits for) is going to do a trial run. It should be really fun. Yay!
I'm leaving for New Hampshire the day after tomorrow [/ominous Day After Tomorrow voice] and I haven't even started packing yet. I've been told to bring layers. New Englanders, will I be too hot in jeans? Please advise.
Wasn't the men's gymnastics last night amazing? I LOVE the Olympics. I love the pageantry and the teamwork and the pride of the winners. It reminds me of my band competition victories in high school (but, of course, on a much larger scale). I'm such a sap about that kind of stuff. Every night when they play clips of medal ceremonies over that Josh Groban song, I get all choked up. :) Anyway, Evan and I got into an interesting discussion about it and I thought it might be good for discussion: If you won an Olympic medal, would you rather win it alone, or as part of a team? Why or why not?
