MARRIED

Since I was a little girl (well really all of my life), I've dreamed of my wedding day: the colors, the flowers, the dress, the veil, the groom, all of it...

On December 12th, 2009, all those dreams were surpassed by the reality of my wedding. All the planning, all the stressing, all the worrying completely fell to the wayside when I woke up that morning. I was calm, relaxed, excited, ready. It was so perfect. Perfect seems like such a cliche word, but it really was. There were flaws of course, but somehow those things barely register in my mind. The whole day, sharing it with Brad, was a gift from God, and I'm so grateful for that blessing.

The ceremony was very old world traditional, my dress was gorgeous, the bridal party was a blast to celebrate with, the reception was so fun, the photography... AMAZING, the flowers were so elegant, and my cakes were very nearly the highlight of my day (besides being Mrs. Brad Williams!)

There aren't enough words to describe my love for the day and its something I'll always cherish.

8 Freaking Days!

Soo I've made quite a bit of headway on all the planning.

The programs have been ordered. I bought brad's wedding band. I made the additions to the floral order. We have our marriage license. Well we've had that for a few weeks but I think i forgot to mention it. I made nail appts even though I forgot to make one for my mom but she decided to later on. So i still need to do that. I need to help tammy finish everything for the centerpieces.

On wednesday we're going to do all the decorating and I can't believe how fast this is coming up. I pick up my dress on monday I think, but caleb is supposed to be coming some time this week to check out places for pics so I need to find out when for sure he's doing that so I can see if I change my dress pick up date to like tuesday or something since I have a meeting on monday at work. Not a big deal though. I also have to remember to find a cake stand for my cake.

I'm ready. :) I'm trying to just sit back, take it all in, and enjoy it. It's been such an amazing time, although at times stressful and I'm trying not to lose sight of what a special, treasured time this is.

12 DAYS!

OMG! :)

CAN NOT believe it! 12 days?? REallY? Insane! Amazing, though!

Can you tell I'm a little all over the board on this one?

I've gotten quite a bit done. I paid the cake lady and made all those final decisions, so thats ready to go. We met with and paid the photographer (most of the payment anyways). I finalized most of the flower order. I need to add a corsage and add the alter flowers in memory of the grandparents. Brad finalized the alcohol order with Charlie.

So, tomorrow I'm ordering the programs and possibly tags for the bells from Stones and then calling Denise and making those additions for the flowers. I also have to remember to get Brad's wedding band and call and make nail appointments. Geesh. Just when I think I'm making headway and can see the surface, more things come up and start to suffocate me! Lol Oh well.

Its only 12 days away and then all the planning will be DONE!

I'll also be married then. Which is so exciting though, don't get me wrong. It's also a little sad though. Its the end (and beginning) of an era and I have mixed emotions about that.

I hope I'm not forgetting anything. I have nightmares about that!

Words to Live By

I know you're probably so sick of Wedding. I can't help it. It's all thats going on in my life right now, other than work, and we're not allowed to blog, facebook, tweet, or write about work in any other form whatsoever, so wedding it is!

I just can't believe that it's already almost here. I JUST had my first nervous feeling. People have been asking me if I'm nervous, and thus far the answer has always genuinely been no, but it literally JUST hit me. I'm not even nervous about saying I do, or marrying brad, or the committment, or any of that. Its the WHOLE day. Its the fact that ALL day long, I'm the center of attention and while I'm a Leo and I'm supposed to be thrilled about the limelight, I'm not sure if I am. I know everything will work out and so I don't think its that, that worries me. I think a small part of it is that Brad gets nervous easily about those sort of things, and I'm nervous that he'll be nervous. I'm worried that he'll be upset about something or stressed or whatever. I know he hates public displays of affection, and I'm sure a part of the worry is that he won't be able to kiss me or hold my hand in public. I mean this is kind of the day where we are SUPPOSED to be doing those things. I don't know. I should at this point be content with who he is :) and for the most part I am. I'm not trying to change him. Just trying to analyze I guess.

Another small part of the nervousness is that I have no idea how many guests we will have. We sent out close to 500 invitations and we've gotten probably nearly 300 back. Soo what about the other 200 then? Does that mean they're not coming? That they are? I don't know! I'm not even worried about it for the caterer or the alcohol or the seating or any of that. I'm just curious as to how many people will be there. What if no one comes to my wedding. I mean how mortifying if my wedding and reception are completely dead. Thats a little bit of a worry. Probably not a justified one, but present, all the same.

I'm ready for the day to be here. I'm ready to celebrate and be married and begin our lives together! :)

24 Days

It's 24 days until the wedding..



So now here's my To-Do List:

I need to meet with my cake lady, which I'm doing this monday. Check. :) I need to meet with the photographer. Still haven't scheduled that one, and I think I'm putting it off because its going to be quite a chunk of change. Yikes! I need to meet with the caterer and finalize the menu. I need to meet with Charlie the liquor supplier and finalize which type of alcohol we will be serving. I also need to head over to Stone's to create programs. I need to call Bridget to finalize plans for hair, etc. I need to order my guestbook, champagne flutes, etc, etc.

On the plus side, my dress is done, I have my shoes and my veil, I've applied for our marriage license, which should be in on Friday. We've met with and finalized things with the priest, I've finished 99% of my shower thank you's, the hotel reservations are made, I'm finished with bachelorette party (because i've already had it--more on that later :) ), my bridesmaid gifts have been purchased and made, the tuxes are ordered, bridesmaid dresses have all been altered, or the beginning process of alterations has been started, RSVPs are coming in, although we don't really need them.

So i'm getting there :)

One Month

Whoah did that go by fast!? I feel like I JUST got engaged, and now its nearly been a year! Time flies when you're having fun, right?? :)

I feel like I'm making a little ground with planning, but I still have a lot to do. I have to still meet with the photographer and cake lady. Food and alcohol selections needs to be finalized. Wedding favors need to be put together. There are still a few invites I need to send out. I need jewelry still. I had some picked out, but I don't like it as much as I thought I would. There's just something not right about how it looks with my dress. I need to get brad to pick out gifts for his groomsmen and ushers and brock. I need to make appts to get all the nails, hair, etc. done. My bachelorette party is this weekend and I'm FINALLY done with the planning for that. Yay! :)
I have to finalize reservations for the block of hotel rooms. I need to make an invite list for the rehearsal dinner for tammy. I have to pick a host/hostess and ask my cake serving ladies. I need to talk to the DJ and finalize song choices. I need to take in the application for marriage license. I need to meet with father and our marriage counseling couple. I need to make programs. I'm sure there are several other things I'm forgetting at the moment, but right now thats all I can think of.

As I said, I'm just ready for it to be here! :)

Five Weeks

I'm starting to think I should have been blogging about this engagement and planning for this wedding all along. How else will I remember all the feelings I had??

Well better late than never I guess, which totally is not my motto. I'm generally 20 minutes early for anything and everything I have to be at, but for this, that motto will suffice.

Less than 5 weeks until I say I do. I'm -- well...I don't know what I am. I'm still kind of in "its not really real" mode right now. I thought that once I had all my wedding showers that it would hit me, and it really hasn't. My bachelorette party is this weekend in Des Moines, so I'm hoping that that will kick me into high wedding gear. :) Don't get me wrong, I'm SOO excited, but it all sort of still feels like a dream.

I've sent out my invites and that was a big check off the to-do list, but I don't feel as relieved as I thought I would. I guess I still have so many other small things to do, that its not like I'm done planning or organizing. I think once all the major bills like the photographer and cake lady are paid, then I'll feel settled about it all. Thats going to be interesting. The photographer is going to be about 4-5,000 dollars and my parents, not to mention, Brad are going to have a stroke about it! I probably should have went a less expensive route but the photography is sooo important to me, and no one really gets that. I don't know. I'm going to help pay for it, but as my money is already direct deposited into Brad's account its not like I can give him any more of my money than he's already getting. We'll see I guess. If worse comes to worse I guess we won't have a photographer.

I guess also as I'm in vent mode, I feel sort of jilted by some of my bridesmaids. I mean I realize most of them live forever away and they can't make it to the showers or bachelorette party, but I feel like no one is excited about it except me. I guess I get that for them its really not exciting, but it wouldn't hurt for someone to fake excitement. Oh well. My fault for choosing bridesmaids that live several states away.

Anyways, for the most part, I'm having fun and I'm not too stressed. I'm just ready for it to be here. :)

Six Weeks

In six weeks I will be Mrs. Brad Williams. It's a happiness, excitement, and anticipation I can't even begin to describe to you. I've been waiting 25 years for this day and its almost here. I dream of seeing his face when I'm walking down the aisle. I can't wait to say "I Emily, take you Brad to be my husband..." I feel like I've been waiting my whole life to promise forever to this man. There are other feelings too. I wish there were words to accurately describe them.


I'm nervous. I pray every night that this is what's right for us. I love Brad and not being with him seems like the worst kind of hell I could ever imagine, but is there ever a way to know that this is the person you're supposed to spend the rest of your life with? I don't think so, but I just keep praying that God, and love, will always guide us where we need to be.

I'm stressed. I've heard people say that planning a wedding is horrible. They weren't lying. Stupid things you never think about, like napkins? Believe me, they will cause you every kind of problem possible and then when you think you've finally got it figured out...? You don't. Everyone will offer to help you, and then when you ask them to, you're suddenly "Bridezilla". You're the go-to-person for any and all questions, and I kind of get this. I mean, it is YOUR day. Yes, its the groom's as well, but everyone knows that if somethings wrong, you're the one who cares, but after the 80th person calls you with another dilemma, you really don't anymore. The vocalist asked me to choose songs. Seemed like a simple enough of a request. Oh no. So not. Finally after stressing myself to the hilt, I just said, You pick the songs. I don't care. And I really don't. You get to a point, where all you care about is seeing checkmarks next to the items on your to do list.

I'm scared that I won't know how to be a wife. Being a girlfriend, fiance, etc., is hard enough. I can defer any and all decisions related to Brad, straight to him, claiming "I'm just the girlfriend." Now I'm the wife. That's a lot of a responsibility I think.

I'm giddy. The other day, I was making our hotel reservations for our wedding night and the lady said, "Name?" and I responded as I always do. "Emily Gehrig." My stepdad was with me and said, "Not gehrig, Williams. It will be Emily Williams" WEIRD! Lol but such an amazing feeling. Granted my initials will be be EW :) but its nice in a way.

I'm tired. Working full time night shift and then trying to rouse my lazy butt out of bed to talk with all the people who plan and work during the day bites.

I'm in love. In love with everything about my day. My perfect dress that was everything I never knew I wanted, my beauty and the beast fur cape, my red shoes, my gift box cake, brad's special, secret groom's cake, my bouquets, my decorations, but most of all Brad. I can't wait to say I do and then celebrate the beginning of our lives together.

Retail Therapy

I say it's retail therapy, but its more like family therapy. Every year at about this time, the women of the Gehrig family, get together, for a weekend of shopping, drinking, laughing, praying, eating, etc., etc. This year however we add crying to that list. It's never easy to lose someone you love, and its even harder to do it alone, so I am very grateful that this family shopping trip is happening when it is, so we can grieve together and comfort each other, the way families, especially mine, do.

Its a tradition that has been going on for 30-ish years and for me and Lindsey it will be, I THINK, the 10th year..wow. That seems insane. Its amazing to me. People will tell me, not a lot, but often enough that I take notice, that its weird how close my extended family is, how odd it is that I have such a close relationship with my cousins. I think its weird that other people don't. These people share my blood, my loved ones...how can you not be close to people who share the same love for the patriarch/matriarch of your family?

I thank God every day for blessing me with THIS family, or rather, THESE families. My dad's, my mom's, my stepdad's, Brad's... I am SOO blessed to be apart of such caring, giving, loving families and I'll never take it for granted.

All Because Two People Fell in Love

Yesterday, a day I have been dreading my whole life, my Grandpa, at 87 years old, passed away. As my family gathered around his bedside, we all collectively held our breath, until he breathed his last. Its a sadness and emptiness I could only begin to fathom. Oh sure, I'm glad he's at peace. He's met his maker and is living an eternal life all of us can only hope we too will someday achieve, but I can't help but feel lost. I've lived my whole life with this man as a constant fixture, and now he's gone.

Before they removed him from mechanical ventilation, we all said our goodbyes. I held his hand, whispered in his ear, "Goodbye Grandpa, I love you. I am SOO proud to be a Gehrig. No one could ever ask for a better grandfather than you." I leaned in and kissed his swollen cheek as tears streamed down mine. It was all so surreal at the time. I remember looking at the monitor as his blood pressure, respirations, and heart rate were dropping. As painful as it was, I kept thinking, "Go grandpa. The lord is waiting for you. You don't have to struggle anymore." But when his respirations were 0 and his heart rate was 0, "It then all came crashing down on me that this pale, swollen man who had been the leader and rock of this family for more than 60 years would never grace any part of my life ever again.

We hugged and cried. My grandma as weak and defeated as I've ever seen her, wrapped me in her arms and said, "He loved you so much Emmy." My heart shattered.

Today, as I BEGIN to pick up the pieces, I, along with the rest of my family, am left to recall the memories of Raymond Constantine Gehrig. Sooo many to sift through. I'll never forget his laugh, or the way his eyes lit up when he smiled...the way my small, warm hand so perfectly fit into his cool, wrinkly one..the way he would say, "hey emmy dot.." when I curled up in his lap as a child as we passionately cheered on the hawks.. how proud he was to be a veteran...how proud I am that he was a veteran.. how much he loved his wife, children, grandchildren..

He was a quiet man.. usually sat back and took in all the chaos that is the Gehrig Family.. but when you made him mad, look out!

Another favorite memory.. A few years ago, Dad and grandma and grandpa attended the annual labor day rodeo in Fonda. I sat by them. The announcer asked everyone to stand..then he said that we are so lucky to live in America..a land where we are free...free because of the men and women who fight for that freedom every day.. then he asked everyone who served and was a war veteran to remain standing...Dad, Grandma, and I, along with the rest of the non-veterans in the crowd, sat down... I looked at my grandpa as he stood there, his cap in his hand, and his hand over his heart...and I've never seen him stand so tall or so proud.. and I've never been more proud to be his granddaughter...and thats saying a lot...because i'm very proud every day to be a part of this family.

It doesn't seem real...that he's gone. He was always a quiet presence. But he was that, a presence. The kind that you can always sense...always feel. You always KNEW he was there. A constant in my life like none other. I suppose that will remain. That presence. I pray that presence fills Grandma every day.

After 60 years of marriage...I can't begin to imagine what thats like..to lose someone you've shared your life with, children with, gains and losses with, victories and failures with..sunrise and sunsets with..joys and tears with...how do you all of a sudden face a future alone? I pray that everyday she wakes up and feels his love in her heart. 60 years ago (roughly) they met, fell in love and were united in Holy Matrimony. To that union were born 6 children, 21 grandchildren, and 13 great grandchildren..all those lives created and lived...all because two people fell in love..how lucky and blessed I am.

Generally as a rule, I'm not this gushy or lovey dovey over Brad, but since people don't read my blog, I'll keep spewing the love out, especially since Brad, work, and the wedding are the only things going on in my life right now.

For the greater portion of our relationship, I have pretty much assumed that things just were the way they were and neither Brad nor I was going to change and we would just have to accept that. Recently however, and I wish I knew what spurned it on, Brad and I have begun communicating a little more effectively. I'm trying to think of everything that has happened lately and here are the possible catalysts i have come up with: A few weeks ago we started pre-wedding couple to couple counseling. We pretty much had no choice but to communicate at that point, and I think maybe we both realized that, "hey this isn't so hard.." Also, Brad is going through some major financial/business decisions lately and I think us talking that out as a "husband & wife" rather than just boyfriend/girlfriend surprised, and excited both of us.

Granted we both are just as stubborn as always and we do have the same old fights, but at the same time, I feel more confident with approaching him about some things, rather than just burying it, which is good as we'll be married in 3 months time. :) I'm excited to discover that things can change and that we can still learn from and adapt to each other.

Supernationals

It's that time again. White trash, redneck hicks of the world unite! Ok thats not entirely fair, but it is somewhat accurate. Supernationals. Hobbystocks, Sport Mods, Stock Cars, and Modifieds from all over the country journey to Boone, IA to race for the coveted title of Supernationals Champion. It is the biggest, baddest, loudest, drunkest, funnest, naked-est white trash party ever established and for the most part, I'm proud to be a part of it (minus the nakedness). This however, is the first year since I've been going that I haven't been able to attend all week, due to the fact that I now have a full time job. Boo.

When I started this blog I thought I would try to capture the 'essence" of supernationals, but I'm beginning to realize how difficult that is going to be. I don't think you can fully appreciate the chaos of it, unless or until you see it. The day starts out with the drunk peeling themselves out from under a trailer, or out of a tent. Others arrive from whatever hotel or friend's place they were able to crash at. All the drivers complete the necessary things to race that day. Racing begins and its a parade of endless cars around the track vying for the top 2 spots in the heat that will get them into the A main where the top 2 spots from there get them in the championship race. Hundreds of people on the catwalk above the track, cheering on their favorite driver. At the end of the night, after all the spots for the day have been qualified for...the party begins. Four-wheelers, golf carts, and other various motor vehicles wheel around the pits with generally way too many passengers. Women stripping on trailers, men stripping on trailers...ahh its the life I tell you. :)

I believe Wednesday night when I was there, a girl looked at me, smiled, and held up a sign that said...and I quote, "Show us your tits!" Now, I'm not a prude or by any means, naive, but this caught me a little off guard. Had it been a man, I'm sure I would have been completely unsurprised, but this tiny little woman (hot, i might add) looked me up and down like i was a piece of meat and smiled at me like she wanted it. I politely smiled back and said, "Yeah..ain't happenin." :)

I'll be back tomorrow to watch Brad race in the championship race (Yay he qualified!) and I'll keep you posted as to the details! OR...come see for yourself! :)

Let It Go

Today I noticed on my photographer's blog that he had FINALLY posted our engagement pictures. I love them. There are so many little quirks present that completely represent who Brad and I are; however.. :) I'm extremely obsessive about pictures! Along with our pictures, he posted several other couples' sessions, and I can't help but notice some that are better than ours. Is that silly? Yes. But I can't help it! It's disappointing in a way. Mind you, I'm not disappointed with the photographer. I love his style, his patience, his creativity..lol it must be us! Apparently brad and I don't have very good photographic chemistry. Maybe I need to do more research, decide what it is exactly that I want, get some examples... I believe this is like my 3rd or 4th post on my engagement pictures, so I'm sure it seems nuts! But like I said, I can't help it. The wedding photos (other than the actual marrying brad) are THE most important thing to me for that day! I'll try to let it go and make this my last post on the subject, but I'm not making any promises.. :)

That Loving Feeling

Today, during one of my many stints on facebook, I noticed that Lindsey has a first (blind at that!) date with a friend of a friend. She's soo excited and nervous for it. She sent me pictures of him and man I would be too. Total hottie. :) I miss that feeling. The giddy, butterflies in the stomach, can't sit still, can't sleep, nervous, excited, first date feeling. Its been 5 years...FIVE YEARS since i've felt that. Its a one of a kind feeling that every girl knows.

When I met Brad, it was amazing. I was head over heels instantly and that feeling felt like it would never end. You pace the floor for hours before the date starts and you change your clothes a hundred times. Your hearts beating like its going to jump right out of your chest and you can feel it on your lips and hear it in your ears. Such an amazing, treasured feeling.

But for all that, I wouldn't trade a minute of what I have now. Every morning after work, I go home to bed, knowing that without so much as a word, I'll lay down and Brad will roll over, wrap his arm around me, kiss my temple and go back to sleep. Its comfortable. Familiar. Heaven.

At night when he comes home from work, he sits on the loveseat and I sit on the couch. We watch the news and share small conversation about notable things. Its nothing earth shattering. My heart isn't pounding out of my chest, but it definitely belongs to Brad. Sometimes he'll catch me staring at him, and he'll say, "what?" and I just laugh cause I don't know! I just am so in love that it seems like the most natural thing in the world to stare at him for hours on end.

I look at my grandparents, and how they are sooo comfortable together and in sync that there is little need to even talk. I always thought that would be horrible, but the more I think about it, the more I think its everything I want.

So in Love.

So tonight I was sitting at the nurse's station, doing some charting, scoping out facebook, and checking my texts, as drew was giving me updates on how Brad was doing at the races. One of my least favorite things about having a job: missing Brad racing. :( Anyways, drew texted me that he won his heat by a straightaway. Yay! Then an hour later or so, she texts me again telling me Brad won the feature! Double yay!! :) But the next few texts shook my core in a way I'll never forget.

It was kids night at the races and were doing it specifically in memory of kids who have passed away. After brad had won the feature a little boy came over and wanted his picture taken with Brad. Brad obliged and was talking with the little boy. The boy told brad that his twin brother had died of cancer. Brad gave his trophy to the boy, and I'm told that the boy hugged Brad over and over and had the biggest, brightest smile on his face that never ended.

I will never forget this moment. I wish I had been there. I've been in love with Brad Williams since the day I met him. I've always known he was kind and sweet, but I always thought it was a in a subtle, small waves sort of way. He definitely doesn't often let that side show. Brad isn't someone who likes to make a fuss, and even moreso isn't someone who likes people to make a fuss over him.

It makes me fall in love with him all over again when I think of him giving his trophy to that boy. Brad isn't the most romantic, or the sweetest, or definitely the most lovey dovey man I've ever met, but he's definitely one of the most humble and kind hearted. Beneath his gruff, growly exterior beats a warm, loving heart and I'm counting myself truly blessed to be the future Mrs. Brad Williams.

A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words

Okay! Here they are! I'm not sure what I think so don't ask. Or maybe do. Lol I can't really explain it unless you talk to me about it. :) But at any rate, in all our glory, here are our engagement pictures!

Picture Perfect

Brad and I had our engagement pictures taken yesterday. I was soo excited for them I could hardly stand it, and the excitement of waiting for them to come back is JUST as intense! Brad, however, was less than thrilled about the whole ordeal. Our photographer is out of Ames, and is amazing in my opinion. Of course now that we're done, I can think of ideas for poses, but could come up with none at the time. This however, is of little importance, because Caleb was soo creative, we barely had to do anything! Thank god for that! After the first few shots, Brad began to relax a little and as the day progressed, I believe he got a little more into it. Still not overly thrilled, mind you, but his pouty attitude had faded for the most part. :) Caleb will also be doing our wedding photographs in december and I'm super excited for that! Most people probably don't care that much about the photograpy aspect of the wedding, but for me its the most important! Its one of the major tangible memories you have after the day has come and gone! How could you not want the absolute best!?

A Community I Love

One morning I got locked out of my house at 3 AM. Long story. Don't ask. I assure you it is nothing as interesting as it sounds. Brad, as it turns out, is a very heavy sleeper. So, at 3 in the morning I am pounding on the door, calling Brad, ringing the doorbell, and yelling in a whisper for Brad to open the door. Finally, Brad realized I was outside and let me in. No big deal. The next morning, at 6 am, Brad got a phone call from the mailman, asking if Brad and I had broken up. Apparently, the story at Sparky's coffee hour was that Brad and I had gotten into a fight and he had kicked me out. Lol, such is the life in a small town.

Everyone knows everyone's business and if you for one minute think you have any secrets, you are sadly deluded. Everyone knows where you are, what you're doing, who with, and when you'll be back. It's annoying, intrusive, smothering, and all around ridiculous! But I wouldn't trade a minute of it.

At the same time, everyone is there for you in any way you need. Childcare, cup of milk, shoulder to cry on, friendly wave, a lift, help when you're sick.....You name it and in Lytton, IA, if its within anyone's means it'll happen.

Its my favorite thing about living in a small town. When I was at college in Iowa City, I was amazed at how NO ONE on the street smiled or said hello. I knew I was getting close to northwest Iowa because people I would meet on the road would wave. It feels friendly, warm, familiar. Its home. It's about always having someone to share yours joys, yours fears, and failures with. Its never being alone.

I can't imagine it any other way.

I HAVE to...

There are 3 things in my life that people ask me about right now. Usually in this order, but not always.. 1) Find a job? 2) How's the wedding planning coming along? 3) How's your back? --SO again, obligator-ily (?), I should talk about these things!

Yes, I found a job. NOT my first choice and certainly not my dream job, but it is a job and a jumping off point, so for that I am grateful and excited. Who knows, maybe it will turn out to be exactly what I never knew I wanted. Its only part time right now and its the 12 hour night shift (which i think i prefer!). However, during the summer months while I'm going through orientation, I'll be full time and working the day shift. As I said, the experience will be invaluable and maybe will be lead me to my dream job!

The wedding, the wedding...oh where to begin! Planning is coming along--sporadically. :) At first we were planning fiends and we got soo much accomplished! Now we're kind of at a stand still. Not sure if this is because there isn't much to do at this point or if I'm just a little overwhelmed with other things at the moment (i.e. starting a new job, healing from back surgery, etc.). Its still so much fun and MY DRESS IS IN!! I screamed when the lady called and told me. Oh well, I'm sure I'm not the first bride-to-be who's done that. :) We're also in the midst of "marriage counseling". Oh the fun we're having with that. Note the sarcasm, please. :) Brad is...well, he's present for it, and he's semi-attentive, mostly interested, doing his best not to fall asleep. LOL I suppose it isn't entirely his fault as he can only decipher 1/4 of what Father is saying. AND as all Catholics know, the marriage counseling process can be extremely boring and tedious. IF getting married in my beautiful church wasn't so important to me, I probably wouldn't care that much about having a Catholic wedding (but don't tell Brad that!) The wedding is 6 months from todays date and I can't believe it! After today we'll have been engaged for longer than we have left to wait! Seems nuts that we got engaged 6 months ago.

Aaaand my back..I would put it at about the back of a 37-40 year old, which is an improvement! I was about at that of a 75 year old! So I'll take it. Ha, no seriously its doing pretty well. My back feels great most of the time. Its my right leg that still bothers me. The muscles are EXTREMELY tight from nerve damage, but Dr. Meyer (my orthopoedic surgeon) and Luisa (my physical therapist) assure me that this will heal and with strengthening and stretching, I'll be good as new! Whoot! :)

Day 1

Okay so this is going to be the obligatory (well at least for me) first day trying to figure out WTF is going on here. Soo picking out a layout/template/skin/background...whatever you want to call it...for my blogspot has been an interesting adventure, as you may or may not see here on my page, because to be really honest with you, I have NO idea what my layout/template/skin/background is currently. Its such an adventure, right? Better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring and I can honestly say that sums up my life pretty well.

I'm hoping that once I have my page as BEAUTIFUL as I know it has the potential to be, I can focus more on whats going on with me and my life and you'll all be dying to get to your computers to read it! ha..