List day + "Mission Possible"

Happy Tuesday, friends!

I apologize in advance if there might be (more) typos (than usual) tonight-- I'm wearing my 7 year old glasses (SeXXy... lucky J.), and can't see that well out of them... I am working on getting a new pair (more on that later!)

Okay.. so first things first:

Good List

1. J.
2. Apple pie. The homemade kind. Enjoyed with a hot cup of tea, while snuggling with Gracie. Heaven.
3. New books!! Love, love, Love. I'm currently being inspired by Donald Miller's "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years." This is a great one, folks.
4. Daydreams.
5. Online banking + automatic transfers. Though this will take some getting used to, this tool will ensure that J and I can buy a house together in 3 years... Rest assured, I will be dreaming and planning said house up until that time :)
6. Mmmmm... Coffeemate peppermint mocha creamer... Tastes like Christmas!
7. Black Box wine. So far, it has definitely lived up to the hype.
8. New challenges and goals (read on...)
9. Our wedding pictures are online!! Now I'm just (impatiently) awaiting the arrival of the disc of images... I promise to share more when I get them!
10. Fuzzy socks (which I love, love LOVE, and am determined to wear, despite the fact that Gracie (who has entered the "munchy" phase of kitten-dom) seem to think they might be a small fuzzy animal, and insists on attacking them every chance she gets...)

The top 7 reasons I love Fall*

1. Apple cider
2. Bright trees against a dramatically dark sky
3. Pumpkin Spice Lattes
4. Cute coats, cozy sweaters... and BOOTS!
5. Halloween (my favorite thing to do is go for a run on trick-or-treat night... before things get too crazy. I love seeing the little kids prancing around in their outfits because they are so excited that they are ready way too early, and I love looking at the decorations in their full, unadulterated glory (read: before overzealous mean adolescents smash the jack-o-lanterns).
6. Hm... J. would probably gag if he read this, but fall means that I can start thinking about Christmas. If you know me, you know that I LOVE giving gifts... so this is the beginning of a fun time for me :)
7. The smell. I love, love, LOVE the smell of fall: smoky, crisp and earthy. If I could bottle it up and keep it with me year round (that and the sharp, sparkly smell of the first snow...)-- I think it could perk me up even on the gray-est, rainiest days.

* 7 things rather than 10, because I like the number 7... and when I said "Top Ten", all I could think of was Letterman....

All right... now onto "Mission Possible"! I have found that lately I am pretty much completely lacking in my motivation. For a little while, I was able to rationalize it by saying, "Amy, you've been through a lot of big life changes recently (getting married, moving)-- you should go easy on yourself-- and you can't possibly tackle everything at once." (my sub-conscious is very lenient like that...) But in fact, I think I let things slide for so long that it's starting to seem easy to let them go... And there's something in me that rebels against that. Now, it's not like I am talking about running a marathon (which I DO want to do someday... but I do not feel guilty about saying "not now" to that one...)-- I'm talking about little life changes (like getting up an hour earlier and getting into the habit of working out before work...) -- but little changes that I know can mean a world of difference. For the most part, I am interested in developing healthy habits for the years to come. I feel that I have gotten quite proficient in living this new routine (...wake, snooze 3x, brush teeth, kiss hubby goodbye, feed cats, shower, pour coffee, out door, traffic, work x8 hours, traffic, cook dinner, tv, bed...) -- but now I am interested in breathing life into it.

Which, I believe, is completely possible. Hence: "Mission Possible"!

And here is what I intend to do about it:

• Get up at 6 am each day (the ultimate goal is earlier than this ... but this is when J's alarm clock goes off... it's not like I really go back to "quality sleep" after this, anyway.
• Take time each morning (especially on weekdays!) for morning meditation (journaling and Simple Abundance)
• Log at least 15 miles/week for POTM 2009 (woohoo!! I am really excited to be doing this this year!)
• "Save myself" for one really wonderful "sweet treat" each day. (I just got this amazing looking dark chocolate bar.... which I may or may not have picked up partially bc it's called TWILIGHT Delight... yes, I am a 12-year old girl... so sue me.)
• Do yoga twice a week (I did this religiously during the spring/summer... and my body loved me for it. Since I am not uber flexible, I only ever did the beginner hatha yoga (there is a free 20 minute class here, if you haven't ever tried yogadownload.com-- I highly recommend it!)... but it was so nice and relaxing:)
• Get 8 hours of sleep each night. Nap whenever socially acceptable possible (Omg-- could someone please tell me how to achieve "strikethrough" in my text?!)
• Spend less time in front of the tv (ughh... this one may be a hard one.... but I always feel really good about my day & all I have gotten done if I can be strong... so I've got that going for me. ... Of course Glee is a necessary evil :)

I promise to give you a full briefing on the "Mission Possible" outcome in about a month from now. Wish me luck!!

In other news... I think I need a new eye doctor. I was due for an appointment in.. oh... August, but since I didn't have vision insurance (and I knew J. did) I decided that I would wait until after I got married. Yesterday I arrived for my 2:00 appointment, and was surprised when I was informed that I was NOT seeing the doctor I had been told (on Friday) that I would be seeing. Actually, this part of the story is happy, because I LOVED Dr. Johnson. He was very kind and competent, and respected my wishes when I told him that I didn't want to get my eyes dilated (my job is ALL computer work.... I would have had to call off the rest of the afternoon...) --and he recommended a new kind of contacts for me to try (which were quite nice! I am wearing glasses bc of allergies... not because the contacts didn't work out...) So: good, good.

But here's where it got "not so good". I was in with Dr. Johnson for about 20 minutes (we're up to about 2:25pm, if you're counting...)-- AND then I was waiting to check out for 1.5 hours!! REALLY? Now the part of the story I haven't told you is that I had a client calling me at 4pm. Yup... if you are keeping track, we are now at 3:50 pm. Yikes. The icing on the cake was this: at 3:57 pm I took my receipt, was halfway out of (the office) my chair when the technician says, "Oh, you can't leave yet-- we haven't checked your side vision."

... To which I replied, "I'm sorry (I wasn't)... but I can't do that right now. I have a meeting scheduled to start in 3 minutes." ...In a way (once I was done fuming) I was really proud of myself... it's rare that I stand up for myself and speak my mind-- I felt empowered!

...Of course, now I have to go back in 3 weeks to get dilated and get my damn side vision checked.... But I was able to order a new pair of glasses, and I'll take my small victories where I can :)

Have a lovely Tuesday night!

I Love, Love, Love

...Kelly Heasley.





...And this is why....

Tuesday = List Day!! YaY!!!

... Do you know what day it is?!?!

LIST DAY!!


(Is anyone as excited about this as I am? ... You should be...)






Anyway... I really owe y'all a marathon post (lots going on over here lately!) and I promise to give it to you... but first things first:








My Fitness List (things I want to do in my lifetime!)

• Run a sub-2 hour half marathon



• Run a marathon



• Give birth (I agree with all you ladies out there... this definitely counts as a fitness goal!!)



• Walk in several races with my parents each year



• Run the Country Music Half marathon
  


• Run the Rock and Roll Half (or Full!) marathon



• Run a sub-24 minute 5k



• Run the PEI marathon



• Be a pacer during a half-marathon



• Teach a fitness class (kickboxing? yoga?)
  

Good List

1. J. I am having a really good time being married to my best friend! 1 m + 1d and counting :)



2. We have a really great vet (Dr.Burke at Creature Comforts Animal Clinic)-- who adores Gracie, and is very compassionate and helpful.



3. Coffeeee.....



4. This past Saturday/Sunday was amazing. I got to spend a whole 24 hours with the best friend, Saundra. We picked apples and pumpkins, carbo-loaded and shopped, watched chick-flicks-- AND ran a half-marathon together! (... which brings me to...)



5. Holy goodness, I'm glad that race is over. Amy not training nearly enough = brutal 13.1 miles. I am really proud of myself for sticking it out though... and I don't regret registering at all :) ... I consider 2:56:55 (13:31 splits... walking all but about 2.5 miles....) something to be proud of!



6. My graphing calculator. (Yes, I am a nerd... leave me alone.)



7. "Mama-Gracie snuggle time"--oh, how I treasure these moments!!



8. Sweater dresses. Oh so comfy :)



9. Edy's Pumpkin Ice Cream


10. And, of course, this:

The Baron and Princess Gracie-- photo courtesy of J.

Okay: On to other "blog-worthy" things ... As I mentioned above, this past Sunday I got the chance to participate in the Columbus Half-Marathon. Also as I mentioned above, it was definitely more challenging than the first half marathon I ran. ...Still, when I look back at the goal I had when I went in (heh.. I believe I said, quite eloquently: "Rock my next half-marathon")-- I think I accomplished my goals. Although it was definitely one of the most physically challenging (and mentally challenging-- which I think surprised me the most....) this race will always hold a special place in my heart. I smiled for at least the first 6.51 miles-- and I let the amazing people I was running in the midst of inspire me. I daydreamed about houses (ooohhh Bexley!!), read all sorts of great shirts (and started some great conversations because of them!) and thanked all the volunteers I could. Miles 8-11 were a real struggle for me, but I pressed on-- and I am really proud of myself for fighting it out. To be honest, sometimes I worry that I'm not stubborn enough to be a runner (the runners reading this will know exactly what I mean, I am sure!)-- sometimes I think maybe I'm not mentally tough enough to fight when I'm hurting-- to press forward through the plateaus and truly move forward. This race showed me that this is not the case. I am a passionate, strong and driven woman-- and truly-- there is nothing stopping me except for me. This race was extremely affirming to me in that respect.

It was wonderful to have this inspiring race to ruminate on... because otherwise, things have been kind of nutty. I have had a crash course in "Mommy-hood", as dear little Gracie is sick (feline cold... but she is having a rough time of it... poor baby...) I have been staying awake at night to listen to her breathing, wiping her nose, medicating and feeding her (wow--workout!! Even with J's help, it is exhausting!), as well as holding her constantly, because she doesn't feel well and wants to snuggle. I am totally exhausted (work is crazy this week, too.... we're not even going there.)-- but nothing a good 8 hours of sleep can't fix :)

Another "teaser" for the night is that I am seriously thinking about doing a "Rock the Frock" photo session (*cough* you may know this concept as "Trash the Dress"-- but if I called it that my mother would kill me... I'm not thinking of doing anything really destructive, anyway... more country/naturey feel.... Stay tuned-- I will keep you posted!)

Anyway... I think I may sign off for now-- time to snuggle with my little girl. Have a lovely Tuesday night, bloggies!

2 part Tuesday: "Just for Fun..."

Just for fun-- I declare Tuesday "LIST DAY". Every Tuesday (with today being the inaugural day, of course!!) I will provide you with several (probably in the neighborhood of 2 or 3) lists for your enjoyment.

Today's lists include something serious, something sweet, and something absolutely necessary.

Enjoy!

I: Amy's October List of Goals

• Become a more creative cook. Create healthy, delicious dinners for J and me at least 4 nights a week.
• Make advantage of my WCC (fitness center) membership!
• Work out 4 days during the work week, and do a long run on Sunday.
• Figure out (and delight in!) my new schedule with J.
• Get into the habit of doing devotions (good list + "Simple Abundance" + bible study) each day.
• Once I complete my2nd half marathon (!!), focus on speed. From what I've heard, I am getting closer and closer to the fastest years of my life :)
• Rock my 2nd half marathon. Although I am definitely not counting on PRing, my goal is to have a fabulous time, and cross the finish line smiling.
• Spend quality time with my little family each day (J, Baron, Gracie)-- tell then I love them frequently.
• Catch up with my photo albums... I have pics from last Christmas that still need to be developed.
• Find a great new way to get involved at HRC.
  

II: Good List: Tuesday, October 13

1. J. My amazing husband.
2. A really productive Tuesday.
3. Gracie. our inquisitive kitten, who steals my heart with her antics (she has been sitting on my keyboard all night... it's taken 20 minutes to write this sentence!)-- and loves to sleep in my lap.
4. New beginnings
5. Fall
6. Pumpkin ice cream with chocolate chips (harvest bread-y goodness in a bowl!!)
7. LOST. J and I are watching through the seasons via Netflix on Demand-- it's a new guilty pleasure, and I'm totally hooked!
8. Hallmark has it's keepsake ornaments out on display all ready! It makes me happy:)
9. Fun sized candy bars :)
10. Being patient as I watch God's plan for my life unfold.
    

III: "Gorgeous, Drool-Worthy Men I Can't Get Enough of Lately" (I told you this was absolutely necessary.... You may thank me later :)

1. Jacob Black
   
2. Bradley Cooper
3. David Boreanaz
4. Jack Shepard
5. Christian Bale (I know this one may be controversial... but the man is gorgeous!!)
6. George Clooney
7. David Beckham
8. Matthew McConaughey
9. Eddie Cahill
10. James Lafferty

Whew.. that's all for tonight... I'm a tired girl! Good night, bloggies! Sleep tight!

I love my babies ....

.... Because they provide me hours upon hours of amusement ...

Please enjoy these videos from J!

I'll be back with more later :)

World, meet Gracie!

I am so in love....

With this little 1 lb ball of sweetness:

Dear little Gracie joined our family yesterday, coming to us from the Capital Area Humane Society.

J holding Gracie at the CAHS

I can't remember if I have mentioned this previously in the blog, but for my wedding present to J, I made a donation to the CAHS to buy two cat beds (in honor of his love for animals, and our love for each other). J told me after the wedding that as his present to me, we would adopt a kitten. Needless to say, I was thrilled. I am not ashamed to say that I perused the CAHS "adoptable cats" at least once a day (including some days while we were on our honeymoon-- iPhones are wonderful inventions!!) -- but I wasn't thinking we would go and "DO IT" until late October at the earliest (However-- I am realistic... I knew that when we went, we would find a wonderful kitty, I would fall in love, and we would bring home a new family member that day.)

Me and dear little Gracie
(Pardon my squinty eyes and the bad lighting... picture from the iPhone)

So yesterday, when J suggested that we go and "take a look", I was really excited. I knew (and J kept reminding me!!) that I shouldn't set my heart on any of the cats that were listed online, because there was no guarantee that they would still be there when we visited, but I still though I had a basic idea of what kind of cat I wanted. Namely: black and white (like Baron), orange, or gray (there were some beautiful gray kitties that I saw in the weeks before our trip!)

And then we arrived, and my heart went out to a tiny, shy tortoise shell marked kitten. Her name was "Wags" (gak... some of the names these kittens were given were awful...) because she has a short stubby tail-- which I am completely in love with. As soon as we got her out of her cage and took her into the "visitation room", she snuggled right up. She was quiet but inquisitive-- and had the sweetest face I had ever seen. As soon as I held her in my arms, I was completely gone. As I told J tearfully (whew. I'll blame that on the hormones.... but I digress...) when we were filling out the paperwork, I was absolutely sure that this was the kitty I wanted, and I knew she would haunt me if I let her go.


30 minutes (and copious piles of paperwork) later, we walked out the door with our new baby. Gracie sat in my lap and talked with her the whole way home. When we got home, J and I set her up in the guest room with litter box, food and water, and let her out. What a sweetie! She excitedly raced around and looked at (sniffed) everything! She loved (as I told her she would!) the large windows with the view out to the fountain, and sat for a while and watched the ducks swimming.

The only stress came when we brought Baron (the resident cat of the house-- now "big brother") to meet her. But to be honest, that really went very well. Baron definitely got in his fair share of growling and hissing, but Gracie acted admirably. She was quiet and submissive enough to let him know that she recognized him as "the man of the house"-- but by the end of the night they were chasing each other playfully-- and she was in heaven! Things aren't perfect yet (Baron is still having some jealousy issues, and he hisses at her occasionally for no apparent reason)-- but we were able to leave both cats out last night, and I think they are well on their way to becoming best friends :)

All right, I need to get scooting (haha... dinner time, and I need to play the good wife and get something on the table for J.) I can't get enough cuddle time with my sweet baby girl! (More pictures to come, I promise!!)

Hope you are having a wonderful Sunday, and I wish you the blessing of an inspiring and productive Monday!

Proof that I am definitely a small part "girly girl"

... I feel like a million bucks when I get a haircut:


Seriously. I have been walking around with a smile on my face all night :)

Now, here's some proof that I am definitely a large part "country girl":

Me and my lovely sister.
(Yes, this was, in fact, a photo from the bachelorette party. ... And yes, that is, in fact, a sharpie hanging from my hat ...)

Because my "energy tank" is running dangerously close to empty, I am going to keep this short... but I'll leave you with a list, Amy-style ... because that's how I roll. (bwahaha... I totally cannot pull that off.. don't worry... I will never try again :)

Things I am loving right now:

• Fall. Everything about it. The colors, the smells, and the deliciously cool temperatures.
• Pumpkin spice lattes. Yes. I have a serious addiction.
• Coming home to J each night (awww)
• Jodi Piccoult ...I am absolutely devouring her books lately. 4 in the past 3 weeks, in fact.
• Blogging :)
• Trader Joe's (Best.Store.EVER.)
• Pumpkin Chili!!
• Our new 600 thread count pima cotton sheets (like I needed another excuse to stay in bed longer in the a.m.)
• Bath and Body Works' Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin. Holy yum. The whole house smells warm and "fall-y".
• Red wine glasses
• Glee. (So so SO in love with this!)
• My mizunos.

and of course:

• Jacob Black
  

Have a good night, bloggies! Smile-- it's almost Friday!

Honeymoon Recap!

Happy Tuesday, Bloggies!

For a day that started out with me spilling my coffee all over the counter (thank heavens I didn't spill it on the cat... I suppose things could have been worse).. the day has redeemed itself quite nicely :) I am now cocooned in my favorite fuzzy blanket on the couch, with a full tummy (a yummy re-run of Saturday's pumpkin chili!)-- content as can be! (I may or may not be enjoying a fabulous glass of cabernet, as well ;)

Today has been a busy, productive, and fulfilling day. I got some necessary errands done at lunch time, and snuck (is this a word?!) in a lovely (read: tough but very rewarding!) 6 miler when I got home from work. Now I am blogging and otherwise organizing my life (it is definitely time to re-group and make a new"goal list"!)... and looking forward to a BATH later before bed (I'm putting off the bath until the very last thing, bc the combination of wine+bath always knocks me out cold, haha...)

Anyway.. on to the real reason for the post (I'm not just a tease :)... I promise!)

Honeymoon Recap:

This is just a picture that I love. Taken while we were sitting at the beach one day.

** Argh. Quick side note: after a whopping 1 blog entry with his "new name", I am going back to referring to my husband as J-- not only is Mr. R. hard to remember... but it's a whole 2 letters longer! ....and it's my blog, so my preference, right?! ;)

To begin with, I can tell you that J and I spent our honeymoon on Martha's Vineyard (or the majority of it, anyway: we took 2 weeks off--spent 10 days away and the remaining time relaxing at home and getting used to living together:) My Aunt and Uncle own a cottage up there, and generously let us honeymoon there as a wedding present! When I was little (read "teeny-tiny" up until I was 11) my family used to go up and spend a week there during the summer. I was very excited to go back-- and J. had never been there-- so I was excited to go with him; to share some pieces of my childhood and to discover new things with him.

Anyway. After the wedding was over, J and I were positively exhausted (as you should be after any good wedding, or so I've heard!) My sister and her boyfriend had volunteered to drive us to our airport hotel (thanks again!!), and we arrived around 8:30ish (holy-moley.... I actually have no idea what time it was... I was pretty pooped by then....)-- which was after a fun, relaxed "double-dinner-date" (remember... J and I got hardly anything to eat at the reception-- we were to busy having fun with our guests!) at Arby's.

Woah. This hotel was nice! (It was a "Hilton Family" chain-- and I've always been impressed with them in the past :) We had a huge, super soft king size bed (which I was ready to pass out on the minute we arrived...), and a jacuzzi tub. A girl could get used to that ...

The next morning, bright and early (5am-ish I believe) J and I woke, showered (omg... I had the worst time trying to get the pounds of hairspray out of my hair! I loved the "wedding hair" though... so I'll keep my complaints to a minimum:) and headed downstairs to catch the shuttle to the airport (a definite perk-- and one of the reasons we stayed where we did.)

*Now, as a cute side note: this was J's FIRST PLANE TRIP! Ever. Yes, the man is 25 years old :) I am happy to say that everything went really well!* We flew out of C-bus at 8am, took a connecting flight in NY, and arrived on Martha's Vineyard around 1pm. Perfect! One of the coolest things about the trip was that since our flight to MV was so small, we took a tiny plane-- by small, I mean we had about 15 people on the plane going to the island (and about half that coming back!)-- and we didn't even fill up half of it :) Being on a small flight has lots of advantages: including (but, I'm sure not limited to!) flying closer to the ground (= great views!!), more talkative people, and more attentive flight attendants. Because he had never flown before, I made sure I gave J the window seats-- and I am pleased to tell you that J's first flying experience was a success. (Sorry no pictures from the air... just trust me though... it was really, really beautiful-- it was clear morning, and it was so neat to get an aerial view of the island as we flew in. Although we were both exhausted, neither J nor I slept on the flight to MV.)

When we arrived at "The Little House" (via taxi), we were warmly greeted by Mrs.P-- who I remembered from when I was little, but hadn't seen in years. She hugged us, congratulated us profusely, and told us that she would be around for "whatever we might need..."

And, thus began the honeymoon :) Now I won't bore you with all the details, but I will touch on some highlights:

1. If you know us at all, you will know that J and I are very laid back. Very much "go with the flow" people (heh... as I write this, I know that Laurie is out there somewhere rolling her eyes and thinking..." well, at least J is...." So, let me clarify: Eh hem: J. and I are laid back vacationers.) We may not have done all the "touristy" things... but we had a wonderful time reading, napping, and strolling along the beach together. We were blessed with gorgeous weather, and so most days, we just wandered around Oak Bluffs and explored!

(Top to bottom: J and me at Town Beach; "the harbor"; the sky on a particularly rainy day (we ventured out on a walk while it was still dry, but then ended up in Dockside eating ice cream until the storm ended!); Town Beach (and the ferry in the background); East Chop Lighthouse.)

2. However, the Saturday that we were there (Sept. 26) marked our 7th "dating anniversary"-- so we did something special: a day trip (via the VTA buses) to Edgartown and Vineyard Haven.

We walked to the Edgartown lighthouse:



Shopped in some "super cute" (and super $$$) island shops:


And visited the Martha's Vineyard Museum:

In Vineyard Haven we shopped some more, and then sat by the harbor and watched the boats:


Then later we ate dinner at "The Black Dog Tavern"-- and it was worth every bit of hype! The food was fabulous! (no pics... sorry :(... This is why I would never make it as a food blogger...) J and I both started with the Quahog chowder (divine! this was basically the best clam chowder I've ever had: rich and creamy with lots of clams and potato chunks, served in a mug and topped with perfectly crispy croutons). Then I moved on to the Marinated Ahi Tuna Steak:
"lemongrass & coconut marinated tuna steak with wasabi & crystallized ginger mashed potatoes & wakami seaweed salad"
and J got the Garlic Crusted Codfish:
"fresh caught George’s Bank codfish, oven roasted and topped with garlic bread crumbs, served with citrus beurre blanc, with homestyle mashed potatoes & sauteed spinach"

"Holy Yum":)

3. And finally, we enjoyed every moment we spent walking around the campground:




Needless to say, we had a wonderful time:) It was extremely bittersweet to have to come home (to clarify: the sweet part was dreaming about setting up my home with J once we got back! Perhaps I'll give a "home tour" in a future blog?! Let me know what you think!!)

Well, I hope you enjoyed the recap (and pictures!) Have a lovely Tuesday evening, bloggies! I'm off to a bath and sweet, sweet sleep!

The post you've all been waiting for :)

(All credit for these wonderful pictures goes to my dear friend, Jenny. Thanks for sharing!!)

(Alternatively titled, "Amy is taking a slight ego trip-- but SHE was really excited to write this" or more simply "The wedding post")

Ahh, bloggies-- how I have missed you! I absolutely love writing this blog (just sitting down and dreaming up all the possibilities for this post thrills me :) -- and it has been way too long since I have gotten a chance to sit down and do so. In all fairness, I have been "keeping out of trouble" the past few weeks, doing things like, oh, getting married and going on a breathtaking 10 day honeymoon to Martha's Vineyard with Mr. R. (formerly known as my wonderful fiance J, he has graduated to the ever sophistocated sounding "Mr. R." Ahh! Love it!)

All right.. so without further ado:
Wedding Day Recap

I feel like I am extremely lucky, because, unlike the scores of people I talked to that told me "you won't remember a thing.. it will all fly by"-- I feel that I remember (at least to some extent) everything. I remember waking early and lying in bed, going over everything that I had to do in my mind before I stepped out and really started my day. I remember being stressed out and feeling badly (haha, I felt a bit bridezilla-y-- but I suppose if this was my only moment, it's not so bad ... right?!) because we were going to be late to our hair appointments-- and then feeling stressed out again when we ended up getting to the church later than planned. More importantly than this though-- I remember apologizing profusely, and my mother telling me "Don't worry.. it's always like this on wedding days. Everything will be okay. Everything will get done. Relax and just go with it."

And so I did :) And it was wonderful!

I remember laughing with Jon's sisters in the "dressing room", and putting on my make-up with Laurie and Saundra. I remember how beautiful all the bridesmaids looked in the dresses-- and how happy I was with the way the bridesmaids necklaces turned out. I remember deciding that even though I had a pair of "more sensible" (read: low enough that I wouldn't tip over in them...) heels, I decided to be completely "Amy-esque" and wear a pair of killer blue stilletos instead.

I remember slipping into my dress with the help of my mother, Laurie and Saundra. I remember walking outside to see Mr. R for the first time-- and being completely overwhelmed... but once he held me in his arms, I knew we would be fine. I remember waiting in the back room as the mothers lit the unity candle, and getting choked up when Pastor Bud came in and delived one last love message to me from Mr.R.

I remember holding onto my father for dear life as we walked down the aisle together, and shaking like a leaf once we got to the front. I remember (sigh) crying my way through the vows-- which was a complete surprise. I remember dripping wax on the altar cloth when we lit the unity candle, and what a beautiful job our readers did-- how perfect the readings were in the moment.


I remember (and this is one of my favorite memories!) that in his message to us, Pastor Bud told us that God had a plan for our lives, and for us together as a couple-- that by joining our lives together in marriage we were taking a step in fulfilling this plan-- his plan for us to make a difference together. I remember Mr.R.'s and my first kiss as husband and wife (haha... and briefly wondering if it was a respectable enough kiss to do in front of our parents and grandparents...), and I remember holding Mr.R's hand a beaming out at the congregation as we were pronounced husband and wife.

I remember seeing my parents and new in-laws for the first time after the ceremony-- and the joy there. I also remember Uncle Gary handing me a box of kleenex and everyone laughing-- but I really needed it :)


I remember walking out to the car in a shower of bubbles, and driving around the block several times (while TJ leaned on the horn in the truck behind us!), relaxing and breathing and saying "Wow" repeatedly-- we had done it!!! I remember taking pictures with the bridal party outside in the beautiful sunshine. I remember arriving at the reception hall and the applause as Mr.R. and I walk in. I remember being so flattered and thankful when the groomsmen brought us plates of food (which we really didn't get too much of a chance to eat-- I got 3 meatballs. 3 really good meatballs... but still....) I remember tearing up at the maid of honor and best man's speeches-- because they were so beautiful and heartfelt.



I remember how hard it was to get the piece of cake out once we cut it-- but how delighted I was with how it tasted :)

And finally, I remember hiw much fun I had kicking back and laughing with the bridal party once everyone else had left (we may or may not havefinished up a bottle of champagne, too...)

In short, I was wonderful. It was emotional and exhausting, poignant and heartfelt, warm and laid back. It was just very "US". It was perfect. And I don't say that lightly. Above all, we are so thankful. The day couldn't have been what it was if it were not for our amazing family and supportive friends. We are so, so blessed.

~~~~~

It is also a blessing to relive the wonderful memories :) But, that's it for tonight, because I am exhausted! I hope you enjoyed the wedding recap (and the pictures!!) I promise a honeymoon recap really soon, as well as some more pictures, as I get them.

Good night, Bloggies! Much love to you all, and I hope you have had a wonderful week!