Project 365: Week 10

March 2

My wedding dress came in today and my mom and I picked it up. It needs alterations still, but I love it! I'm convinced that they make wedding dresses weird so they can make more money through alterations. The top, the length and above the hips fits perfect, but my butt and thighs could be twice as big and I'd still have room to grow...don't worry, I don't plan on growing, I'm just gonna pay to have it taken in.

March 3
Paul and I "officially" started dating 6 months ago today. I'm not a 'month celebrator' but it's been a hectic few days so I wanted to do something nice for him. A card, malt balls and cookies. That's nice, right? Oh, and I made dinner too. For the first time in like, ever.
March 4
I'm such a fantastic fiance. This little package came in the mail today. One day he'll be a Seahawks fan...baby steps...
March 5
Wedding planning-- I'm really enjoying the fun parts, but I'm really getting overwhelmed with the not so fun parts. I won't bore you with the stress details. But just know that Paul and I are still in love...and I like the nights when the reminder that he loves me comes with flowers. That's what this picture is.
March 6
My cousin Angela got married today. Here she is with her new husband Jordan. It was a really beautiful BIG wedding. My cousin Sara and I were talking at the reception and she asked me if I'm glad I'll be having a small wedding-- her reasons for assuming it will be small are, I only have a big extended family on one side, my fiance is from California so not a lot from his side will come to Utah, oh, and I don't have any friends. Ok, so it will be smaller than Angela's wedding...which is fine with me.
March 7
Paul and I got our engagement pictures taken today. I'm so glad it didn't snow and the sun even came out. Kylee did a GREAT job! We were running from place to place to get the perfect shots. It took 3 hours and she took 400+ pictures. I'm so excited to see them! ...This one won't be used, but it's funny. I think I was telling Paul to smile normal and be straight. He loved this little wedding outing more than any man I've ever known. It was great that he didn't complain like most men who have to pose for 3 hours!
March 8
Today at church a little boy came up to me and held out these glasses. I told him I really liked his cool glasses. Then he said, "No, they're for you! They're for your kid!" ...my kid will be thrilled.

Project 365: Week 9

February 23

I had a really successful wedding shopping day. You can't tell much from these bags and piles, but I'm loving our green and white theme. I'll take more pictures as everything starts to come together. I'm so excited!
February 24
This might be a week of wedding stuff. I'm working on a lot of the little details right now. Maybe I'm doing it backwards, but I'm having fun. This is step one of four with these flower pots. I'll keep taking pictures...probably more than you'll care to see.
February 25
Anne took me to lunch today for my birthday. Our birthdays are so close to each others that we spread out the celebrations. Look at the purse she made me!! I LOVE IT!!! Anne is the most thoughtful and creative person I know. She has so many talents. I want to be like her someday. (I'm stealing one of her creative party favor ideas for our rehearsal dinner.)
February 26
I'm experimenting with wheat grass. Not for the healthy organic nutrients, just for decoration. I'm turning my spare bedroom into a greenhouse.
February 27
Paul is moving to my apartment this weekend. I'll be heading 10 miles north and hanging with my parents for the next 3 months til the wedding. I hope the time goes by fast. We figured we'd save on rent and get him all moved and settled in so we don't have that to add to the wedding stress. I've decided that the spare bedroom can get as full and messy and packed as he wants...but I need order in the rest of my (his/our) apartment. We'll see how it goes.
February 28
Right now my 'no clutter in the rest of the apartment' rule isn't working. We'll see if all the stuff finds a place in the next few days. This is just one shot of the master bedroom. The apartment in general really isn't as bad as I thought it might be.
March 1
*Sidenote* I typed February 29 first before remembering that it's March. I was born in a leap year and when I was younger I remember wishing my mom would have waited 9 more days to have me. I thought it would be cool to only have a real birthday every 4 years. I would have turned 8 last year. Anyway, March 1st.
This is Paul getting creative with a garden arch that we bought over the weekend to use at the wedding.
*Another sidenote* This has been a busy/full/fun/stressful week, but sorry the pictures are mostly boring...I'll do better next week.

a whole lotta not much

This week has been kinda upy and downy... It's been busy, but boring...

1. I've done a lot of wedding stuff. I've found some amazing deals, but wow, money spends fast.

2. My parents have been in the Virgin Islands for a week. I'm picking them up tonight. I miss them!

3. Today is moving day. Why do we need so much stuff? Both of our leases were up this month so we decided to save a few hundred dollars and consolidate. I'm living out of a suitcase in my parents basement and Paul is living in my apartment...104 nights...go by fast, go by fast...

4. Paul and I have been eating out way too much lately. I can't even remember the beginning of last week, but I haven't cooked for at least 10 nights in a row. Wow.

5. I'm ready to be warm.

6. I'm looking forward to being a home owner. Not that it's going to happen any time soon...or in the state of Utah, but I'm looking forward to feeling really settled in somewhere, and painting, and being creative, and knowing it's mine.

7. I'm going to make brownie bites right now. I wanna try those baby ones in mini-muffin tins and see how it works.

8. I'm ready for Mexico. Spring of '06 my friend Katie and I went to Cabo San Lucas, Spring of '07 my friend Kathy and I went on a cruise to Ensanada, and Spring of '08 the same Kathy, her friend Cammie and I went on the same cruise again. My brain thinks this is a normal thing now. I guess a fiance and wedding planning is a good trade...but...a big boat, the sun, ocean and Mexico would sure be nice...

9. I got my hair done yesterday. I love that my cousin Sara does my hair. She's gonna do my hair for my wedding...we're thinking I might wear it down. Check here work out here.

10. I wish I was the investor of Spoon Me. Or that I had a never ending Spoon Me machine in my house. It's the best stuff.

text the word "LENT" while speeding down I-15

Every year I give up something for lent. (The past 2 years is 'every year' to me.) I don't usually (I never) succeed for 40 days...is that how long it is?? But I try and I'm never sad when I fail because...I'm just not.

This year I decided I'd give up text messaging. Not completely. But my plan was that if a texting interaction took more than 2 texts I'd call the person.

By 10AM this morning I'd already had 3 conversations via text. One with my fiance Paul about wedding/love/lent. One with my brother Scott about getting some info to him about a project for a class he has, and finding a house key. And one with my friend Anne about hanging out later today. All 3 are people who I have no problem talking to, it's just that texting is my #1 way of communicating. Shortly after realizing that I'd already failed, I got a phone call from one of my cousins who needed Scott's phone number. I gave it to her and was off the phone in less than 20 seconds. I thought to myself that if I needed a number from someone I'd text them and they'd text me the number and then I could move my blackberry scroll ball over the number in the text and push one button and my phone would call that person, or I could scroll one line down and have the option to text the number I'd just recieved via text. Which is easier/quicker?? I started thinking about this last sunday while texting one of my other brothers, Taylor. We texted (is texted a word?) for about 30 minutes about the Celine Dion concert I'd just attended, the Oscars and our love of Slumdog, and one of his childhood friends who had just passed away. All topics that may have been easier and quicker to talk about/get informed about by talking, but we just kept texting and texting and texting...

So, then I decided I might try and give up speeding. While thinking about habits that are hard to change or give up I noticed that in about a 4 miles stretch of road I went at least 10 over, 3 times. It's hard to go the speed limit! And most of the time when I catch myself speeding I'm just going with the flow of traffic. I'm not flying past people, or weaving in and out to get ahead. I'm just keeping up with all the other people in the world who are in a hurry.

So, here is what I've decided. I'm gonna kind of combine the two and try not to be such an over-acheiver. I'm going to give up texting while I'm driving. I do this a lot. So now maybe I'll text less in general, and I'll pay more attention to the road and my driving. Happy Lent!...er...Ash Wednesday...er...whatever...

4th, 4th, tag.

The idea is to go to your pictures, open the 4th folder and select the 4th picture. Post it. Explain it.

This is an old friend Aaron and I. I lived by him back in the day and he would have a lot of parties and never invite me. But we had all the same friends so I'd hear about the parties and go anyway. This is us having a make-up hug at his birthday party a year or so ago...that I wasn't invited to. He always claimed that I was invited, or that I was one who always had a standing invitation to everything... blah, blah.

Try to have a secret party.

I'll find out.

And I'll come.
(If you're reading this, consider yourself "4th, 4th, tagged".)

Project 365: Week 8

February 16

Our "Met-iversary." Paul and I met one year ago today. I know I swore I'd know a guy a year before I'd talk marriage or be engaged. I was 17 days off. Oh well, expect the unexpected...er, something. We went to dinner and bought clothes for our invitation pictures. Then watched some DVRed Bachelor and 24. I love him. (Paul, not Jason Mesnich or Jack Bauer) But Jack IS a close second.
February 17
My Grandpa's brother passed away this evening. The mortuary that Paul works for is handling the services and I happened to be with him when he got the call so I went along with him and his co-worker to the hospital. It's an interesting profession and my man is oh so good at this type of work.
February 18
I gave up fake nails a couple months ago. I kinda miss them, but this stuff is the next best thing. My mom got tricked into buying it at the mall before Christmas and she gave it to me. I pull it out every couple weeks. I also work on Paul's nails, but that's top secret. My brothers heard about it once and said if he did it again he'd have to give up his man card.
February 19
Today was a fun day. I could've taken a lot of pictures but I forgot to. Anne and I went to lunch for our birthdays. Hers was the 17th and mine is the 20th. After work my sis-in-law dropped off these BEAUTIFUL flowers. Thanks Laura and Scott! Later Paul and I went to dinner and then went shopping around for wedding ideas. Sometimes shopping with him is so much fun and sometimes it...is not so fun. ;)
February 20
My Birthday. I haven't yet, but by the time this is posted I will have probably blogged a B-day post. Real quick- lunch and shopping with my mom, (thanks mom!) Appetizers and drinks at Ruby River, dinner at Mayan, and He's Just Not That Into You. All with Paul. (He's into me) Here is us at Mayan.
February 21
My great-uncle Paul's funeral. My fiance Paul handled the service through the mortuary he works for. He did an amazing job and all the extented-extended family who had never met him of course fell in love. This is at the grave side in Bountiful, Utah. My grandpa and his remaining siblings, Ralph, Ruth, Mark and Max.
February 22
Celine Dion. Does life get any better?? I've been waiting for this concert for 15 months! I love her. My mom was suppose to go with me, but she was given a free trip to the Virgin Islands and left this morning. Paul came with me and whether he admits it or not, he's her newest fan. It was a-mazing!

birth

I'm 29. This blog might be rambly and run-ony. I've been sitting here thinking how to write it and my brain is racing and I don't know why. So we'll see.

I decided I might not like birthdays. Not because of anything that happened or didn't happen, I just, I dunno.

Here was my day. Gym. This geeky shy awkward young membership checker told me "Happy Birthday Andrea!" when he scanned my card. It was kind of random and I'm sure they have some listing on the memberships and it pops up on the screen when it's your bday. Caught me off guard for a second, then it made me feel good. It's nice when you get a Happy Birthday from someone who has no reason to know its your bday. Kinda like the time I got pulled over on my bday and didn't realize the cop would figure it out with my license and when he returned to my car he said, "Slow down and have a Happy Birthday, ma'am." Me: Oh...right! Thanks!

My mom took me to lunch and then we did a little wedding stuff shopping. Oh and I bought her a pair of shoes...for my birthday. I told my dad I bought them for her as a thank you for birthing me. Then he tried to get me to buy him something because he said he did all the work in the process. He got nothin outta me. The real reason I bought them for her was because 2 Christmases ago I gave her a ticket to Celine Dion to go with me. The concert was suppose to be this past Nov. but it was rescheduled for this Sunday. My mom got a free trip from work and she leaves Sunday morning so she can't go. :( So I bought her shoes to make up for Christmas. And Paul in going to Celine with me. The Paul who I'm marrying...the one who, when he found out that last weekend at the Energy Solutions Arena they gave out earplugs at the monster truck rally asked, "Will they give out earplugs at Celine Dion??" I love her! And nothing will ruin the show for me.

Tonight Paul took me to Jordan Commons. We went to Ruby River and had some appetizers while we waited for a table at the Mayan. We ran into my friend Taft from high school, it was good to see him. Then we had dinner at Mayan and went and saw He's Just Not That Into You. Not the best movie. He kind of almost barely redeemed itself in the last 90 seconds, but overall it was sad and depressing. Maybe it woulda been a little better if I'd seen it with girlfriends, but seeing a movie like that with the man I'm about to marry just made me feel like relationships and commitment and love isn't realistic or possible...I know that it is. But that's how the movie comes across. Maybe I didn't explain that well. If you've seen it, you might agree, or disagree. Whatevs. We'd decided to keep my bday simple because we have a financial plan we're working on before we get married. And with v-day, our met-iversary, and my bday in the same week, it was a lot. But Paul still gave me a gift card to one of my fave places. And he's taking me to Cali in a couple weeks for the 7th time in less than 8 months.

Birthdays are birthdays. Everyone has one, and really, the moms maybe should be the ones who are celebrated. They did all the work. All I did was slide out and cry. So, Happy Birthday Mom, thanks for birthing me.

And thanks to all of you who called, texted, emailed, facebooked, etc. It is nice to know people remember...and/or see the facebook reminder. That's a good feature.

Ok, that's all...until next year...