Beth and Jeremy take on Iowa

Running running

2011-10-09T13:57:00.002-05:00

I ran my first official 5K yesterday.

I was a basketcase before I walked the half mile from my house up to the park. I had it in my head that I had no business in this race. Quite frankly, that was a little ridiculous to even think about. I typically run 2.5 to 3 miles three to four days a week. The route that the race was on went through my neighborhood and was very similar to what I typically run.

I'm not the fastest, but there's no reason to think I couldn't do it.

Once I got to the park, I was fine. But I was ready to start -- and that didn't happen until 15 minutes after the race was supposed to start. I now was just worried about starting off too fast, and I almost zipped around quite a few people but I reminded myself to not burn out too quickly.

But, I think I ended up starting off too slowly. I was about a minute off of where I really wanted to be. But, i did run the entire thing, and I passed a lot of people. Jeremy told me I had moved up from the back of the middle pack to close to the front. I did beat quite a few of the football team that ran it, and those who beat me, walked a good portion of it and sprinted at the end (where their coaches were stationed. Lazy butts).

So now I have a new goal to beat this time. I can do it, and we'll see where I end up in two weeks.

One Foot in Front of the Other

2011-04-04T21:23:00.000-05:00

The title of this entry is pretty obvious and typical, but it's also very fitting.

Last summer, I had a complete physical. Let's just say my lazy lifestyle wasn't doing the best it could for my body.

I decided this needed to change. I cut out fast food, started eating more fruit, but the biggest thing was I started working out. The elliptical and I became close friends.

The big issue I had to get over was my asthma. I have exercise-induced asthma (humidity, cold, and me being congested can trigger it, too). It was pretty bad in high school, but in college it got a little better thanks to me hoofing it all over Mizzou's campus.

I'm not going to deny that I wasn't scared when I stepped on that elliptical. The thought of the screaming lungs, the inability to catch my breath, and shaky hands didn't exactly make me want to jump into this guns a blazin'.

I've been good though. I even made the jump to full out running on the treadmill.

Best part: the asthma has rarely been an issue.

Yes, I still have bad days. But the good part is that I can tell when I'm starting to push myself too hard. I know my symptoms, and I know when to slow down and when to just say "It's time to stop."

The important thing is that when those days happen, it doesn't make me not go back. I show up the next day, and push myself just as hard.

I'm not super fast yet, and I'm not doing any long distances. But, considering a year ago running a quarter mile would have made me keel over and now I can do three half-miles in a 30-minute period, I'd say I'm slowly slaying the beast.

Success

2011-04-01T12:36:00.000-05:00

It isn't hard to see evidence of teacher's successes being measured by tests in today's world. And I won't go into my thoughts and opinions on that matter. But, I think if you have any common sense, it is easy to figure out that those percentages aren't really what measures your success.

We have 20 minutes of daily silent reading time in our school, and my students have it for my class once a week. Yes, there is the typical grumbling you'd expect (they're teenagers for cripe's sake that's what they excel at). For the most part, though, my students have been pretty good at staying on task and digging into their free choice books (one class has almost read 250 books since the start of the year).

Yesterday, I told one girl I'd miss her next year as she recommended another seven books for me to read. She immediately told me that she was going to miss me more because I was the only one who gave her recommendations and good ones at that. A few minutes later, she told me I had to give her some type of contact information for the summer because there was no way that she'd make it through the summer without my input on books.

Today, different class, different student. Same conversation.

Back to the first student today: Mrs. Knipper, I read in previous years, but nothing like this. But, because of YOU, I really, really like it now.

Now, that's really some success.

End of the Year Blues

2011-03-30T13:26:00.000-05:00

It's the fourth quarter. Kids are shutting down, and I've got news for you, teachers are shutting down to. This doesn't mean that we're giving up and not teaching or doing our jobs, but it is getting harder to do them.

We don't have an easy job. We have to be "on" for at least eight hours a day and then go home and grade or make lesson plans. Yes, we may get time off during the summer, but I'm pretty sure I put in more hours during my nine months of work time than are in those 2.5 months I get off. But, when you keep those hours up for that long of time, your body starts to rebel. It's time for a break, it keeps yelling. We need it - physically and mentally.

But, the end of the year is rather bittersweet.

Sure, there are those kids that I'm ready to not have in my room again. But there are very few.

It's not easy to say good bye to those that I've really made connections with. Sure, I'll see them in the hallways, but I don't get to have those daily conversations or have them come up to my desk to chat about "THE BEST book EVER, Mrs. Knipper!"

So, I find myself drawing away from all of them. I think I do it to make it less painful.

I remember leaving Pensacola on my last day at school. My last class of the day was my favorite, and it was no secret. We had really bonded that year, and I loved all of them dearly. It was killing me to have to say good-bye and not get to see how they turned out and watch them on their life journey.

They felt the same way.

The bell rang.

They didn't leave.

Instead, they were still in a mass hug, clinging to me. And we were all teary eyed. I slowly shuffled with them to the door because I told them they couldn't miss the bus.

I wouldn't go out those doors with them, though. I couldn't handle it. I don't think they could handle it.

But, in all honesty, that's what teacher lives for every year. Those bonds are worth our crappy paychecks and the weekends lost to grading essays.

And it's what I need to remember every day when I step foot in that classroom and start the lesson for the day - no matter how hard it hurts at the end of May.

Musings on a snow day

2011-02-01T09:10:00.000-06:00

All weekend, they have been forecasting a huge snowstorm to move through the state. Polk County is going to be in a blizzard warning starting at noon today. But, the county my district is in (one over) isn't - just a winter storm warning. I still figured last night that this would at least get us a late start this morning before I went to bed because we are a rural school district. No dice.

So, I got up this morning, cursing, because I was going to have to drive to school (although my route to school isn't typically horrid) and back when it was going to get bad. I'll be honest; I haven't gotten used to the stress of winter driving since we moved back. So, the thought of the 20-mile drive wasn't too thrilling.

I double checked my email before I got in the shower. I had signed up for alert emails from the television stations even though we do have a phone tree. I usually get the emails before I get the call (just by a few minutes). No alerts. Poo.

I get out of the shower and see I have a voice mail. No school! The email got sent right after I got in the shower. The stinky thing was that I was up and awake. At 6:30. On a day when I could sleep in.

So, I've spent the last 2.5 hours being productive.

Caught up on The Real Housewives of Atlanta.
Worked on baby blanket No. 3. I'm almost halfway done!
Started the oven cleaning (I shouldn't take credit for that; self-cleaning doesn't involve much from me).
Wrote a blog post! (We all know what an accomplishment this is for me!)
Started a new book (Incindiary by Chris Cleve; he also wrote Little Bee, which was excellent).

And that's not all that's on tap for today. Sammy needs to go on at least one walk today, and maybe I'll bake something. I also need to finish writing a unit test.

But, now, it's back to knitting.

Writing again ... and a bit whiny

2011-01-30T11:58:00.000-06:00

It's Sunday. I like lazy Sundays. The past few have basically consisted of Jeremy and I sitting on the couch and reading. (We live on the edge, I know).

They spoiled me because that's not really an option today.

Unfortunately, I procrastinated to the last minute (not such a big surprise, really. I also claim that being a copy editor only exacerbated this horrible habit of mine because you get used to working under the gun) and now I have to bang out the methodology (how I did my classroom research) section of my research paper for my master's. It really isn't that bad. I just don't want to do it. I should be happy because this paper is the ONLY thing I have to do for this semester (my last!), and the entire paper (about 40 pages) will be done (minus editing/revising) by the end of February. Then, I'll spend the next month and a half fixing and tweaking. The good news is that I will have it sent off by April 13. So, I've only got a little more than 70 days left of this master's thing. :)

I also need to get groceries because Sunday is the shopping day. I hate getting groceries, but I like food.

I also have to work out today. I'm just too lazy to want to do that.

Luckily, I have a fantastic husband who offered to go grocery shopping. My paper is almost done (and it's not even noon!). I will leave to go run eventually.

The problem is I just want to get to work on the scads of baby presents that I need to get done. From last September until this June, I know 15 (FIFTEEN, wth?) people who had/will have a baby. It's getting ridiculous.

So, I'm now procrastinating some more by writing a blog. See, I'm really good at that...

Environment

2011-01-27T09:33:00.000-06:00

Right now, it is my planning period.

The weird thing, I don't have much to do. I'm caught up on grading; my plans are done for next week (and I've got a skeleton for the week after that); no administrative stuff needs to be done.

And yet, there are many things I could be doing.

I could be working on my master's project. This would means more time to do what I want when I'm surrounded by all of my stuff at home, when I have the freedom to do what I choose to do.

But yet, I'm not.

I need to have a specific environment to write - or at least write well. My desk and my classroom aren't it. I need noise -- and not the white noise from the classroom next door or the geese/birds outside. I need TV/radio. I need Sammy putting his wiggly beagle body between me and my laptop.

It's too still here. My thoughts will be jumbled, and I won't be doing quality writing.

Plus, it's morning. I do not make quality stuff before noon.

This makes me think about the parameters I put on my kids. They have to produce a product on demand. It may not be the best environment for them.

Heck, I never wrote in class when I was in high school. I made it look like I did, but I did all of my stuff from the comfort of my couch or my bean bag.

It just makes me think a little more...

Well, um.... no excuses

2011-01-19T18:04:00.000-06:00

I always tell my students there is no excuse for being a slack ass. (OK, so I don't say slack ass, but I'm most likely thinking it.). And here I am being a slack ass. I'd rather not think about how long it has been since I've really blogged. I could list my normal excuses: school, work, sleep, sickness, having a life, the insane amount of baby knitting I have to do (7 by June. Only one of those is completed. Also: STOP procreating people!). But, it boils down to that I haven't made the time to do some type of writing, and I need to start making that a priority again.

I guess it doesn't help that I think I live a pretty mundane, uninteresting life. I read, work, sleep, run (which is just insane to think I do that), watch shitty TV, and knit.

Nothing exciting in that list.

But, then again, the popular memoirs are kinda about mundane things. They're just written funny. And I bring the funny. (As well as the punny, much to Jeremy's chagrin).

I also think that Twitter has possibly hindered my desire to blog. I basically say what I want over there, and all in 140 characters or less. That has seeped into my writing; my professor told me last semester that I have a lot of great quippy, short one-liners in my papers. I counted them. Yes, all 140 or less.

I'm cool like that.

So that's my 2 cents on my slack-assery.

I'm hoping it is a thing of the past.

um...yeah...so....

2010-10-28T23:16:00.000-05:00

Life has kicked me in the butt, and the blog has gone to the wayside.

I will post a brilliant entry soon, though. I have to get down my thoughts and memories about the fabulous homecoming weekend I spent in Columbia last weekend. It was a truly magical thing.

I love that town and my alma mater with all my heart. As fellow alum, Jon Hamm says in the ad, "Z-O-U, forever."

Excited!

2010-08-06T20:48:00.000-05:00

Today I took a load of crap into my classroom. Sadly, I don't think I even got half of it in there, but it is a start. And, what I did take in is already unpacked (amazing, I know).

Anyway, I was very pleasantly surprised by my room!

It's very decent sized; I have two desks that form a wrap-around desk, a HUGE counter, lots of cabinets, a closet, two bulletin boards, and four big bookshelves and one small one. Plus, I've got a lot of natural light thanks to the big window and door by my desk.

Here's what it looks like:


This is from the front looking toward the back. My desk is next to the door and window. All of the boxes on the desks have textbooks and novels. The teacher in the neighboring room had her daughters put them there so they could install my bookshelves.


FOUR bookshelves!!!! The small one is behind my desk.


Look at that counter!!! There are cabinets and drawers under it. The whiteboard is bookshelved by two matching bulletin boards.


My vantage point.

Sam says: I don't see what all the fuss is about. It's just a room. Now leave me alone. I've gone into sleeping bag mode, and I shouldn't be disturbed.

Day with Aunt Beth, Part 2

2010-08-06T10:29:00.000-05:00

Taylor's choice for our day together was going to the Science Center of Iowa. So, we went to lunch first, and I made sure to time it so she had the option of being on the Channel 13 weather forecast at noon. But, she didn't want to do it, but at least I gave her the option.

I basically let her go on her own and just trailed behind. It's a hands-on museum, so I let her play with what she wanted to and added in my knowledge when necessary. This resulted in us blowing through the place in 32 minutes.

Taylor may have had the most fun in the toddler section of the science center.

Here she shows off her brute strength.

I had her for the rest of the afternoon, so I had to quickly think of an idea of what else to do. I suggested we go to Barnes and Noble, and she was thrilled. I had to put her on a limit of two books, otherwise she would have walked out with 20 (not that I would know anything about that). She was reading one as soon as we hit the car, and she curled up on the couch to finish it when we got back to the house.

But her dorkitude didn't end there. Last summer, I had the girls Kool-aid dye some yarn, which they then used to knit a bookmark. Taylor really took to it, and she had actually finished a dishcloth for her mom a few weeks before that. So, I had given her some needles and two balls of remnant yarn I had so she could make herself a scarf. I can't describe how proud I was when she showed me this:

It doesn't look like much, but there's only one error in there. That's pretty good considering she did all of that on her own.

We finished the day with a trip to the mall to get some ice cream. I also let her window shop for a bit.

So, we had a nice dorky day. The dork gene runs strong in this family:)

Goal updates:

Um, the no new yarn thing, still not working. The shop got a lot of new sock yarn. I came home with two skeins - one for me, and one for Jeremy. I also heard that my favorite sock yarn will be coming in soon. Plus, I'm on the search for the World Cup sock yarn; I'm going to have obnoxious German knee highs for the next one:)

I have read a book a day so far. I've also been reading on my Kindle while I work out. It makes me less cranky about the entire thing.

A truce?

2010-07-29T22:27:00.000-05:00

Sam and Miho haven't gotten along - ever. This is not Sam's choice; it's been Miho's. If he comes close to her, there's a lot of hissing and batting. And then Sam looks confused because all he wants to do is be her friend. It's been this way since we first got him:

So, imagine my surprise when I turned around one day and saw this:

I thought it was a fluke, and then the next day, it happened again:

It is a small step, but it's more than we've seen in the 3.5 years we've had Sammy (who manages to always look brilliant in photos).

Randoms

2010-07-26T17:02:00.000-05:00

*Sorry for the blog silence. I was without my laptop last week. My technology curse continued, and one of the Web sites that I visit had been hacked. This resulted in me getting a virus. The "humorous" thing about this virus is that is actually from a antivirus company. Basically, they hold you hostage because they pop up their antiviral program, and then they disable yours. Then, they say your computer is riddled with spyware and horrid virii. It meant we got to wipe my computer and start over.

*I broke down and got a new Zune. Mine took a bath in the pets' water dish (Jeremy knocked it off the counter). I'm very glad I got the new version. It's so light. And after loading it up with my favorite 90s music, I now have a better idea of why my dad thought I was addicted to heroin (nothing else, mind you -- just heroin) in high school. I listened to some angry stuff.

*Staying with the technology theme, thanks to my curse of gadgets hating me, in the past 3 years I have managed to kill 3 laptops (one was a work one and it was actually Sam's fault -- he stepped on it), render 2 Zunes useless, kill 2 or 3 phones, and the wii went kaputt, too. I say it is because of my electric personality; Jeremy doesn't buy this.

*Jeremy and I joined the Y. I've worked out every day since we joined. I have never liked exercising, and I still don't. It makes me hot, sweaty, and smelly. And I hate smelling. However, the nice thing about already being a stick means I get to see results quickly. My egg (what I've always lovingly called my bicep) is now more of a large lemon. I can see my calf muscles again, and my thighs are rocks. I'm now preparing to run my first 5K in October - The Race for the Cure. And I'm making Jeremy run it with me because I need a buddy.

*It's been a wet summer in Iowa. This makes me miss Florida - if only because people in Florida can drive in rain. People in Iowa, not so much. I've had practice driving in insane rains thanks to various tropical storms and hurricanes. Just keep plowing ahead, there is no need to slow down at random points or hit your breaks suddenly.

*I may have downloaded a widget to my phone that is counting down the days to Disney (153, if you were curious). I'm worse than a kid, and Jeremy is about as bad. Once we have mini-Knips, it may be hard to distinguish who are the adults and who are the kids.

*I have two weeks left of summer vacation. Thanks to my stupid classes, I feel like I have not accomplished enough laziness. But, I will finish the last class this week, and it is my goal to read a book a day in that time.

Yarn diet update: I fell down and went boom last Friday. I went to a yarn shop in Altoona that I haven't been to before. I got some yarn for a present (so that was a necessary purchase), and then two skeins that were just for me. But, I also finished two projects last week. I'm calling it even.

I have a problem

2010-07-15T12:55:00.000-05:00

Last year, I put myself on a yarn diet.

It worked for a while. I had a lovely spreadsheet, and I was actually coming out ahead of what I was using to what was coming in.

I'm not sure what happened, but two months ago, I took this photo:

That's Sam, being pushed into the middle cushion of the couch. By just my sock yarn. And after I took this photo, I realized I had another basked filled with sock yarn.

So again, I'm on a yarn diet. I have been winding yarn so I can easily grab yarn to start a new project. This way it will be out and in my face, and I won't think I have to get more yarn. The only caveat to this is I do have a few Christmas presents in mind (although I already have 2 done!). There is a big chance I will need to get yarn for at least one of those.

I may admit to this issue, but I won't touch the towering stack of books I've bought over the years or the stack I have from the library...

Summertime

2010-07-12T20:11:00.000-05:00

One of the fantastic things about moving back to Iowa has been getting to spend time with the kiddos. Even though they're my cousin's kids, they've always called Jeremy and I uncle and aunt, and we may be guilty of spoiling them a bit. We try to go to at least one of their games and some of their events. I also have made sure that they get a "fun day with Aunt Beth" during their vacations(I may use these as an excuse to get to do kid things that I want to do but not look like a weirdo. For example, it's how I went to the Floppy* documentary; I conned Em into going with me and relived a great childhood show. This is also how I'm going to go see Romana and Beezus later this summer.

But, since the end of May, the kids have kept us busy with all of their events (OK, it slowed down after June - but there were a few busy weeks). We got to see Em and Taylor at their dance recital. I enjoyed it more because a lot of the kids I had at Waukee were in it. Jeremy admits he snoozed a bit during it.

We had Parker's little league game. He's improved a lot since last year when he hopped up and down on third base yelling "Aunt Beth, Aunt Beth! Look! Look!" He even did this while a ball rolled right past him (the unobservant part is apparently a family trait). He's become very serious about it, and he's informed me his favorite position is catcher.

Look at that concentration.

He really is a peaceful kiddo (as well as absolutely adorable).

Clark, on the other hand, is a hellion. He managed to run onto the field
as well as yell "diarrhea" across it. Spitfire doesn't even begin to describe him.

Em's our little soccer player. Uncle Jeremy has informed me I'm not allowed to tell her how to play dirty. I do think she needs to learn how to celebrate goals though.

Em, center, looks pretty serious (and looks a lot like a young Aunt Beth).

"No, no, Jeremy!" is Sam's favorite phrase. And that's always good for laughs.

Okay, so they ALL might be a little hellionish.
I have NO idea where they'd get that from:)

So far, I've only done one Aunt Beth day with Parker. I scored us some great seats at an ICubs game, right to the right of first base. Parker even got a foul ball that some older gentleman was nice enough to make sure the player gave it to the kid. He was thrilled.

He was so excited to be that close to the field. I may be biased,
but he's the cutest kid in the world!

I did take all 3 kids to see Toy Story 3 the other day. I even braved 3D for them, and we were "cheaters" as Em said and snuck in our goodies. That seemed to be very exciting for them. After the movie, we met Uncle Jeremy at the park for dinner. They played tag while I documented the entire thing. Parker was so excited that Jeremy was chasing him, he ran by me laughing hysterically. You can't help but be happy with moments like those.

*For you non-Central Iowans, the Floppy showed aired after the noon news from the 50s to the late 80s, when it changed to a Saturday afternoon show. Floppy was a beagle in a box, and there were corny cartoons and jokes on the show. One of my childhood favorites, and yes, that is how my beagle Floppy got his name.

Chicago

2010-07-06T13:40:00.005-05:00

A little more than a month ago, we took a weekend trip to Chicago. Neither of us had been, so we decided it was a good, quick getaway (which is sad considering I grew up 7 hours away and a decent number of people I went to college with were from Chicago. Instead in college, I took the day road trip to Texas - I'm not kidding).

True to our typical form, we hit the ground running (we have yet to plan a relaxing vacation; we're not good at just sitting all day). So, after the giddiness of realizing that we were staying at the hotel the NHL was using as its HQ for the Stanley Cup in Chicago, we decided it was time to eat. Right next door to us was Miller's Pub, which is apparently a famous spot (these are things we did not research).

After running back to the room to get a sweatshirt, we went on a walking tour to see the sites from Ferris Bueller.

I check out the map and realize how much walking we're going to be doing.

I managed to not have a panic attack on the Skydeck. I think this was because I was so excited to see the Adventures in Babysitting building.

The Chicago Board of Trade is a pretty cool building.

It's a flamingo.

The hotel.

I managed to get blisters after this walking expedition, but that didn't slow us down for the rest of the weekend.

We started off the day walking on Saturday. We tried to get to the Shedd Aquarium, but the wait for tickets to just get in was 2 hours. We were going to the Cubs game that afternoon, so that wasn't going to work. Instead, we tootled around on the lakeshore, and we went to the Field Museum instead. Neither of us were that impressed by it.

It's Soldier Field. And me with way too bright hair.

The Bean.

the closest I got to any Chicago Bulls.

The town had gone Blackhawks nutty. These are the lions out in front of the art institute (where I was happier than a pig in poo because they had many Monets).

I may have jumped up and down when I saw this. it was a gift from Paris, and I may have declared that it was time to move there.

Wrigley - unfortunately the White Socks weren't playing in town that weekend, otherwise we would have gone to both parks.

Sue!

On Sunday, we took it a bit easier. We managed to get into Shedd, puttered around the art institute, and then meandered around Navy Pier while waiting to go see Taming of The Shrew.

We had a good time, but my feet were ready for a break when we got back.

I represent and show my Iowa pride wherever I go.

It's a pretty good year

2010-06-22T09:22:00.003-05:00

In April, I found out that there was an opportunity for me to get my teaching certificate in Iowa from doing a portfolio instead of finishing up all my classes (which I'm doing anyway because I'll be done with my master's next May). So, a few short weeks later, I had my "non-traditional transfer license." I still needed to take a few classes for the English portion of my license (hence speech since I'd never taken it for undergrad), and I also needed two years of experience teaching in an Iowa school.

This meant I started furiously applying for jobs. It's not such a great time to do that. Each position is getting hundreds of applicants, and they typically only interview 3-5 teachers. So, when I got a phone call 2 weeks ago to set up an interview for a 9th grade English position, I was thrilled!

I had my interview last week, and I felt very confident after leaving it. The counselor, who was on the hiring committee, personally knew one of my references and had called her directly. I had an inside track from another friend on what they were big on, which was actually something I had gotten experience with while doing my long-term jobs in Waukee (professional learning communities). But, I had to wait five days to hear anything.

Yesterday I had planned a day with Parker. We went to the Iowa Cubs game. I managed to get us pretty decent tickets, and he managed to get a foul ball. He had a great smile on his face the whole day, and he had told his mom that morning that he was just excited to get to spend the day by himself with Aunt Beth. I will admit there was several moments of me checking the phone to see if I had gotten the call that I got the job.

I figured by the time 3 p.m. rolled around, I was going to have to wait until today. Nope! As I was driving Parker home, the principal called. I called back, and left a message. It was a very long 10 minutes while I waited to get the call.

But, I got the job! I start August 9! I'm very excited!

So excited, in fact, that I agreed to go to Disney during my Christmas vacation.

Excitement finds us

2010-06-20T16:22:00.002-05:00

It's been a busy two weeks for me. I got the brilliant idea to take a speech class that was 3 credits in two weeks. Not exactly so much fun when I was taking four other classes, but at least it's done!

Then, I found out on Wednesday that my great aunt had died, so it was going to mean a trip down to Eddyville for the funeral on Saturday. By the time I got home that afternoon, I was just ready to crash and be a bum.

Nature had other ideas, though.

Jeremy took Sam out to go potty, and as he opened the door two ground squirrels/grinnys/chipmunks/whatever you call them ran at him and one actually ran inside. (Side story: I usually call them grinnys. The first time I saw one was at my granny's, and I got a kick out of saying "Granny's got grinnys!" My odd little sense of humor started early). I was sitting on the couch trying to get homework done, so I was a bit confused at why Jeremy was making odd noises outside of the door and why it was still open.

Then, I looked over and saw a little grinny, scared to death, staring at me from the kitchen. Miho also quickly spotted it and cornered it. I've never seen my tubby little cat run so fast.

I jumped up and grabbed two plastic containers to attempt to trap it to release it back in the wild. This did not go as planned.

It first ran behind the trash can, and I got it out, but it then ran over to the box pile. Sam then came in, shooed out Miho, and got the grinny to run back over to me. We tried this a few times to no avail.

I decide to get a lid to shoo it in to the box, but Sam got to it first. He grabbed it in his mouth, and Jeremy quickly moved him outside. (Sam does have a toy chipmunk; he grabbed onto the real one exactly like he does the stuffed one. I don't think the thing had a chance).

Unfortunately, the grinny didn't make it. I took one of Sam's poo bags and disposed of it in the Dumpster. Sam and Miho kept trying to refind it all night long, and I think Miho was a bit upset that she didn't get to finish her hunt.

I later saw the grinny's little friend, and it looked sad and depressed. I told it to blame Sam.

Now Sam has gone nutty and wants to really chase after everything he sees. I'm not looking forward to this.

Sammy's first kill

What We Did Last Summer - Entry 1

2010-05-23T21:56:00.004-05:00

I always said one nice thing about Pensacola was that it was close to a lot of interesting cities. Of course, we only made road trips to New Orleans, Atlanta, and Destin. Apparently, I just blanked on the idea that Des Moines was close to quite a few places, too. Omaha is 2-3 hours away, Kansas City is the same, Minneapolis is 4 hours, Chicago is 5, St. Louis is a day's drive, and Mizzou is about 4 (I couldn't leave CoMo out:).

So, about a year ago, I realized Green Day was playing in Minneapolis in July. I have loved them since 8th grade. So I begged Jeremy (and it really didn't take much arm twisting), and we decided to make a weekend out of it. The only downside was that my friend Lois was leaving that week to go visit her family in California, so we wouldn't be able to meet up with her.

We drove up on a Friday afternoon because the Twins were in town, so we decided we'd go see them, too. We found a hotel right across from the Target Center, which meant the Metrodome was within walking distance.

I had been to the Twin Cities several times as a kid. My dad's best friend from the Marine Corps lives there, so we took several trips to visit. I had never thought that it was that great of a place. And when I went to visit Lois a few months before the wedding, it was January and cold, so we didn't do much exploring. I was very surprised at what it has become.

We had a decent walk down and back to the Metrodome. Not once did I feel unsafe. Downtown Minneapolis is really clean and safe. There were several cops and security patrols around. And, there were a bunch of bars and restaurants around. I was really impressed. If I were just out of college, I think it would be where I would want to move.

It was nice to go back to the Metrodome one more time to see a Twins game. It's the only ballpark that I've been to where I was on the jumbotron. Granted, I was passed out, but I was on there - mouth hanging open and everything. It was a good game, and I was very happy to find they had microbrews there. This resulted in me not realizing it was the bottoms of the 9th and that the game was over.

The next day, my dad's buddy came and got us for lunch. We got to see Dinkytown and part of the campus. We also started the search for Jeremy's hockey stick. Fun times.

We also explored some of downtown. I was a little bummed that I did not have a hat to throw next to the Mary Tyler Moore statue. Downtown is basically a shopping area with the typical shops and restaurants. But, that also meant we got to have a good choice of where to eat for the concert - and we ended up going with Hard Rock.

I should also say that our hotel was extremely fancy -- but we got an amazing deal on it. However, I also realized that Green Day had the penthouse for the night. This may have resulted in me trying to figure out how to sneak up there. But, considering that the lobby was three floors up and around a corner, I didn't think it was going to be that easy. I was a little bummed that I realized when we were packing up that there was a pillow menu. But, I did keep our Hermes soap -- even though it reeks.

Since we stayed right across the street, it was really easy to get to the concert. The amazing thing was that as we walked out of the hotel, we ran into two people I went to high school with. With all of the people that went, it was an amazing feat.

We had pretty decent seats, but that was a minor thing. The concert was absolutely amazing. They played for about 2.5 hours, and they played the old stuff and the new stuff. The kid next to me thought I was weird as I was belting out the old stuff - I shouldn't have been surprised -- it came out before he was born. I'm very glad we went. It was fabulous.

To finish out the weekend, on our way home, we stopped at the Mall of America. That wasn't too exciting. It's just a big mall. Ikea was lovely though. Des Moines needs one. We also spent quite a bit of time at Hockey Giant - a department store of hockey stuff. I was not so excited; Jeremy was like a kid in the candy store.

So, it was a good weekend. Both of us were very happy with it. It was a nice little mini-vacation.

Not a good way to restart the blog

2010-05-19T20:53:00.002-05:00

I'm going to skip the fact that I haven't posted on here in a while and get down to the bad stuff.

Last week, Chewy started acting weird. She wasn't eating, she looked skinny, she was quieter, she was clingier, and she wasn't cleaning herself very well. She got better over the weekend.

Then Monday, she started acting odd again. On Tuesday, she wouldn't headbutt Jeremy. So, I decided I'd cancel my job for today and take her to the vet. Both of us figured she had a sore throat. It made sense.

I got up early and called a vet to see when I could bring her in. By 9:10, we were waiting for the vet.

I knew it wasn't good when the tech said Chewy didn't have a fever.

I got even more nervous when the first question the vet asked was if Chewy had been tested for Feline Leukemia.

By 9:30, she had used the cancer word. Lymphoma to be exact.

After feeling her neck, the vet found two massive lumps. Lumps that I couldn't believe how big they were. I had no idea they were there.

So, they took some cells from one of the lumps. These will actually be sent off to a cytologist to look at closer. The vet looked at them to make sure they were viable and weren't just red cell matter. She said she was pretty sure there were lymphocytes.

She asked if I wanted X-rays. I said yes. I wanted a clearer picture.

The X-rays showed that there are two massive lumps in her neck. They're pushing Chewy's trachea all funny. They're not pinching it. But the fact that it is no longer straight explains why she's been coughing, why she'll only eat wet food, and why she hasn't been eating much. She has to keep her head down to feel comfortable. Luckily, her other organs look basically okay. There do appear to be two masses on the lymph nodes around her heart and lungs. But no tumors on the actual organs.

The more disturbing thing was that Chewy has a BB stuck in her back. She's 13 now; she hasn't been an outside cat in 9.5 years. I was pissed. I was ready to drive to Eddyville and just start beating the shit out of people. But obviously, it's not bothering her since it's been there that long. It's still wrong.

Anyway, we are supposed to hear back about the cells by Friday at the latest. They may not be able to get a solid diagnosis from it. That would mean getting a biopsy,which means cutting a big chunk out of Chewy's neck.

I asked the vet what she would do if it were her cat. She's actually gone through this with her 13 year-old-lab. There is no cure for lymphoma. They can possibly put it into remission with chemo. But that would only prolong the inevitable by a few months.

Jeremy and I have decided that's not an option. We're already pretty anti-chemo because of our personal experiences with our parents. Not being able to explain it to Chewy makes it even worse. This also means that we're not going to do a biopsy either. We're just going to be monitoring her, and when she starts to get worse, we know what we have to do.

I have been a mess all day. It's hard to know I'm going to have to say good-bye to my buddy. We've been through a lot together: moving, sickness, college -- she even gave approval for Jeremy. She's never acted like she's gotten older. It's weird to see her actually act her age.

I know this is the right choice though. But, in the mean time, Chewy gets to eat whatever she wants. This means she gets to have a treat of Hagan-Daas every night. She's rather happy about that.

Iowa weather

2009-02-26T23:41:00.005-06:00

Iowa weather is nutty. Today, one part of the state was under a thunderstorm warning while another was under a winter storm warning. We got the rain and hail.

Anyway, there is little to no grass in front of our apartment. This is where Sam goes out to go potty, but he is picky about his paws and doesn't like to get them wet or muddy. Both happen to him if it is raining out.

So, I tried to help him out today and made him some "rain boots." He was not thrilled at first:

You can even see the mud tracked in from the past in this photo up by the Swiffer.

However, the next time when we went out, I made him some bigger ones, and he actually sat patiently while I put them on and didn't try to rip them off. He even trotted down to the mail box with me and didn't seem to be bothered by them. I think he actually figured out that they kept his paws dry, warmer, and clean.

Something has frozen over...

2009-01-16T22:49:00.004-06:00

So this week brought the weather I so hated growing up in Iowa in January. Damn cold is the only way to explain it. When the high is below zero, that's just ridiculous.

All week on the weather, they've been talking about we haven't had cold weather for this long of a period since 1996. I remember that cold snap. I holed up in my room the entire week (we had no school because it was too damn cold). My room had a floorboard heater, which I had cranked, and this made my room the warmest in the house. I'd stick my head out every once in a while, yell for some food and listen to my dad gripe that I was going to set the house on fire by dropping something onto the heater (he was paranoid about fire).

Anyway, I decided that I was going to get equipment to help beat the cold that manages to freeze your nostrils together in a matter of seconds (it hurts, trust me). So, while walking through my favorite store here - Scheels (it's a sporting goods store filled with all manner of cold-weather fighting gear) - I found this hat. It may look dorky, but it makes my head sweat. I kid you not. I can go out in this weather, and my head and hands (woo hoo for my fancy gloves) will be sweating. It's a lovely, lovely feeling.

Part of the reason that I got all of this gear was that one of the munchkins turned 8 this week, and we were supposed to go sledding this weekend for her party. Sadly, the stupid weather has postponed it, but my hat, gloves, snow pants (the boy even got some of those this week), and boots will be waiting.

I also gave into fashion and decided I needed a pair of Uggs. Now, I always thought they were ridiculous when the anorexics of La-La Land wore them in summer, and I didn't understand why they were needed in Florida. Here, though, they make sense. I have been coveting a pair since going back to work after Christmas break. I see all the girls with them on and all their fleecy goodness as my feet freeze in my cute flats or heels. So, I searched online and found these:

They aren't as ugly as the typical Uggs, but they're just as warm. However, the problem is no one here has the grey ones. And they weren't much easier to find online, thanks to Oprah making them one of her favorites of 2008. So, they got ordered directly from Ugg central, and I should have them by the end of next week.

The saddest story of the week was Sam Puppy. He had some issues with having to go outside to potty in the frigid weather. He'd submerge himself into drifts so his little belly wouldn't get hit by the wind. Of course, he still managed to look like an idiot because he hops around when his paws get too cold. He was thrilled today that it got up to a balmy 18.

Yes, I used balmy to describe 18.

A bit late

2009-01-04T16:02:00.008-06:00

So these photos are from October. Oops.

It started with Emily, pictured below, deciding that everyone had to go to the pumpkin patch on the same day.

So, everyone went because it makes life easier if you just agree with Emily.

If you look closely at Sam's shirt (baby on the left), you can see a small bulge toward the top. He decided that his shirt made a good storage spot for his binky. Everyone thought it was missing, but he had just stuffed it down his shirt.

The pumpkin patch has a play area as well as a hayrack ride down to the patch. They even had a fire pit to roast marshmallows. Jeremy, as you can see, decided to join in on the trike races. I attempted to throw a football; I'm still not good at it, nor should I try to catch it.

All the kids picked out pumpkins. Emily took my advice and got what I said was the most perfect pumpkin in the patch. However, it was a bit too big for her to carry, so she held on to Sam's. Taylor chose to not carry hers at all, which is why she's the only one without one.

And of course, the kids seemed to be most excited about the farm cat that was hanging around.

Woops

2008-12-25T16:38:00.005-06:00

This is us, overlooking Florence.

So, I kinda forgot about this blog. Woops. Anyway, to quickly sum it up, we're still the apartment; house isn't sold; but life is good. I'm subbing full-time. I honestly have a job every day. I start classes on Jan. 20 through Mizzou's online program. I'm not in a graduate program yet, so I don't know what my degree will be in. I'm just "testing" the waters right now. Jeremy still likes his job and loves this winter weather. He's also in hockey heaven; he's in two leagues, and we'll be going to Vegas in April because he's on a traveling team (it's their only trip.). This means I get to finally see the Beatles' Love.

And, that about sums it up! Here's some pet photos (Chewy doesn't like to demean herself with crazy Christmas hijinks.)

Sam faces off with an evil bow. The main thing to point out in this photo is that he is not trying to eat the bow or harass me while I'm wrapping presents. I think he was admitting defeat in that something else was taking up my attention other than him.

Miho apparently thinks she is worth of being wrapped as someone's present.

Update

2008-09-22T17:28:00.003-05:00

Well, we are still in the apartment w/ no exit date in sight. I'm ready for the Pensacola house to sell so we can get the ball rolling. Sell, house, sell!

My job situation, however, is looking up. I am waiting for a background check so I can substitute. This is just for one district; I've still got one other district. I also have an interview on Thursday for a part-time communications director position at a local church. It is only 10 to 15 hours a week, so I should be able to do it along with subbing. One of the girls who works with Jeremy passed the job to me and put in a good word for me with the minister. So, send me good vibes on Thursday at 4:15!

Still not going according to plan

2008-08-11T22:04:00.002-05:00

So, I won't be going to Drake. I'm not in the mood to pay for a private school to HAVE to do student teaching, which I don't need to get my certificate. I'm looking into online programs now, which means no student teaching and a less intense program, most likely. Mizzou has one that I really like; I just have to make sure it matches up with what I need for my certificate. I will have to take some undergrad classes, but I can take those at a community college for cheaper than at Drake. Besides, if I "go" to Mizzou, I don't have to take the GRE or any test, whereas at Drake, I have to take a writing test and the Praxis. And, I don't have to worry about paying to get my transcripts there because they obviously already have them. I wonder if I get to keep my student number, which I still know.

The daycare job plan went kaputt. Long story short, they lied all over the place. I will not work for pennies to change diapers. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for an awesome job that is at Meredith publishing. I can handle journalism again as long as it isn't at a daily. I did have a preinterview today at a company that designs newsletters, web pages, etc. for non profits. Right now, I'll just be happy with anything. And being able to do my masters online will make it much easier for me to have a full-time job.

Good news

2008-08-04T23:47:00.002-05:00

OK. After the freak outs of last week, things are looking up.

A. I am going to go back to school at Drake. They have a specific master's program for people who weren't education majors, and it makes sure you get your Iowa certification -- plus the master's. I am talking to them on Monday.

B. I spent today applying for any and all jobs I could find. I decided to focus on day cares -- while it isn't exactly teaching the age I want, it is still working with kids. It pays a smidge better than teaching plus I still get benefits.

C. After applying, I got a call back within about 30 minutes. I had to do an online survey/test thing (which I got an excellent on) and got a call back 20 minutes after that. I interview on Thursday. I also have an opportunity to work at Sylvan, but that's just part-time, so I don't think I'll take that.

As long as I can get a job to pay the bills and my yarn/book/DVD/clothes/shoe habit, we're good. I don't have to love it for two years, but I think working at a day care would be a good choice. Keep your fingers crossed!

Rant

2008-07-31T20:51:00.002-05:00

I was going to not post anything between the trip posts, but here is an update on the move/job situation.

I found out from the state board today that even though I have two year's teaching experience, above average reviews and amazing recommendations -- I am far from qualified to teach in Iowa. So, starting Monday, I'm job hunting. And not in the teaching field. My plan is to find a 9 to 5 job that I can stand (there will be no newspapering for me), figure out what I REALLY want to do, and start my master's (most likely as a distance ed. student) in January. I know there are some programs I can still sign up for now, but I really want to put thought into what I want.

I have not been happy about this since I found out about it this afternoon (which was after I wasted 10 minutes of my life trying to get a person on the telephone to no avail, and Jeremy went searching on the Web site and wanted to stab it). But, I figure everything happens for a reason, and it's all going to work out. All I need is a job that pays at least what I was making as a teacher (which we all know isn't going to be that hard). It's also nice that DM actually has a lot of opportunities, so while it might not be a job I want to do for the next 30 years, it may be something that at least keeps me interested for the next 2 or 3.

Paris

2008-07-21T10:56:00.011-05:00

I don't know why it has taken me so long to write this -- it's not like I'm doing anything of real importance. However, typing things does cut into my reading and knitting time.

Anyway, this was the day that the tour really started. We got our wake up call at 4:45 a.m. I'm not joking. I, however, was up and ready to go at 4:30. I was officially over the probably salmonella I had the day before, and I was ready to be able to see stuff without worry about puking all over it.

We drove through Kent and went past Greenwich. On the way, we also drove past wide, open areas that were actually black death burial pits. They will never build on these.

We took the ferry from Dover to Calais, which was a 90-minute drive, and I managed to not get motion sickness. I was even brave enough to go out on the deck. I did make sure I was down in the seats before we actually moved though. It was a pretty smooth ride, and it gave me plenty of time to knit.

We had really wanted to do the Paris Illuminations dinner, but since it was close to Midsummer's Eve, we couldn't do it because it was light too late. We did get to take a river tour of the Seine, and we went under the Arc de Triumph after we ate. Jeremy was very excited to get to order a burger royale at McDonalds, and I had to point my way to a chicken and lettuce baguette. It was honestly one of the better sandwiches I've ever had. I was a little too excited to be able to walk and tear into the sandwich. America needs a fast food joint called "Le Baguette" that sells yummy sammiches.

We were lucky enough to see the Eiffel Tower's "sparkle show." This also meant we got to see a little bit more of Paris lit up. We took a quick drive past the opera where Phantom of the Opera takes place and drove into the Louvre's courtyard, which was an interesting feat considering the arches into it are very tiny -- basically barely wide (and tall) enough to fit the bus through.

It was another early morning the next day -- not another 4:30 day. But, let's just say we never slept past 7 on this trip. We started off with a tour of the city, which was basically a rehash of the tour of the night before. My complaint was no one pointed out the area that Hemingway liked. Oh well. The tour did include a ticket up to the second observation deck of the Eiffel Tower. I didn't look out so much during the elevator ride up, but I was fine when I got out there. We got some amazing photos of Paris, and I'm very glad I went up. I refused to go to the top, though.

It was then on to the Louvre; I was a little bummed because we did not get to see any of the really ancient stuff -- so no Code of Hammurabi:( However, they did allow photographs, which really surprised us. It was just a highlight tour, which meant we got to see Venus, Mona Lisa, and the Winged Victory. We also saw a few of the slaves that Michaelangelo sculpted for a pope's tomb (one of the Piuses, I think), and we got to see the rest of them when we saw the David in Florence. The big bummer, though, was that all of the "modern" art is in the Musee d'Orsey. This meant no Monet or Van Gogh for me. Had it not been for the fact that I got to see these classic works of art, I don't think I would have wanted to go into the Louvre. It was PACKED. I don't think they believe in following fire codes. It was enough to almost make me have a panic attack.

After the Louvre, we went to Monmarte, because it was on a hill -- we got another great view of Paris. We had lunch at a little cafe, and the birds here were insanely tame. Birds would fly in and out of the restaurant, eating crumbs off the floor. One actually clipped me in the head with its wings or feet. There were still a bunch of artists that set up shop in the center of this area.

That night, it was on to the Moulin Rouge. The food wasn't that great, and the show started to drag. It might have been helpful had it not be in French. We had no clue what they were singing about. During the circus portion of the show, there was a mini horse that looked like it was ready to escape. I hoped it would go nutty and do so, but no such luck.

This was really the end of our time in Paris, which was a really sobering thought. I really loved it and am ready to go back. There's just so much to see that we didn't get to go to -- like Notre Dame and the Musee de Orsey. It's a clean New Orleans, and it might have taken over New Orleans' spot as my favorite place.

Europe -- Days 1 and 2 -- England

2008-06-29T19:38:00.005-05:00

I'm going to attempt to get this Europe trip documented by the end of this week, but I"m not guaranteeing anything.

Anyway, our flight to London was great. I was excited because I got to see Massachusetts' boot; however I wasn't brilliant enough to take a picture of it. We were excited because we had video screens in our seats, so we got to have games, trivia (and together we beat up the other players on the plane), and pick which movies we wanted to watch.

We got into Gatwick about 7 a.m., and I as usual attracted the person who thought that cows were sheep and that it was SOOOO amazing that England had these HUGE areas where THOUSANDS of cars were parked. I wanted to turn around and say, "Ma'am, if you've ever left your house in the U.S., you'd realize those are parking lots." I really couldn't make up this stuff if I tried.

Gatwick is a 30 minute train ride away from London, and the great part was our travel company (Trafalgar) arranged for our transport from plane to airport. We got to Victoria Station and then were introduced to London traffic, which was the calmest we saw on the trip. I will never make too much fun of Missouri drivers anymore.

We couldn't get our room until after 1, so we left our bags with the front desk and took off walking. We figured we'd find a currency exchanged on the way, but no dice. We stumbled onto Kensington Park, so we ended up wandering around it for the day. This meant we saw Kensington Palace (where Diana lived, and the entire continent is obsessed with her), Royal Albert Hall (there was some squealing when I realized what it was and then educated Jeremy on the fact that Beatles played there and the entire story behind it), the Albert memorial, Diana's memorial (Jeremy said it looked like a log ride), and amazingly well-behaved dogs. Sam would not have fit in over there. We headed back to the hotel, got our room, and crashed out because we could no longer keep our eyes open. We didn't wander out for dinner and opted for the hotel food.

The next morning, we had a 1/2 day tour scheduled, and we get on the bus only to find out we will get to see the queen; princes Harry, William, Charles, and Philip; Princess Ann; and Camilla because it was the queen's birthday (Trouping the Colour). My mouth immediately dropped open, and I was just ready to go stand on the edge of the street. On this tour we also drove past Parliament, Westminster Abbey, St. James Palace, the museums and Downing Street. Since it was the "big" day, we also got to see a lot of the nobles in their fancy clothes and big hats (yes, I was bummed that I wasn't given enough notice because I would have so bought a big hat to wear). The bad part of the day was that I was sick. I'm blaming the awful English food, but I honestly don't know what it was. All I know is that seeing food made my stomach curl, and made me a little agitated. The short, rude woman who kept shoving her camera in my view at the parade almost got beat down because of this. At least the boy is tall and got decent pictures. Neither of us managed to get Prince Charles or Princess Ann; they were wearing full dress uniform so the hats obscured them. They were there though.

Philip, why do all these commoners think that I care to see them?

Camilla's hat was just ugly. I would have had a much more interesting one.

After Trouping the Colour, the tour was basically done. So, we hiked it down to Buckingham Palace, which is smaller than I thought it was, and then went back to Westminster Abbey so we could go inside. It was a little unnerving to think that we were walking over graves in the church and that we were basically looking at graves the entire time, but it was very interesting. They had a very good audiotour that was narrated by Jeremy Irons. I was happy enough to see the grave of Elizabeth I, which includes a life size figure of her. We were very glad we went.

Then, we trooped it up to the national gallery, which we were kinda disappointed in. There weren't many impressionist paintings, and I'm most happiest seeing Monet and Van Gogh. It did have DaVinci's Maddona on the Rocks, so it was nice to see that.

We were still jet lagged, and I was tired and cranky thanks to the stomach issues, so we got on the Underground and went back to the hotel. I crashed out for two hours, and Jeremy went to the grocery store to get us peanut butter and bread. I had croissants for dinner, and he had peanut butter sandwiches. Neither of us felt like we were missing out on much.

I did not go to Abbey Road. I couldn't easily pinpoint it on the maps we had, and I was too sick to really make an effort to go see it. I was happy enough that we saw the royals because how often does that happen?

Hopefully, I will update tomorrow with details from Paris, which was our favorite part of the trip, much to my surprise. Of course, the French know how to make bread, which will endear any country to me.

Moving home

2008-06-06T08:31:00.005-05:00

This used to be our wedding blog; now, it's going to record our exploits in Iowa, including the stress of building a home.

Had you asked me even two years ago if I would move back to Iowa, I would have told you to have your sanity levels tested. I didn't realize how homesick I was, though, until the boy suggested that we move back to Des Moines last December. We had planned to move somewhere in the U.S., but I had figured it was going to be somewhere I hadn't lived yet. I am glad that we're going though. It's time to go back to my nutty, little family.

Of course, in the past few weeks, I've been questioning the decision. I'm a little nervous because I'm unemployed right now -- although the unemployment rate in Iowa is only 3 percent. I'll find something, even if it is just subbing full-time this year. But, it still makes me nervous. But, when I find out I get to go to Parker's T-ball game the first weekend we're there, and when I hear that he was VERY upset and disappointed that Aunt Beth didn't come up this time with Uncle Jeremy, I know we're moving to the right place.

Besides, I can't tell these two they can't spend time together now:

And it's done

2007-04-29T21:48:00.000-05:00

The wedding has come and gone, and it really was the happiest day of my life. I had so much fun! To prove that I had fun, the bottom of my dress is nice and black. It was so great having all my girls back together and out on the dance floor.

The day went by with few bumps (minus the fact that the keys went to the reception and we did not, so we got to spend time together alone at the church). And, the weather was nice enough to hold off until after the ceremony. Besides -- it's good luck to have rain on your wedding day -- and it didn't bother any of the festivities (and even washed off the car polish from the rental so it saved us some work).

Most of our vendors were superb. I can't say enough good things about our florist, Shannon Pallin of Fiore. She did such a great job!! All the flowers were great! New World Landing was also great. Jennifer and her crew spoiled us and did an amazing job!! And, staying in with the typical theme, Salter Photography did a great job (the photos from this post are from them). They even managed to find me putting on my beloved Chucks. If you'd like to see more of their highlights, you can go here. The gallery will be up for about two months and is just a sampling of the prints I will get.

However, not all our vendors were great. While my hair looked great, my nails started to pop off the day I got them. They were all gone after a week -- and that wasn't even from me trying to take them off. Lesson: I am not going back to Experience, even if they do have Bumble and Bumble.

Also, I was not happy with our DJ, Boogie Inc. The DJ appeared to be wasted by the end of the night and even cut off the song that my bridesmaids and I requested while we were singing it. And, when all five of us looked over at her and complained, she laughed. Lets just say that the comment card they sent us is getting returned with not such a good review.

But, other than that I can't complain. We had extra entertainment provided by my little cousin, Parker. And, we had the people that meant the most to us there to help us celebrate. In addistion to the professional photos, there are more at www.flickr.com/photos/bethknipper

Glam!

2007-03-24T05:36:00.000-05:00

I got my bridals done last night. I'm posting two photos here that really don't show the dress just in case a certain boy decides to actually look at this blog.

As usual I was late (I really didn't realize how long my makeup was going to take), but it was a fabulous shoot with Patsy Brown and the Leythams (well, Rae didn't shoot, but she did a good job of looking like a cute pregnant lady who made me laugh a lot). I'm really fortunate to have so many good photogs:)

Now I just have to figure out which one I like the best! It's not going to be an easy job!

More things to cross off that stupid list

2007-03-20T16:56:00.000-05:00

What's this a picture of?

My DIY bustle.

I first attempted to do a one-point over bustle and then I got impatient with it and said screw it. So, now it is a bastardized version of an underbustle. Point is, it serves its purpose and isn't too hard to put up. Sorry the photo is not so great; this is what happens when Jeremy has the digital camera at work and I'm at home.

It reminded me how much I detest sewing. But, thankfully my grandmother attempted several times to teach me how to quilt, so I can do the basics every once in awhile.

I did find a favor box kit at Michael's, and it's going to be easy to put together. So Jeremy's going to be recruited to help put these together. The hardest part will be me trying to not kill the printer for the labels, which will just have a big "k" on them.

I also found a hairstyle I like. It won't be what I'm doing for my bridals on Friday, but I do want something similar for the actual day. This picture doesn't show it, but the tiara goes before the "bump" and part of it is under the part that's pulled back. The veil goes behind the "bump." I liked it because it was a little different but is still curly and is partially pulled back.

Bad news, good news, things got done!

2007-03-18T22:53:00.000-05:00

*Monday morning edit: I realized I forgot to put the good news on here. I get easily distracted and things leave my brain in no time at all. This week I'm blaming it on spring break since I have no responsibility except to remember to wake up to go to the beach on time with friends. Anyway, the good news is that we have Les back in the wedding!!!! He found out he can get weekend passes from jump school, so he'll be here! He claimed he couldn't be in the wedding b/c there's still a chance he might not make it and that he doesn't know exactly what time he'll get here. However, I told him he's bringing his dress uniform because his skinny little butt will be up front with us. So now we'll have two best men because Jeremy and I couldn't bring ourselves to demote Adam. Although, he did say it would be OK. He's really happy now because he doesn't have to give any speeches. I'm just happy because the numbers are even again!*

This week didn't start off so well. Jeremy's dad died, and while I thought I was pretty secure with dealing with the death of someone close again. But no, I had flash blacks all week of when my mom died. It was painful, and I hated doing anything with the wedding.

But, some things did get accomplished.

Jeremy had time to call and get some answers from the church, so I could cross that off the list. We decided to forgo the trolley because it was going to be insanely expensive (Not insanely expensive but more than we wanted to spend), so we're going to just rent a snazzy car for ourselves (like a mustang). I even managed to find a guitar for Matt so he doesn't have to bring his from Missouri. And, we both figured out what we're buying for the bridal party (mine is even ordered and on the way.)

This week I'm off so I'm going to work on the program, have my bridals taken, and finish thank you notes!

More stuff done, I am on a roll

2007-03-10T21:57:00.000-06:00

After the realization that this thing is actually happening and is happening really quickly and that I still had a lot of things to do, I managed to get some things done this week.

I've been putting off figuring out who was going to do my hair. My normal girl isn't good with updos, so I couldn't use her. I have never liked going to a new person (yes, it was very traumatic when I moved here). I've only had 3 hairstylists my entire life, and I'm very thankful I've found the one I have now too, otherwise I'd seriously be figuring out a way to see Shirley in Iowa 3 or 4 times a year. Anyway, I digress. I decided to just go ahead and call Experience Spa to set up an appointment. I've got my trial run on March 31 and an appointment for the morning of the 14th with Bridgette. Woo hoo. I also remembered to make an appointment for that Wednesday to get my nails and toes done, as well as an eyebrow was. Jeremy even wanted an appointment to get a manicure, and now I've been told he wants a pedicure too. So, we're having those done together.

Tonight, I decided it was time to sit down and figure out what to do for favors. Luckily, The Knot (how I love that site) had mini Hershey's bars on sale that could be personalized. So they are on the way. Now I just have to find something to put them in, and we are good to go.

So now my list is down to 64 things. And a lot of those really aren't major things. One of them is to actually go to the trial run, and since I've got it scheduled, I feel pretty OK with it. This thing might actually get fully planned before April 14:)

!

2007-03-07T22:48:00.000-06:00

AAAAAAAACk!!!!

37 days, 67 things left on the checklist.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!

That is all.

A roller-coaster week

2007-03-04T18:45:00.000-06:00

This has been one emotionally crazy week.

Last weekend I realized that my dress was supposed to be done at the end of January. Being that it was a month later, and I hadn't heard from the alterations lady, I was a bit nervous.

Monday, I called. All I got was: You have wrong number.

I was scared out of my mind. Being six weeks away from the wedding, there was NO way I could order a new one and have it get here on time. In my panic, I started looking online for a back-up plan. Luckily, J. Crew had one that was very similar, even though it was twice the price of mine. Jeremy was nice enough to offer to pay for it if I did have to get a new one.

Tuesday, I rushed to Gulf Breeze to check on it. It was there; it was OK; it just wasn't done. She told me it would be another week. Rational thought returned to my brain. I celebrated by buying a new pair of Birkenstocks for my rehearsal dinner dress (although I did seriously contemplate buying a pair of black Rainbows for it).

Wednesday, I met with the reception hall people and set up the menu (chicken and pasta with sugar snap peas and a salad), so that was taken care of and was extremely easy and painless.

Friday, I realized I had a voice mail after school. My dress was done! I rushed back to Gulf Breeze, got it, rushed home, tried it on, and it's perfect! IT doesn't have a bustle yet because she doesn't ever do wedding dresses but did mine because it was plain and only needed hemmed. However, I have figured out a way to do it myself either involving a safety pin on the inside with the existing ribbon or sewing in another ribbon to tie it together. This wedding is really making me into Martha Stewart. But considering I will pay less than $60 for alterations and the bustle, which usually costs people about the cost of my dress, I'm quite OK with that.

Today I had my first run-in with using a new last name. We were at Barnes & Noble, and Jeremy decided that pre-ordering the last Harry Potter online wasn't going to work. So, as I started filling out the form, I realized that when it comes out in July, I will no longer be Beth Evans. Writing Beth Knipper felt really odd. It's going to take some getting used to ...

Another thing to mark off

2007-02-17T23:44:00.000-06:00

The first dance song has not been an easy task. I didn't want one that was commonly used, couldn't be too long, and too mushy was also out. It didn't help that we don't have a song, nor do we have music in common that would be appropriate (while I love the Rza, he's not exactly the first choice for a wedding song). I also didn't want another Beatles' song since one will be played during the ceremony and a collection of their songs will most likely be the pre-ceremony music.

I have a feeling that this choice was only made more difficult by the fact that we do have more than 2,000 albums, and I was bound and determined to find the perfect one.

So, tonight I spent 90 minutes on Indiebride trying to find hints for a nontraditional song, and the winner is: Bob Dylan's If Not for You.

At two and a half minutes, it's the perfect length, the lyrics are fitting (both of us have issues sleeping if the other one isn't there, and Jeremy does have issues finding things if I'm not around), and it isn't super slow.

Serve it up

2007-02-06T17:27:00.000-06:00

I managed to find a great deal on a Lenox cake serving/cutting set. It was half off, so it was a big savings over the really fancy Swarovski set. But it still looks decent. Plus, it gave me something else to cross off the list, which is always nice.

And, now I'm enjoying getting the rsvps in the mail. They're a lot more exciting than the credit card solicitations or the bills. The other exciting thing is that items have been fulfilled on the registry. So to whomever bought a crockpot and breadmaker, thank you. I'm now playing the game of "hmm ... who would buy this for me?"

Hallelujah

2007-01-28T18:47:00.000-06:00

The invites are finally done.

Well, I thought they were until we started stuffing them into envelopes and I realized that there were eight I never made name tags for and five that I never got addresses for. But, still, those figures are a lot better than the hundred I had before. Besides, the ones that I do have the addresses for will be done tonight. And out in the mail tomorrow. Woo hoo.

The process became a lot easier today when I finally had it with the old printer and went and bought a new one. I think I might have actually broken the other one with the cardstock. I'm pleading the fifth.

And now I might actually be able to enjoy the wedding stuff again. I think I was just a little too over ambitious with the fancy invites. But, they look good (even though the new printer prints more grey than black.)

I'd put a picture up, but you're just going to have to wait to get them in the mail and then you can be awed.

Woo hoo

2007-01-21T20:03:00.000-06:00

With any luck, I will have all the invites sent out by the end of this week. I'm now beginning to think the pocketfolds were an insane idea because the cards don't always want to fit. And, I miscut some of the ribbons, so the bands vary from being really tight to kinda loose. But I don't care. I'll just be glad when I don't have to deal with these things anymore.

Also, I bought the stuff to make the guestbook, the unity candle, and the memory candle (which could not be a small size to fit all the names on there -- it's almost humorous). Jeremy's still up in arms about the unity candle because he doesn't think one is necessary.

Phew

2007-01-15T21:34:00.000-06:00

So, thanks to the past week, I'm no longer hating the wedding planning process.

A. I took a trip to Minneapolis. Yes, it was cold (3 degrees? Seriously.), but Lois and I got some good work done on the invitations. We huddled around her kitchen table and managed to knock out the bands for the invitations for almost all of them. We would have done more had we had enough of the champagne paper to back the name tags.

B. I got the flowers figured out. I talked to the flower lady, and we got it all taken care of. I get my white tulips, but Jeremy no longer gets his "shot glass" flower. Instead of a calla lily, he will have a white tulip too. The girls will have bouquets of various shades of pink gerberas, while the bouts will be the same. And the mothers and corsages will have orchids. We'll also have two altar pieces with ivory French tulips.

C. I got the direction cards written up and some of the RSVP cards printed out. This did create some frustration because the printer gets cranky and results in me getting angry. But, the end is in sight.

D. We ordered our wedding bands. Jeremy's excited yet bummed because he doesn't get to wear it.

So yes, things are coming together, which is good because it is now less than three months away

A slight bump in the road

2006-12-30T11:57:00.000-06:00

Good news: Les, our best man, is back from Iraq and in one piece with no pieces missing.

Bad news: Les is going to jump school in April and might not be at the wedding. This news made me cry at a bar.

So if any one knows where we can order large, cardboard, picture cutouts, please let me know. Because I made the executive decision that Les isn't getting replaced.

Help, please

2006-12-16T19:41:00.000-06:00

If anyone reads this and knows of someone who does a good job with wedding gown alterations, please let me know! I'd greatly appreciate it. You can either leave me a comment or e-mail me at knip2be@gmail.com

Thanks:)

Grr

2006-12-13T17:23:00.000-06:00

OK. So I got the labels up, but if you notice, there is less info in the sidebar.

I'm not so happy with it right now because it's not a basic html editor on here now, and it confuses me. So, it's going to be sparse unless I get a hankering to learn about widget tags.

Here we go again

2006-12-13T16:52:00.000-06:00

Something good came of me being home sick for two days -- things got done!

I'm now up to 88 invites done (still minus inserts), so I don't have too many more to do; about half that number. Woo hoo.

And, I even started making appointments for flowers. Of course, I forgot that there's this thing called Christmas coming up, which means they are all slammed. So, I don't get to talk to any of them until January. Which means I'm not talking about it to January because my track record with such things.

I managed to start labels on this blog. I realized that I talk mostly about paper. I guess it shows what I really like about this wedding (I won't discuss how excited I got when I realized Paper Source has gift certificates). However, I'm not brilliant enough to figure out how to establish label links on the page. Oh well.

Only two months later ...

2006-12-06T22:10:00.000-06:00

So, I know I said I was going to get the rest of the Save the Dates out after Fall Break.

Well, I meant like the next week, not two months later.

But, the rest of them (minus a few because of lack of addresses) are now on their way.

And, the countdown to some major wedding planning has also started: I've got 11 days left of school. And then I will work on the wedding. I swear.

Updates

2006-12-05T18:46:00.000-06:00

If you look over that way (------>), you'll notice there are a few changes.

One day, I'll actually get back to planning this thing. You know it's getting bad when your school's dean starts laughing at you when you can't figure out how long it is until your wedding.

Back on track

2006-11-11T10:27:00.000-06:00

After my mini freak out this week, I managed to get things accomplished on my day off.

I started printing out the invites, so now we just have to get a hotel block (Jeremy has a deadline of the end of the month on that one), make a map and write up the RSVP card, and I'll be able to print out the inserts too.

Of course, now I don't even like the invites, but Jeremy says I'm nuts, which I am, so they'll stay. Partly because I'm not redesigning now.

I even have some more save the dates printed out ready to mail.

I'm on a roll. I'm saying it's because I only had to work four days this week.

Eh. It'll get done

2006-11-05T22:37:00.000-06:00

I'm in an "eh" slump for the wedding. I have little to no desire to work on any of the stuff I need to do. I'm blaming this on the fact that I've been having nightmares about the whole thing. Such things included in these are:
1. No photog
2. An ugly Scooby-Doo cake that was not from J's
3. An odd, stuffy, extremely formal, extremely uncomfy, dirty - no less - wedding dress
4. A missing groom after the ceremony, which was questionable if it even happened
5. The ceremony and reception was at a two-bedroom house with guests I didn't know and were all in T-shirts and jeans. And a lot of them look like students that I don't have.

But I did finalize the invite wording. And I started addressing those envelopes. Those tasks seemed undaunting, and they don't even cost money right now. I still need to send out the second round of Save The Dates. Ugh.

I think I might have to go back on Paxil. Double ugh.

And they're out

2006-10-14T00:02:00.000-05:00

Well, at least partially.

The stamps finally came in for the Save the Dates (I'd abbreviate that, but putting STDs up on my planning site just seems like asking for trouble), and the ones that I actually have addressed have stamps on them. And, they're going into the mailbox to go out into the world tomorrow.

I think I have a little more than half addressed, and the rest are just going to have to wait until after I get back from the land of corn. And speaking of the land of corn, I need to go pack.

We're dead sexy

2006-10-04T21:37:00.000-05:00

So we had our engagement shoot tonight. Jeremy was a poo because he's just a little uncomfortable with getting his picture taken. And I continue my history with blinking/almost blinking, making myself look drunkish in the pictures (ie, the picture of Matt, Lois and me at her wedding).

Anyhoo, you can view a teaser of these lovely, lovely pics here. And of course, after seeing these pictures, I got a little down because Rae won't be shooting the wedding:( But then I realized this could be a good thing because I have a feeling I'd want to buy each picture she shot. She's good. So go book her!!!

They'll eventually get out complete with whimsy

2006-10-02T21:57:00.000-05:00

So even though the save the dates have been done for more than a week now, they're still sitting on the coffee table (and not all of them are in their sparkly envelopes yet either, nor are all of those pretty envelopes are address either). I've been putting off buying stamps so it makes it a bit problematic to actually mail them out.

We had planned to go with the DC comic superhero stamps -- even though I was a little bitter about the Plastic Man ones (seriously, who wants Plastic Man; who even remembers who Plastic Man is?). But then, tonight, when I went online to buy them (I do not have good luck at the post office, and I still need to go there to file my claim since they shipped out my guaranteed next day package two days AFTER it was guaranteed to get there), I found these. I'm a little bummed that there aren't more Curious George ones; Jeremy is bummed that there aren't more Wild Thing ones. But yeah, we're using those.

I also say Yurtle the Turtle should have been included.

Let them eat cake

2006-09-24T21:44:00.000-05:00

We officially have the cake. We woke up early this morning and headed down to J's, where Jeremy promptly ate all the white icing off the sample pieces and I gorged myself on the cream cheese frosting. Mmm, frosting. Of course, i was a little caked out because of yesterday, and cake at 9 a.m. is smidge to early for me.

But, it didn't take long to get it all figured out. It will be like the picture I posted earlier with some tweaks. The bow on top won't stick up as much because there's going to be some cascading roses and calla lillies on it. The bow will also be champagne colored for contrast and it will have real icing, not fondant.

And Jeremy and I are discovering vendors like us because we know what we want and we don't take much time. The cake lady said she'll get people who have no clue what they want and it will take two hours to figure things out.

I'm just glad we weren't like the girl who was before us this morning. She had a HUGE binder with each page in a plastic protector and was going to have 400 guests. My binder has like three sheets in it and none of them are protected. Nor do I have anywhere near 400 guests. Personally, I like simple.

They're done

2006-09-23T19:50:00.000-05:00

I finished the save the dates tonight, and they look pretty good in my opinion. I tried to upload a picture of it, but it didn't show most of the stuff that's on them. So, now you'll just have to wait until you get yours in the mail:) With any luck, I'll get most of them out this week so be looking for a pretty enevelope!

Yum, yum and more yum

2006-09-20T18:13:00.000-05:00

I had grand plans to go get the cake contract done and over with Saturday. And, of course, there were no meeting times for Saturday -- it was a slightly selfish plan because it meant more cake for me on my birthday:) Anyway, I did get an appointment for Sunday ....... at 9 a.m. But, with any luck we will have a baker that will make us the one cake flavor Jeremy likes (so the groom's cake will actually be mine because I have a feeling I am going to need chocolate that day). And I will also get plenty of cake this weekend:)

Also, the rehearsal dinner will no longer be at McGuires:( They are not cool and don't like Friday/Saturday reservations. But, it will probably be at Hemingways, which has some nummy, nummy food too.

And now I've made myself hungry so I need to go find something that isn't chocolate frosting.

Phew

2006-09-12T21:25:00.000-05:00

So, it became official last night -- I have a photographer again.

I gave my deposit to Salter Photography, and we're going with the son. The galleries on their Web site do not do their full portfolio justice.

But honestly, I'm just happy to have a photographer again.

Hopefully third time's a charm

2006-09-08T19:05:00.000-05:00

OK. So I said I had a new photog.

I lied.

Well, not really. She had talked to other people weeks ago about April 14 (seriously people, don't get married on MY day. MY day. And that's as Bridezilla as I will get) but never got a contract back with a deposit. So ... of course, she leaves for a day and gets a contract with payment back today, putting me without a photog again.

But, there is a bright side to this. Rae's doing an engagement sitting for me still. And now, I get a bridal protrait setting from Patsy with a 16x20 of yours truly all decked out in fluffy white dress. And, that's not all folks. After the boy and I get back from the honeymoon, Rae AND Patsy are giving us a shoot (in our wedding garb, which means I need to be EXTRA careful not to spill anything on myself) at the beach:)

So, seriously, if you are in the Pensacola area and need a photog, go with one of these LOVELY ladies. They have gone so far above what they needed to do, it almost makes me cry when I think about it. They've treated me so much more than a client -- and I never even signed a contract or met Patsy.

And, it does look like I have one lined up. I'm meeting with them on Monday (with checkbook in tow), but I'm not writing anything specific because I'm not jinxing it. So check back Monday night or Tuesday to find out.

And, I'm keeping Rae's and Patsy's links up on the right because they are shooting us for one aspect or another of the wedding.

I just never thought I'd have three photographers for anything.

I feel like a star (a slightly stressed star, but a star nonetheless).

P.S.

2006-09-06T18:13:00.000-05:00

I forgot to mention that there's been a slight change to the bridesmaids' dresses.

I was puttering around online last night and found out that they now offer them in the same champagne as my sash. So, there's been a color switch to the champagne because I'm pretty sure none of them have gotten theirs yet. And even if they have, we'll just have one in a special color:)

Oh, and I also forgot to mention in my previous two posts that Rae really was a great sport and such a sweetie during my mini-crisis. I highly recommend her to anyone in the Pensacola area!

Wee hoo

2006-09-06T18:00:00.000-05:00

So, it appears I was only without a photog for a day. :)

The photog who trained Rae had also been one of my top choices but was booked and had recommened Rae while I was in the midst of talking to her. But, she actually got a cancellation for my day, so she's now mine:)

I have an appointment to make things official with her Monday, and I'm very excited. Her Web site is: www.PatsyBrown.com.

Granted, I'm still a bit bummed because I don't get Rae, but at least I get her for my engagement photos and I am getting a photog that has the same style.

So things are going well again. And I'm not stressed:)

Sadness in the midst of joy

2006-09-05T20:00:00.000-05:00

I lost my photographer today.

She called me to let me know that she is supposed to have a baby the day before my wedding. So, I'm very excited for her (she's been on fertility drugs for the past three years, so this is very good news for her), but I'm bummed because I was really excited to have her take photos of the big day.

But, she is going out of her way to help me find someone else. There might even be a chance (if I can't find anyone else) that her husband (who takes photos with her now anyway) will be taking the photos.

And -- she's still taking our engagement photos in October, and she's also offered to take any bridals I want (which I wasn't planning on, but now if it means I get her to take photos of me, I might do them) and anything else I want photographed.

So, stay tuned. With any luck, I'll have this figured out by the end of the week.

A little bit of this, a little bit of that

2006-09-01T20:28:00.000-05:00

The laptop is back up, which means I once again have complete access to all my wedding planning stuff -- which could mean I might get things accomplished. Or not ...

But, I do have most of the stuff for the centerpieces. The boxes are now sitting in what has become the "wedding closet," which Jeremy isn't allowed into since my dress is in there. And, I now have ALL my paper products. Well, except for the paper for the programs, but that just means a trip to a store to get a ream of some off-white paper (yes, Lois, I'm totally stealing your program idea for them:))

Having the laptop back means I also have the Save The Date file back, so that design just might get finished soon. Of course, I also have to convince the boy to do the wedding info site. Or, I might just go with an easy one and then have him revamp it later because he decides its not up to his standards.

Anyway, here is the link to a bio of a recent bride with my dress that even has the champagne sash. Of course, she opted to use the free white sash for the ceremony and the colored one for the reception. I'm not doing that. That's too much work.

And, if you want to see more photos of the church on the inside, go to photosbyrae.blogspot.com and then click on "view proofs." Go to Sarah & Steven 8-5 wedding, and in the midst of those photos is the church.

At least something's getting done

2006-08-26T21:06:00.000-05:00

So today I kept up with my habit of doing things that I have plenty of time to do and ignored what I need to get done ASAP.

I saw a dress a few weeks ago that I thought would be great for the rehearsal dinner, but I didn't get it because I told myself I should wait. Well, I saw it online again and decided I had to have it. So Jeremy and I headed to the mall today, and I now have my rehearsal dinner dress. I love it. And there's a high chance I might wear it before then too. If it's decent enough weather, it might be what I wear for our engagement pictures. Of course when I told Jeremy I now need a new pair of shoes for the dress, he looked at me like I'm nuts. He just doesn't understand that one pair of black shoes just doesn't always cut it.

And, Jeremy has actually contacted a few people to DJ the rehearsal. We decided on one, and then I found out that he failed to ask them if they were actually available for April 14. So, now we're just waiting to hear back about that. If they are, we've got a DJ. If they're not, I've learned my lesson and will give a list of questions Jeremy needs to make sure he asks when making requests.

I now have all the paper cut for the pocketfolds for the invites. It's great having a monster paper cutter at work:)

Progress and more progress

2006-08-19T21:53:00.000-05:00

I am happy to say that teaching has lit a fire under me, and I have gotten several things accomplished in only one day off so far this weekend.

Last night, I sat down and found the silk flowers needed for the centerpieces as well as the bud vases (for less than a buck, no less) so they're ordered and on their way. And, I've even been pointed toward some placemats at Target, so I might have all the stuff for them by the end of the month.

Today I cut all the ribbon for the band on the invites. If I counted right, I should have done 150 pieces. So now my hands are a little shiny from the hairspray I used to prevent the ends from fraying, which I don't think they would have because it's a meshy ribbon -- but I wanted to be safe.

I'm also happy to say I managed to get about half of the pocketfolds done. And that even includes putting the pink backing sheet on them too. I also sat down last night and did the math to figure out how many sheets of paper I needed for the invite wording and the inserts. So that paper - along with envelopes - is on its way. Of course, I realized today I forgot to order cardstock for the save the dates. However, I think I might just go to Michael's and get a pack of their cardstock in off white/ivory or something to that effect. I'm planning on cutting the pieces of paper for the fronts of the invites for the names so I can get a head start on writing those. I'm also going to start addressing the envelopes when I get them just so I don't have to do it all at once. I would just send them through the printer, but it gets fussy if the paper isn't 8 x 11, so that might just be a pipe dream. And I know I'm not letting Jeremy address them; no one would be able to read them.

Too bad my sixth graders don't have decent handwriting ....

And we have centerpieces!

2006-08-12T16:28:00.000-05:00

The latest bane of my wedding planning has been centerpieces. I thought I knew what I wanted, then I realized I didn't and the one I thought I really liked I realized would make it difficult for guests to see across the table.

So, now that I seemingly have more time to work on wedding planning (I do believe my hiatus is over), I spent time this morning (I actually woke up before 10 a.m. by myself; that's a first in YEARS) looking for centerpiece ideas. And then I found this one:
Of course, I won't be using a green mat; it'll either be pink or beige. And, I'll use three gerbera stems (I'm thinking I'll just use silk ones) in light pink, hot pink and white. And, I'll probably also group three candles around the bud vase.

And, I'm also happy to say that I have almost all of the save-the-date envelopes addressed. Of course, I still have to actually design them, order the card stock for them and have a certain fiance make the info Web site so I can have the address to put on them. But, the addressing was going to take the longest, and it hasn't been that bad. So, at least I got the worst part out of the way.

Paper, paper and more paper

2006-08-08T21:06:00.000-05:00

So after a tiring first day of teaching (who knew standing up all day could hurt so much), I came home to a box of paper! And then promptly decided I got way too excited about it again.

This time the paper was just envelopes for the yet to be designed/made save the dates. But, they are pretty envelopes. I splurged and got champagne metallic policy ones (long and skinny for the future save the date bookmarks), and I'm glad I did. The color is very close to the sash on my dress. Here's a photo, but it doesn't show the color very well at all:
There were also some sample sheets of paper included, one is the same paper as the envelope and the other two are ivory variations. I think we might splurge and go for the metallic again just because it's closer to the color scheme.

And, because I've been feeling guilty that I have not done anything wedding related because I was running around trying to get a classroom set up and trying to finish up my old job, I started to address some of the envelopes tonight.

Of course, this could be a ploy to just not have to do seating charts. Ugh.

Hair and such

2006-07-28T02:43:00.000-05:00

People I do not know very well seem to think that asking how I'm going to wear my hair for the wedding is a good question to ask me. Personally, I can think of much more exciting questions about the wedding to ask, but to each his own.

Anyway, I don't want it completely up because I don't like the way my jawline looks when I have it up (which is funny b/c I'm all for wearing it up when I'm lazy). But, I didn't want it completely down either. So, half up, half down seems like the best choice for me. But I still don't know the specifics. I like the one below because it has most of the elements I like such as the curls in the back and the sweep stuff in the front, plus a good spot for the tiara. However, I think the poof is a bit too poofy.
This one I liked for awhile, but then I decided I didn't like the front. Nor did I think it would work well with my tiara. I just thought it was too flat.
And then I found this picture of it where it looks too mulletish from the back. So it got nixed.
But, I think this one is the one i like the most:

It's curly, it works with the tiara and it's got the sweepy things but doesn't look like a mullet from the back. Then again, I could change my mind. It doesn't help that my hairdresser doesn't do wedding hair because she said she's just not good at it. So, now I have to find someone (although she did give me names) to go to for trials. I hate having people I don't know work on my hair. One guy I freaked out because I tensed up as soon as he touched me.

Anyway, I've been trying to post at least one idea up a week. However, don't expect any for the next few weeks because I start my new job as a teacher next week. And it's going to be hellish because I have to be at school early in the morning and go to the old job at night. So basically I'll be working and sleeping with no time to get anything wedding related accomplished, which I honestly haven't done since sometime in June (well, minus some invites). Next up on the list are save the dates (since those have to be sent out in a few months I figure I should think about working on them and I do have a basic idea; I've just got to design them), DJ and starting on ceremony stuff (I do know Matt will be playing "In My Life" on his guitar and we'll be walking out to the "Star Wars" theme).

Gimme more than a week, and I'll change my mind

2006-07-25T03:37:00.000-05:00

So I've always been pretty deadset on daisies for the bridesmaids. Then I found this photo the other night:
It's callas with some flower in the middle (either stephanotis, lilacs or something like that). I'm not so crazy about the super long stems, but that could be easily remedied. It's not what I'd want for my bouquet because it's just not exactly what I want. But I like it because it's different. I still might stay with the regular daisies. Or I might just come up with something different.

Say cheese

2006-07-17T13:56:00.000-05:00

I've never really understood the point of the regular guestbook because I knew it would be something that I'd end up throwing on a closet shelf and never look at it again after the wedding. So I was really happy when I found out about the Polaroid guestbook (thanks, Missy!).

This means that all of our lovely guests will get to have their picture taken, too, and there will be more space to leave a message instead of just the names. But, this way we'll have another album of the day, which I'll be more likely to look at in the future.

But, instead of buying a bunch of the pricier ones that are made by Poloroid, I'm going to get a scrapbook from Michaels and make my own. Luckily, this will be one of the easier DIY projects because I'll just have to put photo corners on the pages. It will kinda look like this, if things go according to plan:

The invite making is going more smoothly than I thought. The biggest pain is scoring the paper, but once the pocketfolds are actually made, it's a very easy process. And, by some miracle, I've even managed not to get cat hairs stuck on the glue dots.

Here they are

2006-07-05T21:11:00.000-05:00

Here's my first attempt at the invites, and it was actually close enought that had I used the correct measurments (I seriously cannot do simple math), I could have used it for the actual invite.

Anyway, this is what the front will kinda look like. However, the little card will not be pink and tan. It should be tan and black and will be less squarish.

Here's the inside. The enclosures will also all be tan, and the pink backing will go all the way around the worded portion of it -- another example of my stellar math skills. The little pocketfold also has some pretty sweet scoring on it, which actually makes cutting the triangle a little easier.
Here's a close up of the wording, although it really isn't what we're using. It's got the places and times right (well, and the names -- who would have ever thought I'd willingly use Elizabeth?), but other than that, it was me blindly typing away at the computer -- and just trying to get three lines per "section" (the OCD has taken over on these things.).

I'm pretty happy with how they turned out. I've got 53 of the pocketfolds done, only about 100 more to go. Wee hoo.

Martha ain't got nothing on me

2006-07-02T21:27:00.000-05:00

I got the large sheets of paper Thursday morning to start working on the pocketfolds. And after a short, minor freakout about the paper's thickness -- I thought I got the 80# paper, but I got 70#. So, I wasn't convinced that it would be heavy enough, but it works fine -- and after a trip to Michaels, I started making some lovely invites.

I originally decided we'd do a 6x6 (Jeremy said he liked the square ones better, and 6x6s seemed to be a logical size). Then, after some measurement issues (it was another example that I cannot do simple math), I decided 6.5 x 6.5 would work better. I'd post a picture of my mock-up, but of course, I forgot to borrow the digital camera from work (and one day, I swear we'll have one of our own).

The process is a lot easier than I thought it was going to be, and it's gone a lot quicker with a yardstick. And one "flub up" turned out to add a cool element to the actual pocketv--vscoring ends up looking pretty cool if you don't fold it, and it made Jeremy happy b/c it kinda looks like pinstriping.

It's still a little odd, however, that I of all people have pink in some of the wedding stuff. Like I read on another wedding blog, this planning stuff just does wierd stuff to you.

Flowers, pebls and paper

2006-06-27T03:07:00.000-05:00

There has never been any question that the main flower for my wedding would be daisies. Although I did toy with the idea of tulips, but I also know that April tends to be a little bit too early for them to be in season (I guess living near Pella "We're not in the Netherlands, but you'd never guess it" actually did teach me something). But, I am perfectly happy with a daisy/rose combo. So here are some ideas for the bridesmaids' bouquets and mine.

This is basically what I'd like for the bridesmaids. However, I do not like The little bow thing they have going on, so I'm going to find something different for that. But, I would like the brighter pink gerberas for them. However, I realized that a pale pink dress on Lois would completely wash her out, so she has a few color choices for her dress. So, she might get the lighter pink gerberas instead.

I have no clue what the bouts will be yet. Jeremy did make a request to have "the flower that looks like a shot glass," which I somehow determined to be a calla lily. So, he'll have some type of calla. Of course he admitted he didn't really care, but I figure it's one of those things I can let him have.

In my original wedding plans that have been going on in my head for years, I had just wanted a bouquet of daisies. But then I saw this picture on a Knot bio and decided roses had to be added in.
I'm not sure if I like the ribbon wrap on this one either, and I would like mine to be a little bigger, but it gives the basic idea of what I want. I do think I would prefer more of the lighter pink roses instead of darker ones.

In other items, I now have another "something blue" -- my cell phone. So it won't exactly be with me all day, but I have seen plenty of other crazy, crazy ideas for something blue (including stuff at the reception). And I just really love this phone. Jeremy's phone died this weekend, so we got to reup our contracts, and I picked the blue PEBL. I figure after placing second in the FSNE headline contest, I deserved something. And it's cute. And Jeremy's been playing with it more than his new BlackBerry, and that gives me some sick satisfaction.

Also, I ordered some paper to try out our pocketfold idea for the invitations. They appear to be labor intensive, so I figured I should a. try them to make sure I want to make 100+ of them and b. get a head start because I know how I can procrastinate. So I should know early next week how much work I'm going to be putting into our invites. And since the pocketfolds were more of Jeremy's idea, there could be a lot of grumbling at him next week.

I ougtta be in pictures

2006-06-21T17:34:00.000-05:00

So by some minor feat, the photographer search was not a headache. I did my research last week and managed to find a REALLY, REALLY good one in fewer than 24 hours that wasn't even booked for my date. So I booked her today.

I can't post any of her pictures up here, but check out her Web site: www.raeleytham.com. She also has a blog with some of her favorite photos: www.photosbyrae.blogspot.com.

She'll also be doing some engagement photos later on -- she and I decided it'd be a good idea to wait until it wasn't oppressively hot outside.

Now I've only got one big thing left: the DJ. But that I'm not as worried about because as long as they can play music, I'll be happy. And if worse comes to worse, we've got 2,000-plus albums at home, so we can just recruit someone to play 'em.

Shoes, how I love shoes

2006-06-20T02:15:00.000-05:00

I think I've actually put more thought into my shoes than almost anything else. And, no, I am not wearing the white Birkenstocks I swore for years I would wear. I said that before I learned to wear heels, and I like being taller any way I can. Of course, they had to meet a lot of qualifications: be cute, meet my heighth standards (I have no heels under 2 inches, and I did not plan on lowering that for my wedding -- especially with Jeremy being almost a foot taller than me), be comfy, be cute, be white, not blend in with my other shoes and did I mention be cute?

So, first I found the top shoe, except in white. However, there was just something about it that I did not like. I think it was the fact that they were closed toe. But, I was also leery of getting something that was strappy because they have a tendency to cut into my feet alot, which didn't fit the comfy stipulation. But these also worried me because I tend to take my shoes off when my toes get cramped.

But, today, I was wandering through Dillard's when I found the bottom shoe. I was still leery about the peek toe because I've had bad experiences from those in the past. But, I tried them on and fell in love. They are so comfy and just perfect. And they were a lot cheaper than the first pair, which also made me happy. So, I might not have to get pair of shoes for the reception. Although, I could always use an excuse to get a new pair of shoes:)

Big accomplishment

2006-06-14T01:48:00.000-05:00

So, after I excitedly spent the day traipsing around town looking for the latest bridal magazine issues, I curled up with a few of them and made a great discovery.

I found the elusive bridesmaid dress.

I was really thinking about just picking a color, length and material and letting the girls just pick their own because I wanted them to wear something that would flatter each of their body shapes. But, I think this one will solve the problem.

It's not the champagne color I was looking for -- instead it's a pale pink. If anyone had ever told me I'd be picking a pale pink dress for my bridesmaids, I would have laughed. But I did. And, I think it will look beautiful on all of them.

At least it's not seafoam green with poofy sleeves:)

Now for the most important part

2006-06-12T14:25:00.000-05:00

I am most excited about the cake. Of course, I'm a little sad that Jeremy only likes white or yellow cake with white frosting (although he has kinda agreed to try buttercream frosting ... mmm, buttercream). But still, it's cake, and I will be happy.
I've kinda let Jeremy take the reins on this part. Of course, part of it was by accident, but he got excited about it so I said OK.
We do know that we'll go with J's for the cake because it's the only place's cake Jeremy will eat (and this is why I won't make him cake or cupcakes anymore.). And, Jeremy even somehow managed to pick the look he liked while I was perusing some bio on The Knot. He liked it because it looks like a present. I really hadn't given much thought to what the cake looked like because I'm more concerned with what it tastes like.
Then, there was the question of a cake topper. I had liked the idea of having a "K" as one, but then, I got an even better idea while dusting last week.
As another nod to Jeremy's love of "Star Wars," we're going with Han Solo and Princess Leia figurines. The nice part about this one is that we just have to get the Han one, which I just found on eBay, because we already have Leia.
We may be geeks, but at least we're both geeks so we understand each other:)

Two down, and just mine to go

2006-06-06T04:03:00.000-05:00

A certain matron-
of-honor got married this past weekend, and it was a beautiful ceremony. I couldn't imagine that her special day could be any less perfect (believe it or not, her mother and sister made her dress -- it was the perfect Lois dress, too -- I teared up just a little when I first saw her in it).
Being Lois, she decided that now that her wedding is over, it's time to go into "real" planning for mine.
And, if you notice in the picture, my hair's a lot shorter -- like four inches. I had planned to get it cut up to my shoulders right before Jeremy popped the question, but figured since I needed to keep it long for the wedding (I'm thinking half up/half down with lots o' curls), I shouldn't cut it. However, after last week's trip to my stylist, we decided it was feasible to chop it. And now I kinda like it shorter. So who knows what I'll actually end up doing.
This was the second wedding of a close friend that I went to. It's a little odd to think that we're all getting married within 15 months of each other -- especially since we were the three that insisted in high school and for a good portion of college that we weren't going to get married (Lois and I had great plans to become the crazy cat ladies on the corner). But, I think the three of us did a pretty good job of finding suitable mates.
As long as I look as happy as she did, I'll be happy with whatever happens that day.
And who knows? We might even try to deviate from our standard picture pose. But don't count on it. We go with what works.

More bling

2006-06-01T01:31:00.000-05:00

I never thought I'd be buying a tiara, but I did. I'm claiming it's more of a headband than a tiara though.

The description said the "flowers" are supposed to be daisies (I think it's actually called the Princess of Daisy tiara), but now that I have it, they don't really look like anything. But it was the look I was going for, so I'm happy with it. Plus it was far cheaper than anything I'd found anywhere else. They claimed the crystals are Swarovoski, but I don't know if I'm buying it.

Anyway, here's what it looks like:

Jeremy is now "important"

2006-05-23T22:07:00.000-05:00

In totally unrelated wedding news, Jeremy is officially an important person at the paper. He won the publisher's ring today (even though I still claim he should have won it last year.).

So, afterward, I told him that he now has his wedding band. I got an eye roll.

Of course, I don't blame him; it is an ugly ring.

Reception hall

2006-05-19T03:10:00.000-05:00

Technically, we now have a reception hall. We visited it today, got a written, itemized list of costs and now I just have to go back in Monday and give them a deposit check. It honestly felt like a huge load fell off my shoulders when she said "Yes, you have half the ballroom (the American/British side) reserved." Now maybe the nightmares of smashing 150 people into my house and making mashed potatoes while wearing my dress will end.

And, this does mean that the date is now April 14, 2007. And now it really shouldn't change. I promise.

Possible date change

2006-05-11T13:44:00.000-05:00

Booking a reception hall is harder than it seems. But to make it a little easier on myself, there's a chance this shindig could be moved up a week to April 14. I won't know for sure until next week, and I'm not going to talk about it much so I don't jinx it. I have to wait until Tuesday to find out if the church can move it, then I don't go and talk to the reception hall until Thursday. And if the space is open, they're getting their deposit check that day.

If it is moved up, I am taking a break from the planning for a week starting next Thursday.

I will, however, say that don't plan on having a reception (or any type of soirée) at the Pensacola Beach Hilton Garden Inn unless you (and your guests because you HAVE to have at least 70 rooms filled the night of your event and the rooms ain't so cheap anymore) have a bottomless pocketbook. I'd say they'd nickel and dime you, but you'd have to have 10,000 dimes to even start to cover their extra costs.

Our toasting flutes

2006-04-30T16:39:00.000-05:00

Here's our toasting flute.
They're from the Waterford Nocturne Eclipse collections, which is now discontinued.
Granny bought these for me several years ago because she was convinced that she wouldn't be alive for my wedding, so they've been hanging out in a coupboard since I got them from her (which was soon after my mom died, I think).
They're very simple for Waterford, but I like simple. I doubt if I put a ribbon or anything around them. I'll just let the "Waterfordness" speak for itself.

Our monogram

2006-04-28T01:39:00.000-05:00

So, I decided to start this so I don't have to clog up anyone's e-mail boxes with wedding ideas. Ya'll can just check here when you feel like and sound off on the comments.

After spending waaaaaaaay too much time looking at The Knot's wedding bios, I realized that a lot of people were having people make their monogram. My brilliant thought was "Hey, I'm a designer, I can do this." So I started on one.

I chose courier for the font because for some reason it's Jeremy's favorite font, and it is in one of my tatoos. Plus, it's got the typewriter feel, which kinda fits in with the newspaper stuff. But, here's what I came up with. It's nothing fancy, but I like it -- and Jeremy didn't complain too much about it so it's what we went with.

It'll probably go on the front of the programs and the unity candle (DIY is a big theme for this shindig so we can have the big reception). And now I think I can justify at least part of my college major.