The Royal Wedding

In case you've been living in a hole lately, I'm here to inform you that the Royal Wedding happened.

Yep, it just happened.

I finally got to watch it yesterday with my friend Casey and her hilarious family.  The commentary was hilarious, the enjoyment of fashion was awesome and I left feeling convinced that I needed to email and text every woman attending my wedding a memo letting them know fashionable hats are mandatory.  (If you're reading this now and you're attending, please do not hold back on wearing a fabulous, fashionable hat that will make me want to trade my veil for your piece of hair art!)

If I wasn't getting married, I would attend a wedding wearing this one.  Love!

What I couldn't help but notice about the wedding is that there was so much hype and build up (obviously) but then the moment came and went.  Each moment: Kate getting into her car, her drive to the Abby, Kate's 4 minute walking down the aisle with her dad (dragging her 50 lbs dress-poor girl!)...every moment passed so quickly.  

Ok, but can we pause for a second and recognize that my favorite moments of TRW (the royal wedding) were the ones where Kate and William smirked at each other?!  So cute!  Amidst the tradition and stuffiness of their wedding, they still found themselves and still connected with each other.  Super presh.

All that to say, in watching TRW, I couldn't help but think about how our wedding will play out.  

All of the planning and build up to this day makes me wish it came with a remote control so I could push the slow motion button and savor every moment.  Like, when Ryan and I have our first look, or when my dad walks me down the aisle, or when Ryan and I go around greeting guests who have traveled far and wide to come celebrate us on our big day.  I want to remember all of that!

OF COURSE I know I will!  I'll have my precious memories that I hold dear in my heart and visuals that play on repeat as I look back.

Plus, I have an awesome photographer Bethany Belle!  Check her out here if you haven't already, and drool over her photojournalistic skills and awesomeness.  

I'll also have a video to watch on the days that I want to reminisce of our special day.  Praise Jesus!  

Because with a video, there is a remote...and I can rewind, fast forward and slow motion all I want!

23 days

Beauty Begets Beauty

This is about the third time I have watched this video.  


And by "watched" I mean: connected, understood, listened, learned.


Gosh, it is so good!


It gives me an artist's understanding of God and His creativity, life process and speaks to my creative artistic side...


a side that I have been ignoring for quite a while now.  My "familiar friend" as they would call it.


A friend that I have been ignoring because of busy times, life change and the nature of how I live out my days.  When I create, when I tap into that artistic side of myself...I connect with God.  I learn more about Him, I sit with him in my mess...my process.  My creation is my expression of the vision and passion He has given me.


If you watch, listen to the intricacy of how this creator "creates."


This is how intentional my God is with me.  His work is beautiful, passionate. Each color, each stroke is all a part of His plan.  And it is beautiful.


His creation is a reflection of Him.


Time and time again, God has taken my "mess" and made it beautiful.  He always has, and always will.  And for that, I am forever thankful.






"The way I see it, its all beautiful.  Because in some way, the process of making a thing beautiful, is beautiful."

24 days

Half Full Bottles of Water

Today, Ryan moved into our new apartment!  Yeah!


Please don't ding dong ditch us.  


Ok, maybe ding dong ditch us if you are going to leave cookies or some sort of baked yumminess.  Otherwise the d3 is a tease and I hate teases.


After a long day at work and a long day of moving for him, we grabbed dinner at Counter Burger-total yum- and went and got him groceries. 


What?  You think I'm gonna let my man starve?


Speaking of my man starving, I have been mentally preparing how to cook for two, but really three because guys eat way more than girls.  But I'm pretty pumped for it because, let's be honest, cooking for one is the pits.  It's either hard, or annoying because you have left overs for the entire week-bfast lunch and dinner.  Unless you just LOOOOOOVE left overs.  In that case, more power to ya and where were you the last 4 years when I was cooking?  Answer: you should have been at my house, eating my potential left overs.


Back to Trader Joes-
So our checker mentioned his fiance and how she drinks half of her water bottles and leaves them all over the place...blah blah blah...to which Ryan sarcastically smiles over at me and says, "I dont know anyone who does that!"


Oh, excuuuuuuse me for hydrating myself...a little at a time....and leaving some for later!  Its a strategy, duh!


Anyway, we got on the subject of weddings and the guy said they hadn't set a date yet.  When he asked us when we were getting married, Ryan told him 25 days and his eyes about bugged out of his head.  "WOW!" He said.


"Wow!" like what?  WOW, like WOW thats amazing!  Good for you guys!


Or WOW you're outside of your minds crazy!


Or WOW! it took me 25 days to get through the entire first two seasons of Friday Night Lights?


It was the first one.


Here's the thing, Christian couples often get criticized because they choose to have short engagements.  Sometimes for the right reasons and sometimes for the wrong.  The definitions of "right" and "wrong" being all over the board.  


However you would define right and wrong, here are my thoughts: I know I love this man and I know I want to be married to him.  I'm not one to lolly gag around and dilly dally (my vocab is obviously extensive...and my vernacular, colorful!)  But seriously, what is there to wait for when you know? 


Yep!  We are choosing not to have sex (Oh no!  She said the "s" word and now I'm feeling all uncomfortable and my hands are getting clammy!)


We are choosing not to live together


and to the rest of society, that is a huge risk.  And a dumb risk at that. 


How will we know if we are able to live together?


How will we know if we are "compatible?"


If you sit and think about it long enough and choose to make that your mentality, then yeah, that's a whole lotta scary!


But here is what I do know:  Ryan and I love each other.  Yes, I know "love" is not the answer and will not fix every problem.  I am not dumb-let's make that very clear.  


Our love causes us to learn from each other and see what is in each other's best interest.  Do I have annoying habits?  Yes.  Will he annoy me by hanging his towel over the door or leaving the toilet seat up?  Probably.  Bottom line, I love Ryan and I am willing to love him through the annoyances, habits and all the other "things" we run into living together.  I know he will do the same for me.  I did it with at least 10 roommates before, I'm sure I can do it for the man I deeply love and want to spend the rest of my life with.


And sex...we don't need to talk about that.  Its inapprop in the wrong setting (this being one of them).  Bottom line is, I really don't believe in the whole "test driving the car before you buy it" thing.  Call me naiive, but I believe God has a better plan for me than that.  


25 days until I get my final roommate... 

and I get to leave all the 

half full bottles of water I want 

lying around the house!

muuuuuuahahahahaha!

Keys, Keys, Keys!

Today was a great day!  Here is why:


-I signed the lease to our new apartment
-We officially got our keys!
-We got to show my parents the "new digs"


and then I squealed with excitement...probably on four different occasions.




Oh, and you would think that I would be that cute person who takes a picture of our new keys and posts it (thank you for thinking so highly of me, if you do!) but I'm not.  


Between the squeals of excitement and Easter, life is way to busy for that nonsense!


For those of you who MUST have a pic, this is what they look like.

Pick one, any one.   

30 Days YEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!

Three things you need to know:

1) 30 Days until I marry Ryan.  Hollerrrrrr

2) I love Kristen Wiig, I wish I was as funny as her.  I also wish she was in my circle of friends.

3) This video is hilarious and I believe Kristen Wiig accurately portrays my excitement for my upcoming nuptials.