So, I’m back. Very busy couple of weeks. We drove out to see my parents in ND. We spent five days there, and then we were swept off to MN for my little sister’s wedding. Then we drove down to my older sister’s house for a couple of days, and then took the train back to MI yesterday.

Oof. I’m tired writing about it. Anyway, here are some pictures from the wedding. It was beautiful; the sisters were beautiful; it was good. That’s all I’m going to write for right now because I’m still bushed from all the traveling.

I’ve made a bracelet for my little sister for her wedding. Terrible sentence, I know, but I’m too lazy to rewrite it.

Anyway, I’m really pleased with how it turned out. It’s three-stranded, and it really didn’t take that much time to complete. It was the last one I made (I’ve made two sets of earrings and three double-strand bracelets for the bridesmaids and myself), and I think I was “in the zone,” if such a thing exists for crafting and beading and such.

So, here are a couple of photos of the final product. The pictures aren’t that great (they were taken without any natural light), but they give you a general idea.

My first post as a married woman.

Not that it’s all that much different than being engaged. I get to wear my full bling-bling on my finger now, and my last name is changed (which is actually a huge change), and I call Nate my husband and I’m his wife. Other than that, not much is different.

We’re happy, healthy, and tan. Well, Nate wasn’t so healthy in Mexico (honeymoon in Playa del Carmen), but he’s feeling much better now that he has good home cooking in his stomach.

The wedding was lovely and fun, and there were so many people there! Even one of my college professors came down from Brrmidji to watch the event. Four of my friends from college came down, too, and we wish we could have spent more time with them, but alas, that is life. The DJ was amazing, the food was great, the officiant did a great job, and we already have our proofs back from the wedding. They, too, are fantastic. Even the cake was good! It wasn’t without its flaws, though. Andrew, my beautiful 2.5 year old nephew, decided he didn’t want to be cooperative that day, but he hadn’t gotten his nap, and he was hungry. His mood was definitely understandable.

On a funnier note, I handed Nate my right hand instead of my left to put the ring onto during the ceremony! I figured it out at the last minute, and all was well!

As for the honeymoon, Mexico was horrible and fun all at the same time. It was great to get away and experience something new, but the place was pretty boring if you don’t want to laze on the beach and drink the day away. Nate suffers from migraines if he drinks more than two or three beers, so we stayed away from too much drinking. He said the margaritas were delicious, though. I drank non-alcoholic strawberry daquiris most of the final two days after we discovered how nummy they were. I had around 8 in a two day span. It rocked. I had a glass of really bitter wine with dinner one night, two small glasses of coconut creme, and Nate and I shared our complimentary bottle of champagne (one is given to all honeymoon couples), but other than that, I wasn’t really into the drinking either. You can’t drink the tap water, so we lived on bottled water, which is more difficult than you think, especially when one bottle is over $2. The food was good until Nate ate something that made him really sick for the next four days or so. It was rough, but we made it through.

We spent a day at Chichen Itza, these amazing Mayan ruins around 2.5 hours from our hotel. We met a new friend, James, a young man from Vancouver, B.C. who had the honeymoon suite to himself as his fiancee got cold feet. Long story.

We also went to Xel-Ha (pronounced Shel-Ha) and spent the day snorkeling with tropical fish. It was amazing, and, as you can imagine, Nate thoroughly enjoyed himself.

We’re glad to be home and get back to the business of real life. We leave for GA on the 20th of this month. A huge change that we are very excited to make. I’m so very happy, and I can’t really speak for Nate, but I think he is, too. We’re just happy that we’re finally married! I’ll try to post some of the pictures from the wedding, reception and dance up here as well as couple from the honeymoon.

I hope everyone is well, and if you want to hear more about the wedding and/or honeymoon, shoot me an e-mail. I’d be happy to share stories.

In 48 hours…

I’m obsessed with numbers lately. It’s this horrible habit I somehow find comfort in. In less than 30 days we’ll be moved to GA. I’ll be a married woman in less than 48 hours. We have one hour between decorating and the rehearsal and another hour between the rehearsal and the groom’s dinner. And don’t get me started on the wedding day…

I’m getting my first ever manicure tomorrow. Should be interesting. I’ll probably ruin it within an hour of getting it. What a depressing thought.

I got a call from our DJ today, and he asked if they could use our wedding reception as their test for their new videocamera. Usually, this would cost us $750, but they’re doing this for free since we’re allowing them to use some of the footage as advertising on their website. And we get a DVD of it for FREE. That is pretty darn sweet, if you ask me.

Well, have to go finish packing for the honeymoon, which we will be on our way to in 4 days. Aye, me, life is going too fast, but I am loving every minute of it.

Under 10…

As the day is drawing nearer, I find myself reflecting on past relationships and heartache, and through this, I have solidified (in my mind) this life-changing decision that may have seemed hasty to some but perfect to us.

I could go on and on about my past romantic relationships, what was bad about this one, what went wrong here, why it didn’t work, etc, but that seems almost petty now because I have a relationship now that surpasses those ten-fold. Those men taught me a lot, especially those early on, and I appreciate what they gave me. Yes, each relationship does take a little bit of something away each time you say good-bye, but if the relationship was worthwhile, we gain something. Some little tidbit about ourselves and the world that we didn’t possess before we started dating that person.

I would like to thank those men I dated, whether it be briefly or a longer-term relationship, though I know none of them read this (with the exception of maybe one) because you brought me to where I am now: happiness. And I only wish for you the same.

I don’t want to seem like I’m taunting those select few men I dated in the past because I’m not. I know one of them is gone off now, overseas with the Army, two still reside in Duluth, and the others are scattered from their education or careers. I just hope they find the happiness they deserve because they were all good men. Just not my perfect man.

Update!

Life has been a whilrwind for the past three weeks, and I apologize for not posting sooner. I can barely find time to think let alone blog!

The fiance and I went to GA to find apartments, and we have one! A great two bedroom apartment right near to the university. Within walking distance, actually.

I really like it down there. Bright green with fluffy trees. People down there have been nice so far. We had a good time with the fiance’s family, and I look forward to moving. Scary, but exciting.

Been spending lots of time with my family, which has been fun. I’ve been watching tons of Veggie Tales and Blue’s Clues, and after reading Shakespeare and Southern Writers all semester, this is a great hiatus!

Wedding is in exactly two weeks. Excited, thrilled, nervous, all that great stuff. Will probably update a little before then, but probably not much after then as we are moving pretty soon thereafter.

Life is fast, but we’re trying to take things slowly. In two weeks, I’ll be a married woman! I’m so excited!!! I’ll make sure to post a picture or two from the wedding and the reception/dance. Take care, all!

I’m back…

Hello, all! Sorry I have been such a butthead about posting. Life has been busy, busy, busy!

Planning a wedding and getting fitted for dresses and picking up odds and ends and shopping and sleeping in (sort of, when I can) and reading and writing and now volunteering at the local public library- they can all keep a person pretty darn busy.

And I’m loving every minute of it.

And I don’t even mind the rain! Who can mind the rain in such a beautiful place as this? I did miss home when I was at college. Everything about it makes me happy. The cold is a bit of a pain sometimes, but the rest of it makes of up for it two-fold.

I’ve been able to spend a ton of time with my sisters and nephew and parents. They keep me chugging along.

And now I’m going to be helping at the public library in a neighboring town. Get to write poems for little kids and set up programs for them for the summer reading program they have. What joy!

Less than a month until the wedding. I can’t wait.

We’re off for GA for four days to look at apartments and the University and jobs and all that grand stuff. More family time (Nate’s side, this time), which will be fun and busy, busy, busy, too.

Busy, busy, busy…