Throwing Tradition out the Window

So, first of all, Merry Christmas Eve to one and all (well all four of you that read this, thanks guys).

The title of this post "Throwing Tradition out the Window" is just going to be a little teaser of what my fiance and I think of typical wedding traditions (because we like to do things our own way).

First an anecdote... the other day, my fiance decided that it is not fair that a wedding should be all about the bride, so his new plan was to walk down the aisle after me with a red kimono swinging a samurai sword.  I assured him that I would still be the center of attention, so the new plan... jumping from a helicopter :-)

While I would like to say that all of that is nonsense, he had a really great point... a wedding is not all about the bride, it isn't her day.  A wedding is about two people and their decision to spend the rest of their lives together.  So I guess my big point is that it isn't going to be all about me - it will be about us.

Some other traditional wedding stuff I would like to throw out the window...

1. The Chicken Dance (or any other group dance for that matter)
2. Speaking of throwing...the throwing of the bouquet (not my thing)
3. A veil (I prefer a fresh flower instead)
4. A garter dance  

Not that any of those things are bad in any way, but those of you that know me will understand that they just really aren't my (nor are they my fiance's) cup of tea.
Now don't get me wrong, there are several wedding traditions that I find beautiful and significant...

1. The bride's father walking her down the aisle to give her away
2. Both the father/daughter dance and the mother/son dance
3. The first dance of the newlyweds

My fiance and I (I hope) will also be adopting a Japanese tradition - in honor of our nuptials occurring in a Japanese garden - of the bride and groom to be folding 1000 origami cranes to ensure their long and happy life together before the wedding (ideally these will serve as place cards and decorations at the reception).

Handling the Holidays: A Lesson in Time Management

Thanksgiving (last Thursday) gave the Fiance and I the opportunity to learn a new lesson about being engaged...

How to Handle the Holidays. 

It turns out, once you get engaged, you start becoming a part of your fiance's family (if you weren't already before) and he (or she) becomes a part of yours.  That said, you have new family celebrations to attend on the Holidays and are still expected to go to your own.  In my (and my fiance's) case, I have 2 separate Thanksgivings to attend (my mom's family and my dad's family) and the fiance's family also has a celebration and their own traditions that he has never missed.

Now this year, we chose to attend our own separate Thanksgiving celebrations.  However, as we travel through our lives together, this will no longer be a great solution (i.e. if and when we ever have children, each family will want to see them).

My new proposed solution.... Not to rely on holidays for family visits because then they just become a hassle when they should be joyful celebrations.  This said, I think that for Thanksgiving we will simply alternate which celebration we go to each year (his one year, my two the next) and then travel back to his parents to play board games and then the next day decorate the Christmas Tree.


Another fun lesson the fiance and I learned over the weekend... weekend getaways are an absolute must to maintain sanity.  We went to Galena, IL Saturday afternoon through Sunday afternoon.  It is a picturesque town in Northwestern Illinois.  We took (well the fiance got a hold of my camera and took) a million pictures. It was, simply put, amazing.  Unfortunately, I was spoiled this past week and weekend and now I just want to be with him during the week more than ever.

I've been waiting my whole life for this day

Alright, by my whole life I mean 10 years... Yep, that's right, people, tonight is the Premiere of HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 1!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've got my ticket, made my t-shirt, finished my research paper that is due tomorrow (take that Winfield Scott), and I am ready. 

For all of you out there that do not, or can not, understand my excitement, that's fine.  I realize that not everybody has gone to nearly all of the midnight showings, read the books the day they came out without a break, or bought Quidditch Through the Ages (Rowling) and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Rowling).  If you're one of these people, that's cool, just don't rain on my parade.

Let me be excited about the end of a story whose characters I've grown up with.  I know I'm a nerd, but that's alright with me. 

Although nobody ever comments on this (and I think only like 2 people read it....), I want you guys to comment and tell me a book or movie that was important to your childhood.

That's all for today (sorry, no wedding updates).

Weekends

I live for the weekends. No, I mean, I really live for the weekends.  For me, the weekend is not just my respite from the daily grind of work and class.  It is so much more than that.  For me, the weekends are my time with my fiance, my other half, my best friend. 

The fiance and I, from the beginning, have been in a long-distance relationship, but I never thought (in the beginning) that the week could be so long and the weekends so short.  I would like to propose that we switch the two, so that workdays are Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, while the weekends are Monday - Thursday.  Wouldn't that be nice?  (Which brings to mind my favorite Beach Boys song, and the song that so often describes how I feel... 'Wouldn't it Be Nice?') I honestly cannot recall having a bad weekend since I have been with my fiance (except the one weekend right in the beginning where we didn't see each other).

Take this weekend for example, I worked on Friday and then drove home on Saturday morning.  Once home, I met him for coffee and then went home to spend time with my stepsister while he worked out.  Then we celebrated his dad and sister's birthdays.  Sunday, we went shopping for a new camera (to replace the one I dropped while visiting Anderson Gardens) and I bought a Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5, and I love it ( I could probably write an entire post on its awesome-ness, but I'll resist at the moment).  The day was finished off with a trip to Panera and then goodbye.

Enough about weekends though because everybody loves the weekend and continuing to rave about them would be akin to beating a dead horse.

In other news, the check for the deposit for June 17, 2012 at Anderson Gardens has been sent in :-) and the date is officially ours!

These are the first couple of pictures taken with my brand new fantastic camera. 

Location, Location, Location

Before I start, you should all know that most of today's post doesn't have anything to do with my wedding, or any wedding for that matter.

But since I made this blog primarily about weddings, I'll start there.  Last weekend, the fiance and I traveled to Anderson Gardens in Rockford, IL (where we have been thinking about holding the ceremony and reception) and it was stunning - even in the middle of October.  I loved it so much that I do not have to look at any other locations - I have to get married there. 
Reasons to love Anderson Gardens:  natural beauty, wedding coordinator, close to both our families, no need for much decoration, delicious food, great for small and intimate weddings.
Downsides:  I dropped my camera when we got there and broke it, soo no pictures until next Spring when it opens back up.

Now on to the real subject I want to talk about today... waiting.
I am at the point in my life that there really is nothing left for me to achieve where I am at (i.e. in college) and I have done all the growing I expect to do as a college student.  While I think it is great that I am ready to move on and get out in the real world and start working (and paying off my student loans), I am about 7 months early. 
"What does this mean exactly?" you might be asking yourself.  Well, baby birds, it means that for the next 7 months I'm just biding my time and waiting to start the next chapter in my life.  Kind of depressing?  Absolutely.

I loved being in college (for the most part) and I feel that I have grown so much, but the only growing I will probably do in the next 7 months is learning the fine art of resume writing and interviewing. 

Just hand me that degree, and set me free.  I'm ready to take on the real world!

Priorities

People are always telling me that I need to get my priorities straight.  Now this is an interesting idea.  When I hear this it is usually because its the night before a final and I just started studying, or I have a huge paper due in the morning and am lost in Facebook-land, or I'm burying myself in http://www.theknot.com (I really can't help it - I have a problem).

However - rather than bore you all with my professional procrastination skills - I would like to talk about priorities in a different light.  Last night - after having a minor freak out (not just because of wedding plans) that prevented my coveted sleep until 3am - I realized that I needed to get my wedding priorities straight.

Until last night (at 3am) the fiance and I had been planning on a Fairy Tale Wedding at Walt Disney World in Florida.  We love Disney. It was going to be magical and I was going to be a princess for a day, and it was going to be a good excuse to have a small wedding. 
The drawbacks?  A minimum expenditure of $12,000 (more than 1 semester of my tuition), limited options for decor and food, and the financial burdens on our family and friends.
Until last night, I was all set to ignore all of the drawbacks and get to be a princess (is that really so much to ask for?).

I realized that I didn't have my priorities straight. 
The things that really matter to me aren't being a princess for a day, or making my wedding an exclusive VIP family/friends only event.

In reality, my priorities are:
1. Marrying the love of my life

2. Being surrounded by people we love
3. Great pictures
4. Doing this all in a way that doesn't bury us up to our earlobes in debt.

A Disney FairyTale Wedding (although it would be a dream) does not align with my priorities.

So those of you hoping for wedding updates....
Preliminary Wedding Plan #2:  Anderson Japanese Gardens in Rockford, IL on June 16, 2012.  Still an intimate ceremony, but with my whole family rather than just a few of them.  Honeymoon in Disney.

And here is my tip to fellow Brides-to-be early in the planning process: 

GET YOUR PRIORITIES STRAIGHT

Once you do this, everything else will start to fall into place.

The Luckiest Girl In the World

*Warning:  If nauseatingly happy people upset you, DO NOT READ THIS BLOG*

I am the luckiest girl in the world - or at least in my world.  Why - you may be asking yourself? 

Well let me tell you why.

Nearly 8 months ago, I went on the most magical date of my young life.  And that night was the beginning of a dream - a dream that I have yet to wake from.  That night was my first date with the love of my life.

To make my happiness even greater (if that's possible) 12 days ago - my soul mate asked me to marry him.

The air was crisp at the apple orchard - but the sun was shining and the wind blew through my hair - he kissed me and dropped to one knee and told me how happy I make him, and that he loves me so much - "Will you marry me?"

So now, I'm engaged to the man of my dreams, and we are planning a wedding.