Six Weeks 'Till the Wedding

I went home a couple weeks ago to attend a bridal shower thrown for me. It was hosted at my younger sister's house and was planned by my mom and a very good friend. My friend spoiled me by including goat cheese (which I love) in almost every dish. She further spoiled me by making these great fruit cup thingys that she invented and I adore. The mimosa's provided by my mom were just the icing on the cake.
That afternoon I got to see my old Bible study leader, a very good family friend, and almost all of my close friends that live in CA. I had a complete blast. Some of them hadn't met each other before so they finally got to put faces to names. We completely took over my little sister's house for hours just sitting around being chatter boxes. It was great just sitting back and relaxing and knowing everyone was having fun.
This past weekend was a bridal shower thrown for me by my fiancé’s aunt and cousin. They blew me away. We played a game where you guessed which spice was in the cute balls of tissue and one where you had to remember all the things on the tray. I also got to meet more of my fiancé’s relatives including his maternal grandmother. She looks so much like my paternal grandmother its almost creepy. Mostly that's because my paternal grandmother passed away 10 years ago. So seeing her out of the corner of my eye made me jump a couple times.
That aside it was a fantastic way to get to know my future in-laws. My fiancé comes from a very close knit group and they all welcomed me with open arms. The theme was kitchen and every one that attended brought recipes. I was amazed by how many of his family gave me cherished family recipes. His paternal grandmother even made me a hand embroidered apron. We all laughed and made jokes and wowed over the great food that was served.
After wards my future MIL drove all the gifts to the apartment my fiancé is living in. I got to show off the place to my mom, my friend, and my future MIL. The couch we bought was in place and all the moving boxes hidden in his car. The place is on the small side but just big enough for two. We've even managed to find a way to create a study nook which is good considering we'll both be full time students in the fall.
While my mom was here we managed to find this gorgeous silk dress for her to wear to my wedding. It shows off her great curves and my friend kept joking about how thrilled my dad is going to be when he sees her in it. Also, we managed to get a better idea of how to make the chapel decorations. The decorations for the reception are almost completely decided and will mostly be white and burgundy tulips.
Speaking of decorations, AnotherDan has taken over building the cross we need to decorate the chapel. AnotherDan is my future FIL's best friend. (Since my future FIL's name is Dan his best friend was given the nickname AnotherDan). The cross went from simple to made of cherry wood with a dark cherry stain and fluting running along both lengths of wood. I can't wait to see the finished project.
All in all I think the wedding plans are coming together. The honeymoon is planned and honestly I'm looking forward to sleeping. School is crazy and has taken over most of my life. I'm enjoying it still and I'm making wonderful friends in the program. It is a challenge to find time to plan, to enjoy being a bride, and most importantly to find time to focus on my fiancé. I'm looking forward to being out of school this summer so I can enjoy being a newlywed.

Playing catch up

School: For the most part I like it. My prof is great. He has two different MBA's and a law degree. He leads the class discussion well and I love the subject matter. I enjoy the class discussions more now that it is not just myself and two others talking. The draw back is my classmates don't talk to me. When I pass them at break they turn away slightly. Not much, but enough to discourage me from joining the conversation. I'm hoping the fall will be better.

Birthday: Very good. My boyfriend and I met some friends at my favorite wine bar on the night of my birthday. The next day a really good friend and I went on a weekend cruise. It was my first cruise and I really liked it. I had to pretend that I was on a spaceship in order to fall asleep at night. It also helped to do that when we hit rough water.

Work: Overwhelming. I know enough now to get stuff done, I just can't seem to do so. It drives me nuts and I don't know where to start. My co-workers are better now that the character who used to help me is gone. Without his continually antagonizing ways the department gets along as a whole much better. It has meant a lot more cooperation between everyone so we're doing much more cross training than before. Mostly I like that the tension in the department has dropped and its really nice.

Home life: I've found a new place to live. Right now I have the best roommate I've ever had. The only problem is she is engaged and her fiance owns our home. That means that when the get married he is going to be living here. So, I will be moving July 4th weekend to a place much closer to work. I will be renting a daylight basement with a walk in closet and a full bathroom. It is close enough to work that I'll be able to walk there. Better yet, I'll be able to walk to church.

Favorite Tour guide: Make me laugh all the time. We went to the Ballard Locks again yesterday. The sun was out and it was gorgeous out. I finally managed to tickle him by twirling a blade of grass against his skin. He took my toy away from me and tickled me back. It was a lot of fun. We sat and talked for hours enjoying the sunshine and each other's company. Then we went to a friend's house for a bbq. Dinner was filled with more laughing and really good food.

Best for last: My younger sister is on her way to the hospital to have her baby!

Sometimes the best we can do is breathe and reboot. SJP