Merry Christmas!

It is Christmas Eve and I am so excited to spend some quality time with the family. I hope that everyone has a very Merry Christmas and remembers that the holiday is not about presents, it is about celebrating the birth of our awesome Jesus Christ!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

89 Days to Go!

Less than 3 months to go!

I was planning on taking my bridal portraits last Tuesday, but it ended up raining and I wanted to take them outside. We postponed them to this Tuesday, but it looks like it is going to be cold and rainy tomorrow as well. I am now pushing them back to sometime in January. I have gotten my accessories and I am ready to go, just waiting on the weather to be ready as well.

I have been very busy with work lately. We have had tournaments the past two weekends, so it seems like I am always at work. At least Billy has come up and worked as well, so I get to spend some of the time with him. I have tomorrow off so I plan on sleeping in, shopping, and taking care of a few more wedding to-do items. We still need to book a DJ (we have gotten quotes, we just need to decide), find groomsmen/bridesmaids accessories and gifts, parent gifts, and a few other things.

We are both getting very excited that the Big Day is so close. We are also excited that Christmas is in a week and a half. It is always nice to get together with family and friends for the holidays!

December Already?!?!?!!?

Time is flying by!! Last week was so busy, but was amazing. I had a great time over the week spending time with my family and of course baby Caleb!! Thanksgiving was so much fun with all of the yummy food and the football games. Although the Ags got beaten, we had a great time hanging out with everyone and enjoying our time together. It was so nice to get together with George (Billy's best man) and his girlfriend Ashley. They are amazing and we always have a blast with them. I was also so glad Lauren and family were in town. Lauren, Megan (her sister) and I, along with some other friends, went and saw Four Christmases one night. It was a very cute movie and I definitely recommend it!

On Friday Billy and I woke up early to get some shopping in while the deals were good. We hit up a number of stores before heading home. When we got to my house, we had some delicious crepes for breakfast that my parents made. **For as long as I can remember, I have had crepes for breakfast on my birthday. They are always filled with strawberries and fresh whipped cream. It is the most wonderful breakfast and I can't wait until next year as the tradition keeps going with some minor changes. Billy will be in charge of making the crepes! :) **

After breakfast, Billy took a nap but I stayed up so I could hang out with Mr. Caleb! We had a delicious lunch at noon and I got some great gifts! Thanks to everyone for the thoughtfulness of your gifts. That night I went out to dinner with Lauren's family, since they are pretty much my second family. We went to Del Pueblo and I had to wear a big sombrero as they sang happy birthday to me. We then went to her house and watched "Shrek The Halls" with her siblings. It was a perfect way to end the day!

Last night I worked the first Monday Night Football game in Texans history. It was an exciting atmosphere and even better since they won! It was definitely an experience I will not forget.

Now it is back to the grind. I am very busy at work and we have a two day tournament this weekend. I will be looking forward to next Tuesday when I will get a day off! Also next Tuesday I will be taking my bridal portraits!!! I picked up my dress today and of course tried it on. I also went and bought some shoes and jewelry to go with it. I can't wait!!

One Big Check!

A check mark that is! Off the wedding to-do list. We have finally decided on a rehearsal dinner location. The dinner will be held at Ninfa's. It should be very fun and comfortable. It is a nice sized room and they had very reasonable prices. We all love some good Mexican food and I know it will be great to have everyone together the night before the Big Day!

We are also in the process of FINALLY ordering wedding invitations! We got two huge books full of choices today from some great friends so now we just need to pick some and order! I can not wait until they are ordered and everything is set. We are down to 110 days, so we need to do this quickly. I also have set up a date to do my bridal portraits which will be in two weeks (weather permitting). I am so excited to do a dress rehearsal and see how everything comes together.

On another note, precious Caleb Daniel came to H-town today, so I went to visit him earlier tonight. He has gotten so big and is so adorable. I can't wait to hang out with him over the week, and I just keep imagining him in his little tuxedo for the wedding. I can't wait!

This is going to be a great week where we will have the chance to get together with family and friends and give thanks to God for everything in our lives. It should be a great Thanksgiving and a great feast. I am also looking forward to some early morning shopping with Billy on Friday. Then a birthday celebration for me before he heads off to prep for the big game this weekend!

I hope everyone has an amazing Turkey Day!

4 Months and Counting!

Four months from today I will be walking down the aisle with my dad, and marrying the man of my dreams! I can not wait to celebrate with all of my family and friends as we become man and wife.

Before that can happen, we have a few more things on our checklist. Although we have done the majority of big things, there are still some major items that need to get accomplished. For one, we still need to decide on where we are doing the rehearsal dinner. This needs to be booked pretty soon because I am sure places fill up. We also need to order invitations. Since they will be going out in January, we need to order them and have time to get them in and address all of them. This is a major task that is harder then it sounds. Hopefully we can pick out some nice invites within a week.

We have a ton of smaller things that we need to get accomplished as well. We still need to go to our reception place and have a tasting, so we can finalize the menu. We need to decide on all the accessories, shoes, etc for the groomsmen, bridesmaids, and ourselves. We still need to get our wedding day transportation lined up as well as our hotel room for the wedding night. I need to set a date for bridal portraits so I can go through trials for my hair and makeup. And then of course there are about a thousand other little things that need to get done.

I have complete faith that we have plenty of time and we will get it all finished so there is no need to stress. I am starting to work weekends now for work, so I will not have as much time then to get things done, but I will have Tuesdays off. This is almost better because places are not as crowded during the week and hopefully I will easily be able to book everything.

I still can not believe that we are halfway through November. I am getting excited about rival football games, turkey, friends and family, and shopping! Only a couple weeks and I will get to enjoy all of the above!!

129 Days and Counting!

I can't believe it is already November! This is a busy month for UH football with 3 home games and one at Rice (so practically home). It also starts getting very busy at work now. That only means that time is going to FLY BY!! We are down to 129 days and each day passes quickly.

On Thursday last week, my mom and I went to the church I am getting married at to check out a few things. We looked at the candleabras (don't know how to spell that) they have that can be used during the ceremony. We also checked out the Sanctuary and the rooms that the bridal party will be in before the wedding.

On Friday I went down to a jewelry store by the Galleria to look into designing Billy's wedding band. They are able to do it at a very affordable price and it is exactly what he wants. I am so excited to have our rings picked out!

One of Billy's groomsmen had his Bachelor Party on Friday night. Billy and Case went to Jordan's dinner at Carrabbas, so I was able to hang out with Case's awesome girlfriend Kimberly. We went to dinner and got some ice cream and then just hung out and talked for awhile. When the boys finally got back, we got dressed up to go to a Halloween party. Billy and I decided to be Vampires, although he went all out and I just had the outfit on. It was fun! Here is a picture of us dressed up!

Nothing else new going on around here, except that we have a new President! That is so crazy and I know that some big changes are about to happen.

Popsicles and Pudding

It was so great to see Caleb again this weekend. Billy and I had a blast hanging out with him and the BPs and it was nice to be able to celebrate Bryan's birthday with him. Here are a couple pics from the trip.




Surgery went very well on Monday. We arrived at the hospital at 8:30am and we were out of there by 12:30. I was not in too much pain and I was ready to leave as soon as I woke up in recovery. I pretty much slept the rest of the day at home and then all night long. Tuesday when I woke up my throat hurt a little more but it was still tolerable. I was able to eat a few things like mashed potatoes and pudding, but not much more than that. I figured since I was drugged up and couldn't talk much, I might as well try and get some things accomplished.

Billy drove around with me looking at a couple apartment complexes. Since we were both on this side of town, we decided it would be one of our only chances for a while to get out and look for a place to live. We found a couple places that we liked, so that has helped us narrow our search down.

Today my throat hurt a lot more when I woke up, but I was still determined to be productive. I went down to Lauren's house to look at the bridesmaids dress, since hers already came in. It is so bright and fun and I am so excited for them to wear them. I came back to my house and began putting together favor boxes. I worked on those for a while and then Billy came over and helped me finish them. We then went to Al's to look into tuxes. We found some we liked and locked in our deal. At 2pm we headed over to a cake tasting with a local baker. We loved her cakes and will most likely be using her. We then ran to a couple of craft stores to by some stickers for the favor boxes. We got back home and worked on the stickers for a while. Now it is time to rest a little bit more so I can continue to recover quickly.

I am so thankful that I did not get sick from this surgery and I pray that I will be back to normal in no time!

Finally Friday

I am so glad that the weekend is finally upon us. This week has gone by very slowly and I am glad I have a fun weekend to look forward to. I have tried contacting cake people, since that is #1 on the to-do list, but have not heard back from them. I will not have to wait a couple weeks to do tastings.

Tomorrow I am heading to Temple to hang out with my precious nephew and his awesome parents (and of course Sophie too!). I am sure I will have many pictures to post when I return. On Sunday I am driving back and working the Texans game. Hopefully we can pull off another Victory!

Monday morning I am having my tonsils out, so I will not be working next week. This is what is also causing me to delay cake testing. At least I will be able to eat lots of ice cream and popsicles. I am hoping to accomplish some of the other items on my to-do list, like ordering invitations and working on favors.

OH! Our bedroom furniture is being delivered this afternoon so that is super exciting! I feel like we are really growing up now.

That's all for now. Look for some posts early next week and have a great weekend!

Houston, we have a nephew!

Caleb Daniel has arrived! We are so excited to finally meet this precious boy!

After traveling around 7300 miles, Caleb and his parents landed back in Texas around two this afternoon. They were greeted by both sets of grandparents, Caleb's godparents, myself and Billy, and a few other close friends. After seeing pictures and videos for a couple months, it was nice to finally see this adorable boy in person!

After talking and hugging at the airport, we headed to my parent's house for a nice family dinner and some baby loving! After getting over the initial shock of being the center of attention, Caleb warmed up to us. He began smiling a lot and loving on whoever was holding him. Here are a few shots of Caleb with his family for the first time!

Grandparents loving on Caleb for the first time!


Showing off his beautiful smile!

Hanging out with Aunt Carolyn!

Loving on Uncle Billy! So excited he even had a thumb up!

First time grandparents!


Bryan and Betsy have truly been blessed with this precious boy, and Caleb does not know how blessed he is to have the amazing parents he does. After many prayers and much waiting, we have a new addition to our family and it seems he will fit in well! We are so excited and can't wait for many years of fun times!

155 Days to Go

The days are quickly coming and going. We are down to 155!!!

This past weekend, my future mother in law told me that she would like to have a videographer at the wedding and reception. I think this is a great idea so I began to search for wedding videographers. My future father in law actually gave me a business card of a videographer he met. I looked at his work online and liked what he did. My future mother in law and I met with him on Tuesday and decided he was a great choice! So now I have a videographer booked!

I still have a ton of things on my to-do list, with the biggest being to find a cake person. I will definitely be working on that next week.

Last night UH had a football game against UAB. They played pretty bad in the first half but easily pulled it out in the 2nd half on a 42-0 run. They won 45-20. Billy is not travelling with the team so he was able to tailgate and hang out with us some before the game. Here is a picture we took before heading out to tailgate village.


I can't wait until March when I become his wife!

A Place To Lay Our Heads

Billy and I have been looking at different bedroom sets recently, trying to find one that we both like. Overall, we like the same things, so that helps tremendously. On Saturday night, we went over to Finger's since we knew they were having a store closing sale. They only had a few King size bed sets, so that was no good. We talked to a sales guy about what we liked, and he told us to check back next week. We didn't want to waste any time though.

The next morning, after working the Texans' game, I headed over to the Finger's warehouse near UH. I walked around the store a few times (which took a while since it is a huge store), and finally found a bed I liked. I took some pictures of it and sent them to Billy to see what he thought. From what he could tell, he liked it as well. He immediately left his parent's house and headed to the other side of Houston to meet me (he had to go over there anyway since he had practice later, he just left a little earlier then planned).

When he got there, I showed him the bedroom set and he liked it as well. It was a little more then we planned on spending, so he talked with the sales guy. The set came with the headboard, foot board and rails, 2 nightstands, a dresser and mirror, and an armoire. The sales guy said one of the ways to decrease the cost was to get the chest of drawers instead of the armoire. PERFECT! We did not want the armoire anyway. We both have a ton of clothes, and we wanted a chest instead. This worked out perfectly! We got the paperwork and made our first big investment!! Now in March, we will have some great furniture to go into our first home together.

I took pictures of the set on my phone, and have no way to get them off of there. Otherwise I would show everyone what the bedroom set looks like. Just know it is beautiful!

Making Progress!

Wow! I feel like I am at full speed with all sorts of things happening around here. Billy and I both received our passports yesterday, which was less than 2 weeks after we applied for them. That is awesome that they got them to us so quickly. We also booked our Honeymoon!! We are so excited to head to Jamaica after the wedding in March.

We had a baby shower for Betsy this past weekend and it was so nice. She got so many wonderful things for Baby Caleb, now all she needs is him! She has another shower in Dallas this weekend, but I am not going.

Billy went to Colorado for their football game last weekend, but they are not letting him go to East Carolina this weekend:( It seems like the coaches do not really care about him. It is their first year and Billy's last, and so they do not seem to need to build any type of loyalty. This really stinks since it is Billy's Senior year, but what can you do? So I will be with him tomorrow and we will watch the game on TV. All I have to say is they better win this one! They need it.

Please be praying for a few things. First off, all the families that are dealing with the mess that Hurricane Ike left. There are many people still without power. Also, there is a company that owned 2 very nice wedding/reception halls. They filed bankruptcy this week and have cancelled all weddings (with it unlikely that the brides will get any money back). I can not even imagine this scenerio happening, but I know a couple people effected. And many of the people lost thousands because they paid the whole thing up front.

Hopefully things, will slow down just a bit, but I highly doubt it. We are down to 169 days!!!!

Power Restored!

As of this morning, power has been restored to our household! I am so glad that I am now able to watch tv, get on the internet, and turn on lights. Since we have not had power, I have not had to go to work at all this week. I have been able to look over all the wedding details and figure out what still needs to be done.

I am in the process of picking out invitations, finding a cake place, and now that I have received my credit card, booking our honeymoon! We have a number of other details left to do, but we still have 176 to get to them.

Billy is off to Colorado State for the football game this weekend, so hopefully they can win! He is so happy to be going because he has missed the past 2 games. I guess that is all the news for now!

Ike Can't Stop Me :)

Ike is about to make landfall, but I am still going strong. Since everything was cancelled today, including work, I had the whole morning to be productive. I slept in a little later then usual and then my mind started rolling. I decided to call the post office to see if they were open, and they were. Today would be the perfect day to go and get our passports taken care of. I called Billy and we headed out! There were only a couple people in front of us, so the process was very quick! We should be receiving our passports in about 3 weeks. We then ran by the grocery store to pick up some last minute hurricane items.

Now as soon as I get my new credit card, we can book our honeymoon! We finally decided where we wanted to go. We will be going to Jamaica (just like the siblings did). We found a Sandals resort that looks very nice. It is called Sandals Whitehouse, European Village and Spa. We are very excited about being together, on a beach, for 6 days in Jamaica. Here is a picture of where we will be!

They have a beautiful 2 mile span of beach, and every suite has an oceanview! This is definitely another big check off of our list. Only 183 days until I become Mrs. Hartford!

For the rest of the night I will be on Ike watch, so please be praying for all the homes and families in harm's way. Please also be praying for the Keppner's. John, who was a classmate of mine for many years and a fellow teammate and friend of Billy's from Creek, was hit and killed on the highway on Wednesday night while changing a flat tire. Please pray for his family and all his friends who loved him dearly. He will definitely be missed.

Smells Like Roses

We have finally signed the florist contract. We decided to go with Always Floral. I am so excited about all the flowers! We are going to have a variety of flowers including roses, stargazer lilies, tulips, hydrangea, gerber daisies, and a few others! They will be in corals, fuschias, hot pinks, and a few bursts of lime green. It is going to be very bright and colorful and I am so excited about it!

I went and checked out one of the hotels we are looking to block rooms at. It is almost right across the street from the church so it is very convenient. I am going to look at one more this weekend (if I am not blown away by the hurricane) so I can have rooms blocked and ready for people to start reserving ASAP. We are down to 185 days! Time is definitely going quickly. My next big goal is to find a bakery and get a cake set up. Then I will need to move on to ordering invitations! OMG, it will be here before we know it!

191 Days to go!

Time is flying by and I know that the next few months will seem like a whirlwind. I am anxiously waiting, as is the rest of the family, especially Bryan and Betsy, for the BP's to be able to go and get their precious boy. He is on the other side of the globe and we just want him to be here with us. I am praying constantly that they will get to hold him in their arms soon!

Football season has started and although Billy is not playing due to his ACL, we are still going to games and he is staying involved. Football, both UH and Texans (and Aggies) tend to make the fall weeks fly by! I know that the 191 days will be gone soon. Please pray that Billy makes a full and speedy recovery. He is not able to go with the team this weekend to OSU because the doctors don't want him flying yet. This is very disappointing since this is a big game, so I am praying that his spirits stay up. I know it is hard for him to not be playing and now he won't even get to be there.

On to the wedding news. On Saturday my mom and I went to decide on linens for the reception. We picked out chair covers as well as table linens. Chair covers are completely necessary, so I did not debate my mom on getting these. lol. If you are unsure of what exactly I am talking about, here is a picture of chair covers:

Ours will be ivory chair covers with satin coral sashes to match the bridesmaids dresses. For the actual tables we went with ivory satin floor length linens. We did not want to overdo the coral cover so we did not do coral on the tables. We will be having a beautiful coral overlay on the cake table.

As for the checklist in my last post, I don't think I have accomplished anything. I will be trying my best to take care of some of those soon!

I hope everyone has a great weekend and that their favorite football team wins their game!

The End of August

I can't believe that the end of August is almost here. The summer has definitely flown by, but it has been wonderful. I had an awesome time in Destin with the Cotter's and had fun in Dallas for Marisa's wedding. I did not take many pics since I was in the wedding, so as soon as I receive some I will show you all how beautiful the ceremony and reception were.

This has been a pretty crazy week. I found out on Tuesday that one of my friends that was pregnant with twin boys, lost both of the babies. She was 5 months along and had to deliver them still. They buried the boys yesterday, so that was some upsetting news. Also on Tuesday, another friend shattered his wrist and now has to have surgery on it tomorrow (yes it was that bad!). On top of that, Billy had surgery yesterday morning. 2 weeks ago at practice he turned his body but his foot stayed planted. He heard a pop and found out for sure the next day he tore his ACL. He is now out for the season and it is his Senior year :(

Please be praying for all of these situations. I know that it is a low point in each of their lives, so I pray that they will rise above and I will be able to be an encouragement to them all. There is a reason for everything and I just want to make sure they can each find the good out of their situations.

On an upbeat note, wedding plans are moving along. My goal for this/next week is to meet with the florist one last time before signing the contract. I also plan on sending save the dates out some day soon. My mom and I also need to go to the linens place to check out chair covers for the reception. I think all of these things can be accomplished easily I just need a little more motivation.

Also on the upcoming to-do list:

-Go for the food tasting at the reception hall
-Book a honeymoon
-Cake tastings with confirmation on final cake decision
-Decide on iPod or DJ
-Find shoes for my wedding dress
-Find gifts for parents and wedding party

I am sure the list goes on forever, but that is what I am thinking about right now. Hopefully I can accomplish some of these goals soon so I can move on to other things. I guess that is all for now! I will keep everyone updated on the status of everything!

I won an award!

My sister in law Betsy gave me this award, so I better fufill the requirements.

A. Attached or single? Attached - getting married in March!
B. Best friend? Lauren has been my bestie since
C. Cake or pie? I am going to go with cake for sure!
D. Day of choice? Saturday
E. Essential item? Dessert-any dessert, as long as I have some :)
F. Favorite color? Coral
G. Gummy bears or worms? I think bears, but I really like Sour Patch Kids
H. Hometown? Houston
I. Indulgence? getting my nails done
J. January or July? July
K. Kids? Not yet!
L. Life isn’t complete without? faith, family, and friends
M. Marriage date? 03/14/09
N. Number of brothers & sisters? 2 big brothers (and now 2 sisters!)
O. Oranges or apples? Oranges, but I dod love apples as well
P. Phobias? Dark-not so much anymore, but still occasionally
Q. Quotes? Too many to choose from
R. Reasons to smile? Summer and the beach, watching Billy play football, and dessert!
S. Season of choice? Summer
T. Tag seven peeps! not too many of my people blog, but I will list a few below
U. Unknown fact about me? My 2nd toe on my right foot is longer than my big toe.
V. Vegetable? I like cucumbers the best!
W. Worst habits? I picking at my fingernails
X. X-ray or ultrasound? This is a random questions, but I guess ultrasound
Y. Your favorite food? food-not sure, I love pizza and fettuccini alfredo, but my favorite food is dessert! (If you haven't figured that out!)
Z. Zodiac sign? Saggitarius just like my best friend and my man!

Laura- my freshman suitemate at A&M, she is now in Atlanta :(
Alicia-Jr High classmates, fellow Houston Knottie, UH lady!

That's all I got! Like I said, I don't know many bloggers. I love to read blogs, but those are through other people so I don't really know them, and they don't read my blog. If I think of anyone else, I will add them to the list!

Busy as a Bee!

A Wedding Bee that is! The past week or so has been crazy wedding mode. Billy and I went and registered at Bed Bath and Beyond and Kohl's last week. It took some time, and I hope we got everything covered. It was so fun to walk around and pick out fun things that will be shared by both of us. I am happy to report that there were not any fights about household items. He loved zapping items with the guns and only cared about a few items, so it worked out nicely.

My mom and I met with a photographer last night, and we decided to go with her. It is nice to get one more thing checked off our list, and photographer is a big check. We looked around, and although I do not know anyone that has used them, I think they will be great. They had great personalities and seem easy to work with.

Tonight Betsy, Michell, my mom, and I went to Alfred Angelo to decide on a dress. I finally picked one that I liked so we are set! We are going with a coral dress, which is what I originally hoped for. I think it will look good on everyone and the color will really brighten up the theme of the wedding.

I am checking with a florist I met with a while back to see if she is still available, and if she is, we are going to book her tomorrow as well. This really has been a busy week on the wedding front, but it was definitely time to get some of these items checked off. It is such a huge relief to have everything falling into place.

On another note, I am going to be an aunt sooner than expected!! Bryan and Betsy are moving right along in the adoption process. They have received a referral for a little boy, and he is absolutely precious! I can't wait for him to come home so I can love him up!! Although it has been an up and down ride for them, God is truly blessing them with this amazing gift!

Lastly, I am headed to Destin on Saturday to hang out with my second family! I can't wait to relax and sit on the beach all day long. I will be returning Thursday night then heading to DFW Friday morning for Marisa's wedding. I am so glad I get to be a part of her amazing day!

That is all for now! I will return once I have a nice summer tan! (It has only taken me to the end of summer to get-stinks having a job!)

The Best Week Ever!

I went to Frontier Ranch this past week and it was incredibly awesome. Although we had to take a bus all the way to Buena Vista, Colorado, the experience was awesome. It was amazing to be in the mountains in the middle of July. The weather was cool and even a little chilly at night. The stars were glowing at night and everything was glorious. It was so nice to see the glory of God all around us.

We had the opportunity to do a number of things you are not able to do on a normal basis. We got to do a ropes course that involved a zip line, jumping for a trapeeze, and a number of other high elements. We also went repeling off the side of a cliff on the top of the mountains. One morning we woke up early and rode horses. We followed a trail to a spot where some of the wranglers were cooking us breakfast. It was so peaceful to sit in the wilderness and eat some delicious food. We also woke up one morning and rode some ridge runners, which are like totally awesome go-karts.

Besides being constantly busy with everything, it was so relaxing. I was able to enojoy myself while being closer to God then ever. I love it at Frontier and I am so sad to be back. Back to the real world. Back to work. And back to the ridiculous humidity of Houston. I am happy to be back so I can hang out wiith Billy. He starts football on Sunday, so I will not be able to see him very much for the next few months.

We are planning on registering this weekend at a couple stores, since we will not have any other time soon. We are also working on booking a photographer and florist this week. Once we have those things taken care of, we should be okay for a little while. We still have 8 months, so we have plenty of time to work out the details. I am getting so excited to plan more of the wedding details, but once football season is here, I will be in game mode. Time to watch UH and A&M games, and work Texans games. I love football season and I am definitely looking forward to it.

Please pray for a successful week deciding on vendors for the wedding. Also for a successful football season for Billy with no injuries. We appreciate each one of you!

Bridal Extravaganza!

The BE is this weekend in Houston and I am excited! Me, my mom, Billy, Lauren, and Michelle are all going so we can cover some ground fast. I am still looking for most of my vendors, so hopefully I can get some great deals and maybe even win a free something or other!

Immediately after the BE I will be heading to get on a bus headed toward Colorado. I am going to Frontier camp with Young Life and will return the following Sunday. I am so excited, because I love being in Colorado at camp. It is a beautiful place where we are able to share God with everyone while having a great time. Please pray for a safe journey for all the buses as well as changed lives next week!

Also travelling this week are the BPs. They leave Sunday to fly to Kyrgystan to meet their precious boy! It is going to be a very emotional trip for them, but one with much joy. Please keep both Bryan and Betsy in your prayers for their safe travels as well as a peace as they have to leave their precious boy at the end of the week. Also pray for their baby, that he is in good health and ready to become part of the family.

This week is going to be amazing on so many level so please check back next weekend as we all return back to Texas with news of our travels!

I'm . .

So excited! Not only have I been meeting with photographers and florists the past week, but I also saw more pictures of my nephew! He is so adorable and the BP's have been so blessed to get a child of their own. They are adopting from Kyrgyzstan and I am so excited! They just bought their plane tickets so they can go over and meet him at the end of July! I can't wait until they actually get to bring him home. You can check out their adoption story at Our Journey!

2008-2009 has been/is an exciting time around here. With Craig and Michelle just getting married, Bry and Bets adopting, and myself anf Billy getting married-it definitely never gets boring! I will probably book my florist by the end of next week and hopefully the photographer will get booked soon after. I have been working a lot and I am heading to Dallas for the weekend to watch volleyball Nationals, so there will be a slight break in the wedding planning.

There is so much happening around here that I don't even know what to talk about so I am just going to stop. I need to start packing and such so I am not rushing around tomorrow! I get to see Marisa, who is one of my bridesmaids, tomorrow so I am super pumped about that. She is getting married in August so I can't wait to talk about all her planning and see what she has done already. I

Florists, Photographers, Oh My!

Well now that everything is winding down around here, it is time for me to get in gear! I need to start booking some more vendors since my wedding is less than 9 months away!!!! I have gotten some recommendations about Florists, Photographers, Cakes, DJ's etc, and now it is time to start meeting with some of them.

I am starting with florists and photographers. I have emailed a number of them so far and have gotten some responses. I am going to meet with a florist and 2 photographers THIS Saturday and another photographer on Monday. I met with Sergio Santos last week and his work is awesome. I am looking for someone with great pictures as well as good prices. For florists I want someone great! I love flowers and want as many as can fit my budget at my wedding. Hopefully within the next couple of weeks we can nail down at least one of the two vendors.

Then we will have to move on to everything else!

I am working on getting everything set to send out some Save-the-Dates in the next month or so. I will probably only send them to some out of town relatives and some of my friends, so if you don't get one-please don't be offended.

We got the contract at the reception place all worked out so now it is time to plan a tasting. This will be hard since they only do them a few days a week and Billy is at school a lot. So we shall see about this.

I guess that is all for now. If you have any recommendations for vendors or anything, let me know! We are open to any suggestions!

Here comes the bride!

Craig and Michelle got married yesterday and the whole experience was fun! Thursday we had the bachelorette party which was a lot of fun! We went down by the Galleria and ate at Carrabba's and then we went to the Hotel Derek for a lingerie shower. It was a great time.

Friday we woke up, and I went and got my nails done. At noon we headed over to the Bridal Luncheon which was at a beautiful house. We had a good time hanging out with all of the girls and just relaxing before even more festivities began. We then headed to the rehearsal dinner site to set up for the evening. We had bright colors everywhere, Gerber Daisies, and fun cups and plates.

At 5:00 we went to the Rehearsal at the church which took about an hour. We then went to the Rehearsal Dinner and had fajitas and margaritas. I had created a slideshow of pictures of Craig and Michelle through the ages. We played that and Michelle's dad cried. They then handed out gifts to the bridal party, parents, and all playing a part in the wedding. It was a very fun time in a casual environment.

The girls then headed to Michelle's house to spend the night. When we woke up we had Chick-fil-A and Starbucks before we went off to our hair and makeup appointments. Around 1:30 we headed back to Michelle's so she could get her makeup done and we all got dressed. Then we were off to the church.

Everything went beautifully at both the wedding ceremony and the reception. It was a lovely day and everyone had a blast. And now I have another amazing sister!

Here are a few pictures from the evening.

A few of the bridesmaids!

The guys!

The lovely bride and groom!

Me and the groom!

I'm so excited. . . and I just can't hide it!

Wow! I can't believe my brother is getting married in less than a week!!! I am so excited for Craig and Michelle and can't wait to be a part of their big day on Saturday.

Wish something else exciting was going on, but really I worked A LOT this past week. I feel like I might as well live at work. At least it is a pretty fun job, with some neat people, and I get to wear shorts and a T-shirt to work :) What could be better than that! This week should be a little shorter (hours wise) and I am sure it will fly. Before I know it, all the festivities around Craig'e wedding will arrive. People begin coming in town on Wednesday so I only have couple days to organize myself!!

Look for some pictures for sure coming up this weekend!

Where to go . . .

on our Honeymoon! We have been looking into different places for our honeymoon and we figure that we need to book somewhere pretty soon. Since our wedding is on Spring Break, places are booking fast! We want to go somewhere that will not be swarmed with Spring Breakers. We definitely want to go somewhere that is all-inclusive where we can go and sit on the beach all day.

We have looked into the Carribean and like a lot of places, but we are not exactly sure where to go. I don't know who reads this blog (if anybody), but if you have a suggestion of where we should go, we would love it! Just leave a comment on the post. The more ideas we get, the better choice we will make.

On another note, Craig and Michelle are getting married in less than 2 weeks! I can't believe how fast the time has gone, and I know it will go even faster for my wedding. I am so excited to be gaining a sister soon and I can't wait for their wedding!

It's been a while . . .

I need to get into more of a routine of blogging, but I get so caught up in reading everyone else's that I forget about mine. Anyway, not a whole lot has been going on. I have been working a lot and hanging out with Billy before he heads back to school for the summer. We are trying to get a few things accomplished, before the wrath of football takes over his life until January.

We met with a travel agent today and have been looking into honeymoons online. We are still not sure where we will go, but we love the Carribbean so it will most likely be down there somewhere. Honeymoons (and trips in general) are EXPENSIVE! I guess that is why I have never been anywhere super exciting like Jamaica or Hawaii. So I guess we will need to get a little better at saving.

I have also been hanging out at The Knot a lot more. I am posting on the boards and the Houston girls are wonderful. They have told be about the vendors they are using so it is helping me to narrow my searches down for florist, cakes, photographers, and DJs. Still not sure who I am going to go with on any of those, but at least I am looking into it.

We are also starting to work on our ceremony. We went over a ton of bible verses last night that we like and we narrowed it down to a few that we think fit nicely. We still have to get it down to the final few, but at least we have started on that.

Craig and Michelle are getting married in 2 1/2 weeks (holy crap!) so I am trying to be on top of everything for that. I am getting the final items for the emergency kit (clear nail polish, bobby pins, deodorant, etc) together so we can be sure we have everything we need the day of. We are also going to be putting together the favors over the next few days, so that should be fun!

Tomorrow is Betsy's birthday, so big wishes go out to her! She is an amazing women and I love her bunches! I am so excited everything is working out wonderfully for her and Bry right now and you should definitely check out her blog and see how her journey to adopting is going. Our Journey!

I will try my best to post again soon on the excitement of everything that is going on!

300 and Counting. . .

No that's not the number on our guest list. That is the number of days until the wedding! I know it is still so far off but I also know that time will definitely fly. Craig and Michelle are down in the 20's and it seems like just yesterday they were this many days off. Time flies when you are having fun!

Well we looked at bridesmaids dresses this week, and I have found some great possibilities. I have narrowed it down to a couple, but I am leaning toward one that's color is called "Daquiri". It is very simple, but it is a V-neck which would coordinate nicely with my dress. We shall see! Seems like every week I have a new favorite so we shall se what I end up with :)

On to new things! I have decided that I am going to create a slideshow for Craig and Michelle's rehearsal dinner/wedding. I got this new software that is awesome, and it is so easy to make a fun slideshow with pictures from the two of them at all ages. So since I am having fun with that, I also decided I can make one for Billy and I. That way that is one more thing I can check off my list ahead of time. I have already started collecting baby pictures and younger pictures of Billy so I can scan them into the computer. This is going to be fun!

Here Comes the . . . Bridesmaid?

Since Lauren is in town this week, I have decided that we should go to the Woodlands and look for bridesmaid's dresses. She will be in Ohio until the end of the summer, so this is the last time for a long time for us to go looking. I have found a few great possibilities, but I definitely need to see them in person before selecting them.

So, I have been hanging out at the knot.com a lot lately. They have great forums and discuss all the topics that a bride thinks about. I posted on there a few days ago, asking if anyone had suggestions for coral dresses. I received a number of responses, and I am looking forward to checking them out. The Knot is a great place to get my wedding fix, that way I am not talking everyone's ears off about my wedding, since we still have 10 months to go. (Ahh! Time is flying!)

Sunday was mine and Billy's 6th anniversary. He was in Colorado and I was in Texas, so we didn't get to see each other, but at least we got to talk on the phone. I can't wait for him to get back. It really stinks being apart from him for even a week. We used to do it all the time while I was still in school, but for the past year and a half we have gotten used to seeing each other all the time. So now it is hard to go a week without one another. Although, he is drowning in snow and I am soaking in the rays, so I am okay with not being in CO with him.

Anyway, I will report back with, hopefully, a bridesmaid dress I have selected after all the shopping is done tomorrow!

It's May Already!

I can not believe it is already May! As of tomorrow, I have been engaged for 4 months already! Knowing how fast that time has gone definitely makes me realize that before I know it, it will be March 2009! I am getting into a more intense search for bridesmaids dresses and I am having a little better luck. Now that it is Spring/summer, I am finding more designers making coral dresses. Hopefully I will be able to pick one out before too long!

This past weekend was the shower that the bridesmaids, me included, threw Michelle in Austin. It was at this adorable plantation home and we all had a great time. Here are a few pictures from the beautiful day!


The cake was very fitting since we were in Austin!


Here is a cute one of me, Michelle, and Betsy!


Michelle, her mom, and grandmother!

We all had a great time and we are looking forward to their wedding in less than 6 weeks!

April Showers Bring May Flowers

Last weekend was the "Around the Calendar" shower for Michelle. It was so much fun and is always good to see my mom's good friends. I loved seeing how creative everyone was with their gifts, and that of course got me excited about my shower next year! I did not take many pictures because I was making the "bow"quet, but here are a couple I took!


The amazingly delicious cake, of course by Lisa (that is who is making the wedding cake!)


Here is Michelle, her mom and grandma, my mom, and all the hostesses!

We have another shower this weekend that we, the bridesmaids, are throwing in Austin. It should be different and fun. These will be her parent's friends so I won't know many people, but I know it will be exciting!

It Fits!

Have no fear, my dress fits! There was definitely no need for me to be nervous. My dress fit almost perfectly. I need to take it in just a tad in the bodice, but other than that, no alterations will need to be made. WAHOO! I met my mom at Weddings By Debbie today at 11am and I got to try on MY dress. It was so exciting to see it with my name on it! I tried it on, took a few pictures, and was on my way. I can't wait until the day I get to wear it for real! The picture below is of me and my mom while I am in the dress. I cropped it so the dress isn't shown, but there's a little something something to get your mind rolling on what you think the dress will look like!


Now I need to start looking more into bridesmaids dresses. I just can't seem to find the right color. I found one that I like from Mori Lee today, but it was a little lighter than I hoped, but it might work!

This weekend is a shower for Michelle with all of my mom's friends. It should be very exciting. Everytime I see Michelle getting excited, or anything, I get excited, because I know that in just a short time, I will be in her position! It is going to be so much fun!

Just Chugging Along

Well I haven't made it by to check on my dress yet, but I finally called today to make an appointment. I am going to head that way next Wednesday and try on my dress! I am so excited, but I am also for some reason fearing it will be too small. I know this will not be the case since I ordered a size big, but it is just making me nervous in the back of my mind.

It has been a great week this week. Monday I took the night off from coaching and went to a FCA banquet downtown with Billy. The place that it was at was Irma's and it was very nice. They are not open in the evenings, so it was just for us. It is very roomy, yet comfortable and quaint at the same time. The owner was there since he is a big supporter of UH and their FCA. We talked with him a while and we are thinking that we may do the rehearsal dinner down there. I know that it is a little far, but it is very nice, the food is great, and it just seems like a perfect place. We still have time to look around, but that is our number one choice as of now. We also just had a great night at the Astros game with Jordan and Elly. I am so glad that Billy has an amazing roomate, friend, and groomsman who also has a fun girlfriend!

There are so many things to start thinking about even though the wedding is still 11months away. The next things we need to look into are the reception music, florist, and just finalizing the guest list. Working on the guest list is one of the hardest things to do because I wish I could invite everyone, but obviously that is unreasonable. Hopefully we will get that worked out soon, and have one more thing checked off our to-do list!

It has arrived. . .

I just walked in my door tonight, and found a message on my recorder. It was from Weddings by Debbie saying the my dress IS IN!!! I can't believe it is here already. I figured I had at least another month to shed some pounds, but looks like that didn't work out (and neither did I, lol). Well I don't know when I am going to be able to make it down there to try it on and such, but hopefully it will be soon. I am hoping that there won't be many alterations to make and that it is ready this summer some time. I would really like to take my bridal portraits when everything is blooming and colorful, rather than in the fall. Well once I call them and schedule a time to go down there, I will share for sure. I am so super excited and will definitely be watching what I eat until then!

Spring Fever

Betsy and I went to look at Bridesmaids dresses the other night and I think I have decided that I can not have coral as my dress color. I have not found one that is the right color. They are all too orange, and that is not what I want. I think I am going to go with a watermelon or lipstick color, so a pink berry color. I like the color and I will still be able to do coral flowers along with some other colors. I still have a few more places to look, so no final decisions have been made.

On another note, Billy is right in the middle of Spring Football. He has to practice all the time, even on Saturdays. This coming weekend is his spring game so that is exciting. I have volleyball tournaments for the next 5 weekends, so I am just as busy. I hope that my team finishes early on Saturday so I can make it to his game, but in the past that has not happened :(

We are starting to get invited to summer weddings, so that is exciting. I can't wait to go to some so that I can get ideas for ours! I am sure Billy is just as excited as I am, haha.

Craig and Michelle are in the process of painting the interior of their house, before they actually move in. I helped paint the living room on Friday and that was fun. It will be so nice to have them close so we can hang out!

Veil Time!

I picked up the veil today from I DO, I DO Bridal in River Oaks and it is so nice! I put it on earlier, just to make sure it looked okay and it was perfect. It really made me fell like a bride! Now I can't wait for my dress to come in so I can see it all together. Slowly but surely everything is getting done.

Something that I figured was a good idea was to start buying Thank-You notes early. Everytime I go to Target, I look at the clearance rack to see if there are any on there. Last time I went they had some really colorful ones, so I bought those. That will be one less thing to worry about come next year.

Craig and Michelle closed on their house yesterday so now they are in full move mode. They are painting and changing things and moving stuff in. Before we know it, it will be June 14th and they will be married! I am so super excited to have another sister!

I guess that is about all that is going on. I am working every weekend in April so I am super busy. But after that it slows down a little. We have 2 more showers coming up for Michelle and then it will be summer!!!

Engagement Pictures!

We finally got the chance to take engagement pictures! I was so excited and I know Billy was too. We went to the Houston Arboretum which is a part of Memorial Park near the Galleria. Fred, our photographer, was also one of Billy's teamates at UH and was great to work with. Here are a few of the good shots.











These pictures get me so excited! Now it is like, YES, we are engaged, let's get the planning started!

Shower Time

Craig and Michelle had their first shower this past weekend and it was awesome. It was a beautiful night so we had drinks out on the patio before heading inside for a delicious dinner. We then proceeded to head into the living room to watch them open presents. Here is a picture of them getting ready.



They got so many wonderful presents and Billy got to what showers were all about. Now he can't wait to have a couples shower next year!

Here is a shot of the siblings!



It was a wonderful evening and I know they enjoyed it very much.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter!

Change Drive

Okay so we are down to the 1 year mark. One year from today, I will be getting married. I am so super excited and definitely can't wait. I was trying to think of ways to save money so we can go on a good honeymoon without breaking the bank (since Billy is still in school and has little income). I decided I am going to collect change. Whenever I use cash, if there is change, I will put it in a bucket. I will also be on the lookout for change on the ground. All that change can definitely add up I think in a year, so that is my goal. If you have some change lying around that you would like to throw in, feel free (lol).

I am still working on my blog header, so be patient with it!

Editing

So if you can't tell, I am updating my blog. I have hit a few kinks, but everything will work out soon. So glad to have our picture in the header!

Better Update

It's been awhile so I decided I better update.

Lately I have been working a lot and coaching and doing Young Life and . . . you get the picture. Not much has been happening on the wedding front. Although Billy finally asked George to be his Best Man, and of course he said yes! We are still trying to find a time to take engagement pictures so hopefully we will do that soon. The guy that is doing our pictures told Billy the other day that he wants to do our wedding too for a really good price. He is just starting out and needs a portfolio and all that jazz so that would be amazing if we could save some money in that area.

We still can't decide exactly where to go on our honeymoon, so I am now leaving that up to Billy. I trust he will make a great decision. It is his spring break next week so we may be able to get a few more things done then.

Craig and Michelle have their first wedding shower this weekend. I am so excited! It is a couple's shower so Billy gets to go to! They are getting married in a few months and I have noticed how fast their engagement went by, so I know I need to stay on the ball with my wedding.

Bryan and Betsy have their home study this week! I know they will pass with flying colors and before they know it they will have a beautiful child from Kyrgystan! You can check out their blog at 7313miles.blogspot.com

So I guess that is what is happening around here lately. I will try to get back into updating more often and will definitely post after the shower this weekend!

Save The Date!

I finally decided on the Save the Date cards that I want to send out. They are so cute and I will post a picture soon! I will probably not send them out to everyone, but definitely to my friends and some close family friends! I have also been looking for more invitation ideas but there are just too many out there to choose from!

I found a bridesmaid dress that I really like and it would be in coral. It has been so hard to find one that I like. There are a few other options of dressed I have seen online, but I want to see them in person before I go with them. The one that I looked at last night has rouching (spelling?) on the botice and flows down. It is a long dress with Chiffon material. It looks really fun and interesting and I think it would be so cute!

I am so glad that I have plenty of time to plan and I am having so much fun doing it! I can't wait until next March when I will be able to see it all come together!

Velentine's Week

Valentine's week was fun. I got to see Billy Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, of course not on Valentine's Day but Friday evening as well. He is so sweet and he bought me some beautiful roses. He also found the light pink crocs with the fuzzy slipperness inside so I am super pumped about those (and wearing them right now as a matter of fact!)

Not too much happening on the wedding front right now. We are still looking into honeymoon places, but we aren't really rushing into anything. We were going to get our passports on Wednesday but then I found out something interesting. If you have your passport for less than a year and you get married, you can renew it with your new name for free. If it is over a year you have to pay the renewal fee, which sucks. So we are going to wait another month or so to get them so that I will be able to change it easily after we are married.

Still looking for bridesmaids dresses. I really want a pinky coral color, but can't seem to find one in the right shade that I like. I will be on the hunt for those now!

Veil Shopping

Michelle, Lauren, and I had a ton of fun shopping on Saturday for a veil. After driving all over Houston, we found one that both Michelle and I could use and liked. We found it at I Do, I Do off West Gray which is actually where Betsy got both her dress and veil-so I knew it would have a good selection. Now we can put a check next to one more thing on our lists.

Billy and I began to look into honeymoon locations. We definitely want something tropical, but we are not sure exactly where yet. We want to get this booked soon so we can mark that off the list as well. I am glad we have so much time to work with otherwise I think I would be very overwhelmed. This way I can focus on my wedding some, but also focus on events surrounding Craig and Michelle's wedding.

Billy and I went and took passport photos this morning at Walgreens. On Wednesday we are going to turn all the stuff in to get a passport, that way we can have them in plenty of time. I am getting so excited and there are still 396 days to the Big Day!

Reception Site

The date is set, the deposit is down. . . let's get ready to wed! On Wednesday we went and put the deposit down on our reception site. We will be having it at the Houston National Golf Course which is very convenient to the curch. Billy is excited because he gets a round of golf for free!

Here are a couple pictures of the facility.



This weekend is going to be so much fun. Lauren is coming in town so we will be hanging out a lot. Also, Michelle and I are going to go veil shopping! We are going to try and find one that will match both our dresses so we can both wear it. Maybe I will get her Lauren to try on some bridesmaids dresses for me. . .

BRIDESMAIDS!

I have asked all my bridesmaids and they all said yes! I decided to make cookies that were shaped like dresses, bells, hearts, and little groomsmen. Betsy and Michelle were both in town a couple weeks ago when I decided how I was going to ask them, so I made there's right then. I also wrote them personal notes telling them how special they were to me and asking them. They both said yes.

I knew that Marisa would not be coming to Houston anytime soon since it is right in the middle of her busy season at work. I also knew that I would not be heading up to Dallas anytime because it is also my busy time at work. I was too scared to ship my own cookies because I knew they would break, or mess up, or get lost. I ended up ordering her a cookie online and sending it to her. It was so cute! Here is a picture of what it looked like online.


I got to write a note and it was handwritten inside the card. The cookie was also wrapped in tulle and tied with a ribbon. She said yes.

Just yesterday I found out Lauren was stopping by her house on the way back to school so I made her cookies as well. They were like the ones I gave Michelle and Betsy, but there was one extra one and her cookies said "MOH" (Maid of Honor). I wrote her a note and took the cookies in a basket and left it at her house. Here is a picture of her cookies.

I tied a pretty ribbon/bow on the basket, just took the pictures before.

She said yes!

That means I have my bridal party in line. Now if I could just choose bridemaids dresses that easily. . . .

Wedding wonders

Well Linda, my mom, and I went to the bridal show yesterday and had a good time. We went to all the different vendors and found a number of photographers, cakes, flowers, and more to look into. I got flyers from all of the booths so nopw I just have to figure out which ones I want to use.

I put together a huge binder with different sections in it, so as I receive flyers or business cards, I can put them into categories. That way once I am ready to look for a cake for example, I can just flip to that section and look at all the places I have something from. I also put pictures of things I see in magazines that I like into there-like bouquets and dresses. I am having a blast looking into all of these things and can't wait until the big day actually arrives. Only 411 days to go!

Wahoo for weddings!

I bought tickets for the Bridal Show that is this weekend in the Woodlands so my mom, Linda, and I are all going to go. It should be good and hopefully I will find more vendors to be able to contact for cakes, photography, etc.

I went to the Greenspoint Club this morning and looked at it as a possible reception site. It was very nice and very affordable, but with over 180 people, you have to put some people in seperate rooms. I don't like this idea and I am having more people then that, so it will not work. My mom and I went to the Tuscan Villa of Garden Oaks, but it is not built yet. They are mid construction so you can't see what it looks like except through drawings and pictures. It is going to be gorgeous once it is open, but it is in a bad area currently and not easy to get to from the church. We are going to wait until after the bridal show on Sunday to book the Houston National Golf Club, just in case there is some place we have not heard about yet.

I am starting to organize an excel spreadsheet with different vendors so once we are ready to start looking into smaller wedding aspects, we will be ready!

On a roll

So yesterday morning, my parents and I went to Houston National Golf Club, a loved it! It has a nice sized ball room and is new and pretty nice. It is not super fancy, but I think it is nice enough for a formal reception but casual enough for a party! Right now this is my top choice. That afternoon Billy and I went to the Pavillion on Gessner and we didn't really like it. It is a decent place but it could have 3 events going on at once which is not okay. So afterwards I took him by Houston National as well. That evening both of our parents and us went to dinner to discuss budget, who's paying, etc. I think it was good to have open communication. After dinner we all went back to Houston National to check it out at night while a wedding was going on. We all liked it! On Wednesday I have an appointment to look at one more place, but I am pretty sure we will go with Houston National.

Both sets of parents and Billy and I also have compiled our lists and are looking at numbers. It is hard to choose who will be invited because we want everyone there, which is not feasible. We are still working on that and I am sure we will not have a final list for another year.

That's it for now, trying to book a reception hall so we can slow down until after my brother's wedding. I am on a roll!

Already excited!

Today I lined up three more places to go visit. Tomorrow my mom, dad, and I are going to the Houston National Golf Club to see if that would be a good place for a reception. Then I am going to the Pavillion at Gessner to check it out, since I have never heard of it. Next Wednesday I am going to look at the Tuscan Villa of Garden Oaks and hopefully the Greenspoint Club. I am hoping that after checking out all these places, one sticks out that I really want to have my reception at. Just going to these places and talking about it gets me so excited! I am ready!

Reception Sites

So my mom and I went to two different places today to see if we liked them for my reception. The first one was the Hearthstone Country Club.


It seemed like it would be a nice place, but they are in the process of remodeling, so you could not really get an image of what it would look like. I am sure it will be lovely when it is done, but right now I would not like it so much.

We also went to the Crowne Plaza at Brookhollow. It would be very convenient to the church and can hold a lot more people.


I loved the high ceilings of the ballroom and everything included in the packages. Right now, this is #1 on my list, but there are a few other places I would like to go and see before I make my final decision.

Unbelievable!

I did not expect this at all. I have been engaged for less than a week and I already found my dress! Yesterday I went to Weddings By Debbie and tried on a few dresses. They were okay but nothing stood out. The next set of dresses had two that I liked but one of them just looked perfect! I was not thinking that I would be buying a dress already but there are not many out there that are my taste so when I put this one on, I knew!

The next step in my planning is still to find the reception hall and to ask my bridesmaids to be in the wedding. Once I do those two things, I can take a break for a while and feel that everything will be ready in plenty of time!

Booking the Church and more!

Friday afternoon Billy and I went to his church and put down a deposit for our wedding ceremony. Now we have an official date and I am so excited! The planning is starting fast and is a little overwhelming sometimes, but I am very pumped. We have to secure a reception site in the next few weeks because places book fast. I will probably go with my mom to look at some of the sites we have heard about on Wednesday and then hopefully Billy and I can go next weekend to find a place!

I have of course looked through wedding magazines and I am working on choosing colors. When Lauren tried on a dress on Wednesday for me, I loved the color so that might be what I chose. It was a deep dark pink and looked very beautiful. I think it will look awesome with coral and pink flowers, so that is what I am feeling right now.

This afternoon my mom, Betsy, and myself are going to look at dresses! We have an appointment at 3pm and I can't wait! When you step into those dresses, that is when it really hits that I am actually getting married!!!!

Excitement

Surprise! That's what it was, which was a shock he could pull that off with how often I bugged him. Last night Billy and I went to dinner at BJ's. Afterward we went to his house to hang out. He said he had something to show me up in his room. We went up there and when I walked in the door I saw a scrapbook on his bed. I absolutely love to scrapbook and sometimes he will even help me. It was a wedding scrapbook that he said he saw and thought it was cute so he got it for us for someday. I thought nothing of it. He tends to do random little things like that so I still didn't get the hint. He finally said, "why don't you open it to the first page?" Once I opened it I saw he had created a page to start the book. It said "Will you marry me?" and had a picture of himself down on a knee as well as a picture of the ring and some cute stickers. I turned around and asked him if this was for real and he was getting down on one knee with the box in his hand. Of course I said YES!

I am so excited! Today I went and got my ring sized down a little since it was a bit too big and then Lauren and I went dress shopping. Well it was really more just looking since I knew I wasn't going to buy anything, but it was very fun. Billy and I also stopped by his church to check out wedding dates and I think we have decided on March 14, 2009. It has already been an exciting 2008 and I know it is only going to get better.

Wow-it's January 4th!

I can't believe it is already 2008. This year has flown by and has been full of many exciting times. Billy and I both graduated from college, even though he is going right back into grad school. My brother, Craig, got engaged to an amazing Aggie that I can't wait to become my sister-in-law. I got a great job that I get to wear shorts and a t-shirt to everyday. Billy had a great football season and got to go to a bowl game. And above everything else, we made so many new and wonderful friends as well as staying in touch with the awesome ones we have had for years. I know 2008 will be just as great, probably better than 2007 and I can't wait!

New Year's Eve was so much fun! Billy, Lauren, and I drove up to Dallas for the night. We dropped Lauren off to hang out with some of her college friends and we went and met up with Marisa and Brandon. Congratualtions to them on their engagement! I am so excited! :) We all went to a college friend's wedding which was absolutely wonderful. The ceremony was nice and the reception was amazing. They had tons of food, and it was DELICIOUS! They also had an open bar and dancing. We had a good time there but we left a little early and met up with some friends in Forth Worth. We rang in the new year in downtown and had so much fun with them! Billy and I picked Lauren up on New Year's day and headed back to Houston. It was a great trip and I am so lucky to have such amazing friends!

Now it's back to work. I am now coaching a 12 year old volleyball team and I am so excited. We have our first tournament tomorrow and although they are not the best team skill wise, I know we will have a good time.

Happy New Year to all and I hope you have many wonderful blessings in 2008.