KirstenL4W

Today is my 2nd wedding anniversary. I’ve been trying to figure out how to continue my Encyclopedia of Me series, so I posted a question on Twitter and Facebook for suggestions. Only one person responded, but it was a great suggestion. I don’t know why I couldn’t see it myself.

So back to my anniversary. As you may or may not know (if you’ve been reading my blog for awhile you’ll have an idea), the past year and a half has not been easy. Mister is unemployed through no fault of his own, and it’s been stressful. Stress puts strains on relationships, and the domino effect it’s had on ours is no different. But we’re still here. I love my husband more than anyone else in the world, and now I’d like to tell the world the reasons why I love him so much.

• I love that no matter what’s going on, he takes the time out to tell me how much he loves me.
• I love that he’s so perceptive, I can’t hide when I’m sad or upset, and he always talks me to a better place.
• I love that we both have a similar sense of humor and can laugh at the same stupid stuff.
• I love that he is constantly challenging me to push myself and grow as a person.
• I love that he knows when I need a break from it all and lets me be a mental zombie.
• I love that we never go a day without hugs, kisses, and telling each other, “I love you.”
• I love that even though I kinda suck at cooking, and he’s way better at cooking than I am, he always tries to encourage me and never spits out the food I cook.
• I love that he puts up with me when I have wicked PMS.
• I love all the other things that I neglected to mention here because there’s just not coming to mind as I write this. But I’m sure Mister will remind me.

To my wicked super awesome husband - Happy Anniversary. I love you far more than I can ever express here.

Mister keeps complaining that he’s old. He recently got bifocals, which cemented his belief that he’s getting much too old for his liking. Never mind that as much as he complains about needing bifocals, he’s been wearing them all the time because guess what? He can actually see things! Who would have thought?

I’ve been trying to convince Mister that he needs to get a Twitter and Facebook account. He sees no use for FB, and thinks Twitter is nothing but a bunch of gossip, but he’s realizing that there are quite a few chefs from Food Network that he likes, and other pop culture things that have twitter accounts, and he’s thinking that maybe he should check this stuff out. He’s not quite sure what he could say that people might find interesting, but I’m sure he’ll find something. So help me in convincing Mister that he’s not old, and will feel even younger if he gets himself on some social networking sites.

Mister and I are celebrating our first wedding anniversary today! Woo hoo! One year ago today, we got married. Since then, there’s been a lot of stuff that would tear lesser people apart, but I think we’re closer today than we’ve ever been. I’m just amazed at how much more I fall in love with him every day.

We’ve been having a big celebration amongst ourselves to mark the occasion. Friday night, we exchanged gifts and cards. The traditional first anniversary gift is supposed to be paper. I got Mister some paper - tickets to see Penn & Teller on Tuesday night. He got me a replacement for paper - a new ginormous computer monitor. He has a huge one, and just got himself a bigger one that has the sharpest display I’ve ever seen. So rather than watch me “deal with” his hand-me-down, he got me the same model. Mister also ordered a single tier version of our wedding cake, but instead of the white fondant with the black design sprayed on, it has a chocolate ganache with the design piped on in white frosting. Here’s a picture:

Isn’t it purdy? It’s the same inside as our wedding cake, which was red velvet. Of course it’s not good for the diet, but this is a very special occasion. Except for the cake, I’ve been trying really hard to make good food choices this weekend. For example, yesterday we went to Don Antonio’s for a late lunch/early dinner as part of our celebration. That’s the same restaurant we had our reception at. Instead of my usual heavy fettuccine alfredo that I like to get, I got the Don Veggie Pasta, which is fettuccine sauteed in garlic and olive oil, with some chicken broth for added flavor and less fat. It has broccoli and spinach in it, and I also got it with shrimp for some added protein. And we skipped dessert since we were both pretty full and had cake at home.

So there you have the extended anniversary celebrations. I love being married so much more than I ever thought I would. I am married to a man who understands me better than I do, and he really is my bestest friend in the whole wide world. I love you, MisterL4W!

I think I’m getting this in under the wire. So, the topic is Marriage in Real life. Boy, is this ever going to be a short post.

Mister and I were married just about 2 months ago. We are still in that honeymoon phase. Me probably more than him. He says that one of our friends observed that I am totally smitten with him. It is so true, and I am more in love with him now than I was even a couple months ago. That’s my real life marriage. And I plan on doing everything in my power to make sure it stays that way.

At last, the long-awaited post, the one in which I tell you all about my wedding. But first, let’s start with the onslaught of family.

Arrivals

My mom arrived in town the Wednesday prior, so I picked her up from the airport when I got done work. We drove to her hotel and I laughed hysterically at Mom’s passport photo as she was being checked in. We got up to her room, mom started unpacking and showing me the dresses she bought for the dinner and wedding, and we chatted a bit. I called the man who at this point was still FH to see if he wanted to join us for dinner, but as he had a previous commitment couldn’t make it, so Mom and I went to the um, buffet at her hotel (downtown hotels here generally don’t have the best dining selections, but Mom had a coupon). We had a barely palatable meal, then Mom and I parted at the elevators so I could go home and get some rest, since I did have to work the next day.

Thursday was uneventful since I had to work. Friday I was off, and my Dad was coming in, so I spent the morning finishing up some chores around the house and running a few errands before going to get Dad at the airport. He had left early and didn’t eat on the flight, so I figured he’d want lunch. He said he wasn’t too hungry, but quickly agreed that In N Out Burger would be a good choice for lunch. Dad hadn’t been to In N Out yet, since they don’t have any in Massachusetts, but he’s had to listen to me rave about it so I figured it was about time. We had lunch and continued on to his hotel.

(Side note: Google Maps is not always accurate when giving directions to the hotels here in town. For Mom’s hotel, I was thinking I’d valet park, but the directions brought me to a back alley and I ended up self parking. For Dad’s hotel, I don’t even know where I was being led, because his hotel is on Main Street and the directions brought me down a dead-end on 1st Street, 1 block south of where I needed to be.)

Anyway, I dropped Dad off and told him I’d pick him up at that same spot at 6:45 so we could all go to a “Meet the Parents” dinner that FH’s uncle graciously decided to host. On the way back home, I called Mom to tell her when and where I would pick her up. I went home, where FH and I started getting ready for this shindig.

Meet the Parents

This was not getting off to a good start. I took a quick shower to wash the 109°F sweat off my body, got dressed, put on some makeup, actually did something with my hair, and left to pick up my parents. A few miles from the house, I realized I had forgotten something. Something important. My engagement ring had been left on the bathroom counter. I took it off to keep it from getting all lotion-y when I put lotion on my legs, and in my nervous haste forgot to put it back on. I put in a panicked call to FH, who looked for it but said he didn’t see it anywhere and that we would probably have to take the drain apart when we got home later that night. Great. Just what I need - to lose my e-ring the night before my wedding. Just breathe.

I got to the designated meeting spot and saw my Dad right away. My Mom said she’d be waiting with my uncles, who flew in Thursday, but I didn’t see her. I pulled over to wait for Mom and saw my uncles walking towards me, with my mom off by the sidewalk looking around in vain. I greeted my uncles, gave N. the collection of foreign stamps that I am easily able to collect at work, and greeted my Mom, who had finally figured out that I had arrived and came over to where I was.

We drove from downtown Vegas to the Four Seasons, which is in a leafy, semi-hidden area next door to Mandalay Bay. FH’s uncle had chosen Charlie Palmer’s Steakhouse for dinner, so it looked to be a good meal. My folks and I looked to be the first ones there, so we waited in the lobby. FH arrived shortly afterwards, sweating bullets because the air conditioning in his truck just died. Wonderful. No matter, the a/c at the hotel and restaurant worked just fine. Anyway, FH walked in, introductions were done and we chatted for a few minutes before heading into the restaurant, where we met our hosts, FH’s uncle and his wife, and FH’s parents. Introductions, a bit of chit chat, and a little embarrassment.

What’s that? Oh, yes, you heard me right. Right after the introductions and pleasantries, FH made me tell everyone what I called him about on my way over there. So I had to tell my future in-laws how I had misplaced my engagement ring. While I was telling this, FH had taken his keys out of his pocket to give his dad a key to a toolbox he had stored up there. Turns out he had something else on that keychain too. Yes, he found my ring, but faked me out about it. I know him well enough to know that in a situation like that, he wouldn’t let me get off so easy, so I knew it was a possibility that he had found it and hadn’t said anything to me, which is what ended up happening.

We got to our table, and FH’s uncle sat at the head of the table. He instructed me to sit next to him and FH’s mother to sit on the other side, so she was across from me. FH had warned me about this - The Inquisition. This was the first time that FH and I had met each other’s families, and his family wanted to know what sort of woman he was brining in. There were questions about what I did, how long I had lived in Vegas, how we met, my family, and some other topics of conversation. I didn’t feel put on the spot at all, and I didn’t feel that anyone was displeased with me, so I thought it went well, and FH felt the same way. Three hours later, we wrapped things up and said our goodbyes for the evening.

Getting Ready

I swear, I have not had such a good night’s sleep in a very long time. The night before my wedding, I slept a solid 8-9 hours and woke up feeling calm and refreshed. It is definitely the ideal way to start your wedding day. FH and I got up, relaxed a bit, checked some email, and went out to run a few errands. We had to drop the favors off at the reception restaurant, put gas in the car, and we decided to get some lunch while we were out. I think there was some other errand in there, but I can’t remember now. The restaurant told us that our cake had already arrived and that they were ready for us later in the evening.

After our errands, we went back to the house to relax a bit. Quite honestly, I could have used a nap right about then, but time was not on my side. I planned on getting in the shower with plenty of time to dilly dally as I got ready, and though I didn’t have enough time to dilly dally, we weren’t late. FH had to help me get dressed, because I wore a custom-made corset and he’s the only one I know who can lace one properly. I wasn’t worried at all about him seeing me before the wedding - I mean, come on. We live together already.

Once we put on our wedding finery, it was time to go. The camera case, a change of clothes, and a few other incidentals went in the car and we were off to The Little Church of the West.

The Wedding

We arrived at the chapel in my Ford Focus hatchback (excellent wedding transportation, btw, if you are driving yourself and not wearing a full hoop skirt) and saw that my parents and uncles were already there. We quickly said hello and went into the office to register. The thing about Vegas weddings is that there are LOTS of them. I figure there were at least 6 other couples and their parties on the grounds while we were there, and that was a slow day. These chapels are really good at “get ‘em in, get’ em married, get ‘em out.” CTG can back me up on that one! Anyway, they were efficient, patient with a bit of disorganization and some frazzled nerves, and did a great job.

Once we registered and got our flowers, it was back outside to mingle with our friends and family while we waited. People arrived about every 5 minutes, so I think we were able to get everyone introduced. Finally, it was our turn and we were led up around the back of the chapel to take a few pictures before heading in. Everyone went in ahead while I made one last adjustment to my veil and took Dad’s arm.

The music started to play, Kaila, my maid of honor, walked ahead, then it was our turn. I wasn’t as aware of everyone staring at me as I thought I would be. That was probably the single biggest thing freaking me out before the wedding, since I’m not the kind of person who likes everyone staring. But the chapel was small, the walk was short, and before I knew it, it felt like me and the wonderful man I was there to marry. Everyone else seemed to disappear.

The pastor started to talk, and I presume he was making some sort of speech on love and what it meant to join in marriage and all that. I don’t remember. I do remember, however, my groom telling me I had a big booger hanging out of my nose. Then he started flaring his nostrils. If he was trying to keep me from crying, it worked. I had to fight to keep from laughing. He continued on, telling me that Kaila, who was standing behind me, was losing it. I pictured her with her eyes all red and puffy and trying to keep from bawling. It was hard to keep my composure.

Finally we got to the vows. My groom deliberately appeared to be thinking this decision over before answering, which was quite funny because he reacted to every line with a different “thinking” face. I didn’t have to think about it at all and answered very quickly. Then the rings, which was relatively uneventful except mine didn’t slip on as easily because my fingers swell in the heat. Then it was done. The pastor announced us husband and wife, and I got a quick peck on the lips. Mister got chided for that, and after a bit of protesting that he wanted more privacy for anything more risqué, he gave me a longer kiss and everyone clapped.

Introducing Mr. and Mrs. KirstenL4W!

Woohoo! We’re married! Ok, for the purposed of this blog and Mister’s privacy I announced it that way, but I’m a traditional girl and I am taking his name. I mean, I got to move up the alphabet, right?

Anyway, immediately after the ceremony the chapel people kicked all the guests out except for the wedding party so they could take pictures. A few pics with the wedding party, and they our attendants were given the boot too. The photographer does dozens of these things a day, so he knew exactly what poses to do and how to get it done quickly. I only blinked in one! Mister hates having his picture taken or shown, but he graciously agreed to let me show you one, so this is all you get:

The Reception

After the wedding, we were having a reception at one of our favorite restaurants, an authentic New York style Italian neighborhood restaurant. All the guests got postcards with the directions, so we headed out. By the time we got there, a few of our friends had already arrived, and more and more people were arriving. In all we had about 30 people in attendance, which I think is big enough to have a proper party but small enough to keep it intimate. We also cut out a lot, like the dorky dances and throwing the bouquet, but I did toss the bouquet to a friend of ours who is planning a wedding for late next year.

We decided to do the cake and toast part before the meal, since it was getting late and we knew that some people had early flights out the next morning. Tom, the owner of the restaurant, brought our cake out and made sure that everyone had champagne. Tor, the best man, made a lovely toast, then Mister and I fed each other a bite of cake. No cake smashed in the face for us, we were going to be civil about this. Oh, and the cake? It was gorgeous, and topped by an awesome topper made by my friend Pollyhyper (yes, she does custom orders)

After the cake, everyone ordered dinner and Mister and I tried to divide our time between everyone, but even with a tiny reception of only 30 people, it was hard to give everyone an equal amount of attention. In the end, it all went very well and we were very tired by the time it was over! I got a lot of comments on how much my mom can talk (she has a blog, and it would be great if she could type as much as she talks) and how wonderful everything was. Mister and I then got home and totally collapsed in bed.

So there ya go - my wedding story. These are the only pictures that are public, at Mister’s request, so you have to be on my Flickr friends list to see the rest, and I don’t friend just anyone. You can always send me a request and see if I reciprocate, just let me know who you are. My fingers are tired now, so enjoy.

In 10 days, I will be married.

I probably won’t be around much until after the wedding.  Those of you who have been through this before will know how busy I am.

When I was younger, I always used to wish that I would fall in love with someone from the moment I first saw him. It always happens in the movies, and includes the schmaltzy music and the first glance in which the two lovers have an epiphany and realize that they need to be together. But real life is not like the movies. There is no such thing as love at first sight - is there?

Future Husband and I were first introduced by a mutual friend. This friend had dated FH for a short time, and though it didn’t work, they stayed friends. The two of us were out one night when she suggested that he and I get together. I said sure, set it up - give him my MySpace or something. She did that, and we emailed a few times but then it faded out. I’m not much for trying to impress someone by email. Though I write well, the “getting to know you” part just doesn’t do well in writing. It faded out after a few emails, and I wrote it off. But he never had his picture on his MySpace (at least not until after we met).

A couple of months later, I was out meeting with a social group when I saw someone who caught my eye. I was introduced to him by another woman there, and we exchanged hellos. That night I was really not in the mood to be out at all, and was debating going home. During my internal debate, I walked around the room, trying to decide if I should just go or try and talk to this person. FH later described it as “circling like a buzzard.” Finally, he got tired of it and came up to me to talk. “So we finally get to meet,” he said. Huh? I didn’t think I should know him, and we were just introduced a short time ago. “The emails.” Oh no, I had never emailed him. Had I? I think I would remember. “MySpace? Miss A tried to set us up.”

Now I remembered. All of a sudden I was shocked, intrigued, panicked, fascinated, wanting to run out of there and wanting to talk more all at the same time. Talking to him came easy, now that he was in front of me, so I did that. We talked until 2am and made plans to meet the next day. We met the next day, and the next. The 4th day it was Monday, and he had a business trip that would have him out of town until Friday. Friday could not come soon enough! I so went over the minutes on my phone that week. Finally, when Friday arrived, I rushed over to his place after work. We went out, and I spent the night. Actually, I never again spent another night in my own apartment, and ended up moving in, which was fine since the lease was just about up anyway.

I don’t remember what music was playing exactly (some kind of bar music), and there was no starry-eyed first look, but I was drawn to him the first minute I saw him. I circled like a lion circles its prey. In just over 3 months from now, he will become MisterL4W. It was love at first sight.

I have barely slept all week - I’m still really excited! I feel like Monica in Friends. Remember this clip? That’s me, and it’s not even my wedding day yet.

So loose plans are made. There are a whole bunch of Silly Little Game friends coming to town the weekend of June 21, so we’re gonna do it that weekend - Vegas chapel or something like that, then an informal dinner/reception somewhere. Since our families are on opposite coasts, and very few of them are keen on the idea of traveling to Vegas (especially in summer!), we’re gonna take the show on the road. We’ll spend a long weekend in California to see his family sometime this summer, and then since Future Husband (formerly known as Boyfriend) has never been to New England and really wants to see it in the fall, we’ll visit my family sometime around late September/early October. This way, everyone who wants to gets to see us gets to without having to travel, except for a few people who live away from family hubs. And we figured it would be good because that way the families can plan a party or something for us while we’re visiting, which will satisfy their need to get involved without actually interfering - specifically my mother and his mother.

I want to wear something I’ll wear again, but not an everyday dress, so I’ll probably get a white skirt that I will end up dying black when it’s all said and done, and nice overbust corsert for the top. We’ve decided on black and white for colors, very classy, and of course tiny jolts of red thrown in there. So note to all those who are coming: wear black and white, and if you want you can punctuate it with red, but not that orangey red, pick something like scarlet or claret.

As for the rest of the details, we (meaning I) are trying to come up with things that are unique, but not so out there that they will be off-putting to everyone else. Stay tuned for more news on this developing story…

(For those who missed it, the wedding is the weekend of June 21 - exact date still unknown, but plan for June 21. If you are out of town and live in a place that will be featured on our wedding tour, mainly San Jose, CA or Manchester, NH, don’t think that you can’t come. You are still welcome at the Vegas wedding. Just let us know that you plan on attending, and No, you cannot stay at our house. There are plenty of roomier options with privacy included in this town.)

Announce your engagement. Seriously, I go and mention to a few friends that I am getting married, and my traffic skyrockets. Check this out:

I had 139 views on 3/10/08, which since my blog stats day is 8 hours ahead of my day, was the day I announced my engagement. My previous high traffic was 91 views, a couple days after I made the move to WordPress back in January. So yay, great news! I wonder if I can maintain this level of traffic as I get closer to the wedding date?

Boyfriend and I went out this afternoon. We were going to meet a realtor because we are looking to buy a house. We met at a home we had seen online, and it was a bit of a dump. But had it been a lot nicer we might have been interested, because the layout was more or less decent. The realtor has an idea of what we are lookng for, and she’ll be selecting some properties for us to look at next weekend.

After looking at this house, we were heading out to get some lunch. It was absolutely gorgeous out today, so we weren’t picky about cuisine. I wanted to eat somewhere that had an outside patio, but I couldn’t think of anything. Boyfriend suggested the pub near the airport. There’s an outside patio that overlooks the runways, and even though the service usually sucks, we enjoy it because we get to watch planes.

On the way there, Boyfriend started telling me that he’s been thinking a lot lately. He said that every so often something happens that makes one change their mind on something they thought they were sure of. Gee, a conversation like that can go in several different directions. But he started talking about how we have been together for just about a year now, and that we are looking at buying a house together, and that he was thinking that he’d like to marry me. Or something like that, I don’t remember the exact words. Of course I said yes. He said, “Yes what?” I said, “Yes, I’d like to get married.” He said, “Ok, so we need to find some guy for you to marry!” Then I said, “Yes, I’d like to marry YOU!” Of course I cried and did the waving my hand thing that girls do when they’re so excited they’re crying, and Boyfriend couldn’t understand why I was crying, cuz he’s a guy and guys don’t do that sort of thing.

He didn’t have a ring, because with my tiny little fingers he wasn’t sure what would fit or look good on my hand, and I’ll be honest, it doesn’t take much to overwhelm my long, slim fingers. So after lunch we went to the jewelry store and picked out this:

Isn’t it pretty? I wanted something somewhat simple but not plain, and I was really liking the idea of a gemstone rather than a diamond. Plus the setting for the stone doesn’t stick out too high, so it won’t get in the way. We haven’t made any plans yet, but we have an idea of what we want.

I called my mother to tell her, and Mommy had to make sure that I said that I am GETTING married, not GOT married (I do live in Vegas, you know). Then I called my dad, and he said congrats. I talked to my nephew, who said, “That sounds good.” After that I called my sister, who asked if I was going to wear a white dress or not try and fool anyone and wear something else. Silly Sis.

So that’s the news for now. I need to figure out what to eat for dinner since the time change threw me off and I didn’t realize it was so late! I’ll keep you all posted on the plans.