Weekend Update – ECC Edition

This weekend was the Emerald City Comicon, a festival for geeks of all kinds! And their significant others. The primary focus is comic books, but it branches into movies, role playing games and zombies. Gotta have zombies. Here are some pics from the Seattle PI.

On Saturday, we went for just a few hours, to see Todd’s friends and schmooze a little. You know how we love to schmooze.

That evening, we took a break from the geek fest and went over to Steve and Stephanie’s to hang out with them and Kim-n-Tim. And it was discovered that I am not able to drink AT ALL on the new pretty, now pink, pills.

My doctor changed my prescription since it seemed that the pretty purple pills weren’t doing a damn bit of good. Now, we’re back to the same pink pills I took in 2007. I never had a drink while I was on those. Not a sip (except at Christmas, while at my folks’ - supervised).

Now, while on the pretty purple pills, I would have maybe one glass of wine on Friday night and one glass on Saturday. Never really more than that. And everything was fine. But Saturday night, I was worn out and not paying attention, so I had three (small) glasses of wine. And boy howdy, I felt like I’d drank two bottles. I was flapping my gums to Steve and Stephanie, even after it occurred to me that I was talking way too much. And my fears were confirmed on Sunday morning when Todd gently suggested I maybe don’t drink in mixed company while taking these things. Of course I felt horrible, so I agreed. Gonna have to go cold turkey.

Later that morning, we headed back to ECC, where Todd was filming the Kirby Krackle concert. We were all cool and important with our Press badges so we got into the concert room early to set up and chat with other cool and important people.

Side note: my favorite song right now is “Can I Watch You?” by KK. Kyle himself describes this song best: "a song that is from the perspective of MARVEL Comics character "The Watcher" the the all knowing, all-seeing Celestial. But hey, just because you're 3 stories high with a big baby head and a wear a toga don't mean that you can't gets yours, right? RIGHT!? If Uatu is gonna sing a song to his boo, why shouldn't it be in the form of a 70's love jam over sexy ass guitar and a slutty solo? Slutty indeed. Oh Watcher, you crazy baby...you crazy.”

I finally had a chance to listen to their new album on Friday, and when “Can I Watch You?” came on, I started shakin’ my groove thang in my chair, with a white man’s overbite, while I ordered pipette tips and antibodies. Awww yeah.

I told Kyle about my new found love for this song and asked if it was on the set list for Sunday. He said it was the hardest song to sing, but he may have to work it in now. And he did – it was the encore. I feel special.


Anyway, KK was awesome, as usual, but the big news was that Joe Quesada, Editor in Chief of Marvel comics, was in attendance and actually played a few songs with them. Think about it – you’ve got a band that plays songs about comic book characters and superheroes. You grew up loving these guys. Now you write songs and sing about them. Then the Editor in Chief of THE comic book publisher says to a big crowd that your band is the most awesomest and then sings your songs on stage.

How freakin’ amazing is that?!

The kids went with us and had a great time. They’re huge KK fans. Kayleigh brought a friend and they roamed around like teenagers and looked for some guys from their school. Tyler and his friend took the bus in by themselves and wandered around as well, but we all met back up at the KK show. So, it was kind of like a family outing.

By the time we got home last night, Todd and I were spent. We snoozed for a bit, then made some dinner and watched Up in the Air with George Clooney. FANTASTIC movie. Just wonderful.

And then!

We watched the raw video of our wedding.

Todd’s friend, Dan, videotaped the wedding on two different cameras, one of which was Todd’s. When Todd got out his camera on Sunday to get it ready to tape KK, he found two videotapes labeled “Todd’s Wedding 11/7/09” Dan had put the tapes back in, I’m guessing, after copying them so he’s have footage to work with and edit.

The first tape was from the camera set up on the balcony, that showed only the stage. The second tape was extra footage that Dan shot (upstairs while I was getting ready, exterior shots of the building, people signing rocks) and then the footage from down by the stage that also showed our readings and the guests. It was so cool to see all the things that were going on while I was upstairs. And it made me and Todd all mushy and giddy.

So, that was a nice topper to the weekend.

And BAM! Here we are at Monday.

I am very much looking forward to this weekend. We don't have a dang thing going on. Can you believe it?! We do, however, have a couple of World Market gift cards to spend, so there may be shopping. Maybe.

Lots O' Random Thoughts

My IT department just changed our screensaver. It’s no longer some educational something. It is now multiple scenes of crystal blue water, sandy beaches, rolling green hills, beautiful landscapes in far away places. And the text reads “Thanks for all of your hard work.”

I think their real meaning is, “Thank you for sitting in front of this computer for eight hours everyday, but you still aren’t earning enough money or vacation time to visit any of these beautiful places, so we’ll just show you pictures of what you’re missing.”

Thanks, guys.

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I think I may have gained a wee bit of weight. I now sweat when I vacuum.

That can’t be good.

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I have a hair appointment on Sunday. It’s coming off. Not all off, not pixie off, but mostly off. Maybe a messy bob with layers and bangs. Who knows what I’ll feel like when I sit in the chair.

I wish I had enough money to get it colored, too. The gray is really starting to get to me.

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As is our weather here in the great Pacific Northwest. It’s been 50 degrees and rainish for a few weeks. It’s winter, for cryin’ out loud. Give me some kind of extreme! Cold, snow, pouring rain, SOMETHING. I’m bored.

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Speaking of bored, my brain is wandering now. I’m in a lull at work. I was so busy with other things this past year that I was just glad to have a flexible job. Now I don’t have much else to dwell on (aside from my gray hair and excess weight) so I’m examining my job. I just don’t feel like I’m working toward anything the end of the day. I don’t feel like I’m accomplishing much. Except buying centrifuges and vials of antibodies.

Sigh.

I talk to myself a lot and I ask, “What could I possibly be doing every day that makes me feel like I’m accomplishing something worthwhile each and every day?”

The only job I can come up with is a stay at home mom.

Funny, huh?

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On to happier topics…

How’s about them Saints?! That was one of the best games I’ve watched in a long time. While I love Favre (even though I think he needs to call it quits, especially after the beating he took during this game), I’m excited to see the Saints go to their first Super Bowl. And against the Colts!

We may have to have a Super Bowl party.
I will buy football themed napkins.
And use our new serving platters!

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Speaking of the weekend, there was a lot of sittin’ around and reading and relaxing.

I am extremely proud of myself.

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Except for when Tom snuck out, after I caught his head in the door and yanked* it open again so I wouldn’t kill him. Rather than backing up and coming inside, the little bugger darted forward, onto the back porch. He kind of froze when he got to the steps, so I grabbed him and threw him back inside.

I got really ticked off at him and told him maybe I’ll just open the door and let them both run free. Let’s see how well they do out in the wild with the raccoons, coyotes, and cars that speed down our road. I bet they’ll realize they really don’t have it so bad being kept indoors.

But then I realized I really do love my kitties, so I think I’ll buy two kitty harnesses**, and take them for a walk. Then they can see the outside and not feel like it’s such a great unknown.


*I originally spelled that “janked”. And I wondered why it didn’t look right. I am losing my mind.

**Todd suggested buying just one kitty harness and taking them out separately. Which surprised me because I thought Todd knew me better than that. They are BROTHERS. They must go out TOGETHER. Silly.

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I get to see Val and Rachelle tonight, and I am uber excited. It’s been a long time since we’ve gotten together for one of our walks and gab fests.

The original plan was a walk around Greenlake, then maybe dinner afterwards. But then Val couldn’t make the walk, so it turned into me and Rachelle walking, then meeting Val after for dinner. But then Rachelle had an appointment come up, so while she could still make dinner, she wouldn’t be able to make the walk. So I thought, okay, I’ll walk Greenlake by myself (see: vacuuming and sweating above) then meet them for dinner.

Yeah, that’s a dumb idea.
I’m in a skirt and boots and all done up. I’m not ruining this for a walk.

I’ll just skip the margarita at dinner. That balances, right?

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Last Monday, when I was out shopping by myself, I went to Half Price Books to find some new stuff read. I’ve read seven of the 10 Sookie books, and I absolutely love them (but don’t care for the series they spurred, “True Blood”. Weird). But Trish, who is supplying my Sookie crack, is about to spit out her little girl Rosalind, so she’s been a bit preoccupied and I haven’t gotten the next book.

So, in the meantime, I picked up “Bitter is the New Black” by Jen Lancaster.

And I cannot put it down.
And I’m an expert and walking and reading now.

I started reading Jen’s blog after Todd sent me the link this post of her’s. It had me crying at my desk, so I bookmarked it and now I’m addicted to this bitchy, funny woman.

“Bitter is the New Black” is her first book of four, and it details her (and her husband’s) downward spiral from Dot Calm rich execs to barely scraping by to make bills. And what I love so much about this book is, while it’s really easy to not like her (although, I already did because I read her blog), you can’t help but love her. She knows she’s a bitch. She knows she’s materialistic. But over the span of the book, she evolves and realizes she needs to grow up. Then you start to really like her, and respect her.

I do believe I’ll have to make another run to Half Price Books to pick up her next three books.

Reading these also makes me want to write for a living. But what’s new?

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I’ve gotten really good at sleeping with earplugs in. I hardly wake up at all during the night.

But my ear holes hurt from having them in there all night.

What to do?

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Every now and then, I have a brief, powerful memory of the wedding that just hits me out of nowhere. And then I get teary eyed.

This most often happens when the song “Bombananza” by Bob Schneider comes across my iPod.

That was our first dance. And it turned into a conga line. And my bustle got ripped because somehow I ended up leading the conga line. As any bride should, I guess.

We didn’t want to have a first dance be a slow song, where we just rocked back and forth while everyone gazed at us and made us uncomfortable. That’s not our life at all.

So, after the cake cutting (during which we used FORKS to feed each other, thankyouverymuch) we walked down to the dance floor and hounded a couple of people to join us, while people wondered what the hell we were up to now.

Then Kyle pressed play.

Now THAT’S the way to start off a new life together.

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Okay, I’m off to kill time until dinner with my gals. Maybe a drink at the lovely little wine bar down the street while I read some more of “Bitter is the New Black.”

I’ll just skip the sour cream and guacamole at dinner.
See?! I can balance!

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UPDATE:

Rest assured, dear readers (and my HR department - Hi!), I am not job hunting. I really like my job. I love my boss and my co-workers, and I’m really lucky to have such a great group, especially with the wedding, honeymoon and all of the Tyler issues. They’re all very understanding. Yes, I feel like I’m in a lull right now, but I blame that solely on SAD. It’s dark here, it’s 50 degrees, and I just feel blah. About everything. So do most people I know right now.

Funny thing, though. In the book I’m reading, “Bitter is the New Black” Jen was bluntly turned down for a job just because of a website she put up. It was a list of all of the companies that wouldn’t hire her. She titled it “Companies That Suck”. As soon as she made mention of that website, I saw it coming. So yes, it’s always on my mind.

Post Wedding Post

Well, what can I say?

I can say my husband has done a fine job out laying out the events of the wedding and honeymoon for you. Which makes my job a little easier.

I can say I didn’t get completely trashed at my own wedding, which believe it or not, was a great fear for a long time. I had a glass of champagne as I was getting dressed, a glass of champagne during the toasts, then a couple of sips of whatever was poured for me (oh, and some nips of Gentleman Jack from Michael's flask....gawd bless him). I was too busy looking around and just being completely in awe that this was MY WEDDING. Or I was dancing my ass off.

I can say I remember everything, except the verbage of the speeches, which is a shame, because they were beautiful. All of them.

I can say I was really worried about Todd having to tear me away at 9:30pm, when the party was in full swing. But people started filtering out around 9:00, after a few hours of very enthusiastic dancing, so after that I was constantly asking the time because I didn’t want to keep the limo driver waiting.

And I can say everything was perfect. Yes, my dad stepped on my dress while walking me down the aisle and then he didn’t know when to sit down, so I had to tell him “You sit now!” And yes, the bustle ripped on my dress during the first dance conga line, which led to many pictures of me (and other people) holding it up while trying to get down.

But really? It was an incredible time. Just incredible. There just aren't enough words or enough time to post everything, so here are some of my favorite photos, so far:

(Afterwards, at the hotel, high on bliss)

(My Best Lady (under the dress), workin' on the bustle)

(Me and my new daughter)

(Me and Isabella, dancing)

You can see the rehearsal, wedding (some, not all, from Randy) and post wedding pictures here.

Just Married

Yesterday, TBFE (The Best Fiance Ever) became the TBHE (The Best Husband Ever).

But that looks too much like THC to me, and that makes me think of pot and well, that's not good. So, let's just call him my husband.

My Husband.

Life is good.

Pre-Wedding Poem

Wrapping up at work
Gathering updates
Making notes for co-workers
Must Swiffer desk
And wash dishes

Out for 13 days
Already dread coming back
Mounds of email
Hope my new rule works

Emailing vendors
Confirmations, final payments, itineraries
Headcount is wacky
Maybe I’ll just stand at the reception
Who doesn’t want to eat?

Feeling much better
Antibiotics are awesome
Think I might be okay
Really want a glass of wine
Can wait until Friday
I guess

Still have some shopping to do
And tomorrow is pedicure
And massage
Because that’s what you do
The week of your wedding

OMG
I’m getting married
MARRIED
Five days
Five days

B R E A T H E......

Suddenly, I'm Vain

I had my trial run with Alyssa, the gal who’s doing my make up and hair for the wedding. She’s a friend of Todd’s and very young and very enthusiastic. We did the trial in her mom’s kitchen, with her brother and sister (twins) cracking jokes and giving tips. Her mom came in midway and stated it had been a helluva day and she was opening a bottle of wine and who wanted some.

It was a fun night.

However.

Oh my gawd, the gray! I went in the bathroom to take a look at the finished product and was in awe at the streaks. I’ve never minded they gray before. Really. But seeing it in my perfectly coifed hair was startling. It was like the Bride of Frankenstein. Dark, poofy hair with white running through it. I’m only 34!

I may have to color my hair before the wedding.
I can’t believe it.

Gasp!

I think I might be vain.

You probably think this song is about you...

My Bridal Shower

My bridal shower was yesterday. It was quite…surreal.

That's me with my ribbon bouquet (in front of all of my loot). Apparently, I have to carry that at the rehearsal. It's made from all of the ribbons from the presents. And did you know, that however many ribbons you break when you're opening gifts, that's how many babies you're going to have?

I BROKE NO RIBBONS. Ha!

I also was surprised at how overwhelming it was. I was even a little teary eyed when talking about how Todd and I met. And you know Rae-rae don’t do mushy anymore. She is SO over that. But I think it just kind of hit me that this is all really happening and it’s very real and very scary and very exciting. It could also be that my stress level is through the freakin’ roof, so it doesn’t take much to make me cry right now.

Like Aunt Mardie’s card. She addressed it to “Binky”. Only my family uses that name. My parents rarely use anything but that name. And I think I was really missing my mom yesterday, and wish so much that she could be there. So when I got home and was re-reading all the cards, I came to Mardie’s and just lost it. It’s like my mom was there. I tear up just typing that now.

Sigh.

It must be the stress.

Feel The Love

So, remember the RSVP box that I thought was a FANTASTIC idea? And my friend CB thought I was retarded for even contemplating spending money on something so stupid?

CB was in a mood one day and didn't feel like working.

So she made me an RSVP box.

Isn't that just the sweetest? I laughed until I had tears in my eyes. And let me tell you, the staples and scotch tape just add a little something special to it.

Why Didn't I Think of That?

It's fabulous.

A box for your RSVPs. No on one side, Yes on the other side. Alphabetized index cards to separate by name. And even matches the invitations!

Genius.


My friend, CB, says "Ridiculous. I will get a shoebox and MAKE you one of those. Much better."

But will it be covered in pretty paper?

She says, "Of course!"

I say, she's hired.

Why can't I think of this stuff before other people do? Oddly enough, this site is by the same woman who wrote my Big Ass Wedding Book. She's a pro. She knows what the crazy brides want. We want useless boxes of crap that are pretty and remind us that we're getting married!

Speaking of crazy and organizing, I got on a kick last night and organized the hell out of our white board. I've got a list of things we still need to spend money on, a list of To Do items, a list of questions for the caterer, and taped to the board, a drawing that eerily resembles a football playbook that tells me who is riding in which car to get from West Seattle to the rehearsal dinner and then who is riding in which car to get back to West Seattle/the hotel downtown/back their lodging.

There are lots of arrows.

All the while, Todd worked on the processional music and drafted up some programs. We were bustling. Today, we're emailing ideas about paper back and forth. There will be a trip to Paper Zone this evening.

Yes, it's a good day.

I Am Offended!

From The Seattle Times:

Aries (March 21-April 19): Today is a 7 -- You're doing something the hard way concerning record-keeping. It's too hard to find what you need. Get organized.

Excuse me? "Get organized"?

Just who do you think you're talking to, Ms. Universe?

Have you seen my Holy-Crap-I'm-Actually-Getting-Married spreadsheet (15 tabs!) and organizer?

I enter my receipts into Quicken at least once a week. And I have all of my blank birthday cards in their month appropriate pocket in coordination with the person I think they're good for. And our Google calendar color coordinated so that we can glance at it to see who is doing what that day (I am red, Todd is blue, Kayleigh is green and Tyler is tan). And my shoes (that aren't in storage) are still in their labeled, clear bins.

I am organized!!

Oh wait.

Are you talking about the wedding invitation I lost? Is that what you mean?

Well, I had to clean up my desk for the open houses and I put a bunch stuff "somewhere" so it would be out of the way, but still accessible, but now I can't find that pile of stuff and I finally had to email Jessica and ask where her wedding was again because I have "temporarily misplaced" the invite and this pains me more than you could ever, ever know.

She replied with, "Rae-rae! I am SHOCKED."

Sigh.

Rae-rae loses things now. It's very sad.
But, by gawd, I am still "organized"!

Weekend Update

It was a good weekend. Lots of social time, lots of house time and very low stress. I like weekends like that.

Friday night Todd and I hung out the Celtic Swell and decompressed and talked wedding stuff. We even had the waitresses helping. So how can that not be fun?

Saturday, we continued the wedding fun and visited the Sanctuary at Admiral again to get some measurements, look at the tables and arrangements and time the walk down the aisle. We figured out where the chairs would be, where the cake will be, where the jugglers will be.

Just kidding. There will be no jugglers. Sorry.

That afternoon, Todd finished up the new railing on the porch and I detailed the inside of Sportacus, his truck. He’s cleaner than Ruby now. I’m not happy with that. So guess what I’ll be doing this coming weekend?

That night, we traveled to Ballard to see Thornton Creek play at Egan’s. Egan’s is a great little venue with wonderful food and a homey, friendly vibe. We sat with a few of the Millers and visited throughout the show. I’m very lucky that Todd likes them as much as I do. And they seem to like him, too. I also saw some acquaintances I hadn’t seen in years, so I got to tell the whole I’m-getting-married! story again and introduce my fiancé. Who knew there was anyone left that I hadn’t gushed to?!

Sunday, the wedding fun continued as Kim and I went and bought her Best Lady dress. Then we just wandered around and oohed and ahhhed over all the frilliness. I told Kim, whenever I’m in bad mood, I’m just going to go to a bridal shop and hang out. You can’t help but smile when you see the little flower girls running around in their pretty dresses, or the young brides in the big, poofy gowns.

I told Todd a few days ago, I’m almost sad that the wedding is so near. I already miss the conversations about what color theme we should have and do we want a buffet or a family style dinner (family style. Definitely.) All of the decisions we had to make in the beginning and buying my first wedding magazines and ripping out pages of dresses that I liked.

Sigh.

He said I’ll get to experience it again when Kayleigh gets married. I keep asking her if she has a boyfriend yet, but she just rolls her eyes at me.

The rest of Sunday was spent doing some house cleaning, making some dinner and then watching the repeat of the first preseason Seahawks game that originally aired on Saturday but I missed it because I have completely lost my mind and can’t even keep track of when football starts. I hate myself. And now the Seahawks are going to suck this year because I wasn’t there at their very first kick off, in my Seahawks sweatshirt, with my Seahawks coasters, screaming for them to KICK SOME ASS.

Please forgive me, ‘Hawks. I just have a lot going on right now. What the hell was I thinking, planning a wedding during football season?! I promise to not miss any more games. Well, except September 27th’s because that’s my bridal shower and I don’t think football factors into my mother-in-law’s vision of wine and cupcakes and then on November 15th I’ll be drunk out of my gourd on a beach in Kauai, so unless I can find a battery powered TV, no can watch. I hope you guys understand.

Maybe the Seahawks don’t need me, because they beat the Chargers, 21 to 14. We sacked the Chargers’ QB 4 times and made 2 (or 3?) interceptions. That’s a pretty good start to the season.

And all of the games are now on the Google calendar. So, I have no excuse.

Sunday night, Todd and I tried to go bed early, but I got a wild hair to make a present for a friend and then we both laid down, but neither one of us really slept all night. Well, until 5:30 this morning.

Why is that? You lay awake all night, unable to sleep, tossing and turning. Then your alarm goes off, you hit snooze and BAM, you’re out like a light, dreaming and everything, and then you wake with a jolt and you’re late for work. When you should have just gotten up at 4am and gone on in early, rather than continuing to try to sleep, only to actually fall asleep right when you’re supposed to be getting out of bed.

Yes, you could say I’m a bit cranky today.

But my day is almost over, and it hasn’t been too terribly bad. So here’s hoping for a good 10 hours of sleep tonight. Gotta catch up.

Go ‘Hawks.

General Life Update

To answer the question that is on everyone’s mind – there are no new updates on the houses, the old or the new. We’re assuming the bank is still taking it’s sweet time approving our offer on the new one, and the old one hasn’t had a showing yet. But we are not deterred! Since our closing on the new house isn’t set until September 30th, we really don’t want the house to sell right away. Because then where would we live? If we get to September 15th and we still haven’t had any showings or offers, then I might panic. But it’s too soon for that.

Look at me, being all level headed and practical.

Todd’s stepdad was down last week, helping put up the new porch railing, when he came into the kitchen and said, “You know, you seem to be doing pretty well with everything that’s going on.”

I replied, “It’s the alcohol.”
Bob said, “Oh…that’ll do it…”

My therapist tells me I appear to be holding it together pretty well, too. I’m flattered. I really don’t FEEL that stressed – like crying at the drop of a hat, or screaming my head off for no reason stressed. I think my stress lives solely in my brain.

It’s hard to tell what’s natural and comes with aging, or what is simply losing my mind. For instance, I lost a credit card. Never in my life, even as an irresponsible 20 something, have I ever lost something so important. And now, I’ve lost a credit card. I lost Jessica’s wedding invitation. I moved a box of tissues when we were taking photos for the listing and could not for the life of me find them after the shoot (an hour later, I found them behind my dresser. Wha..?)

I forgot to shampoo my hair one morning. Went straight to the conditioner. Then couldn’t figure out why my hair was so greasy later that day. And sometimes, I have to ask what day it is.

Funny. These are also symptoms of perimenopause. Wonder if the hot flashes and night sweats are signs of stress, too?

My therapist suggests I take a little time each day, just for me, just to let my brain have some quiet time. I’ve told you about my Tom therapy. That helps. Being able to decompress and download to Todd helps, too. Just to get everything off my mind at the end of the day.

And I feel like we’re in a lull right now. We can’t actively do anything to sell the house (except clean. And build a railing, but that’s finished now.) or buy the other house. So I’m in hyper wedding mode.

I have contacted my friend who is making the wedding cake and there will be a meeting next week about the details. The invitations are done, but those don’t need to be mailed until September. I’ll probably contact the caterer in September as well, to finalize the menu and all that fun stuff. Todd and I have been compiling music and sketching out the itinerary for the ceremony, so that makes us feel productive.

And Kim and I are going dress shopping on Sunday!

Speaking of Kim, I thought of her when I saw this LOL cat.


She’s already married, though, so it shouldn’t come to this.

Random Thoughts

I started taking prenatal vitamins. I call them my baby pills. Which makes Todd laugh and cringe at the same time. No, I’m not trying to get pregnant. Although I have this secret fear that taking prenatal vitamins makes my body pregnant. Todd assures me that’s not how it works.

I just want my hair and nails to be healthy and pretty.

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I’m also using moisturizing body wash now, in order to make my skin silky smooth and hydrated. My Big Ass Wedding Book told me to. And I must listen to The Big Ass Wedding Book.

Although, I’m not a body wash kinda gal. I was raised on soap and a wash cloth. The loofa is weird and I can’t keep a hold of it. And it just doesn’t feel like it’s getting me clean, especially after this particularly hot and stinky week. But my skin is smoother, and Todd says I smell good, so I guess it’s okay.

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Speaking of the wedding, I had a dream last night that it was the wedding day but everything was off. Todd was watching me get into my gown and I was thinking, “He’s not supposed to see me yet!” And my hair was down, but pulled back a little (not at all what I had in mind) and I didn’t have earrings but I thought, “Oh well. Who will notice?” Ha! Not at all like me. Then I couldn’t find my Schedule Enforcer, Julie, and was thinking maybe she didn’t even show up, and the hair and make up gal wasn’t there, so I was trying to put on enough eyeliner to do that smoky thing.

But I also noticed my dress was a smidge looser. That made me happy.

Eventually, I realized everything was awry because we had moved the wedding up. By a couple of months. Then everyone started leaving, but they were walking across my very long train (unlike my dress) and I was gathering up it in my arms yelling, “THIS IS A THOUSAND DOLLAR DRESS, PEOPLE! GET OFF MY TRAIN! YOU GUYS SUCK!”

Weird, no?

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And one other wedding note, due to timing issues, the part of the Best Lady will now be played by Kim (aka Kim-n-Tim-Milo). Not to worry, Jamie and I are a-okay.

Kim, however, is very enthusiastic and has made the mistake of telling me she welcomes my barrage of wedding emails. So she may end up quitting before the big day. We’ll just see how much she really loves this stuff.

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General life update: our house hasn’t sold (dammit!), we still haven’t heard back from the bank regarding the new house, and things with the boy are calm and pleasant. I’ve seen Kayleigh for maybe two hours total since Sunday. She’s been at her friend’s and then at rehearsal until 11:00pm. Quite the flourishing butterfly she is.

And I’ve been having crackers or a bagel for breakfast, noodles for lunch and pasta for dinner for too many days in a row. I need some vegetables.

And it's darn near chilly today. Thank goodness.

Weekend Update

A brief recap of our long, holiday weekend.

Friday, I made the trek to Ballard for the much anticipated pedicure, followed by some errands and a trip to Goodwill. When in Ballard….

That afternoon, Todd and I met up with our real estate agent to look at a couple more houses, one of which may be just the break we’ve been looking for. But it’s too soon to talk it about or get our hopes up.

Unfortunately, our hopes are up because we spent a few hours at Home Depot on Saturday pricing stoves, refrigerators, cabinets, countertops, flooring, tile, front doors and other fun house stuff. There may be a spreadsheet. I’m not at liberty to say, really.

Sunday was the day to try on The Dress. I picked up Stephanie and Isabella and we headed off to I Do Bridal, where Jamie was waiting for us. There was much oohing and ahhing as The Dress fit P E R E C T L Y. I’ll need to have it hemmed up a couple of inches and have a bustle put on, but other than that…..like a glove. Despite being bloated! (I love my uterus!)

To celebrate The Dress fitting perfectly, we went out for crepes afterwards. I’m bettin’ that dress don’t fit so perfect anymore. Ack.

After crepes, I took Stephanie and Isabella home, and, so as not to tempt my fiancé, I hung my wedding dress in Stephanie’s closet. In my ex-boyfriend’s girlfriend’s closet. Stephanie likes to say we are so “new millennium”.

Back in January, Todd and I were talking about our wedding party and how we’re happy to only have two people standing up there with us. Todd rattled off the names of the men he could possibly have, if we were doing a large wedding party, and I rattled off three names, then hit a wall. I don’t have too many close girlfriends. But then Stephanie’s name popped into my head, so I looked at Todd and said, “How fantastic would it be to have Stephanie up there with me?!” Heads = exploding.

Anyway, the rest of Sunday was very domestic. Grocery shopping, cooking dinner, making s’mores, then doing a little more purging of some random boxes and filers. Just when I think we’re finished and have cleared out every box or bag of papers, we find another one. It’s job security, really. Keeps me busy.

And welcome to Monday.

When’s the next holiday? September?
Crap.

Giddy

MY WEDDING DRESS IS IN!!

A whole month early! So, I have an appointment on Sunday at the shop to try it on and make sure it's what I ordered. Jamie will accompany me.

And no, that's not a picture of my dress, silly.

Feel The Love

You may have noticed a new box over to the right of this screen, entitled “Wedding Registries”.

Tacky, you say?

Oh well, it’s my blog. And I know my friends and family will appreciate having these links at the cute little fingertips because I know they will lose these links as soon I give them out (because they asked, not because I’m greedy. But, come on, who really DOESN’T want prezzies? Hee).

So, by posting the registries here, at the center of my universe, friends, family, strangers, loyal readers I’ve never met, and stalkers will have the opportunity to feel the love and maybe feel compelled to help us afford (ahem..excuse me....ENJOY!) a honeymoon.

See? It’s a win-win situation for everyone.

Weekend Update

I barely have enough brainpower to form a coherent sentence, but I’d still like to give you an update. I just don’t have a personality right now. Therefore, I give you…..BULLETS.

* First, fantastic weekend weather. Blue skies. 75 degrees. Beautiful.

* Friday, my belated birthday dinner with Jamie. Volterra. Yummy poo.

* Saturday, cleaning and organizing with Stephanie. She warned me her garage was in bad, bad shape. But I scoffed at it’s “bad shape”. Todd’s bedroom was worse. And look at it now!

* Also, I clicked a very bad link in an email and now my computer is dead. Todd installed a anti-virus thingy (a bit late, I realize) and it found 22 viruses. And I can’t even open my email. He had a buddy come out today and it doesn’t look good. But he says it’s not hopeless. Just one more reason I’ve been non-existent. And stressed.

* Saturday evening, Val’s wedding reception. Knew three people. Looked at babies. Ovaries screamed, but not too loudly. They knew better. They know the work that lies ahead for those poor mothers.

* Sunday, just wanted to relax in the sunshine and read my wedding book. But got uber productive. Re-organized the shed with all of the yard tools and did a little weed whacking. Good stuff.

* Sunday evening, dinner at Ray’s. Our one year anniversary of dating. It was a lovely time.

* Monday, Star Trek at the Cinerama with the whole family, and Miles. Lunch afterwards at Red Robin on the waterfront.

* Side Note: The movie was pretty good. I don’t consider myself a trekkie by any means now, but the movie was okay. Very entertaining. I even got a few of the references.

* Monday night, a bit of conflict. Not too bad. But enough to make me stay home on Tuesday, and get some me time in that afternoon. Shopping. Semi-productive shopping, but shopping nonetheless.

And today, well, I’m here. That’s all I got for ya.
But I think about you. Really. Life is just so chaotic right now. Looking forward to some normalcy. If there is such a thing.

Uh oh.

What if this IS normal?

Oh, good gawd, we’re gonna need more wine.

We Love The Voodoo

So, after being awakened at 3:30am by a couple of kids on spring break, then realizing on my way to work that I forgot my wallet and when reaching for my cell phone to call TBFE to see if he could maybe meet me half way if I turn around to get said wallet, I realize I have forgotten my cell phone, it was a nice surprise to find a present on my desk.

One of my co-workers (not the cranky non-decorating one) gave me a wedding voodoo doll. I was touched.



And I’ve already stuck some pins in some appropriate places.
I feel much better.

But What If Chicken Isn’t In Season?!

This wedding stuff is funny business. TBFE and I seem to talk about it constantly. Not in a oh-gawd-we-have-nothing-else-to-talk-about kind of way, but in a we’re-so-excited-we-can’t-wait-nine-more-months kind of way. My mind is constantly thinking about details and the itinerary and the food, ah yum, the food!

So, last night we chatted for a bit about nothing in particular, then drifted off. Well, Todd drifted off. I laid with my head on his shoulder, my arm around his chest, and my eyes closed, and thought about the wedding.

And after about 10 minutes, I sat up and said, “What if we get the RSVP cards done before we’ve finalized the menu with the caterer and we put on there ‘choose chicken or veggie’ and then the caterer can’t do the chicken for some reason, but we already have the RSVP cards printed up?! Or what if we just decide to do a foo foo pasta instead of chicken at all but we already have the RSVP cards printed and they say CHICKEN?!”

Todd snorted awake, then sighed that sigh that I’m becoming very familiar with.

[In thick, sleepy talk]

“Raechelle. Why wouldn’t we have the chicken?”

“What if the chicken isn’t in season or something?!”

[Now realizing this freak out really doesn’t even warrant a response…..]

“Colonel-Sanders-in-Heaven, Rae-rae, the chicken will not be out of season. I could go into great detail about why the chicken will not be out of season, but I don’t think I need to do that, do I? There is no reason why we won’t have the two options… it will be fine to go ahead and print the RSVP cards before we finalize the menu….really….[deep breathe]…..it will be fine. Maybe we should just elope…..it’s not too late to go to Vegas……you like Elvis……”

[snore]

Hmph.
Well, okay fine. We’ll go ahead and print the RSVP cards. But if something happens and there is a sudden chicken crisis, I get to say I told ya so.

Weekend Update

My weekend started with a breakdown. I love that.

I just wasn't able to wake up the entire day, and then I sat in traffic for an hour (which is quite unusual), so when I got home, I just wanted to lay down. Just for a bit. But the Friday night schedule had changed and, while it really didn't affect my personal schedule, I still felt pressure to things I didn't want to do, even though Todd said I really didn't have to do anything and well, that made me cry.

It's funny how I don't think I'm stressed, but then the stupidest things make me snap and cry. Maybe I should just suck it up and admit it.

I am stressed.
There.

I have a lot going on in my little ol' bubble. It may not seem like a lot on a day to day basis, but step back and take a look at the whole picture.

I am stressed.

Luckily, the crying and the snapping was short lived, so I was better by the time we made our french bread pizzas and sat down to watch "W". It was really good. You know how when you watched "Walk the Line" you kind of forgot what Johnny Cash actually looked like because Joaquin did such a great job? Same thing here. Josh Brolin did an amazing George Bush. The movie is a bit too long, but all in all, a thumbs up.

And you have to wonder, does Bush really talk with his mouth full all the time?

Saturday, we headed to Eiffel Printing in Ballard to visit Todd's friend, Brittany (the owner), and talk wedding invitations. One hour later, we had a demo in our hands and order placed. Easy as pie. It really helps when the two people getting married tend to agree on just about everything from graphics to fonts to how sparkly the paper should be.

After that, a quick lunch at Blue C, which, in hindsight, was just dumb when your fiancé is allergic to shellfish. TBFE never actually ate any shellfish, but he had a cucumber roll and apparently there was cross contamination because that evening he got sick. Really sick.

We had plans to see ThorNton Creek play, but instead, we curled up in bed while the kids were at game, and watched The Black Swan, Todd's most favorite pirate movie ever. I left briefly to pick up Trish and Dan from the airport, as they were returning from their lovely Hawaiian vacation. I did not give them a hard time, but I did mention that it snowed here while they were gone. I'm sure they got my point.

Sunday, Todd was feeling better so he went off to coffee and I slept in until 10:00am. And thus, begins the most fantabulous day EVER. I cleaned and cleaned and then we shopped and then we came home and I cleaned some more, then I got a little manic at 6:30pm and decided to rearrange the downstairs/laundry area to tidy up and make room for Elvis' litter box and bowls. The litter box was in the kids' bathroom, but that made an already small room even smaller. So now the kids' have some more space and Elvis' has less privacy. He doesn't seem to mind.

I finally came down around 8:30pm. I poured another glass of wine and took a hot bath and dipped my hands in paraffin wax*, then curled up to watch Family Guy with my family guy and a big bowl of popcorn.

Then at 10:00, the kids got tucked in and Todd and I got tucked in and then [blog material censored by the author] and then out like a light. Whew.

**********

*So, you know how you say "I am never going to be like my mother/father!"

Well, yeah. Good luck with that.

It seems that I may have arthritis in my hands (and probably even my knees). My left thumb joint started aching when I was in West Virginia in January, but I thought I had just hit it or bent it the wrong way like I do because I'm a klutz. So, I didn't really think too much about it. Then, I got a pinch in my neck that ran down my right arm and literally prevented me from using my right hand for two days. I got a massage and thought that would fix the problem, but here we are two months later and both of my thumb joints ache like a bitch most of the time. I'm sure it doesn't help that I type and mouse as much as I do.

Mom has arthritis in her hands (and her spine and her neck and her arms), as do (did) my aunts and my uncle. So, looking at heredity, that's probably what I'm dealing with.

Mom had purchased a paraffin wax dipper years ago for her hands, but upgraded to a commercial grade/size model that would accommodate most of her forearm, so I got the little one. The thing is fantastic. I did two dips last night (you just dip, wait for the wax to cool, then slide it off) and my thumbs feel much better this morning. The only drawback is that this thing takes 2.5 hours to heat up, and even then there is still a ball of wax in the middle. I don't know what to do about that ball of wax. It just won't melt.

Anyway, you have to plan in advance.

So, we're at achy hands, cracking knees, bad eyesight and gray hair. Hard to believe I'm only going to be 34 next month.

*cough*April 14th*cough*

Ahem....