It's summer, we're more than halfway into summer break. It's kind of boring. I have had a summer job from age 14 until this summer so I haven't had this much free time in quite some time. I'm not sure that I enjoy it. It has been nice for getting "the bones" of the wedding planned, but it doesn't take a whole summer to plan what you need to plan for a wedding a year from now. I'm not planning on talking about that much here, though, there's a whole other blog for that. Check it out: I Love You More Than Starbucks
I wouldn't necessarily say I'm ready to go back to work, but I think summer better end somewhat soon or I might not ever go back. Can you say no motivation? Joel is going to Scotland next week to coach in the International Children's Games (ICG). I kind of hope I can get involved and start traveling with them in the next few years, it's such a great organization. While he's gone, I plan on pulling a While You Were Out ... our bedroom needs a serious makeover. We chose a bedroom set together to put on our registry, so I know that he'll like it, it's just a matter of buying it and painting. Excited! After that, we'll have three rooms made over.
He also just finished fencing in the backyard yesterday so we can let the dogs run free. They love it! The house is definitely coming along, which is good since Joel moved in last August and the people that lived here before either left things as they originally were, aka, builder's-grade white paint or, they tried to DIY things and did a very poor job at it, aka, a fence along either side of the backyard but not a completely fenced in yard. It's kind of nice to be able to make it our own, but not when we have to fix all their crap before we do.
That's all for now, check out our new wedding blog!
-E
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Sunday, April 24, 2011
He put a ring on it
So, I'm engaged. Let's talk about how it happened.
Joel had pretty much been talking about going on a trip to Las Vegas since our second date. I laughed it off for a while -- who the heck starts talking about going on vacation with someone they've just barely started dating?? But somewhere along the way, the idea came to fruition and when our tax refunds came along, we booked a spring break trip to Vegas, along with two Cirque shows. He had been several times and I was excited to go on a trip with my own built-in tour guide.
I will admit that I picked out the ring and knew it had been purchased but wasn't expecting a proposal on this trip. Our coworkers teased us mercilessly about going to Vegas just to elope and we laughed them off, but we pointed out every wedding chapel in Vegas to each other, talking about the jokes we could play by taking pictures in front of them. When I posted a picture of me wearing a simple white dress on Facebook, I got the comment about wearing a white dress... it would have been a fun prank, although it's way past April Fool's Day now.
We were there from Monday - Friday and on Wednesday we had spent the day walking around, doing some window shopping, etc. and we'd come back in the afternoon to get ready for dinner and to go to the Cirque show "O" at the Bellagio. I promptly fell asleep and little did I know that Joel took this opportunity to call my parents and ask permission to ask me to marry him. He wanted to ask before we left for the trip but he never really got the chance to talk to my parents without my being there. It's probably a good thing because my mom would have been DYING if he had asked several days before, she already went crazy trying to keep that secret for the couple of hours that she had to.
After he woke me up and we got spiffied up (I just thought we were looking nice to go to the show!!), we headed to Margaritaville for the second night in row. He says he was worried about the time that it was taking us to get our dinner and get out of there, but he certainly didn't appear nervous or anything. Once we finished at dinner, we headed to the Bellagio and to see the fountain show as we had plenty of time before "O" was to begin at 10. We found a good spot and watched a fountain show and stood around and talked. After the second fountain show ... there's about 15 minutes between each show, he turned to me and said, "I think I have a way to make this night even better." I'm pretty sure he said some other things but the next thing I knew, he was down on his knee opening the ring box. My reply was basically, "Are you going to put the ring on or are you going to make me??" That's when he pointed out that I hadn't said yes yet. I told him yes and he put the ring on my finger and I pulled him up and promptly started smiling and crying like an idiot. I didn't get too long before he had to make sure that I called my parents since it was nearly midnight back home by that point. I was also able to get in touch with my brother since it was spring break and so teacher bed time was not in effect.
The only hard part was that it was late and a week night so that was pretty much the extent of who we could tell that night. The next morning Joel's friends started calling at about 6:30. We tried to go back to sleep, telling each other that we'd call them once we woke up. Well... I was way too excited and insisted that we start calling people. It was 10 AM at home, it was totally legit!
By that afternoon, my mom decided she had enough of not telling the Facebook world so she called her sister to tell her so she wouldn't find out via Facebook and we went on our merry Facebook-official way. So excited to start planning!!!
Joel had pretty much been talking about going on a trip to Las Vegas since our second date. I laughed it off for a while -- who the heck starts talking about going on vacation with someone they've just barely started dating?? But somewhere along the way, the idea came to fruition and when our tax refunds came along, we booked a spring break trip to Vegas, along with two Cirque shows. He had been several times and I was excited to go on a trip with my own built-in tour guide.
I will admit that I picked out the ring and knew it had been purchased but wasn't expecting a proposal on this trip. Our coworkers teased us mercilessly about going to Vegas just to elope and we laughed them off, but we pointed out every wedding chapel in Vegas to each other, talking about the jokes we could play by taking pictures in front of them. When I posted a picture of me wearing a simple white dress on Facebook, I got the comment about wearing a white dress... it would have been a fun prank, although it's way past April Fool's Day now.
We were there from Monday - Friday and on Wednesday we had spent the day walking around, doing some window shopping, etc. and we'd come back in the afternoon to get ready for dinner and to go to the Cirque show "O" at the Bellagio. I promptly fell asleep and little did I know that Joel took this opportunity to call my parents and ask permission to ask me to marry him. He wanted to ask before we left for the trip but he never really got the chance to talk to my parents without my being there. It's probably a good thing because my mom would have been DYING if he had asked several days before, she already went crazy trying to keep that secret for the couple of hours that she had to.
After he woke me up and we got spiffied up (I just thought we were looking nice to go to the show!!), we headed to Margaritaville for the second night in row. He says he was worried about the time that it was taking us to get our dinner and get out of there, but he certainly didn't appear nervous or anything. Once we finished at dinner, we headed to the Bellagio and to see the fountain show as we had plenty of time before "O" was to begin at 10. We found a good spot and watched a fountain show and stood around and talked. After the second fountain show ... there's about 15 minutes between each show, he turned to me and said, "I think I have a way to make this night even better." I'm pretty sure he said some other things but the next thing I knew, he was down on his knee opening the ring box. My reply was basically, "Are you going to put the ring on or are you going to make me??" That's when he pointed out that I hadn't said yes yet. I told him yes and he put the ring on my finger and I pulled him up and promptly started smiling and crying like an idiot. I didn't get too long before he had to make sure that I called my parents since it was nearly midnight back home by that point. I was also able to get in touch with my brother since it was spring break and so teacher bed time was not in effect.
The only hard part was that it was late and a week night so that was pretty much the extent of who we could tell that night. The next morning Joel's friends started calling at about 6:30. We tried to go back to sleep, telling each other that we'd call them once we woke up. Well... I was way too excited and insisted that we start calling people. It was 10 AM at home, it was totally legit!
By that afternoon, my mom decided she had enough of not telling the Facebook world so she called her sister to tell her so she wouldn't find out via Facebook and we went on our merry Facebook-official way. So excited to start planning!!!
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Meme?? Am I back in 8th grade??
I'm really not feeling well and totally avoiding grading papers, sooo...
A. Age: 25.
B. Bed size: Queen.
C. Chore you hate: DISHES!
D. Dogs: 2 - Nico is a Scottie/Lab mix and Trina is a Husky/ Shepard mix. Oh, we have such cute mutts :)
E. Essential start to your day: If I could just skip straight from wake-up to after I've consumed caffeine. Basically being left alone is the essential start to the day.
F. Favorite Color: Dark purple
G. Gold or silver: silver
H. Height: 5' 9''
I. Instruments you play: I probably COULD play the clarinet still, ya know if some twisted criminal held a gun to my head. Hey, never know when a music-loving criminal will come along.
J. Job title: Science teacher
K. Kids: Someday. Not any time soon.
L. Live: I'm between places at the moment. Haha. I'm in the 'burbs of Richmond, VA
M. Mom's name: Debbie
N. Nicknames: I seem to be called "babe" a lot lately, but only by one person thankfully.
O. Overnight hospital stays: Just at birth
P. Pet peeve: Students who think they should be given better grades without doing the work!
Q. Quote from a movie: "What we need is some rope." -Boondock Saints
R. Right or left handed: Right.
S. Siblings: One, brother, Matt
T. Time you wake up: 6. Reluctantly every morning.
U. Underwear: Lots?
V. Vegetables you dislike: cooked carrots. I love raw carrots.
W. What makes you run late: thinking I have time for a Starbucks run :)
X. X-rays you've had: umm...I'm Dr. House's dream and an insurance company's nightmare. I can't even keep track.
Y. Yummy food you make: Not to toot my own horn, but *toot toot!* I'm a pretty good cook at just about anything. I think I'd say my chocolate chip cookies are the best, though. I've been told that they're almost better than sex.
Z. Zoo animal: Giraffes, monkeys, flamingos, etc. I kind of love the zoo in general.
A. Age: 25.
B. Bed size: Queen.
C. Chore you hate: DISHES!
D. Dogs: 2 - Nico is a Scottie/Lab mix and Trina is a Husky/ Shepard mix. Oh, we have such cute mutts :)
E. Essential start to your day: If I could just skip straight from wake-up to after I've consumed caffeine. Basically being left alone is the essential start to the day.
F. Favorite Color: Dark purple
G. Gold or silver: silver
H. Height: 5' 9''
I. Instruments you play: I probably COULD play the clarinet still, ya know if some twisted criminal held a gun to my head. Hey, never know when a music-loving criminal will come along.
J. Job title: Science teacher
K. Kids: Someday. Not any time soon.
L. Live: I'm between places at the moment. Haha. I'm in the 'burbs of Richmond, VA
M. Mom's name: Debbie
N. Nicknames: I seem to be called "babe" a lot lately, but only by one person thankfully.
O. Overnight hospital stays: Just at birth
P. Pet peeve: Students who think they should be given better grades without doing the work!
Q. Quote from a movie: "What we need is some rope." -Boondock Saints
R. Right or left handed: Right.
S. Siblings: One, brother, Matt
T. Time you wake up: 6. Reluctantly every morning.
U. Underwear: Lots?
V. Vegetables you dislike: cooked carrots. I love raw carrots.
W. What makes you run late: thinking I have time for a Starbucks run :)
X. X-rays you've had: umm...I'm Dr. House's dream and an insurance company's nightmare. I can't even keep track.
Y. Yummy food you make: Not to toot my own horn, but *toot toot!* I'm a pretty good cook at just about anything. I think I'd say my chocolate chip cookies are the best, though. I've been told that they're almost better than sex.
Z. Zoo animal: Giraffes, monkeys, flamingos, etc. I kind of love the zoo in general.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Cha cha cha cha changes!!
Sorry to disappoint anyone who enjoyed reading my Adentures in Dating post. This girl is off the market! I swore I wouldn't move anytime soon, but then I met boy, fell in love with boy, and now we've decided to break my lease and move in together at his house. This year (as in since graduating last May) continues to be the year where I realize "holy crap, I AM a grown-up!! :)
In not quite as exciting, but still something I'm looking forward to news, I finally found a Master's swim team to join. When I first moved here, I looked for one and there just wasn't one to be found that would work with my schedule... most have early morning practice but not early enough when school starts at 7:30 AM. Well, there's another club starting a team and it's going to work out perfectly!
So, that's my life. Oh, and I had my gallbladder removed in February and now I'm all better!!!
In not quite as exciting, but still something I'm looking forward to news, I finally found a Master's swim team to join. When I first moved here, I looked for one and there just wasn't one to be found that would work with my schedule... most have early morning practice but not early enough when school starts at 7:30 AM. Well, there's another club starting a team and it's going to work out perfectly!
So, that's my life. Oh, and I had my gallbladder removed in February and now I'm all better!!!
Thursday, February 17, 2011
30 for 30
I decided after following this awesome blog! to become a remixer and do a 30 for 30 Challenge. Well -- I was supposed to, and did, start on February 1st. But in the meantime, I FINALLY found out what was plaguing me for the past three months and causing mondo pain -- hello gallbladder. So, for the past week I've been wearing yoga pants and tanks since I had surgery last Friday. I figure I'll use February as practice. No, it won't count as a full 30 days, but I did actually only choose from the 30 pieces I was allowed during the first 10 days of February. I didn't even use them all! :)
I'll have to try again the next time Kendi announces it time for a 30 for 30 challenge.
In other news -- say a little silent "thank you" to every teacher who ever had to make sub plans. I know it was annoying in school to have substitute days where you had to do busy work, it's hard to know what sub you're going to get and whether they can actually teach or not (I'm talking to you, Tiff, I KNOW you can teach, but we can't always pick our subs!!!!). Luckily, since I had to be out for a full week, one of the lovely secretaries made sure to get me a retired science teacher to sub for me. Don't get me wrong, I'm EXTREMELY thankful that she could continue teaching for a week. I found out just how hard it is to right sub plans for a week and I never, ever want to do it again. Not to mention I used all my sick days this year and some of my days are unpaid. Anyway -- the fact that I can't wait to get back makes me feel like I'm in the right career. At least for now. I don't know if I'm one of those lifers, but I also can't imagine what else would make me this happy. And my coworkers are pretty incredible people. They've kept me fed this whole week and I have yet another coworker bringing me dinner today. Yay! They all care so much, it's incredible to me, especially since I've only been there five months. It helps that my PE teacher is part of that incredible staff :) -- he played delivery man on Monday when my team got a ton of stuff together to bring me for dinner. The end? Look, I'm not a writer and I don't have a conclusion, I just felt like rambling.
I'll have to try again the next time Kendi announces it time for a 30 for 30 challenge.
In other news -- say a little silent "thank you" to every teacher who ever had to make sub plans. I know it was annoying in school to have substitute days where you had to do busy work, it's hard to know what sub you're going to get and whether they can actually teach or not (I'm talking to you, Tiff, I KNOW you can teach, but we can't always pick our subs!!!!). Luckily, since I had to be out for a full week, one of the lovely secretaries made sure to get me a retired science teacher to sub for me. Don't get me wrong, I'm EXTREMELY thankful that she could continue teaching for a week. I found out just how hard it is to right sub plans for a week and I never, ever want to do it again. Not to mention I used all my sick days this year and some of my days are unpaid. Anyway -- the fact that I can't wait to get back makes me feel like I'm in the right career. At least for now. I don't know if I'm one of those lifers, but I also can't imagine what else would make me this happy. And my coworkers are pretty incredible people. They've kept me fed this whole week and I have yet another coworker bringing me dinner today. Yay! They all care so much, it's incredible to me, especially since I've only been there five months. It helps that my PE teacher is part of that incredible staff :) -- he played delivery man on Monday when my team got a ton of stuff together to bring me for dinner. The end? Look, I'm not a writer and I don't have a conclusion, I just felt like rambling.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)