Bridal Shower

My mom, aunts, grandma, sister, best friend, and cousins
put on the world's best bridal shower.  True, I'm biased- but if you were there you'd probably agree with me.  The theme was a dream come true for me- a bookish British tea!  I wish we could always leave the house decorated as it was.

 The flowers were amazing and the desserts and food were perfect!  A lot of friends and family came, which made it fun.  We ate, I opened gifts, and we talked about Roy and told mushy stories etc.
Thank you so much to everyone who helped with the shower.  (Like these ladies here)

And thanks to everyone who came too!  It was beyond what I ever hoped for! 

Check Your Mailbox

Sending out invitations really wasn't as simple as I expected.

Good thing I have an amazing mom, sister, foreign exchange student sister, best friend, grandmother, and aunts and cousins to get me through!  Thanks so much guys, I would still be tying ribbons right now if it weren't for you!!!

At first I thought it would be cool to use a wax seal for some of the invitations.  I've been going with an antique theme for this wedding, and, as far as mail goes, there is nothing more antique than a wax seal.

But after I sat there for three minutes with a lit candle, slowly dripping melted wax onto the envelope while trying not to burn myself... I realized this was a bad idea.  So two lucky invitees will get seals.  The winners should get a prize.

My Heart is Fonder Already...

Whoever said, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder" left something out.  It also drives you insane.

The past seven weeks without Roy seemed the  l o n g e s t  of all our tragic separations.  I've counted, and by the time we seal the deal we will have been dating long distance for almost the exact same amount of time that we've been dating in person.                                                                        

But every single time we meet again after weeks of being apart, I seem to forget how to talk.  The moment is just too good for words.  I look forward to that next moment, which will be the week of our wedding.  Insane... yes.

!The Bachelorette Party!

Of course, I'm not going to give away too much about this little party.  Let's just say it was exciting, hilarious, and completely humiliating all at once.  Here's an exclusive sneak peek!

Thanks to the girls who hosted the best bachelorette party EVER!

Teton Dam Marathon

I did it!

13.10938 miles in 2 hours and 12 minutes!

It was a perfect day for a run: overcast with a slight breeze.  Roy started out the race with me.  He ran by my side for probably almost 2 miles and then ran back.  Lucky him, he’d ducked out before we hit the never-ending steep hills.  These hills are what qualify this race as a relatively tough marathon.

I listened to my audio book and kept moving, although I lost considerable speed once I felt I was at a 90-degree angle.  Alicia is an experienced runner, and she gave me some advice before the race and made sure we ate pasta and got plenty of rest the night before.  One piece of advice was to take at least one gulp of water at every station.  I did, but I also splashed it all over myself since I didn’t want to stop running.  I should have asked her what the trick to that was.  Of course, she was running the full marathon like a champ.  I’m definitely not there yet. 

My favorite part of the race was at one of the few downhill segments.  There was nothing but quiet and green fields on either side of me when suddenly a car crammed with people honked at me.  Hanging out of the open windows were Roy, Lynn, Sydney, Alli, and Skylar!  I think I had eight or nine miles behind me at this point, but still a lot to go.  So I kept moving when they all leaped out of the car and jogged beside me.  For the next few minutes I got encouragement and good laughs.  Roy kept telling me how proud he was, and they updated me on Alicia and the rest of the race.  Skylar drove the car back up and they all jumped in, leaving me alone with my audio book again.  But now I felt refreshed and couldn’t help but smile.  Two teenage girls that had been running behind me told me that I had “awesome friends” to come out and find me like that.  They’re right.

And they were all there at the finish line too. When I rounded the final corner I was met with a street completely covered in cheering bodies.  A lot of them were LDS missionaries that had their black name tags clipped onto their "Dam Volunteer" shirts.  I didn't expect that at all!  But even other volunteers and people I didn't know were cheering me to the finish.  Crossing went by in a blur.  Suddenly all my friends were around me and hugging me.  Somehow a bottle of water was in my hand and a metal was around my neck.  Then Roy's Mom, RaLyn, and Leah were there- then they were gone- then pictures... maybe it seemed so fast motion because my heart was still pounding so fast while my body was at a standstill for the first time in more than two hours.  

The really emotional part was when Alicia made it across the finish line after running over 26 miles.  Group hugs all around!  I never realized how fulfilling something as simple as running could be.  I loved it!  I love how supportive my friends are.

And my fiancé too!

 By the way, not long after I started my race, Dennis began his 10-K with his brother Mark and his daughter Leah.  Mark is an experienced runner and ran with his bro to coach him through the race.  You gotta hand it to Dennis, a 10-K is ambitious for anyone but especially for someone with his knees!  Even MY knees killed me by the end of the day.  This is what became of us...

 

Wedding Prep Travel

Most people plan their weddings in a relatively specific area of the world.  Not me.
I've got my amazing mom, aunts, and grandma as my wedding planners in Tucson, I've got Roy's family and friends putting everything together for us in Newport, our photographer is in Salt Lake City, and my bridesmaids are spread between Tucson and Rexburg.

It's tough work, and I couldn't do it without Lynn- one of my Maids of Honor.

 She flew with me to Salt Lake, where I had my dress altered and my bridals done.  All the while she was supplying me with chap stick and helping me transport that giant pouffy dress around.  When I was down on energy she bought me strawberry milk and pop tarts to keep me going.  This girl kept me grounded and on schedule throughout our crazy week of wedding prep travel.
Luckily, Lynn had some help throughout the week.  Our first night we stayed in Provo with some of my favorite girls: Sarah and Cassidy, my roommates from last winter.  Sarah picked us up from the airport and drove us around to our appointments before taking us home and feeding us dinner.  What a doll!
The next day the four of us went back to Salt Lake to our photographer's studio.  We took both indoor and outdoor shots in my dress.  Thanks to Roy's sister- Leah- my hair, makeup, and toes looked flawless.  I wish I could put up pictures because I think she did such a great job and Brandon took such amazing pictures!  But I don't want to spoil the surprise or bring on any bad luck.
 Sitting in the car in my dress to get from the studio to the outdoor location was the funniest.  I will have to put up that picture someday.  I felt like I was nestled in a giant cotton ball.  In order to see anything I had to peep over the edge of my skirts.  But when we got to the place where we were to do the outdoor shots the sky looked foreboding.  The material my dress is made of does not tolerate water.  Even a drop would leave a stain. 
The girls jumped right in.  Sarah was ready with a giant umbrella, Lynn got me in and out of my heels when needed, and Cassidy carried everything handed to her- sometimes this included my skirts.  How awesome are they?  It was so fun to have them there!  They kept me laughing and kept the stress levels down.
We found shelter, just before the rain really started falling, in an LDS church which happened to be hosting a Red Cross Blood Drive.  Awkward!  I got a few disapproving glances as I scampered down the hallways in all my white fluffy glory.
Lynn and I left that night for Rexburg from Salt Lake.  I couldn't stand an extra second away from the boy.  Cassidy lent us her car for the weekend, which was ridiculously generous of her.  I became kind of attached to it too!  But I was sad that the girls couldn't just come with.  They're the best.
The other girls in Rexburg stayed up until 12:30 just for our arrival.  We all quietly screamed in the excitement of finally being together again.  Lynn met Brittany and Alicia for the first time, but has met Sydney before.  The girls were letting us stay with them for the weekend, managing to find space for us to sleep and everything.  They barely had time to comment on my hair (which looked so good they'd thought it was fake) before I was having them help me take it down.  I knew Roy was on his way and I don't want him to even know what my hair will look like on the big day.  I love surprises!!!
Hyper-sensitively, I heard the creaking of weight on the stairs outside and made for the door just when Mom was calling.  I answered, but then shrieked and hung up on her when I saw Roy outside.  Then there was that totally intoxicating moment when I got to see Roy for the first time in weeks.  You know, when you feel lightheaded and giddy and forget how to talk and you just want to hug each other forever.  And then...
Mom called again.
UGH- I didn't want to ignore her because the way I'd screamed and then hung up probably sounded like I was getting mugged.  So I answered and held the phone while she talked about how the seamstress should have steamed my dress and lots of other wedding matters which just melted away somewhere between the phone and my ear.  The only thing I was focused on was the fact that Roy and I were together in the flesh!
But don't worry Mom, I grasped some of the information I think.
The rest of the week was bliss: hiking,

 Mesa Falls,

Paying a $5 fee in pennies and nickles and shoving it into a narrow slot

Only to discover afterward...

hanging out with Roy's family and having a barbecue,  (they came down for the marathon)
- all with Roy!  And Lynn!  Haha!  Poor Lynn did a really great job of putting up with us.  She even went wedding band shopping with us.

In my next posts I will go into more detail about two fun Rexburg events: the Teton Dam Marathon and the bachelorette party.  The entire week was so much fun.  Perfect, even.  Thank you to everyone that made it that way!