So...

I'm married!

I went to Mexico for a week and didn't pay for anything except batteries and aloe vera gel.

I live in St. Louis.

I'm temporarily unemployed.

I entered a writing contest today.

I'm doing NaNoWriMo this year, alongside Katie, Joey, Steph & Val.

I have Netflix... but not regular television.

I painted 3 rooms in my house last week.

The power is out in my scary basement, and it's pouring outside so I can't do laundry.

But I have a fireplace!

And a wonderful husband.

And a great church.

And a few possibilities for new work.

And last night I made claws for my husband out of cardboard, duct tape and aluminum foil.

You can't wait to see pictures. :)

6 Days...

Ohhhhh I'm gonna miss Grace Chapel. Next to my roommates and just above my co-workers, Grace Chapel is the thing I will miss the most about Nashville. The passionate, loud worship, the joyful giving, the solid teaching of truth, the community of God taking care of one another, my sweet sweet pastor and his wife and their family... I feel so privileged to have been a part of this congregation, even if only for a moment.

This morning was my last Sunday. I enjoyed every bit of it, from the powerful worship to the precious prayer at the end with my roommates. It was a perfect way to begin the day.

Holly's been in town rehearsing for her Bermuda industrial show, so we (me y roommates) got to eat lunch with her today at Miss Saigon. Yum! After a quick Target run, I made my way back to the house and proceeded to clean out the kitchen and reorganize the mass of unclaimed crap that is eating two corners of our living room. I helped Kish move some stuff to her apartment and then we sat down and made a list of EVERY thing that has to be accomplished in the next 6 days. It was really frustrating. But freeing too. I feel like my mind is lighter, though my paper is heavier. But... it'll all come together, I'm sure.

I came home to unwind for a bit. I nibbled at some overcooked mini sirloin burgers and wheat thins while I watched the best episode of Glee I have seen so far. I'm so sad I couldn't make my musical tv comedy work first!!! it's okay though... at least now I know there's a market and an audience.

20 minutes ago, I was unloading the dishwasher and rearranging coffee cups while I talked to Todd. But then we realized it was almost 2am... and now its after that! I gotta go.

It'll all be over soon... right? :)

ONE WEEK FROM TODAY...

Yesterday I woke up at 8:00. I immediately got sucked into my wedding to do list, and therefore accomplished quite a bit before 10:30am. Felt good. Sold my last piece of craigslist furniture too. I was down to the black nightstand... but I got two hits on it yesterday morning and was so eager to have it gone, I delivered it to the first person who offered me $20.Yesterday was also my last day of work at Saffire. Extremely memorable. I've participated in far too many "farewells" for it not to have been. I was a little surprised at everyone who got in on it though! Impressive. They managed to find my car, even though it has Texas plates and I parked it at the studio instead of the restaurant. They stole my keys, drove it over and then proceeded to drench in it chocolate syrup, bleu cheese biscuits, flour and toilet paper.

The back of the car says "Bye Bye Now" which is one of our bartenders most beloved catchphrases. Excellent job kids. :)

I made Vinny come with me to the car wash across the street and I hosed it all off so I could drive home safely. But at the end of the night, when i thought surely it was all over and they were tired of cleaning things up... Vinny smashed an entire pastry bag of whip cream into my face. It went in my nose. INSIDE my nose.

I felt loved. :) It was a good day. I'm gonna miss that place. :)

8 days...

I've realized that these blogs on the days leading up to my wedding are more for me than the blogosphere, so thank you for enduring them on your Reader or RSS Feed or whatever...

So we're 8 days out now...

For me, today was all about the bigness-- the magnitude of what's about to happen. The idea that I'm about to take part in this ritual, this tradition, this grand, timeless procession that billions of people have recreated in a billion different ways for ages and ages... the fact that I'll soon be adding to their numbers is not small potatoes to me. This event is not just for show; it's not just a schpiel of pretty liturgy to spout off and make things official... This is epic. This is forever! I mean for me-- for us-- it is. This is a really huge deal. Its the second biggest decision of my entire life; a decision that will shape the rest of my life, and has already reshaped it in many ways.

And I'm so excited. :)

I can't believe it. I can't believe that this thing I've dreamed and wondered about and longed for since I was about 6 years old is about to become a very raw and uncensored reality. I've realized over the past 9 months that this relationship, in every facet, is exactly what I want-- but in many ways, entirely different than what I expected. Yet no part of me is disappointed. I think I'm more shocked by how beautiful this entire journey with Todd has been, and that even after all my daydreaming, I never thought to imagine it this way.

I'm so grateful that God knows me better than I know myself, knows what I want and NEED even more than I do. I'm so glad he wouldn't let me stay comfortable in a place I didn't belong, with a person I didn't belong to. I'm so grateful, for ALL the heartbreak, really. Because without it, I'd still be there. In one of those places. Without Todd.

I'd have missed out on SO much.

9 Days...

This is the story of a girl...

Who spent the entire day emailing and texting and calling and facebooking about loose ends concerning her wedding. Then she did laundry and changed her mind/was forced to rethink about a million wedding details... like the music... the food... and the venue for the rehearsal dinner. At work, she ate some pasta and some shards of key lime pie and a lot of butterfly crackers and watched in disbelief as only 8 tables were sat in the restaurant the entire night. She came home to an even emptier house (now minus one roommate), watched LOST, took out the trash, ate a Reese's peanut butter cup and talked to her fiance until he fell asleep, exhausted from working 8 hours and then moving her furniture all over their house.

After a 2am shower, i'm calling it a day. And praying I have a few more things nailed down in the morning.

10 Days To Go...

The goal today was to get my stuff outta this apartment. And it (mostly) happened. All of my furniture is gone; my sweet fiance drove 6 hours in a box truck with his Dad down to load up all my stuff, and then drove BACK 6 hours, on the same night. THEN they unloaded everything, up 2 flights of stairs!

Such a sweet man.

I also picked up my wedding dress today. It looks amazing! You'd never guess we bought it as a sixe 10, Joy is a miracle worker. I think I probably shouldn't eat anything before i try to put it on...

I also sold my bookshelf on craiglists today. Nice to have an extra twenty bucks to put towards catering...

And I'm sleeping on an air mattress tonight. Well, for the next 7 days. And it's calling my name...