With getting engaged in the last week of 2009, the beginning of 2010 started with a flood of wedding plans. I had always dreamed of my wedding, as many little girls do...so I had already thought of many ideas....most of which never came to pass, and many of which changed, over and over again throughout the planning. It was one of the most stressful times in my life...and yet one of the most fun. I was never much of a crafty person until the last couple of years, so my wedding planning really was a daily roller coaster of trial and error, success and disappointment. I had high hopes of having a DIY (do-it-yourself) wedding...to the max. I wanted to make literally everything in the wedding - decorations...bridesmaid dresses (with help)...food...etc. I tried to do too much...and when things started falling apart, I started falling apart...and I realized I couldn't do it all. I had to give up the dream of doing everything and admit that I needed help...that I couldn't make everything...that I had to buy some things...and give up some things all together. I wanted an outdoor wedding...simple, vintage, beautiful, and unique. I really wanted the ceremony to be in a garden, someone's back yard, or overlooking a bluff...have pictures in a field...and have a dance in a big tent...something to that effect. After much searching for the perfect location and realizing it didn't exist unless I went to California, we finally decided on The Florian Gardens...where I could have my outdoor garden wedding, but still have an indoor reception in case of inclement weather. Considering that I don't really remember much of what I did before the wedding other than planning, and working at the College and Winery...you can imagine how much I could go on and on about the wedding planning - because it is all I did from the time I got off work, to the time I went to bed...every night. It was ridiculous. But, overall, the important thing is that we got married - and that's what I had to keep telling myself all along to get through it. If I could go back, I would do a lot of things differently...and not stress as much....but overall I'm glad I did as much as I could....I designed the "save the date" cards and invitations, made the bridesmaids hair pieces, made goodie bags for the guests in the hotels with wine we made at the winery I worked at, etc....and it was a great day and everything worked out. :) It did rain all day so we couldn't get all the pictures I wanted to outside, but the sky cleared for 30 minutes so we could at least have the ceremony outdoors!
Well that takes care of the year up to August 13th! Haha. We did go camping up north in June with Ryan's parents and spent the week on Lake Superior at a beautiful campground...so that was my one vacation and break from wedding planning. :) And also, quite a few of our really good friends got married last summer as well...so we got to see them go through it first and get ideas for our own wedding!
The couple weeks before the wedding were busy enough, but on top of that we had a garage sale (made $500! woohoo!), both had to move out of our separate houses, pack up, and travel across the state to move into our apartment in Appleton. That was a ton of work, but it was so worth it because when we got home from the wedding to our new place, we literally walked in to a completely unpacked and moved in apartment - ready to live in...which was so nice!
Our honeymoon/road trip to North Carolina was wonderful...a long drive but once we got there it was relaxing. We did some hiking, climbed to the top of the mountain, and ate the best southern ribs I've ever had. :)
The next couple months were spent settling in to a new city and new home with a new husband! It was nice, but I was looking for a job and not having one was stressful...so I couldn't ever fully enjoy the time off. But it gave us the chance to spend time together and I took a couple trips to visit friends and family, which I normally would not have been able to do.
In October, I got hired at Globe University and started training in Woodbury, MN for three weeks. Being away from home for that time was rough, but it helped to be there with some great new friends...and coming back home to actually start the job was even harder...but I've learned a lot and it's gotten better...each day is a new day.
As I go into 2011....I hope that I can focus on the important things....here are my goals:
- To have a happy home full of love
- To cherish moments with family and friends
- To cook delicious meals and challenge my cooking abilities to stretch beyond "the usual"
- To only buy what I need
- To exercise...more than once every three months :) (the new Wii Fit will hopefully help with this!)
- To stay positive at work and be an encouragement to those I work with
...and much more....
Happy New Year!!
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