Smile!

Engagement photos have been taken! Chris and I woke up very early this morning, boarded a plan, and made our way up to Breckenridge once we picked up Nicole. Nicole was great today. She helped us to feel comfortable and we also had a great time. Nicole found some great backdrops for photos in Breckenridge. Chris was way more relaxed than I expected and was even up for making snow angels. After we left Breckenridge, we traveled up the Loveland Pass and took some photos on the Continental Divide. And boy was it cold! It was actually harder to breathe up there it was so high.

We now find ourselves in our hotel room, watching Psych, drinking martinis, and eating cookies. That's how lame we really are. Why go out and see what Boulder looks like when you can sit in your hotel room and veg?

Today, Chris really proved how much he loves me. He hates having his picture taken and he spent the whole day doing just that. And I think he did it well. He braved almost 4 hours of photo taking and smiled the whole time.

What a guy.

Estes Park Here We Come!

Chris and I leave for Colorado tomorrow morning. We are getting up at an ungodly hour to get to the airport and make our way west. First on our agenda? Engagement photos!! I am very excited. Nicole is taking us to Breckenridge for photos in the cute town and the mountains. I am hoping I have a cute enough/warm enough outfit. It is supposed to be snowing and I hope it is snowing just the right amount. Think of the great photos we could get. After our photo shoot, Chris and I will go to Boulder. That is going to be our home base for the weekend. Chris will be going skiing while I meet with the vendors.

Saturday Schedule:
10am Baker
11:30am Florist
2pm The Stanley

Sunday Schedule:
11am Wedding Coordinator

I am looking forward to meeting with them all and have lots of things to leave with them. My biggest challenge- Making sure I know where I am going since each is in a different town. Where is my Google Map...

Wish us luck!

Travel Days

I am so excited about this coming weekend. Chris and I are headed out to Colorado for our engagement photos. I am also meeting with the florist, the baker, the Stanley, and the coordinator for the day. Chris will be going skiing so we will both be happy. I don't think I could have gotten Chris to sit with me while I talked about flowers or cake.

My biggest dilemma about this weekend is what to wear for the photos. We are driving up to Breckenridge to take photos in the town and then we will head out and find some snow. The challenge- being cute AND being warm. I have some long underwear to wear and a new coat that should keep me warm. I plan on wearing jeans and having two pairs of shoes- one pair of heels and one pair of boots. But what to wear on top? Probably a sweater, but what if she wants some photos of us without our coats? Argh. I think we have Chris all figured out- jeans and a sweater and a new black coat. Now for me... Any ideas?

Bridesmaid Dresses

Somehow figuring out bridesmaid dresses has been the hardest part about this wedding planning. I want to choose a color that I like that the ladies will also like. I also want them to have a dress they actually like.

Some designers have beautiful dresses, but don't have the right color of blue. Some have the right color of blue...well, you get the idea.

If my ladies are reading this, I do really like the dress to the left. What do you think?

Chris and I are going to Estes Park in a week and a half. I can't wait. I'll be very busy as I am meeting with every vendor in 2 days. Chris gets to go skiing. But hey, I am getting him out there to take engagement photos so I am happy. Of course I wish I weighed at least 5 pounds less (as I eat a potato chip- ok no more of those). I had a dream the other night about the Stanley Hotel. It was paradise! The ocean on one side and mountains on the other with a really cool water park in front of the hotel. We'll see if it lives up to my expectations. I can't wait!

Different

So, Chris and I are discovering that we like to do things a little differently. He tends to want to throw money at a problem and I am a DIYer. Ah, the joys of almost being married. I have a friend who will remain unamed who once told me that when she was first living with her husband she wondered if she had made a terrible mistake. Secretly I wondered myself. Now I know. (Love you H)

Getting ready to spend the rest of my life with someone is quite a daunting task- especially after 14 years of living on my own. I want things done my way. Oh. And so does Chris. The trick is realizing that neither one of us is 'wrong'. We just do things a little differently. Learning to share space and share decision making is not so easy for me. Let's face it- I am right the majority of the time :)

Fat Frustration

Has this ever happened to you? You have a really important event coming up and you'd like to lose a few pounds. Nothing major- maybe about 10. Somehow you end up gaining 10 pounds and so now you have 15-20 to lose?

What's up with that?

I would guess that most brides try to lose weight for their wedding day. That's my plan anyways. But somehow my brain and body are working against me. I am gaining weight! I had thought this would be the easiest time of my life to stay on a diet and exercise more since I am getting married and I thought that would be a great motivator. I am finding the opposite to be true. I just want to eat. And then eat some more.

ARGH!

Every day I think, "OK, today is the day I am going to be super good and I will be super good from now on." And then I eat cookies. And the next day I think, "OK, today I am going to start my running again and I will run every other day." And then it is raining and I take the dog out for the quickest walk ever.

There must be a trick out there somewhere. There must be something I don't know.... Except I don't think there is. I know for a fact it is all about the math. Calories in VS Calories out. That's all that matters in this whole weight rollercoaster.

Calories in VS Calories out. Calories in VS Calories out. Calories in VS Carlories out
(my new mantra)

Piece of Cake

Wedding planning has been pretty easy so far. I've been able to find almost everything I need and I am comfortable with the choices I have made. I've mentioned the florist. The venue is going to be great. I just need to find a minister- well, I need him to call me back. Either way, I have been blessed with a fairly easy road so far.

Chris was away for the Christmas week and was on call all last week. Needless to say, we have not had as much time to spend together. Things should get back to normal this week and I am happy about that. One benefit to him being gone for a week proves the saying "Absence makes the heart grow fonder" to be completely true. He has been much more excited about the wedding. He's talking about us as being married and having kids. He's thinking about and planning for the future. I think he'll need to go away more often :)

I think what really happened was that the time away allowed him to realize and cherish how he feels when he is with me. We are so well suited for each other- we really get each other and are comfortable being ourselves around each other. I love that man.