My Best Friend’s Wedding

My blog is my sorta-kinda diary. I love the ole pen and paper, but if I’m to be honest, I don’t break it out much anymore. I save those writing fits for when I’ve something really juicy to say. My blog gets some good material, too. It serves as my memory complete with pictures so that I’m careful not to forget what I want to preserve.

Unfortunately, I never got around to blogging about the wedding of my dear friend, Miranda.

This is likely because I didn’t get to go. My best friend was wed in Greece in September. I made plans to attend until I found out I was pregnant with Baby K. Then I knew that it was just a pipe dream. Who could leave a one month old, afterall?

Nonetheless, this is something I want to have documented. She made the most beautiful bride!

Congratulations Miranda and Christophorus!

I wish I could have been there. I would have loved to dance at your wedding, explore Greece, and tell Chris and the rest of the guests how we accidently cuddled one time! Kidding.

I’m so proud to call you a friend, my dear. You’ve so many accomplishments and I’m really proud of you (as corny as that sounds). I love that we can pick up right where we left off even with months of not seeing each other and little contact. I love that we never run out of stuff to talk about or laugh about.

You are one strong individual and I’m lucky to know ya.

Photos by Athanasis

she thee wed

I trust you all had a good weekend? I did. Captain J and I ventured back to Tennessee for a wedding and my baby shower! It was fun stuff, lemme tell ya.

The wedding was lovely. Not only was the outside venue complete with beautiful gardens, a great overlook, and sweet details, but the couple was what made the wedding lovely. They’re both great individuals and I was happy to see them tie the knot. 🙂

My costume umm errr I mean, outfit- was not quite appropriate for the weather we experienced, though. I hadn’t realized how much hotter Georgia is than Tennessee. I was quite chilly most of the time, but I suspect the majority of women there were, too. We were all donning spring attire when it felt more like fall.

Here are some photos before we took off for the wedding:

 

Hello, belly!

I’ll be sure to post pictures from the baby shower when they become available to me.

Love,

“Mama K”

(special thanks to Jennifer for coining my alternate name)

Blue, but not Royal

I thought today I would be ready to poke fun at all of you who woke up to watch The Royal Wedding, but I’m not feeling into it today. This morning I, too, got up early and turned on what I thought was the news. Unfortunately, all I saw was coverage, coverage, coverage of the big event. I suppose it’s exciting, but I’m sure it doesn’t need to be on every single channel. I’m sure some of you even remember waking up to watch the wedding of Princess Di, too and we all know how that turned out. When in doubt, SLEEP!

Ahh, perhaps I’m just bitter that I don’t get to rock some of the fabulous hats that were in attendance today.

I should take my own advice and sleep when I’m feeling this way. I don’t know what’s wrong with my attitude this fine day. I’m having a bit of some pregnancy blues, I suppose. I want Baby K now. I want to spend my time taking care of him, not taking care of two dogs who just happen to be driving me nuts today. 

I also want to feel like a person again. I want to put on clothes and not want to run away from the mirror in horror. I’d like to get a taste of this pregnancy glow people speak of. I want a normal appetite. I want sushi and wine, but not necessarily together.

I want to not have to drive for hours every weekend from now until we PCS. I want to finish up this pregnancy and this duty station with a feeling of peace and not rushed chaos.

I want to not think about all the terrible things that could happen to Baby K that are beyond my control. Maybe you don’t know this, but today is SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) Awareness Day…and I really don’t want to think about that either.

I wish I could just chill out, relax and trust that God is in control of my little family.

But today I just can’t help feeling blue.

And it all seems so selfish when I think of all of the people in this area who have suffered from the devastation the storms brought earlier this week. My prayers are with the entire Southeast during such a scary, sad time.

Psalm 30:5
Weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.

The good luck spatula

I didn’t have a wedding ultimately because I’m a cynic. I won’t go too far into detail because I recognize that wedding season has begun and I wouldn’t want to put a damper on anyone’s day. The truth is, though, there’s only a few people whose wedding I would actually want to go to and I kept that in mind as I was playing with the idea of having a wedding of my own.

I thought, “Surely no one cares much about what dress I will choose, what my hair will look like, and what music I’ll walk down the isle to.” I figured if everyone had to come to a wedding, they’d mostly be concerned with whether or not there was alcohol or if it was on the house. Most of all, though, I didn’t think anyone would want to come, aside from family and close friends- and that was pushing it!

Then there was the business of showers. It sort of, kind of makes me feel totally uncomfortable. I mean, why would anyone buy me fine china because I found the man I want to be with? Nothing says “good luck” like a new spatula, I suppose.

I guess I just felt like I didn’t deserve the gifts that were sent our way. People were incredibly nice with their cards, words of encouragement, and lovely house warming/newlywed gifts that it left me at a loss for words. We hadn’t even given them a wedding party to attend yet presents were arriving in the mail, left and right.

I think the majority of my anti-wedding feelings stemmed from the fact that I’m an introvert. I don’t enjoy having all the attention focused on me, despite my love of this very public blog of mine. Nothing terrifies me more than the thought of everyone staring up, eyes focused on me, on a day that I want to remember as incredibly special and important. You see, I wouldn’t have been able to enjoy the moment I married my best friend if I was nervous about tripping down the isle or searching for the right words to say when some random, intoxicated, old dude sauntered up at the wedding reception asking for a dance.

As I reflect on all these happily avoided moments, I can breathe a sigh of relief. I can spend the entire month of May celebrating other couples wedding festivities and think to myself, “Better them than me!” I mean that in the best possible way. I know most women would love to walk down the isle in a gorgeous dress with all eyes on them on their very special day, but that’s just not my cup of tea. I would marry Captain J a million times over, but thank God I don’t have to.

So, here’s to the end of April and the beginning of May! I’ll be home in Tennessee quite a bit in the upcoming month to celebrate with friends who are soon saying “I do.” I can’t say I won’t be as big as a house by then. I can’t say I won’t avoid the picture taking at all costs. But I can say, Happy Wedding Day to all of you who are tying the knot. I’m incredibly happy for each of you and wish you so much love on this new chapter in your lives.

Meanwhile, I’ll be the pregnant chick in the back, trying not to pass out from all this Southern heat and humidity.

Blessings,

Wedding Opinion- Help!

This is me with my bestie, Miranda. I’ll pause for a moment so we can all be jealous of her beautiful hair.

(Pause)

(Pause again)

Okay. Now, Miranda is a weird, awesome, incredibly intelligent nursing student and soon to be wife. I’ve known her since she named my long toe, convinced me her family washed and saved paper plates, and almost allowed me to be malled by a chicken. Still, I love her-Which is why I’m asking a favor of you today. She’s getting married this September in a lovely ceremony in Greece! Ahh (*swoon). She needs our help choosing a bouquet for the wedding. Will you go vote? It takes two seconds and we’d both greatly appreciate it!

Vote here.

Thanks.

Sincerely,

-Beach Bum

So there I was…

On the morning of my wedding day, January 04, 2010, happy as a lark. It was all so surreal. Was I really ‘goin’ to the chapel’? And ‘Gonna get married?’ Yes, yes I was.

I came across some photos that I didn’t know I had in my possession and I had to share. Most of you know, our wedding ceremony was thrown together in just a few days. There were no guests, no stressors, nothing. It was just me and him.

I remember thinking, “Does he really want to marry this girl, the one with the ‘Animal’ panties on?”

What?! Maybe I needed to do laundry! Give me a break, people.

I also wondered what I’d do without the women in my life. It’s no surprise that I’m not the best at hair and makeup. They helped me get all dolled up for my big day.

Everyone always seems to say, “I haven’t weighed that since my wedding” or something along those lines. So as I squeezed into my size 2 wedding dress, I remember hoping that I would be able to wear it again someday. You know, just to try it on for size, make sure it still fits…

Somehow the wedding all came together. I had something new-

Something(s) borrowed-

And something blue-

As you can see, there was no nervousness, no second thoughts, no need to worry about a thing. I was only blissfully happy, waiting on my man to pick me up so we could go get hitched!

Sure, the day wasn’t completely perfect. I mean, just look at J’s uniform. He forgot his Ranger Tab back in Alaska, which just about killed him. And me, you’ll remember that I forgot my big girl panties and had to leave my pride with them. But other than that- yes, that day was dreamy.

That day I married my best friend.

Happily Ever After.

(Mil)ing it Over: Wedding Edition

As, promised in the video, here are some pictures from our special day along with a blog post describing it- You Can Call Me… 

Ahh, those just take me back. I can’t believe we’re already coming up on our one year anniversary in a couple of months!

Be sure to check back in as I add the other links of the bloggers who participated!

Chances I’m Taking

A Hapa Girl and Her Hapa Family

Blink 182

Just breathe, I thought to myself. He’s not going to change his mind. My frantic thoughts were sporadic. One moment I was laughing, enjoying a nice afternoon with two of my favorite women. The next moment I was wondering if my shoes were too much or if my veil was too wrinkled. I was worried that I might break a nail then later, that he might change his mind. Extreme uneasiness melted into a complete sense of peace. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

Still in the PJs

This was the excitement of my wedding day. There were no concerns over seating or music. My friends weren’t close by in questionable dresses they’d never wear again. I didn’t have to pay for a cake that I didn’t need to eat. 

It was only me. It was only him. It was only us.

On our big day, my knight in shining armour picked me up at my house and we drove to our destination, a chapel in the hills of Tennessee. On the way, we checked each other out- both impressed by how we cleaned up! We also belted out 80’s rock ballads and laughed until our cheeks ached.

An encouraging farewell hug from Mom

This was all I ever needed. HE was all I ever needed. I love that man!

Today we’re celebrating 182 days of wedded bliss. While this number isn’t really significant in any way, it is still a reminder for me to take this marriage one day at a time. Through good days and bad, through happy and sad, he’s the best friend I’ll forever have.

Love you, Captain J!

Maybe one day we’ll get our ceremony for everyone to enjoy, but until then it’s fun to look back on the day it all began! 🙂 182 days went by in the blink of an eye. I’m sure the next will, too which is why I am thankful for each and every day I get to spend with him.

You can call me….

…Mrs.K!  Captain J and I got married yesterday!  Sometimes when you’re dealing with the military, it’s difficult to accomplish goals on your own time schedule. We wanted to have a short engagement and we really wanted to get married so we went ahead and tied the knot. The ceremony was just for the two of us, but we will be having another ceremony in about a year when we move back closer to home. We are incredibly happy that we did it this way, although we missed having our families there. We knew this was best for us. I wouldn’t change a thing! My sister and my mother were so helpful in throwing this together for me and helping me get ready. They made it so much more special for us and I am forever grateful. Mom bought me a lovely dress and Paige put together a beautiful bouquet that I loved! My aunt and mother-in-law also let me borrow some items for the big day, too so it was nice to have family close by in spirit.

After we got married, we spent the night in a spacious A-frame log cabin up in the Smoky Mountains. It was romantic sitting out on the porch in the hot tub watching the snow fall. It was sort of like when he proposed (only 30 or 40 degrees warmer). We are really going to miss Tennessee. I can’t describe how it feels to be married to Jordan. I’ve never been happier. It makes traveling back to Alaska much easier knowing that  I have my husband, my family with me.