Winter Tears

Blahh... It's winter.

The sun is teasing me when it comes out for an hour or two and then goes away and hides for a week. I keep wondering how many days will we be without a sun this season. I have read that 226 days of gray is pretty common, but I shouldn't complain too much because we had an amazing summer, right?

I am now driving to work in the dark and getting home in the dark and that's what stinks. Paolo and I make sure to take a walk before work and exercise in the evening. It is much needed and amazing.

On a positive note, winter brings a lot of great things too. I am excited to be attending a social wine event for 20-somethings (I will be out of that realm due to my age, so I have this year and hopefully next years will be before my birthday) in Seattle later this month.

We will celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas in Tacoma this year, so I won't be with my family in Indiana. Still, I am excited to decorate our house and make the Holiday meals this year, since last year was so much fun. The added bonus is we will be traveling home over my birthday, which is sandwiched in between the two big holidays, and I am sure I can talk my mom into making me a holiday meal for my birthday. But I will admit last years videos, from our trip home, I will miss making.

We will be finishing the planning for our big wedding that will be happening in the spring. I can't wait. Fingers are crossed hoping my dress will make it by early December when we're in Indiana. If it doesn't I will be ticked. Need to kick up the workouts a notch to make sure I can fit in my dress. :)

I have been fighting back my tears a lot lately and I am realizing that this winter and future holidays will be bitter sweet having family here in Seattle and back at home.

Bachelor/ette party?

I know that Scott is already planning a bachelor party excursion to Vancouver B.C. sometime early next year, but I saw an article on MSN today called "How to Throw a Coed Bachelor/ette Party" that I found interesting.

The idea: "These days, to-be-weds are more likely to opt to do something adventurous (think a white-water rafting trip for the guys) or posh (a full day of pampering at the spa for the ladies) than risqué. And if you'd rather have a full-on fiesta with all of your friends -- and your fiancé -- instead of the outdated "last night of freedom," you can."

The article suggest renting a bar or a softball game. These sort of sound like rehearsal dinner events, but I get the idea - Do something different with everyone.

I don't want to take away Scott's thunder and won't, but I think a Bachelor/ette party might be a good thing a couple of days before the wedding when we're all in Indiana. Because of the distance, half of our wedding party will be meeting the other half for the first time, and some fun ahead of the wedding couldn't hurt anybody.

I suited up

On Saturday, Wesley and I hit the Macy's One Day Sale to try and find suits for the wedding. Mission accomplished!

We bought Alfani Red suits for just $200! I'm not going to lie. I look RIDICULOUSLY good in the suit. Here we are suited up.

Not sure my shoes or Wesley's hat are going to make the cut on the big day, but you get the idea. Next up on my shopping list: yellow ties and suspenders.

Wine Days Ahead

Paolo and I always enjoy a few bottles of wine each week, and of course I get excited and want to open a couple at a time. Last week, we had the privilege of having Paolo Sr. over for dinner, and I cooked an amazing meal while drinking a glass of wine. We had polenta with a sausage marinara sauce, side salad, and bread with EVOO, parmesan, and balsamic. We enjoyed brownies and a chocolate bar with dessert. Trader Joe's has a great assortment of chocolate bars, FYI!

We were drinking a cheap Pinot Noir that we picked up from TJ's and I couldn't stop myself from opening another bottle. We recently went on a weekend get away to Mazama, WA and we stopped at Lost River Winery where I picked out a special bottle of wine called Cedarosa. Boy, is it tasty and we had a great time snacking on cheese, chocolate, and brownies while discussing wine.

As the month of October leaves us, we will be starting a new blog about wine. I am excited, but feel a little amateurish on the subject. Even though I can polish off a bottle in a day by myself, I am going to do my research.

Grocery stores are a lot of fun these days. Since I always do most of the shopping, I am always finding deals and for the most part planning meals. If Paolo comes along I will find him 30 minutes later in the wine section of course. If we have $50.00 to spend on groceries and Paolo is with me, you better believe at least $30.00 is going towards wine.

Well, the new blog will be up and running soon. I better go study.

Sweet Nothing

Did anyone else celebrate Sweetest Day?

Origins and Facts About Sweetest Day

Observed the 3rd Saturday in the month of October, Sweetest Day observance originated in Cleveland in 1922. Herbert Birch Kingston, a philanthropist and candy company employee wanted to bring happiness into the lives of orphans, shut-ins and others who were forgotten. With the help of friends, he began to distribute candy and small gifts to the underprivileged.
On the first Sweetest Day, movie star Ann Pennington presented 2,200 Cleveland newspaper boys with boxes of candy to express gratitude for their service to the public.

Another popular movie star, Theda Bara, distributed 10,000 boxes of candy to people in Cleveland hospitals and also gave candy to all who came to watch her film in a local theater.

Primarily a regional observance celebrated in the Great Lakes region and the Northeast, Sweetest Day is gradually spreading to other areas of the country. People tend to take the Sweetest Day tradition with them when they move. Ohio is the top state for Sweetest Day sales, followed by Michigan and Illinois. Texas, California and Florida are among the top 10 states in sales.

Over the years, Sweetest Day has evolved into a time to express romantic love and also to show appreciation to friends.

Reference www.theromantic.com/sweetestday.htm

Home Again, Home Again

Paolo and I will be traveling home this December over my birthday, hooray!!! I am very excited and I think it will be a great time, unless we get hit with a mega ice storm again and lose power.

On this trip we will be discussing, the wedding (of course) and spending time with the fam. I am hoping that my dress is in so I can try it on and we will try to get the guest list mastered. I need to introduce Paolo Jr. to the pastor who will be marrying us and get that lined up (I hope he approves)!

My Dad and Grandpa are building an arbor that we will get married under and I am super excited about this too! We hope they make it so we can ship it back to go in our own garden.

We have decided to go with a tulip mixture for the wedding bouquets. My mom and dad planted over 200 bulbs a couple weeks ago, to see if we can grow enough for the table decorations and bouquets. I am excited and I thought it would be meaningful knowing that the flowers are from my own yard in Indiana.

Since the wedding is outdoors, we are going to have white chairs and straw bales to sit on. The aisles will be lined with tulips and tin can flower vases. I know it's going to be beautiful.

Every day I wake up saying, "I wish we were getting married this weekend." I have to remind myself, "We will have our whole life to be married, enjoy being engaged and enjoy planning this wedding!" I am glad that I waited and didn't settle. Sure I may be 28 going on 29, but I think it's the perfect age for me to get married.

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