‎"When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight."

~Kahlil Gibran

It's been a tough last couple weeks..

Losing a loved one is always difficult, but losing two dear grandparents close to each other is heart wrenching. I have so many wonderful memories that will sustain me, but their smiles, laughter, and stories will be missed so much.

I was so fortunate to have close relationships with my grandparents. I often had sleepovers, went on shopping dates, and enjoyed visiting with them. They had so many adventures to tell me about. The stories never got old, and to be honest, I don't think I heard the same one more than once, ever.

Our bond was special and unique. It's hard to imagine that I will not have any of my grandparents attend my upcoming wedding. However, I will forever treasure the last conversations I had with each of them which somehow shared that common theme.

Love them and miss them tremendously.

"Perhaps they are not the stars, but rather openings in Heaven where the love of our lost ones pours through and shines down upon us to let us know that they are happy."

-Author Unknown

My Fall "I Want" List.. ;)

My little wish list...lol ;)

Carve pumpkins

Trick or Treat

Gray Boots

New Camera

Birthday Week!!

EEEK. I'm turning a quarter of a century this week.

Where has the time gone? I feel like I just turned 10 yesterday. Yikes.

I'll be half-way to 50 and on my way to my late 20's.

OH WELL.

Can't wait to celebrate with friends and family!!

It's going to be the BEST year of my life :)

Sigh of Relief

Fall Break was productive for wedding planning :)

We encountered a small (however, it seemed huge at the moment) wedding snafu regarding our reception site about two weeks ago. Hard to start over investigating good options and meeting with people. But, didn't take us long...we found it and it's beautiful. Getting increasingly excited for the big day!

And.....drum roll please.....

I ORDERED MY DRESS.

It's perfect. Simple. Classy. Elegant.

Just what I wanted, I couldn't be more happy.

Now..the waiting game begins for when it comes in sometime during the spring.

Until then...I've got to get going on:

Invites

Photographer

Flowers

Love this!!!

I absolutely love these designs for centerpieces!!

Simple, classy, elegant..

Designs by TRIFECTA

SLC, UT

MY HANDSOME HUNNY turns 26 this coming weekend!

He strongly dislikes celebrating his bday..but, this year we're gonna change that..he's gonna LOVE it!

I have some sweet surprises up my sleeve..can't wait to celebrate with him!

TOMORROW is a BIG DAY!!!

We get to reserve this BEAUTY!!! :) AHHH...beyond excited!!!

It's Wedding Season

LOVE going to weddings...seeing different themes, ideas, decorations..just helps to fuel the fire for me...ahhhhh!

I like so many things..how do I choose????..

One thing I know for sure..I want a PHOTOBOOTH!

NEW "DO"





I need some pointers and contacts for wedding 'do's'...
1. styles for me
2. bridesmaids
3. DIY vs. Salon??

Help!

Lazy Blogger

Sorry. I've been a lazy blogger lately.

Just started my second to last semester of grad school. Thank you Bear Lord baby Jesus. This will go down as the longest, most stressful two years of my life, officially. 8 months and 3 days remaining. YES.

On another note...wedding planning is about to get SERIOUS. We are finally able to book the cathedral AND decide on a reception place ASAP.

I've found my DRESS. It's beautiful, simple, elegant, classy. Ahhhh I am in love. Just gotta make it official and buy the dang thang.

Classes and clinic are going to be quite interesting this semester..the last semester of in-house clinic before I set out into my externship placements..one step closer to the real-world. I'm taking Cognitive Communications and sitting in on Swallowing Disorders and Management. Clinic..wow..gonna be a busy one. I've been placed at the Children's Center, located in downtown SLC, which is a full-time preschool for children with various psychological disorders, in addition to offering counseling and family therapy. It is SO interesting. These children come from such hard backgrounds and some have truly sad histories...I'm so happy I get to help them, it's rewarding. I have two additional clients at the U. A little boy who I am working on articulation with and a young adult male post stroke. More details and stories to come...it's gonna be a wild semester..but GOOD one!

Lately, I have really been missing playing soccer..it's so hard hearing about and seeing girls going back to start their seasons off. I've got to find a league to play in..maybe indoor?? co-ed?? Ahhhh it would be so fun. And, would help get my butt back in shape. Which leads me into the next topic..I want to sign up for a race! I've been running pretty consistently for the last two months and need something to keep me going, something to train for..researching some options for late fall..update to come..

Anyway, sorry for the rambles and lack thereof.

More to come :)

change of colors?? :)

may be changing some color ideas after this cute find!

rustic, vintage, elegance ...

my lovely friend lindsey found this for me today ... can i say IN LOVE??!! ahhhhhhhh!

6 days!!!!

6 DAYS UNTIL MY FUTURE SIL/BIL GET MARRIED!!!! EEEEEEEEEEEEEK!!!!

SOOOOOOO excited to celebrate with them in a couple days in Indiana!

Love you Ashley and Kyle!

summer term :(

So ... summer term is in full swing ...

And, all I wanna do it think about wedding planning ...

Here are some favs of the day ...

Love this ... rustic/vintage/elegance ... perfect!



Bouquet .. never seen this done before with all calla lilies .. gorgeous!



Centerpieces .. love the simplicity of the flower tangled in different glass vases ..



More to come ... quite a distraction at the moment :)

Summer term :(

So..summer term is in full swing..

All I can think about/want to do with my time is wedding plan...

Currently obsessed with ...

rustic ...

Engagement Weekend!

Alan and I just finished our first year of our graduate programs. We thought we would reward ourselves and head to Chicago to relax, shop, and sightsee for a few days before we started summer term. Little did I know, Alan had BIG plans!

We spent Friday walking around the city and taking the train up to Wrigleyville. There we walked down Clark St. looking in shops and enjoying the nice weather. We headed back to the city late afternoon to do some more shopping and met some friends for drinks and dinner at Shenanigans and Carmines, yum! Unbeknownst to me, family had started arriving in Chicago for the surprise. They were actually at the bar right next store to us and I had no idea.

Saturday, we got a later start than planned, but headed to the city to see the aquarium and shop on Michigan Ave. Alan and I walked every square inch of the Shedd Aqarium (my favorite were the whales, dolphins, and penguins!). When we left the aquarium, we started walking through Grant Park but got drenched in a sudden rain storm. We sprinted back to the aquarium to get a cab, which Alan instructed to take us back to our hotel so we could change. Not even two minutes into the drive, Alan tells the driver to pull over and let us out on the side of the road. I had no idea what was going on and frankly, I didn't wanna get out in the cold. Ha!

We had arrived at the Buckingham Fountains, gorgeous! Not a sole was in sight as it had just been pouring rain. We walked to the edge of the fountains admiring the city views behind us, when he took me in his arms and started telling me why he had brought me to the fountains. He expressed his love for me and how he had enjoyed the last year together and that he couldn't wait to spend his life with me. At this point, I was shaking, sobbing, and hyperventilating! So surprised! I couldn't believe it was happening! He got down on his knee and popped the question, slipping the most beautiful ring on my finger. When he stood up, he told me to turn around to find his family running towards us in celebration! I was so happy! A feeling that I don't even know how to convey in words, other than it was PERFECT!

I immediately called my parents, brothers, cousin, friends, everyone and anyone I could think of. I was ecstatic to share the news! And, came to find out, everyone knew! I was the last one to know..ha!

We then headed to the Hancock building where we celebrated with a champagne toast on the 96th floor! Amazing! Alan's dad, girlfriend, brother Ryan and wife Megan, brother Kyle and fiance Ashley, all celebrated with us. After, we headed to Greek town for the most amazing dinner with family and friends!

It was a whirlwind, but so perfect. I couldn't ask for a better man to marry or family to be a member of. I am so grateful and truly happy.

Can't wait to get this planning going and go dress shopping! First though, we need to plan a date! (at least a year away, we wanna finish school first)

Thank you to all our family and friends for your sweet wishes and love. We are so blessed!