"Small" Things Become Bigger

This week Chris and I have begun to look at wedding invitations. Emily went with me Friday to pick up a few wedding invitations albums to bring home for us and our families to look at. Emily had spent the night with a friend and had to get up early to go to the doctor so needless to say she wasnt too up for wedding invitation shopping. But like a good maid of honor she went and looked through endless amounts of books with me all while literally falling asleep at the table. I informed Chris I had picked up three books that I found many things I liked in and I wanted him to look at them with me later that night so we could narrow it down before we showed our parents our options. I cleared off our kitchen table and laid the books out. If you have ever went invitation shopping you know the books are no ordinary books. They are not small and magazine shaped yet they seem to weigh twenty pounds apiece and be HUGE! Chris was definitely expecting magazine sized books because when he walked in the house he stopped and just stared at the gigantic books staring him in the face. It definitely made him not want to go through the books with me but like a good fiance he did. We soon found out our tastes in invitations are completely different! Chris likes the plain, simple look while I go for over the top and different. We just ended up making each other aggravated and gave up after looking through the three books after placing sticky notes on every single choice one or both of us liked. The next day we shared our picks with my parents and Chris' parents. They both weighed in on the options yet both told us it was ultimately our decision. Of course when you show that many people everyones picks are going to be different. I did not expect this small task to be so strenuous. Not only do you have to pick our the invitation but also the envelope, lined, plain, or colored. You also have to pick our monograms, sticker seals, thanks you cards, the format of the card, the colors of ink on the car, the color of the card itself (ivory or white-yet again Chris likes white I go for ivory), the wording on the card, etc. It is CRAZY!!! Sunday night we decided to try to narrow down the picks to our top 5 because the books had to go back today, Monday. We narrowed it down to our top 4 that we both agreed on and could live with. I took the books back today and our two of our favorites priced. Emily and I then looked through more books. Chris and I are going back this Friday to go through the books together so I dont bring home three more huge books that he doesnt like anything in. I want our parents to like the invitations as well seeing as they are paying for them yet ultimately we know it is our decision to make. We are both having to learn to not sweat the small stuff and to learn to compromise and figure things out together. Other items we considered to be "small" are also turning into bigger matters than I first realized. Napkins, save the dates, thank you cards, plates, food, flowers, set up for everything at the church, favors, etc. Weddings are definitely more tiring that I ever realized. It is never ending...once I get one thing done something else pops up. However, I am becoming much better at my multi-taking skills. Chris and I are getting better on compromising and listening to each others opinions so I have no doubt we will be able to come to a decision on everything involved in our wedding. I know we will still have our arguments but in the end all will be worth it and we will be husband and wife. Just 145 more days! I cant believe it!

A Good Week Going

Well this week is slowly becoming an amazing week! Tuesday I received information that I had won 500 dollars off a wedding package from a drawing I entered while attending the Marriott Bridal Show on Sunday. I already have a photographer and this winning is pretty much impossible to use it still makes you feel good to know you won something. Wednesday Chris and I celebrated our 7 year anniversary. Even though it didnt start out as the best day ever it definitely ended amazing. One tire on my mom's car went completely flat in the morning and she had to drive my car to work. My dad was at work and my sister had to go to school to finish out her summer classes. Chris' truck has no air. In the middle of summer here right now it is over 100 degrees outside so riding to town in a truck with no air isnt the ideal situation. We finally decided to take the car to Chris' mom at her work and trade it for her car (with air). We ate a quick lunch at McDonald's since we were going out for a nicer dinner. We then went to see a movie, Despicable Me. It was my second time to see the movie and Chris' first. It is by far even better the second time around, I highly recommend it to everyone! It is hilarious! We went to the mall to look around for some wedding registry ideas. Then we had to have some keys made at Walmart for Chris' mom. We had planned to have dinner at Osaka, a Japanese steakhouse. Instead we decided to go to our favorite place, Applebee's. After eating we decided to come back to my house to go swimming. All in all it was an amazing anniversary!

Before we went swimming last night I got a call from Simplicity Gourmet to tell me I had won another prize from the Bridal Show I attended. We go next Tuesday night to go for a cooking class with this company as part of our prize among other things involved in the package. I am so excited to have won and even more excited to experience this with Chris.

Today I got my placement letter for my student teaching internship. I am going to be at Kilby in 6th grade for my first placement and Harlan in Kindergarten for my second placement. I am nervous yet excited. It makes it seem so real to have the placements in my hand. Hopefully everything will go well and I will learn alot in the process. It made me feel a lot of relief when I got a call from one of my good friends from high school to tell me his new wife is going to be at the same schools at the same time as me. She will be in 4th grade at Kilby then we will both be in Kindergarten at Harlan. Then I found out another girl from my class will also have Harlan Kindergarten with us. It makes it so much better to know I am going to have people close to me right there with me. It will be nice to talk and collarborate with them as well as express our emotions and feelings about things that we are going through. Wish me luck for we have an orientation meeting the 23rd of August then things will get going on the 24th.

We also are now less than 150 days away from the wedding. Alot is starting to go on and Chris and I are trying to keep our stress levels down. With intership fast approaching I am trying to get as much done as possible. It is going to be crazy but I am up for the challenge. Bring on the multi-tasking!!!

August Comes In With A Bang

The last week of July my family and I went on vacation to Orange Beach, AL. My dad, mom, sister, grandmother, step-grandfather and I all piled up and went to spent a week together. We had an AMAZING time. My family has not been on a family vacation together since I was a sophomore in high school. This vacation was extremely special not only because we got to all be together along with my grandmother but also because it marked the last family vacation I would be spending as an Auten and without Chris by my side. It was nice being able to feel like I was 5 again spending time with my family and my sister especially. It gave us time to bond even more and enjoy each others company. Of course it was always in the back of everyones mind that this was considered our last Auten family vacation without the newly married Hughes' tagging along but we were able to enjoy our time together and make it a vacation I will never forget. We all got completely burned laying out on the beach (even after going to the tanning bed all summer and laying under an umbrella the majority of the day I looked like a lobster), we all gained at least 10 pounds through all the wonderful food we got to eat, we fed the seagulls (And that was an experience haha), we also played putt putt golf the last night at Adventure Island.

After returning home from a relaxing time on the beach it was time to pack up Chris' apartment in order for him to move home as his roomate moves to Colorado. It was definitely a bittersweet feeling. I am highly excited that Chris has moved back home. He is going to be able to save alot more money than was able to be saved while living out on his own. He is also five minutes up the road from me instead of a 25 minute drive. I just hate it had to happen by losing Clayton to a completely different state. They have lived there over a year. It felt like home to Chris and now he is re-adjusted to calling Greenhill home. It is also different not to walk in seeing Clayton everyday. However the difficulties, it is nice for XBOX live to not be an option at Chris' parents house right now haha. Right now Chris is living out of boxes in his old room at his parents house. His sister, Tessa, had moved into his room after he moved in to his apartment. For now the room will stay just how Tessa left it (Twilight posters and all) with the mere change of Chris' bed replacing her day bed. After Chris moves out and into our own home the bed will become Tessa's and she will return to the room. Some may say it is cruel for him to take back over his room but for now Tessa is just happy to have her brother in the house again. This step of moving back home is one more step into moving into our place together. Around Novemeber Chris will be moving into our new apartment (that we have not found yet) in order to begin setting things up for when we move in as newlyweds!

As the first of August as rolled around we are now 5 months and counting until our Big Day! Also with August comes our 7 year anniversary on the 4th of this month. Seven years ago I never imagined I would be in the midst of planning my wedding to this man. We are both so blessed and lucky to have found in each so early in life. For now we continue planning and trying our best to stay stress free and happy. This is a once in a life time thing for us and we are trying to soak up every minute. We also remember to cherish those around us for you never know when it can be taken away in the blink of an eye. Just yesterday a girl that went to school with Chris and I was killed in a car accident. She was a year behind me and a year ahead of Chris. She has a 3 year old daughter. My junior year, her sister (a year older than me) was also killed in a car crash. Everyone keep this wonderful family in your thoughts and prayers for the times they are and will be going through. Think of what you have in your life and cherish every single second. God bless and I love you all!