It's been quite some time since I blogged and my old blog didn't seem to fit anymore, so I'm starting anew. Fitting, right?
Before I get to the nitty gritty of this post, a little about us, incase you don't know. My husband and I met in September of 2011, got engaged in December of 2011 and married this past year. Our story is quite something, but for another post. All you need to know for now is that we were, without a doubt, made for each other. Hence the title! And this will be the story of us and our family.
Considering we knew each other for three short months prior to getting engaged, you can imagine that this past year has been a big one for us. As I was thinking this evening about all we've experienced over the last year, I was amazed. Here's a quick recap... for you and posterity's sake.
January - We rang in the new year together in Florida. I was still living there and Clay was out from Utah to visit, nail down some wedding details and make final preparations for my move across the country. I don't think I'll ever forget watching the ball drop, snuggled up to my fiance on his brother & sister-in-law's couch and drinking Martinelli with them. We are forever in their debt, as they were the ones who introduced us, and they're just good, fun people. The remainder of the month was spent counting the days until we were together again. For good this time.
February - The morning of the 1st, we left Satellite Beach with one destination in mind: St. George. With a couple of stops in between, Clay drove me and all my belongings across the country so that we could finally start our life together. He drove all 2400+ miles over four days with me right by his side, literally. I didn't wear a seatbelt the whole trip. My job was to provide the directions, entertainment, and comic relief during those long miles where we were only getting nine miles to the gallon. We made it safe and sound in decent time and have no real desire to ever do it again.
March - My best friend and Jade-of-Honor came to St. George to visit and do some wedding planning stuff. We decided on bridesmaid dresses and caught up. It was fun to host a guest in our cute house and to see a familiar face from home! I also turned 30, which was far less painful than I'd imagined it would be. I'm sure that had everything to do with being blissfully happy and so in love!
April - My brother came to St. George on his break between semesters at BYU-Idaho. He spent Easter with us and introduced us to his girlfriend. My mom also came out to visit during this break, so she could spend time with us both. It was while she was visiting that we went shopping for and found my wedding dress. Four dresses, 40 minutes and we had a winner. It was actually the first dress I tried on. Who needs to try on hundreds of dresses? Not this girl! With that weight lifted, we were free to just hang out and show my mom a great time in Southern Utah.
May - We took a trip to Florida to take engagement pictures and take care of some more wedding planning tasks. We managed to sneak in some fun and, the best part, get some great photos taken of us. Clay's younger brother also got engaged this month.
June - I spent the last half of the month in Maryland at a meeting as a staff person. It was nice to get back in to meetings and meet new people. I'm hopeful that I can do more meetings in the future. I do enjoy them, especially since it's slightly different than what I used to do, but I still find it enjoyable and challenging at the same time. I say this now because I'm not in the think of things. I'm sure my story changes when I'm actually doing it! :-P
July - One of the "requirements" to marry Clay was to attend his family reunion that's held every year on the Arizona Strip. I actually enjoyed myself and got far less dirty than on our prior two trips to the ranch. It was fun to meet Clay's extended family, though I don't think I could ever meet them all, and to spend time in a place that holds such fond memories for him and that he genuinely enjoys. This city girl quite likes the ranch, actually, mainly because I know I can take a shower at the end of the day! Clay's younger brother got married this month. We were able to go to their temple sealing and also their reception in Arizona.
August - At the tail-end of July, I drove with my brother back to Florida, since he had the fall semester off of school. Remember how I said we had no desire to make that cross-country trek? Yeah, well, I did it again. This time I did some driving. It was fun to hang out with my brother and it was a convenient way to get wedding stuff from Utah to Florida without my dad having to foot the shipping bill! My mom and Jade-of-Honor also threw me an amazing bridal shower. It was such a fun day and I had a great time seeing family and friends who have loved and supported me for so many years. I'm a lucky girl and that day was just a huge reminder of that fact. Shortly after I returned home to Utah, my brother proposed to the girlfriend he brought to St. George in March. Yep, my parents had both of their kids engaged at the same time!
September - Clay's mom, sister and sisters-in-law threw me a fun bridal shower in Utah. My mom was able to come to Utah for it and bring my grandmother. It was so great that they were both able to come and to be able to show my Grannie around St. George and just spend time with her. Clay also turned 30 (finally!!!) and I had fun making a big deal about his birthday. I had my final dress fitting in Salt Lake City and the trip took an interesting turn when we arrived in Salt Lake, only to realize we left the majority of our clothes in St. George. Luckily the important things were in the car with us: My wedding shoes and my veil for the fitting. We were able to laugh about it, but it took a couple of hours.
October - Our long awaited wedding month had finally arrived! I went to Florida a week before the wedding to tie up loose ends and just make sure everything was as we (mostly I) envisioned it. Naturally, I got little sleep the night before, but neither of us could have asked for a better day. We are STILL talking about how well everything came together and how we'd do it all over again, just the same, in a heartbeat. It was easily the best day of our lives and, in our opinion, the best wedding the world has ever known. We enjoyed a relaxing honeymoon in Ft. Myers Beach, FL at our timeshare and were, luckily, unaffected by Hurricane Sandy. We got back home to Utah just in time to spend our first Halloween together.
November - The wedding festivities continued with my parents, brother and Jade-of-Honor coming to St. George for our open house here. It was a fun, but busy, weekend and we weren't complaining that the party was still going. Also not complaining about party continuing were our nephew and nieces. Those three love a party and are the life of it! As if we hadn't had enough excitement, we found out we were expecting a baby. Unfortunately, just after Thanksgiving, I had a miscarriage. While the pregnancy was a bit of a surprise, happening so quickly, we were perfectly happy to be starting a family. The disappointment we felt with the loss of the pregnancy only proved how much we are looking forward to being parents. We're hopeful that we can do that, but also know that it will happen when the time is right. We are certain that the Lord has a plan for us and our family and are looking forward to seeing just what that brings.
December - My brother got married in Idaho and Clay and I were able to attend their sealing and reception. It was cold, but they're so cute together and she was a gorgeous bride. I couldn't have hand-picked someone better for my brother and I'm so glad she's a part of our family. I must say, though, Clay called it. The minute he heard about Kels, he was sure she's marry my brother. Luckily, they spent Christmas in Florida and we were able to go to Florida also, to spend it with my parents. It was so much fun to spend time together. We're already looking forward to doing it again as soon as we can.
I didn't anticipate that this post would come off like one of those Christmas letters you sometimes get in the mail. Don't get me wrong, I happen to love them, but not everyone does. So if you endured my rambling to this point, you're a saint.
I'm thankful for all the highs and lows of the last year, I feel like I've experienced so much and have gotten to know myself a lot better. I'm happier than I ever thought I could possibly be and am looking forward to seeing what 2013 has in store for us. If it's even half as good as 2012 was, it will be a great year.
Before I get to the nitty gritty of this post, a little about us, incase you don't know. My husband and I met in September of 2011, got engaged in December of 2011 and married this past year. Our story is quite something, but for another post. All you need to know for now is that we were, without a doubt, made for each other. Hence the title! And this will be the story of us and our family.
Considering we knew each other for three short months prior to getting engaged, you can imagine that this past year has been a big one for us. As I was thinking this evening about all we've experienced over the last year, I was amazed. Here's a quick recap... for you and posterity's sake.
January - We rang in the new year together in Florida. I was still living there and Clay was out from Utah to visit, nail down some wedding details and make final preparations for my move across the country. I don't think I'll ever forget watching the ball drop, snuggled up to my fiance on his brother & sister-in-law's couch and drinking Martinelli with them. We are forever in their debt, as they were the ones who introduced us, and they're just good, fun people. The remainder of the month was spent counting the days until we were together again. For good this time.
February - The morning of the 1st, we left Satellite Beach with one destination in mind: St. George. With a couple of stops in between, Clay drove me and all my belongings across the country so that we could finally start our life together. He drove all 2400+ miles over four days with me right by his side, literally. I didn't wear a seatbelt the whole trip. My job was to provide the directions, entertainment, and comic relief during those long miles where we were only getting nine miles to the gallon. We made it safe and sound in decent time and have no real desire to ever do it again.
March - My best friend and Jade-of-Honor came to St. George to visit and do some wedding planning stuff. We decided on bridesmaid dresses and caught up. It was fun to host a guest in our cute house and to see a familiar face from home! I also turned 30, which was far less painful than I'd imagined it would be. I'm sure that had everything to do with being blissfully happy and so in love!
April - My brother came to St. George on his break between semesters at BYU-Idaho. He spent Easter with us and introduced us to his girlfriend. My mom also came out to visit during this break, so she could spend time with us both. It was while she was visiting that we went shopping for and found my wedding dress. Four dresses, 40 minutes and we had a winner. It was actually the first dress I tried on. Who needs to try on hundreds of dresses? Not this girl! With that weight lifted, we were free to just hang out and show my mom a great time in Southern Utah.
May - We took a trip to Florida to take engagement pictures and take care of some more wedding planning tasks. We managed to sneak in some fun and, the best part, get some great photos taken of us. Clay's younger brother also got engaged this month.
June - I spent the last half of the month in Maryland at a meeting as a staff person. It was nice to get back in to meetings and meet new people. I'm hopeful that I can do more meetings in the future. I do enjoy them, especially since it's slightly different than what I used to do, but I still find it enjoyable and challenging at the same time. I say this now because I'm not in the think of things. I'm sure my story changes when I'm actually doing it! :-P
July - One of the "requirements" to marry Clay was to attend his family reunion that's held every year on the Arizona Strip. I actually enjoyed myself and got far less dirty than on our prior two trips to the ranch. It was fun to meet Clay's extended family, though I don't think I could ever meet them all, and to spend time in a place that holds such fond memories for him and that he genuinely enjoys. This city girl quite likes the ranch, actually, mainly because I know I can take a shower at the end of the day! Clay's younger brother got married this month. We were able to go to their temple sealing and also their reception in Arizona.
August - At the tail-end of July, I drove with my brother back to Florida, since he had the fall semester off of school. Remember how I said we had no desire to make that cross-country trek? Yeah, well, I did it again. This time I did some driving. It was fun to hang out with my brother and it was a convenient way to get wedding stuff from Utah to Florida without my dad having to foot the shipping bill! My mom and Jade-of-Honor also threw me an amazing bridal shower. It was such a fun day and I had a great time seeing family and friends who have loved and supported me for so many years. I'm a lucky girl and that day was just a huge reminder of that fact. Shortly after I returned home to Utah, my brother proposed to the girlfriend he brought to St. George in March. Yep, my parents had both of their kids engaged at the same time!
September - Clay's mom, sister and sisters-in-law threw me a fun bridal shower in Utah. My mom was able to come to Utah for it and bring my grandmother. It was so great that they were both able to come and to be able to show my Grannie around St. George and just spend time with her. Clay also turned 30 (finally!!!) and I had fun making a big deal about his birthday. I had my final dress fitting in Salt Lake City and the trip took an interesting turn when we arrived in Salt Lake, only to realize we left the majority of our clothes in St. George. Luckily the important things were in the car with us: My wedding shoes and my veil for the fitting. We were able to laugh about it, but it took a couple of hours.
October - Our long awaited wedding month had finally arrived! I went to Florida a week before the wedding to tie up loose ends and just make sure everything was as we (mostly I) envisioned it. Naturally, I got little sleep the night before, but neither of us could have asked for a better day. We are STILL talking about how well everything came together and how we'd do it all over again, just the same, in a heartbeat. It was easily the best day of our lives and, in our opinion, the best wedding the world has ever known. We enjoyed a relaxing honeymoon in Ft. Myers Beach, FL at our timeshare and were, luckily, unaffected by Hurricane Sandy. We got back home to Utah just in time to spend our first Halloween together.
November - The wedding festivities continued with my parents, brother and Jade-of-Honor coming to St. George for our open house here. It was a fun, but busy, weekend and we weren't complaining that the party was still going. Also not complaining about party continuing were our nephew and nieces. Those three love a party and are the life of it! As if we hadn't had enough excitement, we found out we were expecting a baby. Unfortunately, just after Thanksgiving, I had a miscarriage. While the pregnancy was a bit of a surprise, happening so quickly, we were perfectly happy to be starting a family. The disappointment we felt with the loss of the pregnancy only proved how much we are looking forward to being parents. We're hopeful that we can do that, but also know that it will happen when the time is right. We are certain that the Lord has a plan for us and our family and are looking forward to seeing just what that brings.
December - My brother got married in Idaho and Clay and I were able to attend their sealing and reception. It was cold, but they're so cute together and she was a gorgeous bride. I couldn't have hand-picked someone better for my brother and I'm so glad she's a part of our family. I must say, though, Clay called it. The minute he heard about Kels, he was sure she's marry my brother. Luckily, they spent Christmas in Florida and we were able to go to Florida also, to spend it with my parents. It was so much fun to spend time together. We're already looking forward to doing it again as soon as we can.
I didn't anticipate that this post would come off like one of those Christmas letters you sometimes get in the mail. Don't get me wrong, I happen to love them, but not everyone does. So if you endured my rambling to this point, you're a saint.
I'm thankful for all the highs and lows of the last year, I feel like I've experienced so much and have gotten to know myself a lot better. I'm happier than I ever thought I could possibly be and am looking forward to seeing what 2013 has in store for us. If it's even half as good as 2012 was, it will be a great year.
I'm so happy for you and your brother. Your parents are wonderful people, and it looks like y'all are just like them. It's kind of nice to know that we're not the only Walkers out West anymore :-)
ReplyDeleteI loved the play-by play!! This will be great to have because even now Ryan and I are like, what did we do during our first married Christmas?! Time flies and it flies even faster when you are having fun with the one you love! So happy for you guys. Can't wait to see you again in Fl!
ReplyDeleteWell I, for one, read as loved your "Christmas letter"
ReplyDelete