Blogging Days

I think I can safely say that my blogging days are over. I just can't seem to get back into this. I take my final tomorrow in my first math class, College Algebra. I have a 102.35 in the class right now and aim to keep it.

Allyssa, my little sister, will be here the day after tomorrow. I am so very excited. She just won Miss Teen Lake Havasu and more recently, Miss Teen Mohave County including best overall points, best hair, best appearance, and best smile. She rocks my face off. I get her for two weeks and then it is off to the wedding.

Wedding plans have been coming along nicely. I can't seem to get a call back about the bridesmaid dresses which is making me really nervous. Hopefully everything is in place and I don't get hosed on the three dresses. I don't know what I'll do if the store doesn't come through. I have already paid them over $400.00. EEEk!!

Craig's dad is here with us now which has been nice. I know Craig has been able to spend some much needed time with his old man. That is cool. I would love to have my dad with me for 2 weeks. That would be awesome.

Well, its 6:25am and no one is awake. I think I'll go for a run with my Snoop Dogg.

One last thing. I celebrated my 25th birthday recently which was awesome. Craig and I went to Disneyland and had a great time.

Whoops!

I was doing such a good job posting all this new year and then suddenly dropped off the face of the blogging earth. Much has happened since my last post. Craig and I went and came back from a trip to El Paso, Tx which was super awesome to say the least. I got to see my grandparents and my dad as you can see from the pictures.
The first picture is one of all of us starting on the left with my cousin Steven Chesshire, then Uncle Johnny's 11 year fiance, Norma, then Uncle Johnny in the back, followed by Connie, and my Dad, then its me, Craig, and in front is Grandma Billie Louise and Grandpa James Edgar Chesshire. Next is a picture of Steven, Johnny, and myself. After that is me with my handsome Grandparents followed by a picture of me with my Dad and Grands. It was a great trip. Everyone loved and approved of Craig. My Dad even congratulated me on finding a "keeper". It could not have gone better and went 100 times better than I had expected. My Dad even bought me a Wii. How cool is that? I love it and play it like everyday.

Unfortunately on our trip, Craig's sweet Daddy fell ill and is STILL in the hospital in California trying to recover. He is not doing very well and needs lots of good thoughts and prayers. Craig went off to see his Dad and I stayed in Arizona with my mom and Allyssa and Karik. It was fun. We played the Wii the entire time and were very silly together. I will post some pictures of that as well.

While in Arizona my mom insisted that we go look at "real wedding gowns". So reluctantly I went with her to the store because it was the only time I could get her alone away from all the screaming kids. Once I walked in the store I knew I was in trouble. We found the perfect dress. I am not going to post any pictures of it on here until after I wear it because the stock photo of it on some other model chick does not do it the justice I am going to bring. It is beautiful though. I had to change all the bridesmaid dresses from polka dots to the red that matches my gown. The gown is white but has red on it around the top that wraps around to the LACE UP back. SOOO pretty. I sent back my polka dot dress and got a store credit which we are using for the bridesmaid dresses so that worked out okay. We were able to find dresses in the exact color of the dress. We are going to all look so awesome in the photos. In addition to a new dress, I also purchased the wedding cake for a whopping $230.00 including delivery. That was about half the price of the first few bakeries who quoted me. The cake will look like the following picture only 3 tiers instead of 4 and the white ribbons around the base will instead be red. Everything is coming in way under budget. We even found the tux Craig wants to purchase for $350.00 instead of $580.00 like we were quoted at the bridal store.

It is super cold here right now. It was warm for the first few days after we returned home from our trip but then a blizzard hit, and now another one. It is a whopping 25 degrees outside with wind and snow messing everything up. No chance for an outdoor run today.

We finally got our office moved into a larger bedroom. It looks and feels great. The high ceilings really make a difference. Now we can re floor the small bedroom and then turn it into a guest room in time for Allyssa's visit in late May. We are going to have so much fun. I am going to run that girl ragged. She is never going to have done so much stuff in a two and a half week period in all her life. We are going to take her backpacking, hiking, swimming, tanning, to Thermopolis to swim in the hot springs, to devil's tower, to Mt. Rushmore, to Deadwood to eat at my favorite restaurant, Jake's (the one where Craig proposed). There won't be a dull day. If rain should hit while she is here, thank God for the Wii. Allyssa's visit sets a good goal for us to have our house in order. We are always doing so much work on it that it will be nice to finally have everything wrapped up, even if only for a month or so. I am excited to finally have all rooms in functioning and working order!

I'm cold and in need of coffee. I will be more regular with my posts. I never meant to stop posting again. BLAH! Oh! Also, I start my "Algebra and Trigonometry" course today. Actually, I already finished the whole first week of class but it officially starts today. I was a bit overwhelmed when I first logged in to this new school and new class but like anything else I will succeed in this class as well. I must. I need As. I love As. Gotta have As.

Nuts and Bolts

I recently had an old filling that came out and had to have it refilled. Since then my retainer that I have to occasionally wear does not fit. This really bites because my perfect row of straight teeth are shifting. No fear though, I have an orthodontist appointment on the 2nd of March to remedy this increasingly annoying problem. I wish I did not have to wear a retainer anymore at all. How lame. I'm almost 25 years old and I have to wear a big old wire across my teeth at night. If I would have worn it for a year straight when I first got my braces off I would not have to wear it at all anymore, although I do not necessarily believe that. I had a built in retainer on my bottom teeth for the last 10 years and it finally gave out--and I think my bottom teeth are shifting as well. I guess my teeth are stubborn and want to be crooked. I will fight them til DEATH! As God as my witness, I will never have crooked teeth again!!!

I got my wedding dress in the mail the other day. The lady told me she was sending a size 2 which I was very nervous about but she insisted was the correct size based on my measurements regardless of what the online chart said. Luckily she sent a size 4, which fits good. It is a bit snug but nothing I can't take care of in the next four months. I can't believe that crazy ass lady was going to send me a two. Although, I was quite excited I will admit. Even so, I am just as excited to be sporting a four which I will be able to breathe in and enjoy throughout the evening of my wedding.

Craig has a job interview on Wednesday with a company in Salt Lake City, UT. I have no doubts in my mind that he will nail this interview just as he has the last two which were over the phone. Craig will do even better in person as he is very articulate, well mannered, and extremely presentable. Did I mention that he is super sexy? That will surely help! I know it certainly will not hurt his chances any. He is a nervous wreck, nervous enough for both of us. I am excited to take a trip and get the heck out of town. I am not looking forward to the drive but it will be an adventure as usual.

I took a break from this post and ran 4.5 miles with the incline between 4 and 6. My butt muscles really got a work out. Craig and I walked about a mile and half this morning with Snoop so that counts for some extra. That dress is going to look sooo smokin' hot. I will make sure of that.

Craig built us a banister deal in the dining room so there is no longer a hole dropping off into the basement. It came out very nice and I must say I am continually surprised and impressed with my dear Craig's handy work.

Okay well I am going to convince Craig to play RISK with me or something OTHER than television reruns. If I watch one more episode of Everybody Loves Raymond I am going to scream. The Debra character is such a wank. I wonder if that actress is nice in real life. She plays a bitch so well on television it kind of makes me wonder.

Engagement

As it turned out Craig had reservations and grand plans all along. Here I thought we were going to Deadwood on the off chance that someone would cancel their hotel and dinner reservations when the entire time Craig had a romantic evening in store for us both. We stayed at a new hotel built inside an old lawyer's office called Martin and Mason. The room was so amazing. It was all decked out in antique furniture with red lamps and red curtains which led to its nickname from me of, "The Balentime Room". I loved it. The bed was super comfortable and everything was just entirely perfect in this room. We hopped around to a few places and had a few drinks in Deadwood before going back to our room to get changed into some fancy clothes. I should have known something was going on when Craig put on a tie. We had dinner at Jake's, my all time favorite restaurant. It is the fanciest place I have ever eaten at in my life. It is so incredibly nice. After a dinner of steak and mini lobsters Craig finally said it was time for us to exchange Valentine cards. He went first, opening his homemade card from me. I was pleased with the way it came out and his reaction insisted he loved it. Then I opened his card for me which brought a streaming flow of tears. He had written how much he loved me on our first Valentine's day and how he thought he could not possibly love anyone more. He went on to say how now, two years later, he loves me more than he did that day he gave me my promise ring, a promise to one day propose. It ended with, "I am asking you now..." Then he came over to my side of the table, dropped down on one knee with an open ring box, and asked me if I would marry him. At this point we were both in tears and I, of course, gladly accepted. We spent the next ten minutes squeezed on the same chair in the restaurant hugging and giving each other salty kisses. It was amazing to say the absolute very least. Even before he proposed to me I had expressed several times that it was the best Valentine's Day ever. Asking me to marry him naturally topped it off.
The ring he gave me is beautiful. He had it specifically made for me with violin markings on the sides of the GIANT diamond. It is perfect. I couldn't have made it better myself. He revealed later that he has been working on it, picking out the perfect diamond and having it designed just for me, for the last three months. I would not have expected anything less from the most wonderful man I have ever met, my Craig. When we got back to the hotel room after dinner, chilled champagne awaited our arrival. He had thought of everything. It was the perfect day and the perfect night. We fell asleep in each other's arms squished on the little red couch in our hotel room. I kept waking up all night to make sure my awesome ring was really on my finger and indeed it was. I am the happiest girl in the world. I love my Craig and am so extremely excited to spend the rest of my life with him. I am confident that our wedding day, June 20, 2009, will prove to be the happiest day of our lives. It is going to be amazing. I am looking forward to forever at his side. We totally rock together. Life is awesome. I have everything to look forward to in my life with Craig. Everything is going so well. I am so happy. I feel like I'm in a fairy tale and I am the pretty princess without the wicked step mother and in no need of a fairy god mother. Everything is as it should be.















I was going to embed our song, "Like Red on a Rose" by Alan Jackson right here but it is disabled from youtube and not working from myspace. Well, here is the link anyway... Like Red on a Rose

Valentine Post

Valentine's Day 2009.

Craig and I are driving to Deadwood today for a romantic Valentine's Day getaway. This is our last Valentine's Day as boyfriend and girlfriend since we will be getting married in June. He was unable to secure a hotel in Deadwood so we are staying in Spearfish, SD unless we get lucky with a cancellation. Unfortunately, dinner is a similar gamble. At first I didn't want to go because it sounds like we might possibly wind up eating Burger King for dinner. Then I realized that the only thing that matters is that we are together today and forever and besides, Burger King has that new Angry Whopper which Misty says is awesome and spicy. I am always down for some muy caliente food. We are driving in the car right now. Obviously I am passenger-ing with the mini top on my lap. I have played about all the solitaire and minesweeper I can stand so I decided to write a blog entry.

Life is exciting right now. With the wedding only four months away, I get to talk to my excited sister Misty and Mom almost everyday which I really like. When I get bored at home I just look up wedding cakes or bridesmaid dresses and that keeps me entertained for quite a while. I am very excited about the arrival of my wedding dress in the next few weeks. I can't wait to try it on. I sure hope it fits. If not, I am aware of some more fat cells that I can get rid of with some hard work and determination although I hate to have to lose even more weight since I think I rock right now as I am. We shall see.

I am very worried about my sister Glory. Originally she called and told me she was pregnant and asked me to adopt her baby. Then I didn't hear from her for a week and finally heard from my sister Marsee that she is keeping the baby. I guess she is embarrassed for having called me and telling me what she did, about the adoption, and then changing her mind. I don't see how cutting me out of her life helps the situation at all. She has never had a problem cutting me off and does so frequently. To be honest I was shocked that she asked me to adopt her baby in the first place because she has never seemed to like me in the slightest. Now things feel back to normal as she is not even speaking to me. I am not quite sure why that is but its typical all the same. I just hope she is sure this is the decision she wants to live with. I cannot be expected to take a six month old baby or really accept any other situation other than having full and total involvement from these early stages of pregnancy forward until I would take the baby home from the hospital. At any rate that is not what Glory thinks she wants today. I just hope for her happiness and well being and that of her unborn child. I can't think about it anymore though. I have actually succeeded in putting the thoughts of the baby out of my heart and mind, but still I worry about her. I just don't worry in the same way I did when I thought I was going to be adopting a baby being born in September. I even found her a polka dot maternity dress for the wedding. I hope she will be in the stages still where she can travel. She certainly cannot miss the family reunion. If she can't fly she will have to drive although we're talking about crossing the country from California to Tennessee.

I am bothering Craig with songs of "Are we there yet?? How about right now? Are we there yet nowwww?" He is a good sport about being annoyed which makes me feel comfortable enough to do it more and more. I get so antsy being in the car these last couple of years. I don't like it one bit. After a couple 22 hour car trips from Wyoming to California I can't stand being in the car at all. I feel like an annoyed little kid who is forced to stay strapped into a car seat. I should have loaded a movie on here or something. Its my own fault for not taking my entertainment needs into consideration. Alright, I am going to bug Craig for a while now.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Pulling my Hair Out

For the last seven hours I have been writing my final paper for my history class. Holy crap. I did not need to get it all finished today but I hate having it lingering over my head. Now my butt hurts from sitting on it all day. Craig already went to sleep but I am amped up for some reason. That is a big change from my usual early night sleepiness. I got a good night's sleep last night so that probably has something to do with my current state of restlessness.

Sugarland- Very Last Country Song (w/ lyrics)

This song rocks and reminds me of my Mama. Give it a listen.

The Secret is OUT

Okay Phew! Finally the secret is out. My sister Glory is pregnant again. That was awful style horrible to keep that all to my little one self. She asked me to adopt the baby but now she is keeping it so who knows. I sure as hell don't. I wish she would call and talk to me about this and commit to a plan of action. UGH! Frustrations!!

Wedding Gown

By beautiful polka-dot wedding dress has been ordered. I originally thought I would require a size 6 but then after checking the measurements realized I could fit into a four. After talking with the gown lady and giving her my stats she insisted that I am only a SIZE FREAKING TWO!! HOLY CRAP!!

So its on order!! in a TWO!!

Secrets

I have a secret that I hate to have to keep. It is not something that should have to remain in the shadows. I will keep the secret because I swore to my sister that I would. I hate this. I wish we could all feel open and comfortable with one another. If you can't confide in your family, in whom can you confide? Wow...I have really learned not to end a sentence in a preposition.

When I am allowed to tell, which will hopefully be soon, I will post the news. As for now it remains only with Craig and I.