Friday Fill-Ins, Back from the Honeymoon

1. It's cold and if you believe that, I have some lovely land to sell you.

2. I love ripe, juicy, RAW tomatoes, but not cooked ones.

3. My favorite health and beauty product is the tampon...woman's best friend.

4. I just enjoyed a nice long ride on a big, big boat.

5. Well, first of all I need to get caught up on my feed reader.

6. A professor and student; those were the cast of characters in a recent dream and it was no one I knew.

7. And as for the weekend, Friday I was looking forward to the last night of our honeymoon cruise, Saturday my plans included arriving home and going to a friend's bridal shower and today, I want to catch up on blog reading and maybe visit some friends!

Reader, I Married Him

Ricky and Lexi

May 23, 2009

Friday Fill-Ins

1. Moving is terribly expensive and difficult.

2. Nothing is free.

3. My best quality is my sense of humor.

4. The devil is in the details.

5. In nearly 10 years, I've lived in at least four different states.

6. More caffeine or else a maid is what I need right now!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to dinner with my family and his at Carmine's, tomorrow my plans include GETTING MARRIED and Sunday, I want to get packed for the honeymoon!

One Week More

and I will be a married lady. My last week of singlehood is upon me.

Things have come together very well, so far, for the wedding. I'm trying not to look at the forecast for next weekend, in case it says rain. But it wouldn't rain on my wedding day, would it?

The Fiance' and I just have a few last-minute details to pin down. We have some things to get tomorrow at Target (coolers for drinks at the reception; extra tablecloths, in case the ones we have aren't enough; a garment bag for our formal-wear for the cruise; extra trash cans). We need to drop off our formal-wear at the dry cleaners. I need to get a new bathing suit for the honeymoon. We have to pick up the flowers on Friday, table decorations on Thursday, pick up the cake, etc. etc. Now that I list it all out, it sounds like a lot. But I am taking Thursday and Friday off of work. I have a massage scheduled for Thursday, and I intend to get a mani and pedi on Friday, when my sisters are in town. People start arriving as early as Thursday, and the madness begins: Friday night dinner between the families (not really a rehearsal dinner, but our parents have never met!); Saturday, the wedding and reception; Sunday brunch with the New Jersey contingent, and dinner with the Ohio contingent; Monday, we leave on the HONEYMOOOOOOOON!

I can't wait. I can't wait to be married to the love of my life. I can't wait for all the excitement to be over, for the reception to have gone off without a hitch (I hope). I can't wait to be out of the limelight...I don't really like to be the center of attention. I can't wait to be on that ship, sailing away from the craziness of the last few months.

Soon.

Friday Fill-Ins

1. If we had no winter...wait, I live in Florida; we don't.
2. My clients are a perpetual astonishment.
3. If I had my life to live over, there's not much I would change.
4. It will be Saturday inside of four and twenty hours.
5. If you've never been thrilled, it's a crying shame.
6. To be interested in the changing seasons is natural and human.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to catching up on my feed reader, House, and maybe a computer game, tomorrow my plans include going to my friend's one-year-old's birthday (princess) party and Sunday, I want to run some wedding errands with the Fiance'!

All Apologies

I've been a terrible blogger and blog-hopper lately. All I can say as an excuse is...I'm getting married in two weeks. And I have a lot on my plate right now. I've missed visiting my blog buddies, but I'm going to try to do a little relaxing and catching up this weekend.

Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells

I loved this book. Let's get that out of the way, since there's very little likelihood that I can be objective about it. I pretty much bawled all the way through it. In the second book of the Ya-Ya trilogy, we return to the lives of the Walker clan, mostly seen through the eyes of Sidda. She is now a famous theater director, approaching her forties, and on the brink of marrying. Before Sidda can devote herself to someone for the rest of her life, however, she must first deal with the damage that her mother inflicted on the first half of her life. Unable to cope with the memories of what her mother had done, Sidda flees from the man she intended to marry and takes up residence at a friend's cabin in Washington state.

While trying to sort through her life and figure out who she is, Sidda realizes that she must come to understand who her mother is, how she got that way, and what Sidda's relationship with her mother is all about. She is aided in this quest by a giant scrapbook, the Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. It contains her mother's memories of growing up with her three best friends, the Ya-Yas.

The story alternates between Sidda's present-day experiences in soul-searching in Washington state and flashbacks to her mother's life in Thornton, Louisiana. The reader learns much more about Vivi Abbott Walker than was known in the previous novel. Although I hated Vivi at the end of Little Altars Everywhere, I actually came to sympathize with her, if not actually like her, by the end of this book. The mother-daughter relationship is THOROUGHLY explored here, as well as Sidda's hesitations before marriage. Both of those subjects being particularly close to my heart these days, I couldn't stop crying from about chapter nine on. My fiance' was wondering what in the hell was wrong with me, as I came into the living room with a puffy, red, tear-stained face. I read most of the book in a day, which hasn't happened much for me lately.

So, does Sidda heal her relationship with her mother? Does she marry Prince Charming? Does she ever leave the cool, green forests of the Northwest? I won't answer those questions. I WILL tell you, however, that things work out the way the reader feels they should. Four and a half out of five Whatevers. (Half a point off for being a little slow to start.)

READ THIS BOOK. Give it to your mama and have her read it. Give it to your daughter and have her read it, too. I think it would also make for a great book group discussion.

Brief Update

Less than three weeks till the wedding. I am freaking out a little, mostly over the few last things that need to be done. But I'm taking Friday off of work to get some things accomplished, since most places I need to deal with aren't open on the weekend.

I finished Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood last night and began The Fire, which is the sequel to The Game, which I read over Christmas. I'll post a review of the Ya-Yas soon.

Also...look what I made! Paula Deen's Caramel Apple Cake with Caramel Topping:

The caramel topping is homemade...mmm! Can't wait to cut myself a piece!

Oh, also! I have the best friends in the entire world. Saturday, my shower and bachelorette party, was WONDERFUL. My friends were more than generous in their gift-giving. Love them!

Friday Fill-Ins on a SUNDAY!

1. The first rule of working in an office and getting along is keep your head down and just do your job.
2. I'm not sure I've ever eaten clams.
3. When I think of carnivals I think of the show Carnivale, which is much missed, at least by me.
4. The lily of the valley is my favorite spring flower.
5. Things on my desk include a file for a motion to suppress that I'm working on, a Matchbox car that Ricky got me for Christmas one year, lots of awesome Post-It notes, and a ton of pens.
6. This wedding I'm planning makes me wanna tear my hair out.
7. And as for the weekend, Friday night I'm looking forward to seeing a good friend, Saturday my plans include my bridal shower and bachelorette party and Sunday, I want to recover!

SOOOO Busy!

Between wedding stuff, work, and birthdays, this week has flown by. Monday night, I went out with friends from work for a co-worker's birthday. Wednesday was MY birthday (another YEAR older and deeper in debt) and trivia night (we WON!). Thursday night I had dinner with our friends, including our "reverend," to discuss wedding plans. I've tried to reserve the tables and chairs this week, but needed a deposit, which I didn't have. They're not really open on the weekends, so hopefully I can get that done Monday. I DID, however, secure borrowed table coverings from a co-worker who had a family reunion or something recently. Today is both my bridal shower (brunch) and bachelorette party (80's-themed), AND my dress is in, so I need to go down south to pick it up. AARRGGHH! If I don't make it today, I have to go tomorrow, but I also need to get my hair cut and prepare for trials next week.

There is still much to do before the wedding. I really should have taken some time off between now and then, other than the two days right before. I'm starting to stress...