Going to the chapel

...I mean courthouse. Yesterday Ryan and I went downtown to get our marriage license. The pastor will sign it after the ceremony and send it back in to the courts. It came in a keepsake envelope that I promptly put a shoe-print on when I set it down in the car.

After the courthouse we stopped to see an ATC exhibit at European Papers on Town Street. They had a lot of neat cards on display, and a great little shop selling gifts and art/craft supplies.

We had a delicious lunch at DeLevee in the Short North. We had spinach and mushroom etoufee and a chicken and bean dish. We scarfed it down and headed home.

On our way home we stopped at EverestGear.com and we each got a pair of Soloman TechAmphibian shoes for Vietnam. This way we wont have to worry about getting them wet in Halong Bay or in our other excursions and having wet feet all day.
We finished the afternoon with a bike ride and Ryan calling me a baby because the seat hurt my backside. And for the record, it still hurts as I'm sitting here blogging about it!

Tom Jones!

You don't have to be rich to be my....wife!

Saturday was my much anticipated bachelorette party and it was so much fun! I ended up working on Saturday, and the nurse following me (the same one who threw me the mini birthday party in the nurses station) very sweetly came in about an hour early so that I could go home and shower and get ready for the party.

I wore my new black skirt and white top what I had been saving for the party. I also made my own necklace to wear and embellished my shoes with some white flowers. I felt great and headed over to Ang's house (Ryan dropped me off).

Jen was already there, and her, Ang, and I snacked on some chips, salsa and chex mix while we waited for Kaleigh and Stef to arrive. We had a bit of sangria and before we knew it Stef and Kaleigh walked in.

Kaleigh brought cute take-out boxes filled with lei's, bachelorette mints, and stickers. Jen made wine glasses with our names on them, and Stef and Ang made me underwear with puffy paint and crystals on them!

Jen and Ang also gave me some really nice lingerie.

After snacking and having a spot of sangria, we went to Abuelo's at Easton for dinner. My friend Nicole joined us. I had the best avocado enchiladas! We had a lot of fun, I posed with everyone's drink...which made it look like I had a lot more than my "Please make it weak" strawberry daiquiri.

After dinner Nicole headed home, and the rest of use went over to the Shadowbox Cabaret. One of my co-workers joined us. As we were waiting for the show to start, I was called up to the stage. I sat in a chair on the stage, when all of a sudden music started and "Tom Jones" came out! He was completely in character, and serenaded me to "Kiss." I was loving every minute of it, and we got a couple pictures that Shadowbox e-mailed us.
We were beat after the show so we just headed home. Jen slept at my apartment, Kaleigh went back to her hotel where her family was staying, and Stef slept at Ang's house. The next morning Ang, Stef, Ryan and I had breakfast a First Watch in Worthington. It was a good morning :)



The week following was fairly uneventful. However, we were able to enjoy some German food at Schmidt's with Ryan and his brother-in-law, Scott. We had dinner last night with Ryan's parents at Banana Bean Cafe. We all LOVED our food and had some great Jeni's ice cream afterward.

Less than 4 weeks to go!

We are officially under 4 weeks til wedding, and Ryan and I are getting so excited! Yesterday, my mom, Greg, Grandpa, and Grandma all came down to Columbus to visit with Ryan and I. My mom bright my dress, and I was able to try it on. It's a little snug up top, but overall it fit pretty well.

We ate at Bel Lago, the same place my mom and I went on her last visit. After lunch we all went to the North Market and walked around, getting some ice cream at Jeni's on the way out.

It was a nice visit, Grandpa even fixed the blinds in our bedroom while he was here.

Tomorrow night is my bachelorette party! I am so excited to have dinner and see a show with my dearest friends and cousins. I work tomorrow, but I am hoping to get out a little early so I can get ready. Luckily I'm off Sunday, so we can all have breakfast in the morning. I'm excited to see the little surprises that the gals have up their sleeves.

A Very Vibram Summer

Ryan FINALLY got his much-coveted Vibram 5-finger Shoes. He's been after them for months, but they are hard for shoe stores around here to keep in stock. He's been doing everything in them and seems to like them a lot. I caught the table next to us staring at his feet when we were at Lavash for dinner. I said "Looking at the shoes?" and that started a little conversation and Ryan was able to tell a bit about them.
The best part about Ryan not working on the weekends is that he gets to go to the Farmers' Market on Saturdays. He always comes back with a colorful array of produce and the tomatoes are the best I've ever had.I've managed to finish a couple ATCs and even make some beads between work and school work. I'm satisfied with the beads for my first try. They are supposed to be "Pandora Style".The Bachelorette party is coming up and I am so excited! I have something new to wear, and I love the Shadowbox Cabaret, where we are going. My cousin, Kaleigh, is joining us. She is 15, and one of my bridesmaids. It was really important to me that she is able to come to the party and have fun with all of us, and I got a conform that yes, she is coming. I'm thrilled!

Associate of the Month

This morning around 9am my phone rang and "Trillium" showed up on the caller id. "Uh oh," I thought, as I always do when work calls. It ended up being my supervisor calling to tell me that yesterday, at the all-associate meeting, it was announced that Yours Truly is the July Associate of the Month! I am so thrilled about this!

Today was the all-resident monthly meeting, and I was able to sneak away to accept my honor at the meeting. The Director said some nice things about me, and I was able to say a few words of thanks.

July also marks my one-year anniversary with the company. Very big personal milestone for me.

Farmers' markets and summer fun

My, my, my what a busy 10 days it has been. Ryan and I have been using our new coffee pot everyday. We also dehydrated some bananas, kiwi, and blueberries in our dehydrator. The bananas and kiwi came out pretty good, but we over did the blueberries a little. Better luck next time.

I started my "Preceptorship" through school. I am following a nurse in a Hospice company while she goes out on her visits, meetings, etc. So far all of the nurses and patients have been very pleasant. I have a feeling though, that by the end of the quarter I might see a person who is actively dying. I've really never had that experience before.

I've been working quite a bit, and this week I started my little volunteer project at work. Every Thursday I am going to go into Trillium for an hour or so to paint nails. Yesterday I did about 7 residents and 5 of them picked the same color! It was fun, and I think it brightened their day. I also think I need to get more mauve polish.

My birthday was yesterday also. Ryan was kinda bummed that I picked up a shift at work last night and we couldn't hang out, but we were able to get some Chipotle for dinner and enjoy that together.

I received so many birthday cards and messages - It all made me so happy.

When I walked into work last night at 7, my friend and co-worker Miranda had our little office break room decorated for my birthday with some beautiful desserts. I was so touched that she set that up for me. I was tired, coming in to work after already working that morning, and kinda down about not spending the evening with Ryan, so when I walked in and saw what Miranda did I just felt so loved and so happy! It was a really great surprise. Miranda is really a great nurse and person.




Well I've been pretty bogged down with work, hospice, and school this week, so hopefully next week will be a little smoother. Til next time!

Oh...one more thing! Our honeymoon tickets are booked! We will be flying into Hanoi on 12/10, and coming back on 12/31!

Once upon a shower...

Where do I begin?

On Friday Ryan, myself, and my friend and bridesmaid Stef drove up to Youngstown for the shower. Friday night Stef, my cousin Kaleigh (another bridesmaid) and I went to the salon that will be doing my hair and makeup for a trial run. Everything came out PERFECT! Stef took a lot of pictures, but I can't post them because I don't want Ryan to have any idea what I will look like on the wedding day. I absolutely loved both my hair and my makeup.

Saturday was my bridal shower. I've been looking forward to it all summer. It was a great afternoon. We celebrated with my mom, grandparents, my future mother-in-law, my bridesmaids, and some family members that I don't see nearly enough.

My mom did a wonderful job getting everything set up with help from my grandparents and aunts. My cousins helped with set up and helped with the favors. During the shower we had a "Chinese auction," and gave out beautiful gift baskets my mom put together, as well as a hand painted apron, an art print, and a handmade bracelet.

We ate some great food and I opened so many wonderful gifts. Ryan came at the (very) end of the shower and met some of the guests and helped tear down/load gifts/eat dessert.

The Moms :)
Welcoming guests:
New coffee pot:
New dehydrator:
Stef, my mom, and I ran over to the seamstress' house so she could start fitting my dress.

Hot in...

So hot in herre (anyone picking up the Nelly reference?). Well, we're in the middle of a heat wave here in Columbus, it has been in the mid 90s the past couple days. To get some color without any damage, I've taken to running out to the pool, laying for 10 minutes on my stomach, 10 minutes on my back, and then running back inside. So far it seems to be working. I haven't burned at all, but I also don't feel much more tan.

Ryan spent most of last weekend at the Red River Gorge (again!) with his Dad and Brother-in-law. They stayed at the hostel that Ryan and I originally stayed at last year. From what Ryan tells me they all had a great time.

Unfortunately, the camera was left in his Dad's bag which is now in Cleveland, so I wont have it back til Saturday to post any pictures.

Right now I am drinking my coffee from a "First Watch" mug. Ryan's Mom sent along a little gift for us with his dad. Inside we found a First Watch gift card, a mug, some red pepper garlic sauce, and a really neat bracelet. Thanks Nancy and Terry!

While Ryan was gone I mostly worked and went to the gym a couple times. I also started a "Soul Journal." I've found it pretty therapeutic so far, and if I do say so myself, its looking pretty cool.

Saturday night, when Ryan got back, we went over to my best friend Angela's condo for a cookout and fireworks. It was a lot of fun, she and her boyfriend made Schmidt's sausage and chicken, and her boyfriend made Bald Eagle cookies out of Oreo's, marshmallows, and coconut flakes. They were complete with cashew beaks!

On Monday Ryan and I did some geocaching in the area. We only ended up finding one of 3, but it was a fun one, involving the cement corn statues in Dublin. We then went to the mall to see if any sales were still going on from the 4th. Ryan found a couple polo shirts. We also went up to Polaris, where I found a bachelorette party outfit. We finished the day with Noodle's and Co. for dinner and Rita's Blendinis for dessert!

Yesterday I went to school to get my schedule for this quarter only to find that no, the schedules aren't ready yet. Of course they aren't.

Last night I started making a necklace for my new outfit, and it's about done. I like it! I'll add a pic when I get the camera back.

My Bridal Shower is Saturday and I am so excited!!! I'm looking forward to a great lunch with family and friends, some fun games, good pictures, and good food. Word on the street is that there will be a chocolate fountain!

EDIT: Here are the pictures from the Red!