Stopping the Countdown?

I have a conundrum. Here I am counting down the wedding, a day at a time…hoping the weather chills for I know Matt wants a temperate day as to avoid blistering sun and tremendous puddles of sweat. And I’ve been hoping for that for him too, as I like to see him smile and want him happy. Then it happened, there I was sitting with my legs about in the fire place, with my hood up and tied while we experienced our first night camping for the season. We actually turned on the furnace in the camper and I realized this was summer…starting to freeze away from me. The closer we get to the wedding, the closer we get to winter! NO! Which means, jackets and shovels, and boots, and no more patio. TERRIBLE!

Aside from the chilly nights, it was a great trip. Matt was there for dive weekend and dive training with the volunteer fire department. We got there Thursday night in time to set up and have a few hot dogs. They dove both Friday and Saturday but we had some quality time on both those days after the dive. I did have other wives that were there with their families to hang with and a bridesmaid was also staying just down the street from us, and I even got to clean up the camper and organize a bit (my thoughts and the camper). Was a weird feeling to be away from the house and the majority of the wedding stuff….it was a force to not do any of it, and there was nothing that we could do about it. Matt and I also headed to Michele and Randy’s camp ground for a quick visit. Was good to see them! We are hoping we can get another pull in this year before the wedding and spend it with them. It was the first time that I got to really experience some of my Christmas gifts! Michele had given me solar powered pink flamingos and mom had given me battery operated ball lights, which can be set on a timer and flash. I put all those up on the camper. It looks beautiful. I think I need to a few other lights too…I was getting ideas from other campsites. I don’t think Matt was appreciative enough.

So the week was a blur up to the camping trip. Brendan stayed for the week too, so he was in and out. It was poor TonyDanza’s turn to go to the vet. I’d been watching his eye for the past week and a half and it was doing that mattery, watering thing, I assumed he got it scratched, so we ended up with drops for him. I’m not sure what scratched it, Nike or Lola. Both of them for different reasons. We also spent some time with our shower gift juicer. We juiced quite a few things…I’ve determined we can’t juice again until we make it to Sam’s Club to buy fruit at a great price versus in Dickinson. I was pleasantly surprised with what we came up with.

Best meal: t-bones with capris salad enjoyed in the camper. I so enjoy camper food.

MJR: I have a shopping list for you.
ALM: Oh?
MJR: Cucumbers, broccoli, beets, carrots, tomatoes, apples, pears, ginger, celery, grapes, kale, and spinach
ALM: Are you serious?
MJR: I found some juicing recipes.
ALM: Kale? Seriously?
MJR: Oh and parsley. I forgot to tell you that.
ALM: It’s a good thing you are cute when you are excited.

Wedding newsflash: IF YOU HAVEN’T GOTTEN YOUR DANG HOTEL ROOMS or YOU KNOW OF SOMEONE WHO HASN’T…NOW IS THE TIME TO QUIT THE PROCRASTINATION. The rooms are here today, gone on Thursday.

40 Days

Showered with Love.

Wedding Update….

1. I’m proud (and relieved) to say that we officially have all the tux measurements in. I’m also incredibly proud to say that my father, Mr. GruffnTuff, was the first one (aside from Matt) to get his measurements in. So that’s done.

2. I’ve had a flower update from my maid of honor who has taken on the job of creating 51 bridal party arrangements and then guest arrangements as well. She’s informed me that I’m to get them later this month.

3. Programs have been created. Some info just needs to be verified but for the most part they are done. My mother will be printing them and then we’ll be binding together soonish.

4. Bridesmaid’s hair appointments have been scheduled. I’m excited to hear that all my bridesmaids will be getting their hair done, looking forward to a moment of fun. I’m hoping they have their fittings planned as I have a feeling a lot of the dresses will need to be shortened.

5. I have my appointments scheduled: hair cut, hair color, make up…and due to the graciousness of my mother, I’m getting my fingers and toes done too, that was her bridal shower gift to me.

6. Decorations have been started. Yes, we are hiring a decorator but I wanted to create some personalized touches that show off Matt and I both as a couple and individually. Matt and I have both had a hand in them…so that’s exciting another great part to me. We’ll meet with our decorator this week to go over what our final decisions are.

7. Ceremony is outlined. We have our ceremony song, readings, order, message, and so on created. In fact, I’ve already gotten my reading to my aunt who has informed me that she’s glad for the time to practice as she’s nervous about her happy tears, I stated that I of anyone understands…I’m scared to death that I’m going to be a puddle of a bride on our day.

8. My bachelorette party is planned and I’m excited to see what Tiff and my sister are cooking up. I’m pumped as what little I’ve heard sounds great.

9. My wedding dress has been fitted. My mother and I went into the alterations place this past weekend and for the first time ever, I saw my dress, veil, shoes, jewelry, and so on all together.

10. We met with the reception hall contact, we got the menu, details, tables, and so on all hashed out. Matt and I have enjoyed working with them. They have a nice facility, they get back to us pretty quickly, and seem to have a good hand on this event thing!

11. I’ve been showered!!! How fun was this past weekend. My aunties (Grace, Merri, Descie, and Janice) through me a shower and it was absolutely wonderful. They had a few games, a few stories, and had Janice shower me with some well thought/well lived advice for marriage and life. There were a few moments that brought me to tears for one reason or another. Janice got a smart phone and seems to have not quite mastered the art of the camera phone as of yet, but she wasn’t going to stop herself from continuing to try. Another good laugh was when we played “All about Amanda” and Grandma Dar couldn’t believe that Merri knew all the answers! My mother had to explain to her that Merri may not know all the answers, but I did! The other part that brought tears to my eyes, was when Janice gave my Great, Great Grandma Lydia’s wedding gift of a crystal pitcher, received in 1906. It was then reminded to me that I’m the first Dagman granddaughter to get married.

I had a nice turnout, complete with a couple bridesmaids, two mothers (1 of the bride, 1 of the groom), 2 grandparents, 2 great aunts, 3 aunts, 1 cousin and 1 cousin-in-law, 2 Matt supporters (plus his mother), and a sister! They gave Matt and I some wonderful gifts and when I reviewed them with him, I’m not sure which one was his favorite, the saws-all that his parents gave us or the juicer that my aunts gave us! Either way, we felt very loved when I told him about the party and showed him what we had been given.

The second shower was given by Gerry Ann, a close family friend and neighbor. She invited my mother’s birthday group ladies who have watched me grow up, forever! We had a themed shower for the second one, garden/yard party and it was such a kick. Matt had to laugh when I unpacked the four gnomes to show him what we had received. It was nice to see them and so many had returned their RSVP and I’m excited for them to meet Matt.

So all in all, the weekend was an enjoyable success. We went to the Radisson, we toured Hawktree, we got the items for my dress fitting, and despite my meltdown and anger with David’s Bridal (DON’T EVER GO THERE), Matt showed me again that he can handle things in a crisis and reminded me that it will be a beautiful day. While I was being showered, he served as the right hand man to my Dad. They did some tasks around the farm yard and then on Sunday, he learned how to rake. I am glad that he has enjoyed helping and is willing to, it’s such a part of where I come from that it feels like I’m sharing a bit of my past with him. I also told him that bonding to my father is being in the same field in different tractors, so it shouldn’t be taken lightly…ha!

Best meal: Spaghetti at my mother’s…with garlic bread, per Matt’s request, despite the fact that my dad thought that my mother was a liar.

MJR: I don’t think I can golf at your parents.
ALM: How many balls did you lose?
MJR: 4. In the ditch.
The next Monday
DMM: Where did Matt say he put those balls in the ditch?
ALM: I’m not sure, I’ll ask. ----- He says they are off the first bale.
DMM: What?! What a wimp, I was expecting much further.
In the background: MJR: I was using a short club.
ALM: He said it’s because he was using a short club, not a driver.
DMM: Likely story. He’ll haftah wait until Delzer’s rake to see if I can find anymore.
                    46 Days.

Wild West Weddings and Bettering Bathrooms

It’s amazing where the summer is going? I love the hot weather, the bright sunshine, the long hours, the lack of a jacket, the ability to just throw any random pair of shoes on and go, the leaving windows open, the grilling, the sitting on the patio, the strolling through the yard to see what new blooms are happening, I like all of summer. I’m totally aware that Matt is a fall guy where you wake up and there’s a slight chill and when you go to bed the temp drops again, the coffee and cider in the morning weather, and the colors. But me…I’ll take summer with its sun. Hard to believe we are sitting at July 15th and before we know it, the leaves will begin to change and we’ll have our first winter in the condo.

The condo has been coming along. I’ll admit, it’s not as serious as it was. We aren’t up every night til midnight. I don’t look longly at the boxes in serious wonderment and things are settling into place. Last week while Matt was in the basement with the air conditioner, I was in the basement with boxes labeled books. I saw books that I haven’t seen in three years…and was shocked. We will be purging some of these books and it’s good to get the boxes out and make a bit of progress. Matt’s continuing to work on the master bathroom. We got the vanity in, sink on, faucet in, caulking happening, light in. I painted the trim that he cut and we are hoping to get another layer on and get that in on Tuesday night after he gets the toilet pieced together and that in as well. I have the shower curtain rod waiting and Matt needs to rig his showerhead but we are in pretty good shape considering a couple weeks ago we were staring at the wallpaperless sad walls with the carpet under our feet.

While Matt concentrated on the condo, I got started with some of the details that I had wanted for the wedding. My priority has been to personalize the wedding. I know many of the people coming know either Matt or I so we are trying to show a little about each other as well as information about us. I worked on some boards…but won’t reveal what these are until people show up to the wedding! We have a big planning day on Friday as we are meeting with the hotel, checking with some vendors, and finalizing some dress details.

Speaking of weddings, we were invited to one of Matt’s employee’s weddings and I was so glad we went. They had originally planned to have their wedding back at his hometown of Cleveland, but after making Western ND their home, they decided to bring everyone out to Dickinson. They held their wedding in Medora, in the TR National Park in Wind Canyon. What a beautiful wedding, it was very small (35 people) and very simple (no programs, no tuxes, no chairs, no centerpieces) and it was one of the most touching weddings I’ve been too. The couple was so excited to hear the words, I now pronounce you “husband and wife”…it was like they’ve been waiting a million years to hear that. Brought tears to my eyes at how genuine the wedding was to the couple. I did get in the car and ask if we were overdoing things a bit too much. Matt did respond appropriately with the fact that I’m looking for things that are important to us just as they did things true to their relationship. Made me feel a bit better.

After their ceremony, we had a bit of time and decided to use the “gift” that the couple gave us, admittance into the park. We took the loop tour, which I hadn’t done since I was 12 or 13, when my mother and father took Alaina and I for a “business”-related family trip. We saw a herd of buffalo, three herds of horses, 2 buffalos that thought that they belonged to a horse herd, 29 prairie dogs, and some amazing views. It was a great trip to remind myself that we are pretty dang close to a very beautiful place.

Best Meal: Michele and Randy caught walleye that Matt made into fish taco with margaritas and dos equis.

“I’m tired of going to weddings and not getting married!” – ALM
                             54 days

Fourth of July: Friends & Fun!

It’s amazing how my Fourth of July’s have changed over the years from getting rowdy with the girls to working house projects with the husband to be. I’m GROWING up!!!

We’ve had another week of projects that are coming to a close, we haven’t been as rushed lately for a couple reasons, we are moved in and the second, we are sick of working on projects. Matt’s been working on the master bath’s trim work, I’ve been working on sorting boxes, and we both did a bit of work in the garage. I’m not exactly sure of what to do in there always as I think of it as Matt land…where he should know where things are and go and the flow…all I care about in terms of the general location is where exactly is my car getting to sit overnight and during snow events. So while Matt sorted and organized, I decided I wasn’t ready to drop “some” of my boxes off at the dump, it was time to display them. Matt didn’t seem to appreciate them. I did notice that he hung a couple “pin-ups” of my high school senior pics up.

We had some fun on the 4th, it wasn’t all house projects. We started the night before at Rick and Shantelle's as they had people over for some light fireworks, a fire, and dinner. It was nice to talk with her, we haven't been able to get together since the wedding. Life has gotten in the way. On the fourth, we had my Aunt Descie stop by on her way home and I gave her the grand tour, including the pool. After she left, we had supper and managed to go for our first condo swim before heading out to Deb and Kev’s for fireworks. We had a little unexpected show as one of their son’s friends is a fire thrower. He lights these small lighter-fluid filled “buckets” on fire that are hooked to a foot and a half of chains and twirls them around his body sometimes entangling them together, spinning or even throwing them in the air. Trying to describe in writing what it looked like or how he did it doesn’t quite do it justice when you see these balls of fire wrapping around his body and legs and even starting the fringe of his jeans on fire.

Friday, we were in for a treat as Randy and Michele with Bob and Donna in toe came to check on us and take a road trip from camping. We had been struggling with our air conditioner and blower motor as Matt couldn’t seem to get them working together. After spending quite a bit of time down there and all the shops that could give us parts closing, we had to quit. Randy, Bob, and him got it going the next day, but much to our disappointment, it went out again within 24 hours. Back to square one in struggling and thinking. Matt and him have a couple more theories and I’m glad that we aren’t relying on the blower for heat in the middle of January. We ended the night in a way that we'd planned for quite a long time, just hadn't had the chance to do. We went to the Mexican restaurant, which was down the hill. Enjoyed margaritas til we couldn't anymore and then walked up the hill!

We had a little excitement on Saturday, we thought it may be a good time to let Nike start to explore her surroundings. Bad idea. She did well for the first half hour until she decided to scoot under the deck and when we opened the back gate she was halfway down the path to the end of the condo units, which scared Matt as he thought she may be on her way “back home”. So we attempted to get her out…from under the deck…for over 3 hours. She wasn’t having it. We finally got her out (with TonyDanza it would have been

easy, he is completely motivated by food) and she seemed okay with it for the most part but we had some issues that made us schedule a vet appointment on Monday, I guess we will have to watch her for the next little bit and hope that everything is okay. No more excursions for awhile.

Best meal: Best meal in a long time was smoked salmon, pinot steam mussels, a bottle of dry Riesling, and a capris salad. I forget how much I love salmon until I eat it. So good!

Honorable mention: Saturday morning, Matt made me something out of a page of our Chicago trip, smoked salmon with cream cheese and capers omelets! SO good.

ALM: These ones I want to hang up. They were my big wins.

MJR: (Grabs hammer and nails)

ALM: See this one is when I went to Louisville. I was the big shit.

MJR: (Pounding)

ALM: You aren’t even measuring these to see if they are level.

MJR: (Pounding)

ALM: Did you even see if that was centered?

MJR: (Pounding)

ALM: Those don’t appear to be spaced evenly.

MJR: (Pounding)

ALM: You don’t seem to be taking these serious.

ALM: (Looking)

ALM: You seem awful cavalier about my previous accomplishments.

61 Days

Vowing...

We are getting more settled into the house on Hillside. We have yet to use the pool, which I feel that when we do, will be a nice reward. But we have been unpacking and shifting and settling. We have been tweaking in the yard. Matt’s kohlrabi is coming up, I don’t have high expectations, but we’ll see how it goes. My Super Fantastic tomato is giving me high hopes and Matt’s beans have a bit of way to go. But the bright spot of the yard right now is the peonies. THEY are BEAUTIFUL! I’m so glad to see them and the bloom came as a nice surprise on Monday night!

We also took in the Rotary Officer Cross Over this week. Matt stepped down as treasurer after three years and has decided to watch the leadership ladder. He accepted the vice president position. He also accepted a very fitting award, “The Knight in Shining Armour” award, for his servitude of jumping in and changing a fellow Rotarian’s flat tire on the interstate. He did make me proud that day after we got her on the road. He also made me smile at the cross over when he introduced me as his beautiful fiancé. That has such a nice ring.

The big part of the week was my cousin, Daniel’s wedding. It was a nice ceremony and you could tell they were surrounded by friends and family. I also got to give props to a couple that does things true to themselves. They had camo (both green and white) vests for the groomsmen and the bride wore white and brown cowboy boots under her dress. Made me very ready for our dance as it will be a similar crowd with the Dagman family present and when we visited with Daniel he told us that the hardest part was standing in front of everyone and reciting the vows and I’m sure he’s right and I will be nervous and I will bumble and I’m fully realizing that I will cry, great! It was nice to enjoy the wedding with Matt, we have been to more weddings where each other has been in the wedding than we get to take in. We even took in a dance and I was told that he liked my dress. I deem the night a success.

Best meal: Greg and Stacy's house...we were able to catch up with one of my bridesmaids a bit and she had made risotto, steak, pasta salad and an AMAZING dessert so between the dessert, the drinks, and the company...we had a great time.

ALM and MJR going through their clothes to purge.
ALM: Do you want to keep this one?
MJR: Yes, it can go up in the bedroom, I wear that in the summer.
ALM: This one?
MJR: No. The fit is off.
ALM: This one?
MJR: (staring)
ALM: I don’t think I’ve seen you in this one.
MJR: No, you wouldn’t have.
ALM: (staring back)
MJR: That’s my pimping and clubbing shirt.
ALM: (eye roll)

68 days