And.... married

I know everyone in the world tells you that your wedding goes by in a flash, but I had no idea how true it was until it was my turn. I married my best guy on April 10, 2010 on a beautiful spring day in Houston. It was sunny, but not hot, the night breeze felt amazing.... and I was glowing. I never would have thought of myself as one to glow, but everyone said I was absolutely beaming from happiness, and I believe it. The weekend kicked off with a welcome dinner at my sister's home, followed by a bridal luncheon the next day, then rehearsal dinner, then a full day of wedding makeup/hair with all of my favorite females, wedding, and then a post-wedding brunch on Sunday. It was an extraordinary weekend, and it was the joining of two amazing families. Even D, who had really not wanted as large a wedding as we had thanked my mom and I for ignoring him for the past year and a half because we planned the wedding he didn't know he wanted. Everyone had so much fun courtesy of a great band, booze, food, good friends, and feather boas and glow sticks :). Pictures to follow, especially on facebook for my friends.

Then came the honeymoon. Hawaii was glorious. We started the trip in Maui for 5 days, went to the Big Island for 5 days, and then went to Oahu for three days. It was gorgeous, and we had a good mix of active activities and laying around soaking up sun and pina coladas :).

Coming home was so hard..... it's almost like dealing with a post-partum depression. I'm so happy that D is now my husband, and I couldn't love him more, but it's strange no longer having something that took up such a large chunk of my life. I miss my out of town friends that I got to spend quality time with the weekend of the wedding. I miss beautiful Hawaii and not having a care in the world except for cementing our new married bond. Obviously, coming back to work after being out for 2.5 weeks is a rough transition, and I've been working almost straight through since I got home. I have another Saturday workday this weekend, but then I get to take Monday off, which will be nice to get some things done around the house and start working on the millions of thank you notes that we have to send.

Now it's time to look forward to the future and really determine what kind of life we want to lead, where we want to live, when we want to buy a home, when we want to have kids, how will we save our money, etc. etc. They are very grownup decisions, but I'm excited to have a strong and loving partner by my side to enjoy this adventure that we call life.....

Hmm, so there went 6 months

I realize I haven't blogged for a good 6 months now. I can only blame busyness. My job is great, but it leaves little time for perusing the internets during the day ;).

I'm 5 days out from my wedding. I've had my share of meltdowns over the past 19 months of engagement, but I'm now feeling pretty relaxed. Still have a fair amount of nervous energy, but I think that is excitement and nerves all rolled into one. I really can't believe that it's here. We have been engaged for what feels like forever. Tomorrow is my last day at work, tomorrow night is my final dress fitting, festivities begin on Thursday night, wedding on Saturday, and by this time next week, I'll be on a plane to Hawaii for two weeks of bliss with my new husband :).

This feels like the most grownup thing I've ever done. Probably because it is.

I'm ready to be a Mrs.!!!

*Slaps self across face*

I've been bad again, but I hope to be better. I know, promises, promises. I need some follow through!

So, the past couple of weeks have been eventful. I had my biggest work event of the year this past weekend..... and it will be my last one at my current job, because I just got a new job with TNT! I am very excited, this organization is where my true passion lies. I am psyched about being on the inside to make a difference in the fight against blood cancers. I hope that it goes well, I hope that I am successful, and I hope I am a part of the process that gets us to a cure. I start my new job a week from Wednesday, so that means pretty quick turnaround, but it's better not to be idle......

Running has kind of fallen on the back burner as things have been crazy busy, but I am hoping to get back into the groove starting tonight. I am headed home after work to change and go do an easy 30 minute run and some weights. I need to counteract my laziness/tons of M&Ms I ate today. Bad, Bad K.

It's very weird to try and wrap things up in my current position. This was my very first grown up job, and it's strange leaving it. It makes me feel even more like a real grown up. Which I rarely feel like.

This is short, and somewhat boring.... I'll try to make it more interesting soon. I'm wrapping up so that I can leave for the day!

I've been a bad blogger

I have been the kind of blogger that I like to complain about. I've been neglectful of my readers. Thank, Jill, for calling me out on it ;).

Here's a little life wrap up....

Work: Been busy, we have our biggest event of the year coming up. I'm trying to get my end organized and make sure everything is in place.

Love: Still in it! D and I have been doing well. I luuurrrvvvvv him.

Wedding: Making progress! I booked a florist, bought a veil.... I'm still in search of someone to do my hair. I went and scouted invitations last weekend, and I think I found some that I like. As per usual, I do the scouting, narrow things down, and then present my top pick to D for approval.

Training: We are a month into training, and it's going alright so far. I'm definitely one of the slowest people out there, but that's alright. I AM out there! I've been better about sticking to my training schedule. I try and go right after work in order to prevent the "I'm too tired and want to sit on the couch because it's right there" itis. Half marathoners like myself are doing four miles (with hills!!!) this weekend. Woo! And that leads to the reminder about donating......

Weight: I think I've finally found something that works for me. I've been eating smaller meals more often, and I'm never starving. I try and focus on low calorie, high fiber or high protein snacks to supplement the time in between meals. I dare say I think I'm changing my metabolism, and it's working out for me. Yay! Food is always the biggest roadblock in my quest to slim down. I love it too much.

Not much else to report..... D and I are having some adventures in parenting this weekend. We'll be watching my sister's three kids overnight for the first time. We've done plenty of babysitting and hanging out during the day, but overnight...... Yikes! I hope it goes well. I would like to return all of her children in one piece :).

I'll try and compose a more entertaining, thoughtful piece soon, I just wanted to say wassup to my friends, and I'll be back soon!

I'm back!

It's been a bloggy break for me, but I'm back. I know there must have been at least four of you that were freaking out!

D and I spent the last week in beautiful Beavercreek, Colorado. But, before getting to the good stuff, let's travel back in time, to Thursday, July 23, a time when innocence was shattered and dreams were crushed.....

Food poisoning. I'd never had it before, and I hope I never have it again. D and I picked up chinese food from Qin Dynasty, a place close to my mom's house. We'd eaten there several times before without incident, but we made the mistake of ordering a new dish that had shrimp and scallops in it. Ug, I should have known from the first bite that it was bad news, but we kept eating. And we got horribly, horribly sick. And I didn't get over the last of my food sickness related "symptoms" (I won't go into detail) until last Friday. A full week later. Major suck.

To make it even better, when D called to report what happened to us and ask for a refund of our meal (all of about $30), the manager he spoke to was vile, accused him of lying, said they had no record of our order (even though we paid with a credit card and have the records to prove it), and startged laughing as D described his symptoms. This. meant. war.

We've reported them to the BBB and the health department. And I'm advising everyone I know to steer clear of that place. This is no time for poor customer service. Major suck on their part.

But, in happier news, we travelled to Colorado and had an amazing week. There was no TV or internet, and it was kind of refreshing to get away from it all. D's parents and grandparents were there, and we got to stay in his cousin's amazing 5,500 sq ft. mountain home. Seriously gorgeous. The views from the road coming up the mountain were spectacular. We drank wine, played board games, read lots of books, went on hikes.... it was a truly relaxing vacation. We got to go into Breckenridge, which is where my family had a home for years till my folks split. It was so fun! We went to the Alpine slide, which is a totally fun cement slide built into the side of a mountain. You take a ski lift to the top, and you ride a toboggan down, with a stick in the middle to control your speed. Of course, the only real fun speed is FAST :). We had lunch at the Breckenridge Brewery, and sampled many delicious local beers. One of my favorite parts of Colorado was all of the awesome local brews that you can only get in that area. MMMMMMM. :)

During lunch at the brewery, I started talking about some of my Breck memories, including how my family and I always used to eat my birthday dinner at a place called the Hearthstone, and I always got the prime rib. Well, D's folks announced that is what we would do the night before my birthday (because we had to leave CO on my birthday). And Hearthstone didn't disappoint! We had an amazing dinner. We started with baked brie and delicious corn soup, I moved on to the prime rib, D had Colorado lamb shank, and I got a double chocolate cake with a candle for dessert. All in all, a perfect birthday dinner.

Sadly, D and I had to return home on my birthday, so the actual day of was slightly lame. D made it better by buying me the hugest card know to man, and surprising me with Swirll with all my favorite toppings :). The trip to CO was my birthday gift, and what a great gift it was. Now I'm 27 and officially old!

Tomorrow is my next round of MD Anderson tests, so think good thoughts for me. I think after this round I got to drop down to only going in every 6 months. Yay! This weekend I'll be attending my first team in training practice. I'm excited, but I am so desperately out of shape. It's embarrassing. Oh well, I do it for the cause, not the glory ;).

Fab McFaberson weekend

This past weekend was a lot of unexpected fun. Friday night D and I were cooking at home, having a beer, planning a low key night when I got a call from one of my long lost friends from law school, KC. She and my other long lost law school friend, E, were in town from Austin for an event that their firm was having at Armadillo Palace. The firm invited all the offices from around the country to partake in this event. That means free food and drinks all night. We were sold :).

We showed up, and KC proceeded to look through the pile of nametags and pick 2 of the most generic names possible, and gave them to us. D and I were "John and Mary Smith". We soon dispensed with the formality, since no one cared we were crashers, and we ate, drank, danced, and had a merry time. They had a butt caricaturist there. Yes, butt. He drew people from the behind. D and I got a really sweet picture of us with our arms around each other. When the clock struck one am, we turned into pumpkins and headed home.

I woke up Saturday morning with a headache. A headache only to rival the headache of my beloved. After some water and Motrin, I shuttled myself to the gym (I've been on a crazy awesome work out streak!!!) and got my workout in. Saturday night, D and I went over to my friend S's house to check it out. We hadn't seen S in a few months, and his home was great. D declared a craving for shrimp and grits, so the three of us went over to Pesce, and it was delicious. D got his shrimp and FABULOUS grits, and I had herb crusted grouper with risotto (also very good). It was a really nice night and has potentially inspired a city-wide shrimp and grits tour.

Sunday was another wake up and work out day, followed by grocery shopping, and an afternoon of lazy tv watching with D. We checked watched the first two episodes of Hung, a new show on HBO. Like most HBO shows, it was quality. Another keeper for us.

Monday was rough, getting back into the groove is always tough.... but the good news is that I'm headed out of town this weekend for a quick in-state jaunt with a friend, and then next week D and I leave for colorful Colorado!!!!!!!

Shredded

In an effort to expand my workout repertoire, I've been trying to cross train in order to not get bored of any one workout and build strength. Clearly, I'm going to have to devote the majority of my time to running soon, but I don't want to forget things like strength training and swimming laps.

It's been so freakin hot in Houston that I've thusfar limited my running to twice a week (which will change starting in August), and I'm trying to do something different on other days. I was also looking for a shorter, but effective workout that I could do at home on those days where I didn't have a lot of extra time, and that brought my to Jillian Michaels and the 30 day shred.

Jillian is one of the trainers on the show Biggest Loser, and she's an animal. Very in shape, the type of woman who could probably lift a car over her head (I exaggerate only slightly!). She has created this ridiculous workout program called the 30 day shred. It's only a 30 minute workout, but you are moving the entire time, you are working multiple muscle groups at once, and she combines strength training with cardio and abs. I was skeptical at first that this could be an effective workout, but I'm now a believer. She has kicked my butt the last two nights. Profuse sweating is involved. My body is incredibly achy today, but it's a satisfying ache.

Tonight I return to the great hot outdoors to run with running buddy K. It's hellaciously hot outside, but we've got to do it. There are 13.1 miles to be run, and it sneaks up on your incredibly quickly. Tomorrow is a day off, and then Friday is back to running. On the weekends, D and I head to the gym, where I do some interval running on the treadmill and weights. And I'll throw in some swimming every once in a while when I want to buck the heat. It's working for me for now.

I'm taking a vacation day on Friday because I can, and then saturday I'm buying my veil!!!! Very psyched about this, it will make my wedding "outfit" almost complete. The dress and veil are something new..... any suggestions for old, borrowed, and new?