Calm Before The Storm.

Friday was a long day. Jon didn’t get home until late; so that meant that cozying up on the couch with a blanket and wine seemed appropriate. ‘Marley and Me’ was on and I felt compelled to watch it. It’s one of my favorite movies. Not because it’s cute, but because of how the movie is all about challenges; it’s not sugar coated at all. There are so many scenes in that movie that I can relate to – and naturally I started crying; bawling my eyes out to be exact. That movie always makes me cry. Of course the next movie to come on after that was ‘Dear John’; another sob-fest. Needless to say my eyes were red and puffy the next day.

Saturdays are my favorite. We woke up to a beautiful morning, made coffee and did our routine of cuddling up on the couch watching TV. Now that fall has hit, the only TV we watch on the weekends now is Football. But it’s ok…I’m starting to warm up to the sport – and to be honest it wouldn’t feel like fall without Football.

Jon went to work for a few hours which meant it was time to clean! Saturday was a BIG cleaning day for me. Sometimes I get in those moods where I just need to clean. Now that we have hardwood floors, cleaning just went to a whole new level. It usually requires at least two Swiffer pads (which is a lifesaver, by the way) to sweep the floors; then after that, I went over it all again with the Swiffer mop. The sheets and comforter were washed; laundry folded; bathrooms cleaned; furniture dusted; and bed made. It was definitely a process…but one that desperately needed to be done.

Sunday was a little more laid back…fortunately. We drank our coffee and ate yummy blueberry bread, over a game of Sequence. It’s “our thing” lately. We have a tally sheet to keep track of how many wins we each have. I’m officially three games ahead of him now (yessssss)…which he’s a little upset over. Let’s just say that Jon doesn’t take losing very lightly….

Four football games were watched and more wedding stuff was planned. I’m having fun jotting down notes and ideas in my bride book. I’m an organized freak, so this ‘bride’s book’ will be my life for the next 11 months; no joke. I’ve officially made up my mind on who my bridesmaids will be and I can’t wait to tell them this weekend. They all pretty much know, but it’s important for me to ‘ask’ them. Everything 'wedding' is coming along smoothly.

As I’m sitting here writing, I peek up at the calendar to check the date…and reality sets in…..

I can’t believe it’s already almost October. Feels like yesterday we were soaking up the sun at camping back in July; or walking along Lake Tahoe back in April. This year has gone by WAY too fast. And even though it's fall, it sure doesn't feel that way outside. We had a weird heat wave over the weekend that has chose to continue on until today. It's 100 degrees outside right now...and I'm stuck inside at work. Funny how it always works out like that.

With October here, that means that it’s time to start decorating for Halloween and preparing for costumes. I'm such a festive kind of person...and I look forward to decorating for holidays. Speaking of holidays, I can officially say that this month will fly by. We have plans every weekend this month; and moving into November. Before we know it, Thanksgiving and Christmas will be here!

Even though we did absolutely nothing over the weekend but hang around the house, we needed it. It was our last weekend of being lazy. Our last weekend of sleeping in. Our last weekend of watching TV all day.

It’s going to be a stressful couple of months, but I need to remember to sit back and enjoy the days of fall…..it’s a beautiful season.

It's Official.

The venue has been chosen. The date has been booked. We’re officially getting married next year, 9/16/2011.

And now…a sigh of relief.

I was so stressed that when we would finally meet with the venue coordinator, our date would be taken. Or it wasn’t as beautiful as we imagined it to be. Or they didn’t offer what we were looking for. All these different “what ifs” scoured about in my head. But stress no more. The venue coordinator was lovely. The date we wanted hadn’t been booked yet. And the venue site was absolutely perfect. It was everything we imagined…and more.

It’s still so surreal to think that this is finally happening for me. I’m marrying the man I love in less than a year. I’ve been in so many weddings, and watched many of my friends walk down the isle,; but now it’s my turn. I’m the happiest I’ve ever been.

And now, the real planning begins. Before I was searching endlessly through magazines, finding colors, ideas, dresses…everything. Now, it’s all starting to happen. I was putting together a timeline, and realized that by the end of December, our wedding will only be 8 months away. I can’t even believe how fast this year is going to go by.

Next week I’m meeting with the girls who will be my bridesmaids. Of course, my ever so creative self, thought of a clever (but cute) way to ask each of them. Something special, for special ladies. I know that once I ask the girls, then all the fun starts! We’ll have to plan a date to try on the bridesmaids dresses; late nights of putting center pieces together and stuffing envelopes for invitations. All things I’m looking forward to.

I love all this talk about planning the wedding. I love booking meetings with the vendors. I love writing in my Bride Book.

I. Love. It. All

But most of all, I love the person that I will be sharing the rest of my life with.

Twenty Six.

Officially. And of course, a year older doesn’t feel any different. What a wonderful birthday it was though. I woke up early Saturday morning to fresh roses, a balloon and my favorite Starbucks coffee from Jon. I sat in bed sipping my coffee, browsing over one of the many bridal magazines I’ve purchased. The French doors in our room were open so we could hear all the beautiful noises of nature on such a gorgeous morning.

A beautiful morning turned into a wonderful day. I introduced Jon to this fabulous little Greek restaurant in Downtown, followed by a birthday shopping spree. Only, I was having issues that day and (of course), nothing fit. I did manage to find two pairs of jeans. Later that evening we went to a local bar to celebrate with some friends. Great friends and good times.


Yesterday my Mom and Chardel accompanied me to my first Bridal Faire. It was a smaller faire since it was just for all the local vendors, but we had a blast! Tons of free stuff! And let’s face it; I’m all about the free stuff.


Last weekend we also went to try on a few wedding dresses. I only tried on a few since it was an "impromptu" visit, but I can honestly say that I may have found “the one”. It’s beautiful. Every dress I tried on, I liked…but this one, I loved. I have a feeling all the other dresses I’ll be trying on over the next few weeks won’t even compare.


Wedding planning has been fun but also a little overwhelming. I’m glad that I have friends that are newlyweds that can offer us advice and help. They all say to pick your venue first; and once that is done, everything else will fall into place. So, Saturday we are viewing the venue that we’ve had our eye on before we were even engaged. Once we pick our date, then we can move forward with everything else. We have a year to plan the wedding, so that should give me enough time. Jon has taken over the honeymoon planning (which will be kept a secret from me; it’s a surprise!); and I get to plan the wedding.


Definitely looking forward to it.

He Asked...I Said Yes!!

Yes…the title is exactly what you think. I am happy to announce that Jon and I are engaged! It was such a magical day and I will never forget it. I keep reminding myself that it’s really happening! I really have a beautiful ring on my finger. I’m really planning a wedding. I’m really walking down the isle in a year. I’m really marrying my best friend.
It’s been two days since he got down on one knee, and I can’t believe I haven’t rushed to the computer to write about it. But I have to write it all down now…while it’s still fresh in my mind. I want to look back, years down the road, and remember the exact way I felt on the day my dreams came true. Many of you are waiting for “the story”, so here it is…..

About a week ago, Jon said that he wanted to go to lunch together since we hadn’t in a while. He said it was a surprise lunch. I didn’t think twice about it since he has been known to do this, on many occasions. He picked me up around 11:15 and we hopped on the freeway and drove. He asked if I wanted to know where we were going. I simply replied “no, just surprise me”. As we continued to drive, and drive…and drive, past all the exits that had food, I began to wonder where we were going. I continuously asked Jon if I had been to “this place” before and he convinced me that I had and that we both “love their food”. As we got closer in the heart of Livermore, I thought to myself, ‘I know I’ve never had lunch over here with him before…perhaps he’s losing his mind?’.

 I asked one more time and he said “well, we’re not eating yet…first I wanted to take you to Alden Lane so you can pick out any plant you want”. He continued, “A year ago today, I asked you to be my girlfriend, so today is special. I know how much you love this place, so whatever plant you want, it’s yours”. Now, mind you, the man hates plants, so I was just excited to be able to have some plants in the house!

 We got out of the car and started walking towards the nursery. We looked around outside for about 5 minutes. I remember thinking how beautiful it was outside and what perfect weather it was. I could feel the sun on my face and I could smell all the different scents of the flowers. A perfect mixture. Jon then said he was going to ask where the restroom was…so off he went.

 A few minutes later, I heard him call my name behind me. He was carrying a beautiful plant with baby blue flowers. As he sat the plant on a bench near a big beautiful water fountain, I walked towards it thinking how pretty is really was. I went to pick up the plant and a name tag with my name was sitting perfectly in the plant. I made a joke that “this plant has my name on it”. I then realized that there was a small black box behind the name tag. I set the plant down and opened the box to find two flawless rings placed inside the box – one being a diamond wedding band, and the other, an engagement ring.

 I immediately turned around to face Jon, the exact moment he was kneeling to the ground. My heart was racing; my fingers were trembling; the tears started to well up in my eyes. He got down on one knee, took my hand and said “I love you so much. And I want to spend the rest of my life with you…and I promise you that I will take such good care of you. Jennifer Elizabeth, will you marry me?”

 I looked at him, smiled and with a shaky voice, said “yes!”

 He stood up, we put the ring on my finger…and it was a perfect fit. The diamonds were so sparkly and I couldn’t help but stare. Word of our engagement around the nursery caught on very quickly and the entire staff was so happy for us. They took our picture and made our day so much more special. We even made it to the main page of their website.

 It was a day that I will never forget. I’m so lucky to have met him and I can’t wait to spend the rest of our lives together. We were meant to be…something we’ve known from the moment we met.

So there you have it...our proposal story! And so the planning begins….

Jonathan & Jennifer
September 1st, 2010

Alden Lane, Livermore CA