Isn’t that enough? I’m nine days away from a wedding. I’m so excited I can’t stand it.

Well we have two weeks to go before the big day.  Less than actually.  We’re so excited but also ready to just be married and enjoying a normal life.  I’m hoping to start blogging again more regularly after that.  I’ll actually have free time again that I can dedicate to anything I choose (and even a little expendable income that will no longer be going to wedding plans and honeymoon budgets). 

I’m just so excited.  I can’t believe I get to marry HIM. 

I’m getting married.  It’s still not registering when I say it.  I just can’t believe that my life is working out like this.  What on earth did I do to deserve marrying the guy of my dreams?  Sure, there’s stress, and some things don’t work out the way I’d hoped, but nothing could have prepared me for this blessing. 

We’re getting married with views of the mountains in front of us and our families behind us.  We’re going to have a commitment ceremony later in front of our friends, because they matter too. 

 I’ve been a nervous wreck worrying about the dress (evidently most people have more than 5 months of wedding planning, and just ordering a dress takes 4 months!) and worrying about the logistics of it all.  Of course I want it to be perfect.  Of course I want to look beautiful in the perfect dress.  Things like that can make me crazy.  We decided yesterday, that it WON’T be perfect.  We’ll have Mother Nature to contend with, as well as one of the busiest places and months the Smokies have.  But you know what?  He is.  And we are.  And that is all that matters!

I’m going to need to take a break (as I obviously have for a while now) due to a new job and no home internet connection.  More details to come, when I can actually update this thing!

My dear friends (and Cash’s godparents) welcomed their first child, a baby girl, on Tuesday night.  Abigail Mosi Swanson joined the party weighing in at 7lbs.  Mother and baby are doing well and hope to be home tonight (father is presumably ecstatic).  We’re all very excited to meet her, and thrilled everyone is doing so well.

 Welcome, Abigail, and congrats Dan and Jenny!

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I got to spend some time with my brother, his girlfriend and my niece yesterday.  We had a nice time just goofing off and doing nothing.  We don’t see them as much as you’d expect with us living as closely as we do, so it’s always nice to take some time and relax with them. 

Lake is growing so fast and walking like it’s no one’s business.  She has the best personality and smiles and giggles constantly.  She talks and talks and talks, but of course, we have no idea what she is saying.  She finally warmed up to B (after her first introduction when she was a baby and cried) and now she just smiles at him and crawls all over him and flirts.  Its so cute watching her look up and smile so mischievously.  She’s going to be such a fun little girl; she already is. 

*Adorable picture lifted from Karissa’s myspace!

A few weeks ago B got an email about an old redbone coon hound that needed adopting.  He immediately wanted to adopt him.  It wasn’t unlike the feeling I had after I had seen Cash’s picture and a few weeks later heard he was going to PetSmart hopefully to be adopted.  In my mind, if he was going to be adopted, he was going to be adopted by me.  Now in both of our situations, neither of us were looking for a dog, but immediately knew that this dog’s home was with us.  I think that’s probably how it goes, if it’s right, you just know this dog is supposed to be in your family.

Well someone spoke up before we did and the dog ended up in Virginia with a family that had never had an indoor dog before but was willing to give it a try for this old boy.  When B heard the news, he was heartbroken.  He woke up in the middle of the night to tell me, “I hope he poops in their house, then they won’t want an indoor dog for sure.” 

Well evidently the “praying for poop” campaign worked, because we got an email from the rescue lady that the adoption had not, in fact, worked out, and the family wasn’t ready for an indoor dog.  We were to meet her on Sunday so she could see the home and meet us.

When she got there, we put Cash outside so he wouldn’t be overwhelmed with excitement (Cash is very high strung) and met the dog with much excitement of our own.  We took him outside to meet and play with Cash.  They immediately got along, even though he’s an old lazy dog and Cash is a 5 year old ball of energy.  When we took them back inside and we were talking with the lady about what she knew of him (he was found in a ditch in Kentucky nearly starved and flea and tick-ridden, but is now up to date on all shots and parasite-free).  Cash still wanting to play, was really enthralled with him, he, on the other hand, wanted nothing more to do with playing.  He jumped up on the couch (which is completely allowed in my house) and curled up on B and put his head on his chest.  We all agreed, he had found his home. 

He is Leon, the 8 year old redbone.  Welcome home, Leon.

Edit: This picture was not posed.  That is exactly where he crawled.

I am in sales.  I love to negotiate.  I’d like to think I’m pretty good at it.  But when it comes to MY life, I absolutely HATE negotiating things.  I really do.  Ugh.

My first high school boyrfriend’s mother was Korean and I asked him once if he knew any Korean or had picked up anything from her.   He replied, “I know how to say ‘I can’t take it any more!”  I thought it was hilarious and immediately pictured his mother screaming that around the house. 

After today, I now see a value to knowing how to scream that in a language others might not understand.