Becoming Wife..

Happy Birthday Dave!!

2010-07-28T13:27:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, we celebrated Dave's birthday with a trip to the cabin in N Georgia. We had an absolute blast and packed our days with a trip to Helen for some 'rapid' tubing and then a white water rafting trip on the Chatooga River with SouthEastern Expeditions. Below is a picture that was taken just before our raft completely capsized, forcing all to swim to shore..it was really fun!

We are in the middle row

Dave,

Although we've spent many of your birthdays together already, this was the first time I could buy you a 'happy birthday husband' card and it was a really special feeling being able to do so! I love you so much and am very grateful to have you in my life. I hope we get to have many more adventures together throughout our marriage. Happy Birthday!

Love,

P.S. Here's a look back at your first two birthdays :)

Your 1st Birthday

Your 2nd Bday, camping with Dad

Baked Sweet Onion Dip

2010-05-06T17:51:00.000-07:00

A few months ago now, Dave and I bought our first gas BBQ grill. In honor of that, we've found many reasons to invite people over to hang out, nibble on different treats and then, yes, barbeque lots of stuff! I came across this recipe on tastykitchen and everyone LOVES it. It's completely terrible for you, and also completely addictive, so don't even bother if you or your friends are watching waistlines.. I've made it twice and doubled it both times. It actually turns out to be quite a lot of dip that way, but it's never gone to waste!

Here it is for those of you who are interested:

8 oz cream cheese, very soft

1 C mayonnaise

1 C sweet onion, minced

1 C freshly grated parmesan cheese

1 T fresh ground pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, mix the softened cream cheese (needs to have a spreadable consistency) with all other ingredients. Place mixture into ramekins or another oven safe dish and bake 30-45 minutes. You want to allow enough time in the oven for all of the flavors to come out and meld together. The top should brown nicely before taking it out.
Serve with your favorite crackers (it's really good on club crackers!) or crusty bread.

Enjoy!

Because we REALLY like food..

2010-05-05T16:07:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite past times of late, is searching lots of food sites for good recipes. Every now and then I come across some that look really good and we decide to give them a try. The following are two such recipes that dave has given 'two thumbs up'. We both like Asian food a lot, so last week I made this Orange Chicken recipe I found on tastykitchen.com and then tonight I made Rachael Ray's Special Fried Rice with some added chicken. For the Orange Chicken recipe, I took the advise of other reviewers and cut way back on the amt of brown sugar. I only used about 1/3 of a cup, I think. Also, to be a little healthier, I completely omitted frying the chicken and instead just cooked it in a skillet with some Pam. Really all I used on the chicken was the salt and pepper, figuring the sauce would provide plenty of flavor. I'll probably fry it next time, though, b/c I can see where that would add a little extra texture. I served it with steamed broccoli and steamed rice. As far as the fried rice recipe goes, we cooked some chicken breasts in our Wok first (while the rice was boiling) and then removed that to be added back at the end. We used plain old Publix brand reduced sodium soy sauce, instead of the other kind mentioned in the recipe. I also put the bottle of soy sauce on the table with dinner. We both used a little extra.
We really enjoyed these, so I hope someone else does, too!

Month One

2010-02-18T10:46:00.000-08:00

    Ok, well we've made it a little past one month of married life, but it's taken me a while to find the time to blog about it. Unfortunately, it seems that we spent most of our first month passing germs back and forth and one of us was always sick until just a few weeks ago. Even so, we've managed to stay really busy since getting hitched. Almost every weekend we've travelled out of town to see some one, visit some place or return something. I guess things are finally starting to settle down, although we are planning to go to St Pete this weekend for the wedding our friends Bently and Paulette.
   It didn't occur to me on Feb 2 that it had been a month since we'd gotten married. I think we had kept so busy that it just didn't seem possible so much time had already passed. I left for work that morning with the intention of coming home at lunch and starting chicken and dumplings in our crockpot for dinner that night. However, after getting to work I realized I had an eye appointment during lunch that day and would not have time to make it home. When Dave got home, he called me to ask what had happened with his chicken and dumplings b/c he had been given very specific instructions as far as what I needed him to do to finish things up before I would get home. I told him about the eye appointment and reminded him that we had some frozen chicken we could thaw, instead, or that we could have some spaghetti for a quick dinner. He said okay and we got off the phone..
I don't remember why, but for some reason I got off from work about 15 minutes earlier than normal. I make it home within about 5 minutes and walk in the door to find a dimly lit living/dining room, the CD with our wedding song is playing, our table is filled with lit candles and tealights, there are roses, wine and I can hear Dave in the kitchen. At first he kind of yells "why are you already home? I'm not ready yet!" but, as his pork chops (made with our new le creuset grill) came out of the oven, and he saw my pure excitement that we would FINALLY use our dining room table for the first time in this house, he got over my early arrival, wished me a happy one month anniversary and poured me a glass of wine. I love my husband.
    I'm not the best photographer and my lighting was bad, but this is basically what our table looked like:

We also had a great Valentine's Day. We decided in advance that we were going to celebrate on the 13th this year, instead of our usual 15th (that day is special to us and allows us to avoid most of the crowds). That morning, Dave got up and tried to make me breakfast in bed. I say tried b/c I felt him slip out of bed and found myself following him into the living room before long. Even though I was a bad wife and refused to go back to bed, he still let me eat some of the chocolate chip pancakes he had made.. While I was eating my delicious pancakes, Dave left the room and came back with a card and some chocolate dipped strawberries that he had made. I really, really love chocolate dipped strawberries! We exchanged cards and Dave said that he had bought us tickets to see the movie Valentine's Day at 4:30. We had a few errands to run that day and when we were done and found ourselves with nothing else to do, we decided to try and switch to an earlier showing. We got to the theather around 3:00, I think, but both the 3:30 and 4:00 showings were sold out, so we were stuck with our later show. We sucked it up, walked across the street to our favorite Gainesville happy hour spot and had a few beers before showtime. Eventually, we made our way back over to the theater to see our movie, which was not the greatest ever, but it was funny and we enjoyed it. Afterward, realizing what the crowds would probably be like everywhere (the parking lot we were in was JAM PACKED! from the movies and the several restaurants in the area), we decided just to go pick something up at Publix and make it at home. So, Dave picked out some delicious looking filet mignon and we ate that with baked potatoes and green beans until we thought we might die, we were so full!

On Monday, the 15th, even though we had splurged on steaks a few nights before, we both wanted to go have our night out like we always had, so Dave took me to Carrabbas for dinner. It was absolutely delicious and while we ate our fried zucchini, we talked about how much we wish we could go back to the night of our rehearsal dinner at maggianos, where we had such wonderful food and were surrounded by all of our best friends. It's funny how you put so much time and work into something (the wedding) and its all over in an instant. I'm not sure that there's anything we would do differently, it was just so much fun that we wish we could experience all of the festivities again! I guess for now, we'll have to live vicariously through Bently and Paulette and just try to enjoy all of the fun of a wedding without actually having to do any of the decision making!

Speaking of our wedding, this is one of the most recent gifts we've received. It's from a friend of ours in South Florida and although he gave us a gift at the wedding, he said he found this and knew he had to send it to us, so here's a picture:

In case you can't tell, it's meant to resemble a wedding cake, but the bottom two tiers are his and hers gator bath towels and the top is a gator blanket. He also had out initials put on the chapaigne glasses on top. I thought this was absolutely adorable when we got it, so I wanted to share!

Whoa!

2010-01-23T18:07:00.000-08:00

Last night at happy hour, Dave introduced me as his wife for the very first time. It was wierd..(just ask his friends!) Although things are definitely different now and I do FEEL married, I guess the idea of being "wife" is going to take some getting used to...

Married!

2010-01-17T15:29:00.001-08:00

I can't believe it's all over! Actually, I can't believe it's been over for more than 2 weeks! We had such a great time at our wedding on January 2nd! I've often heard that your wedding day goes by in a blur, but somehow thought I'd be exempt from that group..I'm not. Although I feel like I spent a lot of time getting ready in the morning and taking pictures before the ceremony with the girls, hanging out in the women's locker room of TPC, I swear the rest of it went by in a flash. I vaguely remember some of what our pastor said at the ceremony, but I mostly remember walking down the aisle with my Dad, holding Dave's hand throughout the ceremony, expecting to be cold, but actually sweating, Dave holding my veil against my back so it wouldn't blow in my face (it was awfully windy..), seeing my sister cry, best man Jonathan dropping my ring, but then quickly recovering (Dave never even realized this happened), and then being married and getting my first kiss as a wife!

The reception was by far my favorite part of the day. I love D'Land Entertainment and they did a GREAT job with our music! Dave and I both danced the night away, although it may have been at the cost of greeting some of our guests.. It seemed like everytime we made it to a table to say "hello" and "thank you for coming," we were called away to some other purpose. I do know that I relished every single moment of that evening, from the food right on down to the dancing! Dave's family really seemed to enjoy the "name that tune" game the DJ played. Guests had to correctly name the song being played in order to get up and get their food. I also distinctly remember one of Dave's younger cousins, Katie, being an absolute riot on the dance floor! This girl shook every part of her body ALL night! The first time I took notice was actually when we first sat down to eat. Dave and I had been watching people run up to the DJ to try to name that song, while other guests came back to their tables with food. Eventually, all parties were invitied to eat and I saw Miss Katie cross the dance floor with a plate full of food, just a boogyin' the whole way!

Dave and I were really sorry that the reception had to end so early, but we are so grateful to everyone who came and celebrated with us. We hope you all had as great a time as we did!

Pics from our photographer

2010-01-17T15:15:00.001-08:00

A Cold, Christmas, and the Countdown

2009-12-27T09:39:00.000-08:00

So, I haven't written lately b/c I came down with a nasty cold a few weeks ago and haven't been up for doing much of anything. Fortunately, the cold is mostly gone, but much to my dismay, it appearantly settled in my ear, causing an infection. I went to the doctor last week and was given some antibiotics and drops for the pain. Although the ear no longer hurts, it's still blocked with fluid, so I had to go back again today. Appearantly, the antibiotics weren't strong enough to do the trick, so I left today with three more prescriptions and very wet eyes.. The doctor gave me a stronger antibiotic that will hopefully kill my ear infection, along with steroids to reduce the inflammation, helping the fluid to drain. However, she explained that taking so many antibiotics will most likely lead to a yeast infection, which is why there's a third prescription. As soon as she told me that, I started balling. I told her I couldn't get a yeast infection right now b/c I'm getting married in 6 days and begged for some other remedy. She was sympathetic, but said the best she could do was to write me the script now for the yeast infection in case it develops.. It's not been a very good day..

On the bright side, we had a nice Christmas. Dave and I drove to his parents place in Orlando and stayed there Christmas Eve. For whatever reason, I had a really hard time sleeping and ended up updating my facebook page until about 1:00 Christmas morning. Then, I was so tired Christmas day, that I ended up taking a nap b/t presents and 'dinner'. We came home Christmas night and I slept another 12 hours..

Only 6 days left!! I'm off to take about 7 more pills, but any prayers you have for me to get well before our wedding/honeymoon would be GREATLY appreciated! I'm already concerned about flying with my ear feeling the way it does, but if it doesn't get better I definitely can't scuba dive with Dave, either. :(

Basil and Goat cheese. Mmmmmmm!

2009-11-14T07:27:00.000-08:00

I came across a Bobby Flay recipe a few months ago for a roasted red pepper pizza and I was dying to try it! I followed every step, roasting my own peppers and making oil to pour atop the pizza and it was pretty good. Since then, however, Dave and I have made some changes to the recipe, making it much easier and cheaper to make. I never knew that I liked goat cheese until I made this pizza, but it is AWESOME! We've even started growing our own basil to eliminate one of the more expensive ingredients. So for those of you who like pizza, here you go:

1 bag fresh pizza dough from bakery

1 (8 oz) pkg fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced

1 (6 oz) jar tomato sauce

Basil

Crumbled goat cheese

Start out by letting your dough rest for atleast an hour. This will make it more pliable and easier to work with. I usually roll it out with a rolling pin, then work it some with my hands. Be sure to flour the surface and your rolling pin if you choose that method. Dave and I prefer to cook our pizza on a pizza stone, so we bought one at Target a few months ago for less than 15 bucks and it's been great..I highly recommend them! Once you have the dough to your desired thickness, spread it out on a preheated pizza stone to allow the bottom to cook some while you 'decorate' your pie. We do this because when we first started making the pizzas, we noticed that the crust in the middle never seemed to cook all the way through.

Once the crust is laid out, place a few basil leaves on the dough. I normally chiffonade the basil to make it easier to eat. Then, spread out your tomato sauce over the basil. Now, the recipe we started with calls for a whole can of tomato sauce, however, I find that to be way too much, so we normally just use about 1/3 of the can. On top of the sauce, layer your thinly sliced mozzarella then top when a sprinkle of goat cheese.

It took me a while to figure this out, but Publix actually sells their own brand of goat cheese, already crumbled in a plastic container. In our Publix, it's usually right in the dairy section with the other 'normal' cheeses, as opposed to the 'fancy' cheeses. It's about 3 dollars, I think, and we get three pizzas out of each container, so it's a really good deal!

Enjoy!

Must Be Love!

2009-11-10T17:30:00.000-08:00

It all started when the sun came up today, beaming through my blinds and hitting my eyelids at roughly 6:45am. I might have been able to over look it, but Dave chose that moment to come into my room and tell me goodbye. He was off to work..then to Vegas...for 6 days. Well, technically Vegas is only 5 days, but he left today, the 6th day, to stay with his parents the night before his flight out of Orlando. Today is Tuesday, one of only two days during the week in which I get to sleep in. But I didn't b/c even in my sleepy state, I knew it was the last time I'd be seeing him for several days and wanted desperately to make our last face to face conversation a conscious one. Normally, I'd roll out of bed around 8:30 on a Tuesday so needless to say, I was a little tired (and cranky) when I got to work. I'm also not entirely in love with my current work environment, so the day just sort of spiraled downward. It was one of those days where I was just on the verge of tears for hours.

But then, thanks to my beloved, my day turned around. First, he surprised me a little after 4 by coming to my office for a final goodbye. I was in a loan closing, but he just sat down and waited for me. When I was done, we talked for a little bit before I walked him back outside. He said things that made me giggle and gave me lots of kisses, immediately changing my outlook on the day. As if that wasn't enough, I was absolutely giddy to come home and find that he had remembered to leave the porch light on so I wouldn't have to struggle to find the keyhole in our front door that night. (sounds lame, but it's such a relief!) I opened the door and turned on the light when I discovered a vase of roses sitting on our living room table, next to a brand new Bridal magazine. On top of the magazine was a note reminding me that he loves me and hinting that there's another surprise in our refrigerator. So, naturally, I skipped to the kitchen and threw open the fridge door! On the top shelf, I saw a six pack of Shock Top, one of my very favorite beers, and a note written along the side of the box in black marker, again telling me how much he loves me. I set my groceries on the counter and came into the office to look up a recipe for dinner. I clicked on my username and up came my settings, but the wall paper had been changed. Instead of the beautiful picture of a field full of yellow tulips, I now have an artistically "painted" love note to read.

I love feeling loved, especially when it's not expected. I knew Dave had a lot to do this afternoon to get ready for his trip. I knew he'd been stressing out over getting it all done and I knew that I was REALLY going to miss him while he's gone. I guess he knew that part, too. I tried hard not to say it too often and I told myself not to cry when I told him goodbye, but I couldn't hold back when I walked into the house and found myself surrounded by all of his "i love yous". I'm so glad to know that he knows me so well, that he knows I need reminders of him when he's not here.

We've recently been studying the book of Ephesians together, focusing on what the Bible has to say about husbands and wives loving each other sacrificially. Our pastor has talked to us a great deal about how this love is meant to play out in a marriage. He's pointed out to Dave that women were designed as emotional creatures and need to be pursued by their husbands, that they need confirmation from their husbands about how they feel.

We still have about 8 weeks left before we're husband and wife, but it feels really good to know that he's been paying attention...

A Few More Recipes..

2009-11-07T05:40:00.000-08:00

I was given this dip recipe originally by my mom, who had tried it at a school function for my little sister. I've since modified it a bit to make it a little more grown-up (spicy) but you can really change it in a number of ways to make it fit your needs. I make this most often for football parties, but it's a great entertaining 'appetizer' that all of our friends love!

Buffalo Chicken Dip

1 8oz pkg cream cheese (I use low fat)

1/2 C Frank's Red Hot (or some buffalo sauce)

1/2 bottle ranch dressing

1 8oz pkg shredded cheese (I use sharp cheddar)

2 C chicken, cooked and shredded

Place chicken on bottom of 13x9 dish. Melt together the cream cheese and ranch dressing. Spread over chicken. Evenly distribute buffalo sauce over chicken mixture. Top with shredded cheese. Bake 20 min at 375.

If you don't like buffalo flavor, or want to make this a little more kid friendly, you can easily omit the Frank's Red Hot . Also, I've had this dip with 1/2 c blue cheese dressing instead of ranch and 1/2 c blue cheese crumbles instead of the shredded cheese, for those of you who like that sort of thing..(i wouldn't touch blue cheese with a ten foot pole) Lastly, I normally boil some frozen chicken breasts and shred those, but as a shortcut, you can buy a whole rotisserie chicken and shred that for a little white and dark meat (and some extra flavor).

Italian Sausage Penne

I really like sausage and cheese, so this recipe is great for me! I've traded out the Italian sausage for a spicier version, but both are great. This is really an easy dish to make and it has a lot of delicious flavors:

12 oz penne pasta

2 T olive oil

1# Italian Sausage

2 C shredded mozzarella

6 oz tomato paste

1 C chopped onion

1/2 C white wine

15 oz tomato sauce

14.5 oz diced tomato w/ garlic
         (I don't think I could find a mixture in our store with only these ingredients. I believe ours had some cilantro or other herbs added to it, as well.)

Cook pasta to al dente. Heat oil in a large skillet. Cook sausage and onion over med-high heat until browned. Drain. Add wine, 1 min, to deglaze. add tomatoes and simmer 10 min, stirring occassionally. Toss with pasta and place in 13x9 pan. Sprinkle with cheese and bake 20 minutes at 350.

Best Ever Mac and Cheese Casserole

O.K., now I used to make Paula Deen's Cheesy Mac, but for some reason mine always came out dry. I came across this recipe last year and have had a lot of success with it. In fact, I made this last week for a Halloween-Thanksgiving meal that we shared with some friends and the dish was practically licked clean (but not by me, I promise!)

1/2 lb elbow macaroni

3 T butter

3 T flour

1/2 C yellow onion, diced (can omit)

1 T ground mustard (I use less)

3 C milk

1 bay leaf

1/2 t paprika

1 large egg

12 oz sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

1 t salt

1 t pepper

Topping

3 T butter

1 C panko

Cook pasta to al dente in salted water. Melt butter in large saucepan. Whisk in flour and mustard about 5 minutes. Remove lumps. Stir in milk, onion, bay leaf and paprika. Simmer 10 minutes and remove bay leaf. Temper in egg. Stir in 3/4 cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Fold in macaroni. Mix and pour into 2 Qt casserole dish. Top with remaining cheese.

Toss panko with butter in saucepan, over low heat. Top macaroni with the crumb mixture. Bake 30 min at 350, uncovered. Remove from oven and rest 5 min. Alot of times, I place under the broiler for just a few minutes to further brown the panko.

*the only criticism I've received about this dish is that a few people don't like the onions. They don't really get cooked beforehand, they just simmer in the milk mixture, so they have a little crunch in the dish. I kind of like it, but it can easily be omitted. Also, the first time I made this, I used all of the ground mustard it called for, but I think it gave the macaroni a really strong taste, so I put less than 1/2 T in now.

Enjoy!

Stove Top Pork Chops

I want to say that I got this recipe from Southern Living, but I'm not absolutely positive, so don't hold me to it. Dave and I really like to buy meat when it's on sale, so we tend to find a few good recipes we really like and alternate between them whenever the main ingredient can be found for cheap.  This is one of my favorites for pork.

3 T flour

1 t rosemary

2 T Olive Oil

2 garlic cloves, pressed

1/2 t salt, pepper

2 T butter

1/3 C balsamic vinegar

1 (14.5oz) can chicken broth

6 boneless chops (3/4 in)

Combine flour, rosemary, salt and pepper. Dredge chops in mixture. Melt butter w/ oil in large skillet over med-high heat. Add garlic and saute 1 minute. Add chops and cook 4 minutes each side, or till golden.  Remove chops. Add broth and vinegar, stirring to loosed particles. Cook 6 minutes or till liquid reduces by 1/2. Add chops back to skillet and cook 5 minutes.

I like to serve this with wild rice and salad or green beans.

Lastly, for now, we have our staple casserole:

Crunchy Chicken Casserole

This is a recipe Dave's mom used to make him every year on his birthday. I got it from her a few years ago and made it as a surprise and we both still really like it.. I will say, this recipe might be better for kids than adults b/c of it's monotone flavors, but it's really easy and has a lot of cheese (which I l-o-v-e LOVE!). You be the judge:

1 can chicken broth

8 oz cheddar cheese, shredded or sliced

1/4 c flour

2 T butter

1 pkg frozen crinkle cut carrots

1.5 lbs chicken, cooked and shredded or cubed

stuffing (we use pepperidge farm)

Melt butter in large saucepan. Add flour and chicken broth. I usually only use about 1/2 the can of chicken broth. I don't know if they used to come in smaller sizes or what, but all of the smallest can of broth seems to make the dish a little too liquidy in the end. So, reserve about 1/2 of the can to use in place of water for the stuffing mix. Allow mixture to heat, then add cheese, stirring until melted and thickened.

Partially cook carrots in microwave. Add, along with chicken, to the cheese sauce.

Pour cheese mixture into casserole dish. Make enough stuffing to fill to the top of dish (I think our recipe calls for 3 cups dried stuffing and we add the butter and broth). Top chicken mixture with stuffing and bake at 350 until heated through (about 20-30 minutes).

*Dave's Mom also used to add a jar of pimentos (I guess for color), but he's not a fan, so I don't.

Recipe Exchange!

2009-11-06T16:52:00.001-08:00

Thank you for setting this up, Katie! I love getting new recipes b/c cooking for only two people, we tend to eat a lot of leftovers and the old stanbys get a little worn out.. Unfortunately, I don't have a huge arsecal of recipes like some of you, but I'll try to post the good ones as I find adn try them! I found this recipe the other day on tastykitchen. I really love Mexican flavors and I was very pleasantly surprised by how much I liked this soup. In the future, I will probably add another chicken breast (only used two this time) and possibly serve it over white rice to make it a bit heartier. Hope you enjoy!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

1 cup carrots, diced (about 3)

1 cup celery, diced (about 3 stalks)

1 cup onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 t salt

1/4 t pepper

2 T oil

8 C chicken broth

15 oz can diced tomoatoes

10 oz Rotel

1 pkg taco seasoning

12 oz, weight, diced or shredded chicken

1 pkg 10 corn tortillas

12 oz pkg Monterey Jack cheese (shredded)

1 C milk

In a large pot, saute carrots, celery, onion, garlic, salt and pepper in the oil. (I put the lid on a stockpot and sauteed them about 10 minutes b/c Dave sliced our carrots rather than dicing them, so I wanted to make sure they got a little soft.) Add all of the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add tomatoes, Rotel, taco seasoning, and chicken. Cut tortillas into small pieces (about 1" squares) and add to the pot. Let boil for 10 minutes, being sure to stir often to keep the tortillas from sticking. Reduce heat and add the cheese. Simmer 10 minutes. Add milk and simmer for a final 10 minutes.

Served with cornbread muffins, made by my awesome college roommie! Enjoy!

Call me Mrs Miller!

2009-11-06T10:12:00.000-08:00

Guess who got engaged!?!? I haven't called anyone yet b/c Dave and I haven't been together long enough since last night's proposal to make the calls together. I know most of you don't check this daily, so I'm not too concerned about you finding out before I get the chance to call. Dave took me to an incredibly romantic dinner last night at a new family-owned Italian place we've been wanting to try. We had my favorite wine, some fantastic food (we'll definitely be going there again!) and even better dessert. I knew the night would be special when Dave offered to pick me up to make it feel more like a "date" and then showed up at my door with flowers and a card telling me how much he loves me. I had no idea what was actually in store for the rest of the evening, though.. After dinner, Dave took me

Happy April Fools Day..

Remember this???
I posted this a little over a year ago in another blog b/c everyone was expecting an engagement soon...and I REALLY wanted it!! Well, we finally did get engaged about 10 months later and are now well on our way to being married. Less than two months left before the big day and things are really starting to pick up again with planning! I hope this blog will be something to look back on years from now, reminding me of all the bliss (and frustration) involved in being a fiancee. :)