Sitting on the living room floor, with a small lamp on and 48 LED lights laid out in front of me to finish hot-gluing, I pondered on the amazing things God has pulled off, to make this wedding and marriage happen. First off, getting us to begin a relationship was a miracle in itself. After 4 years of "we know we're supposed to only be friends.... forever" and "she/he's definitely not the one for me".... God stepped into the picture and planted feelings and emotions that would forever change our lives. It was in His timing, His way, for His glory. I believe this with all my heart.
I also believe there is a very special, and specific calling by God on our marriage. What is it? I don't know.... yet. But I do know that we were created to love God whole-heartedly, run after Him every single day relentlessly, and spread His gospel passionately. God knew that Jeramy and I's individual efforts to grow the kingdom, when combined, would multiply! I'm SO excited, in my heart, mind, and spirit, to watch this happen. I'm excited to see God continue to do crazy, out-of-the-box things in our lives.
These were just a few of the rush of thoughts that filled my little head, as I stuck fishing line to those LED's with Stacey's awesome glue gun (ok, actually her MOMS... but yeah. ;-)
It's amazing having so many family in town, and more on their way. Overwhelming would be the right word, actually. To see their love and support of Jeramy and I's life-changing day is so cool. It's just like God to make something crazy like this happen.... we've never had this many family visit Jacksonville, in 10 years!
I've always asked friends, and others, what it feels like the day before your wedding.... time and time again they'd tell me they just couldn't describe it, and I was always bummed out. I just wanted to know. Well, now it's my turn, and I know. Unfortunately... I just can't describe it in words :-) If I had to muster up a word it would be SURREAL. Literally. Surreal. Everything that has happened up to this day is a result of the powerful hand of God. And I know, TOMORROW, His hand will be on us and His presence will be so thick in that room, as we commit our lives, hearts, and love, to each other forever.
Here's to a day of decorating. Might I add, I just LOVE decorating :-)
Just one more day on this journey to the altar.... oh yeah!
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Day 8: Tears, smiles, more tears, more smiles...
Here we are, almost one week from the wedding, and the beginning of the rest of our lives. People's first statement when they see me walking through work or church is, "Are you excited? How are you feeling?". Ha, what a question! AM I excited?! Are you kidding! More excited than I ever imagine. How AM I feeling? Well, that's a question I just don't have an answer for. :-) A rush of emotions would be the best I could say. There are bittersweet moments... moving out, picking songs for the father/daughter dance and Jer and I's first dance, planning the intimate parts of the ceremony, realizing this big step we're taking together.... tears of joy, nerves (but not nervous!)..... it's a beautiful mess to be honest. I cry a lot, and I know it's totally okay to. When I think of the joy I feel right now, it makes me cry too :-) Who knows why. Lol!
I'm so in love. But even more than being "in love", I know Jeramy is my best friend, cares about the deepest parts of me, is here to protect me, and is here to stay with me forever. What better blessing than to find a soulmate like him- who loves and adores Jesus, and me.
Yes, I have a lot more to do, and no time to do it. But, is that a big deal in the giant picture? NO way. Sure it might stress me out for 4 seconds on the day of the wedding, but I can't help but continue to think of this event as much deeper. It is spiritual, it is intimate, it is the joining of two hearts and many dreams. It is a moment, created by Jesus Christ, blessed by Him, and ultimately all planned out by HIM. How awesome!
I'm so excited and overwhelmed by the number of out-of-town family coming in town to support Jeramy and I's marriage. I know I'll get very little time with them, which makes me kind of sad, but just to know they'll be there as witnesses, ready to love and support us, is a blessing to my heart. They'll never know how special it makes me feel, and how much it overwhelms me.
To Jeramy:
Baby, our day is so close! We've waited a long time for this, and I know God has an incredible day planned out for next Friday :-) Thank you for loving me, cherishing me, and being by my side constantly in the past 2 years. I wish I could describe to you in words how honored I feel to become your wife. When I say those vows, I will mean them from the deepest part of my heart. I am filled to the rim with joy, excitement, and expectancy of what God is going to do with our future. I know as we continue to submit to Him, and stay in tune with Him, He will lead us on the mountains, and through the valleys, and will give us direction every single step of the way. I love you, more than I've ever love before, and I value who you are- your gifts, your desires, your dreams. I'm here to lift up your arms, and I'll be here until the day Jesus takes me home. Here's to an awesome last week of being engaged..... but man oh man am I so ready to be MARRIED to you. With all of my love and deepest thanks for being the man of my dreams. -Kath
I'm so in love. But even more than being "in love", I know Jeramy is my best friend, cares about the deepest parts of me, is here to protect me, and is here to stay with me forever. What better blessing than to find a soulmate like him- who loves and adores Jesus, and me.
Yes, I have a lot more to do, and no time to do it. But, is that a big deal in the giant picture? NO way. Sure it might stress me out for 4 seconds on the day of the wedding, but I can't help but continue to think of this event as much deeper. It is spiritual, it is intimate, it is the joining of two hearts and many dreams. It is a moment, created by Jesus Christ, blessed by Him, and ultimately all planned out by HIM. How awesome!
I'm so excited and overwhelmed by the number of out-of-town family coming in town to support Jeramy and I's marriage. I know I'll get very little time with them, which makes me kind of sad, but just to know they'll be there as witnesses, ready to love and support us, is a blessing to my heart. They'll never know how special it makes me feel, and how much it overwhelms me.
To Jeramy:
Baby, our day is so close! We've waited a long time for this, and I know God has an incredible day planned out for next Friday :-) Thank you for loving me, cherishing me, and being by my side constantly in the past 2 years. I wish I could describe to you in words how honored I feel to become your wife. When I say those vows, I will mean them from the deepest part of my heart. I am filled to the rim with joy, excitement, and expectancy of what God is going to do with our future. I know as we continue to submit to Him, and stay in tune with Him, He will lead us on the mountains, and through the valleys, and will give us direction every single step of the way. I love you, more than I've ever love before, and I value who you are- your gifts, your desires, your dreams. I'm here to lift up your arms, and I'll be here until the day Jesus takes me home. Here's to an awesome last week of being engaged..... but man oh man am I so ready to be MARRIED to you. With all of my love and deepest thanks for being the man of my dreams. -Kath
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Day 19: Final Countdown is on!
Can you believe it.... less than 3 weeks 'til our day! I'm excited, overwhelmed, and in awe that time flew so fast. Some of the things that are top priority on our "to do" list for this week and next week are:
- Finish painting the condo (just have the master bedroom to go!)
- Marriage License (top priority!)
- Wedding Bands
- Pack KB's stuff to move to condo
- Confirm booking of the rehearsal dinner catering (our FAVE restaurant for a backyard dinner!!)
- KB- get a couple cute dresses for the honeymoon :o) Going Caribbean!!!
- Mock hair appointment
- Mock make-up appointment
- Confirm and print ceremony programs
- Purchase bridesmaid/groomsmen gifts
- Schedule Bachelor/Bachelorette Parties
Next Sunday is my next shower- I'm super excited! My bridesmaid, Stacey, is hosting it at her home. It'll be a sweet time with my close friends and family. ;o) The last shower was amazing! So many friends came out to be part of the exciting celebration, and Jeramy & I were TOTALLY overwhelmed by awesome gifts. We're even more excited about making the condo "our home"... Moving all the gifts TO his house is another story! Hehe.... Lots to transfer to the condo!
Thanks for sharing in the journey. Our NEW journey begins in 19 days..... the journey of our life together!
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Day 33- moving right along
Some of my favorite elements of wedding planning... a few of which I have already experienced, and a few of which I'm really looking forward to: :o)
~ Dress shopping with my mom
it was more fun than I imagined!
~ Pre-Marital Counseling
it truly has already changed our lives! I'm so grateful we're going through it!
~ Mailing the invitations
make it seem like even more of a reality- people are actually coming!!!
~ Picking our first dance song
ahh, gonna be such a sweet moment. A very special song to us.
~ Seeing my sister try on her M.O.H. Dress
can't describe how happy I felt sitting in that room!
~ Marriage License- we're getting it this week....
so stoked for our trip to the county clerk ;o)
~ Anticipating the wedding showers!!!
~ Dress shopping with my mom
it was more fun than I imagined!
~ Pre-Marital Counseling
it truly has already changed our lives! I'm so grateful we're going through it!
~ Mailing the invitations
make it seem like even more of a reality- people are actually coming!!!
~ Picking our first dance song
ahh, gonna be such a sweet moment. A very special song to us.
~ Seeing my sister try on her M.O.H. Dress
can't describe how happy I felt sitting in that room!
~ Marriage License- we're getting it this week....
so stoked for our trip to the county clerk ;o)
~ Anticipating the wedding showers!!!
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Day 34- the JOY of the Lord
As today marks only 34 days until our wedding, I wanted to blog to share the feelings running through my mind at this stage in the engagement. :o) Feel free to read along... if it bores you, no pressure to keep reading. Haha.
I marry my best friend in 34 days. This time of engagement has had its up's and down's, amazing days, tough days, long days, eventful days, hilarious moments, deep moments, moments of reality, moments of bliss... It's been amazing to see God balance it all out- ultimately creating a season of growing and discovering more about each other over the past 7 1/2 months. There's so much more I have to learn about the deep things of Jeramy and his heart, and vise versu- 'tis one of the SO many reasons I'm excited to be with him for the rest of my life... learning about him, growing closer to him, supporting him...
My parents have been amazing in this process, too. My mom is constantly available to help in any way she possibly can, and is so generous! She's offered many great ideas, and is helping keep me at peace, focused, and stress-free!
Then there's Jenn. Oh my, I cannot even imagine having any other maid of honor other than my sister. Every time we talk about the wedding, I end up breaking out in hysterical laughter- simply because she knows how to spread joy! She cracks jokes at everything, and if I start going off on a random rant and she sees the stress building, she knows exactly what to say and do to bring me back to reality. I love having her involved, and as the wedding gets closer and closer, she seems to be a lot more involved. IT'S AWESOME! I love my sister so much. She is my best friend- always has been. I'm excited to have her right next to me for the biggest moment of my life!!!
The wedding planning is fun- the financial part is not. Haha. I'm excited to see all of the different decorations & elements come together on that day. I have a vision in my head of what things will look like and can't wait to see if it really looks that way... LOL! The bridesmaid dresses have all arrived, and alterations are in the works. So exciting! I'm on the hunt for their jewelry now :o) Boxes continue to arrive at our door, full of all kinds of fun stuff- paper lamps, gifts, centerpiece accessories, tulle, candles, etc.....
Here's to only 34 more days of wedding planning, an amazing 10-day honeymoon & 2 weeks off work, & an incredible life with the man of my dreams!
I marry my best friend in 34 days. This time of engagement has had its up's and down's, amazing days, tough days, long days, eventful days, hilarious moments, deep moments, moments of reality, moments of bliss... It's been amazing to see God balance it all out- ultimately creating a season of growing and discovering more about each other over the past 7 1/2 months. There's so much more I have to learn about the deep things of Jeramy and his heart, and vise versu- 'tis one of the SO many reasons I'm excited to be with him for the rest of my life... learning about him, growing closer to him, supporting him...
My parents have been amazing in this process, too. My mom is constantly available to help in any way she possibly can, and is so generous! She's offered many great ideas, and is helping keep me at peace, focused, and stress-free!
Then there's Jenn. Oh my, I cannot even imagine having any other maid of honor other than my sister. Every time we talk about the wedding, I end up breaking out in hysterical laughter- simply because she knows how to spread joy! She cracks jokes at everything, and if I start going off on a random rant and she sees the stress building, she knows exactly what to say and do to bring me back to reality. I love having her involved, and as the wedding gets closer and closer, she seems to be a lot more involved. IT'S AWESOME! I love my sister so much. She is my best friend- always has been. I'm excited to have her right next to me for the biggest moment of my life!!!
The wedding planning is fun- the financial part is not. Haha. I'm excited to see all of the different decorations & elements come together on that day. I have a vision in my head of what things will look like and can't wait to see if it really looks that way... LOL! The bridesmaid dresses have all arrived, and alterations are in the works. So exciting! I'm on the hunt for their jewelry now :o) Boxes continue to arrive at our door, full of all kinds of fun stuff- paper lamps, gifts, centerpiece accessories, tulle, candles, etc.....
Here's to only 34 more days of wedding planning, an amazing 10-day honeymoon & 2 weeks off work, & an incredible life with the man of my dreams!
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Down to 50, folks!
At 50 days until our wedding day, I sit here in bed thinking how crazy it is to say "my wedding is next month"... These past of couple weeks I've found myself looking forward to the wedding still, but looking even moreso forward to the marriage. Vacations together, traveling together, making big plans together, living together, dreaming together... Sure it'll have challenges, and I know even typing that that i have truly no idea how may challenges do come up in a marriage, but i do know that I'll finally have a best friend that will walk with me through every situation, awesome and tough, and will stick by my side till we head home (to heaven).
I've ordered lots of stuff lately, because i realize how little time we have left. I had a great meeting with our Ceremony Coordinator this week, and finished the wedding shower guest lists. I also started piecing together different teams of people I'm going to need for different things. (decor test, clean up team, food serving team, candle lighting team, etc...) As much as i hate asking people to do things, i realize every time someone says yes to helping that i get more and more excited because that's more of my friends involved in the celebration! So fun!!
Ive purchased my final shipment of paper lanterns (hopefully my final one... (I should probably do a final count & make sure I'm set) :o) I also purchased the plates, cups, engraved napkins (moms idea! Thanks mom!) more rose petals (yippee!) and paid off my cake!
Today i was able to spend a few minutes entering addresses in for people on our guest list..... Aye ya ya.... What a stinkin task! I've been putting it off, but its time to face it and knock it out. It will definitely take multiple sessions of sitting buried in the computer to complete. It will be so worth it though, to have all of our friends & family there!!!
This week I have to go in for a fitting for my dress. Not many alterations have to be done, which is awesome. And, the designer company that makes this dress does free hallow hem alterations, which means the length- that's the major alteration i need. Oh oh, and the bridesmaids dresses should be in any day now! How fun!!!!!
Ok ok, ill end this for now. Thanks for joining in the journey! We're kicking it into full gear in the countdown! :o) love and blessings!
I've ordered lots of stuff lately, because i realize how little time we have left. I had a great meeting with our Ceremony Coordinator this week, and finished the wedding shower guest lists. I also started piecing together different teams of people I'm going to need for different things. (decor test, clean up team, food serving team, candle lighting team, etc...) As much as i hate asking people to do things, i realize every time someone says yes to helping that i get more and more excited because that's more of my friends involved in the celebration! So fun!!
Ive purchased my final shipment of paper lanterns (hopefully my final one... (I should probably do a final count & make sure I'm set) :o) I also purchased the plates, cups, engraved napkins (moms idea! Thanks mom!) more rose petals (yippee!) and paid off my cake!
Today i was able to spend a few minutes entering addresses in for people on our guest list..... Aye ya ya.... What a stinkin task! I've been putting it off, but its time to face it and knock it out. It will definitely take multiple sessions of sitting buried in the computer to complete. It will be so worth it though, to have all of our friends & family there!!!
This week I have to go in for a fitting for my dress. Not many alterations have to be done, which is awesome. And, the designer company that makes this dress does free hallow hem alterations, which means the length- that's the major alteration i need. Oh oh, and the bridesmaids dresses should be in any day now! How fun!!!!!
Ok ok, ill end this for now. Thanks for joining in the journey! We're kicking it into full gear in the countdown! :o) love and blessings!
Sunday, August 22, 2010
2 months from this day.... only 2 months!
61 days.
So cool to think about..... weird, and so cool. I LOVE wedding planning, but I'm honestly just so ready for the MARRIAGE. My mind is on after the wedding... the adventures together, building a legacy, our travels, our trials, our friendship growing deeper every day as each other's support and life-long partner. I'm excited to be "wife" to the man who has stolen my heart.
I know these next 2 months are going to go by quickly.... every one keeps telling me that. But, still, I'm going to fight to treasure every single day. I continue to pray that as we come towards the final quarter of this "engagement season", God will prepare our individual hearts to become one. He already has been, and I know it's not finished yet. He'll have us ready for that day, and it'll be the start to a huge future!!
Jeramy continues to work hard as the manager of Chick-fil-A, and does an amazing job managing his great team! He stays pretty busy, but I'm thankful God has given him a job he enjoys. As for myself, I continue to adjust to another position at work, and am loving what God is doing in my heart & in my ministry. We're both looking forward to 2 weeks to refresh from work, stress, long days, and to-do lists... hehe :o) Looking forward to an awesome honeymoon in Ocho Rios, Jamaica! So amazed it all worked out and we'll be staying at a beautiful resort right on the ocean!!! Score!!!
We love you all! Stay tuned as the clock ticks down!!!!!!!!!!!
So cool to think about..... weird, and so cool. I LOVE wedding planning, but I'm honestly just so ready for the MARRIAGE. My mind is on after the wedding... the adventures together, building a legacy, our travels, our trials, our friendship growing deeper every day as each other's support and life-long partner. I'm excited to be "wife" to the man who has stolen my heart.
I know these next 2 months are going to go by quickly.... every one keeps telling me that. But, still, I'm going to fight to treasure every single day. I continue to pray that as we come towards the final quarter of this "engagement season", God will prepare our individual hearts to become one. He already has been, and I know it's not finished yet. He'll have us ready for that day, and it'll be the start to a huge future!!
Jeramy continues to work hard as the manager of Chick-fil-A, and does an amazing job managing his great team! He stays pretty busy, but I'm thankful God has given him a job he enjoys. As for myself, I continue to adjust to another position at work, and am loving what God is doing in my heart & in my ministry. We're both looking forward to 2 weeks to refresh from work, stress, long days, and to-do lists... hehe :o) Looking forward to an awesome honeymoon in Ocho Rios, Jamaica! So amazed it all worked out and we'll be staying at a beautiful resort right on the ocean!!! Score!!!
We love you all! Stay tuned as the clock ticks down!!!!!!!!!!!
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