Valentine's Day 2013

Not one to usually celebrate Valentine's Day (it is Arizona's birthday!), I gave in and went out searching this year for a "husband" Valentine card because I could! But, alas, any card that says "To My Husband" is either ridiculously cliche (AKA, not funny) or disgustingly sentimental. So I stuck with a fun one that said "I heart you more" and then inside "And yes, it is a competition." This suits us much more!

However, you know that the wedding is over and that we've let ourselves off the hook for being quite so healthy, since we BOTH bought sugary sweets for the other.

It was a quick night for us, as Kyle had ultimate Frisbee league, and I had grading and am still getting over the flu, but we still made time for each other and had a nice dinner at Arriba.

Oh yes, and my Fry's roses! :)

Sprinkles! Good thing Kyle works next door.

Red velvet, salted caramel, raspberry chocolate, and carrot

And the motherload- GC cookies for Kyle!!

New year as Newlyweds!

Well, this will be our first official ringing-in of the new year as a married/legitimate couple!

And we are both SICK AS DOGS.

Sucks, but we remember fondly the New Year's Eves of past years today, knowing that no matter what, we made it a fun night despite often having too high of expectations for an epic evening.

The nicest thing about today was the Kyle was really trying to come up with something fun for us to do, since he wanted to make me happy and make the evening memorable.

Here is a tribute to our 8 New Years together!

2005-6 at Tempe Town Lake- Blues Traveler

2006-7 at our house

2007-8 at Tempe Town Lake- Bare Naked Ladies

It wouldn't let me flip it- 2009-10 at the Boes'

German New Year to celebrate with Casey and Karen

At Palbykin's 2010-11

In Keystone, CO 2011-12

Happy 4th of July!

Nothing says "my wedding is coming in less than 3 months" like a 4th of July full of all-American fun and food. And by all-American I mean the classics for a 4th feast: Zumba, turkey and avocado salad, vodka tonics, and yard/house work! But, at least we got cooler weather here in Phoenix, only in the 70s right now, cloudy, and raining throughout the day!

Hope your 4th was festive and safe. This is one of my all-time favorite holidays!

Our rainy backyard barbecue!

This is what dedication looks like

6 Month Mark!

We have 6 months to go until our wedding day! We celebrated with some Dairy Queen Blizzards (not working with my diet, but after yesterday's cake post, well, I could no longer hold out!)

So where are we in the wedding planning? We are getting closer and closer to hitting what I refer to as the "downhill slope". (I think it stems from skiing and mountains for inspiration).

Here is an updated to-do list!

• Get the guys gussied up
• Pick out our wedding rings
• Make invitations (and send), programs
• Get accessories for myself!
• Get accessories and gifts for my ladies!
• Secure hotels 
• Update Wedding Website and publish!
• Get a hair and makeup person secured and do trial runs
• Continue fitness journey
• Write ceremony
• Plan our set list!

As you can see, things have become a bit more detailed in the planning sphere. And if you couldn't tell, I am extremely excited.

Cheers to 6 months! Look for all the fun to come, and thank you once again for sharing in our journey with us thus far!

Love,

Erica and Kyle

Reneeclancyphotography.com

7 Month Mark!

How incredibly lucky are we that we actually HAVE the 7-month mark to celebrate this year?! A year earlier or later and we wouldn't have this extra day to wait, but also this extra landmark to celebrate!

Leap years are supposed to be lucky, and Leap Day is supposed to be the day you try something new and crazy, because it is not supposed to count. Although I can't claim to have done anything new or exciting today, I did get to go out to dinner with good friends to celebrate, and you could technically count the fact that I somehow got Kyle to want to marry me that "crazy something new".

And do you really want me to blow your mind- 7 is a lucky number, and that is how many months we have left on this lucky, extra day! Can you believe it?! That must be the reason why this wedding just feels right, like everything has fallen into place, and that this entire relationship (of nearly 7 years now) has just been fated by the Heavens.

I am one happy, lucky, Leap year girl right now! Hope that I can help spread a little of that joy your way on this Wednesday!

More domestic bliss!

Ok, after my post about past Valentine's Days gone bad, I wound up eating my words a bit this past Tuesday. I had rolled my eyes all day long as my students brought giant stuffed dogs to class, bouquets of flowers were delivered in the middle of quizzes, and all too much chocolate was passed around (none to me, mind you), but when I got home to roses and a romantic date night, I was put in my place.

My romantic "give in to this Hallmark holiday" place.

So I cooked a home made meal. The kicker- NO RECIPE. NO BOX. NO FROZEN FOODS. I chopped vegetables, I added spices, and I made it FROM SCRATCH! (Ok, I had bought the pasta at the Farmer's Market, but still). Then I bought a bottle of Pinot Noir, rented a Rom Com, and spent the night with Kyle. And there were tears. Tears over a Facebook post about an old man who was buying his wife, deceased for 3 years, a Valentine and a rose because she was the only person who would ever have his heart. Tears over the movie One Day with Anne Hathaway. But mostly I think the tears were from the past few weeks of stress adding up and the realization that Kyle, no matter what my world looks like, will always be that rock and we'll have many, many more Valentine's Days to remind us of the love that keeps me going.

The results! Look at the color. Bob Harper would be proud!

Proff that I really cook!

Valentine's Day Confession

With the upcoming holiday growing ever so near, I feel like I need to recap my Valentine's Day history to fully explain why it is that I don't fully support this holiday. I am not a cynic, but I am also not going to give into consumerism. (Maybe on Christmas, but not in the middle of February!) However, the real reason to dislike V-day is the pressure it places on us to make the day go well, when really it most likely won't. Here are a few examples:

Valentine's Day 1987- Kindergarten exchange day- we all had boxes in the floor in a circle. As we were walking around the circle to deliver the valentines, clumsy me trips over a box of one student (I think I was pushed, actually), and sprains an ankle.

Valentine's Day 1992- 5th Grade and my teacher let my boyfriend at the time sit next to me for the exchange. We exchanged extra special valentines that year, king-sized candy bars (and small ones for everyone else). I realize that Valentine's Day could make me fat.

Valentine's Day 1996- My lovely high school boyfriend at the time gave me heart-shaped cubic zirconia earrings in a hand-made plastic and yarn heart box. Shortly afterwards we broke up. Hence forth, I hated heart-shaped jewelry.

Valentine's Day 1997- My new high school boyfriend orders a limo to take us to an Italian restaurant, invites a buddy and his girlfriend along for the ride, and then takes me to Titanic (which we had already seen)and I spend the evening in tears leading to convulsions. Upon dropping us off at home after the movie, the limo gets stuck in the ditch at the bottom of the driveway. Epic fail.

Valentine's Day The College Years- Numerous "single's awareness day" celebrations. One nice trip to the mountains, which was promptly followed by another breakup.

Valentine's Day 2007- I bought Kyle a 6 pack of Guiness and made a trail of Hershey kisses through the house to his office, where I left a Valentine that consisted of a picture of Final Fantasy. I told him to enjoy the evening without me and to have a night doing the things he really enjoyed, beer and video games. We still have the Hershey kisses in the freezer.

Other than those memorable years, Valentine's Day has been largely forgettable.

A Non-Valentine's Weekend Celebration- Westin Kierland May 2011

P.S. If you are one of those former boyfriends, sorry! And if you are Kyle, no pressure, really. Let's celebrate when the roses are cheaper, the restaurants emptier, and the love less commercialized.

2011 Review

Of all the years of my life, each one seems to get progressively better. 2011 was an amazing year. I have so many wonderful people in my life, as shown by the tremendous support I've received for my wedding, my blog, and all of life's other activities. I cannot wait to see what 2012 will bring. Here are my top 11 memories of 2011 (in no particular order).

1. Our 2-week fall road trip through Colorado in October. Seeing the beautiful colors that covered the state instilled a sense of awe at Mother Nature and renewed (like it was ever gone) my love for the mountains and fall colors. I got to see Aspen and hike the Maroon Bells, go to Crested Butte for the first time and stay in my first hostel, and visit Palisade and the Colorado National Monument.

2. Experiencing the births of many of our friends' first children. It has been amazing to watch (from afar) the little ones grow and learn.

3. Camping trips with two great groups of people, my coworkers and our annual camping trip friends, and getting to tour Tonto Natural Bridge and enjoy all of Payson's natural beauty, namely tall trees and the Rim.

4. Getting 8 ski days in last winter, with the best snow Colorado had seen for years. I skied Winter Park, Copper, and Steamboat with family and friends.

5. Running in the City Search Challenge in Phoenix, a sort of "Amazing Race" for the locals. It was more work than I anticipated, but a memorable and fun experience. 

6. Getting to go to Chicago not once, but twice, for 2 conferences for work. Common Core left some things to be desired, but NCTE (National Council for Teachers of English) was well worth my time.

7. On that note, getting ENGAGED in Chicago on June 26/27 and feeling more loved than ever before while enjoying each minute of our engagement thus far.

8. Christmas with both families, 3 in 24 hours to be exact, and making it work out so that we could be with everyone and see their faces while they opened all the gifts. 

9. Wedding planning, when it was not too stressful, meeting our photographer and planner and getting excited about the final product (our wedding) with everyone's creative input.

10. Sedona, AZ engagement photo session, from climbing in the freezing cold Oak Creek to get that "perfect shot" to changing outside the Chapel on the Rock to get pictures in my favorite outfit before the sun set altogether.

11. Going to Tucson for Kyle's birthday in January and touring the Mission San Xavier, Colossal Cave, and horseback riding through the desert.

Of course, there were many more memorable nights with friends and family, too many to count, and I have realized how lucky we really are to have the life we have. Aside from the events mentioned, successfully reaching over 5000 views on my blog has made me feel even more blessed and has been more rewarding than I ever imagined. Continue on! See you in 2012.

Maroon Bells October 2011

Kyle lounging with Maroon Bells

Fall Color!

My first family bar outing (the youngest is finally 21) in Denver October 2011

"The Bean"- Chicago, IL

City Search Challenge Starting Line

Christmas #3 in Minnesota

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Marry Christmas to All!

Pun intended.

Hope you and yours have a fabulous holiday. We are splitting this Christmas between 2 families in 2 states once again. Started Christmas Eve with the future father-in-law, moving into Christmas morning with the future mother-in-law, then onto a 4-hour plane ride for Christmas with my family in Minnesota. It may feel like a lot of work and stress right now, but it is all worth it to continue all the family traditions on both sides of the family while we still have the luxury of doing so.

Zoo Lights at the Phoenix Zoo- one of our many holiday traditions.

Christmas Wishes!

My wishes today are not primarily wedding-themed, but holiday-themed. Who can escape the spirit of the season?!

Wish 1: For my students to come back after the break grateful for all they have been given and with renewed energy and desire to learn.

Wish 2: For me to do the same, except renewed energy to teach.

Wish 3: To see some snow over the holidays.

Wish 4: Relaxation, hot Irish coffee or chocolate, and Christmas cookies!

Wish 5: Time filled with laughter, memories, for both my families!

Wish 6: That everyone likes the gifts we got them!

Wish 7: For all you wonderful blog readers to have a safe and happy holiday!

On the 12th of December...

On the 12th of December, my true love gave to me, presents that needed wrapping.

A sign of times to come I am sure, but I am not complaining, as one of the few tasks I enjoy "taking over" as the wife is wrapping gifts for holidays. I know I will go all out and make them fancy, with bows, and add gift tags instead of writing the recipients' names in Sharpie on them. My perfectionist side likes this task.

One thing I've noticed about wedding planning in the midst of the holiday frenzy is that it is really hard to think of gifts you want that you don't want to register for in a few months.

Why don't they have "Christmas Registry"?? I mean, how much easier would our holiday shopping be if we could all just go shopping, use a pricing gun to scan a bunch of stuff we like, and then send that list out to all our friends and family? In our family at least, we kind of already do this with the hopes that the items on our wish lists will be easy to find. It might take some of the excitement out of unwrapping a present, but at least there is no need to wait in the return lines the week after Christmas.

I do wish that I did not have to try to balance my time between work (the end of the semester), Christmas (13 days and counting down), and wedding planning (only 9 months left?!?!). Unfortunately, work usually takes precedence, but this year I've slacked a bit, causing even more "end of the semester" stress. Slacking is maybe too harsh a word because I have successfully bought gifts, wrapped gifts, set up appointments over Christmas break with our wedding vendors, and even decorated the house! That is a lot to accomplish with all the other stuff going on during this time of year. I just need to quit procrastinating doing the real work I have so I can enjoy the holidays, stress-free.

So as the holidays near, I hope that I can keep up with my blog posting so I can be an avenue for all of you to procrastinate, too! :) Or you can spend your time browsing Pinterest for winter wedding themes, like me.

Via Pinterest