The Honeymoon.

Ah... The Honeymoon. What to say about The Honeymoon? Well, for starters... it's been the most difficult part of the wedding so far. To say I am surprised by this would be slightly understating it but now that I think about it, I really shouldn't be that surprised at all. Greg and I like to obsess about things and we take a while to make any big decisions. The Honeymoon definitely falls into the category of big decisions. Still, it was much easier deciding where to get married, picking a photographer, and it was practically a piece of cake when it came to choosing my wedding dress. I was trying to figure out why choosing where to go on The Honeymoon was proving to be a challenge and the only thing I can come up with is that there are so many options. True, there were a lot of options when it came to finding a venue or a dress but there weren't nearly as many as you would think. Choosing the Hotel Monaco was an easy choice because it was so us. We absolutely love Kimpton Hotels (I even worked a short stint at one when we lived in Alexandria) and the french couture-y style at the Monaco made it a no-brainer. Same thing with the dress. It's a very "me" dress. I wonder what is a very "us" honeymoon though... "Us" includes a lot of words like luxury, relaxation, service, food, and new. Unfortunately, that could mean a lot of different spots on the planet and a lot of different accommodations.

When we started thinking about The Honeymoon we agreed that we didn't want to go somewhere we had already been. We hadn't quite decided whether we wanted to do a beach-y lazy trip or a fun see-it-while-you-can trip but we did know we wanted to go away for at least 10 days, give or take a few. We started thinking about using miles and going somewhere domestic, maybe Napa/Washington wines or East Coast seafood. Then we realized we would probably have enough miles to go international and that right there is when things started getting really complicated. Did we want to do French Polynesia, Mexico, the Mediterranean....? Did we want to go somewhere super luxurious that was a once-in-a-lifetime place and stay in more moderate digs or go somewhere more easily accessible and affordable and stay in a luxurious and lavish setting? Do we want beaches, a cruise, driving through towns? WHAT DO WE WANT?

We still don't know. When I first asked for suggestions via my facebook status, everyone had such varied answers that I was slightly frustrated. But then I realized that everyone had such varied answers because everyone has different wants. I think we need to figure out what we want before we can do anything else but that'll only get us but so far. I will say this, however: if this is the hardest decision we have to make when it comes to tying the knot then we are extremely lucky.

Honeymooning

My mind keeps drifting to our honeymoon while I work. So many choices - what to choose? This might be one of the more difficult decisions we make. Any thoughts?

Comfort food and cold feet

Last night we had dinner at Panino’s, a tiny Italian place near our house. To say that we love Panino’s would be an understatement. We eat there at least once a week, usually on a Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday because we now get United miles for dining. I prefer Wednesdays because they do delicious $5 martinis. I usually get a greek salad (no onions and I never even have to remind our server about this anymore) and Greg has been ordering the eggplant parm a lot lately. When we walk in, we are always greeted warmly by the servers who have come to know us. When Greg told our server that he didn’t really need the minestrone soup last night, he suggested that he just take it home. “Then you don’t have to cook for him tomorrow,” he said. I laughed (knowing that Greg was really just going to have it for lunch and I’d still have to cook dinner) but it was cute how domestic he just assumed we are. And he was right. We have taken almost every family member imaginable – his dad, my mom and sister, his mom and grandma… We have a nice little routine and it is comforting. I laugh at how familiar it is but I hope that never changes. It often feels like we have already been married a few years and it’s the things like our dinners at Panino’s that strengthen that feeling. Recently, I’ve been asked if I’m scared to get married. I’ve never even thought about it although, for a really long time, I never even wanted be someone’s wife. I figured it wasn’t for me and I was content with that. Funny how one person can change so much; I eat meat, I drink red wine, and I’m about to become a Newman. At this point, however, it all just seems completely logical. Why would I be scared? I tell people we are practically married anyway, this just makes it official. Neither one of us thinks that anything will change once we are man and wife. When one of our valet guys found out we got engaged his response was “You mean y’all haven’t been married this whole time?!” He seemed shocked.
Maybe there’s something I am missing or maybe I’m not scared because there’s nothing to be scared of and, when you are with the right person, you just know. Maybe I will get cold feet as the day gets closer… who knows! I wonder if people have asked Greg the same thing and I wonder how he responds or how he would respond, if asked….

Say cheese!

We took our engagement pictures the other day and have a handful of our favorites to share.

And so it begins...

My very first thought when I wake up this morning: there are 365 days to go until our wedding. "At this time, in one year from now, I will be waking up, getting ready to have my hair and makeup done so I can walk down the aisle to marry the love of my life." I am excited. I smile and sit up. Then I start to laugh, but quietly because Greg and Suzy are still asleep. We are on vacation with my family and the bed in our small room is positioned in front of a mirror. I can only see myself from the waist up but I am wearing white. I have fallen asleep in a white tank top with lace on it and I wonder if I did that subconsciously.

Greg and I have been engaged for almost 8 months and we are just now hitting the one year mark. 20 months is a very long time - much longer than I anticipated. We are the type of people who like to... obsess, for lack of a better word. Obsession has a negative connotation to it but, for us, it's more about excitement. For me, it is also about eliminating as much stress as possible given that I am prone to it. Within the first four months of being engaged we had booked our location, taken care of the food and cake (well, who was cooking and baking, we haven't done the tastings), and found our officiant, dj, and photographer. I have also purchased my wedding dress. Then, suddenly, there really wasn't anything else to do. The past few months have been boring and I have been anticipating this day because it now becomes acceptable again to obsess over what will be one of the happiest days of my life. I can go back to thinking about flowers, colors, tuxedos, and music. What better way to commemorate this than with a blog?