Blankets, Bottles, and Babies... Oh My!

Lately, it seems as though everyone around me either has, or is expecting a baby! As I told you all before, my Phi Mu little is expecting her first little girl in January and another one of my Phi Mu sisters just had a little boy in November. And one of my coworkers, who actually shares a 1/2 wall with me (I teach in an open space school, so there aren't any real walls/doors/etc.) is going to be having a beautiful baby girl in May! So, imagine my surprise when in early November a good friend of mine from the (ahem:: AWFUL ::ahem) restaurant I worked out throughout high school and college collected our group to announce her pregnancy!

As I said, a little over a month ago, my good friend Adrienne asked myself and our other two friends, Megan and Katie, to dinner, we assumed it was a typical Hef (what we like to call ourselves... don't ask) get together. However, when she arrived, we could tell that she was ready to burst with something. In late October, Adrienne found out that she would be delivering a bouncing baby boy... in MID JANUARY! Needless to say, this little miracle wasn't exactly planned, but definitely an exciting addition to our little group!

We scrambled to get things, and a baby shower with the help of Adrienne's sister, together for Adrienne and baby Boy. Last weekend, we were able to spend an afternoon together, celebrating the new life that Adrienne will soon be bringing to us! We played some fun games, ate delicious food, and OOOHed and AHHHed and AWWWed while Adrienne and her boyfriend opened at least 25 adorable baby boy outfits.

Earlier this week, before the Storm of the Century hit in our area, The Hefs got together at for our annual Christmas dinner. Every year during dinner, we talk about the things that have happened and changed in our lives this year, as well as the things we're hoping for in the year ahead. This year, we had a TON to talk about: Megan got married in September, Katie is engaged and will have her wedding in July, Adrienne will be a new Mommy in less than a month, and I finally landed my dream job as a real life elementary school teacher! It would be selfish to say that I was a little bummed that my "big change" had to do with my career, rather than my love life or a new family, but on the other hand, I saw a dream I've had since I was a little girl come true this year. A big accomplishment if you ask me (even if it doesn't include a diamond ring...)

At the end of dinner, we contemplated whether we might have two babies (or at least one more on the way) at our next Hef Christmas dinner, or if Adrienne or myself would be the next to get hitched. I knew for sure that I was so happy for all three of my friends for the amazing lives they've created for themselves, and their new families.

365 days ago...

Today is October 4th, 2009. Exactly one year, 365 days, ago I was celebrating at my brother and new sister in law's wedding! It's so crazy how time has flown by... Since I didn't have a blog back then, I figured today was an appropriate day to tell you about Stephen and Sonia's wedding!

We started out the wedding weekend on Friday, October 3rd. My parents, niece and I traveled across the bridge to Kent Island to decorate and get ready. The ceremony and rehearsal were at the historical, 19th century (and supposedly haunted) Kent Manor Inn, so we found our rooms, got settled, and headed to the garden room to decorate for the reception. We had some fun decorating, since there were a fair amount of guys helping, who were obviously too manly to know how to hang tulle, garland and pink flowers. Somehow, we got everything done and it looked absolutely gorgeous and ready for the next day!

Then, we all headed over to Hemingway's for the rehearsal dinner. It was a really delicious, light dinner. I chose soup and crab cake sandwich and even now, I remember it being awesome! After dinner, we all headed back to the inn, but no one was tired yet. Sonia wanted to double check the reception area one last time, so we sort of, er, broke in to the garden room, to ease her mind. We wandered the hotel for a little while, peeking in unoccupied rooms and enjoying its beautiful features.

As we wandered, we found a door to the bell tower at the top of the inn. It's rumored that the bell keeper hung himself in the tower many, many years ago and still haunts the inn today. So of course, we had to go up! After you brave the tower (and yes, it was fairly creepy up there in the middle of the night) you can write your name on the wall leading up the steps, which of course I had to do!

Finally, we headed back to the bridal suite and all crammed in and went to sleep. The next morning was the big day! The bridesmaids and the bride all got up super early to get our hair done on the other side of the island. After we were all looking good, we headed back to the inn to get ourselves and Sonia ready! Her dress was strapless, lace, and little form fitting so she needed some help getting in. Once she was in, though, she looked gorgeous and simply bridal. The ladies and I took about a billion pictures right up until we were told it was time! The bridal suite was really nice because its back porch opened up to the ceremony area, which was overlooking a lovely little creek off of the Bay.

The ceremony went off without a hitch. Well, almost. As we were leaving the bridal suite and walking toward the altar and the aisle leading up to it, my youngest niece got a little nervous. She absolutely refused to walk down the aisle by herself. Of course, my brother was concerned, not only for his daughter but also about getting his future wife down the aisle. So, he headed on back there, picked her up and carried her down the aisle. Luckily, though, my dad had popped up and coerced her far enough away from Sonia that the surprise of the reveal to the groom wasn't ruined.

After that, it was smooth sailing. After about a million MORE pictures, we had a delicious lunch in the garden room, which was even more beautiful in the day light. It was a huge, circular room, covered with windows and french doors. We had a great time drinking, eating, and dancing. So much so that we didn't want it to end! My brother told me that the bridal party was going to go out to Howl at the Moon, only my favorite bar ever, after the reception. Of course, we stayed in our full ceremony gear, Sonia and her big white dress included. It was the first time I had really gone out with my brother, since we have a 9 year age difference. I must say, it was a good time!

Thinking about all the fun we had that day made me feel a little happy and a little sad. It was a great weekend, and I felt so close to my whole family. You could definitely feel the love. It was sad, though, to think that we haven't really done anything that big or fun since. Either way, Sonia and Stephen are still happily married and even just bought and moved into their first home. I couldn't be happier for them!

Time Travelling

It is SUPER early on this yucky Sunday morning, but I'm up. Why?, you might ask. Well, for one I am going to the all day country festival fondly known as Sunday in the Country this morning. The other reason, however, is much more exciting... I just could not wait to blog about what I did yesterday! At noon on Saturday, September 26, 2009 one of my oldest and dearest friends got the privilege of marrying the man of her dreams. And I could not be happier for her!

Megan and I met through some mutual friends way back in 8th grade. We hung around the same group of friends and talked at some social functions, but it wasn't until senior year of high school that we really became close. We both started working at a local seafood restaurant and would hang out many nights after work. In the fall of senior year, both of us had a tragic event occur in each of our lives and it was so nice to have someone who understood to lean on through the tough times. We were attached at the hip during senior beach week, with Meg teaching me how to really drink like a champ... HA! And I guess, you could say the rest is history.

Meg and I have had an ever changing relationship, from social friends, to "drinking buddies", to confidants, to best friends, to what I like to call close friends. Close friends are those ones that maybe you don't talk to everyday or always know exactly whats going on in their lives. But, once you finally do make that call, it's like nothing has changed. I think quote from The Wonder Years about sums it up: "There's nothing that can ever take the place of someone who knew you when you were young and likes you, loves you, in spite or because of it. When that someone is part of the present, then you have the rarest of all friendships. You speak your own language, a kind of shorthand only available to childhood friends."

It was such an honor to spend the day and night yesterday with Megan and her new husband, Mike. Now, I'm not going to say I was responsible for this marriage, but and ex and I did put the idea of Megan and Mike in their respective heads. Regardless, their wedding yesterday was absolutely gorgeous. Megan looked stunning, as per usual, in her white, lace gown and Mike was such a charmer all night. Antonio and I arrived a little late, as per our usual, to the ceremony and had to sit in the back. But, even way in the back of the church, you could feel the love emanating from these two. For so long, Meg looked for someone, hoping to feel the way I know that she did yesterday and I could not be happier for her.

After the ceremony, we headed over to Martin's East for the reception. It was all purple! And so absolutely beautiful! It was great to get to laugh, dance and drink with some friends who I haven't seen in ages. People came in from out of state and, although I usually take a strong stance against going back to high school, these relationships definitely transcended into adulthood. The food at Martin's was top notch, a chicken chesapeake to die for along with innumerable dessert options. All in all, it was a successful reception! It didn't end there though...

After coming home and changing, Antonio and I went back out in the monsoon that had situated itself right over downtown Baltimore. We headed to Fells Point for some more celebrating with Megan and Mike. We were all pretty exhausted - the girls in the wedding had been up since FIVE! for hair and makeup. But, we pushed through and were able to just enjoy each others company for a few more hours. While we didn't do anything crazy or get drunk and silly, we still had a great time out!

I am so incredibily happy for Megan and Mike that I can't seem to put it into words. To watch someone go through the searching and the falling in love and all of the parts in between, then to watch them grow up and find that love for real, is amazing. It gives you just a little more hope that true love, fate, and destiny are really out there.

you may not know this but....

....I'm pretty crafty. Even as a kid, I always wanted art sets, beads, and paints for Christmas or birthday presents. My mom's jewelry box still overflows with my "beautiful" creations, whether they be earrings, rings, pins, necklaces, or bracelets for her to wear to work and show off to her friends. (As an adult, I found out she used to wear them out of the house, leave them in car while at work, and put them back on to come home. It's the thought that counts.) As L said a few weeks ago, jewelry is still fun for me and I often attempt to accessorize my friends and family members. (These days, mom actually wears them to work for real, though.) While I do love the instant gratification of making a piece of jewelry that I can put on with a cute outfit and it matches perfectly, this is not my first arts and crafts love. That will always be scrapbooking!

As you can probably tell, I LOVE PICTURES! Scrapbooking allows you to put all of your favorite ones in one place, in a beautiful way, rather than stuffed in a box; memories sitting idle, waiting to be released into the world again. I have slowed down in my personal scrapbooking endeavors recently due to another project I have been working on. Last October, my brother got married and guess who was elected to be the official wedding historian? Yep, the scrapbook queen. It is FINALLY just about finished and I am so excited to share it with my brother and sister in law. Here is a sneak peek for all of you in blog world:

Thier wedding colors were a dark champagne color called latte, chocolate brown, and light pink. I like for my pages to sort of match the most prominent colors in the pictures, which was a little difficult in this case. I started out fearing that the entire book was going to end up a brown and browner blob, but in the end I think it turned out really well. The neutral color palette allows for the viewer to focus on the photos a little better, I think. It also makes it look pretty classy, if I do say so myself!


My favorite page ended up being the best man and maid of honor toasts. At the wedding, my brother really didn't want to hand over the typed speech his little brother, and best man, made at the reception. After a little coercing, and some "eyes" from his new wife, I finally got them. I made copies of both speeches and used them as the background for the page. That way, my brother and sister in law can look back and remember the beautiful words thier best friends said to them, but it's not just a folded peice of paper in a box underneath the bed. I also used my Top Secret method for creating page titles. I don't know where I thought of it, but one day I decided to use the discarded background of pictures to cut out letters. One this particular page, when you look at the letters closely, you can see table centerpeices, wine glasses, and even a few beer bottles. (Because we're a classy group)

The cake cutting page is probably my second favorite in the scrapbook. I found some amazing stickers and had a great idea to make an argyle-esque pattern with some square paper I had. The couple had a pretty comical cake topper, of the groom running away as the bride grabs him by the collar. The lighting in the room the reception was held in was perfect for pictures, especially where the cake table was set up. I also was able to get some funny pictures of the pretty messy cake fight between the newlyweds!

After the ceremony and reception, we wanted to keep the party going so we all decided to go out to a really awesome piano bar in the area - still in our full wedding wardrobe. My sister in law even wore her wedding dress! It was a great opportunity to get to use colors other than brown, browner and pink. It was also a good opportunity to document my brother's extreme drunken singing/air guitaring that evening.


Even though I know that the album will be just down the road at my brother and sister in laws', I'm having trouble actually giving it away! She keeps asking me when it's coming and keep telling her I'm almost done. I know she will absolutely love the memories I was able to encapsulate in scrapbook form, which will make it much easier for me to say farewell to all my hard work. Either way, I always have my photos and my memories :o)

being grown up isn't half as fun as growing up

Yes - I'm posting twice in one day. I thought two different thought trains needed two different posts. Whatever.

As I was saying in my previous post, I traveled down to Leonardtown, MD yesterday morning to watch one of my sorority sisters, Shannon, marry her high school sweetheart, Rob. As Shannon puts it, they've "been engaged for about 5,000 years" (really closer to 3) so it was exciting to get to see them FINALLY add another ring to that finger!

The ceremony was a little confusing, since I'm not Catholic or very religious at all, but it was definitely romantic, meaningful, and perfect for Rob and Shannon. The reception was very pink. Let me explain that Shannon is not like one of those crazy brides, obsessed with pink and everything girlie. Pink is our sorority's national color, and Phi Mu has meant a lot to all of us, especially Shannon, who was at one point our President, so it seemed fitting that her wedding by Phi Mu-ified. OK, maybe it's also just a pretty color for a wedding.

Anyway, there was a delicious buffet, plenty of Bud Light, and a pink themed candy bar! There were about 20 Phi Mu sisters in attendance, which made for a really great day. Toward the middle of the reception, Emmie announced that it was time to sing "The Phi Mu Song". Basically, this meant that we stood in a circle around Shannon, singing a modifed version of "My Best Friend"(or whatever song the bride requests) badly, while trying not to laugh at ourselves for inadvertently singing into a carnation microphone. After the song, we present the bride with the "microphones". To some, it may be a silly tradition, but it's a good way to bring all of us together to show our congratuations and love in a big way.

Spending the day with this many Phi Mu sisters together in one place, surrounded by a beautiful wedding made me start to think about the past as well as the future. In college, I saw a large majority of my sisters at least once a day. I had classes, ate lunch in the commons, studied and watched reality TV, and even lived with some of them. It was easy to take my relationships and time with them for granted. It was so strange for many of them not to even know Antonio, or that I've been teaching for almost a full year on my own now. Even though it made me
long for my college days, where all I had to do was walk down the hall, up the hill, or to the commons, to find someone I loved, it made me so happy to know that even though it may not be as often as I would prefer, my sisters are still there to share a good drink and a good laugh with.

All in all, I think it was a perfect day and night for everyone, but especially Shannon and Rob. I know that Shannon has been dreaming of this day almost since I met her, if not before. And when you look at Rob, you can tell that he loves Shannon with all his heart, and would do anything to make her happy. Well he definitely succeeded; she seemed happier than I've ever seen her in almost 4 years of friendship and sisterhood. Marriage is mostly likely not in the cards for me for quite some time (though I think it would be super fun to plan a big fancy party with all of my friends), I could not be happier for these two newlyweds.

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