Christmas was lovely, even without a tree. We got up fairly early - I don't know if I've shared before, but I am what you would call and "active sleeper." When I dream, I frequently move around a lot and talk. Christmas morning started for Mr at 6am when I woke him up with my sobbing. I dreamt that someone had gotten chocolate all over my wedding dress. It was very, very real and devastating, though I don't know why. I know that, in the dream, the wedding was over, so it wasn't like it was ruined before the big day. I had actually been toying with the idea of reselling it.
I don't think my dress is symbolic of anything other than the fact that I spent most of the day on the 24th looking at pictures from our wedding. I'm working on making an album for my mother-in-law. Plus, there was nothing on TV in the morning, and I watched part of one of the wedding shows on Style Network or WE TV or something.
Those shows are interesting to me, and they got me to reflect on our wedding a bit. Now, I have to say, that I had a blast at our wedding. The only thing that went "wrong" was the limo driver getting lost. Even that didn't bother me too much, since I was just so happy to be getting married. It was almost a little bizarre how happy I was. I remember sitting in the limo, knowing that I should be upset with this knucklehead, but also knowing that I was the bride and they couldn't start without me. As long as we got there, it was ok.
In retrospect, there were a lot of things that happened that could have "ruined" the day for me, and would have for many of the brides on reality shows. The limo was late picking us up and got lost, but there were other things. The programs weren't handed out the way they should have been, the priest never said "you may kiss the bride" so we didn't kiss after saying our vows. They didn't have the readings for my readers, even though I had given it to them, so my brother never saw what he was supposed to read until he was up there, reading it. We would have been without it altogether, had not one of my aunt's been really on the ball. We started an inadvertent receiving line after the ceremony, which shorted our picture time even more, so we missed out on some pictures. No one told my grandma to hang around so I have no pictures of me with her.
The florist, despite numerous reminders from me, made my bouquet huge and in a plastic holder-thingy even though I explicitly said I wanted it hand-tied and the same size as my bridesmaids. The cake decorations were also in a terrible plastic/doily looking thing. My mother-in-law took the right boutonniere off of him after the ceremony and put on the rose that his grandfather was supposed to wear but didn't because, well, grandpa doesn't do anything he doesn't want to do. She claims it was labeled "groom" and he backs her up (even though he knew that he was supposed to be different and not the same as his guys, because he was there and helped make the choice of his flower. He said he just figured something had changed). So, in the pictures after the ceremony, he has a white rose in his lapel and during the ceremony it is a dark red calla lily.
In many of the pictures, my in laws are looking at one of the aunts who was hanging around instead of the professional photographer we hired. My aunt who fancies herself a photographer followed us up to the golf course and then, after I politely said that was enough, proceeded to help herself to the champagne and strawberries set aside in the little room we were supposed to wait in before being announced.
The reception hall initially had a sign up that said "Congratulations Rita & Mike!" Mr's name is NOT Mike. His grandmother corrected them and they actually tried to argue with her.
So, lots of things didn't go the way we planned. But it was all ok. Because what mattered was that we were there. All of those other things? They're just amusing anecdotes. Sure. I wish everything was perfect and amazing. But, you know what? It was. Even with all of that stuff, it was just perfect. Sure, I wish Mr had the same flower on his jacket throughout the day. But we got married, we danced a lot, the cake was delicious, and our pictures are fantastic, even if there are some shots we didn't get.
The point is, on a lot of the wedding reality shows, these people act as if the world is ending because their flowers are not what they pictured, or they only have cream and not off-white chair covers. I'm saying that if you are focusing on the details of your wedding instead of the actual wedding, then you should take a step back and think about why you're getting married in the first place.
I had meant to write about Christmas, but I got a little sidetracked. I'll come back to Christmas tomorrow.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Monday, December 24, 2007
It's Almost Christmas!
This past weekend, Mr and I celebrated with our own little Christmas tradition. The Saturday before Christmas, we go to the matinee performance of The Joffrey's The Nutcracker and then have dinner at Morton's on Wacker. Mr claims he likes the music, but really he goes because I love ballet and Morton's is a pretty good reward for his patience.
I love the Nutcracker. I love the families with the little girls in pretty dresses, and the little boys in tiny ties and sport coats. Of course, I love the ballet itself, though the arabian coffee piece always puts me to sleep and their Mother Ginger puppet sort of freaks me out. I can't find a picture of it, but traditionally, Mother Ginger is played by a man on stilts. The little ponchinelles run out of her skirt, and it has sort of a clown-car effect. You can't tell how many kids are in there. It's fun. The Joffrey has a massive puppet with a person inside operating it. Her head turns and her hands move, but it is very weird. Plus, her skirt is super light and doesn't quite touch the stage, so you can see that there are more kids waiting to run out. It's really bizarre and a little disturbing.
All in all, I love it. This year was a tad disappointing, because at our performance Willy Shives was Herr Drosselmyer and Calvin Kitten was the Nephew/Nutcracker prince. Kitten was good, but he's a little on the short side and just not as handsome as Shives. Shives is the Assistant Ballet Master at the Joffrey, so he's basically their star. He's the one you see in their posters for The Nutcracker, and he's just amazing. When he's the Nutcracker Prince, it is a lot easier to get swept up in the magic of the play. Kitten, aside from having a goofy name that is either unfortunate or a poor choice of stage names, just doesn't have the presence that Shives does. Also, I think maybe he's not really used to partnering. It looked to me like the Sugar Plum Fairy was having to work a lot harder than she should have. Although, it is nice for her that he got the shot - most ballerinas are tall because they have to be proportionate to their partners. Men are few and far between in the dance world, so ballerinas get chosen from those who are the right height for the guy. Most short girls get stuck in the Corps.
Morton's, obviously, was fantastic. I don't know what they do to make that steak taste so freaking good, but ... there literally aren't words. Mr is also a fan of Gibsons, who are not shabby, but I just don't think anything can compare to Morton's. It is literally the most satisfying meal I have all year. I eat as slowly as possible when we're there, just to savor the steak as long as I can.
So, now that we've done our Christmas tradition, it is starting to feel real to me. The construction is wrapping up on our house - the floor got the final seal yesterday and the siding guys are out there now capping off our windows and doors. We didn't get to put up the tree, so I have a tiny silver tree from Urban Outfitters on the end table and our presents underneath. Our stockings are up, which I love. I even have a tiny one for Hank.
Up next: we have to find a dining room table. We're having a hard time, as it seems difficult to find anything less than $3,000, which we don't really have. Wickes, Harlem, Ashley, and every other place we looked were a bust. We're currently looking at a table from Crate & Barrel. The table itself isn't too expensive, but the chairs are, and you can't really get a wood-finish table and then find cheaper chairs at another store -there's no way the finishes will match. We have pretty traditional tastes, nothing modern, nothing ornate. Just a basic table. Any suggestions are much appreciated. This is the table we like from C&B.
I love the Nutcracker. I love the families with the little girls in pretty dresses, and the little boys in tiny ties and sport coats. Of course, I love the ballet itself, though the arabian coffee piece always puts me to sleep and their Mother Ginger puppet sort of freaks me out. I can't find a picture of it, but traditionally, Mother Ginger is played by a man on stilts. The little ponchinelles run out of her skirt, and it has sort of a clown-car effect. You can't tell how many kids are in there. It's fun. The Joffrey has a massive puppet with a person inside operating it. Her head turns and her hands move, but it is very weird. Plus, her skirt is super light and doesn't quite touch the stage, so you can see that there are more kids waiting to run out. It's really bizarre and a little disturbing.
All in all, I love it. This year was a tad disappointing, because at our performance Willy Shives was Herr Drosselmyer and Calvin Kitten was the Nephew/Nutcracker prince. Kitten was good, but he's a little on the short side and just not as handsome as Shives. Shives is the Assistant Ballet Master at the Joffrey, so he's basically their star. He's the one you see in their posters for The Nutcracker, and he's just amazing. When he's the Nutcracker Prince, it is a lot easier to get swept up in the magic of the play. Kitten, aside from having a goofy name that is either unfortunate or a poor choice of stage names, just doesn't have the presence that Shives does. Also, I think maybe he's not really used to partnering. It looked to me like the Sugar Plum Fairy was having to work a lot harder than she should have. Although, it is nice for her that he got the shot - most ballerinas are tall because they have to be proportionate to their partners. Men are few and far between in the dance world, so ballerinas get chosen from those who are the right height for the guy. Most short girls get stuck in the Corps.
Morton's, obviously, was fantastic. I don't know what they do to make that steak taste so freaking good, but ... there literally aren't words. Mr is also a fan of Gibsons, who are not shabby, but I just don't think anything can compare to Morton's. It is literally the most satisfying meal I have all year. I eat as slowly as possible when we're there, just to savor the steak as long as I can.
So, now that we've done our Christmas tradition, it is starting to feel real to me. The construction is wrapping up on our house - the floor got the final seal yesterday and the siding guys are out there now capping off our windows and doors. We didn't get to put up the tree, so I have a tiny silver tree from Urban Outfitters on the end table and our presents underneath. Our stockings are up, which I love. I even have a tiny one for Hank.
Up next: we have to find a dining room table. We're having a hard time, as it seems difficult to find anything less than $3,000, which we don't really have. Wickes, Harlem, Ashley, and every other place we looked were a bust. We're currently looking at a table from Crate & Barrel. The table itself isn't too expensive, but the chairs are, and you can't really get a wood-finish table and then find cheaper chairs at another store -there's no way the finishes will match. We have pretty traditional tastes, nothing modern, nothing ornate. Just a basic table. Any suggestions are much appreciated. This is the table we like from C&B.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
I Love Winter
You know what's worse than not having enough warm layers on a long walk from the train to work? Having too many.
I had to walk a little farther today since I needed to pick up some pastries for my floor holiday party, and I tend to walk with purpose. There is no moseying along for me. Overheating in the winter sucks because you can't just take off your coat and cool down. So, you sweat, while your face is freezing.
You know what else is awesome? Doing all of that the day after you decide to switch to plain deodorant with no antiperspirant.
I smell like a zoo.
I got to my desk, took off my many layers and went to the ladies' room. I also took off my sweater, so that I could cool off sooner. Not only am I a little damp, but my back is basically wet. Like, I can see a big circle on the back of my blouse, which now looks like I picked it up off the floor instead of having recently washed and ironed it. I honestly considered losing the blouse and just wearing the sweater except my sweater is white and kind of thin, so that isn't really an option. I just hope it is enough to cover my now-wrinkled shirt so that no one wonders when I showered last (this morning, if you're wondering).
I had to walk a little farther today since I needed to pick up some pastries for my floor holiday party, and I tend to walk with purpose. There is no moseying along for me. Overheating in the winter sucks because you can't just take off your coat and cool down. So, you sweat, while your face is freezing.
You know what else is awesome? Doing all of that the day after you decide to switch to plain deodorant with no antiperspirant.
I smell like a zoo.
I got to my desk, took off my many layers and went to the ladies' room. I also took off my sweater, so that I could cool off sooner. Not only am I a little damp, but my back is basically wet. Like, I can see a big circle on the back of my blouse, which now looks like I picked it up off the floor instead of having recently washed and ironed it. I honestly considered losing the blouse and just wearing the sweater except my sweater is white and kind of thin, so that isn't really an option. I just hope it is enough to cover my now-wrinkled shirt so that no one wonders when I showered last (this morning, if you're wondering).
Sunday, December 09, 2007
Monday, December 03, 2007
It's all Coming Together
We've got a solid roof! The holes in our main roof have been patched on a more permanent basis, and we got new shingles. The gigantic hole in our small roof is now gone, on the outside, and replaced by a whole new roof. We had just shy of 3/4 of the siding replaced on the house. All that's left on the outside is new gutters and putting the lights back up on our back porch (and while we were at Lowes this weekend, we picked out new, prettier lights. Woo!).
Today, they should be putting up those gutters, and they are starting work on the inside of our house - tearing out the floor the drywall and the ceiling of the addition where the tree fell through. They will replace all of that, paint the addition, patch and paint the kitchen, patch and paint my office, replace three windows, replace the sliding glass door (which wasn't damaged in the storm, but has no lock and is rotting), and replace our other back door (which also wasn't damaged but doesn't have a deadbolt. It has like a weird bar-type thingy that works like a chain lock. We're replacing the door with one with a deadbolt [and no window, which is why the current door can't get a deadbolt] so that we can both lock our home securely AND get in from the back). While they're at it, they are also painting our living, foyer (about five square feet), the staircase and the upstairs hallway. So, shortly before Christmas our house should be back in one piece and better than ever. Sadly, this means our Christmas decorations are minimal.
It's going to get worse before it gets better, but I am very excited that it is all underway. We took everything off of our kitchen counters in anticipation of the dust, but I'm sure we didn't think of something. I hate living with construction, but I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, and I can't wait.
Today, they should be putting up those gutters, and they are starting work on the inside of our house - tearing out the floor the drywall and the ceiling of the addition where the tree fell through. They will replace all of that, paint the addition, patch and paint the kitchen, patch and paint my office, replace three windows, replace the sliding glass door (which wasn't damaged in the storm, but has no lock and is rotting), and replace our other back door (which also wasn't damaged but doesn't have a deadbolt. It has like a weird bar-type thingy that works like a chain lock. We're replacing the door with one with a deadbolt [and no window, which is why the current door can't get a deadbolt] so that we can both lock our home securely AND get in from the back). While they're at it, they are also painting our living, foyer (about five square feet), the staircase and the upstairs hallway. So, shortly before Christmas our house should be back in one piece and better than ever. Sadly, this means our Christmas decorations are minimal.
It's going to get worse before it gets better, but I am very excited that it is all underway. We took everything off of our kitchen counters in anticipation of the dust, but I'm sure we didn't think of something. I hate living with construction, but I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, and I can't wait.
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