As Shakespeare would say, We have but a Fortnight...

Seriously, Mr Time...could you please slow it down a little?  

"To some, a fortnight can feel like a lifetime...to a bride, it feels like tomorrow."
- Laticia W.

For the last week or so, I feel like the clock has been accelerating, and it's had me a tad nervous.  Add the fact that I'm just getting over my second cold in less than a month, and you might say I've been quite stressed.  I can't believe our wedding is the week after next!! Where has the time gone?  (shrug) Well, as they say, time flies when you're having fun...and if you've been following along this whole time, you should know how much fun I've been having planning this big celebration!  I'm super excited for this day, and while I really can't wait for it all to come together...well..., I kinda can.  I don't want it to come too quickly, ya know?  It's almost like waiting for Christmas...there's so much build up (especially if you just KNOW Santa is going to bring you that puppy or bike) and then all of a sudden it's HERE!...and then it's GONE!  And you look back thinking, "What the heck? Where did Christmas go?!" lol

And the sparks are a-flyin'...and it's not what you think!

sparky has definitely been getting his little digs in, and it only makes Matthew and me more excited to see what God has in store for our wedding day and our marriage.  The devil only attacks when something GOOD is on your horizon; it's his feeble attempt to distract you or get you to doubt yourself and reconsider your decisions.  It happens every time leading up to a Cursillo weekend, so why wouldn't it happen leading up to our wedding, the day we celebrate the greatest, once-in-a-lifetime Sacrament a man and woman can share together?

Well, that was weird...

I realized after my last post that I forgot to include the experience Matthew and I had when we picked up our marriage license, so I thought I'd take a moment to share it with you.  Matthew and I walked out of that office in the city building that sunny day and immediately said "Well, that was weird."  It felt very clinical and...just odd.  We gave them the marriage license application, and were given a number and told to go sit down and wait to be called upon.  When our number was called, we sat at a cubicle desk with a lady who reviewed our application, took my check, entered everything in the computer and had us review it and make sure everything was spelled correctly, etc...., we signed the application, and she gave us an envelope with the paperwork to give to the church, and off we went.  All with minimal conversation.  I honestly don't know what we expected, but it was kind of a strange experience for us, possibly because there has been so much excitement and emotion around this event up until that point, and then we go to this office and to these people, it's just a part of their daily job. lol

Ultreya! Onward and Upward...

Matthew and I attended the October Cursillo weekends and I think we both enjoyed the time with God and our brothers and sisters in Christ.  For me personally, I thought it was an excellent addition to our marriage prep.  I met some amazing women who I look forward to getting to know better as time goes on.  And I even got some ladies to participate in my "30 Days to the Altar" exercises with me everyday!

Busy, busy, busy...when do we get to rest?!

I know...AFTER the wedding, right?!  Well, I'm happy to say that a lot of things have gotten done since my last post, and some of that is due to Matthew taking on a few tasks in hopes of getting everything finalized in time for us to be able to sit back and actually enjoy a few days before the wedding.  (Yes, we really are hopeful about this!)  Here are some of the things checked off the list:

• We had a great dinner meeting with our DJ Peter K and our Emcee Scottay.  I especially enjoyed giving Peter our "do not play under any circumstances" song list hee hee
• We ordered/purchased the wine for the reception...finally!
• We ordered a Ketubah!  (This is actually something we are very excited about and will explain in more detail a little later)
• We met with Deacon Dennis and Colleen for dinner one more time before the wedding to review our ceremony details
• We had our linens consultation and discussed some final details with our caterer, which was fun
• AND, we had our engagement session with our photographer last Friday down on the beach at the Hotel del Coronado - with Sophie, of course!  We had a lot more fun than we thought we would have!  It kinda surprised us both!  And Sophie went NUTS when I took off her leash and let her run around the beach.  She even ran right into the water and raced down the beach in the shallow waves.  She was so full of joy! I didn't realize until then how much she loves the beach...just like her Mama ;)

Here's the picture that truly captured us as a family on so many levels...

I immediately ordered a 24x36 of this image and it arrived yesterday!  We can't wait to see what this amazing lady does with our wedding day photos!!  In fact, she was so impressed with this shot (with absolutely no ego in it at all - nobody could have orchestrated this incredible shot except for God, and she's humble enough to know that!), she ordered a studio sample to display in her studio AND she plans on submitting it for a photo competition!  How honored are we that we are the lucky subjects of a potentially prize-winning shot!?!

What fun would a wedding be without a "visit" from The Doctor? (Who!)

I recently surprised Matthew with something fun for our wedding...our very own Tardis!  About a month ago, I came across instructions to make a Tardis card box for your wedding, so I got this crazy idea to make one!  Since I'm not too crafty and don't really have the extra time to make one myself, I approached my retired cousin Grace, who just finished doing a bunch of DIY projects for her daughter's wedding.  The funny thing is her husband ended up making it instead and it came out looking amazing!!  Matthew was thrilled to see it :)  Here's a pic of it:

  

Lastly, as I mentioned earlier, Matthew has been helping me with some tasks, including chasing down the last of the RSVPs and securing the caterer for our rehearsal dinner, and he has been very helpful!  Thanks honey! :)

With only 2 weeks to go, I still feel like there is a LOT that needs to be done and I'm hoping I can knock out a lot of them over the next couple of days....like finding my bridal shower gift list so I can send my thank you notes!! (Yeah, I really did lose it...lol)

Goodbye, Madre...until we meet again in God's Kingdom

Sadly, one of our wedding guests will be unable to attend our special day after all.  Our friend and prayer partner, Mother Antonia was called Home recently, so we figure Jesus simply wanted her as His special guest for our wedding, and now she'll have an even better seat at the ceremony than she would have had.  We will miss this Saint dearly, though we know she will live on in our hearts and in the hearts of the many, many lives she touched, and we pray her legacy will continue to live on through her Sisters of the Eudist Servants of the 11th Hour.  Meanwhile, we will celebrate her life today in the Feast of All Saints and hope to be reunited with her one day (many, many, many years from now, please!).

Until next time...here's another one of our favorite Bible verses for you:

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (Jer 29:11)