Nearly Ready...

AH! Yesterday was the most productive one yet! Matt and I wrote the program, finished the correspondence for the potluck for the wedding, I made more floral arrangements, we packed up a bin of stuff for the big day, and Matt finished the rest of the painting of what will be our bedroom. His folks flew in from Germany last night...this is all happening, for real!

Today is Friday and we just need a date night. So, we are plugging away at the remaining items on the list so we can relax tonight. It is looking like all of next week will be pretty normal and not insane craziness. I am so glad!

8 days and counting. Oh.My.

Happy Friday all - have a fun and safe weekend!

Let the Craziness Begin!

T-minus 9 days and counting...

THANK GOD that Matt got laid off. He's been able to help me with the insane to-do list for the past two weeks, and it has been so much fun to tackle projects together. So, there is a huge blessing that has come out of it...though it is scary at times.

Yesterday we had time to do a core workout together, Matt painted our bedroom (last coat hopefully), we did a marital therapy workbook exercise, and started the potluck assignments for the wedding day. I've almost finished making the flowers, all of the bridesmaid bouquets (with lots of help!) and other crafts. That part is fun :)

I will be sort of spotty with my blogging the next two weeks, for good reasons... but I will keep you posted the best that I can! Today it is raining here in Southeastern Washington - which means I can push my morning run to later in the day and work on some other stuff instead. Like writing our wedding program, information sheets for set up, tear down, kitchen, and clean up crews that are helping us pull off our big day. Maybe also some housework to get the place ready for the both of us...

Happy Thursday, all! :)

Enjoying Autumn Moments

Matt and I ventured over to a nearby park on Sunday to do some exercises from our premarital counseling books. We had fun goofing off too :)
I had a Starbucks gift card that I put to use first. Pumpkin Spice Lattes!
I love these special moments with Matt.
I get to marry this hunky guy in 12 days!
Southeastern Washington, though mostly desert, has some awesome fall colors right now. It is so gorgeous.
We are just taking in these final moments before the joyful chaos hits....

Happy Monday all!

15 Days!

15 days until I get to marry the sweetest, funniest, cutest guy I know!

What a WEEK. Matt and I have both been busy with our wedding planning and to-do's associated with the big day, but also job searching and preparing his house for the both of us to be living there soon. A huge blessing that has come out of him now unemployed has been that we've been able to do wedding planning in the afternoons and house work in the evenings.

As of this week we have walls prepared for paint, Matt's wedding outfit purchased, bubbles for the goodbye bought, my flower bouquet made, our vows written, and the music for the ceremony and reception selected. Yippee!

Lots of odds and ends to wrap up by next Friday. The 31st I am driving back to my hometown for the week, alone, while Matt continues the job search and spends some time with his dad here. That means that next week is my last full week with his help, so I am sure we will be busy! This is an exciting time - we are praying big prayers right now. God is good!

Happy Friday all - have a great weekend!

Being Strong

Hey all - thanks so much for all the encouragement that you sent my way over the weekend. Matt and I are handling things really well I think. Sure we are a little scared about how we will pay our bills with us both not working now, but we know Who provides. When Matt got the call on Friday afternoon, he had been home sick in bed all day. They let him go because he is a temp, and if he can't work the days he is asked they can find someone else. He has been on that assignment for over a year.

It was definitely hurtful. We could have freaked out, but we remained calm and just started asking folks to pray for us and for a job for Matt immediately, and one for me after the wedding. We still had a fun weekend in spite of the news. Today is a new day and we are hitting the ground running! Literally - I am going for a run and Matt is going job hunting :)

My aunt pointed out that this window of time can be really good for us before the wedding. Matt has not had any "vacation" time in over a year aside from three-day weekends because if he did not work, he did not get paid. So this is a little blessing for him as well, as he has worked so hard.

We have so much to be thankful for and excited about - and we would rather have a joyful attitude right now than be worried. Worry is debilitating; there are so many verses on why we should not worry. It does not help things. Taking action, on the other hand will make me feel better. So we will! So yes, this was a shock and a blow. The company knew he was getting married soon. I'm not going to harbor bitterness though. I have too many good things going for me right now!

Happy Monday all...

Please Hire Us

Here is a glimpse into the personalities of Matt and Ruhiyyih. We are super fun people, hard working, college educated and straight up weird goofballs. I hope that last part is ok, because we really like being strange.

We are getting married in three weeks, and Matt just lost his job. I just signed up to work for a temp company and am hopeful for an assignment soon.

We are not going on a honeymoon aside from a couple romantic nights away courtesy of Matt's amazing parents. Our wedding is costing under $800 total, by God's amazing grace and provision. We waited our whole lives for each other, in every sense of the word and can't wait to celebrate marriage.

This video has a lot of personal information in it, but I don't care. We'll probably get some wedding crashers as a result, but we are willing to risk it to showcase our fun-ness (and my baby brothers amazing videography talent).

Also, asking for prayer. We need lots of it.

We hope you enjoy the Matt and Ruhiyyih show! :)

Three Weeks From Tomorrow...

Oh my to do list. It is insane. And - it is crunch time. Now that the marathon is over, I can now focus entirely on wedding planning. It is a busy time. Top it off, I am fighting a cold and my energy is not so good right now. Still - I am trying to stay focused on the event ahead, the life changes that are to come, and to prepare for the marriage - more important that the wedding itself.

Sometimes it helps to just look at the "DONE" list - and realize just how much we have already gotten accomplished. The lengthy "Still To DO" list though...is a bit daunting. The big things left?

• Set the menu (for the potluck...it is actually a lot easier to "assign" items to local folks attending when you are doing this sort of thing for a shoestring budget wedding)
• Put together teams for set up, tear down/clean up, kitchen duty, etc
• Buy my "accessories" for the big day...
• Finish putting together the table decorations (about $1 a table, total! :)
• Make the flower arrangements out of the silk flowers I got at a craft place...
• Final draft of our vows
• Select the music for our ceremony and to play during the reception
• Write and print the Program
• Get the pics and music to Tib to do the slide show! (I'm on it... :)
• Get the special items for the ceremony
• Finalize the RSVP list
• Print out paper invites for the two people on our list that did not have email. Yes we did electronic invites...because they are FREE :)
• Go with Matt to pick out nice slacks and dress shirt to go with his fancy vest
• Meet with the coordinator to have all our final questions answered! :)

It feels...manageable. But, I am definitely finding myself worried sometimes. We want so much for the day to glorify God and not the wedding industry - so we know that some of our nontraditional ways will make some people a little confused, but most attending know that Matt and I are both temping which means little to no extra funds each month. All the more opportunity to be creative.

Matt and I are actually attending a local wedding tomorrow and working on the above list - I hope to come out of this weekend triumphant and feeling better! Have a great weekend, all :)

Chicago Marathon Part II

The race was awesome. I felt strong the whole time and only stopped to walk at water stations past mile 11. But when I crossed that finish line, I let the tears flow. I soon found Matt and gave him a huge hug, and we walked back to the Hostel where I got a hot shower and rested. Next on the agenda though: a MEAL. Pizza it would be! We walked over to Lou Malnati's pizza a few blocks over and waited for a half hour to enjoy their famous pizza - totally worth it all! I ate only one piece because my stomach was a little unsettled, but it was glorious.
We were both blissfully exhausted and full.
We took our leftovers for a late night snack. Goodness that was the *best* pizza! From there we hopped a bus to go see "Whip It" about roller derby. It was awesome! I liked it a lot, and a great activity to do after you ran 26 miles and 385 yards.
Monday morning we went over to nearby Millennium Park to take some pictures and walk around. Lots of tourists, and I wore my finishers medal for fun.




I even took some photos for the tourists! :)
A special thanks to my husband-to-be, Matt, for his amazing support as I chased after the dream of doing another marathon. Next year - we will hopefully do one together! :)

We caught a plane home on Monday afternoon, and was back on the road driving home that evening from the airport. Matt started feeling shaky and had the chills - he was SICK. We ended up stopping halfway for the night because he could not do the drive, and I can't drive a stick that well! So he is resting up now, but we did not get in until late yesterday and I have been doing catch up ever since. I hope to get to all your blogs soon! ;)

Thank you so much for all of your support! It was an amazing experience that I will never forget. Chicago is one amazing city as well - what a place!

Happy Thursday, all!

Chicago Marathon Weekend

It was the craziest weekend. I've been told I am crazy for running marathons, but to run one in thirty degree temperatures is something well - I will have to agree it is nuts!

Matt and I set out on Friday night for the westside. We were so exhausted after the four hour drive to the Seattle area that we were in bed by 9:30 at my sisters' house. When the alarm went off at 4am on Saturday morning, we were ready for the adventure though!

We flew from Seatac to Chicago at 6am. First stop in Chicago: Starbucks!
Next we hopped on the subway. Matt and I have rode the subway now in New York, DC, and Chicago :) It was SO easy to get from O'Hare to downtown - one 25 minute trainride later we arrived at our hostel, locked up our luggage, and caught a free shuttle to the Health & Fitness Expo. It is open to the public, but a required stop for all marathoners. I picked up my running bib, freebies, and the t-shirt. There are a ton of booths and vendors and demonstrations classes.

Well now, that is a fitting sign...
After the Expo, we took a taxi back to the Hostel as it was too cold to wait for the shuttle. The chill in the air made me a little nervous. Determined not to worry, Matt and I got checked into our dorms with runners from all over the world, and soon made our way over to dinner - a free pasta dinner put on by Hostelling International.
Matt and I had not really had lunch, so we ate two plates of the good stuff!

Next we went for a walk to the nearby Grant Park where the Starting Line was. It was great to get familiar with the area, and take pictures of the skyline.
Anyone recognize this fountain? It lit up and danced along with the music that played nearby.
I was in CHICAGO. 7 months of training would soon be put to work....
I said goodbye to Matt around here...he would then take my camera and snap some pictures throughout the day.
The elite runners and Top 100's set out at 7:30am....
This is right after I crossed the starting line (it took 22 minutes from the gun time to me getting there, 35,000 runners and all!) Can you see me in the above picture?
How about here? I was so excited that I saw Matt up on the overpass, I was jumping!
He met me at mile 13 - I turned around to tell him the lens cap was still on. I was right on pace!
He surprised me at Mile 23 - just when I needed some encouragement, there Matt was yelling my name!

He snapped this final race picture of me as I told him I would meet him at the finish line...

And I would write more now but Matt is sick and needs some soup! Stay tuned!!

I Did It!

Ahhhhh I would have written sooner but I just got home an hour ago. Matt and I came down SICK after we got off the flight last night! Bu hao! (Not good in Chinese) :)

WHAT an amazing weekend. I will put up some pictures as soon as I can upload and edit them...maybe tonight. I will tell the full story using them, but the outline of the story is that I ran my goal time of five and a half hours, and nearly froze my rear off doing so. But I had the best time, with the best company.

Stay tuned!

Chicago or BUST!

I'm leaving on a jet plane tomorrow morning! Chicago Marathon or BUST!

Thank you all SO much for your words of encouragement. I am so excited! I have already started thinking about the pose I will do for the cameras at the finish line. Last year at NYC it looked like this:
I'm thinking this year it should include more acrobatics, if I can pull it off :)

So anyone else out there watch The Office last night, where Jim and Pam got married? I died laughing, and cried my eyes out! I'm getting married...wow. Seriously, it is so crazy. God is so good, and His timing is perfect.

In closing, another baby pic of Matt that I scanned yesterday...
Have a great weekend, all! I will post again on Tuesday morning. Wish me luck and say a couple prayers for me!

If I Only Knew Then...

This is my 800th post. Holy Moly! To celebrate, I thought a few more adorable photos of Matt was in order:

And of course, a funny story to tell as well.

Matt was the church intern. I was a new Christian in 1998, a sophomore at CWU - and we hit it off as friends right away. We went on a few service trips together and attended various parties within the same circle of friends.

Matt stumbled across this picture when we started dating last year - us at a party in January of 1999:
If I only knew then what I knew now...well I...would probably freak out. :) Thank GOD that Matt went with the bald look and shaved those sideburns!

We've been scanning photos all week to prepare for a slide show to be made (thanks Tib!!) and it has been *quite* the stroll down memory lane. I don't have any studio pictures from when I was little (we were too poor!) and not a lot of class pictures either (they also cost money) but we have what we need now. What a HOOT.

More are on my Flickr, for chuckles!

Today is jam packed with all the last minute errands that I need to do before driving over to the west side tomorrow night to catch a plane on Saturday morning - Chicago or BUST! I will try to post Friday, but if I can't - stay tuned! ;)

Happy Thursday, all!

Images of Life

More scanning fun...I could not help myself...
A photo of me in China in 2004 (Yunnan Province) with two fellow co-teachers.
Matt with his dad and brother in Ireland...oh do these Irish men love their Ireland...
Me in first grade. I think. I had straight brown hair until I was about 13 or so...
Playing with my brothers and Grandaddy...
Matt (on the left) and his brother when they were little. What a GRIN!! AHHH!!

I am so exhausted. I have so much on my mind when I go to sleep at night that I can't shut it off. I laid awake last night for over two hours. Between planning a wedding and a marathon (with a lot of logistics) this upcoming weekend and figuring out a temping schedule - I am a wreck. I am a huge fan of routine, and there are so many things that are out of routine in my life right now that I cannot control. I just need to give it over, and then - go back to sleep!

Anyhoo - the interview on Monday went really well (it was three hours long with all of the testing that is required). I basically start temping here and there this month when assignments come in, then after I am married I will be a candidate for a direct hire or temp-to-permanent position, when my availability is better. I am excited, and feel a relief that I will have some more time this month to do some wedding planning instead of working full-time. Financially, my savings have stretched nicely - so it should all work out.

I just chatted with Matt briefly and he too could not sleep last night! We are both tired, but our brains are working overtime. So crazy...

Today is definitely looking like a good day for a nap. ONE MONTH AWAY from the big day!

Happy Wednesday, all!

Scanning Fun!

Oh goodness did we have fun this weekend scanning photos! (Well, the fun started after we found a scanner that worked. HP ones are not compatible with anything...) The above photo is Matt (on the left) and his younger brother. What a cutie!
A family photo of my brothers and I with our Grandaddy. I think I was about 6?
And me as a newborn. I was not very good looking, so this was the only decent shot. All of the other pics I look really upset about being out of the womb...
And a fun family shot of my family and mom's family, when we were living in Montana.

...and just for kicks...a picture of Matt as a suave high school senior...
I get to marry that hottie in less than six weeks! ;)

Today is FULL: marathon training, get ready for a job interview (!) lunch with Matt, and testing all afternoon for a staffing firm. Then, I will get to check blogs! Happy Monday, all!

October is Here!

Well September flew by. I feel like it was crazy busy and I was not even working! I was busy though, with other things - and I now find myself eager for when the things I am working on now are over with and I can move on and enjoy the next stages in life...

...like sleeping in. Marathon training means hitting the pavement before the day gets in your way.

...and not worry about a wedding. So much has already been planned, but we still have A LOT to do. Tonight? Sorting ALL our photos for a slide show. Seriously, how do I pick just a few pics of Matt - he was the cutest kid EVER. (As soon as we can get a scanner working, I will post one or two of him :) I can't wait to marry Matt. He is an amazing man - I am seriously so blessed!

And, I will be eager to start working again. I have an appointment at a staffing firm on Monday and hopefully I can catch some temping jobs this month to fill in the gaps. It is hard to find full-time permanent work when you need to take the first ten or days off in November.

So my weekend is a full with running the last "long" run before Chicago next weekend, church, resting, and lots more wedding planning. Hopefully I will actually take some pics so my posts next week are not so empty! Happy Friday, all! :)