Blog Launch!

Well instead of going to bed early because I work at 6am, I worked on the new blog, and it is officially ready to be seen! It isn't completely finished by a long shot, but there is enough to get it up and running. So check it out here! 


Love,
Briana

Coming Soon!

So I apologize for the lack of posting, not that anybody ever reads this...

I tried to change the design on here but ended up completely destroying my blog and the lack of figuring out how to fix it is one of the reasons I haven't posted. I haven't had the patience to just sit down and mess with it, and the times that I have I just end up doing more damage. So I am done for now. Well I was.

There are two more reasons for lack of posting. 1) I have this really bad habit for blogging in my head. I write posts daily in my mind but never actually sit down at the computer to type them up. If that is weird (which I am guessing it is) then I apologize. 2) I tried to switch to WordPress (not sure why) and I couldn't really figure out how to work it. I'm so bad with this blog anyways, so I don't know why on earth I would have tried to switch to something new for me to learn for absolutely no reason. That plan kind of failed too.

BUT I am currently going to make a new blog that will hopefully be better & brighter. I think that is what you are supposed to do when you get married... make a new blog. :) Anyways, I will update when it is ready for display. Until then... all is well in the McCall household. School is wonderful, the puppies are happy and we are both "loving" work. We are blessed. <3

-Briana

Radical Living

My friend Lauren had this video on her blog & I wanted to share it because a brief two minutes can be a grand awakening for Christ followers. Since January of this year, God has stirred within my heart a different passion for him than I have had probably my entire life. So I want to share this video with you. Also... Alex and I have joined the launch team for a church plant at the University of Louisville and we are asking for your prayers as students begin moving in soon and we start penetrating this campus for His glory and for the sake of proclaiming His name so that all will hear. We officially launch on 10-10-10 but we have some incredible stories of what God is doing already, and you can check those out here at our church website. The Avenue has changed my life, and I am so thankful to be able to serve alongside some great men and women of God.

Radical by David Platt


- Briana

Pretty Wedding Pictures

Thought many of these were beautiful and just wanted to share! I am in high wedding spirits! 

 -Briana

Crunch Time

We are 23 days away from the wedding! For the past week I have not been able to comprehend all the big changes that are about to take place, but it is all finally sinking in! My mom has been working really hard on our reception favors, and I have been frantically calling everyone who didn't send in their RSVPs by July 1st (shame shame) and just checking thing after thing off of my list! Alex & I got our marriage license yesterday morning and then had a nice breakfast at Chick-fil-a. I had coupons, and we both ate breakfast and got drinks for $5! I love coupons! :) This has nothing to do with anything, but tomorrow they are having something special at Chick-fil-a for anyone who shows up dressed like a cow. Who would do that?? I'm tempted to go eat there tomorrow just to see if anyone actually does show up in costume. It would be interesting!! 

I picked up my veil today as well as a couple of prescriptions that I needed filled before we go out of town. I had to return a few purchases I had made that were unnecessary because I am completely broke. Sigh... Now I am just waiting for the lady that might do my wedding make up. She is supposed to get here in an hour and a half, and I am really excited. I hope I love it because I do not want to be searching for another make-up person this close to the wedding date. I was supposed to be doing my hair trial this morning, but it got moved to tomorrow morning so we'll see how that goes. At this point I don't think anything could make me want to switch who is doing hair & make-up just for the sake of convenience, but we'll see tomorrow I guess! After make-up I am going to meet with a lady that will be in charge of our ceremony music. It was kind of a last minute thing. We were planning on just having a piano player for the ceremony, but when I met with my wedding coordinator the other week I noticed there was only a keyboard in the chapel and there is no luck actually getting a real piano in there sooooooo I proceeded to find a string quartet within our budget and am meeting with the lady today to hopefully book and finalize our music choices! Alex and I finished picking those yesterday... I am just hoping everything goes well and there isn't anything that needs to be changed. Crossing my fingers here! And thennnnn after that I am going with my dad and Alex to have them fitted for their tuxedos. And then home to "rest" which will probably consist of continuing my thank-you cards from my showers. 

I am planning on every day for the next 23 to have a similar schedule to this one. I hope not, but if I plan for all of this and get a little less than I will be perfectly satisfied. I don't even want to think about moving right now. And ordering furniture. Oh goodness..... I love my life. <3 

-Briana

A Short Note to You

Well I am back with a few words to say... Life has been going very well recently. Nothing too dramatic is going on but I have been enjoying summer with Alex & my family, and we have all been very busy planning events and running to and from wherever to wherever. But regardless, I have found this time to be very relaxing. I am working two jobs plus babysitting when I can and even though I have been working a lot of hours, I find time to sleep in and try to spend time doing things that I enjoy. I haven't had that much friend time but that is hopefully changing!! I have had two bridal showers... one in Tennessee and another here in Louisville this past Sunday. I always get so nervous right before these types of things because I'm always afraid that people aren't going to enjoy themselves or whatnot, but afterwards I always laugh and criticize myself for worring about it so much. They were both so incredibly fun and I had such a good time talking to people and visiting with my closest friends. I wish that I had family that lived closer because I never get to see them but hopefully that will change soon as well. Family is so important to me, and living away from all my grandparents and aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. has been pretty disappointing but then again I cherish every moment that I do get to spend with them. I am so glad that most of them are going to be able to come to the wedding. I have a cousin in Afghanistan (see earlier post) and if all goes according to plan, he will be home in time to fly out here for the big day. He is in our prayers often! My things to do this week are just to find a cake topper (which I already think I did), finish writing my vows and find a veil... I saw a picture of a friend who got married last weekend, and her veil was gorgeous. I am going to try and find out where she got it. :) Anyways, best wishes to faithful readers.

~ Briana

This weather is absolutely GORGEOUS.

Title is random but so true. :) This weather is absolutely breath-taking. I cannot wait for the neighborhood pools to open this weekend! Usually my family joins Douglass Hills for the summer months but supposedly 19 is the oldest you can be on your family's pool membership and since this summer I am 20 I will have to get my own pool membership. I am not sure how much it costs and if it is even going to be worth paying because of all the wedding stuff and the fact that come August Alex and I will be living in an apartment complex that has a pool. I'll have to look into it. :) And since I mentioned it, Alex and I signed a lease on a 2 Bedroom/2 Bathroom apartment last week! We knew we were going to live in Old Louisville but it was just up in the air whether or not we were going to rent an apartment, condo, townhouse or actual house. We looked at a few places and found this super fun house that would have been a blast to live in but it was really too much house and because it was so old the utility bill would have been outrageous. So we kept looking. In the end it was between a 2 Bedroom/ 1 Bathroom apartment off of Brook and Oak and the apartment at the Bellamy which we ended up choosing in the end. The Bellamy is apartment living for University of Louisville students only. They kind of do resemble dorms which Alex didn't like but there were just so many more reasons why we chose to live there instead. They come fully furnished which was a big plus even though his parents own a furniture and appliance store. It wouldn't have been hard to furnish an apartment but it would have been a big pain moving. Also the reason we are moving to Old Louisville is to plant a church called The Avenue which specifically is targeting University students. There are some crazy facts about religion or lack there-of on campus and there are many families from The Avenue moving to Old Louisville so that we can be a part of the community. Our pastor, Ben Hardman states our mission perfectly. "When Christ (Jesus) moves into a community that community changes from the inside out." When Jesus came to earth and dwelt among people, the world was changed for the better. Ben tells people that he wants a bunch of little Jesus's running around Old Louisville and serving the community. I just love it! :) Well anyways, we were doing the whole pros/cons thing between the places and we ultimately felt God's call for us to go to the Bellamy, not because it is nicer and has cool amenities but because that is where students are. The guys at our church can't just get a group to go play basketball at the complex's court... or play sand volleyball whenever they want to because it is a gated community but residents can let anyone they wish in through the gate and honestly, I think that from the launch team (which almost everyone is older than Alex and I), we are the only ones that can actually live at the Bellamy because we are students. We have that "in" that noone else has and hopefully we will be able to minister to and serve our neighbors while we are living there. If you are wanting our new address (starting July 31), please just message or e-mail me and I will get it to you!!

I was going to update a little more, but I have things to do today... Oh well! 

I decided that I am not going to really be keeping up with the blog anymore. I was doing so good at keeping up with it on a regular basis, but I don't feel like it is something that needs a lot of my time right now. Perhaps I will come back to it on a more frequent basis but for now just look for random updates... I'm not sure when the next one will be! 

- briana -

What I Think God is Building :)

Apart from the post that I just wrote, I just wanted to share one more thing. It's not deep or anything, but I love in the Bible how it says God is preparing a place for us in heaven. It has to be absolutely incredible so I decided to find what I think could possibly me the most incredible houses on earth. Here's a few I just wanted to share. If this is what man can do, just imagine what God can do!! :)

~ Briana

Half-Heartedly Writing

Lately I have been cutting down on the information, etc. that I am putting on FB and the internet in general. It's a struggle for me b/c half of me wants to update the world on everything that God is doing in my life and showing me, etc. but the other half of me wants a private life and to share it with those he puts in my path. I want true friendships, not a hundred acquaintances. Like on Facebook I know all of the people on my friends list but I feel that a lot of times people use FB as an excuse for developing those friendships to make them great. I guess I am just in the middle of the technology struggle. It is such a blessing and such a curse at the exact same time. That is really why I haven't been updating. Plus I've been really busy, but I feel like this is the time for me to be focusing on my future marriage and strengthening the friendships I currently have. So many new things are happening to me, and I don't want to get lost in it all. So just pray for me and what God would have me do. It is something to consider in your own life as well. Where is God leading you? Ask him to make it crystal clear. ♥

 ~ Briana

Groupon

If you have never heard of Groupon.com then you are missing out! Each day there is a new coupon on some great products and services in the area that you are living in! Please check this out! You won't want to miss!

http://www.groupon.com/r/uu989563

- b -

Today's Groupon is actually the gentleman that is doing my engagement/wedding photography! The weather is so beautiful outside now that we are trying to do our engagement pictures ASAP! ♥

Newlyweds N&J [Flashback]

So this week I actually don't have to work a single school night! I am so excited! Today I had lunch with Holly and Lynda at school, and then I came home and watched Newlyweds Re-runs <3. Nick & Jessica will always be married in my world. Their divorce in 2006 never happened! You cannot tell me otherwise!!

When I was watching the first episode on YouTube today, just seeing the expression on Nick's face when he saw her for the first time as she was walking down the aisle. I just wanted to cry! & I know that this has no significance since they are not married anymore, but I think it is so awesome how she saved herself for marriage in such a worldly industry that she lives in! Ah, inspiration. <3 I could watch this show every day this week... in fact, I just might!

- b -

Be Blessed

I read this just now and wanted to share in the hopes that it will bless you as well! It is from The Message translation. I love reading different translations because they can impact you in such different ways! May His word saturate your heart.

Isaiah 30:18

 ¹⁸But God's not finished. He's waiting around to be gracious to you.
   He's gathering strength to show mercy to you.
God takes the time to do everything right—everything.
   Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones. 

- b -

Schedule

So life is just going GREAT. I was thinking today how everyone bashes public schooling and say it isn't as good of quality as a private education, but I can only speak for myself. I don't have a lot of time, but I just want to say that I think that the quality education that I am getting at UofL is superb. I have learned so much and have had awesome teachers. Yes, they DO care about their students and you are not just another name on their list. This semseter I have been blessed with some amazing, knowledgable and wise professors, and I am very thankful for them. We only have about 5 weeks left of school, and I hope that the last 3 semesters that I have here are just as good as the first 2. Saying that.... I need to get back to my homework. I was out of school for an entire week that first week of March due to illness and now I am STILL playing catch-up. I guess God just knew that I needed some understanding teachers this semester. They have been helping me so much, and I am so thankful! Just in case you were wondering, here is a list of the classes I have been taking this semester!

Music in the Public Schools (MUSE 525)
Art Education (ART 407)
Math for Elementary Education II (MAT 152)
British Literature I (ENG 301)
&
Writing About Literature (ENG 310)

I love all my classes! :) Hope that those of you still in school finish strong and have a great rest of the semester!

- b -

Must Have!

I went to Barnes & Noble yesterday night to pick up a wedding planner/organizer. I found a cute one, but that is beside the point. :) I saw this book and took a look at it for a few minutes. Let's just say that I NEED THIS BOOK!! If you need to organize your life or are simply an organizer like me, this book is for you!

How To Organize Just About Anything

- b -

The Piñata

Just something I wanted to share!! I am in the middle of writing a lesson plan for my Art Education class, and one of the lessons that we have to prepare is for students to participate in Cultural Heritage Art. This assignment calls to research a specific culture or explore a particular aspect of a country's heritage and incorporate a traditional visual arts form to the lesson.

What I am doing is having my "students" (we don't actually get to DO the lesson) make a piñata. Interesting, right? No. It's what I found out about the piñata which is actually REALLY COOL! I am going to copy and paste the information below. It is really interesting and symbolizes a lot of religious beliefs of the Italian and Spanish cultures! Hope you find this as fascinating as I did!

Many party goers think of Pinatas as a party game with its origin tied to the lands of Mexico. Instead, however, the origins of pinatas can be traced to Italy. Originally known as pignatta (which means "fragile pot" in Italian), pinatas were made of clay. They often were shaped into a symbol of hospitality used throughout Italy, the shape of a pineapple.

From Italy, the custom of breaking pinatas, migrated to Spain where the custom became tied very closely to the celebration of Lent. It was at this point in history that the name changed from pignatta to pinata. The pinatas themselves were still made of clay at this point and known by the Spanish as an olla, which was their word for "pot." Although the first pinatas were plain clay pots, people eventually started to put paper figures on the pots for decorations. The Spanish pinata had a religious significance to them. They believed that the pinata represented Satan and it was made beautiful and bright in order to offer a temptation to the innocents who came into contact with it. The Candies and toys that were placed inside of it, were the temptations of Satan. The person breaking the pinata was always blindfolded in order to represent blind faith and the stick used to break pinatas was said to be the symbol of all that was good. This was important because "good" had to overcome "evil" or in this case, Satan. Once the goodness overcame the evil, the treats that spilled out were said to be justified rewards of living a "good" life.

From Spain, missionaries took the customs of pinatas into Mexico where the Aztecs found the custom to be very close to customs and celebrations of their own cultures. For example, to celebrate the Aztec god of war, at the end of the year Aztec priests would place a clay pot on a pole in the community temple. The pot was filled with tiny treasures and was decorated on the outside with feathers of bright colors. The pot was then broken with the treasures falling to the base of the pole. These treasures were said to be an offering to the god of war and would bring about strength and goodness to the Aztecan people.

Today the ritual of breaking pinatas has less of a religious symbolism and is more about the fun and rewards attached to the activity. Pinatas can be purchased to complement almost any theme or character party making them a great option for a party activity. Party favors, candy, and little treasures can be tucked inside pinatas to be exploded upon the crowd of party guests as the pinata is broken. The resulting scurrying of guests and laughter as the treasurers are claimed make for smiles on all those looking on. To be sure everyone gets something from the pinatas, the party host should set aside little goody bags with replica treasures. The bags, which historically have been called colacion, will ensure that at a time of fun and laughter, no guests feel left out of the celebration.

- b -

My Life is SO BUSY!!

We have a little stone outside of our front house that reads,
"Beware of the barrennes of a busy life."

This statement is so true! When you are constantly running from place to place and event to event, suddenly when you have a moment to stop and breathe, you wonder what is the point of it all? Why are there so many things to do? And when I stop to think of many of the things that I am constantly "running" to, I feel as though nothing satisfies and brings meaning and truly fulfills my life. Of course, as a Christian, God is the only thing that can ever complete me, but setting that aside, nothing that I am trying to balance will ever fulfill my life. When you are so busy, sometimes your life feels empty. So here is a warning to keep in mind!!

Now I realize that there are things that have to be done. Life gets busy, and that is a fact, but before you tackle and say "yes" to one more commitment, truly think about your priorities and what is truly important to you. When you stop to think about it, maybe you won't jump to the next activity or commitment that comes along. Just a thought!

- b -

Until the Whole World Hears

We sang this at Lift a couple weeks ago. Lift is the middle school program on Sunday mornings at Southeast. But it isn't just a program. Lift is our students advancing the Kingdom of Christ. It was just so cool to be a part of their praise & worship as we sang this song. They are truly an incredible group of kids. I thought I'd share this song with you. It should be something that we live by. I hope it impacts you as much as it has impacted us.

Lord, we... 

Want to be your hands and feet
Want to be a life that leads
To see you set the captive free
Until the whole world hears
and I pray that they will see more of you and less of me
Lord I want my life to be the song You sing
Until the whole world hears Lord we are calling out
Lifting your name up for all to hear the sound
Like voices in the wilderness we're crying out
as the day draws near
we'll sing until the whole world hears

- b -

In Honor of Valentines Day, of Love

I think it is so cool to serve a God who sends us just what we need to hear at just the right time. At a point in our relationship, God sent this song to me and it spoke directly into a situation that needed some direction. I thought I would share it with you. You can also hear it in the movie Fireproof which I highly recommend to anybody. Hope everyone had a very special Valentines Day!

Love is not a place
To come and go as we please
It's a house we enter in
Then commit to never leave

So lock the door behind you
Throw away the key
We'll work it out together
Let it bring us to our knees

Chorus:
Love is a shelter in a raging storm
Love is peace in the middle of a war
And if we try to leave, may God send angels to guard the door
No, love is not a fight but it's something worth fighting for

To some, love is a word
That they can fall into
But when they're falling out
Keeping that word is hard to do

Chorus:
Love is a shelter in a raging storm
Love is peace in the middle of a war
And if we try to leave, may God send angels to guard the door
No, love is not a fight but it's something worth fighting for

Love will come to save us
If we'll only call
He will ask nothing from us
But demand we give our all

Chorus:
Love is a shelter in a raging storm
Love is peace in the middle of a war
And if we try to leave, may God send angels to guard the door
No, love is not a fight but it's something worth fighting for

I will fight for you
Would you fight for me?
It's worth fighting for

- b -

Prayer Request

I'm not sure how many people are even going to read this, but if you do, I am asking for prayer this evening as I go to the doctor to take some tests. It is kind of a big deal and then not at the same time, but I just wanted to ask! Thanks so much!! 

- b -

P.S. Alex got a job!!!!! Updates later! :)

Blessed Blessed Blessed

For the past three weeks I have been feeling just so grateful and thankful for everything that God has blessed me with. I'm not sure why this feeling has just been abounding in me, but it has and I am just so happy. I think about everything that I have in my life and compare it to those who might be less fortunate, and I cannot help but thank God daily and try to help others in any way that I possibly can. At Passion 2010 (Jan. 2-5) in Atlanta, 25,000 college students, including me and my friends, helped raise over 600,000 towards coutnless chairities all around this country & our world. It was truly a humbling experience to be able to learn about these different organizations whose sole missions are to share the love and generosity of God to those who need it. I can't possibly talk about all the charities that we served with, but I will mention one particularly because I just received an e-mail update from them. The organization is called One Verse, and it's mission is to help translate the Bible into the languages of people that don't have that don't have it yet in their native tongue. I was so surprised at how much it costs to translate a single verse, but it made perfect sense in the end. A lot of peoples don't have the Bible written in their language because they don't even HAVE a written language. Missionaries and other people have to go and live with these different tribes and first, learn their language, second, help develop a written language and then third, translate the gospel into their language. For some missionaries, it is their life goal to translate the Bible or even just a portion of the Bible into another language. So the estimate that they gave us at Passion was that it takes $25 dollars to translate each verse of the Bible. If you do the math (I did a quick estimate), it takes a little less than $1 million dollars to translate the entire Bible into another language. Take a second to take that in. $1 million dollars to translate the Bible. That is crazy, and of course, I wanted to help. My friend Holly & I decided to each buy a verse to be translated, and it was one of the most rewarding experiences that I have ever lived through. We stood in line at Passion and told the lady at the booth that we each wanted to buy a verse, and she took our payment and then GAVE us the verse that was being translated because of our donation. It was SO COOL!! We then proceeded to go to this big banner that they had hanging in the convention center, and we wrote our verse next to the ones that had already been "purchased." It was so neat, and if you feel called to help bring the gospel to someone who has never heard it spoken in their own language, click here to help.

 

My Verse:

So the promise is received by faith. It is given as a free gift. And we are certain to receive it, whether or not we live according to the law of Moses, if we have faith like Abraham's. For Abraham is the father of all who believe.

~Romans 4:16

We are truly, truly blessed.

- b -

The Journey

As I said before, Mrs. McCall came up to Louisville this weekend with her friend Stephanie to help with wedding planning. We needed to pick out our rehearsal dinner venue so Saturday morning we piled up at around 9:30 and just drove around Louisville to different places that we had researched. We didn't really have any appointments, but suprisingly, many people were able to meet with us. We went to the Kaden Tower, a beautiful Bed & Breakfast, the Seelbach Hotel, the Brown Hotel, Farmington Historic Home, Churchill Downs, and a couple other places. As I said in my last post, we ended up booking the Rathskeller room at the Seelbach Hilton on 4th street. We all just absolutely loved it! At first I wanted to make sure it wasn't going to one-up our actual reception, but the two just don't even compare. The Rathskeller is very old and artsy and historic while the ballroom at the Country Club is very contemporary, classy and BRIGHT (lol). There is not a single window in the Rathskeller and at Standard Country Club, the walls are almost entirely windows. You just can't even compare the two. 


We also met with the florist that we chose to do our flowers. We picked out my bouquet as well as the ones that my bridesmaids will carry. We picked the boutonniere's for the groomsman & then for Alex and our fathers/grandfathers. Our moms picked out their corsages, and we brainstormed some ideas for centerpieces! We were there for almost 2 hours, but I'm glad that we got it over with. It was actually kind of fun even though it was one of the last places on our list, and we were all extremely tired.


Friday evening we went and met with a friend of ours from church, Amy Henson, who will be making our wedding cake. I don't want to give away too much on this blog because I want people to look forward to what we have planned, so all I am going to say is six tiers. ;o) Our cake is phoenomenal. I love it. And Amy is so great to work with, and the cake is delicious and is going to be beautiful. I'm so excited about it!!! 


Our invitations are picked out, we just have to finaize our guest list and get everyone's mailing address so that we can order the invitations and start getting them ready. We have quite some time before they will have to be mailed out, but I want to get it done with as soon as possible. We're meeting with our DJ on Wednesday to hopefully sign a contract and talk music! We still need to find a videographer & pick out the groomsmen apparrel. So much is getting done! Thanks for taking the time to read this! I know people aren't as excited as I am, but I needed to write about it somewhere! Hope everyone has a blessed week!

 

Here are just a couple beautiful wedding reception photos I found online! Enjoy!

- b -

Mission Accomplished

 Isn't the architecture of this room to die for? When Alex's mom visited this

weekend to work on wedding planning with us, we visited this room

at the Seelbach, and we immediately knew it was the place we wanted

to have our rehearsal dinner. So... it is booked! :) I am so excited!

More pictures to come later!

- b -

For LOVE

Wouldn't it be fabulous if I could afford to buy these shoes to wear with my wedding dress? Sigh. I think I'll save this as my background picture for a few weeks. Enjoy! 

- b -

Happy New Year! Time to UPDATE!

Happy 2010 everyone!! I know that I have not updated in a while, but I really am trying! I have months & months of updating to do so I'll start with wedding stuff so that I can get it over with! Alex & I have been engaged for almost 2 months, and they have FLOWN by. We will have an 8 1/2 month engagement until we are married on July 31st of this year. A lot of places and vendors book up a year in advance so we were really crunched for time when it came to planning. Planning has been a little different than what I expected it to be. I guess I just feel so rushed because the wedding is less than 7 months away, and there is still so much more to do. It also seems unreal that all this time & effort is going towards planning a single event that will be over in a matter of hours. It's crazy yet I am looking forward to it at the same time. I'm trying to enjoy the process, but it is just a lot of work! I feel like all I do is make appointments, compare & contrast different vendors, make decisions & write a check. It just gets tiring after a while! I don't want to sound like I am complaining, I am just trying to describe how it is making me feel!!

Well so far I feel that I have gotten a lot accomplished, but looking at my to-do list makes for a giant dose of intimidation. Here are a few of the things that we have already done: we picked the date! That was an event all in itself. I had to call all our close friends & relatives to make sure that the people that had to be there could be there. I also had to think through my sister as being a candidate for GSP (Governer's Scholar Program) in the summer. Danielle is my maid of honor & if she gets into this program she will be gone for 5 weeks starting at the end of June. I want her to go so bad, but she won't find out until April if she got in and then she won't find out which session she is going to (if she gets in) until May. It was just so frustrating! But we picked July 31st because we have too many friends getting married in May/June, and Alex thought that those months were too soon anyways. We didn't want to get married in August because it was so close to the start of the fall semester, so we decided on July and then our venue only had an opening on the 31st so that was set! We chose our wonderful wedding party (it's pretty big!) and ceremony/reception location. We are getting married at my home church, Southeast Christian. I have grown up there my whole life, and it really means a lot to me to get married there. There was a good bit of paperwork that we had to fill out and send to get approved, along with our wedding date, and that got done. We start our 12 week premarital classes in April. They will be done in June, and we are looking forward to meeting other couples at our church who are at the same stages in life! What else... I bought my wedding dress in mid-December. They say to give it at least 6 months so that you can get it back in time for alterations. Putting the down-payment on the dress so close to Christmas killed me, but I am excited that it is ordered & currently being made. I love it, and it is just a really neat dress. I can't post pitures because of Alex, but you can just send me an e-mail at bmerante@insightbb.com if you're interested. I understand nobody really cares about any of this, but I just love talking about it every now and then. I haven't picked out the bridesmaid dresses just yet, and that is my next big goal along with the cake. I have looked at some but want to go to a couple more places to see what else is an option. Our colors are chocolate brown, ivory and purple. They go so great together, and I am hoping that it all goes well. We have booked our photographer as of YESTERDAY! Josh Perkins from Red Tree Photography is going to share our special day with us. He does an amazing job, and I am so glad that we chose him! We also looked at Studio E & Eric Graf as well, and I would recommend them second to Josh if you are ever looking for a photographer! Lastly, we decided on who would be doing our flowers. There is a florist right next to my dad's store that he really wanted to use. We were supposed to meet with them and pick out everything yesterday, but there has been a lot of snow, and they asked that we reschedule. So that is pretty much it so far! Oh yeah, I HAVE set up one block of rooms at the hotel I work at for some out-of-town guests. I need to do that at about 2 more hotels because we have a lot of people traveling, but I will do that later.

So my next big goals are picking out the bridesmaids dresses & cake. Also, I am looking for suggestions. Should I get a videographer? To those who are married are you glad that you did/didn't hire one? Would it be a good investment? Just let me know! Thanks for reading!

- b -