It's the Final Countdoooown

There has been so much going on that I don't even know where to begin. This may end up a hodgepodge that makes no sense, but I'm hoping I can fit it into a nice, neat summary so I don't have to write a horrendously long blog post right now.

So, let's start with I tagged that this post would be about before I even started writing; the wedding. We're exactly one month out now. We sent out the invitations and rsvp's are slowing making their way back to us. We invited way too many people for the amount of space we have, but as long as we get a "normal" amount of regrets back, we should have enough space. On July 30th, we went for the menu tasting. The entrees we picked are fillet, halibut, and butternut squash ravioli. The rest of the food will be delicious too. It's this gigantic 3 course meal with 5 passed appetizers during the cocktail hour, plus soup and salad courses. I'm a little bummed that I won't be around to eat the delicious appetizers during cocktail hour because they are basically awesome.

On the 4th, my mom and I went out to meet a potential hair stylist. She is amazing. She totally blew us away. So easy to work with and she really knows hair and what looks good, not just fancy techniques and stuff. So, she's scheduled to come up to SB and do my hair as well as my mom's and future mother-in-law's.

Then a week ago Sunday, my mom and I went to Nordstrom to meet with a "beauty stylist" and learn more about makeup and the best techniques for bridal application. By the end of the 2 hours we spent there, I looked a little bit like an alien, but I had a plethora of makeup information and a nice little stash of new products to use when I do my own makeup for the wedding. I do not plan on making myself look like an alien, but I am going to use the tips and techniques she gave me to make myself look like a more dressed up "everyday" Alyssa.

During the week last week, I found out that my future mother-in-law would not be able to make it to my bridal shower, which happened this past Saturday.My future husband was very upset because there was a whole bunch of drama with setting the shower date to begin with because everyone was taking their kids to college or going out of town on any later weekends and after we get out of August, it's way to close to the wedding, so the shower date couldn't get bumped back a week or two.
Anyway, I stayed up way too late the night before my shower wrapping presents for bridesmaids and folding laundry and painting Buzz Lightyear, so I set myself (btw, just tried to spell that "M-Y-S-E-L-P-H") up for an exhausting Saturday.
The shower was beautiful - though slightly bittersweet since Tim's mom wasn't there. She doesn't have any daughters, so she doesn't get to do girly stuff like this and now she'd missed a chance, ya know? My aunts and the ladies of WWAR(family friend acronym) did an absolutely fantastic job. I was am so overwhelmed by the whole thing - and so happy for everyone who was able to make it out.

In the madness that has been the last couple of weeks, my house has felt the most neglect. The house does not have feelings, so I don't have to worry about hurting them by leaving it to last. Unfortunately it's progressed to a level of messyness that just looking at leaves me completely stressed out. Staring into any room in the house for too long sends me into a surreal state - fuzzyness clouds my periphery and frustration takes over. I just want to kick something, but instead I start picking things up - all the while getting upset that no one is helping me, which is ridiculous because I didn't even ask for help - and then the dishwasher breaks.

Sunday night, after filling the dishwasher to the brim (it probably should not have had that much in it), I pushed the start button and... nothing happened. No beep, no light, no 'hey hey hey, you put to much stuff", no struggle to get going, nada. I pushed buttons for a while to no avail and finally called Tim down to help. He pushed buttons, did some maneuvering to see if he could pull the dishwasher out, checked the detergent thing, made sure nothing was getting blocked, pushed some more buttons and said, "well, at least we have a brand new dishwasher in the garage"

The (lovely) new dishwasher came as part of a set from all my aunts and uncles on my mom's side as a totallyamazingandhaveImentionedIamcompletelyblownawaybythisincredible wedding present. The dishwasher, range, microwave/hood, and TOTALLY AMAZING fridge (separate and equally awesome wedding gift from my grandparents) arrived at our house last Saturday, the 6th. Because we knew they were coming, Tim and I got up early early in the morning and ran out to Home Depot to call dibs on the truck. Nobody was in town to help us, so I attempted to play the roll of someone significantly stronger than myself, and help Tim move the old fridge out of the house and onto the truck. I think I did a pretty good job considering I am not, in fact, very large. Anyhoo, our kitchen - though significantly larger than our previous kitchen - is not so very pretty, nor is it in very good shape. The formica countertops don't match. The one chunk of butcherblock countertop has been used as a cutting board, the cabinets are poorly painted and flimsy, one of the shelves in the pantry is broken. It needs some love.
We went ahead and had them swap out the fridge and the range on the 6th, but the other two require some more intensive installation, so our plan was to wait until our countertops are replaced and cabinets are repainted. The trouble with that...now that Tim's parents didn't come up for the shower this past weekend...we have no idea when fixing the kitchen is going to happen.
Before the shower I thought for sure our kitchen would be done long before we were married, but now that we're one month away and don't have a plan anymore, I'm kind of bummed. I got so excited about my new kitchen and now I walk in and see my pretty new fridge and range and wish that the rest of the kitchen was as shiny and new as they are. And now the dishwasher doesn't work, so I'll be hand-washing dishes for the foreseeable future.
I know I would be so much happier if we just had a plan.

That's all for now. I'm sure I have more to write about, but I don't need to write a book today, so this is where I'll stop.