Birthday Boy

This past weekend was the cutest, sweetest fiancé's birthday! So, of course, I had to buy some festive junk from HEB. Because that's just the kind of girl I am.

Which prompted Nick, with a truly boyish grin, to ask if I was going to a small child's birthday. Whatever, he totally wore the crown.

I love birthdays, and I want us to make a big deal out of them in our new family. My parents always treated birthdays like the event of the year, and some of my favorite childhood memories involve the plethora of birthday signs and the personalized birthday menu. So, to my future kids: I promise to make a big deal out of you all the time, but especially on your birthday...

Speaking of big deals, I made The Cupcakes. And let me tell you, they were worth it. Every calorie was worth it. You might remember that I am something of a kitchen newbie. So, while the cupcakes weren't perfect, they were pretty darn good, and it felt so good to create something for someone from scratch. 

That was our breakfast-- adulthood has many charms...

Scrapbook

Life lately has been all twinkle lights at Spiderhouse, good times with my fiancé (courtesy of Mr. Mike Reed!!), girls nights out with Caitlin, my Maid of Honor Extraordinaire, and many lovely Austin nights. Also, my cookie told me that "fame, fortune and romance are [mine] for the asking," which is, you know, really good to hear.

Another Shout Out

While I have been busy marking up flower proposals, my love has been studying day and night. He will probably be so embarrassed that I am writing about this and putting the spotlight on him, but that is what this blog is all about. It's all about my love for that boy. Sorry Nick, deal with it.

Nick is a pharmacy student. He studies hard and makes good grades. He puts a lot of heart into everything he does. Even in the midst of all the notecards and textbooks, he still manages to take me out on dates. He still manages to talk to me about the wedding. He never forgets to tell me he loves me.

I am a lucky girl-- thank you Nick for being the most perfect man for me.  

Okay, sappy-fest over. For now.

Just call me Suzi Homemaker

Okay, confession time: my kitchen and I are strangers.

I like to say that college killed any urge to cook and bake with its rigorous schedule and frequent coffee shop study trips. But that is probably a lie considering all the movies I managed to watch and the downtown trips I managed to enjoy. I just stopped cooking and baking, end of story. Luckily Nick likes to feed me, or I might A. wither away or B. get fat and happy off boxed mac and cheese forever and ever amen. 

It is time for a change though, the kind of change that requires a theme song. Please hear Europe's The Final Countdown as you read. The ring on my left hand is urging me to not only obsess over wedding plans but also to nest. I want our apartment to be homey, and I want to have pies sitting on the windowsills, goshdarnit. Is that too much to ask?

So, at the urging of my office-mate (who is also one of my lovely bridesmaids and a fabulous cook!) I am going to try, I said try, to make dinner twice a week. Wish me luck?

 I've already prepped Nick for a feast tonight, and I plan to make this delish-looking dish. I will probably modify it a little, but nothing too crazy since kitchen newbies probably shouldn't start by rewriting recipes, just a thought.

{via Eat Live Run}

Add a salad to appease my mom and two glasses of wine, and that is (hopefully) dinner tonight! Expect a report replete with pictures tomorrow. Yes, this blog is about to make room for food... we'll see how long that lasts...

A List and Engagement Shoot Ideas

I think it has been said before, but lists are my crack. There is a stack of to-do lists on my desk, dating back from who knows when. I guess I just don't process things (in this case, all the stuff I have to do) until I see them listed in black and white.

With that in mind, let's list it up! I am grateful for...

• My sweet fiancé who never ceases to amaze me and always makes me smile
• My mother who likes to text me a lot of crazy emoticons of clapping hands and shocked eyes
• The Hunger Games premier! It could only be better if I was dressing up and waiting in line to see it at midnight... but alas...
• A bulletin board full of goofy pictures
• Notebooks that I can scribble in
• A father who actually reads my blog
• Good books (thinking particularly here of Your Voice in My Head, by Emma Forrest which I am about to start listening to on tape, for the second time.)
• Coffee, multiple times a day
• Wedding blogs (which I peruse periodically throughout the work day... shhhhh don't tell)
• My tiny blog, for giving me a fun outlet to gush about all things wedding related

Now, on to engagement shoot planning! We are scheduled to shoot with our photographer the first of April, at Hamilton Pool. I've only seen pictures, but the place looks gorgeous-- natural and wild, with large jutting stone surrounding a pool of water.

{via Kathy Davies Photography}

There's also, apparently, some greenery:

{via Jenny Demarco}

I don't want to give too much away, but I really like the engagement shoots I've seen that aren't too cutesy (see, Nick should really thank me, right?) or styled. Just us doing our thing, looking fabulous (haha).

I love these shots:

Two lovebirds just lounging-- that's us.

{via Kathy Davies Photography}

 Sweet and natural? Oh yes!

{via Green Wedding Shoes}

Picture of the picture!  

{via Grey Likes Weddings}

And here I confess that I adore The Notebook. This shot reminds me of that for some reason. Plus, what would an engagement shoot be without a smoochy picture? 

{via unknown}

Countdown!

355 Days!

Just another day in the life

I love when Nick asks me what I'm doing. He walks over, taking a much needed study break from some massive notebook of scrawled pharmacy notes from one of many classes called pharma-something. "What'cha doing Linds?"

My face resembles a guilty puppy. "You know... working on... flowers..."

He thinks this is very cute. I think about how sad I will be when I don't have this excuse to look at pretty pictures.

In the works: lots of flower meetings. After my initial two consultations, I decided to do a little more research and talk to some more florists. I'm excited to see what comes of it. And, in case anyone but me cares, I love these two bouquets right now:

{via Style Me Pretty} 

{via Design Sponge}

Videography is almost in the bag! I found exactly who I want, and they are available, so the deal just needs to be sealed. More later...

And, because I think we are kinda cute:

Linds and Nick, New Year's Eve 2009.