Giveaway greatness!

Just wanted to share the greatness-- my sister's blogsite is having a giveaway for hand-made sterling silver rings--- like this:



All you have to do is go to her blog entry and leave a random comment and she'll pick 2 random winners!

Stop on by and get yours!!! And tell your friends ;) & Add her to your blog roll for awesome photoshoot updates as well ;)

& Yes, I miss you Blog world.

Take a guess at what I want to be better at come 2010... :P

*sad face*

It's not my day today.

Sure I'm PMSing, but seriously... this isn't working for me today :(

MIA-ness

I've got some jumping-back-on-the-band-wagon to do. I will as soon as I can catch a breath.

I'm alive though :)

God remains faithful

This past weekend, my heart just about stopped as my sister told me on skype that my nephew had gone into a seizure because of his fever he had been running. The color drained from my face and the fear of what I didn't know started flooding my thoughts. & then my heart started breaking as I thought about what my older sister was feeling right about then as her only son was in such a helpless state.

I got the story 10 minutes later from my older sister. She called and said that they had been on their way to the store with all the kids in the car. Meya had also been running a fever and would fall asleep but wake up crying because she would want to be held. Paaj turned around to tell Meya to hang in there because they were almost to the store when she caught site of Kezzy in his car seat. His face was purple and his eyes started to roll into his head. He tried to cry, but it came out as little whimpers as his body went into a seizure. She jumped from her seat and screamed as Kezzy's sisters looked on in fear and my brother-in-law stopped the car. He gave Kezzy cpr until the ambulance came.

No more than 10 minutes later, Kezzy was okay at the hospital and chewing on ice as they took tests to make sure he was okay. Apparently, little kids are susceptible to seizures when running high fevers. He even got on the phone and said to me "I okay, Auntie. I okay."

It's hard not being in MN to give him a hug and kiss him on the cheek to make sure he's really okay.

But in all of this, I am so encouraged to know that when all this happened in the car, Paaj said that Kayla & Anela unbuckled their seat belts and leaned forward as Kezzy lay unconscious and they said "Mommy, let's pray for Kezzy."

Childl-like faith. They never forgot Who is in control.

Omg.

So I did the 30-DAY SHRED twice yesterday. Is that even legal? I hurt everywhere. Chris did it with me last night & shamefully will not tell anyone that he's on the shred with me... and nearly died last night doing it too. Hah. He's hurting just as bad today. It better be worth it!

I jumped on the bandwagon

and Jillian Michaels kicked my butt. I like it so far-- really easy moves, but here I'm sitting dripping with sweat after those 20 minutes. I'm waiting for my abs, ya know-- haha. The husband says he'll join me tomorrow.

Where arrrrre you?

I've been busy house-wife-ing and also job hunting. It's been nice being able to be home with the husband and sleep in the same bed and kiss him good morning.

I miss my family and my heart aches for my nieces and my nephew SO much, but Chris has been really good to me. We're having fun with being newlyweds-- cooking dinner together, running errands together, laundry, and making this place ours.

Yay!to my older sister-- I'm adding another little bundle to love! :)

Someday I'll get into a regular blogging mode. I do keep up with you guys though so keep 'em coming :) & you saw my pictures right?

What you've been waiting for...

The only catch?

You gotta go to facebook to see them :P

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=173800474&ref=name

The Hnou Mrs. Gonzalez

Get it? teehee.



Everything was perfect.

More to come as soon as I get them from our photographer!

P.S. Yes, Rachel, I stole these from you!

Just around the corner

The wedding is in 5 days. 5. Days.

I can't believe I'm getting married!

I know I haven't posted much wedding ideas and stuff on here to chronicle-lize everything, but I am doing wedding stuff, promise, haha...

I'll be crazy busy this week (duh), but I'll be back with wedding pictures. I promise on top of a promise.

What in the world have you been up to?

Well, lemme tell you.

Wait, first, lemme actually re-post those ceremony ideas that somehow didn't show up in the last post.

These are what I am going for:




And onto my whereabouts.

I've been wiring petals for the bouquets (they'll be mixed with fresh roses):





making my own pearl garland:



Yes, I sat there and did all of that. 3 days. 3. DAYS.

Deciding on centerpieces:






Ordering candy for our candy buffet/bar:




putting together the flower girl jars:


finding the perfect wedding day shoes:


finding the perfect rehearsal day dress:


And somehow finding the time to have had such great bridal showers! (3!!)

Needless to say, with the diy projects and the wedding gifts pouring in, this is the shape of my room right now:



(I got my salad spinner!!)


And on top of that, trying to maintain some getting-married-glow:

So bloggy world, that is where I've been. What have I been missing other than your pretty little faces?

By the way, guess what the count down is?!

Wedding stuff

Okay, so it's about time I try to share some details about the wedding.

This is the look of the ceremony that I'm going for:
*kelly moore photography

I'm not much of the frilly tulle and flowers everywhere type of girl so this is perfect. Candles everywhere!

Instead of candelabras, I'm going for these to be lit during the ceremony:

www.nettletonhollow.com

Eee! I can't believe it's only 30 days away!

Side note: I realize I've been pretty sporadic about posting and commenting on blogs. I'm still around, just kinda swamped and trying to get things done :) I know, I know, I wish I would be better about posting about wedding details and just photos, period. Forgive me?

Gone camping!

Yessir.

S'mores, lovely campfire smell, & fishing on the lake, here I come!

Such a tease.

Guess who had their final dress fitting?

It's Home.

We did it! We got a place!

Chris moves into our own little place on the 14th of this month.

I'm going to miss MN and everything that I have here. But I'm so happy that I'm beginning this journey with the most amazing man in the world.

I'm a happy girl.

Pictures to come. And a far better update as well.

How sweet it is...

to be loved by you.

So it finally happened...

Kayla: "Auntie, are you going to live with Chris?"
Me: "Yes. In California."
Kayla: "Oh. Are you going to come home?"
Me: "... but I'll have a home with Chris."
Kayla: "Aww... but I'm going to miss you, Auntie."

Broke. My. Heart.

And I did it.

The other night, I let myself cry and grieve my journey to getting here. It's weird with this trip coming up to SoCal tonight (my flight leaves at 9:45 pm and lands at 11:30 pm). I almost feel guilty because I'm not completely excited like I "should" be. I mean, shouldn't I be? I'm seeing the soon-to-be-hubs and we're going to apartment/home shop and spend time with this family... but in the midst of this, I won't be here to spend a weekend of "nothing" with my family. I tear up every time I think about it now. Is it okay that I feel this way?

I'm terrified.

When does the missing stop hurting so much?

I'll miss my little Kayla, Anela, Meya, & Kezzy.
I'll miss Hli and Paaj and the BFF bond only we've been able to share.
I'll miss Mom and her nagging/teaching me how to be a better woman after God's own heart.
I'll miss Dad's quirks of learning useless information just to school waiters/waitresses at their own restaurant.
I'll miss Cheng's blaring electric guitar playing on Saturday mornings.
I'll miss Josh's stupid alarm clock that I've woken up many times just to storm into his room to completely unplug it instead of just turning it off.
I'll miss the birthday dinners that are so carefully planned so no one is missing.
I'll miss the Thanksgiving dinners that Cheng and Josh actually volunteer to cook.
I'll miss the time I spend with my sisters knowing that we can vent to each other about ANYthing.
I'll miss the best hugs and kisses in the world from the little kiddies.



And it hurts every time I think of those things.

I can't wait for this journey into marriage with the most amazing man ever, but I can't help but wish that somehow, if it was possible, I'd move everyone to our own private island where no one would ever have to leave. I guess that's what Heaven is for. I know, I act like somehow I won't be able to visit. That's just it, isn't it, though? Next time, it won't be "coming" home to MN... it'll be visiting.

Terrified.

So very soon.

My heart aches to know I have to leave my sisters.

At some point, you realize you're absolutely nothing without those who love you with everything that they are.

Because

In light of my blog post last night, lets have a little fun, shall we?

We all know how depressing it is to never get to break out the guilty pleasures in the midst of swimsuit season (in my case, wedding day diet!!), so go on, post your guiltiest pleasure-food item evAr. And we'll all sit here and drool together.

Happy Tuesday!

Wanna come over??

YUM.

I know, crazy.

I know. So lame that I haven't updated as much as I would like. I need to make sure that I do keep updating... I miss writing.

Wedding planning and the details are still in order. I have lots I have to share regarding colors and decorations/layouts-- you know, the goods!

It's been a busy summer so far.

Chris' stay was fabulous. His parents loved it here, I think. They were kinda bombarded with my side of the family (srsly, uncles, aunts, cousins... and when you're Hmong, you're related to EVERYONE. Srsly.) but were such great sports! Hah. My parents' bash was a hit :)

The 2 family reunions I had this summer were great. I'm surrounded by the best family evAr. Srsly.

I'm headed out to SoCal in 2 weeks to apartment shop with the soon-to-be-hubby and then we're heading up north to see his family for the weekend. It'll be somewhat wedding-planning free which will be a nice break for me. *grin* Can't wait for lunch at the beach!!

There's one last camping trip in August to plan for after I get back from CA. Excited about that too. I love camping. As long as there's running water... and a flushing toilet. Hey, it's camping-- I'm sleeping in a tent, aren't I? :P

On a serious note, I've been reading Francis Chan's "Crazy Love." It's a dangerous book to pick up. God's voice is loud and clear through that book. This week has been designated as "outreach week" for our church and it's been a struggle to really remember that sharing God's love should be my lifestyle-- not an event that occurs only once or twice a year-- if even. I want what breaks God's heart to break mine as well.

On Monday, I met a girl who just recently came to the US from Cambodia when she married her husband 1 1/2 years ago. She talked about how lonely it is sometimes to be here and not know anyone, but she loved that our church was so nice welcoming as we taught her how to play volleyball. I just pray that God would begin to reveal Himself to her in whatever way He wills.

Yesterday, there were just all kinds of roadblocks and excuses for why I wouldn't be going. And yet there came that still small voice that unmistakingly was the Spirit prompting me to go. There weren't as many people at the park, but I realized that it wasn't about whether I came into contact with someone or not, it was about being obedient to just go.

"Give me one pure and holy passion; give me one magnificent obsession, give me one glorious ambition for my life, to know and follow hard after You..."

And the battle between the Spirit and the flesh continues.

Wedding details!

So I'm thinking I want a simple pearl and ribbon garland like this to loosely wrap around the candles and also the stringing lights for the reception area.




It'd be totally another DIY project for me (read: my sisters, hah), but I think it would be so classy & perfect. Hate? Like? Love?

Never too late

"Chris, what are you doing for the 4th of July?"

"Celebrating my independence." *straight face*

He's so good looking.

What? I just had to.

Lookey.

I want this dress.

*it's on www.asos.com

Busy, busy! 88 days until the wedding! Chris & his parents are coming out this weekend! Can't wait to see my Baby!

My parents' bash is also this weekend. Fingers crossed for GREAT weather. We made the cutest napkin "rings" with raffe & a stamp on yellow construction paper. I'm thinking we'll duplicate the idea for the wedding reception as well.

I had a family reunion to go to this past weekend in Missouri. It was good to see everyone in one spot for a weekend. There were cows. And chickens. And ponies. We ate. A lot. We laughed. We cried. We shot off fireworks. We chased after fireflies. And watched the stars come out at night under the countryside sky. I got some color on my face. And didn't wear make up all weekend long! hah.

Sometimes it's nice to take a breather just to do those things.

Milestone!

Guess who gets to spend their mini-honeymoon here ? We do! We do!

We actually had our first date at Pismo Beach which is right close to there so it's kinda sentimental as we'll get to go to the same beach where we shared our first sunset together.





*all images from Sycamore Springs website

I'm excited!

On another note, dude, has anyone tried this yet:


*from here.

If you haven't, DO! & if you have, why haven't you told me?

Lastly, guess what?


We get to call ourselves Mr. & Mrs. in 100 days.

June already?!?

I'm still alive & kicking. I don't know which is more true-- the fact that I feel like I don't have a second to update or the fact that I feel like I have nothing worth-while to share. I know, I'm lagging on pictures. It'll happen.

Short-term "Cannot wait" list

• Tomorrow's 2 mile run after work. Believe me, I've missed it!
• Summer's arrival!
• BBQs at the park
• My first bridal shower in 3 weeks!
• Bridal portraits with my sisters when I get my dress back from the seamstress
• Chris' next visit in approx. 3 1/2 weeks!
• MI in about a month
• Our parents' surprise bash at the end of June
• SoCal at the end of July!
• Camping trip at some point this summer! I love it! 
• September 19th, 2009!! Eeep!

What's your list?

You'll never guess, but you probably will...

who got a beautiful spring bouquet delivered to her desk today at work for their anniversary! Uhhh-huh.



I was so confused because the card read "Baby, Happy" ... so I called Chris just in complete yay-ness because I LOVE the flowers. And I love that man. But I'm giddy at this point and am all "Baaaaaby!" And I told him that all the card read was "Baby, Happy" and Chris said that they must have cut off his message since they charged him per letter so they threw as much as they could on the card. I thought he was joking, but it could have been true... so I believed him. It *could* be true.

I get home and guess what was waiting for me?




Clevah clevah. I love him. I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with this man.

Here's to youandme, Baby... no spaces in between.