.... check!

Marriage license... Check!

Three more days folks!

A sugarholics nightmare

As much as it saddens me that I can no longer sing Taylor Swift's song "22"... I am now one year older and wiser too! And what a great birthday it was!

It started with me running downstairs to wake up Kendrick (I had spent the night in the upstairs bedroom of his grandma's house). He had already given me one of my birthday presents the night before- a portable phone battery charger (this is literally the ideal present for me, as my phone is dead 96% of the time), and even though my 2nd present hadn't come in the mail yet, he wanted to show me what he got! I was so excited to find out that Kendrick had ordered a hardbound book- with all of our engagements in it! I am seriously engaged to a sweetheart.

We quickly got ready for the day, and Kendrick drove me to work on the way to his job. I came into work to find cookies left over from a work Open House the night before, pastries, and donuts on the counter. Normally- this would be fantastic. However, since I was headed to the temple that night for my endowments, Kendrick and I had decided to fast that day. So what could have been a sugarholics dream, quickly turned into a nightmare.

To top it off, my sweet dad dropped in to wish my a happy birthday.. along with a cream cheese pastry and some juice. God must have had a sense of humor because he was literally showering me in sugar on the day that I couldn't have any of it.

I left work at 2:00 that day because I wanted some time to relax a little before going to the temple that night. I hopped on the train, and slept most of the 50 minute ride home. Once at the station, I got to my car to find that the battery was completely dead. I frantically tried calling my mom a few times, which not only was a failure, but also drained my phones battery, making my phone just as dead and useless as my car (cue amazing portable phone charger from Kendrick!)

I called Kendrick to let him know what was going on, and without me even having to ask, he said that he was leaving work and on his way to help me. Seriously, have I already mentioned how big of a sweetheart I am engaged to? By the time my car was up and running, it was close to 4:00, and I had to be at the temple at 5:30. I quickly drove home so that I could have time to change and regroup a little before leaving.

The night at the temple was amazing. Not amazing in a "I'm a changed person and will never be the same" kind of way, but more in a eye-opening way that made me feel so much love and understanding. The best part of the night was definitely all of the support that I received- almost all of my family and Kendrick's family came and it made it so special! Best. Birthday. Ever.

Afterwards, we all headed to Pizzeria Limone, my favorite restaurant, and ate while we chatted. I don't think the night could have been more perfect!

Because every man needs tools

Sunday the 14th wrapped up our list of incredible wedding showers. This one took place in Kendrick's aunts gorgeous home placed right near the mountains of the east side of Salt Lake. There was quite a good turn out of people that showed up, and I was lucky enough to have my parents, Aaron and Nikki, and Harmony, Jeff and Keegan there as well!

The shower began with everyone dishing up some food (which was so delicious!) and then sitting around and chatting while digging in. Kendrick and I spent most of our time on the back deck, which had a breathtaking view of the Salt Lake valley. When everyone was finished eating, Liz, Kendrick's aunt, announced that she had a game for us... and that it entailed answering questions (I may have said a silent prayer that she wouldn't be pulling out a sack of ugly clothes as well...) (Just kidding).

This wedding shower was said to be a "tool" shower, so we took turns pulling an assortment of tools out of a basket- and all of them had a paper with a question attached to them. For example, I pulled out a tape measure, and had to answer how Kendrick "measured" up to my past dates. Or, a key hider and the question being what secret I have kept "hidden" from my parents. It was a fun game, and we had a fun time answering the questions, without giving away too much. ;)

After the game, we opened up some presents and cards from everyone. Kendrick was so excited to receive a fully stocked tool bag from his parents (he is now a man), and I was thrilled to see that my mom had gotten me the tea kettle that I had been coveting.

All in all, it was a fun and relaxing evening, and brought us that much closer to being ready for the big day!

A sure sign you should know your fiance better

The bridal shower that my sister threw me was probably my favorite shower of all- mainly because of how me it was. But then again, she is my sister, and I am a pretty easy book to read, so it couldn't have been too hard. But the decorations, the food, the game- it was all just too perfect.

I wasn't allowed to go downstairs until everything was set up- Harmony and Nicole wanted everything to be perfect.When I was finally allowed to head downstairs and join everyone else, I couldn't believe what I saw! There was lace draped along the opening to the hallway, sparkly gold paper lanterns hanging from the ceiling, and glittery tulle weaved around the curtain rod and tied into a big bow. As I got a closer look at the decor, I noticed that each cup was painted gold at the bottom, all the cake pops had gold and cream candy pearls on them, and gold picture frames lined the room, showcasing some of my favorite pictures with Kendrick. Like I said, it was all too perfect.

My favorite part of the shower was when Harmony revealed that she had had Kendrick record his answers to some questions about himself. Sounds like the basic bridal shower game, right? Wrong. With each incorrect answer I gave, I had to blindly grab an article of clothing from a bag that I am 99.9% sure contained some of the most horrifically horrid pieces that I have ever laid eyes on. Well played Harmony, well played. (I have to admit, this was justified, as I organized the same game for her bridal shower a couple years back, and made her eat a sour gumball with each incorrect answer.)

Surprisingly, I missed some of the more basic questions, but answered correctly on the harder ones. Who was Kendrick's best friend growing up? I have no idea. How many pairs of shoes does Kendrick have? 14. Nailed it!

However, as great of a job that I'm trying to convince myself that I did, the picture below is a sure sign that I should know my fiance better. Or I can just continue banking on the fact that I know his shoe collection like the back of my hand.

I got to open presents right after the game, and received some of the greatest things! I feel so blessed! This truly is the greatest time of my life, and it wouldn't mean as much without the love and support of my family.

(P.s. Thanks Nikki for these awesome pictures. I would have been SO sad if none had been taken!)

And coming up next- Part 3: The fun shower that Kendrick's aunt threw us at her gorgeous home in Salt Lake!

Paper lanterns and twinkling lights

I can't believe this wedding madness is over in one week. One week! I feel like it was just yesterday that I was standing on the beach in Hawaii with Kendrick, being given the most beautiful ring and agreeing to spend forever with him. Where has the time gone? Honestly, I couldn't handle the time going slower- neither of us could. Because honestly, we are done being engaged. Don't get me wrong, it's fun and giddy.. at first, but it gets old reeeeal fast. Lately, it feels like Kendrick and I are already married. We have a joined Google calendar where we keep up on eachother's schedules, he's been taking me to work a few mornings each week, and sometimes I feel like I know a little too much about his bowel movements. But then, why are we going to different houses each night? And why am I still marking "single" on the Panda Express survey to get my one free entre? Like I said, reeeeal old.

While I've been sitting here thinking about the past couple of months of being engaged, I can't help but think about the amazing showers that have been thrown for Kendrick and I. The support and love is overwhelming, and I'm so lucky to have such sweet people in my life.

On September 6th, Kendrick's family threw us a wedding shower in Richfield. There was amazing food, darling decorations, and the best company around. My parents were sweet enough to drive down for it, and I was so happy that they got to meet more people from Kendrick's life.

My favorite part of this shower was Kendrick's aunt Jen surprising me with one of my favorite pictures from our engagement session, blown up onto a HUGE canvas. I almost started crying I was so excited about it! Ever since I saw that picture from our engagement proofs, I kept telling Kendrick that I would love to have it printed on a canvas for our home. So, proving that he does listen to my from time to time, he coordinated with his aunt, and she got it done! I can't wait to stick that bad boy on the wall of our future, nonexistent home.

Jolene, one of Kendrick's aunts, put together a fun game where she asked a set of questions to me, my mom, and Kendrick's mom and had Kendrick, my dad, and his dad write what they thought our answer would be on a piece of paper. Then, she'd read the questions out loud, have the girls answer, and then have the guys show what they wrote on the paper. It was so much fun, and surprisingly everyone did really good with their answers! After that, she had the girls switch spots with the boys to guess what their answers would be for the same questions.

As the night started getting darker, they turned on the little lights that were strung around the backyard, lighting up the colorful paper lanterns that were hanging from deck and the tree. It was the perfect night and the perfect shower.

Stay tuned for Part 2 of this post, featuring the gorgeous bridal shower that Harmony and Nicole threw for me last weekend! I'm still thinking about it...

Date night

Whenever Kendrick and I are driving and an old fashioned car drives by, Kendrick's inner 12 year old comes out with a vengeance. He gets so excited and always tells me how much he loves older cars, and how he'd love to own one someday. So, keeping this in mind, I looked online and found an old car show at Jordan Landing- and admission was free! Bingo.

However, this date night didn't start off exactly as planned. First, we had an interview with the Stake President to get our recommends. It was agreed that I would meet Kendrick at the Institute building, and then I would drive us to our date night in my car. What we weren't planning on is me losing my keys in Target, and having to call Kendrick to come rescue me. Of course he didn't mind doing this at all- it just meant we were a tad late for our interview, and he would be driving us to our date night. 

(We made a quick stop at the alleged key-stealing Target, and took a quick look in my car window to see my keys nestled quietly on my front seat. Sorry for blaming you Target, I still love you.)

Aside from the craziness, we had an amazing date night and saw some really cool cars! Kendrick seemed to really appreciate the thought that I put into it. Afterwards, we had some mind-blowing curry at Bombay House, which has quickly made it's way up on my list of favorite foods.

I sure do love our little date nights- we always leave closer and even more in love than before.

Blessed three day weekends

Last weekend, Kendrick and I had the opportunity to go to the annual Story Telling Festival with my parents. On Friday night, we met up with them at an outside amphitheater in Provo- they greeted us with a pizza which my growling stomach definitely appreciated.

I got to see a couple of my favorite storytellers that I've loved since I was little girl. But since this was a program, and we couldn't pick and choose which ones we went to, we got stuck sitting through some boring storytellers as well. But all in all, it was a fun night with Kendrick and my parents!

Afterwards, Kendrick dropped me off at Harmony's house (he was going to sleep at his brothers house who also lives in Provo). The next morning was an early one as we all headed back to the Festival! Harmony, Jeff, and Keegan joined us this time which made it that much better. My parents greeted us all with hot chocolate and delicious cinnamon rolls. (I'm just noticing that every time they greeted us this weekend, they had food. I'm not complaining.)

After seeing a couple of our favorite storytellers, Kendrick and I decided that we were anxious to get to Richfield, so we headed out around noon.

We enjoyed a fun weekend in Richfield taking lots of naps, eating lots of food, and some jack rabbit shooting on the side. (On a scale 1-10, how redneck did I sound there?)

With Monday being a holiday (oh blessed 3 day weekends), we got to extend our stay, and eat and sleep even more! Which is something you'll never hear me complain about. Never.