Before it is too late for me do so, let me post my favorite pictures of our Christmas spirit in Judd Haven!
The Noel Train is one of my childhood decorations. When my sister and I took our leave from the proverbial nest, we were allowed to choose a small handful of favorite Christmas decorations to take with us. This is one of mine. :)
Since Pippin can't seem to help but get himself into trouble, we opted out of a buying a Christmas tree--what, so the cat could knock the whole thing over? So he could break ornaments and hurt himself while we were away at work? I don't think so!--and I came up with this alternative. Also, it was free, and Christmas trees are not.
And the other side of the windows...
Above my kitchen window.
My grandpa would have approved, I think. :)
You will want to click through on this one so you can see the entirety of my nerdiness come to life. I was inspired by this tutorial and kept going.
Early last week, Eric and I had a very unsettling day. I don't need to go into the details of that here, but for the sake of exposition, know that we had a gloomy day and by the end of it, we weren't sure what to do.
My idea? Make a blanket fort.
So we did just that, pulled a bunch of our living furniture together, quilted it up, and pulled in plenty of blankets and pillows and cushiness so we could shut out the world and forget about hurtful comments and unkind words. I can't remember everything we did that first night although I'm pretty sure we ate dinner inside the blanket fort and I know that we definitely played xbox.
Let it be known that there are few things in life that can make me forget about my worries more than a digital chainsaw used against digital zombies. Also, Eric and I make a pretty good zombie fighting team.
The only downfall to our blanket fort was Pippin, our beloved domestic shorthair, who could not understand that his weight would pull down the blankets if he ever attempted to cross over them. Which he did. Nightly. Occasionally, he tried to walk over the blankets several times a night, each time resulting in Eric and I having mini panic moments when the fort collapsed on top of us. Ok, maybe it was just me having the mini panic moments.
Last night, we finally caved and pulled the remains of the blanket fort down. We have yet to rearrange our living room back to the way it ought to be, but that's ok with us. Eric is currently napping on the blankets from the fort in the middle of the floor. I've been reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo which is nothing like I expected it to be at all. And furthermore, it is making me crave coffee and sandwiches. Mmm...sammiches. Christmas is around the corner. Hard to believe it's just five more days away.
This past weekend, Eric and I had the privilege of caroling with a group of friends for Kirkland's Tree Lighting Ceremonies. We spent four hours rotating from stage to stage in the downtown area, singing in the very cold weather. It was a lot of fun, we even got to sing in my hotel's lobby and in an art gallery and coffee shop, and then we got a free dinner at a local Greek restaurant as part of the deal. Woot!
Anyway, the Downtown Kirkland Association put together a little video on the event and they put our group as the musical background! You can see me in the little video clip thrown in the middle of the slideshow. Also, forgive that not quite high G at the end of the song. Both sopranos in the group (myself being one of them) are solid second sopranos, and after singing for that long in the cold, our voices just didn't quite hold out.
Either way, we all had a blast and got rave reviews. In fact, they've already asked us to come back and sing again for ambiance for holiday shoppers, only this time, they're willing to pay us. Cool, eh? No final details worked out, so who knows if it'll actually happen, but it was a really neat experience. :)
Side note: when picking songs to sing for these types of events, don't throw a socialist type song like Good King Wenceslas into the mix when singing to a very bourgeois crowd. I swear we got crickets every time...
Side note 2: everyone loved that we sang Carol of the Bells. EVERYONE.
Eric and I went to Chase this evening to join our checking accounts so we wouldn't have to try to use two different accounts to pay bills, etc., and so we would start seeing our money as OUR money, not "my money" and "Eric's money."
The personal banker we spoke with did her best to sell us on various products and services, and one of the questions she asked was, "Do you know what you would do in an emergency?"
Both of us: Umm...
Eric: Run around and start screaming?
Me: Look for a crowbar?
Obviously, she meant a financial emergency, which she then felt obligated to give examples of, which helped with clarity of the situation. But let it be known that should a REAL emergency arise, like an alien invasion or a zombie apocalypse, we will be well prepared.
Both Eric and I were at Judd Haven all day. Eric was at work about two and half hours or so before his boss freaked out about possibly getting the work trucks stuck in the snow and sent everyone home early, and today was one of my normal days off. So what did we do? Not much.
We napped a little, drank some hot chocolate, ate some noms, read, computed, and watched some Stargate SG1 during dinner. Eric is now at a gaming session with some friends, and I'm trying to dig my way out of NaNoWriMo word count hell. (SO BEHIND)
Tomorrow, I hope we don't die on our commutes to work. I'm not concerned about driving to work, I'm concerned about the drivers around me.
Eric came home one day early from his week long hunting trip with the Judd he-men, and I was super excited last night that I stayed up WAY too late to see him when he got home.
I know I forgot to mention that Eric even went on this hunting trip, and for that, well, consider it an oversight on my part. I've been distracted with NaNoWriMo. (Just google it.) One of our neighbors/friends is also doing that, so he and I have been having a word competition. It's entertaining. :)
ANYWAY.
We now have elk meat in our freezer, and that is definitely worth it for Eric having been gone for so long. Plus, it's even better seeing him after not seeing him for awhile. Perhaps these types of trips, although sucky at the time, have added benefits in the long run. (Although, to be honest, we did have to work through a long distance argument/misunderstanding, but even having worked through that, I think it only served to make our relationship stronger.)
Eric and I went to a Halloween party last night at a friend's house. The theme was superhero/villains, with a bit of leeway in costuming. (Example: mutants were allowed, as were "unofficial" heroes.) We were told to bring a food or beverage reflecting our characters. Without further ado, the pictures. :)
Yesterday, both Eric and I were wasted with exhaustion, so instead of my cooking dinner, we ordered Domino's. While we waited for it to be delivered, Eric promptly passed out on the loveseat. Even when I woke him up to let him know that dinner was ready, he didn't stay awake for long and kept sleeping instead of eating dinner.
Anyway, around 10:30pm, I got too tired to stay up anymore, so I roused the sleeping beauty so we could both go to bed and sleep there. (And for someone as long as Eric is, I can't imagine that napping on a love seat is super comfortable!)
Once in bed, we started chatting a bit, then Eric said he was hungry, so he got up and ate some of the Domino's leftovers in the kitchen before coming back to bed. When he came back, I startled tickling him, and this is the conversation after that point.
Eric: Oh, babe, don't do that, I might explode. Me: What? Why? Eric: My stomach is so full! Me: ... Eric: I ate some breadsticks, a couple of pieces of pizza, and that lava cake. Me: You were gone for like four minutes! Eric: Yeah...I hoovered it... *groan* Me: No wonder.
This is Pippin (on our unmade bed). He is 8 months old and a serious cutie pie. He was also my surprise gift from Eric yesterday for my 25th birthday!
E and I drove to the Seattle Humane Society after church yesterday and adopted our newest family member after spending some time with most of the kittehs there. He chose us, for sure, and his former name was Stache because of his mini mustache. (Cute, but not quite right for us.) He's a sweetheart, a lover, and he definitely chose us instead of the other way around. We agreed on that stipulation before we even went inside to look at the cats. (I think that's the best way to find a pet--let them find you.)
His file said he was "shy with strangers, could be aggressive," and I'm pretty sure both of those are wrong! His former owners didn't really know much about our little guy, I'm sure! He's perfectly comfortable around strangers so far, and although he nips a little when he plays--he drew blood on Eric's chin last night--he's mostly a very chill, very cuddly cat.
Best part about him? His purr sounds more like a wheeze. :) He's the best!
Yesterday was our one monthiversary, and although we had originally planned on going out on a date--for other reasons, we'd actually forgotten it was our one month!--E didn't get off work until 7:30pm. Since we were both tired, and I didn't feel like cooking last night, we ordered pizza and then played Lego Star Wars while drinking soda out of LOTR commemorative glasses. Oh yes. Romantic? I guess not so much traditionally, but it was great for the two of us. We also found a hilarious Easter egg on one of the levels we replayed.
In other news, Eric's "Exploder" (aka Ford Explorer) broke down (again!) the other day. About two months ago, he replaced the slave cylinder in the engine, and he thinks that same part is once again broken. Grr. He's going to try to get it replaced via warranty, but we might have to bite the bullet and get a new car. :S If that's the case, anyone know of a solid rig that's not expensive? Anyone? Bueller?
In other OTHER news, the summer is winding down *singular tear* and fall is just around the corner. Eric and I are getting involved in youth ministry at church (makes us both a little nervous), and we're involved with a couple of different ongoing events. Luckily, our church's summer small groups are almost over--not like we've been that great at attending this summer!--so that will be one less thing to worry about.
Right now...well, we have a lot going on and a lot of uncertainty going with all of that. If you think to pray for us, we would both appreciate the extra coverage! :)
Eric and I are home! Home--what a wonderful word to say, made even more wonderful by having my best friend be a part of it. We've been home--yay!--for just over a week now, and it's great to be together. Work, on the other hand, well...we could've done without some of that for awhile, but we can only live off love alone for so long before the bills start stacking up. ;)
I don't have much else to report yet on this aspect, but I'll include some of our favorite photos of the wedding thus far. (We won't get the "official" pictures for another few weeks.) Enjoy!
A lot can happen in a week, and a lot is going to happen in this next one. For starters, in just about 7 days even, Eric and I will be married. Wow--hard to believe it's almost here!
In one day, it will be the 4th of July, and although E and I aren't super excited to celebrate the holiday--we're not what you would call "patriots"--we are looking forward to spending time with family, eating good food, and I am looking forward to the fireworks and watching my father and brother-in-law light each other on fire. (Mwahahaha...)
Tomorrow is also my final dress fitting and Eric's measurement for his special tuxedo vest that my mom is making. Curious? Then come to the reception! :) But don't worry--if you can't make it to the reception, we'll post pics here so you can enjoy it long distance. :)
Sometime during this next week, E and I are finalizing our settling in process to the new apartment. He's already mostly moved in, and most of my stuff is over there, but we still have boxes to unpack and some furniture to arrange. We're also desperately in need of more bookshelves. I'm telling you...pastors and English majors probably shouldn't get married. My parents are a perfect example of this, and somehow it didn't quite hit me until E and I found ourselves swimming in our mutual libraries.
Btw, we have a new mattress and box spring we purchased from a local store with the generous donations of invited ones, plus we bought a used ikea bed frame via craigslist and we have our bedroom mostly set up now. Yay! Now if only we can convince people to get us sheets too. ;)
Thursday, several of my relatives are flying in from California, including my grandmother who is doing all the flowers and my cousin who is making our cake. Yeah cake!
Friday, we're finishing up all the decorations, flowers, cake, and having a rehearsal on the boat, then Saturday is the big day. Woo!
It's all very surreal, but I am excited and very much looking forward to the day when I won't have to say goodbye to Eric when I go home. Home is going to be us soon, and that is very very wonderful! :)
They're in the mail and arriving in mailboxes EVERYWHERE. I've gotten a bunch of compliments on them, which isn't at all what I was going for, but at least it means that all the anxiety that went into their making was worth it. :)
Because my parents know a TON of people, we ended up making 400 invitations constructed with devil adhesive squares and ribbons of doom. There were also labels from hell that used templates of insanity and all in all, it was quite the *headdesk* experience.
BIG thanks go out to Di (Eric's [and soon to be my!] cousin), Christen, and my mom for muscling through all those details and coming out with a cute, simple design. Even Eric loved them and showed them off to our friends. (That's saying something!)
I'd upload pics of them but I just don't care that much. ;)
The thought occurred to me awhile back that with weddings, only about half of the people involved know the bride OR the groom, and rarely do people know both. Therefore, I thought it would be a great idea for Eric and I to tell you about ourselves our future spouses so that you will see him/her through our eyes.
Perhaps writing this blog the day after we had a fairly significant fight--of which Eric was mostly oblivious--isn't the best time to write it, and yet, I feel as if it is the best time, mostly because we resolved our issues. This involved tears (from me), apologies on both sides, and a solemn resolution to never fight again, sworn with a pinky promise. My heart currently overflows with love for this man, so this is probably the best description of him that you'll ever get out of me. ;)
A quick bio to get out of the way before I get down to what really makes Eric Eric. He grew up in Chehalis, WA, land of the rednecks--I say that with affection and really like Chehalis myself--and comes from a small immediate family--parents: Dan and Lorene, older sister: Monica--that is part of a much larger extended family. (We have that in common.) His dad is a band teacher, so the whole Judd clan is fairly musical. Eric plays several instruments (trombone, bass and acoustic guitars...) and has a wonderful baritone voice that he will use to sing me to sleep over the phone when I'm having a terrible day.
I'm getting ahead of myself. Bio! Yes, bio. He went to high school in Chehalis, went to Centralia Community College, then transferred up to the UW for a degree in computer science. When that didn't work out--and this is actually a good thing--he went back to Chehalis for a pastoral internship where he earned his license to preach. At that point, he wanted to finish his BA and opted to come to Northwest University to get a "make your own degree" in General Studies--how else would you combine all of that book larnin'? He and I met at NU and walked in 2008 after a somewhat tempestuous friendship.
While at NU, I got to know Eric, and I liked what I saw. We were on brother/sister floors (yeah 600!) so we went to a bunch of events together. Being the sister floor RA, I was required to attend as many intramural football games as I could manage, so I got to watch how Eric and a few of the other older guys on the floor managed their team, being the leaders who reminded their teammates to cool down and keep good sportsmanship at the forefront--a difficult task when playing other teams that only played dirty.
The first quality that attracted me to Eric was when I heard his heart for missions. We somehow ended up sitting next to each other at Cheesecake Factory for a floor event and started talking about life in general. He told me that he felt called to missions. I asked where, and he told me that he said he'd probably end up somewhere in the Middle East since no one really wants to go there and that's where the Gospel is needed most. At the time, I was feeling a pull to Muslim ministry, and let me tell you, that sort of a connection on a spiritual level can be pretty intense. Of course, it was probably a whole year later that we actually ended up getting together, but that night I thought, "He could be the one!"
Eric has this way of being himself and enjoying me being me that is very refreshing. The relationship I was in prior to our relationship was one where I felt like I was boxed in, where I wasn't recognized for who I was, and if I tried to be myself, I was overwhelming. Being stifled is no way to live, and Eric not only loves everything about me--my quirks included--but encourages me to be me and to pursue those hobbies that light me up from the inside--NaNoWriMo 2009 is a prime example.
If I were to think of adjectives for Eric, I would think of "strong," "level-headed," "stable," and "compassionate." Eric is probably the most even keeled man I know. It usually takes a lot to shake him, and that is such a blessing to a girl like me who feels like the waves of life have her going up and down and all over the place. He's the voice of reason in my ear when emotions and hormones make me think that the world is over. Also, it takes a lot for him to lose his temper, and I hope I don't ever abuse that quality in him.
As I mentioned earlier, music is important to the Judds, and Eric loves music. He loves music in the same way that I love music. His tastes are very eclectic, and I never know what I'll be listening to when I hop up in his dark green Ford Explorer. Sometimes, we'll listen to Jack Johnson, sometimes Sufjan Stevens. Other times we'll listen to Johnny Cash, bluegrass, or Tuvan throat singing. Actually, I don't think he has a cd of Tuvan throat singing, but he's definitely a fan of the unusual when it comes to music!
[Here's an example of Tuvan throat singing.]
Eric has a great sense of humor that ranges from sarcastic to dry humor to the absolute ridiculous. It's highly entertaining to joke around with him, and almost as great, it's pretty entertaining to watch him interact with his current roommate--who is also one of his coworkers. Combined, they are possibly the best comedic duo around. :)
What else can I say about Eric? I think what it comes down to is that...and I know this sounds so incredibly cheesy...he completes me. I feel like he's my other half, my missing half, and that we fit together in ways that I couldn't have imagined. We balance each other. He's yin, I'm yang. (AH! Eastern mysticism in our Christian blog!) You get the picture. Honestly, I can't imagine being any more blessed with a future spouse than being with Eric.
All that to say, I hope that those of you reading this who currently don't know Eric have the chance to get to know him as I have. :)
I got all my Save the Dates done. It was the lazy way to do it, but they're done and that's all that matters. Plus, Beff hasn't finished hers.....hahahahahahaha (win!)
I haven't done half of my Save The Dates yet. It's a simple email, and I'm daunted by going through Facebook profile by profile to extract email addresses. Holy lazy.
She got hers done a month and a half ago. Clearly I need a secretary or personal assistant.
I decided to post something random, mostly because we haven't posted anything in over a week. Currently Beff and I are talking on the phone about having a clean room when we're married. I'll take 20 to 1 odds on it not lasting a month.
Meanwhile, most of the wedding stuff is nailed down. I've been lax on sending out Save The Dates, I personally need to get that taken care of. I'm thinking perhaps I'll start making everything a competition between me and Beff, just to keep life interesting. Watch out babe, it's you and me now!
I've heard about this one a few times, so I thought I'd throw down our reasoning in 3 easy steps.
1. We're in our mid-twenties, not our late teens. Both of us have lived on our own for a little while now, and have accumulated necessities to "make home" as it were. We don't need towels, dish rags, rugs, chairs, tables, lamps, etc. because we already have them. The bulk of a wedding registry is already filled out by either myself or Beth, so it would be redundant to set one up.
2. We're not materialistic. Kind of pretentious to label ourselves as such, but it's true: what we don't already have we don't really need. Toys are nice but not necessary, and create a lot more clutter than they're worth. I personally have enough clutter as it is, and need to unload a lot of junk that I'll never use. I'd hate to add to that pile. Besides we have each other and that's really all we need.
3. Our ultimate goal is missions. This really is the clincher. We both are trying to order our lives such that we will be overseas in full-time ministry. Our personalities are such that we desire no attachment to any particular place: we won't be owning any land here, nor will this necessarily be "home" while we're "over there". We will be where we will be, and that is as far as we are willing to take it. It behooves us, then, not to fill a particular space (in, say, a rented storage unit) with belongings we can't take with us. Both of us have enough stuff to "make home" already, and we will probably be unloading a fair amount of it before we step into our calling. We would rather save money spent for junk for us, and give it to a local charity instead.
So there it is. I believe the only thing we will desperately need is a bed, and maybe a couch. We'll probably just be asking for gift cards to Ikea or what have you. Regardless, please don't be offended that you can't buy stuff for us. We love you and we do appreciate your thoughtfulness and sincerity of heart in giving us gifts. We would rather be blessed with your friendship and attendance at our celebration, and that really is all we need and want.
So finding a venue isn't quite as easy as I thought it was. I was probably a little deluded to think that we'd have the venue wrapped up and nailed down in no time. Of course I've left all of the venue searching to Beth, and therefore negated any possible credence to my own conclusions. Nevertheless, despite tireless searching on the behalf of future Mrs. Judd, we haven't come across a place to have the reception yet.
Bother.
Anyone have any ideas? Perhaps we could have an impromptu parade through downtown Kirkland. I'm sure the authorities would just LOVE that.
Who knew a party could take so much organization? I guess I had an inkling what was ahead for us once Eric popped the question, but suddenly I turned into a planning/organizational freak. For those of you who know me well, I tend to be the opposite most of the time, a "things will just work themselves out" sort of laidback gal. Not anymore!
Nope, now I'm a "it's not too early to nail down the venue, the photographer, and the menu for the reception!" kind of girl. If I can be honest, I'm actually really enjoying it! I'm so excited to have a chance to throw an awesome party and to celebrate one of most important commitments of my life with friends and family. It's going to be a blast! (Make sure you bring your dancing shoes and a big appetite!)
Today, Eric and I checked out a couple of venues, and both were pretty promising. SO exciting to know that these details are actually going to fall into place! We're also very thankful for and blessed by our friends and family who have already volunteered their time and creative services to help us make this day so special. Because of YOU, this wedding is actually going to happen.
You guys rock, and we're looking forward to this summer with great anticipation!
This will be the most controversial part of our wedding, so we'll explain ourselves here. I'll start with the basics...
Marriage is a holy institution of the Church. It is often seen as a sacrament, and institution, a holy tradition, so on and so forth. Really it goes even further back than the start of the church: "for this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh" (Gen. 2:24). That is, God ordained that a man and a woman will be joined together in marriage, and through this union the two shall cease to be two individual autonomous people and instead shall become "one flesh," shall be united in such a way that only God can accomplish, and this union is a very personal holy accomplishment by the work of God's design and purpose.
As such, Bethany and I are very serious about this commitment we are entering into. Being one flesh with each other is something we never want to separate, and so we do not want to take the occasion lightly. A lot of tradition and ceremony have entered into the event, and a lot of that tradition has a good purpose, but Beth and I are not willing to enter anything into the moment of ceremony and union that do not represent our commitment to each other.
So, both she and I have carefully gone over all they "typical" wedding traditions and examined the "normal" way to do a wedding, and have given much thought into what we do and do not want at our wedding. This has not been taken lightly! Nor has it been a particularly easy thing to decide on, given our own respective family traditions. However, we have come to hold that a simple wedding ceremony with the immediate family only best represents our ideals in our marriage. That of course warrants some explaining.
A lot of tradition centers around the ceremony itself. The major issue we both have with the traditional ceremony is its separation of the gravity of the commitment itself and focus instead on a "show" of the bride and groom. Rather than put on a show of any sort, Bethany and I prefer to take a step away from the show and instead separate from tradition and make an intimate, personal commitment to each other with the people who will hold us to our commitment the most. We dearly love our extended families and friends, and have no desire to alienate or distance ourselves from out network of support. However, we do feel that the only people who really need to witness the union should be those who will hold us to that union, and the people who will best hold us together are our respective families.
As far as celebration of the event, we want to share our finalized commitment with absolutely everyone we know (and everyone our folks know as well). We certainly intend to have a party in celebration of us becoming one flesh! That, we feel, is most consistent with the heart of God in community. However, the union itself (and its symbolism in the sacrament of marriage, as well as its consummation in the wedding night) is something we want to keep between God and ourselves.
So please hear our hearts in this: we love all of our family and friends, and we absolutely love to share moments with everyone. We want to celebrate our union, and this will be accomplished through the reception in which you have been invited. Please don't be offended that you were not present at the ceremony! It is not that we don't love you, nor that we are trying to be antisocial, or break with tradition for rebellion's sake. Rather, we are fully intent on making a lasting commitment to each other and to God that we will become one flesh in accordance with God's ordination, and will hold ourselves to the standard of marriage God has set forth. We want the witnesses of this commitment to be those who will hold us to it, and we feel the people who will accomplish this purpose the best are our respective immediate families.
