Live-in Boyfriend: March 2008

To Veil or not to Veil...that is the question.

I have been debating the veil issue for some time now. I am not a huge fan of the veil. It seems a little strange to me to wear a piece of netting on your head. And to be honest, it brings up images of me wearing a veil on my first communion. I've heard tons of people claim that you won't truly feel like a bride until you put the veil on. They also claim that it is necessary so the guests can differentiate who the bride is. Can they not figure it out by looking for the girl in the big puffy white dress? Abby told me that when she looks back at the pictures from her wedding, her favorites are the ones of her wearing her veil. I really wanted to wear a bird cage veil, but unfortunately can't because it won't go with my dress. As a comprimise, I plan on wearing the veil during the ceremony and then immediately taking it off.

Tux Time

While in Corpus Christi, Kayu and I payed a little visit to the tux shop. I think Kayu enjoyed pretending that he was a G.Q. model while trying on all of the tuxes...if only he was a little bit taller =)

We decided to go with the green color for the groomsmen since the girls will be wearing pistachio colored dresses and I doubt the guys will go for wearing pink.

Kayu really liked the silver but we ran into a bit of dilemma since my dress has some gold accents on it. I have a feeling it would clash so we decided to go with an espresso color.

The suits have a subtle black pin stripe look which I love.

Ribbon, Ribbon, and Even More Ribbon

At four spools for $1, who can pass up buying a ton on ribbon? I found myself having control and counting out 16 spools, but in a matter of minutes, I was grabbing more and more uncontrollably. Now that I have so much, I will have to think of some creative ways to use it. Here is what I have to far...

Program fans to keep the guests cool since August in Michigan is rather hot.

Stringed flowers to hang on the archway for the ceremony.

My new best friend Melissa

I have a new partner in crime and her name is Melissa. She is also getting married this summer, so we spend endless hours prepping for our wedding. We can be found hitting up every store in Great Falls searching for wedding goods, on the floor of Target rummaging through a bridal magazine, or at the gym attempting to get buff. It's great because she truly understands the stresses involved in planning a wedding. And for the cherry on top, we get to steal ideas from each other. I think everyone should have a wedding buddy when they are planning a wedding!

Her Point of View:

I finally found him....my live-in boyfriend! Okay, maybe I am in a little bit of denial about being engaged since I have claimed for years that I was never going to get married. I finally gave in, but for good reason of course. I have decided that I will never find anyone that is as patient as Kayu is to put up with my difficult personality. I think Abby summed it up best when she commented to Kayu "I am very impressed with the way you handle Shannon's unpredictable mood changes." I have also come to realize that I will never find another being to tell me that I am right 90 percent of the time. And that no matter how mean I am to Kayu, he will still love me in return. The biggest thing that I have discovered is that I found a good catch and I don't plan on throwing him back into the sea anytime soon.

His Point of View:

So when did I know? Was it when Shannon's mom called me a sucker for dating her? Or was it when I survived a week in the Dominican Republic with her? I can't tell you. But I do know that I've found the girl of my dreams. I can't tell you what her eye color is because it changes all the time, but I can tell you what her smile looks like. I can't tell you what she is thinking most of the time, but I can tell you when she is angry (probably because usually it's my fault.)

One night after dropping Shannon off at her house, I listened closely to a song that was playing on the radio. If you know me, you'll know that I usually don't pay attention to the lyrics of songs. However, this time, the lyrics caught my attention. You would almost think that the song was about Shannon:

And she'll promise you more than the garden of Eden
Then she'll carelessly cut you and laugh while you're bleeding
But she'll bring out the best and worst you can be
Blame it all on yourself 'cause she's always a woman to me

She's frequently kind and she's suddenly cruel
She can do as she pleases, she's nobody's fool...
But she's always a woman to me

I can't wait to "put up with her" for a very long time. (Until she throws me back into the sea, of course)

How We Met

We first knew of each other's existence from ROTC. I can't say that I liked Kayu very much when I first knew him. I have a not-so-fond memory of him hogging the fog machine when we were working together on a haunted house my freshman year. He was acting like I was incompetent and didn't know how to operate the fog machine.

I will even go as far as to blame him for me not being a part of the Honor Guard team my sophomore year. I distinctly remember him making the comment "We will not be having fun like this when I am the commander."

Ironically, three Halloweens later we would fall for each other. Who wouldn't fall for Splinter? I think I have Abby and Breanne to thank for this since they were the ones bugging us that we would be perfect together. And the rest is history....

The Proposal

After a long anxious weekend wait, the FedEx guy knocked on my door on Tuesday morning (Feb 6) to deliver a shiny ring. As it sat on my desk, I knew it was time to make the hardest call in my life...to ask Shannon's dad for permission to marry her:

Kayu: So you've probably been expecting this question, or maybe not. I'm not sure how to phrase it, but I was wondering if I can have your permission to marry Shannon.

Shannon's Dad: Wow, um, sure. Wow...

(conversation continues...)

Shannon's Dad: That's great. As long as you're sure you know what you're getting yourself into.

The plan: On Friday night (Feb 9), I would have Shannon distracted when Oliver would jump out into the living room with the ring box tied to his body.

What actually happened: While trying to tie the ring box to Oliver, he decided that he was not willing to participate in my master plan. He jumped to and fro, thus the ring box would not stay tied. Backup plan - keep the ring in my back pocket and do it the old fashion way. While Shannon was distracted with a delicious Molten Chocolate Cake (which didn't turn out molten), I dropped to one knee and while trying to open the ring box, managed to ask her to marry me. Before I could finish, Shannon was already trying to kiss me. (Note: Due to the fumbling, the ring box was still not opened yet.) Shannon answered yes before she saw the ring...which she didn't realize until about 5 minutes later.

Favorite Memories Together

1. Halloween night.....when we obviously had crushes on each other but were too shy to say so.
2. Going horseback riding in the Dominican Republic and getting covered in mud.
3. Picking out our precious baby kittens at the Humane Society.
4. Kayu screaming in the middle of the night because the rain was leaking in through the roof and getting him wet, while Shannon ignored him by covering her head with a pillow because sleep was much more important to her.
5. Kayu's grandmother giving Shannon the thumbs up and saying "good, good."
6. Hiking Sleeping Bear Dunes and having the view of Lake Michigan to ourselves.
7. Our first kiss at S'keepers.
8. Taking "creative" pictures in the Arb with Brenda and Tim.
9. Watching My Super Sweet 16 and A Baby Story together (or perhaps it is more like Shannon's favorite).
10. Kayu on one knee fumbling with a little wooden box.