Quick

About to head to bed since I have to wake up early tomorrow for church practice, but wanted to write a few notes before I sleep:

- Went with my cousin Linda to get her bridesmaid's dress altered today. Then, went with her to La Jolla to meet up with Ryan and enjoyed the lovely SD weather as we ate at George's by the Cove...(beautiful beautiful beautiful restaurant with a great view of the ocean)

- Got a confirmation from the restaurant at the Hilton Bayfront hotel (the hotel that Caleb and I will be staying in for our wedding night), and he said that he has managed to get us the beautiful private dining room for the family breakfast the day after the wedding! How cool is that? The room has an $800 minimum to reserve it, but after talking with the manager, he said it would be okay for us to use it since no one has reserved it yet...for free! After talking to Caleb and Sharon, we all decided this would be the best place to have the family breakfast, as the price is reasonable, plus the setting couldn't be better...AND parking is complimentary as well!

-got a chance to talk to Caleb today. He's coming home soon....and yet it still feels like an eternity to me! He told me he got an award and that he'll be promoted to 1st Lieutenant when he comes back from the deployment. SO proud of him and all that he has done to get to where he is. Praying for a safe return for him and his unit and that there won't be too many delays along the way.

- i TRIED to pack today, but didn't get far. I just ended up putting all my books in a box, and then stopped there. =) I had to rummage through all the letters and receipts that I've kept and clean up my work station, that that in itself took almost 3 hours! Sorting out mail, re-reading everything to see what needs to be kept and what needs to be shredded sure takes a lot of work. AND I'm doing it for both me and Caleb, since his mail has been coming to my house during the deployment. There's still a lot of sorting to do, and I need to buy a nice file cabinet to put all our important documents in, medical records, tax records, car records, etc...

- The person who was supposed to do my make-up for the wedding cancelled...hmmph. So, I'm in search for a make-up artist now. I'm tempted to just do it myself, but I don't know....we'll see what happens.

- I have a walk through with my coordinator, the dj, and the on-site coordinator on Tuesday. We'll walk through the ceremony and reception site and I'll let them know where I want things set up. I'll be heading to my bridal shop straight after to try on my dress. SO excited to try it on after the alterations!

ok, those are all the important notes I wanted to write about.

good night!

XOXO,

Nancy

It starts...

The beginning of the end officially starts tomorrow. I'm eagerly starting a new chapter in my life. I'm happy, but sad. Excited and nervous. I'm a little bit of everything!

Tomorrow officially marks my last day of work. I turned my letter of resignation to my boss today. I asked if there'll be any 'formal' procedures we need to do, but he said there'll be an informal exit interview with just the two of us...and some tissues. I'm so blessed that I have had such a great boss to work with these past three years. Howard definitely sets the bar high as a boss who all not only respect, but also like as a person. I told him that it's easy to respect your boss, but it's not easy to 'like' your boss...and he has always been such a friendly, patient, inspiring boss, day in and day out. I'll miss working with him and the rest of my co-workers who I consider my work family. They will be throwing me a good-bye party tomorrow. Pizza, sandwiches, ice-cream, fruit and veggies, and I'm bringing my mom's famous 4-layered jello for dessert as well. Training has gone fairly well, and I'm finally learning the concept of "letting go" and moving on.

I got a chance to talk to Sharon today! I talked to her while I was supervising my replacement. HA! The great thing about this week has actually been not working! I've been so busy trying to train the new NMR tech and also talking to my co-workers about my life and where God is taking me. It's definitely bittersweet though! Hopefully I make it through tomorrow with dry eyes!

I cancelled my dress fitting last Tuesday and rescheduled for next Tuesday. I went to the hospital on Monday because I had severe...SEVERE...stomach pains on Monday. SO severe that I didn't even go in to work, even though it was my last week! The doctor's seem to not know what it could be (since stomach pains could be caused by so many factors), and asked if I wanted a cat scan. Since I'm not sure what my new insurance covers, I decided to skip the cat scan this time around. I experienced the same pain about 4 months ago, and also had to go to the hospital during that time. Looking at my calendar, it's pretty clear that the pain starts when my period starts. Because of this, my uncle suggested I see an OB-GYN to make sure my uterus is okay as the position of the uterus can cause pain during my cycle, and also to test if I have endometriosis. I'm still reading up on the causes and effects of endometriosis, but until I get tested, I won't know. I made an appointment with the OB-GYN, but the next available appointment that I can go to is June 3rd. Not the best date, as I'm scared I'll go through the pain again next month, but at least I'll still get checked out to see what the issue is. Praying that everything is and will be okay...

North Carolina has been getting terrible weather. 62 tornadoes hit the state last week? (or a couple weeks ago), and now the state is also in danger of a major hurricane. AY! YI! YI! I hope everything clears up by the time I visit in a couple weeks!!!

Hanging out with my cousin tonight...exercising and getting in shape for the big day!

I have one more week to teach my kids before the big recital on May 7th. SO proud of how far they have all come along. It is so rewarding to be a teacher when you sit back and see the progress that each of your student has made and how much they have practiced to get to where they are. I'm excited for the recital day...and hopefully I"ll be able to share a video of them playing!

Will update soon!

Two blog posts in a week...not too bad!!! =)

El fin!

Time flies when you're planning a wedding...

Wow. It's been so long since I've written a post.

So much has happened, I honestly can't even begin to recap everything. It's been a hectic 8 months, with wedding plans, Caleb's deployment, and now, planning my move to NC.

Caleb deployed in last October and it's been an emotional roller coaster. I've learned a lot about myself, my strengths, my weaknesses, and how, no matter what life throws at me, that God is always faithful and will never leave my side. I have definitely learned to lean on him, depend on Him, and he has never failed me, even though I've failed him with my questions, doubts, fears, and worries. He is awesome, and He has gotten me to this point of the deployment, and I am so thankful for his grace and mercy. Caleb will be returning in just several weeks and again, I'm feeling all these different emotions, but I am so excited to see him again and to FINALLY start our lives together as one. It's been 2 and a half years, and it's amazing to see how much our relationship has strengthened through all of the tests and trials we have been through. I am so excited to be his bride and walk down the aisle to marry him, to spend a whole week in Jamaica, and to start our lives in NC. I know that there's going to be a lot of changes, but I'm welcoming the good and bad with open arms, knowing that I have my prince charming by my side through it all.

Wedding planning can be summed up in one word: UGH.

I am DONE with wedding stuff. I am literally drained from picking a cake (3 tier or 4 tier...maybe a 5 tier?), dealing with DJ's, picking out flower arrangements, bargaining each different company for a good price...going back and forth on everything, and the most stressful STRESSFUL thing about the wedding plans has definitely been the wedding invitations. I took on the project of doing all the wedding invitations myself, seeing that we would save almost $800. It's been stressful. and I can't even begin to explain all the chaos that has erupted because of it. Am I glad that I saved us big bucks? YES. was it worth it.....not sure. HA! It definitely would have been easier to just buy them online, but I do have a sense of pride in the invitations I've made. But, I'll definitely pass on making wedding invitations ever again. I'm moving on...!

Work: This week is my last week of work. I'm currently training my replacement, and I have mixed emotions as well. It's a bittersweet feeling for me. I love the fact that I won't work, but I'm definitely sad that I won't be working with my company anymore, and that I won't be teaching my wonderful students anymore as well. I'll miss so much about San Diego when I leave, but then again, I'm excited to move forward in the next chapter of my life with Caleb. again...it's bittersweet, but sweet nonetheless.

We just had my bachelorette party in Las Vegas last weekend. I won't go too much in detail about this...=) But, I behaved very well overall. It was so much fun with all my girls, and I can't wait to go back...this time with Caleb!

Just wanted to post a short post today...hopefully this will get the ball rolling for me to continue writing in here.

It's Easter Sunday, and I just have to say I am so grateful that I have a Savior who DIED for my sins, past present and future, and that he loves me unconditionally and has reserved a place for me in paradise. He is wonderful. and He is RISEN.

I have my dress fitting on Tuesday. A little nervous, but very excited overall. I'll be bringing my mom with me this time. It's the first time that I'll try on the dress with all the alterations done...so we'll see how it fits.

I still need to work on my vows, make a seating chart (still waiting on RSVPs), make escort cards or a bulletin board for guests, wedding programs, OOT bags, find hair and makeup artists, and that's all I can think of as of now. My next big project is cleaning out my room and begin to pack for my move to NC. CRAZY! I'll start with all my DVD's and videos, then move on to shoes and clothes.

I'll be going to NC on May 14th, just in time for Caleb's homecoming. Praying that he will get there on time, and there won't be a long delay when he's travelling home. Praying for safety, a great reunion, and a great time getting to know each other again and being comfortable around each other.

Okay, that's all for now.