Out with '10 and in with '11

It's that time of year again people. Time to think of what you want to do/see/change/be in the New Year. People have already started asking me if I have a New Year's resolution. Me? Heck, I've made resolutions all year long. I don't need to wait till the clock strikes midnight and we're suddenly in 2011.

And then I got to think about 2011. 2010 was a busy year for me and maybe 2011 will be the year to slow down and pick up the messes of 2010. I wouldn't say that there is just one thing that I resolve to do this year. My husband, or anyone who knows me for that matter, can tell you that I always have a thousand things going on at the same time. A project here, a project there. I was never very good with montony.

So what are some of the things that I want to do in 2011? Well let's see...

• I want to build something. Most likely a piece of furniture. A headboard for my bedroom to be more specific.
• I want to try out the whole going to the gym in the morning thing. Although I am the opposite of a morning person, my lack of gym time over the last 5 months has taken a toll on me. It's time to get my butt back into gear and 5:30am seems to be the only time I can fit it into my schedule.
• I want to start crafting more. Wedding crafts were one thing. I want to make crafts that maybe can turn into a business one day.
• I want to spend more time with the Lord. Spending time in His word has been the best relaxation lately. It's calming and I don't think that there was ever a better Teacher.
• I want to see the happiest of days in people's lives - three of my best friends to be exact. 2011 will be the year of weddings for us and I can't wait to see the days that Emily, Michelle, and Kaitlin get married. 

But most of all, I want write more. I think that the blog is ready for a face lift too. This is my outlet and my way to stay in touch with the people who mean the most to me.

So will 2011 be a better year than 2010? I'm not sure how it could top one of the best years in my life but I'm sure as heck gonna try!

Where are you radio Christmas?

One of my favorite parts about Christmas is the carols. Back in Connecticut, Star 99.9 was the only station played on my car radio from Thanksgiving through Christmas Day. It was non-stop Christmas songs. Various versions, various songs, and even a few parodies. As I was driving to work this morning, searching the very limited number of radio stations for one that was playing a carol or two, I stopped on one that was playing "Angels We Have Heard on High".


"Ah, finally a Christmas carol that I can sing to." So I began belting out the words until I realized that the people on the radio weren't singing the same words as me. Upon closer listen, I realized that they in fact were singing the same words as me, just in Spanish. Channel changed.


Yes it is sad that I haven't found a radio station that compares to the Christmas caroling of Star 99.9. I have resulted to flipping through station after station hoping that I will catch one that is playing a holiday tune. But I have yet to find one that plays one of my favorite Christmas parodies of all time. Here, have a listen...

Ah, the joys of Christmas. Well until I can coax a radio station here to play their Christmas music non-stop from Thanksgiving through Christmas, I guess it's Pandora Radio for me. Thank God for the N*SYNC Christmas Radio : )

Merry Christmas from the Hofmans!

In my effort to do less this year, I opted to not send out Christmas cards to everyone. Plus I'm trying to work on all of the thank you's we need to write and send!

But of course, we didn't want you to think that we weren't wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas...

It was a little struggle to get Tana to sit for the picture but with a little help from Jameson and his funny faces, Lindsay's quick fingers and Peyton's skill with dog treats, we were able to get a nice family photo.

And once again, from the Hofman family to yours, have a very Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year!

Doing less gives you time to be more

As I have been scouring my ever growing list of blogs, I have noticed that so many people have been talking about keeping it simple this year. Of course, I kept it simple due to the sheer fact that I didn't have a lot of time to plan the Christmas holiday or to even do a lot of shopping for that matter. But now I'm seeing that as a blessing.

September, October, and November were crazy months for us. A new house, a new dog, a wedding and a honeymoon; all took up my time and seriously strapped us for cash. So I decided that presents would be smaller for this year and that I wasn't going to go all out in my decorating. I decided to keep it simple.

A few days ago, I got an email from my mother-in-law letting me know that it was going to be a simple Christmas at their house this year, something that my mom had also mentioned on the phone a few times. And I was relieved.

This year, it is my hope that the Christmas weekend in our household will be less, allowing us to be more. What does that mean you ask? Well it's quite simple actually. I pray that doing less of the glitz and glamour will help us to recognize the reason for the season and to celebrate the birth of our Lord, Jesus Christ. After all He is the star of the show this weekend.

So in that spirit, my house currently features a tree in my living room, a wreath on the front door, and a few small Christmas lights on the outside railings. And that's it. I'm not baking cookies and I'm not making pretty packages.

As Griff and I celebrate our first Christmas as husband and wife, and actually our first Christmas together, I pray that this might become a tradition for us, putting more effort into celebrating the joy and love of the season rather than putting the emphasis in other places. Of course as our family grows, my decorating and my baking and my present wrapping might grow but for now, I'm very content with doing less to allow us to be more this Christmas season.

Cards and Cookies, Trees and Tinsel

Oh how fantastic this time of year is! It's like every day is filled with so much joy it's unbelievable. I know that so many of you have been wanting to see pictures from Hawaii and hear all about it. I swear, I will get some pictures posted (we have wedding pictures to post too!).

But with Christmas only 11 days away and the rush to wrap presents, ship things, and get our cards out the door, the only think that I could think about was decorating my tree and making my wreath for the year. So as I sit here and decide which cookies I'm going to bake this year, I wanted to share with each of you our little bit of Christmas here in Montana.

 



We've added a few more presents since the picture was taken. Tana seems to be leaving it alone which makes me very happy. She is very much into tennis balls right now so I was a little nervous about her confusing the ornaments on the tree with her toys. Thankfully she has heard "no" once and that's all that it took.

Of course I had to add in an "H"..I'm very proud to have my little family this year and to know call ourselves "The Hofmans" so I couldn't resist. Of course my wreath is completely made up from items found at Dollar Tree and attached with a few twist ties. Nothing special but it sure is special to me!

Oh and there's a little sneak peek of our new leather couches. A little wedding present to ourselves and worth every penny : )

Now it's time for some cookies...pizzelle anyone?

The Newlywed Game

As the Christmas season begins, so do the parties, the get-togethers, and the festivities. Last night was the first of many parties that Griff and I will attend and this year it seems a little different being newlyweds.

As the games commenced at Griff's squadron Christmas party last night, we enjoyed watching party-goers scramble for items on a scavenger hunt list and watched the real Christmas spirit come out in everyone as the fights ensued for the last remaining seat in the lineup. And then they announced that we were going to play the Newlywed Game.

It was like slow motion watching the heads turn to the table in the back where Griff and I were seated. Of course everyone knew that we we had just gotten married. Some people in the room were invited to nuptials, while others were quietly envying our tans fresh from Hawaii (sorry, I had to put it out there). But needless to say no matter how many shades of red our faces turned, Griff and I weren't getting out of the game.

Now I didn't mind playing the game so much. I only know a handful of people in the room and how embarrassing can the questions, thought up by the squadron commander, be anyway. We'll come back to that statement.

So as we went down the line of couples, the introductions began. "Hi, what's your name?...And your husband is?" Followed by the obvious question, "And how long have you been married for?"

10 years was the first answer...I thought that this was the newlywed game? But as we continued down the line the marriage times weren't getting any smaller. When the Colonel finally got to me and Griff my sheepish answer was 1 month..."1 month? Is this part of the honeymoon?" I thought to myself do we have any shot at winning this thing without embarrassing ourselves? Of course we did. It's me and Griff.

And let me tell you, we held our own. Now back to embarrassing questions. After being asked "What part on your body would your husband say has aged the most?" and dragging out the skeletons in the closet with "How many girlfriends did your husband have before marrying you?" (which we both answered correctly) I thought that Griff and I could handle anything. And we were in the lead too. And then the dreaded bonus question - "When and where would your husband say was your first date?"

Stumped. And we thought we had this one in the bag.

With the way that our long distance relationship worked out, every time we saw each other, there were always other people around. Friends or family, we tried to combined visits with as much as possible. So what were our answers? Mine was Christmas Eve dinner, 2008. His was Applebees the day after we first officially met, in August 2008. And we were the only ones to get that question wrong. Now that's embarrassing.

Needless to say, we lost. Although we came away from it with a nice bottle of wine. And when we got home that night, we discussed where and when our first official date was in case that were to ever happen again. After all, you can't get stuck in that predicament twice. And you never know...we could still be playing the newlywed game after 10 years of marriage. 

A day which will live in infamy

I couldn't think of a better way to kick off my recap of our time in Hawaii then with a small tribute on such a large day. Of course this is a little out of order but with today being December 7th, I'm not sure it's so wrong to go out of order. I'll jump back to the rest of the trip a little later.

December 7th, 1941 in the small harbor off the south shore of the island of Oahu, was a quiet morning and that's just how it was for us when we arrived at Pearl Harbor that morning. There is nothing more sobering than to enter what is now a national monument that is visited by over 2.5 million people.

Most of those people aren't there to see the things that are happening in the Welcome Center of the complex. Sure there are facts that line the shoreline and small monuments to some of the fighting forces but everyone wants to head out into the harbor and see the ship that is eternally on patrol of the waters below.

From the shoreline, the USS Arizona Memorial looks a little like this:

So as we boarded our navy taxi boat, the memorial began to come a little bit more in view.

The memorial is made up of three sections, the first holds the flags of the branches of the armed services, the US flag, and the Hawaiian flag. And then you enter the viewing room. Laying perpendicular across the hull of the USS Arizona, the memorial is open on all sides and even on top.

Looking over the sides, you can see parts of the ship, mostly covered in coral and home to some fish that find their food source there everyday.

The most amazing part though is the oil that still lingers on the surface of the water. Just before the attack on Pearl Harbor, the USS Arizona was refueled to it's maximum. When the attack happened, 1/3 of the oil in the ship blew up, 1/3 of it burned for 2 days straight, and 1/3 still remains on the ship. 69 years later, 2 gallons of oil still escape from the ship each day and probably will for the next 50 years. The smell of oil is prominent from the deck of the memorial, a constant reminder of the tragic events of that day.

Lining the walls of the last room of the memorial are the names of all of the men that lost their lives on the ship. As I stood to say a small pray of thanks, I thought about the men who survived the attack on Pearl Harbor. There were even a few survivors of the Arizona. So far 33 of them have opted to be cremated and have been returned to the Arizona to forever lie with their shipmates - their urns taken by divers and entombed in one of the cannons of the ship.

It's hard to do this place justice by showing some photos because of the gratitude and humbleness you feel when you step onto the memorial. As we left that day, I felt saddened by the events of that day but happy that it is something that this world will never forget as we always remember the day which will live in infamy.



There's all this white stuff on the ground

Well it's official. Montana has received it first snow storm (and it's really not even that big). The snow has been falling since yesterday afternoon and the temperatures have dropped far below 32 degrees. And with the first snow fall comes the careful driving and the snow shovels.

Most interested in the snow is Tana. Of course this is her first time seeing snow and she seems to think that the white stuff on the ground is fun to play with and jump in. I even caught her sitting in the middle of the year catching the snowflakes as they were falling.

So while everyone is carefully listening to the weather report to see how many more days they will be waking up to this sight in the morning:

I'll be feeling sorry for everyone as I'm waking up to this sight every morning:

Perfect timing? I think so. As we journey off to the islands of Hawaii, I just can't wait to spend time with my husband, being newlyweds, enjoying our time in the sun.

For the next 2 weeks, the only white stuff on the ground that we'll be worried about is the sand between our toes. : )

I now pronounce you Mr. and Mrs.

Well it has been a whirlwind kind of November so far...and it's not over yet. But I have missed my blogging while all of the excitement was going on.

I have officially been married for 10 days and I have gone through the ups and downs of this wedding being over. "What am I going to do now that I don't have anymore wedding planning to do?" or "Wow. I'm so glad that stress is over." But when it all comes down it, Griff and I are now husband and wife and it's time for us to enjoy the time together.

Our wedding was honestly beautiful. Whether someone disagrees with that statement or not, we loved every minute of it. And it gave me so much joy to know that it was personalized with every little bit of "us". If I had to do it again (which I won't) I wouldn't have it any other way.

As we embark on our lifetime of happily ever after, I know that I will always look back on that moment that I walked down the aisle with my dad, that Griff and I danced our first dance, or that we cut our cake. I will never forget the people that we with us on that day or the way that the weather cleared up for us as the ceremony got closer. But most of all, I will never forget that moment that Grandpa Hofman pronounced us husband and wife.

I promise more details when we get back from our honeymoon : ) Hawaii here we come!

The big pink bag ride first class

Yesterday's flying expierence was interesting if I do say so myself. Since I purchased my dress in Great Falls, transportation of the valued garment was essential. Carrying it on the plane was the only thing that I could feel ok with. Little did I know that we had 2 layovers!

Carrying the large pink bag through 4 airports was quite interesting. As we checked in at Great Falls, the lady at the ticket counter was so excited and interested in all of the details. After her repeated well wishes, we bored the plane and headed to Salt Lake City.

As we waited for the 2nd plane to board, I noticed people pointing to the bag and whispering, wondering if they could guess what the bag held. Of course the flight attendants weren't as excited about it as the people in the airport. Dragging it to the front to find somewhere to house it, the flight attendant considered shoving it in the overheard bins until I squashed that one real quick. She finally obliged to hang it in the first class cabin closet. It rode the same way on the way from Minneapolis to Hartford.

After retrieving the dress after its second first class ride, I started to wonder if I had just asked, could we have ridden first class?

People are very interesting when they hear that you are off to get married. Some are excited, some look at you like you're using an excuse. Whatever the reaction, I was mainly concerned with the condition that my dress would arrive in on the other side.

I have to report that the dress is just fine. My nerves, not so much. Maybe we'll just ship it back to Montana.
No more first class rides for the large pink bag.

A few freebies never hurt

9 days. Ok that had nothing to do with my post but I couldn't help myself.

I got a very exciting email from our venue this morning and it couldn't have come at a better time. When I first went to see the Barns, I knew that I wanted to add a little lighting because there won't be much natural light and there aren't tons of lights in there. They had some lights that were strung up in the rafters from a previous wedding and I thought that was a great idea. Until she told me that it was going to be $800 for me to rent them and have someone put them up for me. Of course we could come in and do it ourselves but they would have to come down right after the wedding since someone was using the building the next day. They look a little something like this:

We ended up heading to Target the day after Christmas and getting the same lights for about a tenth of the price. And of course my dad was going to be the one to string them up for me. He loved that he was appointed that job. But that meant bringing ladders to the hotel and tons of hanging supplies and a "tear-down" party after the wedding.

Well the much welcomed email that came this morning explained that the bride after me is also using the same lights but she is paying to have them put up. Since we are there on Friday, they wanted to come and set them up on Thursday, leaving them up through Friday and giving them to me for an even better deal of $0.

Our venue has been great about other "free" things too. When faced with a chair dilemma, Traci threw our favorite upgraded chair in for free. Mom was totally happy about this. They are working with us to add small touches like apple cider to our menu to give things a little flair for our big day.

Hey, I never turn down something that's free.

Long distance is just who we are

It's never fun and it's never easy but sometimes you just have to do it. Griff and I started our relationship being long distance. Every couple of months one of us would fly to the other or we would meet somewhere neutral. Of course after about a year, I was tired of it and knew that it was time to make the big move.

Although I never really thought that it would happen this way, we once again played with the long distance thing when it came to planning our wedding. Funny thing is, we were comfortable with it that way. So many brides would freak out over the thought of only going to the state that you will be married in 3 times before the big day (and Griff only made the trip once). You can't meet with people when you want, it's hard to get ideas over the phone, and sometimes you just feel more comfortable actually meeting the person face-to-face.

But I was a pro at the long distance thing. I perfected my communication skills after months and months of only talking to Griff on the phone and I have taken full advantage of email usage. I wrote out my questions before making a phone call and didn't hesitate to ask them to send me things before I made a decision.

Being far is not such a bad thing for someone who is quite indecisive. With few options put in front of you it was much easier to make a decision about the big things like our DJ or our photographer. Plus, I leaned on those who knew best, like the caterer who had worked with and recommended many of our vendors.

Of course I have been blessed with an awesome mom and bridesmaids who helped out so much on East Coast. As we head home on Friday, I'm getting excited to end yet another long distance endeavor. Although they have become a part of who Griff and I are, I'm not so sure I'll start another one anytime soon.

Bring on the emotions

Holy cow...11 days. And with that has come the gamut of emotions. I come from a family of criers; my mom, my aunts, my grandmother. It's usually not a family event anymore if there's not a tear shed. As the days to the wedding become fewer, I have noticed that the emotions that I go through have been like a rollercoaster ride.


As I wrote an email to a friend this morning, I couldn't help but get emotional about the past and the upcoming future. Sitting there writing, I laughed, I cried, and I laughed some more. That's how it seems my days have been lately.


In just one day I might not be able to stop smiling over my upcoming wedding and 10 minutes later, I can't help but get anxious. By the afternoon, I'll be laughing at the great times that we're going to have, and then crying over the thought of marrying my best friend.


It's probably 100% normal to be feeling like this...however I've never done this before so I could be completely out of my mind. But I have noticed that there is one common thread to all of my emotions and that is happiness.


No matter if I'm crying or laughing, anxious or excited, they all happen because of the happy thought that I am getting married so soon. I know that there is no doubt about it I will cry on my wedding day. And there's no doubt about it that I will laugh on my wedding day. It's like the ups and downs of wedded bliss.


So bring on the emotions : )

Seating Chart Puzzles

With the wedding in 15 days and all of my RSVPs complete, it's time to get down to our seating chart. Ha, and I thought that the guest list was difficult.

In order to fit everyone into our space comfortably, we will need to fill as many tables of ten as possible. Most caterers prefer the tables of 10 but some will let you get away with tables of 8s or 9s. So as I look at my guest list and who is coming, I need to figure out how to get 145 people to fit comfortably. And I also have to make sure that they are comfortable with who they are sitting with.

Everyone has said that in the last month before the wedding, the drama happens. When you are trying to figure out who can sit with who and who won't sit with who, you are suddenly faced with a kind of seating chart puzzle....and the drama comes to the surface.

Well can Aunt Irene really sit at the same table with Uncle Jimmy who she had a fight with last week? Or can Jane and Tom sit at the table with the rest of your college buddies since they broke up a year ago?

Hence my puzzle.

So Grandma Annie doesn't want to sit close to the speakers or Cousin Vinny wants to be as close to the food line as possible. Just because I sit someone somewhere doesn't mean that my day, or even there's for that matter, is going to be ruined. In my family, you sit to eat and the rest of the time you are on that dance floor. I have a feeling that our friends will be the same way.

So equipped with a handy mock floor plan and my Post-Its with all of the names of my guests on them, I will conquer the seating chart and cross another thing off my list. I'll let you know how it goes.

Crisis Averted

Crisis. There are so many things that can come to mind when someone uses that word....like a major fire or an outbreak of some kind. Lately the word has been a regular in my vocabulary.

Last night was probably the biggest "crisis" when I had a meltdown while sitting on the couch. Let's take a few steps back and I'll explain how I deemed myself fit to be in crisis mode.

My trip home in August was a huge spending spree. Lauren, Kaitlin and I took a whole day to go shopping for the various decorations for the wedding.



Kaitlin's poor little car all loaded up. The back seat looked the same!


After loading up three shopping carts at the Christmas Tree Shop, we headed over to AC Moore's to see if I could find the vases for the centerpieces. Low and behold, they had exactly what I was looking for, for a price that I could afford. With not enough in stock, I quickly placed a special order with a store associate who assured me that they should be delievered in about 4 weeks. Perfect!

Happily satisfied, I headed home, planned out the centerpieces with Kaitlin and went on my merry way. The end of September rolls around and I haven't heard from the store so I decided to give them a call. Enter crisis #1.

The manager of the store informs me that they don't have a record of that order being placed. After hunting for the special order slip, getting the product numbers and starting to know the manager like he was a close friend, he promises that he's going to call the company and get the order placed ASAP. Phew! That was close.

Three weeks later (aka last night), I'm sitting on my couch and my sister calls..."Do you need a glass of wine?" "Uh, I'm waiting for the ceremony musician to call." "Oh so I guess you haven't talked to Mom..."

Instantly, the thoughts are running through my head of what could be wrong. Without thinking I hang up the phone and dial my parent's house. My mom says "Hello?" and I blurt out "What's wrong?" Enter crisis #2.

Well it turns out that those perfect vases for the perfect price aren't going to just perfectly appear for my wedding. The manufacturer doesn't have enough to fill my order. WHAT?! Enter Mom, the superwoman.

While I was freaking out on my couch in Montana, Mom was fervently at the computer in Connecticut searching for options. In the time that it took my sister to get off the phone with my mom, call me, give me the bad news, and me call Mom, she had already found an alternative, called the lady, asked her questions, and placed an order for new vases which would arrive in 4 days.

Thank God for superwoman Mom. Crisis averted.

Praying to the Weatherman

If there is one thing that every bride obesses over for their wedding, no matter what the season is, it's probably the weather. No matter how much you plan, organize, and pay attention to details, the weather is one thing that you just can't control.

Here in Montana, we are experiencing very unusual weather. For the past 3 weeks, we have only had about 3 or 4 days where the temperature has dipped below 60 degrees. And I am praying that Connecticut will be experiencing some unusual weather as well.

I knew what I was getting myself into when I booked our wedding on the first weekend of November. The weather can often be far different from that of October. It's like November hits and BOOM! You are in for a surprise. Last year, it was still beautiful far into November. There were still leaves on the trees and everything was fine and dandy. But could this year be a different story?

With 22 more days to go, Weather.com isn't ready to report their predictions for our day just yet. And the Farmer's Almanac...well let's just say that for the week of the wedding, they are reporting everything from rain to sunshine, cold temperatures to warm temperatures. So who do I trust?

At this point in time, there's only one person I can trust...so every night, I get down on my knees and I pray to the all knowing Weatherman, asking Him to bring me the beautiful day that I hope is in store for November 5th. And if that's not what He wants to give me, I fully plan on taking advantage of the awesome pictures my photographer might be able to give me out of a dismal day.

Of course, only the weather would be dismal...we're still going to have one heck of a party!

It's so hard to keep secrets!

These last few weekends have been super productive for me...which they should be since my wedding is in 23 days. But with that comes the completion of many projects that I can say were done with my two hands. And of course I am just bursting at the seams to share them all.

Sorry, I'm not spilling the beans just yet. 

There have been so many little touches of this wedding that I have seen in different places that cost a FORTUNE ($70 for a flower barrette anyone?). With some great investigative skills and many, many, trips to the craft store, I have not only been able to handcraft a lot of these items but I have been able to modify them to my liking.

As I imagine my day, I feel accomplished that I was able to get some of the things that I had to have for a fraction of the price. And I think that it will make the wedding feel more like our special day instead of a day cut from a cookie cutter or designed by someone who had no idea what Griff and I are all about.

So although I am going to zip my lips on my creations for now, I promise to share them outwardly after the wedding.

Happy 1 Month to me! (and Griff too)

Well folks...this is it. I have officially started my 1 MONTH COUNTDOWN!

This morning, I came into work, opened my email and was greeted with this....

She really knows how to make a girl's day : )

Man I never thought that this day was going to come. I was looking back at my blog this morning, reading some old posts and it makes me laugh to read some of the "countdown posts" that I wrote.

With only a month left to finish up the fine details, I have been leaning on my mom more than ever. Let me jsut say that none of this would have been possible without her or my dad. Whenever I get frustrated about not being able to find something that I'm looking for, I just give my mom a shout and before you know it, she has found it and ordered it.

As I look at my to-do list, things are getting crossed off left and right and everyday the list is getting smaller and smaller. Sounds like I'm complaining right? Well not really complaining but it's a little bittersweet. What am I going to do when I don't have a wedding to plan anymore?

But that question is for another time and another day...I can worry about all of that on November 6th. For now, I am going to revel in the glory of crossing things off my list and feeling completely confident that I will have gotten so much done in this 11 month process.

Oh and today is another important day for me too...exactly one year ago, I got into my little car, packed to the brim with tons of stuff, and drove 4 days across the country to try my hand at life in a different state...little did I know that a year later I would be getting ready to marry the man of my dreams.

Arches of swords and military mess dress

When Griff and I first got engaged, I came to the realization that I was marrying a military man...and I would become a military wife...although it wouldn't be forever. Griff has expressed his desire to not make his time in the Air Force one of a career. In the meantime, I did have to realize what it meant for the time that he was in the service. Of course there was the living-far-away-from-home part and the I-will-have-to-go-away-a-few-times-a-week part. They aren't always enjoyable things but they are things that I can deal with.

I am so proud to say that I am marrying an officer in the Air Force and although I had plans and ideas for my wedding, I wasn't going to totally negate the fact that we could in fact have a military wedding. Add on top of that the fact that Griff is a graduate of the Air Force Academy and this could have been the backdrop of our wedding day...

Air Force Academy Chapel
Source: charlottegeary.com



...complete with pews that resemble the wings of an airplane.

Or that we could have left the church under the cover of this...

Arch of Sabers
Source: theknot.com

...and that Griff could have worn that same uniform instead of a traditional tuxedo.

I knew that I could have to make some concessions in the ideas I have always had for my wedding. That I might have to change my color scheme (green, brown, and blue?) and that in order to acheive the correct look, I might have to change the time of the year, the venue, the flowers, the favors, the centerpieces, etc.

But that's not how it happened. When faced with the question "What part of your military life would you like to include in our special day?" I was surprised by Griff's answer..."Nothing. It's not about the job I do every day or the title that I carry. It's about the new job and title that I can add to my list and that's being your husband."

I wouldn't have minded giving up all of my ideas for my dream wedding and starting fresh. Sacrifice was going to be one of the first lessons that I needed to learn as a soon-to-be military wife but to know that Griff didn't want me to have to make this sacrifice was so unbelievable.

Even when I offered to put "Lt. Griff Ranger" on our invitations, he kindly declined. "Nah, let's just leave it off. It doesn't look pretty." Who knew my military man was concerned with whether something was "pretty" or not?

What holiday is it again?

Today is October 1st. It is the day that I feel like we officially move into holiday season. Of course first comes Halloween, next is Thanksgiving and then we get Christmas (my favorite of course) and then we round out the holiday season with New Years Eve.

Usually around this time of the year I would be helping my mom get the Halloween decorations out and carving out those pumpkins. I would be shopping for my costume and planning for what used to be my least favorite holiday. Of course I would be dreaming of the turkey, mashed potatoes, and stuffing that was soon to come, and starting to make my shopping list for the gift giving season of Christmas.

But this year is different. I have no Halloween decorations to unpack and I am putting off contemplating my Halloween costume. Instead I am creating decorations involving green, orange, and brown and contemplating the best style bustle for a different costume. I'm not dreaming of turkey, mashed potatoes, and stuffing but instead thinking about apricot glazed salmon, chicken tuscany, and beef sirloin. And that shopping list? Well that list only includes things like twine, green paper, pearls and candles. I wonder which family member would enjoy those things for Christmas...

I feel like my holidays are taking a back seat this year. As I shop in the stores, I walk right on past the pretty things that can be used to decorate my house in a festive manner and gravitate towards the newest issue of Brides magazine or an item that is needed to create my newest wedding project.

I justify my lack of holiday spirit by saying that I will be in Connecticut for Halloween, Hawaii for Thanksgiving and back home in enough time to decorate for Christmas.

After all isn't my wedding a holiday in itself?

Someone's getting a little too comfortable

As I continue to unpack what seems like never ending boxes, I feel like I'm never going to get it done. Every night I come home from work and I unpack or tidy up or organize from 5 until I head to bed around 10. But it seems like I am getting nothing done. There is always another pile to go through and stuff seems to just be moving from room to room. It's like an unexplained phenomenon. Every night as I climb into bed, I say to myself, "Whlep...at least I took a whack at it."


And then last night, the light bulb went on as the answer to my never ending unpacking saga sat right in front of my nose...well right on  my feet to be exact. Little miss Tana.

 She really is a great dog for the most part but its so amazing to me how she was so attached to my hip those first two days. I couldn't even take a shower without her trying to follow me. And these days it's a totally different story. Her comfort level has skyrocketed...good thing? Yes, but bad at the same time. I often find myself caught up in a task and realize that my house suddenly is way too quiet. Most of the time, I find her in one of three places...perched on the arm of the couch looking out the window, under my bed, or curled up on top of my bed.

But there are those times when I find her sitting on the bathroom floor eating the Q-Tips out of the garbage or digging in the laundry room and coming up with something absolutely disgusting that was probably dropped by the homeowners years ago.

A puppy isn't just something that you bring into your home and they instantly learn how to sit, come, and pee outside. It's taken quite a bit of us saying "no"...

And she needs lots of attention. Most often she can be found in the "scratch my belly please" position, waiting for expected scratch of the day...

But she is also great company. She's there with me when Griff isn't (Ok, I admit it. I'm scared) and she's always willing to give you a little lick on the back of your hand that can brighten any day.

I guess we'll keep her.

50 Shades of Blue

Last night I began to pack up all of the brushes, rollers, and trays that were scattered around the house our little painting adventure. And all I have to say is "Hallelujah!" Surprisingly I knew exactly what colors I wanted where and my choices only resulted in returning one can of terribly, awful green paint. But visiting that wall of paint chips can often be daunting.

Who knew that there were 50 different shades of blue? And imagine having the job of naming those colors? "Hmmm, I'm feeling like this one should be called Maine Shoreline Blue." I didn't even recall the shoreline in Maine even being blue.

Holding those chips up next to each other, there was often a slight difference in their color but hardly any that I cared about. So I would gather up 10 different paint chips and do what my mom used to do (that is until she discovered those little containers of sample paint). I taped them to the wall and stood back to examine and compare. Still no difference to me.

So I settled for Whisper Blue and returned to the paint store only to be asked what kind of finish I wanted. Finish? I want a quick finish that's what I want. So like a little kid in school, I sat back and listened to the Paint Man give me the 411 on the best finishes for each room in my house. 

After painting 2 bedrooms, a bathroom, a hallway, a 30ft x 30ft living room, and a kitchen...I'm done. I'm putting it all away...until I have to paint the downstairs.

Winter project anyone?  

Snow?! Are you serious?!

I remember when I was little and I would see that first hint of winter. It usally came in the form of frost on the front yard or seeing your breath as you waited for the bus in the morning. And even more happiness came when you saw that first snow fall of the season. 

Now in Connecticut that was usually around the first week of December or sometimes even later. We would covet that first day when the weatherman declared it a snow day and when it was perfectly ok to throw on 3 layers when it came time to play outside.

Well here in Montana that first snow fall came yesterday. It was Friday, September 17th. Needless to say, I didn't get that warm and fuzzy feeling that I usually get about the first snow fall. As people posted on my Facebook wall that certain parts of the country were still experiencing 90 - 100 degree weather, the great state of Montana officially began its cold season with a small amount of the fluffy white stuff. 

I watched the snow fall outside my window and laughed hysterically with Griff as Tana walked gingerly through the lawn, chasing snowflakes.

So this is...ready or not. Here comes winter.

The view out of our front window....complete with snow.

Gone Fishin'

Labor Day weekend came so quickly this year but as a tribute to what everyone calls "the end of summer" we decided to spend part of our weekend on the river (unfortunately the other half was spent painting the new house).


Armed with some fly rods and a drift boat (thanks Tyson!) we headed out with some friends to enjoy a summer staple here in Montana; fly fishing. I had never been fly fishing. Finding some worms under a rock, attaching them to my little tiny fishing pole and heading down to the resevoir with my grandfather was about the extent of my fishing knowledge. Not to mention that catching a little yellow perch is nothing compared to the trout found in the Missouri River.


Griff decided that Tyson was going to teach me to fly fish. He bowed out that one gracefully after our second snowboarding trip. Let's just say I was not very happy with him that day. So Tyson gave the basic lesson, taught me what to do and pointed me in the right direction of the fish. Five minutes in, Tyson, his girlfriend Michale, and Griff all screamed "Fish on!" "Fish on what?" was my instant response until I realized that it meant there was a fish nibbling on my line and I was supposed to pull up and set the hook. Better luck next time?


After about 25 minutes of "practicing" I gave up. I'm not patient enough to stand there all day and get no return on my investment of time. Of course, no one else seemed to be having great luck either. Until Griff got a pretty nice looking rainbow that fought him like heck until he tired it out and gracefully guided it to my awaiting net (netting is much easier than actually catching a fish let me tell you).


As the day went on we laughed and joked and enjoyed the company of Tyson, Michale and little Kona. Griff ended up catching another rainbow to be the only successful fisher of the day. And we even hunkered down and waited out two huge rainstorms mid-river. Not it's time to hunker down and wait out the winter so we can get back on the river next summer.

Griff's excited that I can go fishing with him now

First catch of the day!

Second catch of the day!

Tyson and Michale all bundled up for storm #2

Such a beautiful day on the river!

Introducing Miss Tana Hofman

I know, I'm crazy but just look at that face! So how did I end up with one more addition to my already hectic life? Let's just say that God was planning this all along...and we all know how that goes.

Found under a car by a co-worker's sister, Tana (as in Montana) came into my life on Tuesday afternoon. Said co-worker's sister had found this little pup, took her home, fed her, and began hanging up signs for someone to claim her. And no one did. On her way to the pound, she decided to try one last ditch effort to get this little girl a new home and headed into our office of dog lovers. One look at her and I couldn't say no. Ok so maybe it wasn't that easy for me to decide.

After tons of debate, lots of coaxing from my co-workers and a few funny phone calls to Griff, I loaded the little girl into my car and drove to my new house which is still basically empty. We sat at the floor, looking at each, and probably both wondering how this was all going to work out.

And so far we're getting along just great. We think that she's about 4 months old and some kind of boxer/shepard mix. She's house trained which is a huge plus and she has slept through the night without waking me to let her out. She hasn't gotten into any trouble just yet (although I just jinxed myself) and she follows me around like my shadow. "Sit" is also our specialty : )

After 2 days of being away, Griff returned home today to his 2 girls and seems to be completely loving every minute of it.

It's going to get crazy but heck, who's life doesn't get crazy?

4208 Lewis Avenue

So it's official. Today is the day that we can actually start moving into our new house! Although I've had the keys for a few days now, we actually haven't felt like it was "our place". So with the garage full of all of our stuff and an empty house waiting to be cleaned, painted, and lived in, I thought that I would unveil a few photos of our little humble abode : ) Enjoy!

Invitations, Invitations, Invitations

During all of this wedding planning I have found somethings to come easy (time of year, venue, colors, bridesmaids dresses, my dress) and other things I have obessed over (favors, centerpieces, guest book, decorations). But there is nothing that I have obessed over more than my invitations.

There has just been something about those little suckers that has been driving me crazy...yet I can't seem to help myself. I know that I was being absolutely idiotic about it all...but I still couldn't help myself. Until now.

I couldn't find anything that I liked in one place (or that I could afford for that matter) so I went looking in all different places. I coordinated colors, I coordinated papers, and I coordinated printing...well actually Griff handled that part : )...and they finally graced my sister's kitchen table for assembly a few days before the Fair started. Talk about poor timing.

My sisters and I were sure that we could completely do this ourselves and we began trying printing them all at home (which I wouldn't recommend if you have purchased the paper from a specialty store). We finally realized it wasn't going to work when in swooped my knight in shining armor who suggested that he take them to Staples for a little professional TLC.

Wow was that the right choice to make. The next night we began cutting and gluing only to realize that we had a lot of work ahead of us.

Sure it might be a lot of work when you are doing something like 110 invitations all by hand but it's been a labor of love and I can't wait to see what people think!

Here's a little sneak peek : )

Lindsay and I cut all 4 pieces for each invitation.

Lauren mounted each invite onto a piece of green paper.

A little preview of the finished product!

Since the "party", lots has gotten done. Griff's mom, sisters and Marci helped with assembly and do a little gluing. Griff helped with stamps and assembly and they are ALMOST done....and they look pretty darn good if I do say so myself : )

Are you a Fair Fanatic?

So it's been awhile...I know I'm sorry. With the trip home and the 4th of July holiday it was instant craziness once I returned back to work. Like I mentioned in a previous post, there are some different summer traditions here in Montana and one of those happens to be State Fairs.

The summer months are filled with the old fashioned culinary and sewing contests, deep fried food, and carnivals here in Montana...and even across the Midwest. Fairs pop up all over the place as people enjoy the warm weather and the days where it's light out legitimately until 10 pm.

And I just have the pleasure to work for one of the biggest fairs in Montana...the Montana State Fair of course. Starting Friday, I will submerse myself in 9 days of Fair fun. Of course, this year the fair isn't for the faint at heart. As this year's State Fair explains, there are plenty of "Fair Fanatics" here and I am proud to say that I am going to get to be a part of one of their favorite past times.

For some people it means taking the whole week off from work just so that they can go to the Fair every day. For others, it's making sure they get to enter their prized steer or swine into the Livestock competitions. Some people come just for the Vikings that are sold from the Sons of Norway booth (I however probably won't be in line for one of those since it's basically a deep fried meatball the size of a softball...oh and of course it's served on a stick).

Since I started my new job in May, I have been introduced to world of Fairs. This includes fantastic concerts..our lineup this year consists of Darius Rucker, Luke Bryan, Styx, LeAnn Rimes and many more...5 nights of rodeo, a carnival, Dinosaurs...yes I said Dinosaurs...and unbelievable amounts of fried food. I've had the pleasure to be a part of some of the coolest activities that will happen here in Great Falls over the next week.

So as I enter my very first Fair season, wish me luck. These will probably be 9 days of intense chaos, craziness, and down right fun. It will be nice to finally have one under my belt and add "planning the Montana State Fair" to my list of achievements.

Oh, and if you are looking for me...I'm "out of the office" until August 8th around 5pm. Or if you're in this neck of the woods, don't miss out - be sure to make your way down to the Montana State Fair!

Wedding Planning Day Highlights!

Gosh I'm not even sure where to start! Griff and I just returned from our trip home yesterday and there is just so much to talk about I might be blogging for days! Well maybe not days but that trip truly was the jump start that I needed to start off wedding season...


Yes, wedding season. It's what I have so cleverly named these next 4 months so that I don't stress myself out. I have to say, going home took so much of the stress and anxiety and kicked it to the curb. For one, I hadn't been able to make a decision about anything. And then, like magic, poof! I was making decisions left and right. Of course everything is easier with your mom next to you : )


So to save you all from the long rambling blog post, I'll give you the highlights...a few teasers...and go into detail as other posts unfurl.


Tuesday was the big day for us. I'm sure that Griff was dreading it but equipped with my notebook, camera, and checkbook we headed off to Middletown for a day chock full of wedding planning.


We met with our wonderful photographer Tony Spinelli, went to scope out some places for the rehearsal dinner, met with the people at the hotel, met with the lady at the church, showed Griff the Barns, picked out the food choices and linens with the caterer, and met with the florist.

All in all I have to say that was quite a busy day...but 100% worth it. Who's ready to get to work?!

More details to come...

Daydreamer

Tuesday afternoon and I sit down at my desk, ready to jump into the next task and boom! It hits me. Daydreaming...c'mon everyone does it. You are sitting there doing something and before you know it, 15 minutes have passed and you've spent valuable time "la dee da" daydreaming.

These days, it's mostly about the wedding. I think that sometimes daydreaming can be helpful...ya know, gets those creative juices flowing. Ha, I'm daydreaming as I'm typing this.

But today the daydreaming is not about the wedding. Even though I have LOADS of things to get done at work, I can't help but think about this weekend...yep, if you haven't already heard my thousands of broadcasts via Facebook and texts, now's the time to pay attention.

I'M COMING HOME!

Well not permanently...see that would take an act of Congress...literally. This Saturday is the day...Griff and I will travel from the Big Sky country to the East Coast.

So what am I daydreaming about?! Actually scratch that. What am I not daydreaming about?!

Hot weather, night out in the city with my closest friends, Mom, Dad, Lauren, my family, graduation parties, wedding planning (sorry I had to throw that one in there!) and much, much more.

It's going to be amazing! Cool thing is, Griff is complete stoked too. He reminds me everyday that we are going to Connecticut soon. He thinks its awesome how this will be our very first time on a plane together. Heck, we even get to sit together. We were always so used to picking each other up at airports and dropping each other off after a few days. Not this time.

No, we're going to enjoy a few days of R & R, spend some time with the folks and some friends, and soak up the rays. Lord knows we can use this trip.

So to everyone home...see you so soon!! And to everyone here in Great Falls, don't worry we'll be back soon enough!

A needle in a haystack?

I always wondered exactly what the phrase "It's like looking for a needle in a haystack" meant. I mean, why would anyone ever hide a needle in a stack of hay...and on the other hand, why would anyone want to find it?

Until Griff and I started looking for a house to rent here in Great Falls; then I understood.

Needle in a haystack? Yeah right. At times I thought that looking for a shiny object in a pile of straw was easier than our newest quest. First, we had to come to the conclusion that we were going to rent a house and not buy one. That decision was quite easy. It was a no brainer to think about the time that we have left here in Montana and figure out that it wasn't worth it to buy a house.

Next, we needed to decide where we wanted to live. (Can anyone see my organizational skills even seeping through on my decision making? Yes, I know. It's scaring me too) So back to where we want to live...if you've ever been to Great Falls, you would know; there are just some areas of town that you DO NOT want to live in. Griff has to post out on alerts and leave me home alone sometimes and there was no way that I was living in some areas of this town.

So I got my search criteria, narrowed down how much we wanted to spend and jumped on the Internet. I Googled house rentals in Great Falls, MT and waited for the thousands of sites that were about to pop up. The results were good...not like they would have been in a big city but I was content with the findings. 

I clicked on the first one, searched available rentals and got nothing....

So being the optimistic person that I am, I backed up to the search results and clicked on the second link and once again got nothing... My optimism was fading.

As a member of the military, Griff has access to a site that's strictly for military looking for a place to live. So I jumped on there and got a few more results....this was 6 months ago.

Every time I found something that thought was perfect, we would take hop in the car and do a quick drive by. And what we saw was always interesting. Houses that were made out to be amazing online turned out to falling apart in person. 

Sometimes it was quite comical. For instance this one house was listed as being 2,500 sq. ft. with a huge yard and close to the base where Griff works. Perfect! Let's just say it was too good to be true. The house was wedged in between two businesses that were quite questionable and definitely looked like a few drug deals had gone down inside. No way I would be staying there all by myself. I could just picture the people that might be knocking on my door late at night.

So after 6 months of searching, and hundreds and hundreds of prayers, I think that we finally have some choices. I found two houses that are now on our list of definite prospects. We've visited one and I'll visit the next on Saturday. 

It took a lot of patience on my part. I would often get "in a funk" and say that we were going to end up living out of our cars or, and this is funnier, we would both have to move in with my sister and Peyton. Life is funny sometimes and I have gotten better at remembering that things will always work out just the way they're supposed to. And that it's not up to me, but up to God and His plans for our lives. 

So as we continue on this journey, I'm happy to report that Griff and I will have a place to live very shortly. Griff will move in and I'll join after the wedding. Where it will be, I'm still not sure at this moment but I've finally narrowed down our search for "the needle" to two piles.

It's much better than the whole haystack though isn't it?