It's cold out thar!

Listen folks, it may only be 65 degrees right now, but after being used to 80 some degrees 65 feels mighty cold. I bring this up, because it is very possible that come wedding day, it will be 65 degrees in the sun. So here is my suggestion for keeping warm (and what I'll be wearing...a progression of..):

1. Pretty frock
2. with knitted shrug
3. with boots
4. with warm socks
5. with leggings
6. with scarf/shawl
[transitioning]
7. sweat pants
8. hooded sweatshirt
9. ear-cuff knitted hat
10. mittens
11. nose warmer

Ok, so maybe 9 -11 is going over board, but after having been to a couple of weddings lately that were "cool" and I say that with quote-marks, because I seemed to be the only really freezing my butt off, I recommend that layers be your mode of choice. Gentlemen, you may want to skip 1 and 2, unless that is your thing. No judgement here.

Just remember, we will be in true autumn as the season changes officially September 23rd. I still feel greatly optimistic that it will be sunny.

Ready to Wed

Total cost: $61

Well, it's official. Nathan and I are legal to get married. We have our marriage license in our hands. For an extra buck, we purchased the "pretty" version of the certificate with an Oregon Trail watermark inset into an outline of the state. I was going to see if I could find something that looked vintage online or make something myself, but for a buck, I'm proud to sign my name on the State seal. And, someday, it will be vintage.

The scene in the marriage license office was...strange: filled with giddy couples, holding hands, making gooey eyes at each other. It made me a little uncomfortable to witness strangers' intimacy, and then I started to feel nervous as if the office clerk was sizing up each couple's potential marriage capacity. Did the young couple behind us meet his criteria? Or were they destined to divorce in two years? Hard to say seeing that they brought the bride's mom along. I'm not sure if that was because she needed to sign off on her daughter getting married, or if the daughter needed extra moral support beyond her future husband's to purchase a license. The older couple I think probably had it made. Looked like a second marriage for both, and they were both cool, collected customers. No sappy looks, just big happy smiles. And then it was our turn, and we must have been really impressive because the clerk did not ask for any documentation that stated we are who we say we are. I could've been anyone posing as myself. I could've brought a stranger off the the street to pose as Nathan. Seems a little unofficial to me...

In the end, I must admit I felt as giddy as the 17-year-old behind us. We're getting married!

Continued Camping News

I hope you all know that I was kidding about the hunters. I don't even think it is official hunting season yet, so they wouldn't be out anyhow. Now bowhunters, that's a different story. But, having worked with bowhunters and hunters alike, they usually camp out way out in the woods down a dirt road and then some to do their hunting. They don't hang out in a campground.

With that said, there is no true resolution to this problem. I am remaining optimistic about the possibility that the campground will be fairly empty; however, I do recommend that you arrive earlier than 2pm to reserve your spot. And, if you want to snag more than one spot for yourself and another guest, that's fine too. The spots are also fairly large, so people can squeeze. Isn't a wedding about sharing our lives together? Doesn't that extend to camping spots as well? The spots can even fit a medium-sized RV which fits more than one person.

I'm not too concerned, but if you are, you might want to establish a plan B. Just in case...you never know. I will try to go out on Friday to speak with the campground host to get a feel of how many people have been showing up on September weekends and if we couldn't strike up a deal about campsites. I can be persuasive when I want to be.

All in all, I just want y'all to have fun! Me too! And, bowhunters or not, I believe we will.

Bad News: Campground Overrun by Hunters

(If you are receiving this in an email, it is because you signed up for a campground.)

BLM called me this morning, and we will no longer have the campground all to ourselves. They have decided to keep the campground open to the public through September 30th.  They have also decided, that yes, we do need to pay the campground fee for each site: $10, plus $5 additional vehicle. This also means that the following scenarios are possible:

A) Hunters indeed will drive out on Friday or may have been there all week using the campground as their home base and venison slaughter house.

B) No one will get their carefully selected (by me) campsite and instead will have to sleep in their car in the parking lot.

C) The dancing, etc. will have to cease and desist at 10pm.

D) The place will be deserted except for the campground host, and things will work out.

E) There will be fisticuffs over camp spots Friday night between our lot and the hunters.

F) There will be fisticuffs over camp spots Saturday night amongst ourselves.

G) All of the above.

I'm sorry to have to tell you, but the only guarantee that you will indeed get a place to camp would be to get out there and stay the night Friday. I'm not sure how my wedding committee will handle this. I know that BLM doesn't let you "hold" sites by purchasing them...but I also know that certain members on my wedding committee can be quite convincing and might be able to sweet-talk the campground host.

I will keep you posted on the outcome of this potential wedding disaster. Again, if you are thinking of camping and haven't told me yet, now would be a good time, because who knows, optimism may take the day and you may get exactly the spot you want.

All Quiet on the Western Front...

Garden's bounty

A little over a month before we say "I do" and whatever else we must legally say, and things are pretty quiet. Does this mean that all my incessant planning, list-making, and spreadsheet-devising has paid off? Or, is this simply the calm before the storm? At the back corner of my mind where the dust stacks up and spiders take residence, I feel that there are minor details hiding, waiting to be forgotten. Am I worried about these details? No, not really. I suppose things will either fall into place or they won't.

I am sure though that this calm will be short-lived as school starts up, and I realize how crazy it is to try and cook for 70+ people. At least I will have my trusted wedding committee help with all the food preparations and everything else that will need to bought, sewed, nailed, or painted. I'm anxiously watching my tomatoes grow hoping there will be enough to roast and make salsa. I also believe that I will actually have melons to contribute. That would be incredibly exciting. Let's just hope that our summer is a long one providing enough nourishing sun to our gardens, so that I might have a bounty like before (see above). I really hope to provide you all with local (really local in the case of my backyard) and organize food. We shall see.

A little reminder: please RSVP and/or tell me if you're camping. Thanks!

The Assemby Party Aftermath

Origami kitties and owls, of course!

Boy, if you missed the party, whew, you missed some serious fun! Myself and my wonderful helpers, Mom Jill, Aunt Vie, Mom Cheryl, and Friend Laura folded, cut, hole-punched, glued, and tied until our fingers bled. After the others left, I continued on in the origami struggle thinking thoughts of "why am I doing this again", and I came to the conclusion, "why not"...This morning I feel cloudy and slightly hungover...hungover from folding...my fingers ache as I type. It's all good fun. I promised those around me, especially Nathan, that I would reach the state termed as "wedding Zen" after the Assembly Party, and while I am a person who never, ever quite reaches Zen, this morning I feel pretty darn close. The tasks that are left seem less daunting to me now, and I finished a book last night, so that means I can start the one I will be teaching in September and start preparing my curriculum...which means that finally my hammock and I can have some special alone time in the warm afternoons. Ah, bliss. (Don't be jealous, I still have 101 things to do before I open the doors to 101+ 8th graders and still find time for wedding stuff.)

Thank you again to my most wonderful, most loving wedding elves. I am a lucky girl.