Wednesday Morning Date: Part I

At the beginning of every season, I make a list of things I want to do (for example, "Things to Do This Fall"). I have actually gotten more done this year than I thought, but one thing I have wanted to do every year, and I never got to, is go to the pumpkin patch, particularly this place in Weston, Missouri called the "Big Red Barn". This week is the last week it is open as Halloween is on Friday, so Sean and I decided to get up early and visit. 

 The Big Red Barn is a popular venue for 'rustic' country weddings and field trips (there were two kindergarten classes visiting while we were there). The farm itself is owned by a family whose home actually resides as part of the farm scenery. In the summertime and part of the fall, you can even go and pick their apples and blackberries, and with a small fee they provide hay rides as well as animals you can pet and interact with. The whole estate sits high and overlooks the rolling hills and the surrounding area. Sean and I both agreed during our visit today that if ever we were to own land and build a house in the Kansas City area, it would definitely be around Weston/Leavenworth.
Below is a picture of their blackberry vines and the view. The best thing about this view is obviously the amazing colors. There is a peacefulness about being up there and looking out. I imagined that we had a home that we built on that hill or another like it but taller. And I imagined that the house had a large, wrap-around porch that we could sit out in the cold, early mornings and drink our tea and coffee as we looked out at the valleys and hills below. Maybe one day we will.

The Big Red Barn sells many homemade 'country' items like flavored honey, candies, jams, salsas, and soap. It's always fun to look at those kinds of things. I found this soap they had and it was called Cinnamon Apple Crisp. It smelled delightful and I thought about the happiness of smelling like a pie.

 Sean was quite excited to see the chickens. We've decided that someday when we put our roots somewhere, we'd like to have chickens and a large garden and all that. Perhaps even raise Angora rabbits. But the idea of having chickens is something that delights him most. He pointed out their cuteness and their varying colors and sizes. Who would have thought that he cared at all about chickens?

 They had a great variety of pumpkins and some of them were just bizarre and amazing. My favorite one was the brown, bulbous, moldy-looking one. It reminds me of Elephant Man, isn't that terrible?

 So this was bizarre and enchanting: A tree with pacifiers strung on its branches. For some reason, the mind automatically wanders to, "But where are the babies?!" The only explanation I can think of is that the owners have children and grandchildren and as they've outgrown their pacifiers, they've hung them in this tree to signify...something along the lines of being proud...? That's the only story I've come up with to make it seem less weird. So, y' know...just think about that.

This is just part one to our morning date because honestly, Sean and I only stayed at the Big Red Barn for thirty minutes or so before heading to Leavenworth to look around and have lunch. So look out for that post tomorrow! 

Lately

Settling into married life has been pretty easy, believe it or not. Everything has felt pretty normal for the most part and Sean and I have transitioned into daily life again very well since the wedding. I don't have much to post about right now, so I just wanted to share some photos of some things that we've been up to these past two weeks.  

Of course I got sick immediately after the wedding, so Sean made us soup and grilled cheese for dinner one night. It was actually really yummy since he used different cheeses and made red pepper tomato soup. 

The evidence of fall is all around us here. I love the trees in our neighborhood! They're so colorful and happy; I've never seen such colorful leaves before! I point them out to Sean when I see them. He must get annoyed, but I can't help it.

I've taken a liking to Starbucks' Salted Caramel Mocha and since they're kind of expensive, I've started making my own thing. I even bought some pumpkin pie spice to sprinkle on top.

My disposable camera photos were developed yesterday. These are some a couple of my favorites.

Sean and I went with friends to the Renaissance Festival and it rained the entire time, as you can see from the mud. It was still fun though. Lots of food!

I got my new glasses today! I was kind of worried that no one would like them except for me, but everyone has been super positive about them. I think they make me look 'trendy'. Ha

My brother and I are great buds!

And here is Milo just chillin' on our new rug. He's such a babe.

Our Wedding Part Three: The Photos and Attire

Hi, everyone! This last post about our wedding is focused on our photos and what I wore! I hope you like them and if you're interested, check out the places I got my clothes and accessories! Enjoy!

(My husband is so attractive, not gonna lie.)
Okay, so I made Sean's boutonniere out of my leftover bouquet pieces and twine. It was super easy and as long as you have a flower and maybe some accent pieces (like the leaf I put in the back) and some twine or other material and a hot glue gun, you'll be golden. Just be creative!

My dress came from an Etsy store called L'Amei. She's from Canada and she handmakes all of her dresses. My was absolutely perfect and I received so many compliments from people.
Check her store out here for similar vintage/unique wedding dresses!

My necklace and pin were given to me by my grandmother. They came from my great-great-grandmother's jewelry box and I got to hand pick them.

My flowers were fake and I am glad because it allowed me to choose the colors and flowers I wanted despite whether or not they were in season. I bought mine from Hobby Lobby and used burlap and lace ribbon to tie them together.

Lastly, my shoes were from Modcloth and you can find them here.
They were really comfy and I honestly had no problems at all with them. They come with two different kinds of laces so you can choose and they can easily be worn with other outfits later on.

Our Wedding Part Two: The Ceremony

Hi, guys! Here are some more photos about our wedding! This installment focuses on our ceremony.

Sean and I said goodbye to each other on Thursday morning as we each went to stay with our own families for the days leading up to the wedding. We would talk here and there but we didn't see each other again until I was literally walking down the aisle.

As I mentioned, the wedding was very DIY so my family and I spent our days getting things done. By Saturday, we still had a lot to do and because the ceremony didn't actually start until 4 in the afternoon, all day it felt like the wedding wasn't even going to happen! I kept saying to everyone that it felt like "the wedding is tomorrow." But it wasn't so by the time 2 o'clock rolled around and I started getting ready, it just seemed like I couldn't get my mind to understand what was happening.

I was very nervous. Not at all about the whole marrying Sean part. I was really nervous about how everything was going to go, so I was drinking a lot of water and trying to remember to breathe and not throw up. It didn't help that it literally felt like one moment they were saying I had two hours and the next moment I had ten minutes.The whole thing went by very quickly. 

I kept asking, "Is Sean out there?" so that I could safely talk to people. But that door was opened and closed so often from people coming in and out that it probably would've made more sense to just keep it open the whole time!

This is my beautiful younger/prettier sister/maid-of-honor. I was pretty composed until they told me I had five minutes and then this girl came and started crying and then of course I started crying. 

It was a hot mess. 

This my younger/28-year-old-looking brother (he's actually 17...I know, right?). He walked me down the aisle and I am so happy and grateful that he did. I'm pretty lucky to have had both my siblings be with me during my ceremony!

Here is Sean's first look! As you can see, he was very nervous, but very happy. I remember the moment he saw me I kind of suddenly came to this realization that, "Oh my god...this is actually happening right now...How did this happen?! When did I get here?!" It wasn't scary, it was just startling and happy, if that makes sense? 

I imagine that that is how it felt to be Lucy on 50 First Dates when she wakes up at the end and finds out that she's on a boat in Alaska with her husband and daughter and her whole family is there. The whole experience was just surreal.

Oh, that guy with the book...that's my dad! And he married us! Once again, I am so thankful to have had my family be part of the ceremony!

This is what happened as soon as I got up there. We hadn't seen each other since Thursday morning and not only that but I think we both kind of had the same thought that we couldn't believe what was happening. I don't think much could have prepared me to go through how startling and emotional the whole ceremony was. 

We wrote our own vows and even though I had read them before he wrote them, I still enjoyed hearing them again. Sean is such a beautiful writer. His were very poetic whereas mine were very straight-forward and specific.

"You may kiss your bride!" 

Check back tomorrow for some more details on our wedding!