Life Update in Numbered List Formation

My life has been pretty crazy lately and I thought I at least should do a quick update.

1. I am getting married in, like, a month. I basically hyperventilate every time I think about it. It\’s a big deal. A HUGE deal. Probably the single most influential decision of my life that will solely determine my happiness until I die. That is a ton of pressure. Too much pressure for a girl like me. It doesn\’t even feel real. Is it weird that all of a sudden I am loving spreading out on my full bed and wanting to watch HGTV while going to sleep and being very aware of how much I love the little \”being single\” perks (even though I\’m not actually single). What will I do when I can no longer plop my head in the valley of the pillows and curl up in all the blankets by myself? How will I survive?! I only have one month to enjoy these little things, like having my maiden name. Can you tell I\’m a little freaked out?

2. Evan and I signed a lease for an apartment. We are supposed to get the keys tomorrow. It\’s way far south Austin and it\’s very new (built in 2008) with all new appliances. It\’s a little small (especially for our humongous sectional), but it felt the most us. It\’s on the third floor so there\’s more sunlight and no one is above us (pros), but it\’s on the third floor, so moving and grocery shopping will be a pain. It overlooks a dog park, so even though we don\’t\’ have a dog yet, I can at least look out over our balcony and watch them play.  Maybe we can get our apartment nice and ready in time for the wedding and then finally, FINALLY, we can host a game night or a LifeGroup meeting.

3. That means I am going to not live with my entire family soon, which is both exciting (Yay! Space! Privacy! Control over my environment!) and sad (No! Boredom! Lack of Human Interaction! No more impromptu Civ III parties!) I\’m not sure how it will affect me. I\’ve lived away from my parents before, but this will be the first time I\’m doing it with my own money. Like a real adult!

4. Speaking of money, well maybe we just shouldn\’t. Evan and I are officially going to have to go on a budget. His student loans seriously stress me out. They\’re big and scary. Like a monster living under my bed that waits until we want to do something cool and fun before he needs to eat. So we will give up our carefree way of life to satiate the being and man does he like to eat. I know we will be ok, eventually, but since Evan doesn\’t have a job, all we have to go off right now is my paycheck. Bottom line: Evan really needs to find a job (preferably in Austin because we literally just signed a lease and that would be a huge mess), so if anyone has some leads, help a sister out. Please?

5. I have a new niece! Anna Victoria (Annie for short) was born December 10 and I have to say she is pretty darn adorable. It nearly makes me want to have a baby (and then I remember what having a child actually entails and I am back to square one). Evan and I were lucky enough to see her the day she was born.

6. Evan graduated! *Cheers for the stadium* Thank the Lord. He is done* with school. I am literally marrying a rocket scientist. Come on job offers!

* Done is a bit of an overstatement  Technically he has a final (which they do after the graduation ceremony, go figure) so he will be done on Tuesday officially.

7. We went to the marriage preparation weekend. All in all, it was a really great weekend and I think we got a lot closer as a couple. We kind of got into a thing during the finances topic, which probably has to do with the fact that I will be in debt for the first time ever in my life and that, as a six, does a number on my nerves. Side note: We got 0 discussion time after the financial conversation. We went right to lunch (with everyone) and then to NFP). I was a little upset about the whole financial conversation and it would have been extremely helpful to have a discussion about that at the time. As it was, I basically sat in irritation for 2 hours before we could talk about it, which doesn\’t work well for me. In fact, the next \”couple\” time we had\” we couldn\’t do anything we were supposed to do because we were still hyped up about how to handle our finances. So other than that conversation, it went well. Especially after the retreat. We went to Hula Hut and then Mozarts and went through that entire freaking workbook together. All of it. For 3 hours, just the two of us with no one to interfere. It was really nice. Plus, we got to see the Christmas lights show they do at Mozarts.

8. Yesterday, Evan and I went and did a lot of our Christmas shopping. We were really productive. I was proud of us. We are almost done. Afterwards we came home and Evan wrapped the gifts and I sang Christmas carols while dancing around the living room. He is a much better wrapper than me. Believe me. My caroling is really doing everyone a favor as far as beautifully wrapped gifts are concerned.

9. I LOVE Once Upon a Time (that show about fairy tales on ABC). I didn\’t watch it until it already started the second season, but my sister said it was good and she has introduced me to several TV shows (Chuck, 30 Rock), so I trust her opinion. It is SOOO good. I stayed up until 4 am one weekend watching it, which is unheard of for me nowadays. I want it to come back. My favorite characters are Rumpelstiltskin and Belle. They are very interesting together. Also, the actor that plays Rumpelstiltskin is amazing. I think he is the best actor on that show by far. Very versatile.

10. Christmas is almost here. One more week of work until I get a week-long break. Fall is my busy season what with salary surveys and whatnot, but hopefully I can knock out most everything this weekend and start fresh in January. I cherish my time off so much more now than I ever thought I would or could when I was in school. It\’s been fun getting into the Christmas spirit. So far my family and I have watched the Christmas Carol Musical (with Kelsey Grammar) and We\’re No Angels. It\’s been so holiday-y around here. It probably has to do with the presence of Mackenzie. Children make everything more magical.

I think that sums up most everything that has been happening with me lately. What have you been up to?