mommy says...

I really have nothing fun to talk about at the moment but my mother informed me today that I am falling behind on my blog posts.  That being said, hi!

I got the first half of the process to getting my name changed done today.  I'm pretty disappointed in the Kansas marriage license.  It is....ugly.  You see a lot of marriage certificates that actually resemble a "certificate" and not just a typed out application such as mine.  Unfortunately it will not be going on the wall anywhere; perhaps it will still go in the wedding scrapbook though.  Anyway, getting off track!  I got my driver's license taken care of and when it comes in the mail, I will be blessed to have proof that I'm a Lawson now officially!  PS-those signature things at the DMV...are horrible!  My license will be a sad display of my first time signing my name as Lawson on something official-like.

Tomorrow I intend to go find the Social Security office and take care of the second half!  I'm hoping that by the time I go back to work that I will be able to do paperwork with a new last name and represent the wife that I have become.  (no jokes please!)

Okay, maybe that will hold my mom over until next time.  Have a wonderful night!!!
-The Halfway Lawson

My top websites.

Every day when I open my laptop, I have to visit all of these websites before I can start doing what I originally sat down to do.  I have always been a procrastinator at her finest but who could ignore what the internet has to offer these days?!

1.  Facebook

I'm sure you're not surprised.  Who doesn't have a Facebook nowadays?  I am part of the generation that this was intended for.  Of course, since then it has found many different ages sitting in front of the computer screen (or phones!) obsessing about what they're reading about people they know.  I really got hooked on this website when I saw how "safe" it was to start out.  It gave so many options for privacy and I still like that.  I leave a tab open with Facebook all day long.  The chat option has really changed my life.  It's so much better than MSN or Yahoo in my opinion.

2.  StumbleUpon

This website takes care of all things random.  I only recently discovered it myself.  I'm sure I was a late arrival too because everyone else seemed to have already discovered it!  I have recently started giving myself a limit of 5 stumbles every time I visit the site so that I don't waste too much time there.

3.  Blogger

Of course you know what this one is.  I felt kind of silly posting a picture of the site on the site but...it's part of my blog today!  I get on here not only to think about posting but also to read all of the blogs that I follow.  I tend to follow the newlywed blogs and cooking blogs but I also follow a few of my friends' blogs too.  You get such great ideas from the creativity going on in blogs these days!

4.  Pinterest

I am also a new visitor this website as well.  I discovered it a little bit before my wedding and got a lot of great ideas from it!  They have hairstyles, decorating tips, fashion, food, and so much more.  There's a lot of creativity out there that helps me make up for my lack of it!

5.  YouTube

Naturally everybody else knows this website too.  I check it more now than I ever have because now it gives suggestions based on the things that I have already watched.  I have used it for hair tutorials, movie trailers, hmmm...what else?  Everything is on YouTube now.

Well, I realize that my websites are probably pretty similar to everyone else's and that anybody reading this will probably think that I'm a lame blogger.  Oh well, I was bored today!  Happy surfing!

a break from wedding posts

A. Age: almost 24

B. Bed size: queen, but I get less than that with my bed-hogging husband!

C. Chore that you hate: cleaning the bathroom

D. Dogs: well the ones that actually belong to Kyle and me are Legit and Caya

E. Essential start to your day: music!

F. Favorite color: orange

G. Gold or Silver: white gold or silver

H. Height: 5'2"

I. Instruments you play: well, I started with the piano, moved on to the violin, then to the flute, then to my voice along with failed attempts at learning guitar

J. Job title: Assistant teacher at Child Start

K. Kids: not for about three more years!

L. Live: Wichita, KS

M. Mother's name: Lois

N. Nicknames: hmm..i don't even know anymore!

O. Overnight hospital stays: not for me.

P. Pet peeve: bad customer service

Q. Quote from a movie: hmm..way too many!

R. Right or left handed: left

S. Siblings: a brother and sister-in-law!

T. Time you wake up: usually around 8 but when school is in session it's much earlier

U. Underwear: don't go anywhere without it!

V. Vegetable you hate: onions

W. What makes you run late: waking up late

X. X-Rays you've had: my teeth

Y. Yummy food that you make: hmm...mac n cheese?

Z. Zoo animal: monkeys!!!

our venue

We had both our ceremony and reception at a church camp in Arkansas City, KS (our hometown!)  It was called Camp Horizon.  We had originally chosen to have our ceremony at the church where I made my transition into Christianity and had already mapped it all out in our heads.  But then my brother broke the news to me that he had double-booked himself that day.  His best friends were also getting married and they needed him that day also.  So after some struggling to find a way to keep him from killing himself trying to do both weddings, I was laying in bed one morning and a great thought just kind of popped into my head!  I remembered this place where I had gone on a field trip in 8th grade.  This particular place had a really cool sidewalk out onto the edge of a cliff with an awesome overlook.  This place had a wooden cross at the end of it also.  I had to go see it again!  I knew to not get my hopes up because the last time I'd been there was...well, a LONG time ago, and it may not even look the same!  I called and set up a time to come out and look at it.

Look at this view!

This isn't my picture, but it's a gorgeous example of the site!

How could I NOT choose to get married on that cliff?  The camp was full of breathtaking views!

This is the view from the reception hall

This is the walkway headed out to the end of the cliff

Another one in front of the reception hall

The director offered us a great deal where we were able to use the cliff and the dining hall for our reception.  I was THRILLED.  We didn't decorate the ceremony site at all because God did enough of our decorating for us.  We spent the evening after the rehearsal decorating for the reception.

My wonderful dad hanging our lights!

Kyle helping one of the flower girls put pretty things on the tables

Carissa and Charla (bridesmaids) ironing the stubborn tablecloths!

Action shot! Dad, Mom, and Charla

Those are only a few of the pictures I found from that night.  We got so much done in a short period of time and had a blast doing it!  I had more help than what you see in these pictures too.  I just didn't find one of everybody..haha.  I can't wait to see the rest of the pictures so I can hopefully find a great end result to show you later!

wedding photo mania!

For those of you who know me, you know that I am a picture-taking fool!  I take pictures of everything with my dinky little Blackberry camera.  One of these days I plan to actually invest in a real camera so I won't miss opportunities like I did on the honeymoon.  But more on that later...

I had decided early on in Kyle's and my engagement that photography would probably be our most expensive investment in our wedding.  I was right.  But I think in the end it will be so worth it.  I haven't figured out how to do the fun tagging in my blog posts yet but I wanted to show you some of the work from my photographer, Amy, from Lola Jo Photo Design.  She did fabulous work on our day and I have only been able to see a handful of the ones she took.  Click here to view the the blog where she has posted all of our wedding day sneak peeks!  They also have a Facebook page if you search for them!  Enjoy...

bridesmaids revisited

Okay, my husband is begging for something to eat soon so I will have to be quick!

My bridesmaids were FANTASTIC!  The day of the wedding, I took three of my bridesmaids and my two flower girls with me to get our hair done.  We had some extra people come too (aka my mom, Taylor, and the flower girls' mom and brothers!)  It was a fun time, except for the fact that I had no voice!  Here are the results!

Everybody was helping me get everything done in a hurry so we could get done before the photographer showed up.  Here are all of my beautiful bridesmaids and then a picture of my adorable flower girls.

the long lost newlywed!

We are finally starting to get settled in!  I might have to start sharing our wedding and honeymoon excitement in different posts.  Two days before the wedding I went home sick from work.  I can't remember if I already posted something about that or not.  But two of the five WONDERFUL bridesmaids drove up that night to help me get everything ready.  We spent the evening tying bows and putting finishing touches on things.  On the day of the rehearsal, Carissa, Charla, and I drove up to Wichita to get our nails painted.  It was there that I was convinced to get fake nails because my already naturally long nails had seen better days after working with the kiddos all week.  My nails were awesome though and couldn't have been more perfect!  Zebra print is my favorite!

Anyway, one of my bridesmaids was my unofficial photographer and took fantastic pictures after our rehearsal while we were decorating the reception hall!  I have to find some of those before I can post them.  We did a lot of joyous dancing and laughing, while I was losing my voice of course!

I have plenty more to post about the wedding but my husband is now asking me if I'm about done so I will have to continue my wedding posts tomorrow.  We have internet now!!!

Love,

The Long Lost Newlywed