Fleur de Aleta

For Christmas, I bought Greg a smoker. He loves smoked meat. I can't wait until he smokes fish. In the picture, behind Greg is a "tulip tree" (my description), other's know it as the Japanese Magnolia. During the majority of the year, it only has green leaves. Once the first frost comes, the leaves fall and we see the lovely lavender blooms! It's refreshing to see the colors during the colder months. I also wanted to share a wedding gift we received from my Mom's cousin. Here's the story that came with the vase: Usually a week or two before they are married by a Catholic priest, the future husband's parents make the Wedding Vase. When the Vase has been made, the Husband, along with his parents and all his relatives go to the bride's house. The bride brings out everything she will need to establish their new home together; clothing, utensils, mattress, moccasins, corn and any other homemaking essentials including her white manta wedding dress. The p

"So, how's married life?" Surprisingly, we've only had a handful of those questions. I guess most people can see it in our eyes and it answers the question before it's asked. Soon after our return from North Carolina, our home turned into After Wedding Station with gifts and flowers and wedding arches and table cloths and... well, all the things from the wedding. (Speaking of gifts, of all the ones at my parents' home, only one sender is"unknown." The gift actually had a card attached to it, but no name on the card! The gift ~ pretty wall sconces. We're hoping our parents will ask around, because I'd like to send out a Thank You card.) Boxes were everywhere at our home, not to mention our suitcases still needed to be unpacked and the laundry was waiting. Oh, the joys of married life. What we didn't count on was a phone call to our home at 3am the week we returned. It was the alarm company, calling to let me know that the fire detector w

Honeymoon Journal We arrived to cool, crisp air of Charlotte, North Carolina for our honeymoon. (And no, our plane didn’t land in a river!) After we picked up the rental car, Greg unpacked his GPS and we headed out to Asheville. (Having the GPS was a great idea, though from time to time it wondered if we were frolicking in the fields instead of driving on a road!) The town has a quaint feeling, focused around the Biltmore Estates, which is indeed a fact, because the "village" was built in order to build the Biltmore Estates. (The name coming from "Vanderbilt "bilt" and "moor" - meaning rolling hills). As we arrived early, the bellmen took our luggage and vehicle to wait until our room was prepared and ready for us. We toured around the Inn, which was very ornate. It matched the ambiance of the Biltmore House. A lady was playing the flute, classical music greeted us. The lobby was huge with countless comfortable chairs, tables, books, floral arrangemen

Wedding Journal Lesterisms Metairie Cemetery Snippets Part 1 of 4 Snippets Part 2 of 4 Snippets Part 3 of 4 Snippets Part 4 of 4 Interview with Mom Dove Porn

This is going to be a lengthy post. I thought I'd share my wedding journal with you. Hope you enjoy! Wedding Summary: Sinus Headaches, Itchy Skin, Wax Spills, Rain ~ it was perfect and I wouldn’t change a thing! January 1, 2009 This is the date that I’ll start with for our Wedding journal entry. The morning of the New Year, Greg and I went to Café Latte Da. It was Greg’s idea ~ how romantic to go there, the place of our first date and the place where he proposed . To be there ~ First day of the New Year for when we are to be married. It felt right. We were given congratulations and smiles from the staff at the café; they knew our engagement story and asked about our plans. When we came home, I received an email stating I was awarded “Poet of the Month” by a website I regard as my muse’s home. Greg was as happy for me, if not more so than I was. He beamed with pride and made me feel wonderful. That afternoon, Greg and I went to his parents’ home to celebrate the New Year with a lunc

Soo... question... Bachelor Parties ~ What is your take on this?