The Bucket List

I'd never really thought about making a list of things to do before I die until I saw previews for the movie The Bucket List (a film now on Nick's and my list of movies to see).




I think for most of the last ten years my only goal was to finish my story--at the time, The StarLion and The Golden Horse. I knew with assurance that I would not die until that was done. Besides, I'm not really that concerned about dying (free trip to heaven to see Jesus!) so I didn't think about it.



My Senior year of College I made a list of goals for the future. Most of them were personal goals rather than "things to do while I'm alive"--stuff like, "Finish Godsend" or "own a horse" or "have a writer circle"--though there were a few more interesting things like "learn to vault," "ride a camel" and "kiss in the rain."



Then I married Nick.



I married into an amazing bucket list. I don't even know what's on it, but with my boy's taste for adventure I know we're in for a very exciting life. We haven't even been married 6 months yet and we've already checked several things off his list--things I hadn't thought of putting on a list but realized that I'd kind of always wanted to do too.



Like "Go to Venice" "See the Pyramids" "Stay in a lighthouse" and "dance on the rooftops." Oh--and we rode camels! (And...kissed in the rain...not while riding camels)



Now that the idea is on my radar, I want to write down my desires--most of them I forget that I have (like, "learn to mount a moving horse") but I have actually had for a long time. I think it will make me pursue them, and it will make me much more aware when blessings come to pass.



I suppose if I had a New Years Resolution it would be to change the way I look at life-for the rest of my life. If I have something I deeply desire, pursue it. Duh. Life is much more satisfying if you pursue your God-given desires. He's not stupid, and He's much more fun than people give Him credit. (This is not to say He's not a serious individual--but "serious" and "fun" are not mutually exclusive. A fact which much of humanity has forgets, even if they live it.)



Do you have a bucket list?
 
-The Lady

Home

Enough Abroad.  We got home at the end of December, side stepping between the massive snowstorms in Europe and the massive snow storm that shut down 3 of the 4 major international airports on the Atlantic corridor.
Not only did we get home, but turned around and flew out again to visit our family in New England. We even survived delay upon delay at the airports.

We had an all too short weekend with them before coming back and going to work again on Monday morning.

January has been a mercifully quiet month, and a good one.  I'm sorry to see it go.  We consecutive weekends at home; I'm tackling the "homemaking" thing by the knees; we're actually starting to hang things on the walls; I've even made clever curtains for our living room;

$4 flat sheets from Wal-Mart+seam ripper+curtain rod= rod pocket curtains

and I'm starting to gather military intelligence on food shopping.  It's ridiculously dizzying.  In our town we are just a couple miles from 5 major grocery chains, plus Super Target.  There are definitely different "nerd" levels of food shopping.  Fortunately for me, I have several newlywed friends who have been married longer than I have, so I spend more time playing detective (i.e. asking questions) than poring over sale circulars on a weekly basis to learn the prices common to different stores.  I also got the brilliant idea to start marking the recipes in my many cookbooks that I've already tried.  Along with a sticky note that says what I did differently--and I'm sure there will also be notes on the ones which we will never do again. (I was also blessed with a Betty Crocker cookbook, from which I gleaned an amazing peanut chicken recipe, which I will keep forever)

I have a small collection of cookbooks sitting on a little shelf above my counter: most were gifts or hand-me-downs, and one I bought from a local thrift store because it was "New England Heritage" and had a recipe for dandelions in it.  Nothing says New England quite like dandelions. You just have to be really careful to eat the ones that haven't been poisoned six times already.

We're settling in to a routine, it's amazing how different routines are when you aren't prepping for a wedding or a major overseas trip. We even hang out with our friends from time to time, now!
Now...to build a snow man on the deck before all the snow melts...
-The Lady
<-taking shape: the current centerpiece on our dinnertable: mango wood bowl with cape cod pine cones, pheasant and peacock feathers and a tablecloth from Nigeria.

On the first day of Christmas . . .

. . . it only happens for the first time once, so better do it right.


I decided to take the classic approach to our first Christmas - start the celebration in the days leading up to Christmas!

but you can forget the swans and leaping lords, because I'm not bringing her throngs of elaborate gifts.


I'm taking her to the gifts.



That's right. In four days, we will be looking at this:


where I hope to pick up a couple of these:

the next day, we will be dining here:

to be followed by trips here:

and here:

Please, hold on to your jealousy. Besides the fact that jealousy is downright unbecoming, I'm not finished yet.


we may even find ourselves one of these:

before we go do some of this:


and check out purchase options for something here:

we may even stop and think of y'all while looking down at this.

. . . maybe.

although you really have a better chance of that happening here:

or even here:

heh. had you going there didn't I? you really thought I'd be thinking of something other than taking in all the grandeur with her?


okay, okay. . . maybe I can put in a good word for you when I see him:

otherwise, I'm prolly going to be a bit distracted by managing my gifts.

actually, come to think of it there could also be some french hens involved after all . . .

- The Knight

(by the way. . . you can feel free to be jealous now.)

One Month of Wedded Wisdom. . . a month late

(at least the PG-ish version):

1. There is no “poof!” at the wedding. I’m still me. She is still she.
2. For the first week or so, “exhausted” is pretty much a constant state now that the planning is over.
3. Always wear your ring. Sometimes you need it to remind yourself that you are not dreaming— it actually did happen
4. October is the best month for weddings. Period.
5. Want to start off your marriage with bushels of brownie points? Grill steak on your honeymoon. Extra points if done from the middle of the ocean.
6. Always kiss your wife goodnight and goodbye.
7. Windy New England days are cold, but they make for incredible wedding pictures.
8. raWr.
9. Being greeted at the door by your wife almost makes it worth being gone at work all day.
10. Tie racks can hold all manner of interesting things.
11. Moonlit walks are inherently better with a wife rather than a fiancée.
12. There are girls who can cook, and there are girls who can cook.
13. Corn mazes are fun dates.
14. Motivation for getting out of bed for a 2-hour commute: hard. Getting up when it is cold outside: harder still. Getting up in the cold and leaving wife: you gotta be kidding me!
15. Don’t forget to ask for stories—you weren’t the only person at the wedding.
16. Employee benefits should include bonuses wedding/honeymoon leave.
17. The honeymoon is not the best time to “be brave” and experiment with foods you both historically have disliked just because you are in the area where they harvest it fresh.
18. Putting outings with the wife on hold to work on school stinks. Having a wife who takes those opportunities to make yummy goodness is bliss.
19. RaWr.
20. A lifetime together is too short.
21. Just because you live together that doesn’t mean you now suddenly have all kinds of time to be together – you still need to set time aside to spend together.
22. It is actually possible to get tired of spending free money.
23. Three words: cold. feet.
24. Life gets fast very quickly. Make time to remember these moments.
25. There really are monsters in your closet.
26. #8 + #19 = *whistles*
27. There is no such thing as “hers” and “his.” At best there is “hers” and “ours.”
28. When in doubt, kiss her.
29. I have the bestest. girl. Ever.
30. True happiness doesn’t go stale.

- The Knight

Christmas, presents, and us

It's December 5th. I was not prepared for this.

I knew I was focused on wedding planning, but this wasn't something anyone warned me about. (Though, in all fairness, what are they going to say: "By the way, getting married this late in the year, you are going to totally get mugged by the holiday season. Might want to buy some mace"?)

It's Christmastime and I think for the first time in my life I am not mentally prepared.

The week before Thanksgiving both of our mothers asked us for Christmas ideas.

Christmas ideas? We just got a whole lot of presents. I mean, I love presents, I'm even on top of the thank you notes and just have 4 or 5 left. We also just bought a whole lot of stuff. I'm literally tired of spending money. (Not that I don't want more stuff...)

The funny thing is that ordinarily by the time Mom asks I've already made a list (partly because I keep a list of things I want...just for my own reference...and because I adore making lists) but this time my brain fizzed. List?

I recovered quickly.

It was the "family gifts" that presented a bit more of a problem. The registry was a fall back, but both of us were trying to think of things outside the registry scope. I figured there were still things around the house we wanted--though some of those you just can't ask for because you really have to pick them out yourselves...

Zorro was not enthused by the prospect of more housewares. There is a limit to the excitement a guy can get from home decor and supplies.

Naturally his ideas for fun gifts tended toward games and movies.

This was understandable, and not entirely unexpected (I did, after all, grow up with brothers, and have known this particular boy several years). It did present us with an amusing dichotomy of his and hers (with almost no [giftable] overlap) as we brainstormed for ideas (weeks after they were initially requested).

It's tough to think of Christmas gift ideas when you just bought more stuff in a month than you've ever dreamed of buying in that time period. There is nothing critical--at least not anything you'd want to get for Christmas--and other good first Christmas "fun" gifts we'd already gotten with wedding money. Perhaps that was an oversight on our part.

We did think of a few things. Eventually (and really, they are all good ideas).

Now it's time to turn my mind to Christmas shopping. Venice, here I come!