Wedding Photos coming soon!!!!

Question ....

Is it wrong to say "I love you"?

Have you ever told someone that you love them and they told you it made them feel uncomfortable?

A couple of weeks ago my mother and I went to the opera. While I was dropping her off I turned to give her a hug and said "I love you". Suddenly she stopped me and said that made her uncomfortable. She said that I say it so often it seems all for show. The younger generation uses that phrase so loosely and she thought that I was following suit. I felt that I got slapped in the face. My own mother just admitted that she doesn't know me at all. I don't say "I love you" to people without really meaning it. I say that to the people I care about the most.

Maybe the reason I say "I love you" so much is because I want to show my family that I love them even if we don't always get along. The history that I have with my family is not a "Leave it to Beaver" kind of story. There are a lot of hurt and mixed feelings, but I do love them and would do anything for them. I have given up a lot over the years for my family and put myself in a position where I was the caretaker and peacemaker ... even when I should have walked away. Sometimes it even made the gap between us even bigger. Even though most of the time I feel left behind and forgotten (or that I am the bad guy), I still say it because I believe it.  I keep hoping that they will say it back and I will have that moment of peace.

 So tell me, is it wrong to say "I love you" ... even when you know the meaning will be lost?

The Proposal

Her story:

I was in St Louis for my Aunt Lynn's 50th surprise party. Michael couldn't make it because of work. He called me that morning at 7am, which was odd. Lucky for him, I was already up watching WALLE with my baby cousin James. Michael just wanted to know how everything had gone the night before and what we were doing that day. Everything seemed normal. Little did I know. ;)

Later that day, we were all sitting around eating lunch when I saw my father leave in his car. I thought that was rather odd and asked everyone where he was going. They assumed he was going to get medicine because he hadn’t been feeling well. He was back in about 10 -15 min. He then informed us that he had forgotten his computer at the hotel. Uh Oh! “Kris, will you come with me? I’d like the company and I’m not feeling too well.” “Sure!” So we left. He then sent me inside.

When I opened the door to the room, I saw the bathroom door closing. I thought to myself, “No that can’t be right. I made that up. Let me check.” When I opened the door, someone pulled it shut. I jumped back about 2 feet. “Oh hell no! Someone is in here stealing my parents’ stuff. Should I confront them? They might be bigger than me. Should I run away? No I am gonna confront them… while I keep my hand on the front door just in case.” So I go to open the door and Michael jumps out from behind a wall yelling, “SURPRISE!!!” I screamed and jumped about 3 feet! I didn’t understand how he had gotten out of the bathroom. He told me he wanted to see me. I was so touched that he would drive all the way from Chicago just to see me for a few hours. “I have a card for you. Here read it.”

For My Soul Mate

If you ever wonder

How I feel about you...

Look in the mirror.

In your reflection you'll see...

The person I want to spend my whole life with,

The one I love more than words can say,

The one that makes me happy,

The one I want to grow old with.

So if you ever have any doubt about who makes my life complete,

Look into the mirror and you'll see.

I Love You...

Today and Always

Remember today, always.

I love you, I love you, I love you

~Michael

After I read the card, I thought “Is this it? No it can’t be. I know that he’s not ready to do this yet.” Michael then asked me to sit on the bed because he had something else to give me. Then he pulled out a ring box from one of the dresser drawers and got down on one knee. I started bawling.I couldn't believe it. I was so happy. He asked me with tears in his eyes,"You are the most important thing in the world to me. Will you marry me? ". Well Duh! Of course I said YES!!!!!! I was so happy. I wanted to know who else knew. He then called his sister Joy out who had been hiding in the bathroom. Apparently, I arrived too early and she had to hideout in there. LOL Michael told me the reason he was asking me now was because he knew everytime I saw him, he knew I was thinking "Is this it?" He wanted to surprise me. Also, he knew that I had always wanted to tell my family in person. So we went back to my Aunt's house and went in. I think everyone was really confused because I was crying and then they saw Michael. I found my Mom, held up my hand and said "We are getting married!" Everyone started to freak out and hug. My Aunt Lynn and Uncle Gerry broke out the champagne and grape juice for the kids. Dad even gave a toast. I started to cry again when he got tears in his eyes.

Michael could not have planned it better. He got me! It was perfect!

His story:

Coming soon

Apologizes ... Here's the scoop

I apologize for being away for a few days, but I had a very busy weekend. Let me break it down for you.

Thursday night
I got my hair done after work and then headed over to The Publick House to meet a bunch of friends for dinner. We were all celebrating Erin B getting a new job. :) Then we went around the tables and we each found something to be happy for. Most of us got the Mac and Cheese which was amazing as always. After dinner, some of us headed back to my place for a nightcap and then said our goodbyes. My mother called me, or I called her, I can't remember. I started to tell her I needed to be up by 4am in order to make it to this meeting in NH with my boss, which was an utter lie. You see, I was flying home to surprise her for her birthday and had to take a 7am flight. It astounds me that I could come up with a convincing fabrication while being a wee bit tipsy. lol After our chat, I only had 4 hours till I needed to be up again for my flight home to Chicago.

Friday
My mother was so sweet. She called to "wake me up for my meeting" at 4am. LOL I knew then that she had no idea what she was in for. Emre drove me to the airport, which was so nice of him, and I made it. I flew Jetblue for the first time. Let me tell you I felt like I was in first class! I had 42 Direct TV channels, Satellite Radio, leather seats, extra leg room and windows you could actually see out of. Jetblue is the new airline for me.
My father picked me up from the airport. He and I had been planning to surprise my mother for over a month. We had a great car ride home. We found my Mom in the kitchen on her laptop. I snuck up behind her and threw my arms around her. She had no idea and seemed to be happy I was home. She had thought everyone had forgotten her bday. Sadly, my sister thought that Friday was the day we were doing something and didn't really go out with my Mom on Thursday,making her feel like no one cared. lol Little did she know.
I finally got to meet our new family dog, Sally. She is adorable but still very timid. If you would like to read about her story and Clouseau's, check out my Mom's blog. I spent most of the day trying to get her to be comfortable with me and then ran errands with my Mom and sister. We went to a high end furniture store so my sister could steal a catologue for her interior design class. My mother had me say that I was thinking about moving back from Boston (which is true) and needed new furniture. The icing on the cake was my sister saying, "And she is probably going to be engaged soon too!" Thanks Megan. Sheeh. lol So we got the catalogue and did a few other things.
Later that night, Michael met up with us for sushi. (He has stopped by after school to give me a kiss. :D I love that man.) Mom loves sushi and it was cheaper than going out to a fancy restaurant. We had a lovely meal and then went home to play games. Mind you I had had maybe 3-4 hours sleep, so I wasn't very helpful to my partner. lol

Saturday
I spent the entire day running around with my friend Becky to get ready for Katie's surprise Bachelorette Party. (Becky and Katie have been my friends since 1st grade. I am very lucky to have them.) It was so hard getting Katie to come out because she has been swamped with moving and wedding planning but we did it! We opened gifts at Becky's new town home (which is beautiful) and had snacks. Then, we went to dinner and country line dancing at the Cadillac Ranch. How many of you know how to country line dance? I don't. lol It was fun but I was very intimidated and did not get on the dance floor as much as I should have. However, I have decided to learn some moves for the wedding to surprise Katie.

Sunday
I went to brunch at Mint Julep Bistro with the family. This place is soooooo good and cheap. I think it will be a new hangout spot for me when I move home. After brunch, my good friend Isabelle came over to hang out and meet the dogs. Then we went to Michael's new apt and hung out for a bit.

Monday
I went to lunch and ran around with my Mom, said goodbye to Michael and took a plane home.


I did so much but still didn't get to do everything. I think my heart is leaning more and more to moving back home to Chicago.

Happy Birthday MOM

This is our song.

I love my family!!!

I was talking with my Aunt Leaann today about how things are going at home. She shared this little conversation she had last night with my 4 year old cousin James.

James: Mommy. Do you ever get the feeling that I sneak into the kitchen, get a cookie and go upstairs?

Leaann: Yes, like every night. (laughs)

James: Do you have that feeling now?

Got to love kids! LOL