in the words of billy joel....

I'M MOVIN' OUT!!!  at least half-way for now. 
paul and i have officially signed the lease in our new apartment.  we spent the entirety of this past weekend hauling washing machines, pull-out couches and solid maple out of Undergrad Land and up a flight of stairs to our first lil' love nest.  it's a glorious apartment in the most lovely pocket of dayton we never knew existed until two short months ago.  we're nestled amongst the trees between a city park and a narrow strip of sky-high greenery.  so lovely.  and across the street (literally) is fraze pavillion, a popular summer concert venue.  we simply open our windows and enjoy the live music several evenings a week...it doesn't get any better than that, ladies and...well, more ladies (no gents read this!)  and then inside - what a treat!  lofted ceilings, a wood-burning fire place, walls of windows and (joy of joys!) no upstairs windows!  i slept without ear plugs this past saturday night for the first time in MONTHS! to my ear canal's sheer delight.  i officially complete my move on july 8th, the day paul leaves for spokane.  we've waited this long to live together...and with a 3-day vacay this weekend, what's a few more days?

we're voyaging north this weekend to the land of hockey, maple syrup and mounties to spend the holiday with paul's relatives.  not only are we celebrating the 4th, but also canada day on the 1st.  ahh, the advantages of marrying canadian....new holidays!  how i love them so.  any excuse to gather with family is glorious, even though it's not legal quite yet :)

only 20 more days!  *sigh*...i am so blessed.

photographer, take 2

hello from the wee-sma's.  sleep has become my illusive friend once again, c'est la vie.  if you can't sleep, blog.

today is day 26. 
day 27 was a doozie.
my mom met with a florist (rosauers!) and we ordered flowers, i gave the caterer our final head count, we ordered wine from the venue, we solidified the bartender and i went back and forth with about 12 photographers within 24 hours.  wait...what?

the photographer that we'd had lined up for months informed us on saturday that she would not be able to shoot our wedding.  so the majority of this weekend my fingers were flying, contacting potential replacements.  we found a ton of skill avaliable (*note* if you plan on selecting your photographer within a month, get married on a sunday) but very zero with the same skill in our price range.  some actually wanted triple what we'd agreed to spend.  however, i believe we've found the one for us.  check out eugene michel on applebrides.com - gorgeous stuff.  he's sending the contract over today, upon which i will immediately pounce.  so the hope for day 26 - find a photographer!

i was struck today by how close it's getting.  wow.  it's been so easy and always seemed so far off, but now it's practically here.  we're nearing the threshold of our new life together, and it feels like for the first time, i'm close enough to see the wood grain on the door frame, the smooth stones on the steps, and the light streaming out from within. 

i can't wait to spend my life with paul.  and i can't wait to celebrate its commencement with you :)