quatro giorno

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Ciao Americanos!

Life is good in Italia!

…Other than the fact that I am running on absolutely no sleep.

I don’t think I’ve fully adjusted to the time change yet because I’m hungry and sleepy at all the wrong times. I haven’t been able to sleep since I got here! Even after all the Melatonin I’ve popped, I still lay in bed and toss and turn for a couple hours, sleep for maybe two hours, and then wake up and toss and turn again. I’ve gotten out of bed every day at like 6 am and just killed time by working out. This morning I laid in bed wide awake for an hour or two before I couldn’t take it anymore and I got up and ran the 7 flights of stairs 5 times. Or, I’ll go out on our huge top-level deck and watch the sunrise and the locals set up their shops while I “make contact elbow-thigh” from knowing Ab-Ripper by heart! It’s nice to have that time and motivation to work-out, but it catches up with me when we’re walking around Rome for hours in the blazing heat. I sweat all I do is yawn and take pictures! I always have intentions of going straight to bed after dinner, but plans like a walk to the Vatican or Gelato at the Trevi Fountain always seem to sound a little more appealing.

Today wasn’t quite as overwhelming as yesterday. We went to a huge museum at the Capital Line with about a bazillion sculptures and paintings. I have a feeling that is the first of many! It is incredible to think that each and every one of those sculptures was carefully chiseled into the detailed piece of work we still see today, hundreds of years later. These sculptures are MASSIVE! And there is so much detail in their wrinkles, hair, eyes, and expressions. I can’t believe how beautiful they are and how long they have lasted. I’ve never been an appreciator of art and I will probably never have a passion for it, but being here even has me in awe at these works of art. Paintings, not so much. Architecture… Eh. It’s the sculptures that really fascinate me! Maybe because 97% of them are naked men…? Haha! We’ll never know! Either way, I’ve been surprised at how interested I am in them. Hopefully it lasts through the next 27 days’ worth of identical statues!

We saw the Theatre of Marcellus, the Temple of Hercules Victor, and the Temple of Fortuna. We learned about the difference Greek architecture and Etruscan architecture.

We also went to the Pantheon today. I’m such an idiot… Everyone kept talking about it like it was the Eifel Tower, so I felt like the only person in the world who had no idea what the Pantheon was. I didn’t dare ask any questions. The adrenaline and excitement of everyone else was really contagious and really built up this building. Walking there, I was on pins and needles (no, but really… my feet were in so much pain!) anticipating seeing this building that everyone was so excited to see! We got there and it was cool, but not that cool. It’s absolutely ginormous. It’s a huge dome with a cut-out window in the top so the only light is the natural light spilling in through the hole. It really was pretty. And the architecture was incredible. To me, it just wasn’t chill worthy. BUT, since apparently it’s a hot commodity around here, I’m just excited to be able to say I went there. Regardless of how little it moved me!

Steve (our instructor) took us out to lunch today. I’ve been waiting all week to get that big bang moment and fall passionately in love with authentic Italian food. So far, not impressed. We eat breakfast and dinner at the hotel every night… It’s edible, which I’m delighted about, it’s just not the love affair I was expecting! But eating out at a real little Italian café proved to me there is still some good in the world and authentic Italian food really is to die for! It was like swallowing Christmas! Or chewing Disneyland. That’s how good it was! I was purely infatuated with that ham and cheese Calzone. I was finally convinced of the EAT Julia Roberts put in Eat, Pray, Love. For a while, I was having doubts.

Everyone here smokes. Everyone. We walk down the streets and see little kids puffin’ cigs! As young as 10 or 11 years old. It breaks my heart. It’s seriously worse than any trip I’ve ever taken to Vegas. The air here is toxic from everyone’s second hand smoke. And it seems like they do whatever they can to blow it all right in your face. I may have cancer when I come home!

Ps, I checked my grades and I got straight A’s!!! I honestly have NO IDEA how I pulled that one off. It had to of been an act of God, because I was prepared for the worst in my physical science class. That final raped me and I thought it would have for sure tampered with my perfectly hand-crafted 4.0 Associated Degree!!! But I am absolutely delighted to inform you all that miracles really do happen and I am graduating this semester at the top of Dean’s list! :)

All I can say is:

I’M EXHAUSTED!!!

Haha, kidding. I really am, but I only said that because I haven’t said it once this email and I didn’t know if you’d recognize me without it.

Really, tho, all I can say is:

Everything here is beautiful. Even if it’s found in the little old Italian woman playing the accordion on the corner, the shattered cement of an ancient building, a thin-crust pizza at a corner café, or a conversation between old Italian men in fancy suits… Everything I’ve seen here has earned a second glance. It’s all breathtaking and unique and spectacular.

I am drowning in luck and gratitude. I can’t believe I’m living in this opportunity.

Thank you for loving me, believing in me, and always encouraging me to take risks. This risk is unforgettable.

Hopefully my emails do something, however small, to bring Italy to life for you.

I wish you all were here.

Lots of love,

Wit

giorne tre

Friday, May 6, 2011

Oh my GOSH!

Parts of my body I never knew existed ache.

Corners of my mind I never knew I had are overwhelmed.

I had no idea what I was capable of until I came on this trip! A study abroad in Italy sounds easy, right? Right! Or else I wouldn’t have come! :)

Of all the things I’ve done in my life, challenging both physically and mentally, I have never known my limits to stretch as far as they have in the last few days.

I AM EXHAUSTED!!!

Have I said that before?? Haha!

I’m just counting on memory to convince me that I have legs and feet, because right now they are so numb that it’s just a matter of time until I start feeling phantom-limb-pains.

My mind is a Glad-bag that has been stretched to fill every last free space with something I’ve never known or cared about before. Some may call it trash, some may call it treasure… whatever it is, it’s a whole lot of facts, dates, names, and history. So much that I’m practically spewing out Early Roman word-vomit.

We were out on the town from 8 until 4 today.

We had to leave early to get on the metro before the “transportation strike” began. Apparently, it’s a pretty common occurrence here in Italy for the buses and subways to stop running for a few hours in the day to protest their crummy working conditions. They stopped running the metro from 8:30 to 1:30, so we had to bust-a-move to make sure we got out into town or we’d end up walking an asinine amount! We managed to squeeze our entire group onto the last train of the day and share very, very, intimate moments with complete and total, dirty, Italian strangers. It was a tight squeeze. Later, we saw a huge parade going down the main road of the strike. It looked more like a celebration than an act of anger. There were balloons and music and dancing. I’m starting to get the feeling that they “strike” just for a day off. Not a bad idea, yeah?

Today was the official beginning of STUDY abroad. Lectures began.

Is there any way to take the “study” out of “study abroad”?

We went back to some of the places we visited yesterday and got to spend more time there, actually go inside and explore, and sit through torturous lectures. I’m appreciative, don’t get me wrong. HELLO, I’m in Italy!!! It’s just so hard sit on a rock under a tree, sweating your eyeballs out, swatting bugs on your legs and squishing them on your paper, and trying to take notes while an Italian genius talks about things you’re not so interested in like you already know as much as he does. Can you tell I’m not a fan? I want more vacay! :)

We visited the Roman Forum, Arch of Titus, Arch of Constantine, Trajan’s Column, and the Colosseum. They are absolutely incredible pieces of architecture and I feel so small and insignificant in their huge shadows and hearing their resounding histories. It’s exciting to be a part of something so important.

After lectures and student-presentations were over, part of the group took a little side trip up to the Caphuchin Crypt, a Church of Bones. It was by far the most awe-inspiring place I have ever been. Probably the spookiest, too. It is an entire church where every wall and ceiling is decorated with the bones of the monks who died to that church after fleeing the French revolution. There are skulls, scapulas, tail-bones, pelvic bones, clavicles, arms, legs, and jaw bones in intricate patterns covering the entire church. Some are entire skeletons, but for the most part it’s a lot of bones placed in really incredible designs on the walls and ceilings. There are absolutely no pictures allowed, which I was so bummed about because it was by far my favorite place I’ve been so far, and I think it’s going to be hard to beat! It’s something you can’t fully comprehend until you’re there. And I wish I had pictures to show you a little creepy piece of how incredible and unique that experience was.

By the way, I was pooped on by a bird TWICE today! Really? Does that really happen?? What are the odds of getting pooped on even once, and I get shiz-splattered on me twice in one day!! It was hilarious the first time, but I was blowing steam the time the second batch was sliding down my face!

The first incident happened while we were sitting under a tree for our first lecture. I had killed over 237 little green bugs that were crawling all over me and survived a lizard attack in the bushes, so I thought I was hot stuff getting up and going through the museum. I ran my hand through my hair and felt something sticky, cold, wet, and slimey. I died a little bit inside!!! I looked at my hand and it was covered in bird-turd! I swallowed the throw-up and started laughing hysterically. You gotta laugh at things like that! I ran a wet-wipe through my hair, cleaned up my hand and went on with my day.

The next time happened at the end of a veeeeeery long day when we were waiting to divide up to either go back to the hotel or walk another bazillion blocks to see the bone church. (Which was sooo worth a bazillion blocks!) There were about 10 of us standing out in the end of this alley way when it sounded a felt like a huge splash of water. There were about 5 of us that screamed as we were drenched in liquid. At first, I thought someone might have tipped over a bucket from a window above us, but when we looked around, we were all covered in brown and white bird crap! FOR REAL!!!! Call me a hypochondriac, but I’m pretty sure I got in the worst. That little pecker got me good! I had a nice dollop right on the top of my head, oozing through my pony tail, on my purse, down my shirt, and on the back of my skirt.

I swear bird-crap should be like lightening… You should never be struck twice! I smell like bird crap. Every time the wind blows, I get a nice little whiff of the feces covering my hair and clothes and throw up a little bit. I had plans of coming straight home and showering, so I hope you all feel downright flattered that I put off showering to tell you all about it. I SMELL SO BAD!!! Hahahahahahaha. Only in Roma!!!

It’s such a fun trip! So many pictures, memories, laughs, experiences, and new friends. And a hell of a lot of bird-poop!

Love to you all!

Wit

giorno due

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Familia!

I'm just getting back to our hotel room after a loooooong day of walking and exploring! I'm exhausted and have never felt so good! I have a feeling I'm going to be saying that in every email I send home! Everything we do is soooo exhausting, but its so rewarding!

Sleeping last night was a little weird... The time change was awkward. Our bodies were so tired, but our minds knew it was time to be awake. We finally fell deep asleep and woke up 20 minutes before we were supposed to be meeting with our group! We hauled-A out of bed and made it downstairs in time for breakfast. It was the worst meal of our entire lives. They had yogurt and granola, so I was PUMPED! Of course, everything is in Italian, so I didn't realize it was PLAIN yogurt until after I took a huge bite. It was awful. Watery, sour, bitter. ICK!

We took the metro into the heart of Rome. We were underground with the grafitti and everything smelling like piss (sorry, Grandma!) and we walked off the subway and up the stairs, and I lost my breath. The Colosseum was literally footsteps away in all its glory. I was covered in goosebumps. That was the moment that I realized, "Oh my gosh! I'M IN ITALY!!!" Before that, it was kind of like a trip to some exotic slum of the United States. I'm not a huge history buff, nor am I excited by art or architecture, but I was almost brought to tears when I saw it. It was so unexpected and it caught me so off guard! I can't believe I'm seeing things with my own eyes that most people only get to see in photographs and on television.

We spent the morning and afternoon walking around Rome with the group. I don't know half the names of the places we saw, I am horrible! But the good news is I took pictures! We went to the Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and the Fountain of Truth. It was kind of like an orientation to Rome. We didn't spend a lot of time in each place, but we'll be going back throughout the next week and a half and spending more time at each one and going into more depth about the history. Not that I'm particularly excited for a history lesson, but I don't think I'll ever get sick of gazing at this beautiful place!

Steve took half the group home back to the hotel and the rest of us went exploring in Rome. We sat on the Spanish Steps and basked in the sun (the weather is SO nice here!!!) and got to know a really nice Dutch family. We walked around all the little streets and shops down town and took a special trip to H&M. Yes, it's in the U.S., but even McDonald's is cooler in Italy!! There were 7 of us running around together and I didn't feel scared or threatened once! I've been surprised at how safe I've felt this trip. It's not the cleanest place and there are some very interesting people, but I haven't felt uncomfortable at all. I'm being smart tho, don't you worry.

After our independent adventure, we took the metro back to the part of Rome we're staying in (pretty close to the Vatican) and just got back to the hotel. We're going to unpack until dinner in a couple hours!

I love you guys! And I love Italy!
Miss each and every one of you! But I'll see you soon enough!


Wit

primo giorno

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Safe and sound in ROME!!!

Our flight from Detroit to Amsterdam was soooo nice. I was able to watch 2 movies, get some good napping in, they served us dinner and it seemed like only a few hours later we were being served breakfast. We flew over London and were able to see the lights of the town and the ocean at night. It was an incredible view!
The Amsterdam airport was the nicest building I've ever been in. Not to mention the biggest or most confusing. We were able to find our gate in a jiffy tho! We watched the sunrise from our terminal. The flight to Rome was great, too. We were served yet another meal. And these dutch cookies that were to die for! Amsterdam is GORGEOUS! I loved watching out the window at all the green fields and pine trees. It looks a lot like Oregon on a sunny day! We flew over the Alps, too. Which was incredible.
I may have experienced it all from a plane/airport, but I was able to see so much of the world today! A lot more than I've ever seen from the Utah bubble. I stink, I'm tired, I'm greasy... But for spending the last 24 hours on a plane or in an airport, I really enjoyed it! Just like everything else in my life, I had myself psyched out over nothing and was preparing myself for the worst case scenario. Even the Arab on our first two flights left us alone! :) Everything went really smoothly and I'm happy to be laying in a bed right now!!!
We got to the hotel and had a "light lunch". Mind you, that lunch consisted of an appetizer of bread and cheese, and then they served us a huge plate of spaghetti. Thinking that was our meal, we practically swallowed it whole. Only to see them bring us a salad too. And a bowl of ice cream followed that. ...a LIGHT lunch, my eye! I might be taking a trip to fat camp on my way home from Italy!!!
Now we have a couple hours to take a nap and then we're going to grab some gelato and walk around a little bit. Not gonna lie, I'd rather just sleep until tomorrow. But it'll be fun!

I love you guys!
Thanks for all the love and support and for pushing me out the door. As much as I was dreading this, I'm already so glad I'm here!

I'll try to keep you posted often.
See you before you know it!

Ciao!
Wit

Once in a lifetime...

I’m sitting at the airport wondering whether to cry because I’m so excited or cry because I’m so scared.

I leave for a study abroad in Italy in one hour.

It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity and deep down I really am excited. Really.

Somewhere beneath the fear and anxiety, is a big, bright, cheerful ball of excitement. I’m just waiting for these 3 flights to go smoothly so that the sunshine can start breaking through the clouds.

I just keep reminding myself of all the reasons I decided to spend a semester in Italy. When the stress and anxiety start to rain on my parade, it helps to remember what inspired me to go on this adventure in the first place.

I want to broaden my horizons and see the world.

I want to be a part of something so big that I feel humbled and realize my utter insignificance.

I want to feel so small caught up in the hustle and bustle of such a big, famous city that I could practically melt into the background.

I want to live a life filled with memories that I’ll enjoy looking back on and look forward to sharing.

I want to be somewhere the culture and passion are so thick that I can practically grip it in my hands.

I want to gain an appreciation and understanding of God and his hand; to see the people and creations I have yet to see.

I want to create a story with risk and adventure and play an active role in every scene.

I want to take advantage of this time in my life when I have permission to be selfish and do things for myself.

I want to end this single chapter in my life with something worth remembering.

I want to experience.

I want to feel.

I want to live!

So, with that said… Here goes!

We are now boarding for Delta flight 2223 to Italy!

(Through Detroit, the #1 crime capital in the US, and Amsterdam, no less)

Ciao!

lovey-dovey interview.

A friend of mine is doing a project in her Marriage and Relationships class and needed to interview someone who is engaged... Of course I volunteered! I'm always looking for an excuse to talk somebody's ear off about it! I'm looooove-sick. :)

Just thought I'd share...

1.Why do you want to get married?

My fiancé! That’s the thing... You have to get married because the person is right, not because the timing is right. I had absolutely no intentions of getting married any time soon and actually, 6 months ago, I didn’t want to get married.... But, after meeting Gage and falling in love with him, I changed my mind. I found someone who convinced me of marriage. It became a matter of company rather than timing... The timing wasn't perfect, but I found a man who was perfect for me. I want to spend forever with my best friend! He brings out the very best in me and I want to spend forever being the best version of myself!

2.What is it about your partner that attracted you to them?

Initially...? His smile! He is one good lookin’ son of a gun! Seriously. Those big brown eyes, huge white smile, perfect skin, and big muscles... I was swooned by a total heart-throb! After I cleaned up my drool... I was attracted to his zest for life and his sense of humor. He is the life of the party and gets along with everyone. I loved watching him interact with other people; whether they were good friends or strangers, he has such a way with people. Someone once told me that if you want to know if you’re dating a good guy, “Don’t pay so much attention to what other people say about him, but to what he says about other people.” I was so attracted to how nice he is to everyone and how everyone gravitates towards him.

3.What are some of your expectations of marriage?

I expect it to be a lot of teamwork. It will never last if you don’t work together and approach all your decisions and trials as a team. It requires equal efforts from both parties and your marriage will suffer if one person isn’t doing their part. I expect it to be hard and require a lot of patience and compromise. I also expect it to be totally worth it. It’s worth all the hard work to have your best friend to laugh with, cry with, and spend your life with.

4.How long have you been dating? How did you meet?

2 years ago, my best friend, Kim, was dating Gage's roommate. She began driving me absolutely nuts trying to convince me to hang out with him. According to her, “I just HAD to meet him!” I was dating someone else at the time, so Gage was the last thing I was looking for. I was scared of something changing my hand-crafted life plan. Not to mention, I knew who he was and I knew he was leagues and leagues out of mine; I was intimidated to say the least! After almost a year of Kim trying to convince us both to meet each other, I finally gave in. I had never been so nervous and so excited... I knew he was a threat to my plans, but I couldn't help but be completely captivated by him. Turns out Kim knew what she was talking about. We hit it off and were inseparable ever since! I fell in love with him and my hand-crafted life plan changed... For the better! We’ve been “hanging out” for over a year and will be “officially dating” exactly a year on the week of our wedding!

5.What is your favorite thing about your relationship/being in a relationship?

I love the comfort of knowing there is always someone to talk to and always someone who cares. No matter how bad your day is, there is someone who loves you and is completely capable of making you feel better. It’s encouraging to know you always have someone on your team. I'm happiest with Gage. I wouldn't change a thing!

6.What does it mean to you to be emotionally healthy?

Emotional health means being able to cope with every circumstance. It doesn’t mean you don’t cry or don’t get your feelings hurt, it just means you address your feelings and cope with it in a productive manner.

7.Why do you think some marriages work?

The marriages that work are because the people involved are hard workers, good-communicators, and patient. You have to love the other person more than yourself and care about their happiness more than your own. I think that the marriages that work are because each spouse cares more about making the other person happy than making themselves happy. They are selfless and loving and that is what keeps a marriage alive. You also can’t go into a marriage expecting it to be all fun and games, you have to be prepared to work hard and brave some ups and downs.

8.Why do you think some marriages fail?

I believe the marriages that fail are marriages of people who go into marriage expecting it to be all hugs and kisses. You need to have realistic expectations of your marriage and of your spouse. If not, you’re going to be unsatisfied and disappointed and your spouse will be frustrated trying to meet your expectations.

9.What is your definition of a healthy marriage/relationship?

A healthy marriage/relationship is one where both people feel comfortable being themselves. You need to feel comfortable in your own skin and voicing your own opinion. You need to show that person your true colors and allow yourself to be accepted as is. Each person is entitled to their own thoughts, ideas, and opinions and those things need to be mutually respected for a marriage to work. A healthy marriage also involves compromise when you don’t see eye to eye.

enGAGEd.

"When you find the person you want to spend the rest of your life with, the rest of your life can't start soon enough..."

Gage and I had been making plans and talking about marriage for months. We had this lovely idea in our heads that was slowly inching its way into our agenda. Regardless of how unprepared or caught-off-guard we felt by the milestone we were approaching, it was in bright, flashing lights coaxing us to come closer.

Meanwhile, I spent some time tending to my cold bare-feet. (For those of you who are coming in mid-conversation, there's a post a few weeks back about taking my shoes off and going barefoot). A lot of things about the prospect of marriage scared me; mostly because I was caught red-handed growing up. It terrified me to realize the past 20 years of my life had gone by so fast and I was suddenly standing in the moment I've waited for all my life. It was intimidating. I was having a minor pre-life crisis. Although my barefoot strike showed me many other things I could do without, it didn't take long without that particular pair of shoes before I was sprinting barefoot back to the one place my feet called home. I ran as fast as I could back to Gage.

I put my shoes back on.

And, I put something sparkly on my finger, too! :)



Although we had our sights set on this summer, Gage had me believing we weren't going to get engaged for quite a while. He's always had a knack for lying... that, or I'm incredibly gullible. Either way, I was hanging on his every word when he told me the ring probably wouldn't be done before I left for Italy. Even if it was, it was near impossible that he'd be able to propose before he moved to Portland.

I was all for believing. That's why I had absolutely no suspicions on Thursday, March 24, 2011 when we stopped at the Spanish Fork airport to go for a quick plane ride over Utah Valley.

The night before we were moving Gage to Oregon, I met him at the Trolley for dinner when I got off work. Afterward, we drove to the Spanish Fork Airport where we met a friend of Gage's mom's who needed to get some night hours flying for aviation school. I was so delighted to be the lucky couple who got to tag along! My Grandpa Wilson was a small plane pilot and I'd never been in one before, so I was excited to get a glimpse into his passion and legacy. Plus, I couldn't think of a more exciting and romantic way for us to spend our last day in Utah together. (Oh, and maybe a little of my excitement had to do with it feeling like an episode of my favorite TV show, The Bachelor! --Except my bachelor is waaaaay better looking and actually has a personality!!!)




It was a little 4-passenger plane and I've never seen anything as cute as my 6'4" 240 lb boy toy cramming in the backseat. His knees were so close to his face they were practically squishing his cheeks together. Priceless!

As we turned onto the runway, I thought my butterflies would've been enough to put us in flight. I was smiling from ear-to-ear and had a death grip on Gage's arm.

The instant we were above the valley and I caught a glimpse of the city lights, I lost my breath. It was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. We could see from Payson to Lehi. The same crummy county I had taken for granted all my life was suddenly a sight for sore eyes. I was in awe.

We took a trip to Springville and had my parents walk outside to see us as we were flying overhead. We were able to fly over Gage's house, our churches, our highschools, and into the mouths of Hobble Creek and Spanish Fork Canyons. It was INCREDIBLE!

I looked over at Gage a few times during the flight and was a little bothered by his facial expression. Those big brown eyes were bulging and glazed over like a deer in the headlights... And he looked like he was going to need a barf-bag any moment. Here I was having the time of my life and he couldn't even crack a smile! I asked him if he was okay and in the most somber, shell-shocked voice I've ever heard, he responded, "Yeah... I'm just... I'm just talking it all in..."

Slightly bugged by his seemingly bad attitude, I let it slide and kept enjoying the scenery.

We were only flying a few more minutes when Gage pointed out the window and said, "Can you see that!? What is it...? I think it says something!" In the middle of an open field, I could see some lights... but without my glasses I couldn't tell it spelled anything, let alone read it! UGH! Leave it to me to forget my glasses!!! That little plane puttered around in over 10 circles while I was peering out the window. With my eyes squinted and cheeks pressed to the glass, I prayed for God to heal the blind just one more time so I could read the lights!

Alas, a miracle!

I let out a squeal when I made out the words, "Marry Me" written in a string of Christmas lights.

I let out a BIGGER squeal when I turned around to see Gage scrunched up on one knee in the backseat of the plane holding a diamond ring.



I've always been a crier and I thought for sure I'd cry the day I got engaged... But instead I was elated to the point of screams and laughter. I could not contain my excitement! I think somewhere between shrieks and laughs, I managed to say yes... Maybe not, but I'm pretty sure I still got my point across. I threw my arms around Gage and kissed my future husband. In that moment, I had the whole world in my arms. And we had our entire future ahead of us...

I've never been happier.

When we landed, Gage said, "Now do you know why I was acting so weird?!? I was so nervous!" He's adorable.

As soon as we were on solid ground, I couldn't get out of the plane fast enough... I ran straight to Gage, jumped into his arms, and smothered him in hugs and kisses. It's funny how much more fun it is to kiss your fiance rather than to kiss your boyfriend. :)

Come to find out, Matt is a licensed airline pilot, not an aviation student. The tables turned... I thought we were doing him a favor, but it turned out he was doing us a HUGE favor! And even though we were already safe and sound on the ground when I found out, I let out a deep sigh of relief knowing we were in good, educated hands. We owe him and his wife a million thank-you's. They were so sweet to help us out and so fun to share that moment with.

We left the airport in a hurry to share the exciting news with our families. We were both blessed with amazing, supportive families who are so happy and excited for us. I've always said that whoever married me was going to be the luckiest man in the world solely because my family will make incredible in-laws. What I never anticipated, however, was finding a family that I thought was just as great as mine. I seriously could NOT ask for better in-laws. I struck gold with the Loftins and I consider myself the luckiest girl in the world to be marrying their son. They've made me feel at home since day one and I am so excited to be an official part of the fam.

I can hardly believe Gage Loftin is going to be mine for keeps!
Some girls have all the luck! :)

March 24, 2011 was the best day of my entire life.
. . . So far.

It only gets better from here!
Aaaaand I'm pretty sure July 20th 2011 is going to be hard to beat!

What's better than starting forever with your very best friend?
BEAT THAT!