MARCH.... pre wedding photo shoot

This isn't the day of pictures just yet, but I figured I'm trying to put things up in chronological order. AND this is only a sampling even if its a huge sampling of the preshoot. I think people are wanting to see pictures already :)

I had a good time this day getting some pictures done and out of the way the monday before our wedding. We got all ready and our videographer got Brett's reaction of seeing me in my dress for the first time. And our photographer friend was there to capture a few pictures. Here they are!
(Thanks Candra!)

FEBRUARY

No real events happened in Feb. I was just still worried about planning my wedding and getting things together for that. Then my mom must've told me somewhere in this month that my Aunt Linda was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. She told me a really complicated name for it so I wasn't really catching onto the fact that it was lung cancer. All I know it that my aunt wasn't doing so great and she had some pretty rough times ahead. I've never been good at documenting day to day events so it seems like time really did go by so fast. It was just crazy how generous people/friends were being. Our wedding gifts from our amazon registry were rolling in. I was slowly getting things in the house put together and working a little bit here and there. It blows my mind how fast things fly by. Stressed or not the clock ticks the same every day. And then there is just trying to do things to make everyone happy but not forget about yourself and pay bills and do the dishes. So the day to day stuff can keep you going or really drag you down. Which some days it was one and some days it was the latter. I didn't think I was trying to hard to rush the days along but I know I was looking forward to getting married to my sweetheart. I hate to say it but my roommate situation going south before I moved into Brett and I's apartment was one thing that made me really look forward to getting married. I didn't like living alone, but I disliked living in a place that was stressful every time I was around. So much tension because I wanted out of my lease early to get married. I was so thankful that someone was finally found who was willing to take my space and my roommates. It was just hard when my roommates weren't supportive of my choices. I had to relearn a hard lesson. Some friends come into your life to stay forever and some are only there for a time. I know you need to keep friends when you get married but friendship has to go two ways. Relationships/friendships are a complicated thing. Always have been....probably always will be. I will never understand how some people are so easy to talk to and so understanding and then sometimes you just don't fit in anymore. So all of this is getting to be too wishy washy and not specific. A blog isn't the best place to discuss things, but again, just to document my life is why I bring it up. February has no real good pictures to go along with it. It was a month of prepping and just living life.

JANUARY...

January was a busy month. I started running my own massage business in Blackfoot. I moved into a new apartment ....which means I had to move out of the old apartment. It was all pretty quick in the happenings. And my mom's mom passed away. I'm not sure of the best way to talk about any of this. I just wanted to make sure I have some of this documented. I knew everyone in my family was going to be going to my Grammy's funeral so I really wanted to go. I was so glad Brett was willing to take the long drive with me to Ohio. The circumstances weren't the best but we had a really good road trip and I was so glad Brett got to meet so much of my family before we got married. My aunt had arranged for two houses plus her own for all of the extended family to stay in. WOW...what a crowd of people. We had family from California, North Carolina, Virginia, Texas and us from Idaho all make it out to Marblehead, Ohio for the funeral. There might have been more from other places, but that is all I can think of right now. We got to sit around and talk lots and play some games together. I also got to be one of the grandkids to help out with the funeral services by doing a reading. I can't even begin to touch all of the details of the weekend, but my aunt Patty got plenty of pictures of the weekend. I want to share a few here.

Here's to new beginnings

I'm making this post on my phone. It's more difficult than I thought to put a link to Brett's YouTube channel. You can look at my last post for a link though. He hasn't posted anything new in awhile but if you subscribe to his channel it will notify you when he does. 

We are back from all of our wedding festivities and back to real life. It's official. I'm writing my first blog post as Elizabeth Benson Peterson. Got a new social security card and drivers license ordered and on their way. I'm just trying to get the house put back together and get to working. Brett needs to find a new job and I need new clients. All prayers in our behalf are welcomed. 

We did all sorts of fun things on our honeymoon trip back from ohio. I'll try to post some pictures later this week. And then maybe after a few weeks I'll have wedding pictures to post. 

That's all for now. 

BP

Miracles happen

I've got a story to tell. (And there's a video to go along with it. )

So I met this boy, which I think I've mentioned. Long story made short... We are getting married. 

We met on his birthday back in September and I thought it would be pretty cool if we got engaged on my birthday. I'm glad he thought the same thing. Needless to say, it was my best birthday so far in life. I'd say it was a little miracle. I was coming to terms with being on my own for a lot longer in life. I'm sure I'm going to love reading my own thoughts about this day somewhere down the road so a blog about it has to happen. 

The boy, is what I'll call him, really loves surprises. I want sure he was really going to surprise me with an engagement ring on my birthday because I thought I'd already ruined the surprise by finding the ring in his house one day while I was there alone. I shouldn't have snooped, but I knew it was there and I was having a rough night. I thought it would make me happy to see it. Well, I was wrong. I just felt bad for snooping. I told him right when he got back. It wasn't my favorite night. Needless to say I thought that was going to push back his plans. I knew he was thinking about it because we talk and plan for the future, but.... Details were always something I wondered about.

The day of my birthday I woke up early and baked a pineapple upside down cake. It turned out pretty good actually. Then Brett showed up to my house so we could drive down to Rexburg together. He has a temporary job there in town. I'll skip the details of class. But then I decided I would go get some food since I missed breakfast. Then, in case the boy did decide he was going to propose I wanted to have a surprise for him. I had looked up online the last few weeks pricing these rings that I knew he wanted. I was glad I had just gotten paid and that it didn't cost too much at the book store. Yep, Brett, I just got it that day. And then when I got to work I printed off this resolution from the movie courageous. He had talked about wanting to sign it when we get married. So, at least now I was prepared with a surprise of my own... You know... Just in case. The day went on. I shared my cake with the class i work with. I was so antsy for the day to move on. 

At 3 I left to go get Brett. I guess this was the day he was walking towards me. The days all mesh together in the small details. The important thing is that we headed over super early for our pedicures at Evans....a beauty school in Rexburg. Hopefully I'll be able to include in all my pictures at the end. And if you follow me on social media you've already probably heard and seen all of this. My apologies. 

After the pedicure we went to Red Robin in Idaho Falls. It was a delicious meal. Not the greatest service. Oh well, you win some, you lose some. I was thankful that I could be using a gift card from my parents. Brett got some fiery ghost hot burger. I got a bacon burger. We shared an appetizer of jalapeno coins and mozzarella sticks. They came out at the same time. Fail=Red Robin. Then we waited forever for our shake. We shared a gingerbread shake. Then, here's my next secret that hasn't been shared with Brett. I had the ring in my bag and I wrapped it and put it in a card while I was taking a bathroom break. ☺ Brett took a bathroom break before we left too. Funny thing is that he took his coat with him because he was afraid I was going to snoop. Probably good that he did. Haha. When we walked outside he asked if he could drive. I honestly thought maybe we were going to an ice cream place or something. We already had dessert but that was my first thought. Then maybe I wondered if he really was going to propose or not. I didn't ask many questions because I was just trying to figure it out. I couldn't think of places that had any significance to us. Then he pulled up to the temple. I still didn't want to get my hopes up so I thought, oh cool, we are getting some pictures of the nativity. Another important fact is that he has been posting videos on YouTube. So he pulls out his phone and tells me to record him. Then he pulls out a piece of paper. I think that's when I was for sure that he was going to pop the question for real.  This is what it said: 

We met on Tinder the day I turned thirty.

You started with, "what's up," not very flirty,
But we talked about the movie, World War Z,
Then you asked where I was from and took a real interest in me.
We tried to meet in person but it wasn't working out,
At the fair we could have met up but you choose a different route,
In the end you came to my house and I introduced you,
To my newest friend the one and only doctor who.
The football game came next and then the fateful day,
You needed somewhere to watch conference so you came my way,
You brought along your table, a massage you gave to me,
Then we sat up in the  loveseat and I said that you're pretty,
After some conversation, you asked me where we stood,
I said I'd like for you to be my girlfriend if you would,
You said that's what you wanted so a couple we became,
and after that I knew my life would never be the same.
My love for you has grown from that first seed into a tree,
And it's not half as much as all the love you give to me.
And as they say, the rest is history,
So I have just one question,
Will you marry me? 

How stinking cute is that? 

So, of course I got teary. He's the best. He went to give me the ring and dropped it. It kinda made me laugh. And, no he didn't get down on one knee. He would've ruined the pedicure. He and I were still in flip flops. 

I'm going on and on.... Basically, then we went to the car and I gave him the ring and letter I had for him. I think I surprised him pretty good. 

Today after church we called Bro. Cannon who is a family friend to the Peterson Family. We want him to perform the ceremony and he said he can do it the day we want! He also performed Brett's sisters sealing ceremony a couple years ago. March 14th is the tentative day we have planned for the wedding. We have picked the Idaho Falls temple as the place we want to get married because Brett's grandparents were married there, and so were his parents and so was his sister. His grandparents were actually married there the first day that the temple was open for operation back in 1945. He would like to carry on the tradition. I have never had a favorite temple picked out so I'm perfectly okay with it. I like the idea of carrying on a tradition.

There will be plenty more to talk about later. That's all for now 

☺