Chris and Chani Roberson wedding

This summer has been the summer of weddings. The most recent was that of Chris and Chani Roberson.

Chris and I went to high school together. We were both trumpeters in the Clover Park band, had become great friends, and have stayed in frequent contact since....though we hadn't seen each other for about 6 years! So it was extremely awesome that I was able to attend his wedding, get to see him again, and to meet his wife, Chani!

It was a lovely wedding, and the reception was located at a swanky place downtown Seattle. Chris, being theatrical, had to have a unique reception. The garter toss was by far my favourite. It was set to the Star Wars theme song, everything timed perfectly with the music, and ended with Chris holding the garter in the air triumphantly. It was absolutely hilarious, and so incredibly Chris. I loved it!

Congratulations Chris and Chani!

Jess finally arrives!

She's here at last. After three weeks of a hellish trip where everything went wrong, she finally arrived.
Now that you know the end result, let me tell you the chaotic tale:

Before she even left Oklahoma...

• A tree fell on her car (luckily only causing small damage, not hindering it from running)
  
• Her air conditioning died (which is tragic when planning a cross-country drive)

Once on the trip....

• Her car, which was full with all of her belongings, was broken into (broke a window).
• Her book bag (which carried her Bible, credit card, pictures, camera memory cards, cell phone charger, transcripts and diploma, pearl necklace, etc) was stolen.
• On her exhaustingly long all-night drive from Salt Lake to Seattle, her car died approximately 90 minutes out of Seattle.
  
• Ends up staying with her Aunt and Uncle near Federal Way instead of making it all the way to Seattle.

While at her Aunt and Uncle's house....

• Found out her car was totaled.
• Tried to start her job (she was transferred from her job in Oklahoma) but found out that, because their HR guy just quit, they had absolutely no record of her or her transfer papers in the system....and therefore they couldn't offer the job that had been promised to her.

Moral of the story: Sometimes life just stinks.

But at least she has arrived safely in the beautiful Northwest and we can now both work on searching for jobs together. :) Please pray that we both have great luck in this endeavor! I'll keep you posted on the updates.

Russ and Jess Bunyard Wedding

My friends, Russ and Jess, just got married. I've known Russ since I was 4 years old! It was really amazing to be there for his wedding. Not only was I invited, but I was also asked to be a bridesmaid. What an honour!

The Cutter clan arrived in town the day before the wedding. And what a busy day it was! We spent the day prepping for the rehearsal dinner and wedding. We cooked, made the wedding bouquets, and set up the reception room. After that, it was off to the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner....which went very well. It was great getting to see old friends again. After the rehearsal dinner, I was recruited to help decorate the wedding cake. This is the second wedding cake I've helped decorate...and thus far, the hardest. It was so intricate! But, personally, I think it turned out better than the picture. And the bride was happy, which is all that really matters.

It was a quick trip overall, but it was well worth it. Not only did I get to have a family reunion and see a bunch of old friends, but I'm also really glad I got to be a part of their beautiful wedding.

Congratulations Russ and Jess!

Recovery

So, after a second trip to the hospital and yet another trip to the pharmacy, it seems the newest meds have finally kicked in and the recovery process is beginning. My lips are now back to pretty much their normal size, though they are still somewhat tender. But I can smile again, which is always fun. :)
Apparently I was extremely run down prior to getting sick because they found out I was actually having three different things going on at the same time. They were worried it was staff or MRSA, but luckily we found out that was not the case. *praise the Lord* The first was just a normal slight allergy to something I had used, most likely a chapstick. And then I had also gotten and second and third infection on top of it. YIKES! And while they were trying to figure out what was wrong, of course the infection started to spread. Lovely. But, I'm now on the correct medications and I'm doing much better! I've even had a few excursions in the outside world!! WOOHOO!
Thanks for all the prayers!

Boredomese

I am so bored. I have pretty much been stuck on the couch for the past few days. My only time out in the real world has been to the hospital and the pharmacy. And I've been to the pharmacy four different times now, because they keep switching my meds. This is getting expensive! Anyways, I'm bored. I've been spending a lot of my time watching TV. Luckily I found a good show to latch onto: What About Brian. And I can watch the entire season online...so I can see the whole thing without cable. nice!
I've also done some reading..... Current reads: Hugger Mugger by Robert Parker, and On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill by Lt. Col. Dave Grossman. Both are turning out to be good reads.
So, at least I'm keeping "busy". But I'm going a little stir crazy. Hopefully all these random meds will start kicking in soon so I can start doing more fun and productive things.

Collagen injection gone wrong

Who here likes the lustrous lips of Angelina Jolie? People all over the world consider her one of the most beautiful women, largely because of her lips. Based on this reasoning, I thought I'd try to go for it myself. And now, I should also be considered in that beautiful women category.

No, I didn't have lip injections. I'm too cheap for that. Instead, I had an allergic reaction...most likely to a new chapstick I tried. It even landed me in the hospital. Yep, seriously. Hopefully the meds they gave me will start working soon, because who wants to look like this??

There goes monetary freedom

So, yesterday my parents signed their lives away. They are now the owners of a condo in Seattle (or should I say, the bank they are indebted to is the owner??).














While nervous about the bloated cost of the Seattle real estate market, they are very excited to finally be a part of it. They got a great condo, in one of the best areas in town. It is about a mile away from my grandmother (mom's mom), so they are available to help take care of her and her house. And it is in the approximate area of where my Dad's Edward Jones office will be. Fabulous location. And the condo itself is in great shape, so they won't have to do a whole lot to it before moving in. It's awesome!

I'll try to keep posting updates of the moving in process. :)

My cousin had a baby!

My cousin, Meg, had a baby boy yesterday!! This little guy is a smarty. He waited to be two weeks late so that he would arrive on 7/7/07. He's gonna be a lucky one. :)

Cole Patrick was born at 5:33am on July 7, 2007. He weighed 8 lbs. 1 oz., and was 21 inches long. And he's absolutely adorable!! I got to go visit them in the hospital a few hours after he had been born. Here are a few pics of the cutie!

Welcome to the family, Cole Patrick!

Andrew visits

Today I got to visit with Andrew, a great friend from high school. We hadn't seen each other in three years, so it was great to catch up!

We were supposed to meet for lunch at Applebee's at 12, but we had a few errands to run on base...and we all know how fast the military departments work. We ended up not getting out of there until 1 (and we had only accomplished one item on our list! hehe). Luckily Andrew was flexible and still able to get together. :)

It was so nice to just catch up on what's been going on in each other's lives. I've missed him!

Dad's retirement

Today is the first day in approximately 30 years that my father has not been a part of the military. As of midnight, July 1, 2007, Colonel James Cutter now has to add three more letters to the end of his signature: Ret. To celebrate, he decided to grow a beard!

Granted, after a week or so he got tired of it being itchy and shaved it all off. haha! But I snapped a few shots firsts in order to record the growth, however small it may be. :)

Congratulations on your retirement, Dad!