A Month Later....

Well, a month has gone by so I figure it's time to update the blog. Where to start? School is pretty much in full swing. I have today, tomorrow, and the weekend off but Monday starts workdays and staff development days. The kids come Thursday, the 21st. As of right now I have 18 students but I will go this afternoon and see if any kids were added to my list. 18 is already a high number so I'm hoping my list will stay the same. I'm actually very excited about school starting. I've been praying that I will have a positive attitude and that I will be the best teacher I can be so I really think that that has helped a lot. Everytime someone asks me if I"m ready to go back to school, I say "Yes! I'm really excited about getting started" or something annoyingly positive instead of "NO!!! I need atleast another month of summer" which might be what I'm feeling deep down! What's odd though is, the more positive I am on the outside, the more positive I feel on the inside. I think my brain is being tricked. I learned yesterday in a workshop that your brain can't tell between a fake smile and a real, genuine smile. So even if you're faking smiling your brain will eventually feel a little more happy and positive. So that's my strategy this year I think! What else? What else? Gosh, I feel like school is the main thing going on right now and everything has taken a backseat. Actually, I can't say that's entirely true. I was telling my friend Cara the other night that Back to School is like my New Year time. I make "Back to School resolutions." So far, I've done pretty well at keeping my apartment clean and doing my best at managing my money. Although going to the gym still hasn't been crossed off my to do list yet. Oh well, school hasn't started yet, right?

Kristen and Rusty have been doing very well! I always get in trouble if I post too much about Kristen so I'm going to just elaborate about Miles :) Miles is a safe topic, right Kris? Miles got a new haircut! Rusty and Kristen took him to a barber (or salon, I"m not quite sure how that works) on base and he got his first real big boy haircut! It looks very military style and it's so crazy to look at him now! haha, He's such a big boy! He's "talking" a lot more and can say "cat, car, duck, momma, daddy, horse," and supposedly yesterday my Mom got him to say "vacuum." Never to early to start learning "Vacuum" right?

Well my stomach is growling so I think I"m going to go eat some Apple Cinnammon cheerios :) I will hopefully be enjoying my last long weekend before the craziness starts!!! Enjoy your weekend too!

xoxo,
Stephanie

OH yeah, this weekend I am going "tubing" down the Edisto with my Mom and Dad's sunday school class. Look out for the "I almost drowned" blog update coming around the end of the weekend:)

Ending the wedding blog hopefully!

Alright well here we go again!! Let's see, where did I leave off?... oh yes! Pictures! We finished up our pictures and the photographer went upstairs to take pictures of the guys. All the girls took a last look into the mirror and we piled into the elevator. The guys were at the end of the hallway by the door and we waited what seemed like forever to get started! Kristen stayed in the hallway by the elevator and she told me later that about 6 different families came out of the elevator shocked that she was standing there! That must have been funny! We waited until Mrs. Jody gave us the heads up and then we were ready to start the ceremony! Rusty escorted his Mom and my Mom down the aisle (separately) and then the groomsmen walked out and took their place by the pastor under the arch. Then finally it was the girls' turn! Jill went first, followed by Sonia, Quenby, and then it was my turn! I got Miles from Dad (who looked SOOOO CUTE in his tuxedo!) and we began the walk to the boardwalk, down the stairs, and then down the aisle. I was so thrilled to see the decorations. The white chairs, the pink rose petals down the aisle, and the beautiful arch at the end were so beautiful!! Everyone ooohed and ahhhed over Miles but the best part was to come: my beautiful sister the BRIDE! I handed Miles over to my Mom and took my place next to the Pastor, making sure I still had my flowers and Rusty's ring on my thumb. Then the music started and I saw my Dad escorting my sister down the boardwalk and down the aisle. She was so beautiful. I actually (surprisingly) didn't cry. The ceremony was beautiful but my favorite part was when Rusty began to read his vows to Kristen. They had written their own vows to each other and they were beautiful! Rusty got about 2 sentences in and began to cry and had to pause for a few seconds to gain composure and then continue. It was precious! That's when I did begin to tear up. Everything else went off without a hitch and after about 15 minutes, they were officially Mr. and Mrs. Rusty Dean Grow!!! Pictures took a while and everyone got a little restless because we were getting hot and thirsty. A very nice waiter from the reception brought out some food to everyone taking pictures but that soon proved to be a BAD idea because almost immediately there were about 30 seagulls attacking my Mom and Rusty's Mom, Mrs. Denise!! I heard screams and then I saw the waiter run back to the reception. The reception was wonderful and I had such a wonderful time dancing and spending time with family and friends. I gave my speech (which unfortunately I did blubber through) but it was still sweet. They cut the cake (no smashing unfortunately, they were very civil!) and pretty soon it was time to see Rusty and Kristen off. We all lined up outside of the entrance to the hotel and someone pulled their car up. Everyone was having so much fun that we didn't realize that NO ONE had decorated their car! All of a sudden Stephen (Rusty's brother) was running out of the hotel with a huge roll of toilet paper that I think they got from the front desk. Everyone started to blow bubbles and out ran Kristen and Rusty! Then that was it! With a quick kiss, we said goodbye and she was off!!

I've talked to Kristen once so far and she sounds like she's having a blast! They are on a cruise to Belize and Cozumel and they will be back Sunday! I'm so excited to see them! Come Monday, they'll be knocking down the doors at the base getting a house and it will be official!

I love my sister and my brother in law!!!(eek! how crazy! I have a BROTHER IN LAW!)

~Getting Miles ready!~

~Mr. and Mrs. Rusty Grow!~

~Cutting the cake~

~I love my sister~

Wedding Whirlwind!

Wow!! Whirlwind doesn't even begin to describe the last 2 days! It has been a wonderful weekend full of lots of excitement! Let me start with where I left off - Friday during the day I went to Siesta Key beach with my Aunt. We met the Shields' and the Googe's there. It was such a beautiful beach and I had a lot of fun hanging out with everyone! Around 2:30, we came back to the hotel and began to get ready for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. The rehearsal went VERY well and I was able to meet a few more members of Rusty's family. I got to meet Rusty's Dad (Big Rusty as my family refers to him) and his wife Karen. They were who I was looking forward to meeting the most because Kristen just loves them so much! :) The rehearsal went off without a hitch and we practiced twice the whole service and then headed to Mattison's for the rehearsal dinner. The dinner was so nice and it isn't open during the off season (randomly, down here in Longboat Key, SUMMER is their "off-season." The busy months are the during the Winter - I KNOW!! CRAZY!) Anyway, Mattison's opened up for us and we were the only people in the entire restaurant! It was a beautiful evening and a great meal! I sat at the table with Quenby, and my cousins Sonia and Lee. Kristen and Rusty made a speech, passed out the bridal party gifts and then the girls were off to Civeche's! Mrs. Jody, Aunt, Mrs. Cindy, Sonia, Quenby, Kristen and I went to this Flamenco club in downtown Sarasota where there is a live Flamenco band! It was soooo fun and we had a BLAST dancing and talking. Quenby stole the show though and we laughed and laughed watching her. We got home around 1:30 a.m. and I got up around 8:45. I heard Kristen in the other room and went in to be with her. It was nice to be able to hang out with Kristen during that time because it gave us a chance to talk a little bit. I could tell she was nervous but also excited. Everyone began to stir and finally it was time to begin getting ready. We all took showers and then Kristen, myself, Mom, Aunt, Sonia and my little cousin Taylor were off to the salon to get our hair done! The salon was very nice and we had a great time watching each other get our hair done. After the salon, we came back here and hung out for a while and before we knew it, it was time to start getting ready! After that it was such a blur! We were all putting on dresses, Mom came in with Miles and he had to put on his tux. He was sooooo tired because he only took an hour nap and he was crying and being so fussy. We all were so worried that he would be TERRIBLE during the ceremony and reception. Anyway, we were all running around like crazy and then the photographer came in and started taking photos. He was a very nice man but some of the photos he wanted to take cracked me up. Like instead of having a regular "Stephanie standing beside Kristen" photo, he made me put my arms entirely around her shoulders .. awkward! We were like, "Uhhhh..." haha!

Well, I had intended on finishing this blog up tonight but my Dad wants me to come up to their room and sleep in there tonight. I could here him in the background saying "It's our last night! Just get on the elevator and come up here!" I think I'll go surprise him and actually stay in there tonight.

I'll finish this tomorrow night! Thanks for everything guys!

Love, Stephanie

Rehearsal Dinner - July 18, 2008

Thursday Night

My Aunt got here around 5:30 yesterday and I was soooo happy to see her! We got to sit and talk for a little while with her and then at around 6:45, we drove into Sarasota to eat at the Olive Garden. We had a bunch of people there which was so nice! It was the Davis', my Mimi and Papa, myself, my Aunt Kathy, the Shields', Mom, Dad, Miles, Kristen, Rusty and Quenby! Oh yeah, Kristen's best friend Quenby flew from Atlanta yesterday into Sarasota so now she's here! Yay! The dinner was nice and we had a lot of time fellowshipping with each other, sharing stories, and sharing our excitement for Saturday! After dinner, we drove back to the hotel and saw my Aunt Jan and cousin Ava. They got here late last night. Ironically, my Mimi, Papa, Aunt Jan, and Ava were randomly put across the hall from us. JOY :) haha. This should prove to be a crazy weekend! Kristen and Quenby went to the hot tub and Aunt and I played Crazy 8's for a while. Then when Kristen and Quenby got back, we chatted with them, the girls got showers, Aunt took a bath and then we hit the sack! We were all exhausted!! I woke up this morning and came in the other room to catch up on some e-mails, blogs, and facebook stuff. My aunt got up a few minutes ago and she's doing her Bible study... I probably should go and do one too! Today I think my Aunt and I are going to go meet the Shield's down at Siesta Key beach. It ranked in the top 10 most beautiful beaches in the US last year so I"m really excited to see it!! Then we have the rehearsal tonight along with the rehearsal dinner. After that, I think a bunch of us girls are going out to get dessert. That should be lots of fun! Well, I'd upload pictures but my camera is in the other room and Kristen and Quenby are still sleeping. I'll try to upload later but I think it's about to get crazy so we'll see!! Thanks for everyone who has been following the events - we wish you could be here with us! Oh, if you could also pray for my cousin Elizabeth again. She had a minor setback last night. They took out the line in her leg that was pumping her medicine in and they can't stop the bleeding. My aunt found that out at around 8:30 last night and when she talked to my Uncle this morning, they still hadn't stopped the bleeding and were going to call in a Vascular surgeon. Please pray that Elizabeth will be healed and also pray that my Aunt will have a peace about being here. Alright, that's enough for this early in the morning!! :)

Love to you all,
Stephanie

Enjoying God's blessings ~ both of them!!

Today has been suprisingly a WONDERFUL DAY!! Both of my prayer requests were answered!!! My cousin Elizabeth was taken off of the ventilator yesterday and will be moved into a regular hospital room! She was even able to whisper a little bit. WOW!! God is soooo good! On top of that, My Aunt Kathy was able to drive down here with my parent's best friend's, the Davis', so she's currently on her way!! YAY! I can't wait until she gets here!! Also, today was a beautiful sunny day!! That is amazing! Let me catch you up on what we've been doing so far! Yesterday we hung around the hotel in the morning and then around lunchtime Kristen and I went and got pedicures. Then we came back to the hotel and Mom, Dad, Kristen, Miles and I went into downtown Sarasota looking for the Men's Warehouse so Dad could pick up his tuxedo for Saturday. We stopped at one mall and walked around for a bit, found the Men's Warehouse and then decided to eat at Longhorn's in Sarasota. Imagine our surprise when while we were eating, Mr. Billy and Mrs. Cindy Shields walked in!! They are our good friends from church and are down here for the wedding. We had no idea we'd run into them! It was so funny and we hugged and laughed and were so excited to see each other. You would have thought we hadn't seen them in years when we just saw them on Sunday at church! It was really funny! Then after Longhorns we came back to the hotel and went out on the beach. Miles LOVES the water and he is so funny! There is a lot of seaweed here in the water and he hates that so he tries to avoid it. Then we went back upstairs and got ready for bed. Today Kristen and I got up and got ready. Kristen went with Mom to a Spa and Miles, Dad, and I got went out to the beach and then in the pool. We had a good time! Then we went back up to the room, had lunch and waited on Mom and Kristen to get back. Rusty came over and we all watched YouTube videos ("Charlie you bit me" is one of my favorites as well as "Kick My Ask"*my Mom LOVES that one too! haha) Rusty and Kristen left to go get his tux and Mom and I went out to the beach for a little while. It was so nice. Now I'm just sitting here with a mask on my face that will supposedly clean out my pores. I can barely open my mouth now that it's dry! Tonight I think we are going to try to go out to eat with everybody who is in town today. I can't believe it's finally here!!! Alright well here are a few pictures so far! Enjoy! Thank you to everyone who has been praying for us! We are enjoying ourselves and look forward to sharing with you our pictures and stories when we get back.

~Kristen getting her pedicure~

~Kristen, Miles, and Dad~

Up Early...

Yesterday my Mom, Dad and I drove down from Charleston here to Long Boat Key, Florida for Kristen's wedding!!! It was an eventful drive and it took us longer than we expected but we made it safely here! We stopped by Publix on the way in and picked up enough groceries for 2 months it seemed like! Then we came back here to the hotel and unpacked while we waited for Rusty to drop Kristen and Miles off. Kristen got here around 6:30 and we went to "The Beach House" for dinner. We ate at the Beach House when we came in January to start looking for places for the wedding and that was the first time we met Rusty's Mom Ms. Denise, his brother Stephen, and Stephen's girlfriend Carissa! Anyway, dinner was fun but a little stressful because Miles had only taken a 10 minute nap the entire day!! So he was fussy and Dad, Mom, and I were on edge because we had been in the car the whole day! But it was still fun! After dinner we just came back to our rooms and unpacked some more, showered, watched a little TV, and then went to sleep! Miles is upstairs with Mom and Dad which is nice because that gives Kristen and I a little alone time before everyone starts coming into town! I'm about to finish this up but I wanted to mention 2 prayer requests that I have. #1 ~ That it will stop raining. The next two days look as if they will be pretty rainy with a 100% chance of rain for today, and an 80% chance for tomorrow. However Friday and Saturday only call for a 40% chance of scattered thunderstorms. STILL, that doesn't seem like the best odds for an on the beach wedding! Please pray that God will steer the rain other directions at least from about 4 p.m. - 7:00p.m. on Saturday!! My 2nd prayer request is for my cousin Elizabeth. She was put in the hospital last Friday because she was having trouble with a stint they had put in her esophagus. (sp?!) She kind of crashed and her blood pressure was 40 over 17 and they couldn't get a steady pulse. That was Saturday. Since then she's improved a little but they still have her on a ventilator. She's breathing a few breaths on her own every minute but not many. They were going to take her off the ventilator yesterday but her oxygen count was low so they postponed it. Please pray for my Aunt Kathy (I just call her Aunt) because she was going to come down here with us yesterday but is delaying because of Elizabeth's health. Please pray that Elizabeth will start breathing a little better and my Aunt will be able to come down here soon. Elizabeth's husband Doug and their daughter Caitlin could also use prayers.

Alright well I'll update later on today! I'm thankful for wireless internet!
:) Praying for sunny weather,
Stephanie

Getting Ready

Well today has been a super emotional day!! I hung out with my family after church. My Mimi and Papa came over this afternoon to see Rusty and Kristen before they leave. Then Kristen, Rusty, Miles and I went to Moe's for dinner. Afterwards we came home and started getting Kristen ready for her trip tomorrow. I got a little upset when I left because tonight's Kristen's last night at my parent's house as a "single girl." This made me really sad because it just reinforced that this is really happening!! I love Rusty so much and I am so happy that he is joining our family but it made me a little sad that it wouldn't be Mom, Dad, Stephanie and Kristen anymore. I guess that changed when Miles came around too though and he didn't really take away from our family and I'm POSITIVE that's how it will be with Rusty so I don't know why I got so upset, but I did! My sister's all grown up now with her own family. CRAZY! Okay, well enough of this gooey sh-show of emotion (*Home Alone line right there for ya!) I'm off to finish up some laundry and then go to bed!! I'll try to post more this week but I"m not sure how the internet will be down in Florida. Never fear, I'll post pics as soon as I can!

Off for now,


The EE Maid of Honor (*Excited and Emotional)


p.s. Susan, Did you see the new video?? It's on both the Mom and the Dad's website! haha. I"m glad we're stalkers together! :)

~Here are a few photos~

Eating at Moe's!

Mom and Kristen going through bags trying to gather stuff to pack

Family Pic (This was taken this past November)