The Married Survey

I "stole" this from Steven's friend, Lauren. Here goes...!

"Living our Love Song"
The story of Steven Andrew and Alison Louise Haynes (Scott)

1) Did you have a traditional Proposal?
Yes. Steven and I went ring shopping after dating for 2 months (!!!). I asked him to wait to propose to me because I wasn't ready yet. Six months later, Steven came to visit me for TriDelt's Spring Formal. Sunday morning we got up and drove up the mountain (we decided we were too lazy to go hiking) and Steven was fumbling in his backpack. I asked him what he was doing & he asked if I wanted any gum. I said I did and assumed he was getting another piece for himself and walked away. He followed me, got down on both knees and told me that there was one thing he wanted to change about me. I asked what that was (a little offended!) he showed me the ring and said "I wish you had my last name." I started to cry and he asked me to marry him. I just nodded and we kissed. It was a great proposal. You can see how beautiful it is in these photos. The next day we had a freak snowstorm, crashed my car, and the airport shut down, so Steven couldn't fly back to Virginia. It was nice to have the extra days together, but he was in trouble when he got back! He told them it was worth it. :)



2) When was your wedding day?
Our Wedding was August 5, 2006. Our Marriage was January 3, 2006. We had to get married (legally) early because Steven needed a marriage license to complete the paperwork to get me over to Japan.

3) What day of the week was it?
Our wedding was on a Saturday.

4) Church/court/other?
We first were married in court and I didn't wear a dress or invite anyone to attend because I didn't want it to overshadow our wedding. Steven's parents gave us a mini-honeymoon in Frisco and my parents took our families out to 3 Forks to celebrate. Our wedding was at Christ United Methodist Church, the church where I grew up.


5) What song played while the bride walked down the aisle?
"Here comes the Bride" I think... I don't really remember. All I remember is trying not to trip, seeing Steven crying, and feeling very self-conscious.


6) How many in your wedding party?
Lots!! 7 bridesmaids and 7 groomsmen.



7) How many guests were invited to your wedding?
At least 150, but probably closer to 175. I think 125 people showed up.

8) How long were you engaged?
We were engaged for 8 months before the "marriage" and then another 8 months before the wedding. So technically, 16 months.

9) Who did you hire as your photographer/videographer?
My Mom was very impressed with my sister's friend's Dad, who is a photographer. He doesn't usually do weddings, but decided to make an exception for our family. He was great! I forget our videographer's name (oops), but he did a great job too! We sit down and watch our wedding video every anniversary and I wouldn't trade that DVD for the world. It means everything to me to be able to relive those moments.

10) Did you have a DJ or a band?
We hired DJ David Allen! He was awesome! He also acted as MC and really made the reception special and fun! Almost all of our guests were still there when we left.

11) Did your father walk you down the aisle?
Yes! I love my Daddy. I wouldn't have had it any other way. In fact, that picture (above), is one of my favorites.

12) What color were the bridesmaid dresses & groomsmen vests?
Bridesmaid dresses were pink with a yellow sash. The groomsmen vests were yellow... and apparently that was NOT a popular choice. Sorry guys! :)


13) Who was your Maid Of Honor/ Best Man?
My Maid of Honor was my sister, Emily. While we were growing up, my Mom told us that we would be each other's Maid of Honor at each other's weddings. I thought it was silly at the time, but she's right. Friends may come and go but sisters are forever. Steven's Best Man was his brother, Chris.

14) Did you have a bridal shower?
Yes, Steven's Mom and her friend, Lisa, threw me a shower I'll never forget! The games were hilarious and Terri... I mean... "someone" had a very special box for me... I think it was a "honeymoon kit." I won't go in to details, but my face was very red!


15) What type of limo did you get?
My Dad rented a Cadillac and drove us around, bless his heart! My cousins were very impressed with "Uncle Dave's car" until they found out that Uncle Dave had to have it back by 8:00 the next morning.

16) Where did you go for your Bachelorette/Bachelor Party?
Terri, my Mom, my Mom's friend Jean, my bridesmaids and I went to a spa and each got to choose 2-3 treatments. I had a mani/pedi and a massage. Afterwards, we went to Cozymel's (which has since been bulldozed! boo!) and we had margaritas. It was so fun! Steven's bachelor party was at Dave & Buster's.

17) The night before your wedding, did you sleep?
Haha, yes! I was already married!!

18) What type of wedding gown/tux did you two wear?
We called my dress the "fairy princess dress" because it was just that. I didn't think that I would want a poufy dress, but it was perfect. Steven wore a white tux with a white vest and shirt.


19) Did you have a veil?
Yes, it had clusters of 3 pearls all over it, which is what inspired my cake design.


20) What was the funniest moment from your wedding?
There were lots! I loved playing "The Newlywed Game" which involved the DJ asking questions about us and Steven and I each had to hold up a bride or groom bear to answer. At the end of the night, Steven made a comment to one of my bridesmaids "I made it through the whole day without crying." Which was a complete lie and everyone knew it... except Steven. I also loved when the groomsmen led us in the YMCA. So cheesy. So great.

21) How was the weather?
Sunny and hot!! What else can you expect in Texas in August though? I'm glad we had it inside.

22) Did your bridal party deck out the get away car?
No, which was good because it was a rental! They tried to get in to our hotel room, but my in-laws refused to tell them where we were staying. Finally, they stuffed our bags full of rose petals.

23) Where did you go on your Honeymoon?
New York City!! Neither one of us had been and we decided that that was where we wanted to go! We saw Phantom of the Opera and Wicked on Broadway, both of which seemed like impossible dreams! Steven even took me down to Bloomingdale's to go shopping (yay!). We also went on a harbor cruise and down to see where the World Trade Center once stood. Then we went to Canal street and bought a black market fake Gucci... just because we could. That was pretty exciting & super sketchy. It was SUCH a fun vacation and I can't wait to go back in a week to visit my sister!

24) What was your favorite part of your wedding day?
I loved having all of our friends and family there to celebrate with us.

25) How long have you been married?
3 years, 2 months.

26) Rings?
I have 3 round-cut stones with channel-set diamonds on each side. My wedding band has channel-set diamonds as well. I gave Steven a titanium "engagement ring" when he went to Japan because he wanted people to know that he was spoken for. He once told me that he wanted a white gold ring with a gold band down the middle, so I found it at James Avery and got it for him before the wedding. I surprised him at the altar with it. It's fun to watch that moment on the video.

27) Did the bride change her name?
Yes, of course!

28) Any anniversary traditions?
We have dinner at home and watch our wedding DVD.

29) Anything special about the day/time of year you were married?
We started dating in August, my birthday is in August, and we were married in August. Poor Steven... so many dates to remember!

This picture is the first picture taken of us as a "couple."

30) Words of wisdom?
Steven heard someone once say that the secret to a good marriage is to try to out-serve your spouse. Even though we forget that sometimes, I think it's absolutely true.

Alright all you married folks, let's hear your story!

My Growing Boy

Here is a side-by-side comparison of Jackson in his car seat 3 months ago (on his way to the American Embassy for his passport) and this Wednesday. I can't believe how quickly he's grown!

How Cool is THAT?

After 2 months of visiting and praying, Steven and I joined a church this weekend! We decided to become members of FUMC Allen, which is about 15 minutes from our apartment and in the area we see ourselves eventually settling down. It's actually the first church we checked out! We decided to give it a shot because one of the pastors from the church I attended as a child is the Senior Pastor of this church. That was what got us in the door, but we decided to stay because everyone is so friendly and genuine. People are welcoming, encouraging, and we love looking forward to going to church on Sunday! Steven is not a Methodist (I am), but he has been so great and open to learning and accepting a different theology from what he was raised with. To comprimise, we go to the contemporary worship service, because that's the type of worship that he really connects with. I love traditional hymns, but it feels good to know that we can find a church where we can both feel comfortable. We have found another couple to visit Sunday School classes with, so that's next on the agenda - find a small group! Our church (isn't it great to be able to say that?) believes in "worship +2" which means going to worship on Sunday, finding a small group (1) , and serving the church (2). Once we find our small group, we're going to move on to finding a group to serve. I'm always drawn to children, and I feel like I could serve any age group. I'm inclined to volunteer for the Youth Group (duh!), but we'll see how it shakes out.

So, the subject line of this post is "How Cool is THAT?" and all this is building up to something really cool. We took a new members class before joining the church. It was 4 weeks long and there were about 6-7 couples who took the class with us. We all decided to join the church (yay!) and wanted to join together with the other class members who went to our service. We joined with another couple in their 70s-80s. This is the cool part. In our class, there was a lot of discussion about Baptism, especially because Steven and several other class members were raised Baptist. Right after we became members of the church, the pastor said that there was going to be a Baptism as well. I looked around to see what child was there to be baptized, and I realized that the husband of the other couple was the one being baptized! He is over 80 years old and just this Sunday was Baptized for the first time! I was amazed and so grateful. From talking to them through the course of our class, I know that God has used this church to work in their lives and has spoken to them through several sermons. It is so easy to go through life puttimg things off to the point that they disappear, but this Sunday I really felt God saying "it is never too late to receive my love and grace." How cool is THAT?!

Yummy Recipes!

Last week I made some M&M cookies that Steven has dubbed as "the best cookies you've ever made." That same day I also made a pasta dish that we thought was awesome! I thought I'd share these recipes:

Tomato Basil Pasta Sauce with Shrimp
(taken from a box of La Piana Mezzaluna Pasta & slightly modified)
serves 4

Ingredients:
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 onion, coarsely chopped
24 oz fresh cherry tomatoes, cut into quarters
12 fresh basil leaves, cut into strips
Salt and pepper to taste
1 pound of cooked shrimp (I cut the tails off ahead of time)
Mozzarella cheese
4 cups (uncooked) of your favorite pasta, prepared

Directions:
Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and saute the garlic and the onion until lightly golden in color. Pour in the chopped cherry tomatoes, add the basil, and stir well. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, for about 15 minutes, or until the sauce is fairly thick. Last 5 minutes, add the cooked shrimp.
Serve over your favorite pasta!

It was so yummy and Steven and I both agreed that using FRESH ingredients made this dish even better. The only exception was that I used pre-chopped garlic. I also added more basil than the recipe calls for, because I love basil. We halved the recipe.

Here is the recipe for Steven's favorite cookies:

Steven's Favorite M&M Cookies
(taken from the internet)
makes approx. 36

Ingredients:
1 cup shortening (I used butter-flavored Crisco)
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla (I always add a little extra vanilla to my recipes)
2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups plain M&Ms
1/4 cup chocolate chips (I used the minis)

Directions:
Combine shortening, sugars, and vanilla. Sift flour, baking soda, and salt and add to creamed mixture. Mix well. Stir in M&Ms and chocolate chips. Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes.


Yum! Enjoy!

Rhyme Time

Last week Jackson and I took a trip to the library for Rhyme Time! This program is offered for "pre-walkers" at one of the Plano Libraries every day, Monday - Friday. We chose to go on Wednesday morning and had lots of fun! First they opened with some songs that we sang together with the other Moms & their kids, then the leader read a story. She had a bear and a baby doll to hold in her lap (like we were holding our babies) and even brought out a spider puppet when we sang "The Very Friendly Spider." After the story, we sang more songs and danced around with each other. After the last story, it was time to go. The picture is Jackson listening to the last story; he was getting a little tuckered out from all the fun! I was very proud of him though, because he looked like the youngest baby there and he hung in like a champ! Our favorite song was to the tune of "Here we go loopdy loo" and it goes:

Here we go up, up, up.
Here we go down, down, down.
Here we go back and forth.
Here we go round and round.

Jackson loves the motions and he always grins when we sing the song for him. They printed off a copy of the songs and poems we read, so Steven and I have been practicing with Jackson for this Wednesday. Last week there were a lot of people there; probably 20-30 baby & parent couples. When we walked in, the chairs were arranged in a circle, so I thought that the leader would be in the middle, so I took a seat. She was actually at the front and we ended up being in the back, so this week we'll have to make sure we get a seat on the floor. This week Steven is taking the day off from work to join us. We're going to Rhyme Time first, then a picnic at the memorial park across the street, and then we're taking a field trip to The Science Place! We're really excited to have a family day with Daddy!

Here's a picture of Jackson and Mortimer (his moose) passed out in the car after Rhyme Time. Who knew rhyming could be SO exhausting?

Shhhhoooo!

In case you're wondering, that is the sound of me trying to slow down. Wow! We have been going non-stop lately. As in, I can't even stop to blog about it (which, my mother-in-law tells me, makes this blog BORING, but I promise, life has NOT been!).

I have a long list of blogs I need to write, but I'll start with Valentine's Day. When I was in college and over in Japan I got hooked on the Shopaholic series (please, take a WILD guess as to why I would love a book by that name). I love the main character, Becky Bloomwood (and later Becky Brandon) because she is so blissfully delusional and it makes me feel a tiny bit better about my own shortcomings. Anyways, when I heard that the author, Sophie Kinsella, had made a movie deal I was beside myself with anticipation. I have been waiting to see this movie for over a year! Too bad for Steven, it came out Valentine's Day weekend, so I informed him that he would be taking me to see it. Now, I realized ahead of time that the movie would not be as good as the books, so I decided that I would just settle for seeing Becky's character come to life on screen. Good thing too, because the movie plot was VERY different from the books. The most obvious difference is that the main character is British and the first book takes place there, not in New York City. There are too many differences to cite them all, but Isla Fisher NAILED Becky's personality. I loved it. I always imagined her as this very flighty, charming, slightly delusional girl and they had her spot on. Her best friend and roommate, Suze, was PERFECT as well. Very sweet, trusting, and sisterly to Becky. Anyways, the movie, though different from the book, left me in high spirits and I've already asked Steven to take me again. Luckily, Isla Fisher has great talent for physical humor, which is Steven's favorite, so even he laughed a few times (only a few though... he would never enjoy a CHICK FLICK! yuk. ;) hehe).

After the movie, which started at 2:00, we went to have an early dinner at Brio, an Italian restaurant in Allen. It was yum! And since we arrived at 4:30, we got a table immediately. It was a great plan because when we left at 6:00, the restaurant was so backed up that there wasn't even room in the parking lot! Then I came home to a dozen pink roses that Steven had ordered for me. It was a wonderful Valentine's Day with my loving husband. And Jackson had a date with his grandma Scott.

Well, that's one blog off my list! Yay! I still have 5 topics in my "queue," and Jackson's been having longer naps lately, so hopefully I will get to them this week.

University of North Texas

Steven was accepted to UNT's pre-med program a couple weeks ago and I could not be more proud! They have accepted ALL of his Navy college credits, including 50 hours of engineering, and most of his credits from Collin County Community College ("Quad-C"). Which means he'll be entering as a Junior!! Even though he'll probably still have at least 2-3 years of coursework left, he'll get to register for the freshman classes before any of the incoming freshmen. UNT also offers a program that allows the student to apply to med school early and take the last year of pre-med and first year of med school at the same time. Anyways, I am SUPER PROUD of Steven and I know he'll do an excellent job going back to school.

Since we live so far from the school, this means we'll probably be moving again when our lease is up. I'm excited about it because, let's face it, I like new things. I think it's so fun to go online and pour over houses or apartments or jewelry or baby items for hours and hours, even if I'll never buy it. I usually make sure to bookmark my choices... "Just in case." To find the apartment we have now, I spent the time I took off from work before Jackson was born to narrow it down to 18 (!!!) apartment complexes in the area. I mapped them on Google Maps with Steven's Office and both of our parents' houses, and we hashed out our top 5. Of those, we visited 3, but loved the first place so much, we decided to forget the rest of the list. Lucky thing too, because the rent on our apartment went up the next day (after we signed the contract - yay!). Now I'm looking for an apartment between Steven's office & the school (he'll be juggling both - yeow!), but not too close to the school because we don't want to try to put Jackson to bed with a raging keggar in the next room. I'm actually leaning towards a house, but our lease isn't up until January 2009, so we have plenty of time to worry about that. For now, it's time to focus on THIS apartment because our household goods come tomorrow. YAY!!!