I've got a lovely bunch of coconuts...

Well, my summer is quickly cranking along. Steve and I have been doing more house shopping. We made an offer on a place last week, but it went under contract the day before we could get to it. I looked at several more today and we've found a few that we're going to try for. Definitely exciting times.

We were also able to spend the weekend at one of my favorite places in the whole world, Panguitch Lake. I've been going to the lake every summer for about 15 years now, so it was really special to be able to take Steve this year. He got to meet my whole crazy family, experience playing with the kids (he was awesome, and my little cousins LOVED him!), and experience some of the best fishing ever. We were only able to fish Monday morning cause we didn't arrive til late Saturday night, but we had some good times on the boat with my brother Zach and his best friend Kellen. We sang some songs for the fish (I swear they like it and we catch more), gave tributes to Bill and Shirley (the God of Panguitch lake and Poseiden's brother, and the fickle Goddess of the Panguitch winds), and lost some pop-gear. All in all a good morning's fishin'. Also, on Sunday my awesome little brother was ordained as an Elder at the Panguitch Lake Branch. It was a great experience for all involved, and we were drafted by the branch president to, as a family, give the whole Father's Day sacrament meeting next year. I guess it's a good thing we've got some talent.

We also got our engagment pictures done last weekend. I recieved the proofs today and they look pretty good. Some are better than others, but there's definitely some useable ones. Steve, of course, hates them and says he looks forced. I think he looks as handsome as ever. If you're interested you can check them out here: http://www.visualimprint.com/annicka. Please, let me know which ones you like best. I won't be able to decide on my own. Also, we're quickly getting close to the time where I'll send out announcements, so if you would like one and you haven't yet sent me your address, please do so.

Oh, and I decided to go without a veil. I found a really beautiful (okay, 4 really beautiful) brooches on ebay that will be easy to convert to hair clips. I happened to win all of my auctions, so I may use the extra brooches to make some hair clips for my awesome bridesmaids. Other than that nothing new is going on. Just trekking through one day at a time. Hope everyone else is doing well and having a fantastically rainy June.

To Veil or Not to Veil...

Alright, fair readers, the time has come for your input on my wedding (via my blog). I've been having a bit of stress lately deciding on what to do with my hair. Part of me wants to be a bit more traditional and do the classic updo with a veil. And then there's a part of me that wants to nix the veil and put a cute accessory in my hair.

Now, for the veiled side of the argument:

I have great hair for an updo... longish, dark, and naturally curly. My grandma would be making my veil for me, which would be a nice thing to pass on as a family heirloom someday. If I choose a veil I'd like for it to look something like this:

Medium length, two layers, pearl studded, and on a comb. I'd do my hair up in a higher style and attach the veil underneath. Very simple.

And for the naked side of things:

If I decide to go sans veil things will be quite a bit different, I realize that this style is much more contemporary, casual, and less traditional. I'd do my hair in a simpler style, it'd still be up, but it'd be more on the nape of my neck and less elaborate. I'd also accessorize with some sort of flower, comb, or combination of the two like these:

So, please, give me your input, ideas, suggestions, or just plain commentary. I look forward to hearing from you!

Where do liars go?

I'm too A.D.D. for long car rides. I need tos tart packing myself an activities bag anytime I take one and I'm not driving. (Note to self: buy some coloring books, crayons, books on cd, etc)

Steve and I took our first real "road trip" together this past weekend. A friend of his got married in Idaho Falls on Saturday, so we hopped in the car and drove the 3.5 hours to get there. He drove, I controlled the iPod and talked his ear off about stupid stuff. We got to the wedding, jumped out of the car, and promptly realized that we didn't have jackets... and it was cold. So, we ate some meat off the pig they'd roasted, hugged the bride, shook hands with the groom, shivered our way through the wedding video, and turned around and got back in the car.

A few points of interest about Idaho: We waved to the families of Toffer and Cy as we drove through Pocatello. We decided never to live in Idaho, but we will someday return to explore the wonders that are to behold at the Blackfoot Potato Museum. A whole museum dedicated to my favorite food, what could be better?!

Anyway, we decided to stay the night in Smithfield with Steve's best friend Jared, and his wife Brittany. We made the trek back by way of Preston (quite the detour, let me tell you), but got to see Jared's new store there. It's very cool and I recommend checking it out if you're ever in Preston. It's a new/used/scratch & dent store right next to the DI. I was gifted with the best dish scrubbers EVER, we checked out Jared's piles of junk still needing to be sorted, and then we jumped back in the car for more driving fun. We arrived safely at the lovely Jorgensen trailer-home, and got comfy for the night. After kicking everyone's trash at Skip-bo I decided I was ready to crash. So, we turned in for the night with high hopes for small town church the next day.

Sunday dawned a lovely morning... except for the fact that the air mattress I was asleep on had deflated in the night and I was now lying on the hard cold floor with achey hips. Not to worry, however, because my lovely fiance soon came in to wake me up because it was time for breakfast. Since Brittany is pregnant she can't fast and was kind enough to make breakfast for the whole clan of us. There's always next Sunday to fast, right?

A short while later we attended the Smithfield first ward and I got to go to Primary with Brittany. It was a joyous experience all around. I love small town church! We heard some random testimonies in sacrament meeting, and then returned to the lovely Jorgie abode for some dinner.

All in all it was a lovely weekend and great to spend so much time with Steve. We're headed on many more adventures in the next few weeks, so I'm sure I'll have more stories to follow!