***Photo by Red Apple Tree Photography 

and edit completed by me using Over and a beautiful mess apps.

I honestly can’t believe we are only TEN days away from the wedding day. It’s so bizarre. The time has literally faded by in the easiest way and I am thankful for that! We still have a list of things to do but I’m trying to stay calm and know in my heart everything will be completed in time. I’m trying to remember that all the work we have put in for this day isn’t for the day alone. It is for our memories and all the people that will be there to celebrate with us. We want this day to be magical and fantastic but we know it’s not just about the day. Like I have said many times, at the end of the day I will be married to my best friend and that is the most wonderful part!

A couple nights ago I was driving home and listening to our first dance song. Sitting at a red light I closed my eyes and imagined that dance. Blinking my eyes and trying to keep the tears held back I thought about how Peter will lead me around the dance floor while so many people watch us. I started to pray that our life will be that way also. That he will lead me with a gentle love and everyone will see and acknowledge that his act of leadership is done with affection and kindness. I remember the first time he played the song for me and my heart wanted to explode because of how perfect it was. I can’t wait for that moment when we are able to dance as husband and wife to such a sweet song. Ten days… that’s all I have left! I cannot believe it and I feel that I may burst! 

Dining Room Re-Do // Part Three

As mentioned on the Part Two post about the Dining Room, the pencil fan had to go so we have finally put him to rest { AKA, in the middle of the floor in the study } and I was very happy to see farewell.  I have had my eye on a chandelier from Home Depot for a while now and with the low clearance price we couldn't resist. Or I kindly reminded Peter long enough for a trip to go pick it up.... Either way, its up and working and I'm a happy lady. 

^^^ a man that reads directions.... be still my heart! 

The project took a little bit longer than expected but with the help of some friends the new lighting was completed. And of course we celebrated with pizza and beer... What else are you supposed to do when you successfully hang your first chandelier in your first house??? Yes, pizza & beer it is! 

& speaking of beer, earlier this week Peter and I sat at the dining room table with our friend and videographer for our wedding. It was so wonderful  to take a few beer glasses from our kitchen cabinet and pour some of Peter's home brewed beer for our meeting. For the first time it felt like ours. 

Our glasses. Our dining room. Our home. It really was so awesome and I have a sneaky feeling that this pretty blue room is going to be one of my favorites! 

Thirty-one Days!

I can’t believe that one month from today I will be walking down the isle to a super handsome man that will be all mine. I get butterflies in my stomach when I think about it. The past five years with Peter have been full. I can’t think of a word that fits it perfectly because there were so many emotions involved but one thing I know for sure is that the last 1,869 days (yes, I figured out the exact number!) have most definitely been full. Personally I think full is a good thing.

Full //

1. containing or holding as much or as many as possible; having no empty space.

2. not lacking or omitting anything; complete.

Yes, full is the perfect word to describe the past five years, 1 month & 12 days. I honestly believe that we all don’t have “the one” out there in the world. We have a lot of options and different people we can connect with but when I met Peter I chose him. I continued to choose him through all the ups and downs and I am choosing him now. When I walk into that church on September 28th I will be choosing him again. And with the vows I say in front of all our family and friends I will be promising to always choose him and with those words he will be my One forever and always.

In just 31 days he will become my forever soulmate. My one. My husband and my best friend & that makes me extremely happy. Full of happiness and thankfulness indeed! So, so full!! 

ps // photo credits go to Red Apple Tree and the edit was completed by me using the Over app. 

Last but not least

On Saturday night I had my last bridal shower thanks to my future hubby’s family! It was wonderful to celebrate with some people that I don’t normally see that often. Peter was with me for this shower just like the last and it was a lot of fun! After a feast of delicious Arabic food and a lot of talking and mingling we sat down to open all of our gifts and then obviously we stuffed our tummies even more with deserts. I’m so excited about joining this family and it’s not just because of my love for Arabic food. That is a huge plus though, not going to lie about that.

Mmm, so much sweetness!! From that man and his family to all the desserts. Seriously, that was one delicious cake... strawberry cake + cheese cake, oh my! 

Just because....

......he makes weekends more fun.

After over a week of this guy being away for work I was very excited to spend some quality time with him over the weekend. But… I was not that excited about the list of things we needed to complete over the weekend. I figured the weekend would be an annoying one when all I wanted to do was just sit and relax with Peter but that wasn’t the case.

From Friday night all the way to Sunday night we were non stop. Dinner plans, shopping for the carpet for our living room, shopping for wedding bands in a super busy mall, painting our bedroom furniture while he was staining the kitchen floors, cutting up the massive tree that fell in the back yard… it was a busy weekend. A weekend that I honestly thought would be draining and frustrating but the exact opposite happened.

Spending the weekend working on all of those not so fun tasks with a very fun future husband was exactly what I needed. It’s nice to realize that he can make anything fun. With his silly way of making me laugh and the way he makes me feel loved in the simplest ways makes me super grateful. The lack of stress in my life during the very stressful season is such a gift from the Lord and I never want to forget these moments. The laughing and fun that I'm having with my fiancé while we prepare to become husband and wife will always be one of my favorite parts about us.
I love you Mr. Eliya & I can’t wait to be your Mrs.

fun sunday nights!

Last week at work I was lucky enough to receive a few tickets to the final show of Jersey Boys at the Peace Center in downtown Greenville. I didn’t really know what to expect for the show but I heard nothing but great things about it. Plus, since my date for the show is technically a Jersey Boy I thought it seemed like a perfect date night! So on Sunday night, Peter and I + our sweet friends, Katie and Cody met up downtown for a drink and some food at Chicora Alley before the show and since we had a little extra time we squeezed in a some coffee and yogurt at Spill the Beans!  The last minute double date night was wonderful and the show was so awesome. It was a perfect way to end the weekend!!

Five years.

Five years ago today I went on my first date with my future husband. Thinking back on that night I can’t help but laugh to myself. I honestly never dreamed I would marry that man. Of course the more I got to know Peter I had my hopes and dreams about our future together but I didn't think I could “catch him” and in a strange way I guess I couldn't.

My thought process on dating and relationships has changed so much over the past five years. To begin with, my focus was not on the Lord at all. I put most of my energy into myself and what I wanted at the time instead of striving for a closer relationship to God. Yes, I went to church on Sunday mornings when I forced myself to get out of bed after a late Saturday night but that was about it. My heart wasn't in the right place. 

I guess that’s why I can’t help but laugh a little bit when I think about how much as changed. How much HE as changed me. How I finally “let” Him change my little world around. Of course life isn't perfect and there will always be room for improvement but I do know that He is sovereign and loving in every move He makes and I’m so thankful that I can look back and see that in my life. I can see the Lord so clearly in my relationship with Peter now and that is the most wonderful part about this season we are in. The way that we have "caught" each other within His guided path. 

Tonight we are celebrating our five year (kind of sorta) anniversary with our second marriage counseling meeting. I honestly can’t think of a better way to spend it and for that I am extremely thankful. I am really enjoying this time right now as we prepare to become husband and wife. It is such a happy season and I’m glad we can celebrate it together. 

and Peter... I'll let you buy me some sushi this weekend, you know, for old times sake. ;-)

4th of July and some other fun things...

Happy 4th of July errrybody!

I’m pretty excited about this year’s holiday! Last year was a little different.  I had to work and we did the whole fireworks and eat a lot of food downtown kind of thing which is always fun but its just not going to happen this year. I am once again working but not my 9-5 job. I’m working at my anytime I have time to actually do something at the house job which is a lot more fun. We have a lot of painting, sanding, cleaning, sanding, patching walls, and more sanding to complete before we can take a rest. I also have a feeling after a day of hard work the only thing I will want to do is shower, sit in my pajamas and have a cold beer while watching some Netflix. Don’t judge. It will be awesome. Plus, I’ve never been a huge fan of fireworks for some reason? Just for fun here are some more updates for the house......

 

I'll be honest... I didn't want to share my excitement too early in the planning stages since I was a little afraid it wouldn't happen. You never know what might come up and we weren't 100% sure removing part of the wall would actually work. My Uncle Larry was so kind to help during this whole process, from checking the structure of the house to finally tearing down some house!

We were hoping that we could do a half wall but thanks to some copper pipes from the second floor bathroom we were limited to only widening the door. The more I thought about it, I started to realize I liked that option even more. I think it will be nice to have the open flow from our kitchen to living room but still have a secluded area for our kitchen table.

^^^Thank God for technology... the only scale we had on hand was on Peter's iPhone. 

^^^lots of wires... I was so confused. Thankfully, they were not. 

^^^ Big open space to the kitchen now! 

^^^Peter has started filling in the part of the dry wall that was cut to check on the pipes and once the walls are wallpaper free and everything is smooth we can finally start panting our kitchen!

I know I sound like a broken record over here but I can't wait to live in this place!! I do feel super blessed that we aren't handling all of these changes while living in the house but it also feels a little bit like torture to not really call this place home yet. I know it will feel so surreal once that changes.

I also want to express my gratitude and thankfulness to my wonderful uncle that helped with this project. He was so sweet to take time out of his busy schedule last week to help us out.

We really are super thankful! 

New House Littles.

During this whole process of making our house a home I've realized there are a few little things that I want to remember forever. Those things that happen and make you smile but then they are gone and you simply forget them. I don't want that to happen. I want to hold on to these special moments because life moves so quickly. I want these little memories that have already filled our home to be just as special as all the big ones that will fill our future.... 

spending time with my maternal grandmother while painting the downstairs bathroom... while rolling those walls I tried my best to soak in every word that was spoken between the two of us because I know how special that time is // slow dancing with Peter in the kitchen on top of all the scraps of peeled wallpaper when John Legend's song Slow dance came on Pandora // standing at the sink washing out the paint from a paint brush and thinking about all the many dishes and pots and pans that will also be washed in that very spot and feeling a smile come across my face // listening to my mom and Peter laughing and talking in the kitchen while I'm painting in another room... i can't even begin to explain how happy it makes me that they like each other and have fun when they spend time together // letting go of my need to have control only to realize that the color Peter picked for the formal living room really is perfect

I mean, seriously... look at that smile. love this man so much! 

Kitchen Re-do // part two

Now that I have shared my inspiration {or pinspiration, ha! I'm a dork} on the Part One post I thought I'd share some of the results after the week of work on our kitchen! First of all let me say how amazing my Uncle is and I'm so glad that he does this for a living. I can't imagine anyone else doing the work on our first home. 

There are still some changes to be made but I will leave those little details for later. For right now this is our lovely kitchen and it is complete torture to not stop by every day and just stand and look at it. I will be so happy when we are husband and wife and I can spend all the time I want in this space. Anyways... enough blabbing. Here are a some of the before pictures, during pictures and the latest {almost} finished pictures! 

^^^shout out to the future hubs for sanding the butcher block

island and applying the mineral oil! 

ahhhh.... I love it so much. The to do list is starting to have some exciting check offs and let me tell ya, it feels good! 

uno, dos, tres....

On Saturday I had my third shower. Yes, my third. This might seem like a lot but when your friend at work asks to give you a shower you say thank you. And when your aunt and cousins ask to give you a shower you say thank you. And then when your three best friends and bridesmaids ask to give you a shower you say, "Can it be a Couple's Shower?!?" All of the showers have been so wonderful but I knew I wanted my man to be with me for this one. I'm so thankful for all the work that the five lovely women below put in for our Fiesta! I was blown away by all the details from the sugar rimmed sangria glasses (thanks Joc) to the fun games in the back yard. All the little details came together perfectly and it couldn't have been better.  

^^^ the beautiful and so sweet hostesses!!! I'm so thankful for these women!

^^^ making a hostess gift is my most favorite thing about having a shower... absolutely love it.

I also think I've found a new love for stamping! 

^^^ that time Peter almost killed a few people when he hit the pinata across the yard! 

^^^ With our Mama's! 

^^^ I mean, look at that face.... goodness, I love him!!! 

^^^ I think he is winking about my excitement for the yard gloves....?

^^^ a little dance action happened late in the night. Katie going old school with Bye Bye Bye and Jocie contemplating the next song choice. 

^^^ River Deep, Mountain High... gotta break out the Celine Dion. 

We had such a wonderful time with our friends and with all the laughing and celebrating I couldn't help but think about how much fun our wedding night will be. We are truly so blessed to have so many friends that are so freaking awesome. That's all I can really say about them. 

& I love them.