almost 3 years

3 years ago today John and I were finally able to be together after not seeing each other for over 4 months. We were finally in the same time zone, same state, same city, same car. It was wonderful.

(photo from the rehearsal dinner - we both needed sleep!)

3 years ago today we were not only finally together, we were finally alone and on our way to our last pre-marital counseling session with our pastor (and the only one that happened in person). The next stop of the day was to get our marriage license. We were sorely tempted to pay the extra $25 and get married then and there - so that we could not only be together but be man and wife just a few days early. But we waited.

It was so good to finally feel each other's touch again, see each other's face ... four and a half months apart just before a wedding is really, really rough. But our God was so faithful.

Our love story is just riddled with bits and pieces of the faithfulness of God, so much so that we asked a friend to sing "Great Is Thy Faithfulness" (using Fernando Ortega's new score) as part of the music for our wedding.


Great is thy faithfulness, O God my father
There is no shadow of turning with Thee
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not
As Thou hast been, Thou for ever will be

Great is thy faithfulness
Great is thy faithfulness
Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed thy hand hath provided
Great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me

Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To thy great faithfulness, mercy and love

Great is thy faithfulness
Great is thy faithfulness
Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed thy hand hath provided
Great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me
Great is thy faithfulness

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside

Great is thy faithfulness
Great is thy faithfulness
All I have needed thy hand hath provided
Great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me

And you know what? He hasn't changed, He is still faithful.
We've had a very good three years. Interesting, exciting, sometimes trying and sometimes overflowing with joy - but it has been good.
Right now we are in a place that I truly never expected - or dreamed - to be in, but He is faithful. Would I change our current circumstances? In a heartbeat! But then we wouldn't be in the prime place for us to see the greatness of God's faithfulness.

Darling, I love you. I'm so very glad that I am yours and you are mine. You make every day brighter, hearing your voice lifts my heart, and seeing your face ... is wonderful!
I don't know that I'd recommend any other couple taking the path that God has led us on together, but Darling, it's been so good going down it with you.

2 years ago

we were madly running errands, rehearsing, and celebrating because on the next day
we
were
getting
married.


what a difference two years makes!

wedding road trip

A close friend got married in Michigan last weekend, and, since John was unable to go to the wedding, his mom (VERY graciously - thank you!!!!) offered to drive with me and Emma.
So, here are a few pictures from the weekend:

must start with these. of course. because there is an adorable baby in them. and a handsome brother-in-law. and it was the start of the trip.

John drove halfway to Indianapolis and Evan drove halfway to Cincinnati. We met at McD's (which happens to sell a fair iced mocha).

bonding time with Grandpa S.


more brothers-in-law, making sure the van was ready (i.e. pretending to drive)

the bride's family hosted a picnic for all the out of town friends and family on Friday night

a few extra hands on deck never hurts when it comes to getting ready for a wedding! Bobbie Sue had just finished curling and pinning up 12 other heads, and was running low on time ...

all those years of arranging flowers from the yard came in to play here (I stole the pic off of Facebook)

Alanna and her dad

exchanging rings

the ring bearer and flower girls stole the show at the end

so precociously cute

catching up, so much to say and yet so little time

announcing Mr. and Mrs. Jim Soderna

Becca meeting Emma (Emma likes her)

various Romania alumni

the lovely and much adored Stefana "Mama" Copu finally got to meet our Em

Saturday's shopping trip with Leah

Saturday's shopping trip with Leah, originally uploaded by Lizi Beth.

Brian's fiancee - my future sister-in-law, how great is that! - and her mom and sisters, as well as Teri and Sarah, came over on Saturday. We all went dress shopping together ......... and had a wonderful time.
Thank you all for coming! It was so good to see you and spend the day together. (heart)

wedding pictures!

wedding pics

links to wedding pictures

2008-04-12 Our Wedding

little happenings

Three weeks from right now I will be sitting in the back room of a church, waiting for my wedding to begin and counting down the minutes until I become John Smillie's wife. Forever. Three weeks.
In the meantime there are a veritable ton of things that probably should be done, but most of them are non-essential.
All of those things are non-essential when I stop to think about what life will look like in, say, 4 1/2 weeks. It helps me put it all in perspective when I remember that soon, very soon, it will be all over and I will be his wife, unpacking our boxes and washing our laundry. In the meantime I miss him terribly. Even with all the bustle of seeing friends and busyness of getting things ready, I am lonely. But, in 2 1/2 weeks he will be here, and the hours until the ceremony will fly past. They are flying now, which means I need to get the next thing done (the lining for the skirt of Anna's dress, I think .... ).

flower girls

an afternoon with my sister

We did errands, and found the perfect sweaters for the flowers girls!

I bought the sheet music for a song for the wedding: Great Is Thy Faithfulness. The version John and I chose is by Fernando Ortega. He completely rewrote the music, but kept all the lyrics the same. It is so lovely!

Then we got our makeup done

and did some preliminary price checking on paper goods for the wedding.

There were several other errands in the midst of all that, so we had a long, yet wonderful day together.

getting ready - 45 days to go!

-for all who have asked to see the rings-



- and mine, too -

quote to ponder

Every wedding gives birth to a new history, a new beginning. The spiritual meaning of marriage is found in maintaining that history together.
...
Becoming one - in the deepest, most intimate sense - takes time. It's a journey that never really ends.
- Gary Thomas, Sacred Marriage, chapter VII

invitations

they have all been mailed!

before i go to sleep ....

Tonight I realized that there are seven weeks left until the wedding. Seven. Oh. My. SEVEN!!!!!!

wedding updates

Oh, wedding preparations here are going well.
Very well.
There have been tears along the way, but, my goodness, when you put two (or more) very opinionated women together, tears happen. It's not as if any of the females in this household lack an opinion, or the conviction that their's is the correct one! We are learning grace, as well as laughter.

In other news, I have another bridal gown. Why? Because the seamstress altered the other one. More than I realized she was going to. In ways that I can't fix. Number Two is gorgeous. Gorgeous-er than Number One. It will be stunning. Mom asked me what I thought my Darling John will say about, and I replied, "He won't be able to say anything." That gorgeous. Oh, yes!
A friend from church has offered to help make it fit absolutely perfectly (it's already pretty close).

John and I are getting a bit antsy. He told me, "49 more days until I fly out there." 49 days. Seems as if those days are dragging by at a snail's pace, but moving they are.

marriage is a very special thing ....

"There is nothing nobler or more admirable than when two people who see eye to eye keep house as man and wife, confounding their enemies and delighting their friends." ~Homer

little things

I finished embroidering the flower girl dresses today. They turned out so sweet and adorable!

nesting

John is moving into an apartment this weekend. I so want to be with him. I want to help him move in, hang the drapes, wash the windows, put the dishes in the cupboard and find just the right place for the lamp.
But I can't.
So, in the mean time, I am working on the wedding.

-an idea for centerpieces-

Trying to find a balance between it all (meaning family-life, friends, church, wedding ....). And trying to remember that God has put me in this place, with all my longings, desires and frustrations, that I might learn of Him.

new shoes!

Oh, the joy of a perfect pair of shoes! It cannot be tempered, not even by their price ...

today

"Can you die of happiness?"
- Jane to Elizabeth, Pride and Prejudice

they're here!!!!!!!!!

The invitations came today!!!! All 21 pounds of them.


The company was so great - they even put the packing slip in its own envelope.

now, to start addressing ..........