P.S., Bring some tissues

Well hello there. I know, it's been too long & we hate to keep everyone waiting for the word on the latest & greatest. Let's just say, we've been busy. And it's mostly unplanned or spontaneous stuff keeping us busy. And as you might have guessed, it's wedding stuff keeping us busy. It's still going good & really all we're doing is counting down the days, but with all of our final balances due these next 2 weeks we're trying to keep an eye on the budget. Therefore, sometimes good times & entertainment take a back seat in an effort to remain in the black. This can get frustrating & cause us to feel like the wedding is looming over us & everything we do; like an evil bill collector, telling us we owe him money & if we go out & spend on something other than the wedding, tsk...tsk....shame on us. Did I lose you on that one? In summary, we're looking forward to getting to the wedding, going on the honeymoon, & then settling into life where we can try to live as normal as possible. But let's face it, with the paparazzi chasing us every time we step out the door, how can we make a move to "normal"?

Anywho, we had a nice couple of dinners out this weekend & rented a couple movies at this really exclusive movie rental place called "Blockbuster". You should try it, they have a ton of movies. Anyway, we rented a couple of movies which might be labled "chick flicks" (I know because the helpful Blockbuster employee helping us commented on how both movies were chick flicks), the second of which was P.S. I Love You. IT really was a heartbreaker. I know Kate cried here & there, & my eyes got a little misty at times. In extremely brief summary, it's about a woman who looses her husband at a very young age & she keeps having memories of him. I don't think that the single version of myself would have gotten very sad during this movie. However, now that I'm aproaching marriage with the woman I love more than anything, it's easier to relate to tales such as this & it's sad to think of going through something like that. Not just sad, but unbearably sad & a trajedy, which I pray Kate nor I ever have to go through. Whenever you have someone in your life you love more than anything, it's easy to relate to stories of people in similar situations, & easier to see how difficult some of their sad times can be & how wonderful some of their happy times can be. So if you're in a relationship & ever want a good cry, try this movie. It'll make you think a bit, & apreciate what (who) you have.

Thanks for tuning in. We truely are in the final countdown to the BIG DAY. 20 days from today. I love Kate. Everyone out there, be safe & take it easy.

--Josh

In the blink of an eye

The title of this blog is in reference to two things: 1) how fast the weekends ALWAYS go, & 2) how quickly our wedding date is approaching. We visited Austin again this weekend (I think that's 3 visits in 6 weeks?) for Kate's bridal shower & to allow my folks to meet her folks. The bridal shower Saturday afternoon went lovely; I got to meet several of Kate's friends I hadn't met & many nice people got us some items off of our registry. Al in all it was a great afternoon. My mom & G-ma even made it down from C-town to meet Kate's mom & sister.

Saturday night we had dinner with my dad, & he got to meet her folks. In Austin this weekend they had a big motorcycle rally, so after dinner we walked down 6th Street amongst bikers of all sizes, shapes, & colors. It was an adventure out of the norm for us Planonians, but a lot of fun. Today was Father's Day & I went on a run with my dad early this morning at Town Lake, then to breakfast. Kate & I endured retarded idiot drivers on I 35 this afternoon on the drive back home. Seriously, there were some brain-dead people out there on the road who cause traffic to suck most of the way back. It was frustrating, but we eventually got home & unloaded, glad to be back. Also, we won't need to make another trip to Austin (or any other long drive) until the wedding. Speaking of, we're quickly approaching 1-month away status. Luckily, we have everything done & it will be a month of relaxation (Kate's opinion may differ). Oh, also today we visited the Garden Ridge in Austin & finally found suitable, matching effen picture frames we'd been searching for. Aatttt, Laaaaaast!

Thanks for tuning in. I'm tired & ready to go to sleep. Also ready for next weekend already!

--Josh

rawwrrrrr!

As the big day draws near, I become more like this poor little, innocent dinosaur thing.

Ya know, its really funny because I was watching this show on We, "Bridezillas", and I started getting really tense and my mood changed drastically.

Who would've ever guessed that me, little ole me, would become a bridezilla? :)

Love, Katezilla

I was framed!!!

Hello faithful readers. I hope everyone is well. First of all, I know the title of this post looks bad, but I have done nothing wrong. It's only regarding the shopping we did yesterday......for picture frames. We're going to have several pictures of various sizes on display at our wedding reception, & so yesterday we braved the crowds & astronomical gas prices in search of suitable frames in the decided dimensions. One might think this would be an easy task, but to those I would say "step inside Garden Ridge to view the jumbled mess that is their frame section." Needless to say, 2 hours later Kate & emerged with a few great looking frames bought & a few others as possibilities. We also left with an excellent stand to be used in the sand ceremony during our wedding, then later on our patio. Very nice, indeed!

Later on in the day we attended the Rough Riders baseball game as guests (& a valued employee, I'm sure) of my company. I had won these tickets in a company-wide raffle, as they raffle the tickets quite often. These "Founders Club" tickets allowed us free parking, entry, food, & drink at the ballpark. Awesome!! We first sampled the BBQ & enjoyed a few beers (You ask me, Josh, what's up with the beer? I know, I know. But, it's not that bad). After the BBQ it was time for the first pitch, so we made our way to our VIP seats. Around the end of he 1st inning (maybe 2nd) we decided to try out another food & beverage area we were privy to. This one served burgers, hot dogs, & cervesas. Right up my ally. Follow the trend set, & my lovely fiance & I had a wonderful evening at the game.

We've been as busy as ever & it seems like we will continue to keep ourselves busy until it's time to leave for the honeymoon. That, thankfully, is only about 40 days away! Until next time, everyone take care!

--Josh

It's June!!!

Well hello there, June. Where did you come from? Sorry for the stupid start to this blog, but I'd like to welcome everyone back after being away so long. We have been delinquent in our postings. However, never fear! Not much new has been going on with us.

I was happy to just hear on the news today that it appears Hillary Clinton (Satan) will not be the Democratic nominee for President. We'll still have to deal with Obama, but if he can somehow get gas prices down, even a bit, ok. So in memory of Hillary's campaign, the picture. My apologigies for scaring everyone with the image of evil.

So what have we been up to? More of the same. We went to Austin this past weekend to meet with our wedding coordinator for our "detailed meeting". I left the meeting feeling very good about everything we have in place & all the work we've done in planning, & that our wedding will be just as we want it. We also had a good time hanging out with Kate's family & some of her friends.

But, not much is new, overall. Just thought I'd check in with everyone to let you know we're still here. We love our fans!

--Josh

We need more of these

Finally! Memorial Day weekend is here & we have a 3-day weekend! For me, & my company, I think the last 3-day weekend we had was.........New Year's Day. So, I'm due for a paid holiday. Kate & I have been so busy almost every weekend since March, & will continue to be busy, so we specifically planned to stay home & do nothing this weekend. Just RELAX. The only thing on our agenda was to go up to Matt & Haley's (Matt is old co-worker from EmCare) on Saturday. They were having people over for Matt's birthday, Monday. Other than that, we're chillin. And it feels good.

3-day weekends should be more common. The government should mandate that one weekend every month is a 3-day weekend, & all companies must comply. It'll never happen, but it's wishful thinking. So, we'll enjoy this one while we can. Gotta run. If you need us, you can find us either on the couch or by the pool.

--Josh

follow-up by Kate

I don't know if I will ever be able to top Josh's post, but I'll take a stab at it. This is the first picture of Josh & I on May 18, 2007.

Yesterday, as we were driving home from Austin, Josh and I were laughing that we were spending our 1 year anniversary in the car with a high-five. My first reaction was to get kind of bitter and mad, but as I think about it I think it was the perfect way for us to spend the day. We've been so busy the last 2 months, planning a wedding, working and staying in shape that I almost feel like we've forgotten to talk. On the drive home we were singing, dancing, laughing and most importantly talking. So, hun, I'm really happy with the way we spent the day (plus, the pizza was yummy last night!!).

Because it has been a year, I want to list the Top 10 Reason Why I Love Josh:
10) he scratches my back at night
9) he cooks dinner
8) he's generous
7) he's selfless - I can't think of a single time Josh has put him/his feelings before mine. I try to reciprocate the gesture, but fall miserably short.
6) he's motivated
5) he motivates me
4) he's grounded & responsible, yet wildly ambitious
3) he supports me 110%
2) he makes me laugh
1) he loves me

All of the reasons, plus more, are why I can't wait to marry Joshua David Sokolewicz, the love of my life!

I love you! Thanks for a great year, babe!