Category Archives: Administrative

Jan 03 0 comments
Administrative, Daily Life

A New Year, A New Purpose

It’s 2010 and I couldn’t happier. Many wonderful things happened in 2009 (married my best friend, and got pregnant) but it was a tough year (step-dad went through cancer treatment, my pay was cut and my hours increased). I’m looking forward to a new year. And though I am optimistic every year, I do feel that things are on the up swing (my step-father’s cancer is gone, my job is stable, and we are having a baby in June!) 2009, farewell, you were a year of change as promised.

I normally write a long post recapping my year; however, this year I’m going to let that previous paragraph stand as my recap. If you’ve come over from Living Juicy, welcome. This post is somewhat of a duplicate to announce my intentions to begin blogging about family on this site, which was originally designed to provide information about our wedding. For those who know this site from the wedding plans, hope you’ll keep reading as we change formats a bit. I will keep living juicy as a portfolio blog for those creative endeavors I’d like to show off.

This blog will undergo some design changes in the near future and the content will be updated more regularly. I will write about things that I cook (because I love to cook), and things that we do, and ways I am preparing to help this family expand. Does that sound interesting? If so, come along and don’t mind the mess as I rearrange and reconfigure both blogs to fit their new purpose. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season, now let’s get on with the new year!

Hiking on Christmas
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Chris and Syd hiking on Christmas day at Bowman Bay, near Deception Pass. Looking forward to the new year.

Apr 28 0 comments
Administrative

Wedding Photos Online

If you attended the wedding you may have noticed two busy women running around capturing our big day. Christine Tremoulet and Elaine Mesker-Garcia have both the creative vision and personality to enhance any wedding or big event. I can not say enough about how helpful they were during the event helping everyone keep their cool and finding inventive and amazing ways to photographically capture this important moment in our lives.

The photos they took are now online. To access them, visit ChristineTremoulet.com and select the “Clients” link on any page on the site. You must register to log into the gallery using your email address and personal password. The access code for the gallery is my maiden name.

If you want to order any of the photos you can easily do that from the proofing gallery. And, there is an early bird special in effect until May 8, 2009—any prints or other products ordered by that date will receive 15% off the order.

Mar 03 2 comments
Administrative

Five Weeks Out

Oh my goodness! 5 weeks until the big day. I am staying sane with lists and my trusty google calendar. All the invitations save the last 20 or so have been sent. I’ve even already got my first RSVP. I hope it is a sign that everyone will send in their RSVPs right away.

I’ve burned almost half of the music CD’s we are giving out as favors. The ceremony has been plotted. Chris has his utilikilt and boy he looks good in it!

We leave for Texas on Thursday. Chris is helping me drive down then flying back to Washington. I’ll spend the month of March finalizing, working and finishing up all that needs to be done before the wedding.

No news about my step-dad yet. They are still looking and he has not started treatment yet. He is feeling a bit better after his tonsillectomy and has even gone back into work. Did I mention how stubborn and strong he is?

Feb 26 2 comments
Administrative

Request for Prayers and Healing Thoughts

Johnny Ray, San Luis Pass 2007My step-father, Johnny Ray, has been diagnosed with an unknown primary tumor, possibly above the neck, resulting in metastatic squamous cancer cells in his lymph nodes.

It began about three weeks ago, when Johnny Ray went to his primary care doctor about a swollen lymph gland. His doctor referred him to an ear, nose and throat specialist who took a fluid sample from the gland and determined there were squamous cancer cells (not lymphoma) which based on his medical experience meant they originated from an organ above the neck.

They did a CT scan of his neck but did not get any information from the test. The doctor believed that the cancer tumor was most likely behind his tongue or tonsils. So they schedule a biopsy for those areas and took skin samples and his left tonsil. However, they found nothing in the biopsy, which was disappointing because the tonsillectomy was extremely painful for Johnny Ray.

He’s now been referred to an oncology radiologist and an oncologist at the Cancer Center in Houston. The doctors have said there are two paths of treatment:
1. Wait for the cancer source to show up and treat it.
2. Keep searching for it.

Obviously, we prefer the 2nd choice.

The onocology radiologist, Dr. Mark Bonnen, told my mother that one in 300,000 people have this kind of tumor, an unknown primary tumor. He feels that it is located above the neck and has schedule and PT scan for Friday, Feb. 27th and an MRI on Monday, March 2nd. Today, the insurance company denied Johnny Ray’s PT scan for 30 days. They want medical proof that it is necessary for the medical condition. It turns out that most insurance companies do this for this type procedure and Dr. Bonnen is writing a letter to help get it cleared. We are hoping it only pushes the PT scan back one week.

After the PT scan and the MRI, they will begin six weeks of daily radiation treatment on everything that is suspect above the neck, unless the find the source. We are praying that they find the source. The doctors have said he will feel the worst during last two weeks of treatment and three weeks after. Johnny Ray’s spirits are high though he is still suffering quite a bit from the tonsil removal.

I am asking everyone I know and everyone who is reading this to please send prayers, healing thoughts and strength to my family as we face this challenge head on. Johnny Ray is more than a step-father to me, his is one of my favorite people and I know he is stubborn and strong enough to over come this.

Feb 18 1 comments
Administrative

Wedding Site Updates

Big Sky Lonestar LogoHi Y’all. As you can see I’ve been doing some polishing on the site. The logo has been tweaked, the layout is different and there are new pages to explore at the top of the page. I’ve added an FAQ to answer any burning questions. If there is something you’d like to know but I haven’t answered it, please let me know in the comments or through e-mail (syd@bigskylonestar.com). I’ve also added directions to the wedding and a page for people traveling to Texas for the wedding.

This week I am addressing invitations (as soon as they get here from the printers) and finalizing our music playlists and favors. I finally decided to let go of the tea-length 50’s style dress and go with my original option which as my Aunt Syd said, “Really shows off my assets”. That is always a good thing. We’ll be getting the rest of Chris’ attire soon and I’m looking forward to seeing him in his Utilikilt. His legs are hot.

Only 6 1/2 weeks until the wedding. Oh my how it flies!

Feb 09 0 comments
Administrative

Our Rings

Chris and I choose to have our rings custom designed by a wonderful artist on Etsy. We wanted to have rings that were unique and reflected our love. And I loved the idea of supporting an artist in her work. We chose McFarland Designs. Today, I got notice that the rings are done. Here is a mosaic of our rings.

Our Wedding Rings by McFarland Designs

My ring is a simple ring that combines three sparkly moissanite* stones with recycled 14k gold and recycled sterling silver. The band has been accented on either side by smaller flush-set moissanites and a man-made emerald sits on the back side of the band. The emerald represents my Christopher.

His ring combines recycled 14k gold and recycled sterling silver and it is accented on the back side by a man-made sapphire. The sapphire represents me. I have blue eyes and he has green eyes, also these are our wedding colors. His band measures 7mm wide and is formed in a no-spin shape.

I’m thrilled with the rings and can’t wait until they ship to us.

*Moissanite is a pretty cool alternative to diamonds. Here is what Tamara at McFarland Design has to tell us about it.

Moissanite was originally born from a meteorite over 50,000 years ago, and was first discovered by Dr. Henri Moissan in 1893 in material collected from a meteor crater in Arizona. These incredibly brilliant sparkling crystals might have been considered “diamonds from space,” but Dr. Moissan’s research actually identified them as a new mineral find – silcon carbide, whose chemical composition is SiC (diamonds are made from carbon). This stunning jewel is extremely rare, and almost impossible to find in nature. So rare, in fact, that the dream of using it in jewelry was an impossibility until man discovered a way to create and craft these incredible silicon carbide crystals here on Earth.

With more fire than any popular gemstone (including diamond), no other stone or jewel compares to Moissanite. In fact, fire can be measured scientifically and moissanite has nearly 2.4 times the fire of diamond. Moissanite also has 10% more brilliance and luster than diamond. Proven to be harder than ruby, sapphire or emerald and second only to diamond, moissanite is also extraordinarily heat resistant, durable, and tough. It is extremely resistant to scratching, abrasion, breaking and chipping. And because these phenomenal stones are grown in a laboratory, you don’t have to worry about the ethical problems involved with harvesting diamonds and other mined gems.

Jan 16 0 comments
Administrative

Texas Wedding Plans

Wedding planning has picked up like a snow ball rolling down hill. As soon as I decided to move the wedding to Texas, my mom and aunts got on the ball. This week I am in Texas visiting since I couldn’t come down for Christmas and they have several places for me to look at for deciding the venue. Today, I am sitting down with all the number and all the factors and making a choice. Each venue has something I love and something that’s an obstacle. And they are all fairly equal. Here are some of the choices I’m considering today.

The First United Methodist Church
I’m a member of this church even though I moved away. I sang with the choir for several years and feel very comfortable with the actual space. The sanctuary is beautiful with stained glass windows and a high arched ceiling with exposed dark wood beams. I love it. Since I’ve been gone they built a huge family life center. It is basically a very fancy gymnasium with a professional kitchen. The cost to have it there is quite low and we would not have to worry about space. However, it has a more institutional feeling to it. And there could not be any alcohol, not even a champagne toast. I’ve decided not to serve alcohol at my wedding–however, I would not be surprised if someone showed up with a flask and I don’t want to worry about breaking the rules.

Valcour Verandas
My aunt found this place and it a wonderful farm house with a huge wrap around porch. There are large oak tree all over the property if I decided to do it out door, and if rains there is room to move it inside. Also, the owners are wonderful cooks and could cater the event as well. And I can reserve it for two days and they could cater the rehearsal dinner if we chose to have one. However, the space is a bit tight. If everyone we invited showed up, it wouldn’t work. I’ve been told 2/3 or less usually attend. If that is the case, we will be okay. If not, it’ll be standing room and out the door. Also, it is a bit more costly than my other options, but could be customized to meet a lower bottom-line. For example, I could find an outside caterer at lower price per person. They do not serve alcohol but it isn’t off limits. So if some of my rowdier friends had a little to drink, they wouldn’t get in trouble. The location is a bit out of the way, but it’s close to Lake Jackson, a larger town with hotels, restaurants and shopping.

The Lodge at Danbury
My grandmother and other aunt found this place. Plus it was suggested twice by people I’ve talked to around here. It’s perfect: Big oak trees, a fishing pond, plenty of indoor space, a giant fire pit and lodging for 46 people. It’s only available the week of Easter, so they are willing to discount the place for Thurs-Sun. It would be like a bit wedding camp. However, they have a zero tolerance policy for alcohol. I could perhaps ask people not to drink at the wedding reception, but for the whole weekend that just won’t work. Danbury is a very small town with effectively no restaurants or nightlife to even accommodate off site tom-foolery. And most of my folks probably wouldn’t stay there, meaning they’d have to drive 30-45 minutes. It’s too bad they facility is so strict about the no alcohol policy because it’s real deal breaker. It’s not about the alcohol it’s about the choice.

Valcour is my leading choice right now, but I will make a final decision tonight.

Update: I wrote this and then never got to post it. My choice is Valcour and I’m putting down a deposit tomorrow.