Ah--the wedding (orig date 11/2/2008)

I can't believe with all the stress I forgot to mention the wedding!

It was beautiful. Sean and Angie were perfect. The whole thing went so well. The end.

Or the long version:

The wedding day started early. I met Angie at Mitchells to get her nails, then hair, then makeup done. It was perfect. She only complained that she has some eyelashes growing above her natural eyelashes....nobody can fix that.

Then we went north and hung out with her mom and prepared ourselves for the evening.

Finally we reached the reception hall and dressed the bride. Angie's father walked in and that's when it happened--tears from them both. And my first time seeing Angie cry in 12 years!

Pictures were done outside where it was sunny yet chilly and seemed to last forever but yet we were on time and we all jumped into our cars and I drove the bride to the church trying at all costs from getting in an accident.

At the church everybody piled in. The ceremony was quicker then rehearsal. We left the church and headed back to the reception. Crazy.

After arrival to the hall we were pushed in circles for more pics and then lined up to go in. I looked at the best man and said are you ready for the speech? And he said he was only talking if I was. Now I was really nervous. I suggested we walk in and head straight for the bar.

Through dinner we chatted about our speeches. Mind you we were all sitting at a round table and Angie and Sean were across from us arguing like we were out any other night they just happened to be all dressed up. When I pulled out my cheat sheet for my speech the best man's wife looked at him and told him that's what he needed. Now I was more nervous. My speech was going to be totally boring and totally too long.

And soon enough the emcee came over and handed him the mike. And he started his speech. And it lasted 30 seconds. Oh man....the pain I was going to put all these guests through.

But something happened. I took the mike and made a joke about how long my speech would be and started talking without looking down at my paper. I soon noted that I wanted to mention the "quirks" Angie had and Sean said this was going to take awhile. I laughed. But it didn't shake me. That's when I looked down and started reading. But the whole time in the background I heard laughter and gasps and giggles. I heard Angie laugh. I looked up and made eye contact. It was good. And the last paragraph was all mushy and I looked down but heard Angie sniffle. I continued and at the end looked up and lifted my glass and that was it....the toast had been made to 12 great years of friendship and to Sean and Angie's friendship from then on.

It was good. People said it was good. People I didn't know came up and told me it was good. I wish I could hear it myself. Listen to the adlibs and see the crowd. It felt so good. But it was a good friendship it could be nothing else.

And the rest of the night felt too fast. We danced and boogied. Todd and I danced and it was great. I loved every minute of it. I was sad it had to end.

But really isn't it just the beginning?

November!!

I was so sick of October so November being here is a blessing!

In October we lost so many loved ones and knew so may people who were in tragic accidents. My 20 year old cousin died unexpectedly in his college apartment. The cause is still unknown. The family I talked about below lost their husband/daddy and the two girls are improving slowly but definitely doing much better. My friend who tried to resuscitate Ryan was then also involved in trying to resuscitate the teenager who died at St X while at swimming practice. Another pediatric resident was hit by a car while riding her bike and survived but was critically injured (not to mention having her husband be the doctor called out by air care to find that it was his wife in critical condition). Too many horrible stories for one month.

To top it all off our home was broken into over the weekend while we were sleeping. The dog slept through it all. We awoke to the sound of glass shattering below us. They decided they really needed to grab my work bag off the kitchen chair so they threw a stepping stone through the window. Too bad the bag had nothing in it except Xavier season tickets and some paperwork from work, my lunch bag with tupperware, my sunglasses, our digital compass and some barettes I was intending to take back to the store. Besides being scared out of my wits we were all safe and the detective is on the case. They have a few suspects but need to actually get prints to catch him. Luckily he dropped Todd's pocketknife (which he stole from his truck) in our backyard and the cops collected it. Supposedly he has never left anything behind before and he has never thrown anything through a window. Either way we are all safe and hope that we get this window replaced soon.

In November we hope that everyone stays safe, healthy and starts to heal - physically and emotionally.

Cleaning up!

The wedding is over.

The thank yous are written. (Thank goodness)

The weather is getting colder.

What is there left to do?

Clean up, of course! I am now on the way to a clean home. It's a long way off but I'm going to get there. I have so many closets stuffed with, well, stuff. And the wedding room needs to be retired. Instead the dirty dress is sitting on the chair, the boxes of left over wedding paper and pictures stacked up. Retire already!

There is so much more time now to do things yet all I want to do is sit. October has been a mentally draining month. With all of the death and tragic accidents occurring around us I am ready for a new month, a new trend of life altering events.

So that brings me to babies. Yes - having babies. Todd and I are not necessarily wanting a baby right at this moment but we aren't exactly trying not to have one. We want a family and we would ideally like to have a child after Todd graduates. Well Todd plans on graduating in 10-11 months. Whoa! That hit me today like a ton of bricks. It hit me while I was planning on what dress I was going to wear for my coworkers wedding at the end if April and then again as I was thinking of how poor my diet is and how much I should be taking a vitamin. So I went to the store and I bought prenatal vitamins. What?!?

Now I am a little freaked out but I can't imagine being so irresponsible that I totally neglect my body and then get pregnant. I am a pediatrician for goodness sake! So I've decided that I should start caring...in case of emergency. They say you should start taking vitamins a few months before you think you will get pregnant. And that time has come. So I'm cleaning up my house and my body!

On to better things...

One night

This past weekend we celebrated another wedding between our friends Jeff and Jenn. We set them up a year ago and they tied the knot 5 weeks after us. I am so happy for them. Their wedding night was a nice celebration with a live band and good friends and family. At the end of the night began a series of events I may never forget, but I hope the bride never remembers. 

I am going to skip those details, however, as everything turned out ok. Instead I am going to move on to something that happened while we were celebrating in another part of the city. It was our friend Seth's 30th surprise birthday party. We couldn't attend because of the wedding but we knew a lot of our friends were gathering right around the corner from our house to celebrate this amazing man. 

Around 9:15pm that night people began leaving Seth's celebration. His best friend Ryan, Ryan's wife and their 22month old headed out behind Seth's mom and grandma.  A few minutes later Seth received a call from his mom that there was an accident that happened right behind them and they thought it was his friend's family in the car. Seth and Mike (another friend) immediately ran down to the corner to find what I hope someday they will be able to forget. Ryan was being resuscitated, his wife Erin was being pulled from the car. Seth and Mike stepped in to help. Ambulances arrived - 3 of them. One took Erin to University quickly. Another took Summer (their child) to Childrens. And the third drove off slowly with Ryan inside. Little did anybody know that would be the last time they saw Ryan. He passed away that night while his wife and little girl were rushed to the hospital. His wife would not find out the news to the next day when she got out of surgery for a subdural hematoma (head bleed). Summer, in the meantime, is being taken care of at Children's, the only people surrounding her were her parents' friends. How scared she must have been. She sustained great injuries to her upper spine and went to surgery yesterday. The doctor's have hope that she will do well after much recovery. We can only pray.

Our friends are some of the most caring people I will ever know. They have been there for the family every minute taking only a few hours to rest and stop home to clean up and take care of their own child. Seth and Mike have the images of the crash in their minds....Seth will never see his best friend again....life seems so precious for all of us. All we can do is pray.

Most people ask how did it happen? It wasn't a drunk driver as most people think. It was a 49 year old man who went into a diabetic coma behind the wheel. He ran the red light and t-boned them on the driver's side. Ryan was driving. The man suffered little injury and is ok.

The thoughts are now to their future. Erin is a pediatrician (we went to Xavier and UC for schooling, she 2 years behind me). She was supposed to take her boards this month. Her daughter was a daddy's girl. Ryan's facebook profile shows just how much she loved him and he her. What happens when they head back home to the Columbus area and they walk into their home to see Ryan's stuff lying around, his dirty laundry ready to be washed, his pillows with his scent still on them? My heart breaks and tears fall whenever I think of this. For Erin, Summer, Ryan's family, Seth and his wife Sally, Mike and his wife Sara my thoughts and prayers are with you. I cannot imagine what you are going through. I only wish you strength, hope, and peace.

I can only pray.

The Big Day

The big day, our day, has come and gone. What an amazing time we had the entire wedding weekend! There is so much to blog about but I'm gonna keep it short.

Friday I awoke to a packed day that would soon end with a packed house. In the morning I headed out with "my girls" to get pedicures and Todd with "his guys" to go shooting. It was great to have some down time before the craziness would begin.

After lunch we came back and prepared for the rehearsal dinner - a BBQ at our house. We had a ton of help and were finished just in time for the actual rehearsal. Timely as anything, our entire crew was ready at the church at least 10 minutes before the time we were supposed to begin. Wow! And that is the way the rest of the weekend would continue - ahead of schedule.

The rehearsal dinner was something to remember. When I walked into our backyard something wasn't right. There was a man doing caricatures of couples. Where did he come from? Such a surprise. The out of town guests seemed to have a great time as the BBQ continued late into the evening.

Surprisingly I slept well that evening and was up early and ready to go. My Maid of Honor, sister and mom went to the salon to get pretty, came home to get dressed and then headed to the church for pics.

After formal pics the waiting began. I still wasn't nervous yet and was just going with the flow until about 1 minute before I walked down the aisle. That's when I realized I wasn't a bridesmaid this time. All of my girls were already walking down the aisle. They were closing the doors. This was it! I began to cry and then quickly realized I had to walk in and see some 150 people+ staring at me. So I sucked it up and was all clear before the doors opened again!

Todd, however, could not keep his face dry! And that kept me from breaking down. Everything about the ceremony was as planned and so much more beautiful in real life then in my head! My brother sang tremendously (and with little time to rehearse), the readers were strong and clear, the readings just hit me in the head and the heart, the vows were so true to us (and we snickered a little because they were so true), the unity candle moment a blessing, and our pastor truly brought it all together so perfectly. I couldn't have dreamed it could be anything like it was.

After we sealed the deal we had our group pics and then we were ready to party!

I think all of our guests were ready to party too because in all my life I haven't seen so many of the people I know all together on one small dance floor dancing their behinds off and having a good time. That is what I'll remember. The smiles, the dancing, the laughter and to top it all off my grandmother (who was nervous to even come down to Cincinnati, who is sometimes even nervous to stand up in a big crowd) hit the dance floor. And when I say hit, I mean dance. And dance we all did until the music stopped.

Oh what a night!

What a hypocrite I am!

I'm back.

I'm back because a friend started a blog today and I remembered I, too, have a blog.

And then I started reading my blog--this blog. And I got all the way back to August 8, 2008 and that's when I realized I am a hypocrite. On August 8, 2008 I said plain and simple that I did not want a big wedding.

Guess what?

I'm having a big wedding.

I should go back a bit. Todd proposed to me on September 30, 2009 and I said yes! I was ready. I had been hinting at it since the summer of 2009. I guess when you're ready things change. Maybe. Oh we would still love to have a small wedding with a big party after the honeymoon but my family is HUGE! 110 people from Buffalo alone. 350 people on the guest list. Where did all these people come from???

What I've learned about my family is that once you're in, you're in. That means everyone from 6th cousins and up come to everything or at least are invited to everything. Because it isn't fair otherwise.

Wow!

So we're going to a chapel...and we're going to get married...and then we're having a huge party to celebrate it all.

August 28, 2010. We'll be at a very big wedding and it will be ours. I only hope that everyone who comes has a great time. Because I definitely hated weddings on August 8, 2008 and now I want everyone to come to ours.

Hypocrite.

25 random things

Taken from a challenge on facebook. Enjoy.

1. I love snow! But I don't ski, snowboard, ice skate, etc. What I do love is sitting by a fire, next to a window with a big mug of fresh hot coffee in my hands wathcing the snow fall.
2. I miss Buffalo....a lot these days. I miss the people, the food, the lake, the river.
3. I love the outdoors....walks in the park, walks in the snow, camping, hiking, paddling, biking. There is no better way to spend a day than outdoors.
4. Living in Cincinnati has opened up a world of opportunities for me. I wouldn't be as far as I am today without the ease I found of getting involved initially at Xavier. It's the reason I stayed for med school and the reason I likely was able to stay for residency.
5. Volunteering has been a big part of my life. I'm not sure where the drive to volunteer comes from (maybe it's the whole Catholic thing?) but it has been one of my personal priorities in life. That said some of the best people I've met have been through volunteering--i.e. Give Back Cincinnati--I've never met people I've bonded with so quickly then with GBC.
6. My friends mean the world to me. Each one has touched my life in some way. Past and present friends have all added to the person I am today. I am grateful for that.
7. One thing I don't get from my friends--my tendencies to being a little crazy. Some people say sassy but let's face it---crazy at times. This craziness is all the stored up energy I keep inside all day at work. If you're "lucky" enough to experience it--then you are one of my closest friends.
8. I often think about what my life would be like if I went to a different high school. I wouldn't change it for anything though.
9. I hate cats. I really do. I have adopted 2 cats and I love them dearly but as a whole....I despise cats.
10. Being a physician has already worn me down and I often think about becoming a barista at a local coffee shop. Too bad I have loans to pay off.
11. I am a saver. Meaning I save money like it's about to lose all it's value. Saving is not good in my case--I have loans with high interest rates that steal my money much faster than I can save.
12. My dream vacation spot is Greece.
13. I would love to finish a century ride someday. I have yet to work hard enough to reach this goal. This is more realistic than my real goal of finishing a triathalon. I laugh just thinking about it.
14. I love reading a good book--at the pool, on the beach, near a fire, on my couch. Mmmmmmm pure heaven.
15. I am Catholic but have turned into one of "those" Catholics who only go to church on Easter and Christmas. Instead I have found a great home at Crossroads Community Church where I have a great community of friends, have found true connections with God on a more regular basis and have been growing as a person, becoming more whole.
16. I am labeled a "liberal" but sometimes feel very indecisive on some issues in which case I would think this would make me more middle of the road with some liberal tendencies. The truth is I am really becoming more aware of the whole political system since finishing residency---so I expect this to evolve over time.
17. Speaking of changing...since residency I have been able to become more in touch with myself and the outside world (from medicine). This has been life changing and enjoyable in every aspect. I think I may have become a little more human.
18. I want to be one of those old ladies someday that get together with their other old lady and old man friends/husbands and have daily coffee at Burger King (or where ever) and chat about, laugh about current and past events. "Remember when???"
19. 25 things is a lot of things.
20. I love dresses, especially little summer dresses.
21. I used to want 6 kids. I was crazy then. Now I want 1-2.
22. Snuggies aren't that bad. Really. I can type on my computer without the blanket falling off. Ingenious.
23. People who feel entitled make me furious.
24. Watching the birth of a baby still makes me cry....every stinkin' time.
25. My favorite person is any person who can make me laugh. :)