The Royal Wedding

So, it's kind of disturbing how excited I am about the Royal Wedding! Really. It's right up there on the list behind my own wedding! I don't exactly know what it is, but I'm sure it's the 'celebrity' of it all. Everything is just done on such a grand scale and it has an 'unrealness' to it. I have nothing to even relate this type of event to, and I'm sure that's why I am so fascinated with it. It doesn't hurt that they are such a good looking couple either!

I mean, really, look at them! They are just so cute!

Now I will tell you that I am not a morning person., but you can bet I will have my alarm set for 4 a.m. on Friday morning to watch it all go down. I am still contemplating what channel I am going to watch it on. I've gotta figure out what station will have the most insight and the best coverage so I can know all there is to know about what's going on. I have been watching the whole Royal Wedding Week extravaganza on TLC since it started on Sunday, but I have to say I'll probably stick with NBC and let my favorites from the Today Show host the event for me.

In light of planning my own wedding and being consumed by all of my own details, I am very interested to see what Kate ends up wearing. It doesn't really matter what show your watching about the Royal Wedding, but everyone seems to be guessing what she's going to be wearing and who it's going to be designed by, what color the bridesmaids will wear, what flowers she'll be carrying, and what royal traditions they will go against while making this wedding a little more modern than royal weddings we've seen in the past. I know, though, that it will be amazing and beautiful no matter what the details end up being. I just hope I can keep my eyes open at 4 in the morning to watch the TV. This is just one downfall to not having DVR! 

It's crazy to imagine what the couple is thinking about on this day before their wedding. Even though they seem so much different than me, being royalty and all, I'm sure their emotions are somewhat similar to the same as I'll feel just a month from today! That makes me so much more excited for them, just being able to relate that tiny bit.

I do wish them the happiest of marriages and hope that this fairytale that we're all being forced to watch and hear about really does end up having a happy ending! (I'm sure they'll appreciate my well wishes!)

That's all for now!

I Wonder...

I wonder what the proper etiquette is for putting a smiley face inside parentheses when you are typing (in an informal message this is) There are times when I'm typing and want to say something quite witty, but I think it needs to be said as a sidenote inside a pair of parentheses... I just don't know what the 'right' way to do it is...

Do I just double up the closing parenthesis..? Ex. = (hardy har har :))
Do I use brackets...? Ex. = [chuckle chuckle :)]
Do I space between the smiley and the closing parenthesis..? Ex. = (BAHAHAHA :) )
Do I make the smile more exaggerated to differentiate between the smile and the parenthesis..? Ex. = (loud laughter =D)
Do I forget the smiley and just go with the standard "lol" and let the reader figure the rest out..? Ex. = (witty remark. lol)

Things like this seem to 'confuzzle' my mind on occasion, and I just continue to wonder... what is 'correct'?

April Showers Bring May Flowers... Literally!

And I mean literally because I just had a great bridal shower thrown for me last weekend and then, in May, comes our wedding, where there will be plenty of flowers! Get it? Good :)


Me with the hostesses, Staci and Melodie

Now that we are on the same page, I will tell you more about the shower. It was hosted by Trent's sister Melodie and his cousin Staci and held at Melodie's home. The decorations were homemade by Melodie and beautiful and the food was so amazing. They also had some activities planned for us all that were very fun and entertaining (I'm sure VERY entertaining for some - you will see why I say that). I feel very lucky to have been honored at this great bridal shower. Not only am I lucky enough to have my own wonderful family, the wonderfulness is now doubled, and I get the privilege to being joining Trent's amazing family as well. I definitely left the shower that day feeling very grateful for all that I have in my life! 

The shower started off by Melodie telling us what the first activity would be... she let me know that I would be making brownies for everyone for our dessert (WHAT?!?) and she had everything that I needed  to make the brownies EXCEPT the recipe. So I put on my apron and got to work attempting to make these brownies... Now I don't want to sound like I've never cooked before... I have made brownies plenty of times, and I woudl say I'm pretty good at it, too. But as I was standing behind the table looking at all my ingredients and I just couldn't think of what I needed to use. I was so helpless! How frustrating :) My Grandma Kock was there watching me, and she kept giving me the look like "Come on, Kendra, you know what to do!" and this woudl have been a perfect opportunity to really make her proud because she's the one who taught me how to make the brownies I've always made and who give me the majority of my cooking tips. And when she cooks, she doesn't even use a recipe, so this was like her comfort zone! Thankfully, my grandma always wants what's best for me and was willing to help me cheat a little :) She would mouth the words to me and when people would ask questions to lead me into things, she would hold up fingers as to how many of something I needed or if I needed more or less of something. What a great grandma! Sadly, even with her help I didn't come up with the best looking brownies. They did kind of look like brownies at least, but they were pretty thin and didn't taste 'normal'. If nothing else, my bridal shower has opened the door to me being more like my grandma and has started to break the chains of my recipe cards. Earlier this week I was making cookies (which I make frequently) and Trent told me that was a recipe I should know by heart too, and he's right. I'll get to work on that :)

After the brownies were safely in the oven, we moved on to the next game, a fun version of BINGO. (One of my favorites) Melodie had complied a bunch of facts about Trent and I, each corresponding to a number on people's Bingo cards. She would read the fact, not saying who it described, and everyone would hold up their sign (see picture at right - you will see my sign was beautifully decorated by Trent's niece, Taylor) saying whether they thought it was about Trent or myself. The facts were things such as: Favorite vegetable is green beans (Trent), Dislikes peanut butter (Kendra), Hates taking the trash out (Trent), Hates food left in the sink (Kendra), and Hates cleaning the toilet (Kendra). If you guessed correctly, you got to mark that number on the card. It was a lot of fun to see what people guessed were the correct facts about each of us.

  

Aww... Snuggle!!



The rest of the afternoon was filled with amazing food, visiting, and opening presents. Taylor even modeled her flower girl dress for us all and Trent showed up with his dad and brother-in-law. It was such a good day with people who love Trent and I and who made the day so much better just by being there.

Now, we're finishing all of the rest of the wedding details that need to be taken care of. My dress finally came in last week, and I am going to have my first fitting on Sunday. I am so excited to try it on again for the first time in seven months. I hope that it still has the same effect on me that it did the first time I had it on! Hopefully, it will be even better now that we are only 44 days away from THE DAY! I will leave you with a few more pictures of me with guests at the shower. I hope you enjoy!

Me with my Grandma Jons and Grandma Kock

With Trent's Grandma, Donna Lu

Trent's mom, Jan, myself, and my mom, Janine

Me with Taylor, the flower girl

Trent and I



Hair Comes the Bride

Two weeks ago, I had my first bridal shower. It was an amazing shower put together by my two aunts, Doreen and Barb, my sister, Kellsey, and my cousin, Jocelyn, who are also two of my bridesmaids. It was so fun, but yet so weird to be the bride and the center of attention at one of those things. It was so great to see all of the women from both sides of my family and friends from my church and community that came. It was a great feeling that that many people cared enough about me to show up to my shower. I know the hostesses put a lot of work into the shower and I hope they know how much I appreciated it and won’t forget it!

Last weekend, Trent and I started the process of preparing his apartment for me and all my clothes and things to move it, which will be happening in about 2 short months. We are trying to get ahead of the game and start moving things from my apartment to his that I won’t need now, and then hopefully it will be easier to move the rest of the stuff when the time comes without having to worry about all of the little things. So far I have moved my tub of purses and a tub of wrapping paper and things. I’d say I’d better get a move on! I just am having a hard time finding things that I can live without for 2 months ;) Trent went through his closets in his spare bedrooms and made it so all of his stuff fit into one of them, so I can have the other spare room’s closet for my things. We also moved one car load of things to our storage unit, which we like to call ‘My Parents’ House.” Aren’t they so the best?!

Every time that we do a little more ‘preparing’ for me to move in, I go through a wave of excitedness to get everything moved and in its place. It will be great to have the apartment feeling like ‘our’ place. It’s strange to think about though… At the end of May, I’m going to be living in my apartment like normal, and then I am going to go away for a weekend, and then I’ll come back to Omaha and BAM! I live somewhere different… and with a BOY!! Weird! :)

Last weekend, I also went to Des Moines to meet up with my cousin Tricia, at my cousin (her sister) Traci and her husband Derrick’s house. (Who looks very cute when she’s pregnant I might add!) Tricia will be doing mine and the bridesmaids’ hair for the wedding. We did a little run through of my hair style to see how it looked and if we liked it. At first, I couldn’t even tell her if I liked it or what I didn’t like about it because I was so shocked to see myself looking like I did, all done up and stuff. And then I got my veil on and things and it just made me so emotional and excited. It reminded me a lot of when I had my dress on for the first time. That was a very emotional time as well. To just imagine that I am going to be looking like that on my wedding day and to imagine Trent seeing me for the first time walking down the aisle like that, it all just brings tears to my eyes and makes me wish the next 65 days would just hurry up!

Speaking of my dress… Next week should be THE week when my dress comes in! FINALLY! I can’t wait to put it on again and see how it looks. It’s been 6 long months since I had it on and I hope it’s still makes me as happy as it did the first time I put it on! I’ll be anxiously waiting for the call!

And here's a picture from last Friday when Trent and I and Trent’s coworker made a trip to the court house in Council Bluffs to apply for our marriage license. Working on making it legal!! :) YAY!!

One for the Record Books

For the past two weeks, I have been meaning to write a few things about the Ar-We-Va Rockets basketball season and their week at the State Tournament. Time has just been flying by though. It is hard to believe that week was already that long ago. Where did that time go…? Well, I know where the week of the tournament went… how about in the record books!! :)

I cannot tell you how much fun it was to be a part of that week. As a lifelong (and a long life it’s been) fan and the coach’s daughter, I could not have been more proud to walk into that arena wearing an Ar-We-Va t-shirt. It was so fun to see how excited all the girls were and to see all the attention the whole team was getting from everyone. It truly was awesome to see them after each game and see the proud glow they all put off. They all knew that they were 100% deserving of where they were, and even though they were all very modest, they couldn’t hide the fact that they knew they were good!

I do have to admit that watching them play did make me a little jealous at times. Maybe jealous isn’t the right word, but it sure did bring up some memories. The thought crossed my mind a few times about what would have happened if my teams would have made it to State. I remembered the heartbreak my sophomore year when we lost to Hinton in a close game, and again my senior year when I fouled out of the game and had to watch the end of my last game from the bench. It’s one of those things, that makes you wonder, What if? But oh well :) It kind of made me laugh during the championship game this year, when the All Iowa Honor Drill Team came out for their patriotic dance before the game, because I looked at our girls standing in front of the bench during the National Anthem and then looked at the dancers on the floor… And being one of those dancers was the closest I ever got to being on that bench. But at least I’ve got that one! Some basketball players can’t even say that ;)

Overall, when I think about the Ar-We-Va girls’ basketball team, I’d have to say it makes me think of my dad the most. I am so happy that he finally got to coach at the State Tournament. He really deserves that, and I certainly hope that it isn’t the last time! My dad is so completely devoted to being a coach and genuinely loves it. If everyone could see all of the time and effort and thought that he puts into his coaching, I think everyone would gain a new understanding and respect for him. Some of my greatest memories from my senior year include sitting in the living room with my dad and watching game film and taking stats with him. It’s almost a given that you know my dad will be up until early in the morning most nights during basketball season because he is up studying AWV’s games or scouting other teams through watching their past games that he has recorded. My dad is so smart (don’t tell him I said that) and I am so proud to have him as an influence in my life. I just wish I would have realized how smart he was earlier in life, so I could have soaked up a little more while I was at home! I remember when I was in 5th or 6th grade, that I cried a few times before basketball games because I didn’t really want to play and in my first few years of high school, basketball was nowhere near the top of my favorite sports list. But in my one quick year of having my dad as my head coach, I gained a new appreciation for it all and he promptly made basketball my favorite. Thanks to him, when I think of basketball in my high school years, it brings up happy memories, it doesn’t bring up feelings of regret or dislike in the slightest. I know, because of that, I will be one of those old ladies that talks about her high school basketball career just like it was yesterday and will pretend like the people I’m talking to care in the slightest about what happened in 2006 when I was playing basketball.

This year’s team sure did create a lot of great memories that will make for a lot better stories when they are old than mine will. :) I really hope that this isn’t the last time we get to make three trips to Des Moines in a week! Although that made for an interesting work week, I would do it again… say… next year during the first week of March!

That's all for now!

GO ROCKETS!

Time goes by... So slowly...

We are three months and one week away from the wedding... It seems like I've been saying that it's three months away FOR.E.VER! Time felt like it was going by quickly for quite a while but now it feels like we've kind of hit a wall... But I guess, the time will come. Things have been getting done one at a time and everything has gone smoothly to this point. I really hope that it stays that way!

Ever since we've started planning the wedding, I have I spent a lot of time reading a wedding blog site, weddingbee.com. I love reading all of these brides', called 'Bees,' posts as they plan their weddings. They hash out all of their ideas and feelings as they are planning their weddings, they post DIY tutorials, and then, after their weddings, they post recaps of their weddings. They tell all about the days leading up to their weddings with all their pre-wedding events and then go through their wedding day events as well. They post their professional pictures and walk all of the readers through all the feelings they were feeling on their special day. They let us in on all of the secrets of what didn't go perfectly and what they would have done differently if they had the chance. I have gotten a lot of great ideas from reading the numerous brides' ideas and experiences and taken some of their how-to's and done them myself. I also have made lists of things that they would do differently if they could go back, so I can hopefully plan my day and avoid doing things 'wrong.' It is really interesting to read all the different people's posts because of the fact that they all come from such different backgrounds. None of them seem to be planning a 250 guest, small-town Iowa wedding, though :)

I got a call on Friday that all of my bridesmaids' dresses are in at the bridal shop. That makes me very excited! I can't wait to see them in the right color and all in the right sizes and on the girls. (Even though I probably won't really ever see them all in their dresses until the actual wedding day) They are going to look so great! :) It makes me smile just to think about them all standing up at the front of the church with Trent and I.

I had always known from the beginning of the planning that I was going to be making our flower girl, Trent's niece, Taylor's flower girl skirt. I'm sure you've all seen the tutus that are made out of tulle, well this is the same thing except a skirt and not a tutu. I actually made the skirt today and I like it, but I don't love it. I will be seeing her next weekend, so I'll have her try it on and hopefully that makes me love it. Otherwise I guess we'll have to go to Plan B. (first I guess we'll have to figure out what Plan B is...)

That's all for now!

Oh, one more thing..... GO ROCKETS!!!

Gametime, HUH!! (Manly noise...)

I'm pretty certain all of you received a blank post from me yesterday... That was a mistake due to my 'smart' phone not being so smart. It should know better than to post something that was blank... but oh well. At least I've got everyone's attention now.

This past weekend was a great one. I was supposed to spend the weekend in the Des Moines area with my cousins Traci and Tricia, as Tricia was going to do a trial run of my hair for the wedding. But, sadly, Tricia came down with the flu and really didn't feel like doing much at all, which I don't blame her at all!

I won't lie, I was kind of happy that my weekend plans were changed. It allowed for a lot more down time, and didn't require driving 4 hours on I-80. Instead, my Saturday consisted of some deep cleaning of my apartment. It was definitely time for that anyways. Especially since we were hosting a Super Bowl 'party' this weekend. Another reason I was happy that I got to stay home was because I got the opportunity to travel to Mapleton to see the Ar-We-Va girls play in the Conference Tournament championship game. Unfortunately, they lost, but it was still fun to be there and I'm glad I got to go.

Sunday was another fairly relaxing day. Trent and I went and worked out around noon and then when I got home, I did some final preparations for our little get together and started making some food. Now when I say 'little get together' I truly do mean that. It was just Lauren and I and our significant others at our apartment. But I like it that way, and it was nice to relax and watch the game (and the commercials). We just had typical game watching food. We had little smokies, some chips and dip, and pizza and Lauren made a veggie pizza (our 'healthy' alternative). ;)

At the beginning of the game, it seemed as though everyone was going for the Packers, but as the game went on, I let it slip that, deep down, I was really going for the Steelers. I don't know what it really was, but I think I just can't bring myself to cheer for a team that has Green and Gold as their colors... It's in my blood I guess. :)

I have to say I wasn't too impressed with the commercials this year. I don't really remember being impressed for the past few years either. There were a couple that I chuckled at and that we said were pretty good, but nothing really was AWESOME! The one that I remember the most is the Volkswagen commercial with the little guy in the Darth Vader costume. Talk about cute!!

I heard on the radio this past week that the day after the Super Bowl is one of the most missed days of work in the year and that millions of people call in sick. The radio personality then went on to say that, with that knowledge, we should just make the Monday after the Super Bowl a holiday... and I like that idea! :)

That's all for now!

An Update from the Bride

So, after being engaged for 4 months, it finally feels like things are starting to pick up a little bit. I can finally feel things starting to happen and it makes me VERY excited.

Trent and I went and registered last week at Target and Bed, Bath, and Beyond. It took quite a while to get through the stores, and it really didn’t feel like we ended up with that much stuff. But hopefully we did. And I feel good with the fact that we can always go back and add things as we think of them. Getting all registered makes me really excited about moving in with Trent and being able to decorate that place! Since he moved in to his place last April, he never really has decorated, and the little bit he did have decorated he kind of took down, knowing that it would all change when I moved in anyways. So it's really bare there now. I'm looking forward to kind of 'girling' up the place a little! I’m sure he is going to love it too :)

This weekend I am headed towards home to meet with Lori Hawley to discuss decorations for the wedding and the reception. She does such great work and I can’t wait to see what she is going to do for our wedding. She is also going to do our flowers and is going to make up a few examples for me to see, so I can't wait to see those. I get all giddy just thinking about it! I know it's going to be beautiful.

Then, the next weekend Trent and I are going to Denison and we are meeting his parents and mine to do a little bit of wedding stuff. We are going to go check out Boulders, our reception site, so we can talk to the manager there about a few details and also so Trent and his parents can see the place before we get there at wedding time. We are also going to have lunch at Cronk’s, where we are going to have our rehearsal dinner so we can all check it out. Then, it’s finally time to pick out what Trent and all the guys are going to wear at Reynold's Clothing in Denison. Sunday, we will be meeting with Pastor Richard for the second time as part of our premarital counseling, and we are also going to a small bridal convention at Boulders Conference Center in Denison (our reception site) before heading back home to Omaha. I’m hoping that I can come out of the weekend feeling a little more ready after having these things checked off the to-do list.

The last thing I have planned at this moment is my hair trial with my cousin, Tricia. I am so super excited that she is going to be doing my hair for my wedding. I am even more excited that we get to do this practice run and make a fun, girls’ weekend out of it. I don’t see Tricia enough, so it will be good to get together and have some fun like we used to when we were younger!

Today I purchased some things that I am going to give the girls in the wedding party as gifts. I am pretty darn excited about all I’ve got planned for them, so I hope it all turns out the way I had hoped.

In the days in between all I have planned, I am going to keep looking around for little things and ideas that would be good for the wedding and making all my little crafty things I’m doing myself. I am also going to keep waiting patiently for my dress to come in! Trent and I have also begun to talk seriously about our honeymoon which is a whole other thing to be excited about besides the wedding itself and the whole marriage thing! So much to be excited and happy about!

That’s all for now!

Christmas Countdown!

I cannot tell you how excited I am that only one work day stands between me and my "Christmas break." I don't know if I can really classify my 2 and a half days off from work as a Christmas break, but I guess in my new 'grown-up' life, that's what I am going to call it.

This Christmas is going to be a lot different than the last 23 Christmases that I have had. This will be the first Christmas (that I know of) that I won't spend Christmas Eve with my immediate family, go to the Christmas Eve service at church, and then wake up early (our definition of 'early' has gotten a little later, though) on Christmas morning to wake my parents up so we can open presents. That is a little sad for me, just because I don't typically handle change all that well. But don't you go thinking that you need to be sad for me because I am not going to be there! I am extremely thrilled that I get to wake up Christmas morning, get out of bed and walk out of the room where I'm sleeping, and give my soon-to-be husband a kiss and tell him Merry Christmas! And even though I can kind of give myself a minor anxiety attack when I think about things changing, I don't think this qualifies as one of those situations. I am very blessed to be able to spend all of the days surrounding Christmas with not just one family that loves me, but TWO! How lucky am I?!? I'm very excited for all of the new experiences I am going to have during this year's holidays, and I can't wait for it to begin.

Trent and I are taking off from Omaha tomorrow evening after I leave from work. We are spending the 23rd and Christmas Eve with his family and then heading to my parents' house on Christmas morning to spend the weekend there. We've got a lot of holiday partying jammed into 4 days, but that's why Christmas is my favorite holiday!!

Since Trent and I will be spending the entire Christmas weekend traveling around and having our family holiday parties, we had our own, private Christmas party last weekend. We wanted to start a tradition of what food we would eat every year for our Christmas supper, but instead of picking the food and having the same thing every year, we decided to start the tradition that we would just go to the store on the day we were going to have our Christmas supper without a plan, and pick out whatever we wanted to have for supper that evening. I think that this year's excursion went very well. We had baked 'chicken grillers' (chicken breasts wrapped in bacon and stuffed with cheese and jalapenos for him and ham and cheese for me), mashed potatoes, and corn. Very good, in my opinion! We then opened our presents from each other. I was very disappointed in myself because I had forgotten to get something to fill his stocking. :( He was very good, though, because I had gum and toothbrushes in mine. (I thought it was very sweet, but when I told Lauren about it she just said he must be trying to tell me I have bad breath!) We then preceded to take turns opening our presents from each other. A game and running socks and shorts for Trent, and a game, perfume, and a new ring for me. Yes, that's right, I said a ring! And I know, I am spoiled. I was so shocked and surprised when I opened it, I almost burst out in tears (in a very good way), but I held myself together. Here is the beautiful white sapphire ring:

The rest of the night, I played my new game for a few hours. I am going to need to practice a lot more to get good at it, though. We then watched a movie and called it a night. It was a great night. I love Trent and I's private little holiday parties. I especially love to think back on how things change for us from the year before. It will be very interesting to see where we are and what's new when we get to Christmastime next year!


Sunday was also a day filled with Christmas cheer. We went to Hy Vee and bought all the supplies needed to make plates of holiday goodies to bring along to our family Christmases this week. We made chocolate covered pretzels, some chocolate bars with graham crackers and marshmallows in them, and sugar cookies with frosting. We made the treats up into plates to bring along, and stuck them in the freezer until it's time to go on our merry way.


Tonight I finished up wrapping my last presents and made some pumpkin dessert for the family Christmas on Christmas Eve and packed for the long weekend. I am excited about seeing family and for celebrating Christ's birth with them all!! I hope you all have a great holiday as well!!


Merry Christmas!!

And the family grows by one more...

I contemplated not putting that title to this blog post, but I decided that it's kind of humorous. When you first read it, it might sound like someone is having a baby... but NO.... KELLSEY'S ENGAGED!! YAY!!!

Kellsey and Wade got engaged last week on the Friday after Thanksgiving while they were visiting Wade's family in California. I think it is safe to say that everyone in the family is pretty darn excited! I know that we are all lucky to have Wade added into our family. They have just started the planning process, so we don't know many details yet, but I know I am anxious to hear about it all. As of now, they are thinking they will get married next fall and I can't wait!

I am doubly excited because, now, Kells and I get to plan our weddings together! I have a feeling they are going to be quite different, but it will still be fun to be going through the same thing at around the same time. It's like we each get to be a part in planning two weddings. So if we don't get to have something in our own, maybe we can live that part if it out in the other one's :)

I haven't seen her since she got engaged since we were apart for the holiday, so I'm very excited to see her this coming weekend when we are going to look for bridesmaids' dresses for my wedding. I can't wait to see her gorgeous ring and to give her a big hug and hear all the details again!

Congratulations Kellsey and Wade!!!

Baby steps forward...

It feels so good to be getting wedding tasks accomplished. Although they are very small, it's still nice.

Sunday, Trent and I met with Pastor Richard Francis for the first of our pre-wedding meetings. It was pretty much just an introductory meeting. We talked about what we were doing now as far as our jobs and things and where we saw that going in the future and about we met and how our relationship started. Then, we discussed how the rest of our meetings will go, which we will start up after the 1st of the year. I have to say I'm excited to see what the class brings up and I'm excited for the opportunity for something to be brought up, about marriage and Trent and I's life together, that we haven't thought of or discussed yet.


Also, on Sunday, Trent and I went through my mom's big Carlson Craft books to look for inspiration for our wedding invitations. The design inspiration we picked out was like this:


The design will be on our Save the Dates, invites, programs, and thank-yous. It will have a lighter blue on the bottom and darker blue on the top. My wonderfully talented Aunt Doreen will be constructing this fabulousness for us. :) So, I'm excited.
Last week I got a call from the jewelry store to tell me that Trent's wedding band was in. It was a month and a half early! But that actually worked out very well because I was planning on bringing in my engagement ring and wedding band to be sized this week anyways. So, I did it all in one trip. I was very excited to get to see the ring that Trent and I picked out for him again. I have to say, Trent looks pretty good with a ring on :) But maybe that's my 'proud wife' talking or something... It was also nice to get to see my band again, since Trent had put it into hiding after we got it. So I did have to leave my engagement ring at the store, and that was a little strange for me. After having the ring on for almost two months and thinking about it all the time and constantly stopping what I'm doing to look at it, it is weird to have it missing from my finger. But very soon we will be reunited and it will fit oh-so-perfectly!
Dress shopping for bridesmaid dresses with ALL of my wonderful bridesmaids is coming up in 2 and a half weeks and I'm super excited! After that, all of my wedding projects can get started for real! Yay!
To end this post, I'd like to give a shout out to my Grandpa Kock, who I hope is up and to reading this himself!
Grandpa, I hope you're feeling alright today. I am thinking about you and praying for you and praying for the doctors, as well, to have the knowledge and expertise to take care of you and get you back to normal so you can bust a move with us out on the dance floor at my wedding! :) I love you very much and can't wait to see you again.

What a Wonderful Weekend

Trent and I had a great weekend with his family. We took off on Friday after work for his parents' house to spend the weekend there. Saturday morning, the girls, Trent's mom, sister, aunt, cousin, and myself, spent most of the day at a huge craft fair in Ankeny. There were many great booths with beautiful crafts made by different people. Unfortunately (maybe), I didn't buy anything, but I was majorly tempted to make a purchase as we passed a booth that had one-of-a-kind purses. I just keep reminding myself that I didn't NEED it, no matter how nice it was :) There were also a few booths that had some crafts that were similar to a few things I am planning on making for the wedding. So it was great to be able to see those things up close and made me even more excited to get going on the DIY part of our wedding! Us girls had a really great day. It was a lot of fun to bond with my future in-laws and I am so grateful to be included in the tradition of going to the event now.

Saturday night, we were back at Jan and Chuck's house for supper and watching a heartbreaking loss by the Cyclones. :( Right before supper, I took the opportunity to ask Trent's 3 year old niece if she would do us the honor of being the flower girl in our wedding. I had a book that I read to her that was all about a flower girl in a wedding and it had a little pouch of practice flowers in the back of the book. She told us that she'd love to be in our wedding and then we took some time for her to practice dropping petals on the ground and then, when she was done, I would follow her and walk on the petals just like we will on the real wedding day. I think she had a good time with that. When we sat down for supper, she told me that Trent was going to be the groom, I was going to be the bride, and she was going to drop flowers. Which is very true! :)

The next step in the wedding preparation process is to go shopping with my bridesmaids and get their dresses picked out. Which I'm really excited about! All of my attendants are beautiful, so it won't be hard at all to find something that will look great on them all!

That's all for now! Chow!

I Said YES to the Dress!!

Only 237 days to go! :)
Trent and I have now officially been engaged for a little over two weeks. It has been a two weeks filled with planning and talking about our future (in my opinion anyways - you'd have to ask Trent about how much he likes all the planning!).

Over the past two weeks, we have booked our caterer and our reception site, found a photographer and set the date for our engagement pictures, and began asking our wedding party to be a part of our special day. I've been looking at all kinds of wedding websites to get some ideas about every thing you could imagine about a wedding, and I've gone wedding dress shopping and found THE dress!!

Saturday, September 25, I went dress shopping with my mom and my sister as well as my future mother-in-law and sister-in-law. We went to a bridal shop in Boone and to one in Ankeny. The Bridal Connection in Ankeny is where I found my dress. I had tried on a lot of dresses before I tried on the one that eventually ended up to be mine. I never would have picked the dress that I ended up falling in love with and purchasing, so I owe the great find to the consultant that was helping me that day. When I first tried on the dress, I really didn't want to like it. I had already tried on a dress that I really liked, and I had it in my head that I wasn't going to like this new dress. When I was in the dressing room with my sister, I said very nonchalantly that I kind of liked the dress, and then when I came out of the room to show the rest of my crew, I could tell that they all really liked it. I stood in front of the mirror and tried to find something that I didn't like about it, but I really couldn't come up with anything. The consultant then told me that I should try a veil on with it so I could get the full effect, so she grabbed one and put it on my head. It was also a veil that I never would have picked on my own. I looked at myself and started trying to imagine myself wearing this on my wedding day. I thought about walking down the aisle and seeing Trent at the end waiting for me, and I just lost it. I had tears all over the place and when they asked me why I was crying, all I could say was "I really like it." I looked over at the four women that came with me and they all had tears in their eyes, too.

We decided to try a few more on and go back to the one that I thought I liked before and then try 'the one' on again to see if I still had the same reaction later. When I got back in the dressing room with Kellsey, she asked me what made me cry, and I told her, "I was just thinking about Trent seeing me in this dress." We tried on a couple more dresses, but when I came back to the dress I had such a strong reaction to, it was clear that after hours of trying on dresses and none of them being good enough, I was able to say, "This is the one."

I truly can say that I had the best wedding dress shopping experience ever. The staff at The Bridal Connection was great. I could tell they really cared about me and they were just as happy for me when I found my dress as my family members were. I am so happy that I got to share the day with my mom and sister and future mother- and sister-in-law. I can't wait until everyone gets to see me in the dress we all fell in love with that day, especially my future husband!

Forever Love

I'M ENGAGED!! :) Last Saturday, September 18, Trent asked me if I would be his wife. I, of course, said YES!! The last four days have been filled with wedding planning, talking about our future, and reminding each other that this is real! It’s definitely exciting and both Trent and I are eager for everything to fall into place and the next 248 days to zip on by!! Monday afternoon we got our reception site booked and our date set. Sunday, May 29, 2010, the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend will the THE DAY! Everyone should start praying now for great weather that weekend =)

I will certainly share more about our wedding plans as time goes by and more and more details are set in place. My work days have definitely gotten busier, trying to fit in my work activities AND wedding planning!! =) As a little starter, I will leave you with what I wrote for our wedding website about the proposal day. I will get all of you the URL for the site as soon as it’s done so you can check out the whole site, including Trent's rendition of the day!

Have a great one!!

Kendra's Story

I woke up on Saturday, September 18, 2010 thought that I knew what was going on that day. I thought that I was going to be picked up by Trent at 8:30, we were going to drive to Dayton Oaks Camp the camp, that Trent spent a lot of time at growing up, to go hiking, and then we were going to go to his parents' house in Ankeny for a birthday party for his brother-in-law and his uncle.

The day at least started off as I thought it would. Trent came and picked me up. It was a pretty gloomy and rainy day, but we weren't going to let that ruin our plans. And you can bet that Trent gave me enough chances to get out of going hiking, but I knew he really wanted to go and I was really excited about sharing my first real hiking experience with him. It was a pretty fun three hour drive there, just talking and singing with Trent. We arrived at Dayton Oaks Camp, got out of the car and went to the trunk to get the backpack out that had our water and the camera in it. I was kind of surprised when Trent held out the backpack for me to put on, but didn't think anything much of it because he pulled out an umbrella and said he was going to carry that. I thought that would be better to carry the backpack on my back rather than have to carry an umbrella in my hand, so off we went.

We walked hand and hand down the path to get to the trail we were going to take. We passed different cabins as Trent told me about which ones he'd stayed in, what they were like on the inside, different maintenance he had done to them as a counselor at the camp, and a few memories he had of going to camp and staying in those cabins. We walked up to a circle around a campfire, and it was at that point Trent told me that that was the place where he devoted his life to Christ. I was so happy and honored that I could be at that place with him and that he could share that part of his life with me. It was at that moment that I really realized how much this place meant to him and it crossed my mind that this could be where he asks me to be his wife. But, as Trent would tell you, I think about that he could propose to me pretty much no matter what we're doing, so the thought passed, and we started off onto the trail for our hike.

We walked down steep hills, around trees, and over creeks. I am very impressed with myself that I didn't slip and fall down a hill in the mud or anything! Trent told me about how he used to know the trails really well and how he and a friend of had even marked some of the trail that we were following. We hiked a while and ended up at a very beautiful creek. It sounded like the creek setting that you would have on a nature sounds alarm clock. After we left the creek we hiked up a really steep hill, and when we got to the top of the hill, I walked up to the ledge of the hill and couldn't believe how beautiful it was. We were on a very high ledge overlooking the creek we had just been at, as well as, trees as far as I could see across on the other side of the ravine. The place where we were at was called "The Top of the World." There was a sign nailed to a tree, so Trent told me to turn around so he could get the camera out of the backpack to take my picture (I didn't know at the time that that was all he was grabbing out of the backpack). I went and stood by the sign and Trent took my picture. I then went to try to grab the camera from him so I could get his picture by the sign, but he didn't hand it to me. Instead he put his arms out to hug me and told me to come over to him. He hugged me and told me he loved me and then he stepped back to look at me. It was then he told me that he knew for a long while that he wanted to marry me, and he might have said something else, but at that point I realized for sure what was happening and I think that I blacked out from the happiness for a second. Next thing I know he is grabbing something from his back pocket and getting down on one knee and the words "Will you marry me?" came from his mouth. And of course I said YES!! We hugged and I cried and I was so excited I was shaking. It was amazing. I then looked at the ring he had been holding and couldn't believe how beautiful it was, and that it was mine! I put the ring on and couldn't stop smiling. I couldn't believe what had just happened, and that I was now engaged to the most wonderful man, the man of my dreams!

I went back down by the tree that I had just taken a picture by moments earlier and took the 'after' picture. I couldn't have hid my happiness if I tried. Trent and I then sat down and looked at the beautiful place we were in. I really wanted to just soak the whole thing in.

Trent then told me that the birthday party that I thought we were going to that evening was made up and that we were meeting the in-laws for lunch. (We were both getting in-laws!!) That was such a great surprise and I was so happy that we were going to see them and could share this great day with them.

It wasn't until we got to Boone for lunch that I really realized how special this day was. Trent's mom then shared that the 18th of September was her late mother's birthday. I was so incredibly honored that Trent and I could bring happiness to their family on a day that is usually a bit sad.

After lunch, we had a fun time getting to go see our family members and share the good news with them. We went to Adel to surprise his sister and her family to tell them the great news. Trent's 3 year old niece filled us in on the fact that when Trent and I get married, I will be Aunt Kendra. That was something that I hadn't thought about yet, but just another great thing that comes along with marrying Trent. We then drove to tell my grandparents, aunt and uncle, sister and cousins. It was great to share that news with them all!!

When we finally made it back to Omaha, Trent dropped me off at my apartment so I could shower and then I was going to go over to his apartment so he could "watch some of the Iowa game." But when I walked into his apartment, there were two dozen roses sitting on the counter, the apartment was romantically lit, there was music on, and he was making us supper. After a long and exciting day, it was great to sit with my now fiance and talk about the day as well as talk about what our future together will hold.

The whole day was just perfect. I was literally on "top of the world." I am so happy that Trent and I now have such an amazing memory together at a place that has meant so much to him throughout in his life. A place that was so important in shaping him into the man he is today. A man that I am lucky to be able to say is my future husband!

In Better Hands Now

This past weekend was an interesting one. It was great because I had a chance to just hang out with Trent, watch football, play games, eat, and relax, but it was also a sad time because a lot of people lost a very good friend on Saturday. Pastor Virginia really was a great friend to me. She genuinely cared about what was going on in my life and has numerous times gone out of her way and sometimes traveled 3 hours to be able to come and support me in my activities that she knew were very important to me. I will never forget all of the basketball games that she came to, nor will I forget her being so excited to come to my dance recitals every year. She was also great enough to drive from Ames to Sioux City to attend my dance show at Morningside. She was there every year, and when she couldn’t be there you can bet she was thinking about me and wished me the best and wished with all her heart that she could be there. I could always count on an email or an ecard on my birthday every year. I could count on an email from her at the beginning of the school year to wish me luck, a congratulatory email when I made the honor role, an email to ask me how my job search was going, and even a phone call just to ask I am. To know that she thought that much of me to think of me at all those random times makes me feel so happy and loved. I really knew that I could tell Virginia anything and could look to her for advice and a comforting and reassuring word when times were tough.

The toughest thing about losing her is realizing that I won’t ever see her again or talk to her again while I’m on Earth. It is just a hard thing to swallow for me, but it is something that I know is a reality. I do have to really step back and look at my sadness, though, and know that I have no reason to be sad. I know that she is in a much better place, a place so great that I am unable to comprehend it. As Lauren said to me, she’s up there being completely happy and she’s dancing and jumping around clicking her heels. Now when you think about that, how can you not smile? =) I am going to try to not be sad about all of this and do my best to just celebrate her life. I know she touched many people, and I hope people can learn from her as much as I have. She has truly taught me how to be a better friend and how to really rely on God to get us through the tough times, because He always will!

I'm connected!!

After living here in this apartment for 2 and a half months, we finally have Internet!! I have to say that it was quite nice to not have it, though. I didn't waste any time doing things that weren't important, I finally finished a book I had been reading for a long time, and I got to bed at a decent time as well. I'll have to have even more self control now with the added distraction in my room!

I have to say that I don't know what I would do without Trent. He is my know-it-all guy when it comes to a lot of things, and I go to him for his opinion on things quite a lot (even though he doesn't always give it to me because he wants me to think for myself - but that's a different thing =) ) He was very vital to getting our internet set up, too, from letting us have his modem that he didn't need anymore, going to Wal-Mart to help me pick out a router, and installing it all on my computer. (He also bought us a rotisserie chicken for supper, too - He's just good for everything!)

It's very hard to believe that all the schools around are all in session again. And it's even harder to believe that my little brother, Jared, started class at Morningside today. He's grown up so fast, but it just doesn't seem possible. I got to talk to him a little tonight on Fbook chat (thanks to the new internet connection) and he really seems to be enjoying it all so far. He's been having open gyms for basketball and everything that goes with that, so that will keep him very busy when he's not doing his homework and studying very hard!! (We all hope!) I really hope that I get to see him play basketball a lot this year. I also hope I can make it up a few other times just to hang out and things, as well as getting to see him girlfriend, Jazmine, play in a soccer game or two. It's going to be very different being on campus and not living there and just being a visitor. That's just weird to think about.

That is all I know for now. Two more work days until the weekend! I had better get off the computer and get myself prepared to get to bed now so I can make it through those two days!!
Chow!!

Settling In

So, it's been QUITE a long time since my last post. My break from writing has been just about as long as my break from running has been! And I started running again last night, so I guess I'd better begin this again.
I wouldn't say that I am quite used to living in Omaha and to going to work every day, but I'm definitely getting there. This is my 4th week at Union Pacific. I've learned a lot, but I still feel quite overwhelmed at times and have a lot more to learn for sure! I have to say that it does make me feel pretty grown up to be a part of the 'morning rush' every morning. I can even pretend, in my own little world, that I am quite an important person as well. The people in the cars around me don't have to know that I'm new to this.
As for what I actually do in my job... I work in Financial Reporting and I am kind of the 'General Ledger' person. I make changes to accounts in our system and add accounts among other things. I close the books at the end of each month, and make sure that whole process goes smoothly. I also have a few accounts that I reconcile at the end of each month and print checks and keep the checkbook registers for two of UP's separate accounts. Some days go by really fast and are fun, but other days are pretty slow and I have to search around for things to do or for new things to try to wrap my head around. I'm excited to see what I think about it all 6 months from now and can't wait for this all to become easy for me!
I have been slowly adding things to my apartment. This last weekend I purchased a desk and a table and some shelves for my room. I only have the table set up, but it already makes my room feel more like home and I'm excited to get the rest of it done. My wonderful boyfriend has also given me one of his computers to use, so when we get our internet hooked up I will actually have a functioning computer, one that I don't have to wait a half hour to load anything. He's such a good guy! Pretty soon I'll have my room good enough to where I can take some pictures and post them for you all to see. I also need to work on getting decorative things for the living room... But that will come. Also, one of these days I'll have some people over for a house warming party. My house definitely needs some warming :)
That is all I have for now! Until next time....

Relaxing at Home

I figured since I still have a few weeks before I enter the "real world" and have to actually get up and go to work every day, it would be the perfect opportunity to spend some time at home with my family and just relax. So, that's what I'm doing the beginning of this week.

I came home last night, Sunday, just in time to play some Bingo in Westside with my mom. I love playing Bingo but it's just so frustrating when you don't win! :) And that's just what we did... we didn't win. But it was fun anyways. It was so fun that I decided to do it again tonight in Vail! And once again I did a lot of not winning. But oh well. Grandma Kock told me when the night was over that it's probably a good thing that I didn't win because then it wouldn't encourage me to gamble. I really thought there was no way that I could go two nights in a row and not even win one game. But oh well I guess.

Today was a great day, though. I did my usual sleeping in late and then headed over to Grandma Kocks. Of course she offered to make me some lunch which was GREAT! Fried eggs, toast, and ham. What more could I ask for!?! We watched some Game Show Network (my favorite) and I worked on some Sudoku and Word searches and things while she made some food for Bingo (which I gladly tested for her). I didn't leave without some things for my apartment either. She gave me some plates, silverware, and a bedside table... I love hand-me-downs :)

Then, when she had to leave for town to get ready for bingo I headed over to Grandma and Grandpa Jons'. We had a good time catching up and talking about my new job and apartment and things. I also got to see all the cards Grandpa received for his 80th birthday card shower (over 60 Grandma said!!). I didn't make it out of there without having an ice cream break either. Good times with the Grandparents!!

I'm not sure what I'm going to do the rest of my time at home. Hopefully get some time in with Aunt Doreen and Uncle Nick, as well as my parents and my Jared. Jared has his Grand Opening for his Amway business on Wednesday night which I hope goes well!

Then I'm back to Omaha by Thursday morning for a doctors appointment to be sure that I am healthy enough and all that jazz to work at UP. Wish me luck ;) Then....... Friday morning I get my wisdom teeth out. EEE!!! I'll let you know how that goes. Trent and I have made a grocery list of the foods that we need to pick up so I have food to eat afterwards. I'm pretty excited about the tomato soup, applesauce, yogurt, and, of course, the ice cream!! And I'm certain Trent is very excited to get to take care of me. :) He is the best boyfriend, and even took a day off of work to bring me to my appointment and then hang out with me to be sure I'm alright the rest of the day. I'll let you know how it all goes. Wish me luck!

A Job!!!!

So, it has been a while since I have posted anything, but I didn't want to write anything until I had good news about a job. And now I do!!!! Last Wednesday (the day after my birthday!) I got a call from Union Pacific and they offered me a job!

I had started to get pretty discouraged with the whole job thing and even had told my roommate and my mom that morning that my hopes were really down about the whole thing. And then, that afternoon around 2:30 or so, I was just getting on the treadmill to work out and a lady from HR and Union Pacific called and offered me the job. I was soooo soooo happy. I could barely even listen to what she was saying and all the details she was sharing with me about it because I was so ecstatic. As soon as I hung up the phone with her I ran (yes really ran!) through the parking lots back to my apartment and grabbed my car keys and drove as quickly as I could to Trent's office. I don't think that it has ever taken me that long to get there! Then when I got there to tell him, he wasn't even in his office!! Figures! So I waited ten minutes or so for him to get back and then I finally could let all my excitement out and tell someone. I just couldn't stop smiling and jumping around his office. It was great!

Then, after I told him I got back in my car to go back to my apartment and as soon as I got in my car I started to call people and tell them. First my parents and my grandparents and my sister and then Melody O'Connor who I babysat for in Sioux City all through college. I am sooo grateful for her because without her I would have never even gotten the opportunity to interview there. She used to work at Union Pacific, so she passed on my resume and got it in there in front of the right people. I am so thankful and amazed how everything works out in the end!

Lauren, my roommate, was gone babysitting that afternoon until about 7 and she was the last person I had to tell that day. And I couldn't wait for her reaction. Trent and I were at my apartment when she got home and we were in the kitchen starting to make supper for the three of us (tacos that night!). I didn't really know the right way to tell her or the right moment, so she kept telling me about her day and I just smiled nonstop and couldn't stop looking over at Trent waiting for that right moment. Then, Trent asked Lauren if she liked trains, as an opener into the whole UP/job conversation. That is when Lauren started going off about why she hated trains. :) And she has a lot of reasons why she doesn't like them!! Finally, she figured out what was going on and looked at me and her eyes got really big and said, "You got the job, didn't you!" It was quite humerous and great to share that news with her.
There was only one more thing to do after that.... Update my Facebook status!!!! :)

The job that I was offerred is in Union Pacific's Accounting and Finance department. I am not certain as to the actual division of accounting or what my daily job duties will be yet, but I will know in the next few weeks. My job title is an Analyst. I start on the 26th of July, so I still have some time to enjoy being unemployed, too. But I get to do that without the worry of finding a job and stuff. I am very very excited to start work in my first "real job" and go to work in the big glass building in downtown Omaha! It is so great to have a little more certainty in my life as far as knowing that I will soon have income again and know that I can start saving for my future and stuff and it is fun to just think about the possibilities I'll have with this job and with this company and things. I am very excited to learn more about what I'll be doing every day at work and actually get to go and do those things every day.

Real life... almost!

So, I'm officially an Omaha-ian!! I got the last of my things moved into my apartment on Saturday, but I have to say it doesn't really feel real yet that this is actually my home. As Lauren has said, it just kind of feels like we are staying at a hotel... Having my whole family leave town on Saturday evening and me staying here was a little weird.

Thursday was our actual move-in day, so, of course, it was raining all morning! I got up bright and early in the morning to get as much as would fit out of my apartment in Sioux City into my car and into Kellsey's car. We got as much as we could and headed down south. It was a pretty scary drive between the rain and the mounds of clothes and other things we both had in our cars. It was a team effort to get here trying to weave in and out of the traffic.

We got here and I got my keys and everything and went to explore my new apartment before beginning the process of bringing everything back out of our cars and into my new apartment. And I have to say our apartment was even better than what I had remembered when we came to see it about a month earlier. I was super excited to get everything inside and put away. Before we really started moving things we also ordered pizza, too (much needed after all the packing and the rainy drive!) The rest of the day, after everything was unpacked, was just spent organizing my closet (which is the best part of it all) and unpacking boxes and running to the store with Trent to get a few of the first essential things.

Friday, I did a little more unpacking and also found some time to lay out at our pool. Then, Friday night I went to hang out with two of my roommates from my freshman year at Morningside, Miranda and Kelli, and my sister. We had tacos and margaritas and just hung out and talked. It was a great night!!

Then Saturday, it was back up early and back to Sioux City to meet my parents and my brother to load up all that was left in my dorm room and the furniture from the storage unit that was holding all of the furniture I was getting from Trent since he didn't need it after he moved to Omaha to his new place. So after all that was in my apartment and in place, it was a lot better, and on its way to feeling more like home!

Every day there is a few more things added to the apartment to make it so we can function and cook real meals and stuff. Last night was a new vaccuum and today was a new TV!! So slowly but surely it's getting there... All it takes is a little money, that's for sure!! :) I will post a few pictures of my apartment in the near future when there aren't empty boxes and things sitting around anymore :)

So, tomorrow resumes my job search. I have four different interviews and things this week, so hopefully something will come of one of them!!! Tomorrow morning is a position in Accounting with Union Pacific. I will keep you all posted on my job search, and hopefully it's good news sometime soon!

Fingers crossed!