And then there were three!

Bridesmaids that is!  :)

For those of you looking (or hoping) for a wedding update…here it is!  We have decided on a date (7.13.13) and a place (Boulder Ridge Country Club) for our upcoming nuptials. My mom and I went out one Saturday morning and looked at 2-3 possible reception venues.  Knowing we were planning a larger wedding we knew we may be limited on venues…so mom and I checked out a few we knew a little about…and the I made appointments at 3 other places to visit once Dave was back in town (before we headed to Colorado).  As we were eating lunch (dinner?) I was looking through a real-estate brochure and noticed a home I really liked in the Boulder Ridge neighborhood.  Mom and I looked at each other and thought out loud…what about the club there???  So we quickly googled it and I was so impressed with the ease of their website as well as the detailed information it included…I quickly sent an email to see if Dave and I could get an appointment.  And let me tell you!  It was even better in person!!!  It was the first of our stops when Dave and I went “venue hunting” and I could tell as soon as we left that I loved it there.  But we didn’t want to be all excited just because it was the first place we visited together…so I held back my excitement as we continued on…but at the end of the day…I was still liking it over any of the other places (with one exception…but that venue would have been tight to fit our reception into…and it was only a venue…it didn’t come with anything else (bar service, food, etc!). 

More news…we went back and forth on how many attendants to have on each side.  Dave was feeling 4 and I had my heart set on 6.  We knew there were going to be things we disagreed on and areas where we would need to compromise but we didn’t think it would be on one of the first things we discussed!  That being said, when I explained my rational for the 6 women I would like by my side as we pledge our love to one another he agreed that there wasn’t a way I could cut my 6 down.  Soooooo, I have had the lovely pleasure of asking 3 of my 6 bridesmaids either in person or over Skype!  I have asked the woman I have known the longest and one of my dearest friends Kendall (she currently lives in Amsterdam…so she had to be asked over Skype…but it was still just as fun!), I have asked my best friend from junior high/high school Lindsey (she currently lives in AZ but was home for her own Spring Break…and some wedding planning of her own…her wedding is in July 2012…so it’s super fun to throw wedding ideas back and forth!), and I have asked one of my sorority sisters Carrie (who lives in basically St. Louis but was back “home” for a work trip.  I can’t wait to ask my other three ladies…hopefully in the next few months…and then I’ll be able to post just how I did it!  I have to say…although not totally original…it was very sweet (but I’m a little biased!)!!!  

  

A bit about T$ (Tucker)

**I'll try to post pics tomorrow...I've exceeded my photo limit for now I guess!  :(  **

Now it has been brought to my attention that I have been neglecting my little furry friend in my updates on my blog!  Poor little (well…if you can say that 17 pounds is little!!!) Tucker has been doing sometimes sweet, sometimes funny, sometimes silly things now for the past two years (yes, folks, our silly kitten will be two in May!!) and I haven’t updated his following on some of his latest antics!

So here are a few things to get everyone up-to-date on life as a cat:

Figuring out the humidifier…when I first go the humidifier neither cat was too sure of the noisy devise.  They would run away each time I turned it on, only to come slinking back towards it with a little more courage, each time getting just a little bit closer!  Well, finally, scaredy cat Tucker made an attempt at figuring it out.  While it was off he would bat at the water tank, sniff around the dials, nudge it with his nose to make the water move, look through the water (not really sure at what).  Well, finally I had my camera around when he got up some major nerves and climbed up on top!  I was so very tempted to turn it on with him up there…but that was just animal cruelty if you ask me! 

Baking helper…So it’s probably no secret that as much as I try to avoid the temptation of giving Tuck any people food…his sweet little face is just too hard to resist!!!  Plus, he is learning to use his little cat voice now (which really just sounds like an old man cat!) and it melts my heart.  Now you would think that he’d like tuna or chicken or beef…but nope…not my cat. He prefers sugar…go figure!  He LOVES frosting…and since I enjoy baking he comes running into the kitchen when he hears the foil being torn off the frosting can. 

Potty Training?…experts say that you can train a cat to use a toilet…I think we just started too late…but here are some funny attempts that were made one rainy afternoon! 

Playing in the snow…Tucker loves to chase the snowflakes!  He is so funny…he tries to hunt them!  He hunches down and wiggles his little butt back and fourth before pouncing on the ground towards where one landed or leaping into the air to catch one between his paws.  He has been known to catch quite a few and will lick his paws following a catch or conquer.  I’m not sure if he knows what he is doing or if he realizes that they melt…but he does love to play in fresh snow.  He doesn’t get to experience much openness with fresh snow as he is confined to the 3^rd floor balcony…but it’s his own little wilderness that he doesn’t seem to complain about exploring!

Office Temp…I FINALLY (after 2+ years in a box) but together my wireless printer for my room.  Oh what did I do without it!?!?  Oh yea…never printed things at home!  But seriously, what a new reality I have found…being able to complete things at home and drop them off for copies on my way into work!  Oh the joy!!! Well, if you all remember from his time spent on Parkplace Drive last summer Tucker got quite good at working the printer/scanner/copier!  And he has been putting his talents to work on Palatine Road. 

Snuggles on the couch…in the rare occurrence that both kittens are tuckered (hehe) out we can catch them snuggled up together.  This typically won’t last too long though.  One will undoubtedly just licking (just enough to relax the other) and then BITE out of nowhere, prompted a return attack complete with some cat calling!  But they really are darling when they are together!   

Stretching out…in case anyone doubted the size of this little kitten…here are a few pics of him all relaxed and spread out!

I know there are many many many more Tucker stories to tell…I really don’t want to be deemed “the cat blogger” so I will have to limit my tales!  But rest assured…there will be more to come!  Especially as both he and Dave get used to cohabitating!  

Valentine's Day in Colorado!

I have to admit…I was terribly sad when Dave returned back to England following his trip home for training/Christmas and New Years.  Although, I have to say…I was very excited to be FINALLY purchasing bridal magazines for a reason.  At least!  I don’t have to feel like a creep, flipping through the pages awkwardly telling people “oh no, I’m not engaged…just looking for ideas” anymore.  Now when people ask (and maybe I just look friendly or excited or something because people ask me all the time!) I can tell them that yes I am engaged and we are getting married next summer.  When we first began to look at dates it was top priority that we look far enough into the future that my future husband would be back in the US when we start married life together.  I never thought I would have wanted a 19 month engagement…but with Dave living on a different continent and us wanting to do as much planning together as we can…we may need all those months!!!

As sad as I was to see my fiancé leave in January I took comfort knowing that he would be returning to the states in the beginning of February.  4 weeks…not a whole lot of time…and it went quickly!  We (his parents, Dave and myself) got to celebrate his birthday in Colorado this year.  (His birthday was in January…but better late than never!)  This was my first “family vacation” without Peter (Dave’s older brother) and I have to say…I missed him!  He couldn’t take the time off of work for the long weekend we were planning (sad face here) and I was reminded of how much I truly enjoy his company! 

I was surprised on our first night in Colorado with a sleigh ride up the mountain for dinner.  It was colder than I expected (what was I thinking…hello!  It’s Colorado!) but I was warned to dress warm (and I got to wear my cute new earmuffs!).  What a fun experience!!!  The next few days were filled with wonderful skiing, amazing food, friendly (wedding) conversations, laughter and memories.  On our first day out on the slopes I questioned Dave about a run that the lift went over.  It looked a little steep but not so steep that I didn’t think I could do it.  We looked at a map to be sure but Dave was correct…that was the black portion of a green run!  Imagine his surprise when I said…Let’s do it!  Now, I’ll remind you…up until this point I had only skied black diamonds in WI and IL…which are like icy greens in Colorado!  I’ll also point out that up until this conversation we had only been skiing the greens up at the tippy top of the mountain.  So here I am, all confident because I could ski the greens well after taking a year off from skiing, trying to convince my fiancé that I could totally manage the blacks.  Since it was relatively empty on the slopes at that point we went for it!  I remembered the fundamentals and took my time…and felt such a wonderful sense of accomplishment!!!  Dave is such a patient, tolerant man…I am truly blessed to be marrying him…because if any of you has been around a freaked out, nervous, slightly scared Katie…you can attest that it might not be the best of times! Yet at the end of it all…we were both all smiles!  (I didn’t even take my skis off and try to scoot down the mountain this time!) 

Again, it was difficult to say goodbye (on Valentine’s Day) but knowing that I would be seeing him in 6 weeks for Spring Break made it slightly easier!  We just have to take out absences from each other one day at a time and it doesn’t seem so menacing!  <3  

Time to FINALLY share some REALLY BIG news!!!!

**WARNING: These pictures are in no particular order!!**

Okay ladies and gents…I have apparently been slacking enough already!  Time to make it BLOG official…it’s already FBO (Facebook Official).  My life has forever been changed…for the better!!!  On December 20, 2011 Dave Johnson got down on one knee and asked me the most important question of both of our lives…he asked me to be his wife!  And I, OF COURSE, said yes!!!  I am still walking on cloud nine…nearly 2 months later!!!  That’s the short story!  For those of you who would like details details details…keep reading! 

We have no plans truly made as of right now…but I’m sure I’ll be filling everyone in as we go!  Here are the few things we have nailed down (sort of!):
*we will probably get married summer 2013 (when he’s supposed to be moving back to the US)
*we will most likely be getting married in Illinois (okay…I think I can officially say we WILL be getting married in Illinois…but I’ll wait for the A-OK from Dave)
*we want to have a classy, traditional, fun and relaxed wedding weekend

The details! 

Sit back, grab a cup of coco, and settle in…because I’m about to relive the happiest day of my life!  Unbeknownst to me this plan was actually set into action a while ago…Dave said that he just knew he wanted to marry me while we were vacationing in Paris last summer…but since he didn’t have a ring at that time he waited until now…when we could celebrate with our family and friends.  Okay…fast forward to

Saturday December 17…Dave came home from England and straight to Palatine!  It was so wonderful to see him in person and give him hugs again!  It is a loooooong time from August to December.  We were invited to a few Christmas parties on Saturday night…but we decided to stay in and have an “us” date night. 

Sunday December 18

My parents wanted to celebrate Dave’s return and the start of the holidays by hosting a brunch for basically as many people as could make it!  We ended up with about 15 people aging from a newborn little tyke to my grandma!  It was a lovely brunch with TONS of good food!!!  When I first mentioned the brunch to Dave he was all for it but informed me that he needed to go shopping with his dad for his mom’s Christmas present this day as well.  Oh, and the store closed at 4.  Well, I got a little “Katie-ish” and pouted and stressed the fact that we would be spending the majority of the next few weeks with his family and it would mean a lot to me to stay at my parents as long as we could.  He offered to rearrange his plans…which meant SOOOO much to me!  ***SIDENOTE*** He was NOT going to get a Christmas present for his mom…his dad was going to take him to look at diamonds…oops!!!     ***SECOND SIDENOTE*** Dave knew how important it was to me that he talk to my dad first and I really didn’t know when he would have the time to.  Well…when my dad and Uncle Mark (my godfather) were in the basement Dave followed and was able to ask BOTH important men!  This made me cry a few days later! 

Monday December 19

I was working on school stuff as I had TONS to grade and Dave kept taking phone calls in other rooms…or answering his phone and walking away from where I was.  Now, some people would have guessed what was going on, but not this girl.  I was so wrapped up in all I had to grade before Christmas (that was my goal) that I really didn’t notice what he was up to.  Dave had told me that he was able to find a time with his dad to work on his mom’s present (LIES!!!!) and that was why he had to be so secretive.  I wasn’t fazed and said it was fine.  Dave headed to the “mall” that afternoon and I stayed behind to grade, grade, and grade some more.  We had dinner with a bunch of friends that night.  I guess they were expecting an announcement…but no such luck!

Tuesday December 20

Today we were scheduled to visit our good friends Scott and Sarah and their new baby Grace in Sheboygan.  It was a lovely day, very mild for this time of year.  Dave had mentioned the night before wanting to stop by Elkhart Lake to see what the Osthoff Resort looks like all decorated for the holidays.  I thought it was just a passing comment but he brought it up again today.  We were running errands at the mall and he mentioned it again…since it was somewhat close to Sheboygan…since we had the time I figured why not!  I’ve seen it at Christmas but since he hadn’t I thought it would be really special.  Why not!  Let’s go! 

We got out of the car and I headed inside.  Dave wanted to change coats since I had mentioned wanting to go for a walk while we were there.  He joined me in the bar area at the base of the 18 foot REAL Christmas tree!  We headed down towards the lake…past the pools (too cold to swim outside now) and around the gazebo (my favorite spot…where he got my phone number) (when we kept walking towards the lake I was sure he WASN’T proposing since I figured he would have done it by now).  We headed towards the lake and held hands and smiled…Dave was exceptionally smiley and in a wonderful mood…I had even commented on it!  Hehehe!!!  As we headed back in we found ourselves once again at the gazebo…and he pulled me in for a hug.  He looked down at me and I could see something in his eyes…he was so happy and confidant.  He began to say such wonderful things and found himself getting down on one knee and asking me to be his wife and spend the rest of my life with him.  AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!   YYYYYYYEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!  Of course, of course, of course!!!!!!!!!!!   I am so very very fortunate! 

Not the actual proposal...I made him recreate it for the camera...and he's a wonderful man!!!

We walked back into the bar area at the Osthoff and were met by someone Dave used to work with…she’s actually the bar manager at the Osthoff now!  For the first time I was introduced as Dave’s fiancé!  Oh how I like the sound of that!  She even gave us our first bottle of champagne!  So sweet! 

It was such a wonderful day!  The weather was perfect (although it would have been amazing if it had snowed)!  And I get to spend the rest of my life with my best friend.  We made the phone calls to our families but we decided to wait until the next day to make all the other calls…we wanted tonight to be about us! 

For the record…we did make it over to Sheboygan for some more champagne and pizza and snuggles from the sweetest baby!!! 

BABY GRACE!!!  NOT MINE!!!!  :)

I think that brings us all up to date!!!

Oh…one more thing.  Dave proposed with a single diamond.  It wasn’t an actual ring…just a stone.  We went the following day to select the setting!!!  It was such an amazing experience!!!  Dave assured me that I would have my actual ring in time for Christmas.  But he also realized that I would want something to wear in the meantime…so he presented me with a ring that has been in the family for 4 generations.  It was the actual ring both his great, great grandfather and his dad proposed with…and it slid right on and fit PERFECTLY!!!!  I’m so incredibly lucky!!!  It means so much to me to get to wear that ring.  I love to look at it on my finger and feel the love the surrounds it! 

My diamond, the generation ring and our bottle of bubbly!  :)

My new bling!!! :)

   

Holidays with the Fedota & Johnson Clans

Well, now that it’s February it seems only appropriate to finally update this blog with our holiday excitement.  Does anyone else feel like the holidays (or more realistically the entire 2011) flew by so quickly???  I feel like I turned the calendar after my birthday (October) and it was like boom, boom, boom…hello 2012!  I already wrote about Thanksgiving and such so I’ll just focus on the Winter Holidays… 

Christmas:

In late November Dave asked me to come spend Christmas in Wisconsin.  We had been doing a dance around this topic for a few months as we both wanted the same few things:

1.     To spend as much time together this winter as possible

2.     To spend Christmas together

3.     To spend Christmas with our own family

4.     To have the other spend Christmas with us and our family

However we both realized that it was a lot to ask of someone…asking them to spend this major holiday away from their family (even if it was to spend it surrounded by people who love and care about you).  It’s just different when it’s not your own mom and dad.  Dave came up with the perfect solution (and okayed it with his family first).  Dave asked me to spend Christmas Eve with his family (going to church, family dinner, Santa’s arrival…the whole shebang!) and then invited my family to join us on Christmas day.  Sounded like a wonderful plan…I just needed to make sure it was all right with my family. This would be the first time in 23 years I wouldn’t be waking up on Parkplace Drive on Christmas morning.  I had to make sure I would be okay with this!  Wow!  I warned Dave that I may be a little emotional on Christmas Eve/Christmas morning without my family but knowing that they would be joining us later in the evening made things so much better.  We both realized that this wouldn’t become a yearly event but it was a great way to transition into sharing holidays.   

Group Shot with Santa!  :)

I have to say…Christmas in Wisconsin was wonderful.  Church was just like church at home, the food was fantastic, everyone was merry in spirit and we were surrounded by people who love and care about us.  But I did notice the absence of my mom, dad and brother…not to mention the Grady family!  There was no after church drive thru this year or pretending to oompa loompas during the service. 

 We woke up on Christmas morning, had a lovely leisurely breakfast and set ourselves around the coffee table in the family room to begin opening presents.  I actually cried when I saw that I had a matching stocking by the fireplace (complete with my name embroidered on it!).  And the knowledge that my family was in route made it so wonderful.  I think the only change I would have made to Christmas this year would be the addition of a little snow.  I’m not typically one to complain about weather but I could definitely go for a little more snow this year! 

Santa found me at Parkplace Drive even though I was sleeping in Wisconsin...so when my parents arrived in WI we celebrated Christmas even more!  How fun!  :)  So much wonderful togetherness!  Dave and I are so very very lucky!!!  

Yes, Ladies and Gentlemen...that really says Cooking Teacher Barbie!!!  What girl WOULDN'T want this toy!?!?

New Years:

With the absence of snow this year (really throughout the entire US) it was decided that skiing for New Years probably wasn’t the best idea/use of our time.  There was very little snow in Colorado.  (Insert slightly sad face here)  With the lack of snow in mind it was announced that we would be heading south for a few days to relax and soak up the sun in Naples, Florida.  What a lovely time! 

We arrived in Naples to a warm 75 (at 6 at night).  We got to the house, unloaded the car, cleaned up and headed to dinner.  DELICIOUS!!!!!  The next few days were spent lounging around the pool, relaxing in the hot tub, snacking on shrimp (not me!), laughing, and wonderful family togetherness! 

We love our party hats!  :) 

New Years Eve this year was unlike any I’ve ever experienced.  We went to dinner in penguin suits (as Dave’s brother so kindly refers to tuxedos) and long dresses.  We dined on fantastic cuisine and danced the night away to a live band.  We enjoyed free flowing champagne and what I’ve been newly introduced to as a ‘raw bar’ (which looked wonderful but I kept my distance from the shellfish).  We rang in the new year laughing and smiling with so many things to be thankful for in 2011 and so many wonderful things to look towards in 2012. 

HAPPY NEW YEARS!!!!!  

Major Updates Take II!

I can’t believe how much I seriously slacked on this blog during the last quarter of the year!  New Year’s Resolution #1…be more attentive to the blog!  Even if it’s really just my mom, dad and brother who read it…it’s kind of like a journal or diary…except…the entire world can read it if they’d like!  Kinda creepy when you think about it that way!  But whatev!!!   

So I guess this is my apology to my readers…I’m sorry I haven’t been diligently updating as I should be!  I’m sure there are many many many great moments I haven’t even remembered to blog about! 

Many more exciting updates to come shortly!!!  Get excited!!! 

Holy Family Scholarship Dinner

My parents (well…really my biological parents as well as all my church families) have been long time supporters of Holy Family Lutheran Church in Chicago.  It is a school for inner city children…but it costs a lot of money per year to attend and most of the students are there on scholarship.  I find it so humbling that so many people in our community are able to give so much to this school and it’s mission.  This was my first year to attend the Scholarship Dinner and I have to say…I can’t wait until next year.  Each year a dinner/auction is held to raise money for the school and the scholarship it is able to offer.  I believe that of the 35(ish) tables at the dinner our church was represented at 4 of them!  That’s awesome!  There are both a silent auction prior to dinner and a live auction following the meal.  There was also a performance towards the end of dinner by the choir from the school as well as a few skits by the children.  I didn’t end up bidding on anything at the silent auction this year but there were so many wonderful items up that I’m sure it brought in a lot of money for the school.  The live auction was awesome!  So many generous individuals in our community! 

It was so much fun to get dressed up with my parents, aunts and uncles, and church friends for an evening of faith, fellowship, and fun!  I can’t wait for next year! 

Aunt Karen and her autographed football (oh...and Robbie Gould!)

Showing mom how my phone has a camera on BOTH sides!

Daddy Daughter :)

Please take a minute to learn more about the school for yourself!  It’s truly remarkable and the children (students) are wonderful!!!  I took so many pictures with (for?) them!  There were about 15-20 students from the school in attendance!!!  Which makes it so much more meaningful!  It was awesome to talk to some of the younger ones about school! They are truly excited to be at school!!!! YEAH!!!

http://www.holyfamilyministries.org/

The Thanksgiving That Never Ends...

11/23-11/27/11

Wednesday:

JARED’S HOME!!!!  Yeah!  I know it’s only been like 2 weeks…but I love my brother so much and I love when he comes home!!!  He hit up Nellies tonight so I didn’t spend too much time with him…but I knew we’d have lots of family time coming up so it wasn’t a big deal!  He caught up with a bunch of friends…and then he got to crash at my place…since it’s walking distance to the bar…so it was really a win-win situation!  YEAH!!!

A small portion of the baking I did for the weekend...in the end I made 24 turkey cookies, cranberry dessert, mashed potatoes, and 4 pies!!!!  I was a baking machine!  :)

Thursday:

Happy Turkey Day!  We started our morning off with a nice little Turkey Trot where we ran (hahaha) into a bunch of friends and neighbors!  Last year we ran the 8K so this year we opted for a short 2 miler.  It was a great distance…but I felt guilty afterwards because I still had so much in me!  I definitely didn’t give those 2 miles my all this time around…better luck next year!  We then headed to Mom and Dad’s for an afternoon of lounging, taking the Christmas decorations out of the “Christmas crawlspace” and prepping the meal and general hanging out with family!  We had a delicious meal and lots of fun togetherness.

The Fedota Family Thanksgiving Table

Friday:

Jared and I started our day with a little 4 mile run…no big deal!  And then it was on to…

LIZZIEPALOOZA!!! 

My cousin Liz is currently living in Germany!  And we miss her dearly!  Well…she was in the US for almost the entire month of November and with so many people and places to see she really wanted to make the most of her time…who could blame her!  Well…a few months ago she sent out a cousins email to see if there was a time where everyone could get together at the same time!  And the Friday after Thanksgiving worked for EVERYONE!!!  We all agreed to meet at my Aunt’s house in Hampshire, IL.  Oh what fun!!!!  Here’s who was all in attendance:

My Grandma (mom’s mom)

My Aunt Linda (mom’s sister)/Uncle Cliff

My Aunt Karen(mom’s other sister)/Uncle Rick

My mom/dad

Jared (brother)

Julie(cousin)/Brad and their children Caroline, Jackson and Harrison (NEWBORN!!!)

Liz (cousin) (her husband Stuart was in CA)

Joe(cousin)/Tricia and their children Megan, Connor and Molly

John(cousin)/Emily and their children William and Henry

Karen(cousin)/Rob

And myself

All the ladies!  :)

It was amazing to have everyone together again!!!  I am so very thankful and fortunate to have such a close extended family!  I love getting together with my cousins and seeing their children!  We love to laugh and tell stories…but I find it ironic that we all used to roll our eyes when our parents would tell repeat stories and now we find ourselves prompting (or even RETELLING) those same stories!!!

We had a very relaxing, hard laughing, story-telling time!  And I can’t wait to see them all again super soon! 

Saturday:

We spend Saturday with my dad’s oldest brother (Mark) (also my god father), his wife and his wife’s sister and her family.  My “cousin” Joe graduated last year from Bradley so I love to pick his brain about his experience there!  Very different from mine…but it’s amazing how many things were similar!  My other “cousin” Karin now lives in Morton and for those of you that don’t know…I student taught junior high in Morton!  SMALL WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!  It was great to see them all again and feel the love with my fake extended family.