The Countdown is On

"Faith give us the courage to face the uncertainties of the future"

-Martin Luther King Jr.

I've never considered myself the blogging type. My life, in general, is pretty boring and basic. I don't have much to talk about and what I do have to say is probably not of much interest to many people. All of that being said, I've decided to keep this blog for other reasons. First, I want a place where Brandon and I can remember Caleb. A place where we can share stories, songs, and poems that remind us of him and help us deal with our loss. As hard as this time is right now, I personally want to remember it. I want to look back and remember how I felt on a given day and see how I'm (hopefully) progressing in my grief. Second, a lot of things are changing in our lives. Even though Brandon and I have been together for what seems like forever, we are making a big transition from boyfriend and girlfriend to husband and wife. We also plan of trying to have a brother or sister for Caleb one day and want to record the memories of our life together, our journeys and our struggles. Our family in bloom.

I could go back to the old-school style of recording thoughts and memories- keeping a journal. But frankly, I have boxes of journals starting with my first one when I was around 10 years old and I'm just out of space. I practically live online these days so it just makes more sense for me to keep these records in a place that is permanent and also doesn't take up any more space in our home. I also want something we can share with others. With family and friends all over the country, I think this is a great way for anyone who is interested to see what's going on in our lives. So sit back and enjoy. Stop by as often as you like. I'm new to this so I don't know what this page will eventually look like or how often I will post but I am excited about this new way to communicate with everyone we care about. Maybe I can even talk Brandon into posting something once in a while.

*Note: Diamond not shown at actual size (a girl can only dream!)

So the truly exciting news for the day- the countdown is on! 113 days until Brandon and I are officially Mr. and Mrs. Ballou. We are both really excited, probably me more than him right now. I think he'll get there around 2 weeks before the big day. So I'm still making plans and trying to figure out exactly how we want things to be. That usually goes like this:

Summer: "Hey Brandon, what do you think of *INSERT RANDOM WEDDING IDEA*?"
Brandon: "Yea that sounds nice. Whatever you think."

It is going to be a very small, informal affair but there are a few things that I really want to include and I think Brandon does too. For example, we really want to include Caleb. Right now, I'm searching for a memorial candle that we can personalize with his name and maybe a little message. I think we would like to include that in the ceremony. No luck so far. All the ones I have found remind me of old women's drapes. All floraly (is that a word) and kind of sad looking. So on the search goes.