Our Wedding Day

I can't even begin to tell you how amazing and wonderful our wedding day was. Peter and I got married in the Salt Lake Temple on June 21, 2008. It was a perfect day! I got to marry the man I love! The ceremony was so intimate and so special I can't even describe it. The peace and the spirit I felt in that room was so powerful and wonderful that I don't think I will ever forget it. As I looked at Peter and then looked around at all my family I thought to myself, how can life get any better? The entire day I was numb with how happy I was and how strong I felt God's presence.

That night we had a reception at a family friends house up the canyon in Midway, UT. It was the perfect night for a backyard reception. And those we love so much were there supporting us and celebrating with us. It was so great to see everyone. I have to say, I don't know if I've ever felt more loved and more beautiful than I did on that day.

I want to thank our families for making our wedding and the entire day unbelievable. I know so many of you worked so hard and made great sacrifices for us and we truly appreciate it. Peter and I are so happy to be able to share our lives together. Whenever I stop and think about the fact that Peter and I got married I get giddy and emotional. I truly feel so lucky!

To see more pictures, you can go to our amazing photographer's website to check them out. (Thanks Tara and Amber!)

http://www.taralynnphotography.com/

- go to "client login"

- the password is: PB&J

Enjoy!

The week before the BIG DAY

Peter and I were able to spend the week before the wedding in Utah with my family and it was so great. Not only was it great because my brother was finally home and we got to play with him, but we did so many fun things and were able to spend so much time together and with loved ones that kept coming in town for the occasions.

Somethings we did while in Utah:

- Went waterskiing.

- Ate lots of Dairy Keen and Snow Shack shaved ice.

- Played lots of tennis. I'm really bad, but it was still fun.

- Ate at the favorite Taraumahra restaurant in town.

- Weeded the home where we had the reception.

- The Thursday before the wedding my Sister, Mom, Grandma Hutchins, Aunt Dana, Cousin Britt and I had a day at the spa. It was amazing! We got massages, pedicures and facials. I was so pampered and it was so fun to hang out with some of my most favorite people.

- On Friday, Halie, Lucy and I went to get our nails done for the wedding. It was so fun to have a special little outing with my nieces. I adore them and am just so happy when I am with them. They loved the special attention on their nails and especially the wax treatment on their hands. They couldn't get over how cool it was and it was hilarious.

- Also on Friday we did a little pre-wedding luncheon with both of our families. We ate at yummy Tuscanos. It was so great to have our families get together and get to know one another. Of course our parents felt the need to share funny/embarrassing stories about the two of us when we were younger. Both of our fathers shared toasts and they were both so sweet. It's great to hear how much you are loved and how much those we love believe in Peter and I. Peter's family even made a cute slide show on pictures of the two of us growing up and then together. I am so glad they did! I've been telling my family about Peter's cute modeling pictures and finally they got to see them. (If I were really cool, I'd post the slide show. I'm not really sure how to do that though.) I want to thank Peter's family for putting on such a great luncheon. It meant so much to the two of us to have our families together and it kicked off the perfect weekend. - That night Peter and I split up to be with our families to celebrate. Peter and all of his extended family met at the hotel where they stayed and played all night together. My family and extended family all went up to Midway and set up for the reception and then had a magic show put on for us. Holly and Jack Zenger are great friends of our parents and they allowed us to have the reception in their PERFECTLY BEAUTIFUL backyard for the reception. Jack also happens to be quite good at magic. So after we all set up he put on a special show for us. I'm so grateful for all my family members that came out for the wedding. It was so important to me to have all of our extended families there to celebrate and they were! It was so so great. Thanks everyone!

A lot has happened

Unfortunately I will not be able to blog all 101 things that have happened in the last month, it'll probably have to be in stages.

First of all, Peter and I flew out to Utah on June 11 to welcome my brother home from his mission. It was so great to see him. I found myself about to burst because I was just so happy and so proud of the work he has done. Here are a few pictures from the day he arrived.

It was wonderful to be able to spend some time with him and learn what he did, who he met, look at his pictures, and feel the transformation he has made. My brother has always been spiritually mature, but he has continued to grow over the last two years and is quite the young man. His honesty and desire makes me want to be better. I want to be like him. I want to have that same focus I did when I got home from my mission. Being around Josh allows me to evaluate what I need to do to be that same (or better) spiritual person I once was.

I'm grateful for missionaries (and returned missionaries) that make all of us better.

Only 1 month!

Only 1 month left until I get married. I am so excited I can barely handle it. Honestly, when I stop and think about it I kind of get giddy (or googely bear as my sister would say). Why am I so excited to marry Peter you ask:

1. He is hilarious! He's very witty and uses big words and it's so great. You should play catch phrase with him.

2. He makes me so at peace. In all of my relationships and throughout most of my life I've been kind of anxious, but with Peter I just feel happy and at peace. (Minus when we're trying to make a budget for our future, then the anxiousness creeps in.)

3. Because Peter makes me better than I am on my own. I constantly want to improve for him and with him. I know Peter will bring this about with our children as well.

4. I'm excited to marry Peter because he strives constantly to live a higher standard, constantly trying to discover truth and how to live by it better.

5. Peter treats me with great respect. Peter still opens the door for me after all these years. He is always checking in with me to see if there is something I need or to make sure my toes are covered by the blanket when we're snuggling on the couch. He asks me my opinion on things and really listens.

6. I can't wait to marry Peter because then I get to spend time with my best friend and not have to drive home at the end of the night.

7. Because I want a family of my own and I know Peter will be a loving, fun, consistent, hard working father. (4 in 4 right Pete?)

8. Because I am most happy when I am with Peter.

9. And I feel protected and loved when I'm with him.

10. I especially am excited to find out what other nicknames he'll come up with for me throughout the rest of our lives!

I mean just look at him, he's darling!

Updates

I can't believe it's been a month since I last posted. Time goes by so quickly. So here are a few updates since the last time I wrote:

- I have been traveling for work like crazy and have been gone every other week since being engaged. I've been to North Dakota twice, Idaho, New York and I'm currently in South Dakota. Apparently Yankton (where I am) is the Cow Capital of South Dakota. Oh yeah!

- Peter and I don't get to spend a lot of time together since I'm gone all the time, but we're still happy and excited to get married.

- We took engagement pictures.

- We're in the middle of buying our first place. They have accepted our offer and we're just getting our financing and all the paperwork in order. It's in Reston, VA just about 25 minutes from D.C.

- My cousin Brooke got engaged and is getting married July 25. Whewhew! Trent makes her so happy. I'm so excited for the two of them and can't wait to celebrate with them.

- My mom called to tell me yesterday that the Bachelorette party with my her, my sister and G'ma has been scheduled at the spa two days before the wedding. I can't wait!

- Only a couple more weeks until my brother comes home from his mission on June 12.

- Peter and I get married 1 month from tomorrow. It's hard to believe it's happening so soon. I could not be more excited to marry this man. I've grown an even greater appreciation for him over the last few months as we have tried to plan the wedding and our future and he has really done so much work. Since I'm gone so much he gets left with all the errands to run. I love how he just gets it done!

- I've moved out of my place. Yep, I've move out of my single life with roommates and a significant amount of independence. It really started to hit me that I'm really getting married as I moved out and realized that I'll never be moving back in with roommates. I've been living on my own with roommates for the last 10 years. There is lots to learn and lots of adjustments to be made as Peter and I start this new chapter in our lives.

- Wedding plans are pretty much done. I am surprised at how fast we were able to accomplish everything. I'm especially grateful to my Mom for doing all the work in Utah for this wedding. I'm often amazed at how efficient and cool-n-collective my Mother is. I know she's been like this my entire life, but it always amazes me.

I think that's all I have to talk about right now. There are many exciting things happening though and so I'll try to keep everyone updated. Love you all.

Mission Reunion

So lucky for me I had to be in Jerome, ID for work today and so I was able to fly into Salt Lake for a few days to spend with my family before my work out here. It has been one crazy weekend as we tried to plan the entire wedding in just two days. I have to say, we got pretty darn close.

One of the highlights of the weekend was being able to attend my mission reunion. We had a really nice dinner at the Marriott for all the Sisters, their significant others, and the Senior Couples. I have to say I didn't eat much, but I was way to distracted by all my friends that were there. I have to give a special shout out to Sister Cundiff and Sister Suwan. These are two of my most favorite friends from the mission and I hadn't seen any of them since; so seeing them was a most pleasant surprise.

The reunion certainly brought back so many fond memories. Oh how I loved the days of being on Temple Square and sharing what I love most with others. I have learned so many things, received so many blessing, and have my life touched by so many amazing people.

Here are a few pictures from the night.

More proposal pictures

Peter had his friends Gary and Kendra staged nearby to take pictures of the proposal and they just sent them to us. Here they are:

Peter getting ready. He hid the ring under the blanket for me to sit on.

Peter getting up on his knee.

Peter asking, oh goll!

The after "yes" kiss.

Peter whispering cute things to me.

Peter pointing out the paparazzi.

Obviously I'm happy by the look on my face.

I realize that some of you may think this post is darling and some of you may be getting nauseous, sorry. Please excuse my extremely large sweatshirt in these pictures. It was freezing cold so I was wearing Peter's sweatshirt and I obviously didn't know I was about to be proposed to.