WE DID IT! (It's DONE!!) (part one.)

WOW, what a week it's been!! It's a testament to the dedication of the last-minute planning process that I, the Obsessive Checker of E-mail, didn't go online for over 24 hours at one point.

I'm just going to run down my days, starting with when it got really, really, no-spare-moments busy, around about last Thursday. I'd been doing stuff all week, but I knew there would hit a point where I couldn't waste any time.

So, I scheduled an appointment Thursday after work at Massage Envy, for my first-ever professional massage (not counting the one therapy students in training gave me, Mom, Ellen, and Alena one day when we skipped school in 5th grade). I knew I had to make it right after work, or I would find a way out of it to do other stuff, and boy HOWDY, did I need it. My lower back was killing me! Jaime was my masseuse, and she was fan-TASTIC!! She was very soft-spoken, and didn't ask me about the wedding at all (which I really needed--a break from talking about it!).

After the massage, I drove over to Dad's to work on the Porch Display. I swept the porch and the front walk, dragged the hay bales and pumpkins up by the front door, and, with Dad's help, lugged the huge, huge pumpkin up the steps in a wheelbarrow (how the hell did Neil carry that to the garage all by his own damned self??)...when who should float up the walkway but darling Trevor, home for a few days. He was smelling delicious as always, like a little ray of sunshine soaked in the sweat of an angel, and promised he'd be by the next day to see the rest of the children. (When will I stop calling them this? Joe, at 20, is the youngest.) I finished up the display, and awaited Neil's call saying he was ready. I probably did something productive at home in this slot, but the memory has disappeared completely.

Lily, Gilb, and Steve had arrived in StL, and were erranding around the city before Neil and I drove up to get them that evening--I drove to Fulton first to pick Neil up. We stayed late and...I'll be honest here, kiddos...alcohol might have been involved. They grilled brats and the best, fattest burgers ever, and June even got me some sauerkraut to accompany the brats. She is absolutely one of the sweetest women I've ever met, and her Carolinian accent only helps that impression.

We drove back, Neil snoring in the car and Lily contorting her body in ways only she can to sleep sitting up, slouched against the car door handle, while Steve and I yukked it up and discussed all things pop culture. I dropped Neil back in Fulton with his car (he DID wake up enough to drive it home), and took the children home, where they marveled at my outside display (well, Steve said the pumpkins looked like they spelled a racial slur, which...I don't think they do, right? Of course, now I can't look at them and NOT think that)



I took them to Dad's new porch, and they were properly amazed, while I ran to wake up Daddy so Lily could cuddle with him as only she can do. I was falling asleep standing up, so I bid my adieus and drove home late.

Friday dawned slightly gray, and I got up at 10:30, intending to leave plenty of time for showering before our mani-pedis at noon. I dawdled for a few minutes, checking mail that hadn't been checked since the afternoon before, and Lily called to say she was meeting Gilb & family at Missouri Furniture to pick up her curling irons for my hair. I had an e-mail from Kristin asking me to call to finalize the ceremony, and thinking I could get that done quickly, I called her. It would have been fine, but it took over half an hour, and during this time, Lily was frantically trying to call because the little crap Honda had broken down at the furniture place. She was upset, and I was worried for her, but I had to finish things up with Kristin...finally, I got off the phone and just as Neil was lacing up his shoes to go get Lily, her car started again.

Even after all the delays and drama, though, we were only ten minutes late for our appointment. The salon was absolutely beautiful, and I thought how I'd been pampered in the last two days more than I ever had in my life. I could totally get used to this. We found an absolutely perfect shade of polish to go with my sash/shawl/trim color, and went to our little massage chairs and put our feet into the hot bubbling footbaths. I'm extremely sensitive to other people filing my nails, and filing my toenails was even WORSE. I had to hold on to the chair tight to keep from jerking my foot away...but the payoff was good. My toes actually look pretty! And dang, did it feel good to get my feet all scrubbed and soaked and rubbed. (But P.S.? I thought you couldn't file nails that have been wet recently. Both my hands and feet were in a soak before she filed them. I guess it's an urban myth?) Next were manis...we were steered to another area, and the filing was much better this time. She did a slight squared-off look to my nails, which I LOVE, and they're still pretty even now! Both my manicurist and the one doing Lily said my plain nails were pretty, too! No one has ever said that before. I'm just so used to having stubby fingers and toes that it didn't occur to me that growing my nails out and taking care of them might change the appearance a little. When our nails were done, we let them dry for ten minutes (I got the special nail dryer thing, because I was totally the bride), and gingerly got our stuff together to go pick up Steve to tackle the next part of the day. They told us nails don't ever officially dry until TWENTY-FOUR HOURS after they are painted...I knew I'd never go that long without screwing them up somehow. Even when I was putting my hands into the dryer thing, my thumbnails touched, and I was all "Yeah, I knew that would happen."

Okay...so next, we got Steve from Dad's house, and malled it up for a couple hours. We found him a great shirt, sweater, and pants at Gap (and I bought Neil an impromptu collection of boxer briefs), ate at Panera (Broccoli Cheese Bread Bowl Soup, will you marry me if Neil leaves me?), bought makeup at Target (and ran into the always delightful Jason Stanley and his sister Katie, who my bro has a date with tonight--he moves fast, that one), and ran a couple more errands before racing home. I wanted to show Lily some cool Audigier shirts I'd seen in the Buckle, so I dragged her in there, realizing too late that the CA hoodie and tank she was wearing would cause the employees to freak out.

I guess I had everything I needed with me, because we went back to Dad's house and got ready for dinner that night with the Dazets. Mark had arrived, and Neil and his family went over to Sophia's to wait for a 10-top. The Dawson clan followed, and we were finally able to sit down and have some fun. I could hardly eat, but the Tomato Bisque was a dream...my Caesar salad yet remains uneaten in its little white box in Dad's fridge (and you KNOW how much I love Sophia's Caesar...), and when the waitress told us Neil and I could split a dessert on the house, my sweetheart of a man let me choose the Pumpkin Mousse Cheesecake (to Father's chagrin). I'll be honest...it wasn't as good as my Zucatto Tre Suppore (er...Sippore? Sappore? Something), but I try not to let a holiday season pass without a slice of pumpkin cheesecake.

I dropped my charges off at Dad's after dinner, then went to the apartment to pack up my things and say goodbye to Neil for the night. I figured he and Mark would be up watching UFC and drinking beer for hours having their little mini-guys' night, but Neil later called me at eleven to say he was off to bed! This was one groom that wasn't going to have dark circles under his eyes the next day....

Unlike the bride.

Back to the story, though.

I flitted around packing for at least 90 minutes, knowing I couldn't get anything the next day. I also put together a gift for Neil--a binder of about a month and a half of IM conversations during the time we were about to meet and then right after, that I'd saved for the last couple years. It was over 300 pages!

I finally felt ready, confident that Dad's house could supply me with the basics like shampoo (NOTE: this will be important later), and took my approximately thirty-four bags and headed out. Sarah M. was already at Dad's to help decorate, Lily was ready and armed with highlighting gear, and Steve and Dad were both on hand to add colorful commentary. Trevor also stopped by again, and as always, he brightens up any place he goes. But first, Sarah presented me with my Bride gifts--a white sash with "BRIDE" down the front to wear the next day, and a white tote with wooden handles she'd labeled "Mrs. Dazet." SOOOO cute. I love it! Us girls cut a billion pieces of foil into small squares (apparently this is important for highlighting), and Lily began. Sarah was an UTTER godsend, and I released the reins and told her what I'd had in mind for the decorations when she asked if she could take that over. She did a fantastic job, better than I ever could have done, and the house looked AMAZING, with candles lining the mantle, in the freaking fireplace behind the glass doors, and on the hors d'oeuvres table. (Blogger says that's spelled wrong, but it totally isn't, BLOGGER.)

After two hours (or more...I have a LOT of hair), we took the foil out and rinsed out the now-purpley dye. My hair was so nice...lighter, reddish, subtle highlights, that didn't scream "I LOVE SUN-IN!" Lily played with my hair for awhile (ohmygod I love having my hair played with!) with some ideas she had for the next day, including a 1940s-style finger-curl wave of the bangs that Steve said looked like "Vagina Head" but that I LOVED. It was totally Lorelai during the Stars Hollow dance where Dean and Rory broke up. I've always wanted hair styled like that. But, it's kinda costumey, and didn't really fit with my dress. We decided on a loose French braid for my bangs, going down the side, with the flower pins my darling SarahJC made for me stuck in the end of it in a little spray, with soft curls in the rest of my hair, which would be down.

Lily, Steve and I sat around next (Sarah, bless her heart, was exhausted from her drive that day, but stayed so long to help out!), chatting and cleaning up the kitchen even more. Steve was a freaking machine, I kid you not! He suggested a little "Dream Phone" round about 2 A.M., and even though I was starting to feel the effects of a nonstop lifestyle, and even though I knew the more sleep I got before my wedding day the better, I was all "Dude, I'll never forget playing Dream Phone with my sibs on my Wedding Eve." It was our brand of a Bachelorette Party, kinda. Steve said there wasn't a strategy, but I totally figured one out.

We retired at 3 in the morning, and the day felt a lot like Christmas Eve to me...errands during the day, dinner out with a bunch of family, busy family time at night, all gearing up for the next day. It was really a wonderful, wonderful day.

Also, I don't know if Blogger will let me make this post even longer than it already is...and the Day Itself deserves a post all its own, don't you think? So I'll stop here, and this is to be continued...