Perfect Friends and Family!

I have 2 showers so far and one to go! The first was for family and was given to me and Pete by Tara and Benita (Lady). It was so much fun. There were probably 25 or 30 people there. Heather came in from Destin, FL and Pete's parents even came in from PA! The second shower was this last weekend. Jessica and Lynn threw this shower for me. Unfortunately, Lynn could not be here but, she will be in soon. It was held in Townsend at Ms. Lily's Cafe. It was a very nice shower and we had a very good time! Heather suprised me and showed up to the shower from Destin. I had so much fun. I have the best friends and family!

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah... I know

OK. I know I have not been doing very well at this. It has been a blur! Just a quick rundown of the wedding so far. Wedding invites are out! Wedding rehearsal is at 5:30pm on Friday night May 29th. Dinner immediately following at the L&N Station. Saturday, May 30th is the wedding at Messiah Lutheran Church and the reception immediately following at the Knoxville Museum of Art.
All is going well. We are wore out! Pete and I both have worked very hard. I am so thankful for such a helpful fiancee'. I can't imagine any other male helping as much as he has. He has also dealt with my moods! I have been a bridezilla to an extent :) He likes to call me that.
Every Tuesday my girlfriends and sometimes guy friends have came over and worked on favors and centerpieces. I don't know what we would do without them! We finally finished tonight! That was a huge accomplishment. Tara made a lot of the centerpieces and she also came up with the idea! It is so nice to have such a creative sister! I could not ask for better friends and family. My Mom of course has been great and has made numerous trips to Knoxville to help. I don't know what I would do without her. She keeps me sane. She is always the first to know when I need a stress reliever.
I am so very excited. At this point, Pete and I both agree that we are just ready for it to get here. We have worked very hard and can't wait to see all of the benefits of our hard work. Most of all, we will be Mr. and Mrs. Reckard! Scary but exciting at the same time.
We finally had our engagement pics done and they will be posted soon! I hope all is well with everyone and we look forward to seeing you all in ONE MONTH!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

Mom's birthday was January 14th! She turned 85! (ha ha j/k - I won't disclose the age) Anyway, Pete and I were able to go down and spend her birthday evening with her and daddy at Ruby Tuesday's. We had a quick, but good visit. All of us then had her house cleaned for her and spent Friday and Saturday with her. Of course, I think her favorite part was spending time with Connor! Any who, Mom I hope you enjoyed your birthday! We are so blessed to have a Mom like you! We love you dearly.

MY BOYS AND THEIR TOYS!!!

Well here is a fun video for you! Pete got this helicopter when playing "Dirty Santa" with the Thompson family. He likes it so much that we have ordered a bigger one! Cadillac either really likes it or it drives him nuts. We can't decide... You tell us what you think. I also can't figure out why in this video he bites his bed?!?!

CATCH UP!

OK... So let's play catch up! The wedding plans are going well. We are getting married at Messiah Lutheran Church in Knoxville which is our new church home! The reception will then be at Knoxville Museum of Art. I have my wedding coordinator, we also have the photographer and have a couple of meetings in the next two weeks with catering companies! Everything is falling into place! I can't wait. I also have my girls dresses picked out and my wedding dress and accessories are in and ready to go! We start our marriage counseling this Sunday!!!

We finally wrapped up at Susie's, just before the holidays. It looked so empty and lonely, but we are helping Matthew and Pam move in this weekend so maybe that will help. We really had a good Christmas even though at times it seemed a little somber. Susie loved Thanksgiving and Christmas! I miss her so bad. Her birthday was on the 30th and that was hard. We need your prayers for Benny as he has been very sick. As far as I know they are relating it all to his thyroid. He is just very weak and has lost about 40 pounds in about 1 1/2 months or so. We are all very concerned.

Heather and Zach came in and we got to spend some time with them! I was so excited that she came home. Thanks for fitting us in! I know it is hard when you live away to fit everyone in to a short time frame...

The Day family got together for Christmas at the nursing home with our little Granny. We got to celebrate with her one more year! She is the best Granny ever. All of Mom's brothers and sisters were there. We have a pretty large family on that side and getting together is always a trip!

Pete and I did Christmas on Christmas Eve! I got a Roomba! I can't wait to use it. We have to wait to take down the tree first. I got several other things, gift cards, etc. I got Pete a Citizen watch and small things to go with it. We limited ourselves this year because last year, we both WAY over did Christmas! We spent the day together and then went down to Roane County for dinner and a slumber party with Mom and Daddy! Thank you for a wonderful Christmas Pete! I love you!
We had Christmas at Mom and Daddy's! As usual they spoiled us! (Except the fact that evidently Tara out ranks me now - ha ha inside joke)... And we really had a good time with Connor. He is so precious! I love that little man! I have a challenge for everyone. The next time you buy for Connor, make sure it is the loudest toy you can find. Brad and Tara absolutely hate silence! Thank you for such a good Christmas everyone! I am so happy that we could all be together.

We were unable to make it to see Pete's family because as you will be able to tell in the pics, he went hunting in Texas the day after Christmas. Thank you all for our gifts! They were all really nice. We missed you all though and can't wait to see you soon!

I got the opportunity to reunite with old friends from school on the 27th. We had a really good time. There were a lot of us there! Everyone seemed very happy and very successful! It was nice to visit with you all and I can't wait to see you again. We have 3 couples getting married and Mrs. Isham of course is expecting! This is going to be a fun filled and busy year!

New years was a lot of fun. Because Pete was just getting home, we decided to stay in! Our family came to celebrate with us and we really had a good time! Even my Aunt's and Uncle's stayed until midnight (mind you they are the younger aunt's and uncles - ha ha) - let's see how many comments I get about that!!! We had a toast at midnight in fancy coke paper cups! I love it. We played games all night and just enjoyed our family. We have so much to be thankful for! Thank you everyone for coming, we love you all!

Here are pics of the holidays! Enjoy and Happy New Year to you ALL!

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Date

So our wedding date is set! It is May 30th 2009. We are both very excited and have been very busy planning already. I will keep you up to date as we plan. More than anything I would like for you to pray for my Daddy. The ulcer on his foot just recently got infected and they are going to start a new type of therapy to try to help it heal. As most of you know, my Daddy has diabetes. We have been dealing with his ulcer problems for almost 3 years now. Please help us pray for him.

WE ARE....

ENGAGED!!! I am up now posting a blog because I have been up since 3:59am and I am not sure what time I fell asleep. I am so excited. So here is the story!
OK, So... Evidently this was all supposed to happen this last weekend in Helen. Pete bought the ring but was able to save on taxes by having it shipped to PA to his parents (smart, very smart). Then their job was to turn around and ship it to Pete at work. Well his parents did it perfectly, but it still did not make it to Pete before we left for GA. I can't even begin to imagine how upset he was! Anyway, I came home from work yesterday a little before he arrived and found a flower arrangement on the front porch. The card on it said "The Reckard's". Often times people will do this just to make it easier than saying both of our names. I get the card and attempt to open it and notice that the seal on the back was Kimball's Jewelers. I have been asking for a tennis bracelet so was sure he had bought me one! I called him before opening the card and told him about the flowers. He sighed (in what I know now as aggravation) and said don't open it. I had a hair appointment at 5:30pm so I left and went on my merry way. Many things were running through my head including a ring! I definitely had myself convinced though that it was not and if it were, I for sure never thought I would get it yesterday!
I got my hair done and came on home where I thought he had just went and got take out for dinner and it was going to be a nice calm evening.
I arrived at my house to find our little guy "Cadillac" greeting me at the door. He was wagging his tail as hard as ever. When I walked in there were candles lit EVERYWHERE, the fire was lit and the lights were off. Pete said the first thing I said was "good grief"! Then I noticed Pete! He was dressed from head to toe and the last time I saw him he was wearing jeans and a polo with pizza stains on his shirt! Still had no clue because he had been acting very strange for the last few weeks. So he stops me in the middle of our living room, in front of the fire place and ASKED! I will leave out all of the mushy stuff... Of course, I cried and said YES!!! He had a bottle of Dom Perignon and the table set up very nice for dinner! He then asked me if I wanted my "gourmet" dinner and I said sure. He opens the oven and pulls out.... Take out from Gondolier. It was great. We are very goofy sometimes and this fit! We both laughed extremely hard about the take out!
Wow! I am so excited. What a shock! I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you Pete!!! I love you with all of my heart!
I hope everyone enjoys the pics. The are not the best because I was so nervous!
We will add more soon. HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!
Oh by the way he also was playing music in the background from the tv, that is why there is a blanket over it! That really had me confused...

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