7.14.12 Our Back Yard "Dinner Party" Reception

4th of July!

Better late than never... Independence Day was filled with traditions from my childhood. In the morning, we headed over to Monmouth for their annual parade. It was Ty's first parade (Disneyland doesn't count)and I don't think I have EVER seen or heard him more excited. He would NOT stop talking until the parade started! It lived up to its small town charm once again - cute, corny, simple, and silly. Ty made out like a bandit with a huge bag full of candy, a t-shirt, frisbee, beach ball, a poster, stickers and did I mention candy? He was ecstatic. Here's a picture of us on the curb waiting for the parade to start (minus mom who took the picture)...

Concert in the park...and you simply cannot go to a parade on a hot day and NOT get a Hawaiian Shaved Ice afterward...delicious.

Later that evening, we went over to my mom's house for a BBQ dinner and fireworks in her cult-de-sac. Here's Ty doing what Ty does best: arm flailing, hip thrust-like "dancing." He wanted to make sure he got in the light of the firework for dramatic effect. {Uncle} Paul did all of the lighting of the fireworks, so Ty was his shadow the entire evening. He thinks Paul "is awesome"...hehe...so cute! It may have had something to do with Paul showing Ty how to hold a lit smoke bomb. It was epic :)

Mrs Johnston, officially!!

Here's just a sneak peek of some of the photos of our amazing day down in Carmel-By-The-Sea, California, courtesy of our dear friend Gary Schmid - who not only photographed us, but married us too. Thank you, Gary! We can't wait to see the rest of the photos!! 5.9.12. A year to the day exactly that we met. The day was intimate, romantic, special, and perfect. I feel so blessed and I can honestly say I have never been happier. I already LOVE being Mrs Johnston...

This last one was a candid iPhone shot, but I love how it captures Danny's love for me. It was windy that evening on the beach, but I love the way he's looking at me and the way he reached up and brushed the hair out of my eyes... Thank you for loving me the way you do, babe.

Showered in Love...

Last Saturday morning, I was showered in love and generous gifts from my closest friends at the beautiful Oregon Gardens Resort in Silverton, for my bridal shower brunch. It was wonderful to feel so celebrated! My oldest friend even traveled down from Washington to be there - that's a three and a half hour drive! Thank you, Chelsea for being there! It meant a lot to share in the moment of this season with everyone that attended! I felt blessed to be in a room so full of friendship and love! Thank you.

The Mother of the Bride :)

The lovely group of ladies as a whole! Thank you all for being a part of my life, love, and happiness - and celebrating this amazing season of my life right along with me!!

Scattered Update

It's been almost 3 full months since I've written. So much is unfolding in the next 2 weeks. My bridal shower is Saturday morning - thrown my 4 of my incredible friends, Angela, Brittany, Shannon, and Renee. Thank you ladies in advance. I know I was painfully resistant to being celebrated at first, but I know it will be beautifully executed and I am looking forward to our time together. As we get closer and closer to our ceremony, so much races through my mind. I'm not obsessing with the details of the wedding itself, and I simply cannot wait to be Mrs. Johnston and marry the love of my life, but it's funny how unexpected thoughts have made an appearance. Reflections of family, friends both present and past, and how different this day will look than how I would have ever imagined it say, ten or even five years ago. Priorities shift and change the older I get - reassessing what is truly important to me, my new little family, and our future. Pondering such things as the loss of my father, Craig Tyler. The gain of a step-son, Tyler Daniel - sharing not only my Dad's middle name, but also my paternal grandfather's and my brother's. What an amazing blessing he has been! He asked me last week if he should call me "mom" or "Emily"...Danny and I both told him to call me whatever he would feel most comfortable calling me. So, he came up with "Momily"...total perfection :) Love that kid! Side story: Last night when I got home he spotted me through the windows of the garage door and ran all the way through the house to greet me at the front door exclaiming, "Momily, Momily, Momily!" After he leaped like a monkey into my arms for a hug, he informed me that tomorrow is 'take your child to work' day and asked if he could come with me to the shop! He had been waiting all day to ask me. So for the first half of the day today, I had a little assistant at the boutique! As far as the wedding details go, there really aren't many, other than the fact that we are choosing to go away for our wedding ceremony - "elope" if you will. My motto is "no fluff." We want the significance of the day, the moment, and the commitment to be first and foremost, so nothing is lost in the fluff or show of it. We've chosen a day that has particular meaning to us and a beautiful, intimate destination and other than that - we're going for it! I've talked to so many women who said their wedding days were so stressful (not to mention expensive) and looking back, they wish they would have either done something much smaller or just gone away because the day went by in a flash and was just a distant blur in their memory. So, I listened to all of these women - young, old, strangers, and friends alike, and we decided to heed their advice and just elope! We are calling it an "elopement," but leaving it open to any of our friends or family that want to come. Our destination is a day's drive, so we don't expect anyone to actually make the trip, however. We're planning a local dinner party this summer to celebrate with our very closest friends and family. We'll have video and pictures too, so no one feels like they missed out on anything - and don't worry...the pictures will make an appearance on here when they're ready! Overall, we are very excited for this season of our lives! The countdown has begun and I look forward to becoming Mrs. Johnston - taking it all in, one day at a time and savoring each moment. I feel full and blessed and my cup runneth over.

Peace

Each morning when I open up the shoppe, I walk a sign out to the two main corners of the busier streets that border the little side street the boutique is on. During this morning ritual, I breathe in the crisp morning air, notice the daffodil sprouts just starting to poke through the soil, and I often times pray. Those morning moments are brief, but they are my moments with God.

As I stepped outside this morning, I noticed a single dove, sitting on the telephone wire directly across my door. She watched me walk all the way to one corner. On my way back, I prayed with intent over a particular situation that pertained to later this evening. I looked up at her watching me. I walked the other sign all the way to the other corner, her eye still upon me. I got back to the store and before I stepped inside, I stood there staring at this lonesome dove. Upon praying it dawned on me; God had sent her. I was meant to notice her. I was instantly reminded God is in control of this and I prayed to release it.

I particularly love doves because I love the cooing sound they make - it's very calming to me. They remind me of early summer mornings at my Grandma's house in California when they would coo outside the window. There was also one summer during my childhood that a pair of them frequently visited our back yard during the evenings. They are not a bird you see very often in this area - especially in February. It was unusual to see her, but I believe it was very intentional. Being a universal symbol of peace, I will take it as MY sign, and treasure that moment. Thank you, God.

Hiatus and the latest...

Wow. It's been almost 2 full months since I've written. Much has happened!

Moved into a darling, little, old house. It has hardwood floors and a wood burning fireplace! Love it.

Christmas. My first Christmas with my boys - and not a single picture of it. Shame on me! We attended a candlelight service at our church on Christmas Eve. It was such a special service for me. I felt such a sense of love and peace. I think with it, a new tradition was born! Ty loved what we got him too. I had renewed joy in the holidays again by watching the excitement I remember having at his age. Oh, to be 8 again.

New Year's Eve. A.K.A. my birthday. I turned 29. I don't feel almost 30 - when did this happen?

And the most exciting news?? I got engaged!!! Danny proposed on my birthday - or shortly after midnight, but we'll call it "my birthday." Allow me to elaborate...

Danny had made dinner reservations for us at Bentleys in downtown Salem for 7:30pm. While tucked in a cozy booth waiting for our food to arrive, my brother randomly shows up! He walks over to our table to wish me a happy birthday. I was surprised and suspicious initially, but then I realized he was meeting up with a group of his friends, so this encounter was completely coincidence.

After we finished our amazing dinner, we were sitting there chatting, when my dear friend Brittany walks in. I had just spent the entire day with her shopping, lunch, and manicures, so I was completely surprised to see her. She walked right up and joined us! I didn't think much of it, until another close friend, Renee, did the same about 20 minutes later. After a few more moments, in walks my dear friend, Shannon! We moved to a larger table over by the fireplace, and it comes out in the meantime that while I was getting ready, Danny had helped himself to my friend's cell numbers from my phone and contacted them all to come down and celebrate me for my birthday!! It was such a sweet surprise and I truly felt celebrated!

After a round of dessert and lemon drops, Shannon and Renee had to rejoin their families for the night, so Brittany, Danny, and I went over to La Capitale to bring in the New Year. Now, you simply cannot go to La Capitale and not order their Papas Frites (french fries) and because Brittany and I share a SLIGHT and totally normal obsession for them, she ordered me a serving a "birthday" fries that came out with a candle! Delicious as always - they were devoured. As midnight approached, we counted down to the New Year, watching the NYC "ball drop" on the television in the lounge there. Shortly there after, we finished up and took Brittany home.

After we dropped her off, Danny started heading home in the wrong direction. Something was up. He drove back into the heart of a south Salem neighborhood, and we pulled into a dark and empty parking lot, which turned out to be Queen of Peace Catholic Church. We pulled up, and got out, and he led me to the doors of the chapel on the back side of the church. This is about the time the adrenaline started pumping, and all I remember thinking as he led me to those doors was, "Oh my gosh, this is actually happening! What else could it be?!" I had figured it out by then :) He punches a code on the key pad to let us in the prayer chapel, and in we walk to the pitch black, quiet, empty space. He leads me over to a a row of seats, and we sit. He pulls a candle out of his pocket and lights it, setting it on a little table in front of us. The moment turned euphoric. He turned to me. In the silence of the moment, looked me in the eye, told me he wanted me forever, and asked if I would marry him. By that time he had already pulled the ring out of his pocket, popped the box open, and was holding it out in front of me. I unabashedly shouted, "FOR REAL?!" He laughed and said, yes as he slid the ring onto my finger. I exclaimed, "Oh course! I love you!" Then bursting into happy tears, hugging, and kissing him.

Those moments immediately following were a blur. I remember it was dark in the chapel and I can't even picture it now. I remember it was so dark I could barely see my ring, but he held up the candle to my finger so I could see it. IT.WAS.BEAUTIFUL! An emerald cut diamond set in a pave halo setting - vintage inspired and more "me" than I could have ever picked out for myself. He did an amazing job. He just gets me, and he nailed it.

I remember we left the chapel, got home, but it was too late to call anyone. I just remember my heart feeling so full of love and happiness that I couldn't contain the emotion. Have you ever been so overwhelmed with emotion that you literally feel like your heart could physically burst? Almost as if your heart is so big, you can feel it simultaneously beating in your throat and your toes, as though it has expanded to accommodate the emotion and it's filling your entire body. That was my moment. Euphoric, cloud-9, uncontainable, heart-exploding happiness. I asked him why he chose to propose at the chapel. I knew he was raised Catholic, so I was sure that held some special meaning for him. He told me that he knew I wouldn't have wanted a production out of it, so he wanted to propose in a place that was intimate and in the silence of the moment, he could ask me - just me, him, and God. Sigh - how perfect!

As I ponder the wedding-planning process, I am really starting to believe that perhaps this is exactly how our wedding should go too. Him, me, and God. I've never wanted a big, white, fluffy production, so perhaps a traditional "wedding" is not for me. We're still trying to figure it out, but whatever we do will be special because it will be the beginning of our lives together. I am so happy, and so excited!! They say, "when you know, you know." I never truly believed that until meeting Danny. The whole relationship has confirmed true love does exist, and I could not feel more blessed, grateful, and peace than in this moment.

Wanna hear about all of the non-wedding plans? Stay tuned :)