Married!

On April 11, 2008 (last Friday!) Chris and I got married at the Onslow County Magistrates Court in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Our friends Eric, Michael, Brandon, Crystal, and Brandon's mother and sister attended. Afterwards we went to the Texas Roadhouse for lunch- not exactly the classiest thing in the world but a darn good meal all the same!

Before going to the restaurant though I changed out of my dress & stockings into jeans and a tshirt. It was a very warm day and I wanted to be more comfortable! All in all, the entire day went smoothly and without issue- although unfortunately Steve and Kim didn't attend.

That evening, Chris and I got in my rental car and drove all the way to Indianapolis to see his parents and family. I was so nervous about meeting his folks, but they seemingly like me well enough! (And yes we did it the wrong way round, married then meeting the family! Chris won't get to meet my mother until she visits in July, and won't get to meet my extended family until we can afford to visit Australia which may be a ways down the track!).

Chris also showed me a bit more of Indianapolis, and we went to a restaurant called Champs at the Circle Center for dinner which was awesome. I classify it as our 'honeymoon dinner' for this reason! We had chicken lettuce wraps for starters, and then we both had a chicken dish for our main course. Delicious!

I actually hold the honor of first introducing Chris to Lettuce Wraps- on the very first weekend we spent together down in Myrtle Beach South Carolina, we ate at a restaurant called Buddha's Lounge & Grill- where I enlightened Chris to one of my favorite dishes :) Thankfully he definitely approves of most of the new things I've been able to introduce him to!

So after our brief stop in Indianapolis, we again drove all the way back to North Carolina as Chris had to check in to work on Tuesday, and on Monday we had to find an apartment/house!

We looked at 4 properties together, I'd already inspected 3 others myself some weeks ago so knew the kind of thing I preferred. Thankfully Chris and I were on the same page, and agreed to narrow it down to 2 townhouses. One was an older, 1960s, 2 bedroom 1 bathroom going for $650 a month, the other was a 2004, 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom going for $750 a month. After viewing the properties we decided that the older, cheaper house was what we needed, but the newer more expensive house was what we wanted. So, after some deliberation we decided that we'd go for the older property- we could make it nice after all!

We got back to the real estate agency however, and got the news that another couple had just put a deposit down on the older property not 5 minutes before! So after a brief discussion we decided to take the more expensive house then and there... we had both fallen in love with it and it is what we wanted after all, despite the extra $100 a month!

So we filled out an application, paid our deposit, and the next morning signed the lease! We can't move in until May 15 however, so that's why I'm currently back in St. Louis. I need to get all of my stuff packed up, and Chris is going on leave at the end of the month so he can help me move.

I'm so excited about our new house though- the element we both liked the most was the huge eat-in kitchen! And the living room has a beautiful polished wood floor, and a fire place! Upstairs are two bedrooms (both kind of small but that's okay) both with ensuites. There's a small backyard and a small frontyard- both of which we are responsible for maintaining. Even though Chris's logic has immediately drifted to putting some stones in the backyard and getting a BBQ set up, I'm thinking more along the lines of planting new grass and planting some flower beds (we're allowed to do whatever we want to the garden as long as it doesn't intefere with the integrity or value of the property). But I'm sure we can come to a compromise on that as well!

Admittedly, over the first few days of being Mrs. L, I was a nervous wreck. I almost had a panic attack driving back from Indianapolis because I was so scared that I wouldn't make a good wife, that Chris would get sick of me and leave me, that I'd mess up, that I wouldn't live up to expectations. And although my fears are always at the back of my mind (I swear I'm too emotionally fragile at times!) I'm very, very content and plan to make the best of it.

During the week I already found great satisfaction in my new role- I washed Chris's uniforms, scrubbed his boots clean, ironed everything that needed to be ironed... I swear I was born into the wrong era. I have always had a preoccupation with the lifestyles of the past, when being a housewife was something to be proud of, not to be ashamed of. And it was so enjoyable to be able to do something for someone else. My entire life has centered around me. Only child to a single mother who was barely ever there. I got a job. Moved out of home. Got another job. Moved to another country. Everything I do, everything I eat, every decision I make has always been for the sake of selfish reasons. But now I get to be selfless, and take pride and joy in being there and living for someone else... and I really, really enjoy it already.

I have always tried my best to achieve in everything I set my mind to. So I make this promise to myself and the world now, that I'm going to aim to be the best wife I possibly can be. This is the start of a new and interesting journey, that's for sure :)