RIORDAN RUN-DOWN

We're MARRIED!!!!
07/23/2011 was the absolute best day of my life! In fact, that whole week, and the week after too. I am married to the most amazing, kind hearted, genuine man on this Earth. We're still on cloud nine and it's like we just met all over again. My mom gave a sweet speech and I hope we will live by this.

"My greatest wish for the two of you is that through the years your love for each other will so deepen and grow, that years from now you will look back on this day, your wedding day, as the day you loved each other the least."

Of course it made me bawl. I love that last part. I love Nick now more than the very day I met him and my love for him only grows more and more each day.

We got married in Florida with our awesome friends and family by our side. The weather thankfully cooperated and it was just a fun, fun time all around. Looks like we missed a helluva party after the reception, but we of course wanted some alone time ;)
We're so fortunate for everyone who came, and took time out of their busy schedules to help us celebrate our special day. We hope everyone had as much fun as we did.

Having fun on the beach

We had a Texas themed rehearsal dinner (of course I had to bring some southern flair to Florida) at the cottages where everyone stayed. Nick's parents hired a band so everyone danced, sang, ate and drank the night away.



My love and I



Tawni, Niki and Jessica @ rehearsal dinner



Nicholi and my MOH @ rehearsal dinner



My fabulous bridesmaids!!













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Our adorable flower girl, Audrey. We love her!



Mr. and Mrs. Riordan :)

Dancing the night away

LOVE love love this picture!! And them

Yay :D



A few groomsmen with the handsome groom



So at every family wedding, Nick's uncle starts the YMCA. Hu-larry-us!! Liz just jumped up there too :)

It's fun to stay at tha...



Marry me...today and everyday



Sunday we drove to Miami so that we could fly out on Monday to St. Kitts for our honeymoon. It was an absolute blast! Stay tuned for that post next :)

Love, Mrs. Riordan :)

Holy soreness

Today, my trainer T.K. did not give me any slack at the gym. I could barely wash my hair in the shower. I am wobbly and shaky and cannot lift my arms any higher than to type on the keyboard.

My goal is to look like this

With a booty like this

And arms like this

Look I said it was my 'goal'. I didn't put a timeline on it though, lol. Jessica Biel, I know you are my future hubby's dream girl, but I admit, you're mine too. I need your rockin bod one way or another!

I have an 8:30 sesh with T.K. tomorrow morning. I might have pnemonia.
I'll keep dreaming of one day owning this physique. Until then, I'll be soaking in epsom salt.

Wedding dresses and working out

One of my college friends got married this past Saturday in Highland Park. It was a gorgeous ceremony and of course a super fun reception. I had the honor of being one of her bridesmaids and she will be one of mine. I only hope I can be as cool and calm as she was on her big day. I also hope that I will be as beautiful as she was! I mean seriously!!??!

Stu-huh-uuhning!
Congrats to the happy couple who are now sipping coladas in the Dominican Republic :)

Speaking of wedding dresses....mine should be here any day now! I'm not one to withhold my feelings so of course I am like a giddy schoolgirl about this. My dress was ordered in December 2010. The estimated arrival date was mid April. Then mid May. Then end of May. THEN, the designer himself called me to tell me (in his cutest Austrailian accent) he was so sorry but had to travel to Hong Kong to get the material, or something like that. So, I of course, am totally flabberghasted that he called me, not to mention told me he'd send it with a bottle of champagne and caviar, that I am oblivious to the fact he told me it'd be here one.month.before.my.wedding.date. And if not, he'd personally hand deliver it to me. After I hang up I'm like wait, whaatt???! Insert steam coming out of my ears now. And much to my chargrin Nick, naturally, responds with "Cool, caviar? Oh that'd be so sweet if he came to the wedding!" Um, no you didn't. The day of my wedding??! Absolutely not! What about my fittings? I BETTER not fit into that thing when I got measured 5 months ago! But not to fear, because it will be here. I just love that little bald headed Austrailian. Henry, not Nick. Well, I love him too but he has hair left and he's Irish ;)
I can't wait to see what it looks like, because I can't really remember. And I hope I still like it.


I am hoping it swallows me like a potato sack because I've been working out! I'll give you a second to re-read that sentence. And I actually like it. Scratch that, I love it. I used to go to the gym and people watch. You know, that person who goes from machine to machine, gracefully wipes away 'sweat' with the towel and hopes no one notices that you probably burned more calories doing that?? Well not anymore. THIS chick is on those machines like a hawk over its prey. I might look like I jumped in the pool, didn't change clothes, but so, I'm on the treadmill! I do love classes more, however, they are always full! Does anyone in Frisco work??! From 5 a.m. (ha, not like i'd know but you get the point) until it closes its packed. It gets all hot in those little rooms and there's always a middle aged woman next to you looking great and doing the moves perfectly. Whatever, they don't impress me b/c honey your face was done by a surgeon. :) So I just claim the one available machine and own it. I still don't feel that I'm yielding the results I want for my wedding day, but I'm impatient and also just started working out hardcore. Probably because I have a little more free time since its's summer. That's nice too. I could get used to it. Don't get me wrong, I love what I do, but it's nice to get things done during the day. I love middle of the afternoon hair appts! Ask me again when Nick's business travel picks up more, though. I miss him when he's gone :(




Oh and I'd love to be so 3008 and update this blog background thingy. Can someone help me get rid of the standard one?? thanks :)

Why is it so hard?

To come up with a cute and catchy title for blogs?? I used to think I was pretty clever and quick witted. Not anymore.
Anyway, schools out for summer!!! Woo hoo!! I am looking forward to summer 2011 in the worst way. I know it will go by fast, but that's okay.
Nick and I just got back from Florida last night. We went to finalize everything (well tried to anyways) before we go back the week before we get married. The only thing we didn't get to do was get our marriage license. We had to have 2 forms of ID and forgot our passports. So luckily, since we are out-of-staters, we can sign it and get it on the spot so we will be legalized once our officiant announces us Mr. and Mrs. :)))) I am so very excited to become Mrs. Riordan! Once the stress of the planning is over, we can relax on the beach, sip colodas, get a nice tan and come back to being Newleyweds! We are planning on traveling, fixing up the house and just enjoying each other's company. He really makes me laugh and I thank him for that :)

Here are some pictures from Florida:

 A slight version of what our cake will look like :) layered with red velvet of course, and amaretto rum and vanilla with passion fruit buttercream filling. nom nom nom

 Not from Florida, but this is Nicholi with my class pet. It was the sweetest thing! He snuggled up there for about 30 mins.!

And last but not least, PLEASE pray for a Mavs win!! And if you're not rooting for the Mavericks, you suck at life :)
DIRK is my homeboy!!!

Sunday not-so funday

I realized i'm bored in bed and might as well blog. Been super busy lately but finally had a chance to have a fun night with some girlfriends. Candess, who is one of my bridesmaids, is getting married herself on June 18th in Highland Park. Last night we celebrated her bachelorette party in Dallas and let me tell you I danced and sang and woo hooed into the late hours of the night! 4am to be exact. It was so very needed and a blast! We took the party back to the Fairmont hotel and us girls laughed, and ate cupcakes and told stories. Too much fun. Candess wanted to model her lingerie from her shower earlier that day too :)
Really gets me excited for my festivities in July and helped to ease the stress to :) very happy for Candess and Alan and wish them a lifetime of happiness together!

So today I'm staying in bed, watching Lifetime shows, and cuddling with my pooches while my boo does laundry, yard work and cleans. I will accompany him to the new Walmart that Frisco just got, in exchange for him taking me to Crate and Barrel so I can spend some gift cards :) he has his bachelor party this coming memorial day weekend so we are getting the house ready for all his boys to come into town. If he has a 3 day party like the one we had last night, I'll be feeling sorry for him!

Hope everyone had a fabulous weekend! One week of school left to go!
Housewife coming soon ;)

Heavy hearts and grumpy bears

Tuesday night before heading to bed I checked my email as usual to make sure I could go to sleep peacefully and know that there's nothing I have to do or think about. See, I normally go to bed around 11:00 so I figured if anyone needed anything, they'd have already emailed me about it. I'm not going to lie, I cringe when I see a number in parenthesis. Ugh, what NOW?! However, this particular email pulled at my heart strings and I realized, so much for my peacful sleep.
My principal just might be the coolest person and boss on this Earth. No, seriously though. She's one of the most kind-hearted, understanding and generous person I've met. The subject was titled "I need your prayers." Ok, I thought. Done and done. The message was that her dear friend had been missing since early morning.
A friend. From Frisco. A MOM. What?! Of course, I pray for a good outcome and lay my weary head down.
The next morning I turn on the news like every morning and it's the breaking story. As the day goes on, of course everyone is on pins and needles at school and praying like crazy to themselves. After school, I go to Crate and Barrel which is at Shops at Willowbend in Plano. As I'm driving home I thought, I need a nice pedi and mani after today. I exit the street of where my nail salon is located and as I'm exiting I look to the left where there is a field and see news vans, cameras, tents, etc. My heart sank. This is 2.5 miles from my house. In Frisco. People move here, to this exact city, because of its safety. In fact. it's the 14th safest city in the U.S. And the 2nd safest in Texas!
Upon getting home I heard the tragic news. And I can only think "Why?" How can people been so cruel? Why is such a senseless thing happening to a wonderful family? I begin to fear for my safety as well. Will we ever live in a world of peace?

This week I have been a basketcase of emotions and stress. Poor Nick has to be the bear of my grumps, ha. The hustle and bustle of the end of the year has got me ragged. The wedding planning and finding time to do anything is overwhelming. My poor house has been neglected because I'm to exhausted to clean and count down the days until the housekeeper gets there because I don't have the energy to wipe down the counters. But it's times like this that I need to wake up and count my blessings twice! My heart is heavy for this woman, her SON, her family and friends.  Please continue to pray for them.

So I've been thinking...

Yes you read correctly, I have used my noggin, hehe. I'd like to think of a blog as an outlet to vent, express feelings, happy or frustration, and sort of like an online diary. No one probably reads this anyway, however, if you do, these are my thoughts, opinions and daily devotions :)

Soo...as many people know I am getting married in July. Yay :) And I could be feeling overwhelmed, stressed, easily irritated or everything silimiar to the sorts, but is it just me or does the SECOND question that comes out of peoples' mouth (after when is the date, again?) So how long are ya'll gonna wait to start a family? aggravate the living daylights out of me. Sometimes I ponder and think "What's a good answer?" Why are you concerned?
The more I think about it, the more angry I become at the thought of having to defend yourself in a situation that is merely speculation. Why is the double standard not the norm? Why is age an issue? I often wonder is it a question of curiousity or judgement. Should one even be allowed to ask that?

I guess it just ruffles my feathers that if I say we don't want kids, we're selfish. If I want only one, I'm selfish. If I don't want more than two because 3 are too expensive, I'm selfish. Hmm. Harsh word. What makes that selfish? That I want to provide everything to my kids I can? I'd like to afford for them all to go to college. An ivy league if they choose. Proceed to med school babe that's fine with me. What's so wrong with loving and planning to travel? If we decide on one child, that ONE child will show me how to unconidtionally love with every part of my heart and soul. With 3, could we be able to show them the world or worry that we're being SELFISH for not spending that money on necessitities like clothes and food and saving for college tuition. Anyone can have a football team if that's what makes them proud. Why can't you have kids that belong to the football team and be just as proud sitting in the bleachers admiring all they can do? It has nothing to do with materialism.
Why do we patronize people such as Octomom, The Duggars and Kate Gosselin, yet we as regular people in society are expected to "have as many as God allows".
Why we do idolize the glamourous and fabulous Carrie Bradshaw, strive to be just like her, and yet a woman who actually believes in succeeding in NYC and chooses to be a single 40-something year old will never know what it feels like to live life to the fullest? Only cynics would say that. And for that matter how do you know what you're missing if you've never done it?
I guess, in theory, I'm tired of the double standard, egotystical stereotype that comes along with that question and needed to brush it off my chest. Some may not agree, but I'd like to think of myself as a tremendously selfless person who just wants to live the most rewarding and fulfilling life, however I choose to do that. I absolutely adore children (I'd hope so since I love my 6 year old students like they're my own.) and for the record, yes we want them, we don't know when or how many. See there....had to put up a defense to "tell" society you can relax, another human will be bred onto this Earth. Because that's what you were concerned about, right??!

I need a patio, a drank and some good friends this afternoon!! Have a great weekend :))