One year ago this month, as I was getting checked out in a Houston hospital following an annoying car accident, (and by annoying, I mean this tacky guy didn’t even get out of the car to see if Marci and I were ok)… Justin asked my parents if he could marry me. How’s that for a dramatic moment? Of course they instantly said Yes!, and from there stems our crazy, whirlwind, how-did-we-survive, year of 2011.
In my mind, this year feels sort of like a lifetime, and I remember every moment vividly. But, one day I won’t, so I want to capture it in writing to one day look back on. Month by Month, here goes.
December: Engaged! My sister engaged! So happy! Time to pack up the apartment in Houston and move to Shreveport, LA. Luckily we didn’t have to get there until January, so we spent December enjoying time with our family and friends – and house hunting in Shreveport. Looking back, someone was definitely watching over us when we decided just to rent. Our Shreveport adventure would be fairly short lived.
January: Justin headed off to Shreveport to start his new job as a Mud SalesRep for Baker Hughes Drilling Fluids. I spent the first two weeks in San Diego preparing for the Aggreko Management Conference which I was lucky to be a part of. The very day I returned to Houston to pack up the rest of my stuff for LA, I came down with the flu and was in bed for 4 days. But, I finally made it to Louisiana at the end of January.
February: We spent February getting settled into the house in LA, and checking out every potentially good restaurant in town. Going out to dinner is by far on the top of our favorite things list, but we always seem to find our favorite few spots and stick to ‘em. This definitely didn’t change in ‘The Shreve.’ I spent a week or so down in Puerto Rico hosting the Aggreko Excellence Program, and loved soaking up the sun away from the chilly Southern weather. (It really was cold! We had two ‘big’ snow storms this month!)
March: Vacation, ahhh. Seriously? How did we manage that? Among the craziness, we knew that a long weekend away would tide us over until our Honeymoon. So, we headed off to Denver, CO – Breckenridge to be exact. I don’t think Justin left the mountain for more than a couple hours at a time. I took a snowboarding lesson, enjoyed people-watching and live music in the warm lodge.
April: April brought more traveling for me, and more playing for Justin. We spent another long weekend in Toledo Bend for an industry golf tournament, and I worked an Events Live Trade Show in LA, CA. (Pretty spoiled by all of the Cali time I got in this year – and I even got to visit the Cali O’Briens and see the winery my Aunt manages). Justin also played in a well-known golf tournament, The Haynesville Shale Classic, at our country club. Sounds fancy, huh? One of the perks of the O&G industry is they love to entertain – and we were given memberships to one of the nicest clubs in Louisiana.
May: Holy cow. May was Madness. I was invited to a dinner hosted by our CEO, Rupert Soames (Grandson of Winston Churchhill ). I wasn’t told too much detail other than to book a flight to Scotland and out of London. There were two problems. One, I had to present to our Northeast Sales Team just two days before leaving… and two, I would return to Houston the day before my sister’s wedding celebrations began! What an experience though. My week was jam packed with sight-seeing, visiting Aggreko project sites in Downtown London, and meeting some amazing colleagues from around the globe. It was definitely too short of a trip. It ended at the perfect time though! I was able to write my maid-of-honor speech on the International flight back to Houston, and even got in a nap to overcome my jet lag before gearing up for Kayla’s wedding weekend. Which was absolutely amazing. We were so happy to welcome Keith into the family and my sister was the most beautiful bride.
June: Did I mention I traveled a lot this year? In June I was part of the hosting team for our annual PLC meeting. Planning a PLC meeting alone is insane; helping arrange global travel plans for the highest of the high at Aggreko, ensuring every detail is in perfect place, and doing it all in a city I am unfamiliar with…. But, on top of that, we were taking them to the US Open. Sigh. That added extra transportation logistics and planning. And the very worst part – the no cell phone issue. We were lucky to receive about 4 of those coveted Blue ‘Cell Phone Allowed’ stickers for the entire group – and I would have given mine away in an instant!! Complete madness. We pulled it off, and I even got to catch a glimpse of little Rory. And after all that – we celebrated my mom’s 50th birthday! Because, let's be honest, she planned two weddings in 9 months and deserved a party in her honor.
July: I think we caught a quick breath in July. Neither of us traveled, and we spent a lot of time at the pool and drinking the most amazing margaritas at Oyster Bar. Oh, we also found out we needed to pack it up and move to Dallas. I guess we didn’t quite catch that breath….. We found the most amazing house, and pulled the trigger to purchase our first home. Best decision we made all year – we are so in love….
August: Ok, hold on to your seats, August gets a little crazy. After completing a week long training in Houston to become an Orange Belt for Aggreko, we celebrated Justin’s mom’s 50th birthday, finished planning our wedding, enjoyed Bachelor/Bachelorette weekends with our best friends, packed up our house in Shreveport and moved to Dallas, celebrated my 25th birthday, played in a Night Golf Tournament, and hosted my parent’s for their first visit to Dallas. We almost died of exhaustion, but we knew we had to hold on just a little bit longer, because our wedding was right around the corner!
September: YES! Finally, September! Justin and I packed up our suitcases and the pup and headed to Houston for our wedding celebration. Everything was absolutely perfect, and exactly what we had envisioned for our big day. Friends and family traveled to be with us as we tied the knot – and truly made our wedding the most special night imaginable. The very next morning we booked it to Galveston for a week-long cruise to Jamaica, The Cayman Islands, and Cozumel. The only decisions we had to make were what time to get up (which was freaking early. We watched the sun rise almost every day), what to eat for dinner, and what time to go to bed (which was also really early because we were in mega recovery mode). Then it was back to reality. I started a second week of training for Orange Belt Certification the very next morning after our honeymoon ended. Justin headed back to Dallas – and we spent our first week as a married couple in different cities. Haha. We also welcomed the Lee’s and the Stivers’ for a visit to celebrate Connor’s 2nd birthday.
October: Sweet October. The quietest month we’ve seen all year. I have thoroughly enjoyed decorating our house, getting back into the swing of things at work, and crocheting! Justin is rocking and rolling in his position at work, and has met some really great clients to taking golfing at our new country club, Hackberry in Las Colinas. I haven’t even checked it out yet, but plan to very, very soon! I spent a bit of time in Houston holding a training course for my marketing department, and then heading to San Antonio for Amanda’s Bachelorette Fiesta! It was a really great weekend hanging out with my very best friends. Justin got to spend some time at his deer lease preparing for hunting season, and hanging out with his dad. We wrapped up October passing out candy to the trick-or-treaters in our neighborhood, and trying out new recipes from Pinterest. Obsessed.
November: November Day 2. We’re not too far into the month, but have a pretty packed agenda already. Justin is leaving tomorrow for Opening Weekend, so my mom and sister are coming up to Dallas for Girl’s Weekend 2011! Next weekend will hold more hunting for Justin, and a trip to Houston for Amanda’s Bridal Luncheon for me. Thanksgiving is always one of my favorite times of the year. My dad celebrates his birthday on the 24th, so turkey, shopping, and birthday cake are all in my near future. (And did I mention more hunting for Justin??) But before the turkey hits the table, I will stand next to my dear friend Amanda, as she ties the knot to Rodney. Couldn’t be happier for these two!
Despite the craziness, I would not change a thing. We have been so blessed to have such great support from our friends and family as we start our lives together as Mr. and Mrs. Lee. So thank you.
