The Pix are Here!

Or rather...they are at www.pictage.com. Just enter Bethany&Brian and you will find professional photos galore! Let us know what you think ^_^

Home Hunting Complete...the Church Hunt is ON!

Well, as you can probably tell from the title of this post, we have found a place to live! What a godsend, huh? I can hardly believe that we've only been here for 10 days and already we've found a wonderful little home. We ended up leasing that cute little house in the University District that Brian wrote about in the last post. We're planning on taking pictures of the outside today after my Italian lecture, and then we'll post them for you all to enjoy. Once we've moved in (January 15-17!!) we'll take some interior shots; those are more fun than the outside anyway, right?

Brian is particularly excited for the basement, henceforward known as "The Man Cave" where he plans to do manly things...like build model airplanes (rrraaaawwwwwwwrrrrrrrrr!) Do you hear the manliness? No...he'll probably build stuff down there, too, and hopefully have some good male bonding time with other "buildy-type" men. My one question is about the washer and dryer down there. Does that mean that part of the Man Cave belongs to me, thereby decreasing its manliness? I think not. I will just have to do laundry when he's not around :-P

Well, one down, one to go. The church hunt has begun. For some reason, we've been sticking to the Christian Reform denomination as we begin our search. We're denominational muts, as is, so really we're just trying to find a church home where we can grow. Our first attempt was at Seattle CRC. Nice little congregation and the sermon was thought-provoking...but we were by far the youngest couple and we really want to plug in with others who are in the same place in life that we are.

This past Sunday, we went to Sanctuary CRC, which is inside of the Taproot Theatre, a Christian theatre company around here that I plan to check out sometime in the not-too-distant future. They are a very young church, begun just over a year ago. Their worship is good and their pastor is really great. He, like Seth (the pastor at PCI for those who don't know him), seems to have the ability to "comfort the afflicted, and afflict the comfortable" and to be controversial in a gentle way, "speaking the truth in love". We are going to a viewing/discussion of the movie Crash at the church office tonight. Hopefully that will prove entertaining and enlightening. If all goes well, we should be back at Sanctuary again on Sunday.

Brian mentioned after church that there are pros and cons to the church being so young. It's a little scary because you don't know what will happen, and they're just getting on their feet. But, it's also exciting because there is so much room to grow and serve in a church whose traditions aren't yet solidified. To be a part of that growth and service would be a great blessing.

A Lot Can Happen in 3 Weeks

Well, everything went beautifully! Exams finished up with a bang. Brian and I both did very well, it seems. The wedding was a dream. It was so incredible that neither of us ever had an ounce of nervousness or hesitation. We were simply overjoyed from beginning to end. In another week or so we should have the link to our online professional pix. In the meantime, here's a teaser for y'all:

Me and Meg at the hotel before the ceremony

Me and Caiti, also at the hotel

Brian's Aunt Terri putting on my veil (after doing all of our hair!)

Our First Dance: "The Luckiest" by Ben Folds

Let them eat... butternut squash soup with curried olive oil :-P

Crying during the Father-Daughter Dance

Mom and I both crying during her special song, "In My Daughter's Eyes" performed by Lance & Carol Brown (written by Martina McBride)

Bad picture of me, but the cake looks good!

Sorry, Ethan...we used forks and did NOT shove the cake in each others' faces

Just before leaving the reception. I think we were even happier than we look :)

The honeymoon was a blast. We stayed at a 100+ year old B&B called the Gold Mountain Manor Inn in Big Bear City. We had a marvelous time exploring the town, eating delicious meals (and yummy snacks in between), and enjoying married life :-P

Christmas was a blast. We had such a wonderful time celebrating with family and friends. We got to go to Lanie's Christmas concert at their church with Uncle Jim & Alex (Aunt Krissy we up in the loft with the kids). We got to check out Grandma & Grandpa Carlberg's new apartment at Legacy on Christmas Day. It was really cute and the dining room they had for us was very nice.

On December 30th, we had our second reception at Mom's house. It was wonderful to be surrounded by so many people we love to celebrate our marriage once again! What a perfect end to a fabulous trip.

A picture of the Rochester Reception cake.

And, now we're in our temporary housing here in Seattle. School starts on Tuesday for me, and Bri is counting the days until he begins at Microsoft. It seems that the whirlwind of the past month is beginning to die down, but the dust hasn't settled yet. Life is good, and God is better!

Btw... Here are some pictures of our new apartment:

Kitchen

Kitchen: view from living room

Bedroom: View #1

Bedroom: View #2

Brian at our kitchen table: already on the internet :-P

View of the Space Needle from our living room window!

The Living Room...I think the little candle makes it homey :)


THE END.

Last Day at PCI

It was a bittersweet day today; it was our last Sunday at Pacific Church of Irvine. Some people we didn't have to say good-bye to just yet since we'll see them at the wedding, but there were many who we will not see, at least for a long time. As soon as Lance had us stand up at the end of service, I started bawling. But, during our final song "O Come, All Ye Faithful", Lisa came over and hugged me and I just started crying harder. She knows what it's like, too. With them leaving in June, this is her last Christmas at Pacific. Even Brian cried when it came time to say good-bye to Seth. It's not all sad, though... I feel blessed to have been a part of something that makes saying good-bye so very hard. Every person at that church is a gift from God in our lives. We will miss them so much, but we plan on visitting as often as we can. And, even if we don't, it is a comfort to know that someday we will live with them forever in God's Eternal Kingdom.

11 days until the wedding!

So, I guess we're not exactly "The Hudson Family" yet, but I just wanted to test drive this thing before we become so. Brian and I are thrilled beyond belief that the wedding is so close! The plans are in the final stages, and we've only had one snafu: Our photographer, Sharon, fell down a flight of stairs two weeks ago, holding her 15-month-old son! Luckily, he wasn't hurt, but she got a pretty bad sprained ankle and a tweaked back. Fortunately, she was able to set us up with one of her partners, Carla, who is now our new wedding photographer. Not quite the sort of thing you want to hear two weeks before the wedding, but God willing, it will all be for the best, anyway. Studying for exams is underway. The "exam season" officially begins tomorrow, but Brian had his first one today (evil Viterbi School of Engineering with their crazy professors). And, that's about all I've got for now. Have a blessed day!