Hello, daddy-o!

On Wednesday night, Graym and I were blessed to babysit for our pastors children so that they could have a date night out without the hustle and bustle of their three lovable, yet energetic, boys. It was the first time that Graym and I had babysat together, and I was greatly looking forward to seeing him interact with the kiddos in that kind of environment. I already knew Graym was GREAT with kids. My cousins children absolutely love when Graym comes over and often ask for him as soon as they see me walk through the door. However, being in someones home with three boys who you have to feed, entertain, and put to bed was something that I had yet to see him do and I was excited to watch  my man in action.

Overall, we had a wonderful night! The boys were a blast to play with and we filled the evening with running around the house, jumping on pillows, picking and eating figs, and even building a fort. Getting them to bed took a little prodding, but after bribing them with lots of bed time stories, the trio brushed their teeth, said their beautiful little prayers, and headed off to bed. Well...the oldest two did, at least! The youngest, Dillin, who is only 2 and still naps throughout the day, got out of bed a couple times but after a few rounds of coloring, baseball watching, and cuddling, he eventually tuckered out enough to get some shut eye. Once the boys were nestled in bed, Graym and I were able to do some of our own cuddling as I allowed him to watch the Yankees game. The sacrifices of love, huh? :)

Graym did an incredible job with the boys and I was so blessed to have him there with me. It is such a wonderful feeling to know that not only am I marrying a man who I know will love, protect, and honor me as his wife but will also be an incredible provider and father to our children. Graym has such a sweet, playful, and gentle heart that I know will immensely bless our future family. Though we plan to wait a few years before starting a brood of our own, I know that when that day comes Graym will be the dad that every little boy and girl dream of.

Boy, oh boy, I surely found a good man!

Cowgirls for a day!

Last weekend my beautiful bridesmaids whisked me away to Malibu Dude Ranch in Milford, PA for what surely was the best bachelorette weekend in the history of bachelorette weekends. It was a complete surprise, but a wonderful one! After 5 long hours in the car, we arrived at the unknown destination for what turn out to be an incredible weekend filled with horseback riding, riffling, archery, a rodeo, and dance party til we were too tired to keep moving! We had an absolute BLAST together and enjoyed every minute on the ranch. The people there were incredibly friendly, the food was great, and the bull riding left us freaking out in our seats. Overall, it was an incredible weekend and I can't thank my girls enough for putting this together!


Here are some of my favorite shots from the weekend:

 

No babies for me (yet): NFP update

Hey all,

So I know I said I wouldn't write about this again since some people probably find this a squeamish topic and would rather not read about it, but then I figured if you don't want to read about it you don't have to! Pretty simple logic, right? :) Plus, I'm a very open gal who'll talk about anything and really couldn't resist! Anyways, I just wanted to give everyone an update about my whole preparing-not-to-have-a-baby-just-yet process and the things I've learned along the way. I figured I could share what I have learned and perhaps get some more advice since I'm still pretty new to this whole thing!

So since the last time, I have decided to go with natural family planning (NFP from here on out). I had tried the pill for a month for a few reasons. 1) I get AWFUL cramps that require me to take between 1000-2500mg of painkillers every 3-4 hours for the first 48 hours to combat. 2) I get uber moody. Sorry Graym! 3) I still deal with pretty bad monthly period-related acne and figured it couldn't hurt to try to clear that up along with the other benefits. Well, that didn't go so well. The pill made my cramps worse, I had headaches every day the entire month, and I broke out like crazy. Plus, I often forgot to take the pill at the same time every morning and don't think it would be a very effective option for me (heellloooooo honeymoon baby!). I could've tried the NuvaRing afterwards, but considering that thing was big enough to fit around my wrist and my previous attempt didn't go so well, I decided to try out the natural approach and settled on NFP.

So far, the process has been great. I really love that NFP isn't just about not getting pregnant, but learning how your body works. As a woman, I feel like it is my right to know how my body works and understand it's signs. It's a great birth control method but also a way to track your hormones and physical changes, which can ultimately help you realize when something is amiss.

The first month was a little tough. I often forgot to take my temperature right away and didn't really know what I was looking at. But three months in to it I have finally been able to determine at the beginning of the month when I should ovulate and start my cycle. These last two, I have been right on the money! It's really neat that I can estimate that and see how my bodily changes reflect that. I'm still struggling with the recognizing the changes my body goes through right before ovulating, but hopefully these next two month will proves fruitful.

My only regret in this whole process is that I wish I started sooner! I only have one cycle left before the wedding since I'll be starting the second one about four days in to the honeymoon (sucks, right? We tried to plan the wedding around it but when a gal has a 35 day cycle that doesn't fall on the same day every month, it proves tricky! I obviously failed hahaha). I think another couple of months would be great to get things totally figured out, but I'll go with what I know now and Graym and I have already decided to be extra cautious these first few months of marriage. Yes, we want babies, but not yet!!

I wanted to close by saying thanks for all the wonderful advice that you all gave me through my first update and via emails. I really appreciated it and it's great to know that there are so many women out there who actually use this method! Sadly, it's not publicized as an effective alternative to hormonal methods as much as I'd like, though it's benefits far out weigh the time it takes to take your temp in the morning and keep track of your other bodily changes. Please feel free to continue share any tips or give more advice! They are definitely welcome and though I do have a few questions I'll refrain from asking here since I think that might be a little too much for a public blog ;)

I hope this wasn't too squemish for ya'll this time! 

Love, Sash

Who wants to give this gal a massage?

Truth be told: I am stressed! We are at the point in this wedding process where there are just so many little things to figure out and I can't stay on top of it all. 

Plan the day-of itinerary. 
Coordinate flight schedules.
Book hotel rooms. 
Confirm arrival of bridesmaids/groomsmen. 
Make the program, favors, centerpieces, misc. decorations.
Confirm delivery of flowers, chairs, etc.
Gather honeymoon documents and schedule activities.
Purchase items need for gift table, favor table, guest book, dinner tables, and more.
Order bridal party and parents gifts.

And the list goes on and on...all of which need to be completed within a month and half while tackling my job, organizing the new apartment, and ultimately trying not to go crazy or blow up on Graym. Our sermon at church yesterday was on rest and boy do I need some right now! Not a day goes by where I'm not thinking about the wedding and what needs to happen next and frankly I'm just tired. I don't want to think about this any more. I don't want to do this any more. I want to go home, sit on the couch, cheat on my clean eating with a giant bowl of ice cream, and watch Americas Funniest Home videos because I flippin' love that show.

I know. Major vent post and I'm sorry. Well, not too sorry. It feels good to get this off my chest but I know I don't have the heart that I should have right now. I want to be joyful and love this time, but I'm at the point where so much is running through my head that I don't even have the opportunity to be joyful. Everyone has been so wonderful, too, asking me if they can help and what they can do, but sometimes even delegating tasks can be draining when you're the only one who knows all the details to complete those tasks.

Anways, the point of this point was to offer my back as a massage spot for any one who would like to be a masseuse for a day ;) And please be praying for me. I want to love every minute of this, especially these last few weeks, and some prayer for God given grace and joy would be greatly appreciated.


Love you all. 
Sash

60 day update: So close yet so far away

Graym and I hit quite a milestone this week: two months until the wedding! Every time I think about it an intense wave of eager anticipation washes over me and I'm left in the most giddy, overwhelmed, anxious state I've ever been in! The past ten months have flown by while at the very same time the next two months seem like they'll take forever. I'm sure I'll look back and think differently once the wedding day has come and passed, but for right now that day is so close I can almost taste it and I really, really want it to be here right now! Thankfully I do have a bit more time, though, because there is just so much left to do!

Let's begin with an honest confession, shall we? Here's the deal: I am SO over all this wedding stuff! Yea it's been fun, and yes I've enjoyed being able to express myself creatively throughout the process, but MAN I cannot wait for it to be over. I never thought I would say such a thing and when my cousins were going through the same set of feelings I'd laugh and shrug it off with a resounding, "That'll never happen to me! I'm going to love every minute of it." While I have loved all the planning and designing, I'm excited for the day where I can come home, relax, and not have to figure out what's next of the agenda, design that latest printable, or determine what has to be ordered! I just want to stop planning this wedding and actually be married! Is that too much for a gal to ask? : ) At least with only two months left, I can keep on trucking knowing that the beautifully wonderful end is in sight.

*Phew* Glad to get that one off my chest! Now on to the exciting news.

As many of you have figured out already from your recent mailman delivery, the invitations have been sent! They were sent in bunches on different days so some of you will be getting them a little later than others, but don't fret! They are on their way! Everything was made and designed by moi, from the burlap backing to the invitation design. Ok, ok. So I took some ideas from pinterest but hey, what future bride hasn't? Overall, I think they came out pretty swell and I hope you did too. A lot of time, effort, and love went in to those babies and I must give a quick shot out to my wonderful mama, handsome fiance, and incredible bridesmaid, Maria, for helping me glue, glue, and glue! You guys rock and there is no way I could've done it without you.

Side note: I realized I made a mistake on them today!! Worst feeling ever and I'm totally embarrassed. I swear I checked those invites 50 times before sending them to print but, alas, I put the wrong wedding website on there : ( I will be sending out a message to all the guests via facebook or some other means with the correct website later tonight and hope that you all forgive me for my silly mistake. Uggghhh, seriously. Only me!

Now back to today! Today marks 60 DAYS until the wedding!! I cannot believe it. In less than two months I will become Mrs. Kasko and I have come to love that last name more and more over time (and the man who holds it even more!). We have hit the stage where all the tiny details need to be figure out and I am beginning to feel so overwhelmed by how much we still have left to do. Thankfully I have been blessed with a wonderful support group of family and friends who have assisted me with various tasks and Graym has really taken initiative this past month with calling and contacting people without me asking. Have I told you how much I love him? I really, really do! Right now our biggest things are favors (cute little jars: check!), decorations (wall decal: check!), centerpieces (mason jars: check! wood slabs: check!), and wedding party gifts (uggh...no check on this one, yet!). Anyone who wants to have a DIY party with me this weekend is more than welcome to! :) That's just the beginning of the list, though, and it just seems to be getting longer and longer! It'll all get done and the wedding will be perfect, but man it's tough when you have a lot to do and you have no desire to do it (remember when I said I was over it? Yea...). 2 more months...2 more moths!

On another note, Graym and I get our apartment this weekend!! We wont' live together before the wedding but wanted enough enough time to move it and get the place settled so we weren't swamped with moving a week before the big day. We already have some wonderful gifts to move in and a living room set that we purchased from craigslist. It's beautiful and pretty much new since the guy kept the set in his formal living room. Talk about a bargain! My wonderful cousin and bridesmaid, Nicole, who just got married also gave us her husbands old bedroom furniture and dining set for FREE! Graym and I are so grateful and know that it will make a great addition to our new place. Both of us cannot wait to be in there together and know that we will be blessed in this home. We're also stoked to have you all over! I finally get to be a hostess! How fun is that? :D

Well, to keep this post from getting unbearably long, I'm gonna say so long for now! I'll keep you all updated as these next two months roll on by. We can't wait to see you all at the wedding come September. It's pretty much gonna be awesome, so get your excited pants on!

Much love,
Sasha

Home sweet home: Our new place!

GRAYM AND I ARE TENANTS!!!

That doesn't sound nearly as neat as "homeowners" but it's just as a wonderful feeling! On Monday, Graym and I put in the security deposit for our new apartment. Can you believe it? We found the place where we are going to LIVE! Words cannot describe how stinkin excited we are and how blessed we feel. We had been researching various apartment complexes in the area but after visiting two, we were a little off put. We had a strict limit of $1500 a month (crazy, right? Welcome to DC...) but in this area, we'd be lucky to find something that is in a good location, part of a safe neighborhood, was a decent home, and affordable all in one. Yea, we can find places that rent out a studio or one bedroom for that rate, but when you add in the cost of utilities, cable/internet, laundry, parking, and more, you're looking at paying closer to $1800. No thank you. And the places that did include all of that within the $1500 cap, we'd either need to hire me a security guard or be stuck in the 1950s. Needless to say, I was getting a little frustrated with the prospect of finding a nice place to live until I remembered a little tip that more than one person had recently suggested to us: look for an independent owner; someone who is renting out their condo, town house, or finished basement. So off to Craigslist I went and after spending a few days scouring the ads I stumbled upon a few that seemed encouraging and began making phones.

We were absolutely AMAZED at the difference that renting a persons home or apartment could make verses an apartment complex. The properties were often twice as big, in beautiful, safe locations, and their rental cost often included all, if not most, of the utilities and other hidden costs. After viewing 3 other places and working with one man to settle on a price and move in date, Graym and I have put our deposit down and will residing in a basement apartment in Alexandria, VA.

Now when I say this place is awesome, I mean that it is awesome.  We have our own private entrance to the basement which leads to 1100 square feet of beautiful home. The kitchen is huge, the appliances are all 5 years old or less, and we even have our own washer/dryer. Two french doors lead to the bedroom and both that and the living room have beautiful Berber carpet to cushion our toes. The neighborhood itself is gorgeous with new, large homes built 7 years ago and it is located directly across the street from Kingstowne center. If you've never been there, it's a great spot and has been lovingly coined "the new old town." Within a 5 minute walk we can find ourselves face to face with the movie theater, lots of small shops and restaurants, the grocery store, Walmart, and one of our favorite places to shop: Khols. A ten minute drive down the road in either direction is the Springfield Mall and Old Town Alexandria, and within 20 to 30 minutes we can be hanging out with Grammie and Bapa or mom and papa, hanging in DC, or shopping at Tysons. Since we'll technically be considered a resident of the home, we'll have access to all the community amenities as well which include 3 club houses that you can rent for special events, 3 giant pools, tennis courts (with lights for night playing!), and a massive weight room that includes all the free weights, kettlebells, and cardio equipment you can imagine.

All this for.........*drum roll please*.........$1475/month. BAM! Utilities, parking, cable/internet, everything you could imagine is included. Graym and I feel so blessed to have found this place, to be the only tenants the owner even considered, and to know that in just a few short months we'll be calling it home. Unfortunately I have already gotten in to complete home decorating mode and am ready to buy lots of pretty stuff to furnish the place! Thankfully we begin renting July 15 so at least we don't have to wait as long for that.

Here are some of the pictures that the owner posted on craigslist. They definitely don't do the place justice though, so I guess you all are just gonna have to come over sometime after the wedding :)

Entry door to the left there, living room in front, and bathroom on the right. The living is twice as big as it looks here, promise!

The front door is behind the picture, so the bedroom pictured here is on the right. I love those double doors! And you can see the big kitchen on the left.

Humungo kitchen! I can't wait to cook in there :D

Surprise! My wonderful bridal shower

Around 5pm on Saturday, May 19 Graym and I were heading to my house after a wonderful and eventful day. We started the morning off by playing some tennis, followed by an afternoon showing of The Avengers in 3D. It had been such a great day already and I never could've imagined that when I arrived home that I'd be walking in to the country!

My incredible parents along with my awesome team of bridesmaids put together the most beautiful, indescribable, perfect bridal shower that a girl could ever ask for! Since Graym and I love country living and have a very rustic, southern theme to our wedding, my mom decided a full on country themed shower was perfect. My papa and uncle built a make shift barn in the back yard and the place was decorated with wagon wheels, whiskey barrels, and hay bales. The delicious food consisted of recipes straight from Paula Deens kitchen and we sipped on sweet tea and cold lemonade while we ate and laughed. All the guests were dressed up in their best cowgirl attire including boots, plaid shirts, and cowboy hats. Everything was above and beyond anything that I could have imagined and I was left speechless by creativity, dedication, and joy that was put in to making this special day happen. I was so incredibly blessed by the love and support I was shown by everyone who attended, and all of their gifts will help make our fist place a home.

Now to give thanks where thanks are due.

To the guests: Seriously, I have the best family and friends ever! Thank you all for coming, making that day so wonderful, and for shedding me with all your love. The meals you brought were delicious and I can't wait to try out the awesome recipes you gave me!

To my dads coworkers: I don't think you'll be reading this, but thanks for lending my dad all those awesome props to make our backyard turn in to a barn! The place looked awesome and I can't wait to use them again at my wedding.

To Tio Roberto: You and my dad made the most killer barn ever and I loved it!! Thank you for putting in the time and hard work to help make it happen.

To my girls: thank you so much for all that you did to help my mom with all the little details. You were there when she needed you most and really helped tie it all together. I'm so thankful to have you in my life and by my side during this time.

To my mom and dad: words cannot express how incredibly blessed I am to have you as parents. Every day I witness such overwhelming love between you two and I'm so thankful for all the wonderful ways you have extended that to Graym and I. You have given more than your all to make your little girl feel like a princess and I truly felt like one that day. Thank you for making my shower such a beautiful, memorable one and I pray that Graym and I can share the same love and care with our children that you have shown me. You are the best parents a gal could ever ask for and I am so honored to be your daughter.

Phew, ok. Enough with the sappy stuff! Here are some of my favorite pictures from the shower. Enjoy!

The "barn"!!

Yummy, yummy cake :)

My beautiful bridesmaids

The best mama in the whole wide world!