Wedding Daydreams

Michael and I are getting married on November 2nd of this year and each time I remember that, I can't help but feel incredibly fuzzy inside! There's a lot of things I could say about how excited we are but words can't even describe it. The truth is Michael is my world, best friend and has been such an undeserving gift from God. I wouldn't change a thing about him. When he proposed to me, I was so joyful and I totally made a wedding Pinterest board that following week... I mean I always secretly loved wedding magazines and shows, and often used the excuse that I was doing looking/watching them for Aria. Side note// In case you didn't know, my older sister Aria is getting married on August 16th, and we are each others maids of honors! I'm sure you would get a headache from listening to all the wedding speak that's discussed in my house. It may be a bit hectic for my parents but they couldn't be happier for us both.

As for as my own wedding planning goes, I wouldn't classify myself as the little girl who daydreamed of her wedding. But I will admit that my daydreams hit an all time high shortly after Michael proposed! I believe weddings should represent who the couple is, having a wonderful time with your guests and not so much what the trendy thing to do is. Fortunately Michael and I have been in synch with our planning, and together we've been staying true to a romantic but quirky, rustic and vintage inspired theme. It'll be an effortlessly elegant affair colored with earthy tones, purple and burnt orange. There will also be games, personal touches, our own playlist and delicious + seasonal food. So far everything is coming together beautifully, our website is complete and we are officially honeymooning in Cazadero, California! What's left over is our invitations and a few d.i.y. projects here and there, which may or not be a lot of work, though we're blessed to have plenty of assistance. All and all our planning has been going smoothly, so smooth that we'll be able to enjoy our summer with ease. Which makes me happy! :)
-Jessica

Lingering thoughts

Hi everyone!

Last post I spoke about my eating habits and how I seemed to be feeling lethargic/meh/bored with my choices. I’ve actually followed the little guidelines I wrote down in my previous post and can honestly say I feel a lot better consuming less sugar, caffeine and wheat. And guess what? I haven’t touched a bowl of cereal before bed in nearly two weeks! BUT,  I will admit I did bake a cake in the middle of the week and had a slice or two :x though, I am not guilty about it! I’m glad I’ve been more conscious of my whole food intake and believe that a delicious piece of peach upside down cake (I didn’t take pictures, sorry guys!) is okay to indulge in once in a while. The cool thing is that the cake I made contained two whole eggs! After eating the cake I did not feel cramps in my stomach at all. It was kind of like a victorious moment considering eggs have been absent in my diet for well over a year. I’m incredibly intrigued to try a whole egg fresh out of the pan with a sprinkle of herbs and salt + pepper. Will it upset me? I won’t know if I try it and that’ll be another story for another day...

Other than eating, this week I’ve been finishing up my premarital homework and have come across some very interesting realizations. The chapters that stood out to me focused on evaluating your prayer life and bible study practice. It helped me realize the areas in my life that I needed to improve and to seek God for strength in those places. I learned that I need to pray more through all areas in my life, for the people I love, the president, our nation and the world's events. I learned that prayer grants us with the spirit of wisdom. (Ephesians 1:17) The wisdom needed to discern false teachings and to comprehend the mystery of the gospel to share with unbelievers. (Ephesians 6:19)  Overall the whole study on prayer and bible reading opened my eyes to be more involved with my relationship with Jesus, and I was so blessed to have received that wakeup call through those chapters. I really look forward to Wednesday when we actually go over our notes as a couple with our counselors, Esperanza and Mike.
Well that’s all I have on my mind today, perhaps I’ll have a recipe of the delicious smoothies now that the weather is finally heating up. Aren’t you glad summer is here? I know I am!!

-Jessica

it's monday and things are starting to fall into place!

Hi!

These past two weekends have been pretty busy and pleasantly productive! I baked three different dessert breads on Friday morning: marble pound cake, banana nut bread and coconut bread. I baked them as favors for Michael and I's engagement party. My parents threw us an engagement party on Saturday at a local Portuguese restaurant last weekend, and we both had an awesome time! The highlight of the evening was hearing our parents share their views of our relationship and a fond memory they had of us. We also enjoyed eating, mingling with our family and playing fun “ice breaker” games. I feel really blessed and relieved that our families get along so well, and am excited to gain awesome family members. After the party we played pool which I failed miserably at, and then on Sunday went to church followed by fish tacos and chicken fajitas back at the house. It was good times! Over the week, I got my internship situated and start on June 3rd! Michael and I also booked our flights to California and plan on staying at a private home through AirBnB for our honeymoon. SO EXCITING!

playing around with different table settings at the rental place.

Moving onto this weekend on Saturday we went to Pennsylvania to pick out chairs, tables, linens, silverware, napkins, etc. for the wedding. Michael and I made sure we picked things we both liked and definitely were satisfied with what we came up with. It’s great because Michael is really hands on with our wedding which makes the decision making so much easier! We’re currently waiting to hear how much everything is going to cost, but we’re not too scared since we make a budget in the beginning of our planning. And on Sunday we nearly finished writing addresses for our save the dates but aren't sending them out til we finish our website. I am proud to say we're almost done with the site! We just have to finish a few more sections and of course check for grammatical errors, because those always seem to creep up on me especially! Now back to the old grind ;)

-Jessica

Hmmm.

Right now I’m feeling a little tired… I woke up earlier than usual so I could make breakfast, eat it, read my bible and then go get blood work done. But unfortunately that didn’t happen because when I went to leave the last person who used my car pushed the emergency break up really far up. I blame having such poor grip in the morning because it was utterly impossible for me to push it down! So the blood work didn’t happen. I did eat breakfast though and I got to read my bible, so that was good! I also read a very old book my mom let me borrow on having a happy Christian marriage. I am finding it refreshing because of its ageless advice! There’s nothing dated about treating your partner with the respect he deserves or being proactive about having proper communication. The author also said that you shouldn’t complain about your partner’s shortcomings and weaknesses with your mom, sister or best friend. But instead share those concerns with Jesus and of course your partner!
Quite honestly I don’t know where Michael and I would be if we didn’t discuss our concerns with one another. I always feel a sense of freedom and relief when we tell each other the truth about how we feel. The next chapter is about spiritual adjustments which should be really good! In other news today Michael and I are going to check out one of the catering places we had our eyes on. We are hoping to make a menu we both love and that goes with our style without compromising our budget. All in all things in wedding land are coming along quite marvelously! I ordered my dress a couple weeks ago, we settled on a venue and I think I’m starting to develop a clearer vision of how I want everything to look. But first I just need to share those visions with my fiancé! ;)
Until next time!
-Jessica

Excited to Be Alive

Dear Friends,
Today I just finished my last day of in-patient physical therapy, and I must say I’m very amazed with how quickly my range of motion is coming back and I’m feeling truly optimistic with what I’ll be able to do after outpatient therapy! I’m dreaming of deep squats for sure! I don’t know how many times I’m going to say this but I feel extremely blessed to have had this operation, and am excited for the future because every day I get one step closer to full recovery. In your face, avascular necrosis! Okay so I’ll admit my physical well-being isn’t the only reason I’m so excited to be alive right now. Something occurred this past Saturday afternoon. Something big. Something beautiful. Something incredible, special, remarkable and spectacular!
….And that something is that I, Jessica Adriana Malave, got engaged!  And not just to any old fellow either, but to my best friend, motivator, encourager, blessing and the love of my life Michael. We couldn’t be any happier either! Our journey together has been nothing less of a blessing and though we’ve been through many trials this year, we’ve only grown to love each other more and more. God has taken care of us both immensely. He continually uses Michael to encourage me and motivate me to be the best version of myself. Michael supports my dreams and I support his dreams. Ah, I’m just so happy because we’re finally engaged after talking about it for months! Oh my word, Michael is my fiancé. Alright, I know what you’re thinking the million dollar question… How did he do it?

As you all probably know, I haven’t been out of the house much. I’ve been feeling pretty sick from the all the horrible Coumadin pills I’ve been taking, (which I stop taking on Monday, wee!) and being out of the house for longer than twenty minutes can be very uncomfortable. Last weekend we also got a lot of snow too. So, I was a little surprised and kind of suspicious when Michael told me he wanted to take me to the park where we had our first date just to “talk.” To make a long story short, we walked by the lake and we took a few pictures. He then went on to say very sweet words to me which I honestly couldn’t concentrate on because I was just waiting for it to happen. I knew it was coming as soon as he unbuttoned his coat and reached for something in his pocket. Yep. It was a black box and as he opened it he recited the question, “Will you marry me?” I couldn’t help but attack him at that moment and kiss him. After that he placed the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen in my life on my ring finger and carried me to my car.  And the whole ride home we kept saying, “Ahhh, we’re engaged” and “you’re my… fiancé/fiancée!” (said in a much exaggerated French accent of course.) All and all it was a beautiful experience and I wouldn’t have asked for anything better. I just felt the need to express my happiness to the world! By the way, I hope you don’t mind seeing wedding stuff on here for a little while. Muahaha ;)

PEACE.

-Jessica