how i met your father (part 4)

If you're late to the party, read these first:  Part 1,  Part 2, and Part 3

AND NOW, FOR THE STUNNING CONCLUSION: [I apologize that this has been the most drawn-out series of posts in all of blogging]

Of course, I was strung out on painkillers, so I didn't appreciate the adorability (that's not a word...) of his comment until later. It still makes me swoon.

During that fall, we started talking about taking a vacation together after the bar exam was over. I'd always wanted to go to the Pacific Northwest, and he said it sounded like fun. Because I'm an incessant planner, I started looking at little bed and breakfasts we could stay at and things to do. The first place I came across was called Carson Ridge Cabins. They looked so cute and cozy. Then I saw that they did weddings. I brought it up, jokingly, to Chuck: "Wouldn't it be fun to get married there while we're on vacation?" He laughed, but as the days wore on, we started talking seriously about it. We had both been engaged before, so neither of us were really too excited about the prospect of having a big ceremony (especially the spending lots of money part). We're also both a bit socially anxious, so the fewer people the better. In November, we decided to do it and made reservations without telling anyone. There was no proposal, and no engagement ring. We did go to Shane Co. and pick out a wedding ring for me though. Chuck put it on layaway though, to prevent me from wearing it! :)

Man, I love that ring.

Things went rather uneventfully over the next couple of months. I was in my final semester of law school, and making plans to take the February bar exam. Although I had worked full-time all throughout law school, I was seriously doubting my ability to study for the bar exam adequately while working full-time. I did NOT want to take that test more than once. It was Chuck's idea for me to work part-time while I studied, and while the independent woman in me bristled at the thought of being a kept woman, my pragmatic side won out. Fortunately we had the financial means (and I had a good employer) to make this a possibility. I don't think I would have passed otherwise!

After the bar exam was over, we ordered Chuck's wedding band. [As an aside, I totally recommend this place. They were amazing to work with!] He wanted something special -- different somehow than the hundreds of plain-jane wedding bands that are available for guys. I found this on etsy, and it was a winner. He now, quite literally, has part of me wrapped around his finger. :)

Around this time, I decided I needed a wedding dress. So one day, while my sister and I were on our way to IKEA in Cincinnati, I told her. I needed help shopping for something like a wedding dress!! So while we were in Cincinnati, we stopped at David's Bridal. They were having their $99 dress sale at the time. They ended up not having any of the $99 dresses left in my size, but I did find one for $199! It didn't even have to be altered. Win.

As far as everyone else knew, we were just going on vacation at the end of April, and that was the way it was going to stay. We did have engagement/wedding photos taken (by the lovely and extremely talented Jenny Grise), although we went to Bloomington for them so as to not be spotted!

One of my favorites

Jenny was great and rushed our pictures. We needed this because we had decided to order postcards to announce our marriage to our friends and family!

The photo we used on the postcard (also, isn't my husband SO handsome??)

The postcards came just in time for us to pack up and head out to Oregon/Washington! We'd also spent the past month or so getting our marriage license in order. Washington state has a 3 day waiting period, so we wouldn't have time to apply for one once we got out there. Applying for one via mail ended up being a bit of a hassle. We had a hard time finding a notary who would sign it! (I know plenty of notaries who would have signed it, but the secrecy thing was a complicating factor.) We did get the marriage license in time to pack it in the suitcase as well.

We arrived in Portland on Thursday, picked up the motorcycle (did I not mention this was a motorcycle trip?), and drove out to the cabins. It was cold and rainy (something that did not abate our entire trip), but SO beautiful. Mount Hood is just gorgeous.



Breakfast delivery!

The cabin was wonderful, the proprietors were wonderful, and the wedding was wonderful. Just what we wanted it to be. Chuck set up his gopro camera to get some shots during the wedding, which actually ended up being like a fun flip book, and one proprietor took photos while the other stood guard with umbrellas. It ended up only sprinkling a bit during the ceremony itself, so they weren't necessary (hooray!).

What scenery, right?!

Still makes me teary looking at it

After the ceremony, we went and got the most amazing mexican food ever, and drove as far as we could toward Mount Hood. It got cold pretty rapidly though, so we turned back. On the way back, we stopped at a winery and bought some of the worst wine I've ever drank. Oh well! :)

The next day we rode up to Seattle (oh how I love Seattle) for the weekend. We stopped in Olympia on the way to mail the postcards, which was pretty fun. On Sunday, we walked quite a bit around Seattle and, of course, went to the top of the Space Needle. I would have liked to stay longer, but we had places to go!

View of Puget Sound from the Space Needle

The Space Needle from the ground

We spent Monday in Vancouver, WA, which is across the river from Portland. Since I was starting a new job when I got back to Indy, I wanted to get the whole name change thing taken care of. So I spent a few hours on one of the days of my honeymoon at the Social Security Office. Glamorous life I lead, I know.

From there we headed toward the coast. We decided to go to Tillamook and then ride down the coast before going back to Portland to return the bike and fly home. The ride out there was a bit trying. About halfway there it started raining, and then it started hailing. By the time we arrived at a hotel, I was pretty sure frostbite was imminent. Fortunately, the place we stayed had a washer and dryer! BLISSFULLY CLEAN AND WARM CLOTHES! We went to the Tillamook Cheese Factory(mmmmmm) and then out to dinner at another delicious restaurant. Surprisingly, the food we'd had on this trip had been pretty hit and miss (mostly miss). This place and the mexican food restaurant though.... A+.

Dairy? Yes please!

Unfortunately while I was doing the laundry, Chuck discovered that the front motorcycle tire was cracking. Even more unfortunately, the closest place we could go to get it fixed was in Portland, so no driving down the coast for us. Honestly, at this point I was ok with that. I was tired of being cold and wet. The next morning we woke up SUPER EARLY, I found out I passed the bar (!), we went to Tillamook Cheese Factory for a breakfast of ice cream (don't judge me, it was my honeymoon), and rode back to Portland.

Mmmmm breakfast ice cream.....

We found a hotel downtown and decided to stay there until we flew out on Thursday. Put a fork in me, I was done. The hotel was lovely, and downtown Portland was also lovely. I do so love the Pacific Northwest. Chuck went on a couple more rides without me. We also took a walk to OMSI, which ended up being a disappointment. There was some sort of event that evening, so half of the museum was closed. Also, on the way back, it poured. Woo boy did it pour. I'm pretty sure those clothes were still wet when we got home. I gave up trying to go outside after that. :)

When Thursday came, we flew home to start the rest of our lives together, and it has been nothing short of spectacular thus far.



The ring that inspired this whole series of posts