We're Here!!

Post by: Beth
Well, we have made it to St. Louis! Raja, Aidan, and I made the drive up Sunday and got here about 8pm. It took a little over 7 hours, and we are basically all settled into our temporary home in TownPlace Suites until our condo is ready this upcoming Saturday!

The drive went pretty well.. I was super excited to see snow on the ground as soon as we passed into Illinois! There are huge fields in Illinois that were just completely blanketed in snow.. VERY pretty. The trees were bare and the ground was white, and it definitely looked like a winter wonderland. There is still snow on the ground up here in St. Louis, but it's less tranquil-looking as we're in a pretty busy area with lots of restaurants, shops, and homes.

On a side note, let me stress to everyone the importance of having a GPS system if you're in a new area. Dad bought us one Saturday before we left for the trip, and it has been such a lifesaver for me. Yesterday, I just searched for the closest library, post office, and grocery store, and Jill (that's her name.. she's "Jill" - American female) led me straight to them w/out any problems. It was so great to be in a brand new place and have Jill telling me where to turn, how far to go, when to merge, etc. Fabulous.. you must have one if you're going anywhere new anytime soon.

So yesterday was just a few errands, trying out the gym here at the hotel, and cooking dinner for the first time as a wife! Our suite has a full kitchen in it so I'm getting to start practicing cooking a little bit. It actually went pretty well.. keep your fingers crossed it continues that way and no disasters occur too soon. ;)
Another high point of yesterday: I signed my new name for the first time ever! I never practiced before the wedding because I was scared I'd jinx myself, so yesterday was the first time. It's a tad underwhelming since I was only signing for a library card here in St. Charles County, but all the same.. first time ever! :)

Today's schedule is starting the thank-you card process from the wedding events, trying out the gym the hotel provides free passes to, tracking down a Target to buy Raja some new shoelaces since his are breaking in his work shoes, and then trying my hand at dinner again. Wish me luck! As a bonus, Kim Kardashian is on Regis & Kelly this morning.. can't wait for the new season of her show to start. Such mindless entertainment, but such a guilty pleasure. :)

And sorry for no pictures.. my camera's batteries are dead and my charger is buried somewhere in my trunk under all our belongings, so no pictures until at least Saturday. =( I know it's a bit boring w/out pictures, but I promise I'll take some as soon as I can.

Thanks for reading! I hope you're all doing well, and having good days and lots of fun. :)

P.S. - Raja is at work right now, but I'm sure he would send his love as well. :)

Engagement Pictures

Post by: Beth & Raja

To start off the photos, we wanted to go back just a few weeks ago to our engagement photo session. Beth's cousin, Erin, took these photos off us downtown on Morris Avenue on a gorgeous Saturday while Raja was home for Christmas/New Years. Most of you have probably already seen this link, but we wanted to post it just in case. =) If anyone is curious (I've had several people ask me already), the song is by Matthew Perryman Jones and is called "Meghan's song." Sort of interesting.. it's actually a lullaby he wrote to help his wife sleep. We'd never heard the song before, but think Erin & her husband, Corey, picked the perfect song for this slideshow. It's hauntingly beautiful, and it's just another example of why Corey & Erin are so good at what they do.

http://www.erinnolenphotography.com/bethandraja2

If you want more info on Erin's photography, you can visit her website at http://www.erinnolenphotography.com/ . Corey is also joining her with the full-time photo gig as of lately, so you can check his stuff out at nolenphotography.com . (Just in time.. he did some GREAT shots of us before our Birmingham wedding reception -- We can't wait to see them all!) They also just did our wedding photography, and we will be posting those as we get them. Stay tuned for more photo updates.. =)

Weddings are OVER!

Post by: Beth
Yey for us! The weddings/receptions are finally over and we had such a great time. THANK YOU so much to everyone who came out to be with us during these special times.. We will look back on these memories for many years to come, and it was amazing to have so many of our loved ones around us for such a long time. While we are very happy to have all of the planning done and have the events behind us, we will miss seeing all of our friends & family so often. Between the cruise, all the photo sessions, the parties and receptions, we got to spend so much time with our loved ones, and that's what we're sad to see go. We are so grateful to everyone who helped us plan, kept things going smoothly, and sacrificed of themselves to make us feel so wonderful. Everything from picking up tiny jewels off tables, carting gifts around, straightening centerpieces, affixing 150 crystals to a dress, tracking down golf putters, whipping up egg-less cupcakes, coordinating huge events for so many people.. We cannot thank each of you enough!

Now it's time for us to get back down to reality and get ready for our upcoming move to St. Louis. In exactly 7 days, we should be very close to arriving to our new home. Next Sunday, Raja, Beth & Aidan will be making the drive up to MO, where we will stay in a hotel for 1 week until our condo is ready for us to move into. This week, Raja goes back to Manhattan for training for Rotation #2, and Beth stays in Birmingham to pack and take care of name changes, doctor/dentist appts, one last lunch with her work friends, and all of the miscellaneous things that come along with getting married and moving. We promise to post pictures of our move as it goes along, and will have lots of photos when we finally get settled into the condo. Wish us luck as we get ready for even more changes! :)