moving, day 1

The unaccompanied baggage clowns employees are here right now and I have several thoughts:

-I am holding back the tears trying not to make a fool of myself with the tears; it really feels like they have come to take Karl.  I know that is so weird.  Reminding myself that we are not defined by or found in our possessions.  They can take what they want- Karl is still here.  And even when he is not, The Lord is my strength.

-Why am I blogging right now and not in there supervising?  Why did I choose such a small room for our 'Korea room?' I can't fit in there with them and they are unimpressive.  I opened the door when they rang my doorbell this morning and they just marched right in and into my living room.  No, "Hi, I'm Joe with blah blah blah,"  they literally didn't even give me the opportunity to invite them in and offer them a slice of pumpkin bread.  Their loss.

-Not sad to see Karl's snowboard make it's way to Korea.  Sad to see Karl's favorite flannel shirt and pillow that smells like him go.  And hair clippers that he gives himself hair cuts with because he does them better then anyone else can.  And Glad to send our only good TV that he gave me for my 21st birthday.  Glad to send framed wedding pictures.  Glad to send a new bath mat so his feet are warm and dry when he gets out of the shower.  Glad to send a cookie sheet and spatula so he can make himself slice-and-bake cookies, his favorite.  Glad to send his Skype headphones and glad those haven't been used for the past year and a half. Glad to send bedding that looks like a married 24 year old uses it and not a bachelor that lives in a dorm.  Glad to have the most fitting and perfect stationary to write on and hide among his boxes that reads, "She makes the whole world feel like home,"and The Great I AM who strengthens me to try and do that.

-Trying to stay busy and not let my mind wonder for multiple reasons.  I'm sure you can come up with a few, including but not limited to these movers.

I keep coming back to it... Psalm 118:24: This is the day The Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it
Hannah K.C. Burton

What we've been up to

I am so behind on blogging!  I still want to post about Callie visiting in August and our trip to visit The Johns' with her before I forget plus our anniversary weekend getaway and our fun anniversary photo session that Karl & I had a couple of weeks ago.  For now I'll have to settle for some random tidbits that I have time for at the moment...

-I'm having another esophageal endoscopy on Friday to stretch out my throat again.  Not exactly looking forward to it but glad to have all this behind me.

-Last week +this week + next week are just chock full of organizing/purging/cleaning/wanting to pack but not being able to- the Air Force is moving us so I can't pack any boxes myself which {in theory} is awesome, however, to know that we are rolling out of here next Saturday and to not see a single box packed is kind of freaking me out.  It's taking everything I have to not start packing things just to settle my Type A self down.  I have, however, been going room-by-room, closet-by-closet, leaving no drawer or cabinet unturned and organizing, packing, sorting, making a million lists, cleaning, and purging like there's no tomorrow.  No shelf is safe here.

-We designated the floor of one of the guest rooms for Korea and the bed of that room for Arlington so everything on the floor is going to Korea while everything on the bed in there is going with me to Arlington {stay with me here}- it's helping me stay organized AND have countless emotional breakdowns- the perfect storm.  Ya know, it's just good to be able to walk in a room and see all of your husband's favorite clothes, things, and items all sitting in luggage and know that you personally won't be seeing those things for a year- a real picker-upper that room is.

-There is nothing, nothing more startling than turning on an iPhone camera expecting to see the image of what you are about to take a picture of only to see your dumbfounded, open-mouthed, disheveled self.

-Just sent in our last rent check.  For the next year.

-Callie & Jeremy have graciously offered one of their guest bedrooms to Karl & I for the time that we'll be in Arlington before he leaves for Korea (a little over 3 weeks).  The rest of my family is still living at Gammy's house while my parent's future home is still being closed on.  Karl & I are a) really, really, really grateful for their offer & hospitality b) super excited to get to spend this time with them and basically party 24/7 c) have Jersey Shore DVR'd and introduce Callie & Jeremy to Jersday {we have to make sure that the first thing that Callie's unborn baby hears is something inappropriate out of an incoherent, fake Italian's mouth}

-Lately I've had some conflicting thoughts plaguing me on age.  Karl turned 24 yesterday, which sounds SO OLD to me, 23, however, still sounds like a little baby.  Then you have the strangers here in Sumter that see me at the grocery store on a Tuesday at 11:00 AM and think I'm ditching high school... to grocery shop. I get excited when there's rain because our grass is dry and I'm about to have professional movers come move my home.  I also eat Honey Buns for breakfast.  Working on my feelings toward age and numbers.

-I intentionally scheduled our first day of packing on a workday for Karl.  I am 100% sure that I will be embarrassed for anyone {including Karl} to see me interact with the packers.  As in, they will be packing our things exactly how I want them packed.  And Karl will be so embarrassed of me so he should probably just be at work.
"Excuse me, that fl;kajsdlfj is so special to me.  I think you should wrap it in bubble wrap, put it in this box, wrap the box in bubble wrap, and then but that box in another box.  And right FRAGILE alllll over it.  Here, let me do it...."


-My parents are coming in next Thursday or Friday to help us for a night or two and I can't wait.  I know I will need the help and I can't wait to see them.

-I received my much anticipated Erin Condren planner about 2 weeks ago and it has been a life-saver in staying organized as our lives have really picked up pace as of late.  I love it.  I will probably reorder this planner every single year for the rest of my life.  In the interest of full disclosure, I should add that the ordering/shipping process was unimpressive and left a lot to be desired- it took 15 days from the day that I ordered the planner to the day that it was at my front door.  People like rave about their customer service and such- I don't get that.  I mean, there was nothing horrible but it was just basic and average- I mean, y'all know my standards on customer service.  I won't get on that soap box.  The product, however, is top notch!

Wow, clearly I had a lot to get off my chest.  Maybe I need to do 'life updates' {aka what is Hannah thinking/feeling} more often.  You're welcome.

Hannah K.C. Burton

Truck for Sale

We are selling Karl's truck, or trying to, before we leave South Carolina...err in the next 3 weeks. Selling it because it's a standard, which I have somehow gotten away without learning to drive for the past 5 years, plus it would be costly to get it to Texas, insure and maintain it for the year it will just be sitting, and then hope it still runs when Karl gets back- all for probably more than it's worth.  Still, this is the only car Karl has had since I've known him so it makes me so sad to get rid of it.  It's like one more piece to the sad Korea puzzle that is being put into place.  I will undoubtedly cry when that truck is gone.  Anyways... back to the point of this, a friend of Karl's had asked to buy it but has recently backed out so we have resorted to {drumroll, please} Craigslist.  Obviously the classiest, safest option where we are least likely to get scammed.  Please enjoy the following two REAL emails we received inquiring about the truck- WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE and how do they get by in real life???

If you know Karl or I you can imagine how hard it was for us to not respond with the world's most sarcastic email.  However, we didn't and I just replied that we did not, in fact, need a Martin D-35 guitar or anything for streetfighting.  And we do, actually, need all the money at the time of the sale.  Remember this post about Precious Moore?  Mhmmm.

Hannah K.C. Burton, car saleswoman

and the anniversary celebration continues... with pictures

Karl & I had a photo sesh with a local photographer a few weekends ago.  I decided that I want to prioritize pictures every single year, money-wise, and I'm so glad I did this year!  I treasure good photos!  Yesterday our online gallery became available and I'll order the CD of images this week and then have the photos in hand soon after that.  Right now, I just pulled one off her website that has her watermark on it.  I had a vision for these pictures, just wanted her to capture our life as newlyweds... getting to live life together is still so fresh and exciting for us!  There were lots that I didn't like because of how I looked, not because the actual image itself isn't great, so I did learn two big lessons: 1) ask to see images as you go on the camera screen.  If not, you could go the whole time with horrible hair or spend 15 minutes taking pictures with a pose you will hate and a double chin {cough cough} 2) make a list- and now you can all call me foolish because I said this after my wedding photos went slightly awry when I was list-less that day and now here I am, kicking myself for a few images I wanted but forgot about the day of but wouldn't have had I had a list.  Despite my two lessons learned, I LOVED the photographer we worked with, would use her again in a heartbeat, and cannot wait to get some of these images printed, framed, stretched across a canvas, and hung!!  Above is one of my favorites, forgive the watermark and check out our photographer HERE!

Hannah K.C. Burton
and how 'bout the fact that after YEARS I finally got the banner centered on the good ol blog??  aa I can breathe.

The day I outgrew my gummy smile

This revelation actually came after a complisult from Karl (thanks, hubs)- yesterday he said, "I think your gums have gotten smaller." I shoved him {lovingly}, because that was kind of a harsh thing to say. But thennnn I looked in the mirror, gave my best smile, and lo and behold his complisult was a truthful one. For as long as I can remember I haven't been obsessed with my smile {which Karl knows}, even after my $4,000 braces. I have normal size teeth {I think?} but gums bigger than Texas which made for an especially gummy smile. When I was in college, after incessant complaining, my mom promised me cosmetic dental surgery to correct the issue before I got married. Clearly I forgot that promise because unlike my chubby cheeks, allergies, and attitude, my gummy smile is something I can say I have officially outgrown, and not thanks to any surgery... or maybe I should say that I have grown into it.  Or maybe I've just changed my smile?  I mean, who knows.  Either my self-esteem has just radically improved because I went from 'not caring what anyone thinks' to 'really really not caring what anyone thinks' or my smile really has changed or my gums really have shrunk. Wahoo regardless! Some pictures for reference to mark this milestone in my life...

2006.  Yes, those were extensions creating that luscious pony.  Forgettaboutit.

I hope my sweet friend Abby doesn't kill be for this pic but it was the best I could find of my smile- I mean, you can pretty much see back to my molars.

My new, gumless smile, isn't great?!?  Just kidding. Just an awesome picture of me. Kidding again.

2011.  I think the shorter I cut my hair, the smaller my gums appear.

Just your average update on the progression of my physical appearance... wanted my kids to be able to look back someday and see how their mother's smile changed over time.

Hannah K.C. Burton

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Entitled

Yesterday this 55 year old big angry black woman came out of me.  I am at a place where I feel so angry, and empowered, like nothing & nobody can tell me "no," that I can't possibly be a 22 year old small framed ginger girl, so that only leaves one person- a 55 year old big angry black woman.  Still confused?  Have I mentioned before that being a newcomer to military life isn't fun?  Oh have I?  Thought so.  Let me rephrase this- I think it is specifically the Air Force that does this poorly- this "Welcome to The Air Force you bright-eyed, bushy-tailed, newlywed, you!  Let us give you support and a booklet and an advocate and all the information that you could ever need!"  No.  I'm literally sitting here laughing at the prospect of that.  Now, I have a sneaking suspicion that the Army & probably even the Marine Corps does this, at least better than the Air Force has done for Karl & I.  Disclaimer: I wouldn't trade Karl's branch of service for anything.  The AF (Air Force) is wonderful for other reasons and I would choose it for us over and over again before I would choose another branch.  I will also take about 9% of the blame for not putting myself out there more and seeking out this 'support' and 'information' that I speak of when Karl & I first got married... although if I had I would've just been disappointed 10 months sooner than I am.  I checked this book (above) out at the library yesterday.  Back to my opener- yesterday this thing crept up in me... I am entitled to information, to knowledge that affects Karl & my life, to knowing how the system works.  I am sooooo sick of trying to get questions answered only to be shuffled around from person to person or for someone to look at me and respond in a, "how dare you ask that?  Don't you know you are just supposed to wait around and see how it plays out??"  Or "What?  You want to know now??  Before it's too late for you to do anything about it??"  No.  Not anymore.  I may not have a choice to comply or not with your office hours that look a little something like this: MWF- closed, TuTh- 8-10, 1-3 (y'all, this is SO NORMAL and not a joke!  Remember my husband that works hmmm, like 12 hours a day, sometimes 7 days a week??  Like 90% of this base has hours like this!!  That is a whole different issue...) but I am done sitting around waiting for Karl to acquire all the information or thinking that someone is going to come knocking on my door with a sliver platter full of sweetness, honey, & pamphlets.  We are in the throws of trying to figure out what is next for Karl after South Korea- that is, more specifically, what I'm talking about.  Well, that AND what South Korea will look like for him- logistics wise.  We have missed out on several things because of being misinformed or not informed at all.  For example, if Karl separates from the Air Force when his contract is up in 2013 he will have no choice on how he is able to pay for education (to put it simply)- this is a problem because had we been informed on the issue when he joined in 2007, he would have a choice, because he had to choose then.  But we missed that boat.  Sweet.  Just one example of probably the 3,000 that we have encountered.  I'm not trying to rewrite any laws here, step on any toes, or be disrespectful toward anyone- I have Karl's best interest in mind for sure.  I am just done feeling bulldozed.  We are just praying for The Lord's guidance in our future- Karl's career path, Air Force, blind steps of faith in where we will live (so hard for me).  So while I am not trying to secure or plan our future, I am trying to gather information so we have knowledge and are not ignorant about what may lie ahead or things we may need to do as responsible adults (financially speaking, things that need to get done for Korea, etc).  So, yesterday, after I reminded myself that 55 year old big angry black women don't cry, they get it done, I marched my ginger self up to the office that wouldn't answer their phone.  Don't want to answer?  That's fine.  I'll come to you and I'll get it done because I am fearfully and wonderfully made and I am entitled... OK I added the entitled part.

Watch out,
Big Angry Black Woman

Florida:5 Texas:0

I've started helping my mom and some women from my home church plan a farewell party & youth group reunion for a family that is probably definitely the closest thing that I have to a second set of parents with kids that I love like I imagine I will love my own someday {by "parents," I mean friends, really, but I basically anything they say is as good as the bible so that counts as parents, right?}.  Chances are by the time I post this I will have written it at least 12 times because how on earth do I journal this experience adequately? {ANNND the party has actually happened at this point so this statement is now true} Anyone who knows me has heard me mention "Shane & Allison," or "The Johns'," a million times.  I rarely explain who they are, just assume you will figure it out along the course of our friendship or relationship.  The Johns' are moving to Jacksonville, Florida- chasing after The Lord's plan & path for them as I have watched them do since the day our family began intertwining with theirs.  I can't possibly begin to explain or letter the depths and lengths that our family has perfectly entangled into theirs and theirs into ours except to say that watching them move feels like one of my sisters is moving across the country and taking my niece & nephews with them.  It is so exciting to see them passionately and whole heartedly following His plan for them and I am excitedly awaiting visits to Florida and them back to Texas... but I never foresaw a day when I would visit home and they wouldn't be there.  Like, ever.  It's kind of stomach rattling and sickening in an extremely selfish way.  Shane married Karl & I, Callie & Jer, will marry Maddie to Matt, & I know will marry Em to her future husband someday.  I remember going to the hospital when their first baby boy, Seth, was born- he is almost as tall as me now.  Then we took S to meet his new sister, Kallie, when she was born and now she is almost too big to pick up and hold.  Similarly we held Seth & Kallie's hands running up the hospital hall to meet baby brother, Luke- he starts kindergarten this fall- I mean WHAT THE HECK!?!  Where on earth has the time gone?  My sister, Callie, lived with The Johns' for a period of time (although who hasn't!?!  Their home has always had a revolving door for anyone in need of a room, mad at their parents, bored, or in need of some time in a hot tub), Allison has rescued wedding dresses from stains, designed Cinderella letters & graduation announcements, Maddie & I have experienced Africa twice alongside Shane, we've shared holidays, fun & happy news, & sad times, like when Shane flew back from Florida to be with us when we lost Pa, with whom he had such a sweet relationship with.  I mean, I could literally write a novel on my deep appreciation of Shane & Allison and their children and how much they have poured into Park Springs selflessly and completely... but I'll stop because if either of them stumble upon this they will be embarrassed.  Sorry I'm not sorry.

What I love is that I know there are countless past & present students, women, praise team members, Arlington-ites, church members, and family members of church members that have similar stories- feeling so deeply and uniquely connected with Allison or Shane or one of their kids- that it literally hurts your heart to see them leave.  I cannot wait to see the youth group thrive because Shane has shown the students how to be self-led through The Holy Spirit or see the congregation pick up the slack because Allison has taught the church how worship can be carried out thru so many ways, like serving the church and others in a time of need.

annnnd since I wrote this: I'm back in South Carolina now after a trip home that included their farewell partie(s) and saying "see ya later," to The Johns Family.  Needless to say mine & Karl's 3 hour flight was a depressing one that was not a minute shy of 3 full hours of crying.  Guilty.

So, if you need a therapist to deal with their move, I know a good one.

Trying to figure out how soon is too soon/rude/inappropriate to make the 4 hour drive from here to Jacksonville, I might beat them there :)
Hannah K.C. Burton

Forgotten Funnies

So today for some odd reason I remembered a few funny stories that I meant to blog about.  I don't want to forget them so I better get them out while they are back on my mind, all of them revolve around my semi-recent trip to Little Rock.  These stories are just proof of the following statement: These things only happen to me.  Ya know, crazy things that you can't believe the story because it's so ridiculous.  Every single one of these things happened to me within 72 hours.  This is normal.

{skip story "A" if you have a weak stomach}

A) Grocery shopping makes me nauseated.  The raw meat, the germs, the lunch meat with the olives in it that looks like one of the scary scenes from The Secret Garden, all the food- ew.  I literally feel sick to my stomach just walking into a grocery store.  I hurry quick fast when I grocery shop.  You need to know all of that to get the full effect of story "A."  So, I'm at the commissary stocking up on all of Karl's wife-is-gone essentials before my Little Rock trip and am rounding the corner for the hot dog aisle when my world stopped- a toddler started heaving and then vomiting right before my very eyes while I simultaneously locked eyes with his mom.  The worst part?  Locking eyes with the mom.  Now I have about .5 seconds to decide if I'm going to abandon her after she has spotted me or stop to help this clearly frazzled, embarrassed, woman.  Ugh... thanks a lot, conscience.  Y'all, the next 5 minutes of my life involved running paper towels down the grate of her grocery cart to remove her child's vomit from it.  This is not a joke, lie, or scam.  Ashton Kutcher is not involved.  My empathy quickly turned to rage when she later blurted out that "my doctor hasn't returned my call yet and I called over 24 hours ago."  Read: my child has been vomiting since yesterday.  Rage- WHY ON EARTH ARE YOU AT THE GROCERY STORE WHEN YOU KNOW YOUR CHILD IS SICK AND VOMITING??  You have freaking oreos in your cart!!  I could understand if you had to run in and buy bread & pedialyte but you have enough food for 2 months in there!!!  Ugh.  I was so mad.  And at that point at wasn't sure how much of this child's regurgitated food/mother's breastmilk was hidden on my hands.  I abandoned my cart and made a beeline for the nearest sink/antibacterial.  WOOOOOOFFFFFF.
Lessons learned: never let my kids sit in the cart because now I do know what is on those things, always be prepared when I am a mother (she had nothing to clean the vomit- no wipes or anything), and continue wiping down my grocery store purchases with Lysol wipes.

B) Remember this post?  You know, the one where I shared my tactic for getting over the petty times when Karl is bored and trying to pester me so I give him "shots?"  Well I wrote that well over 5 months ago.  While in Little Rock, I was having dinner with all my friends in town and some how it came out that my good friend, Leah, thought that I really give Karl shots!!!   Y'all, I had a cow.  I was freaking out, dying laughing, just doubled over at the thought of a) Leah actually rationalizing this in her head b) me really giving Karl for real injections c) who on earth could she have shared this with and do I need to go correct now?  Dying laughing.  We all were.  Hilarious.  She thought that I had access to syringes and saline or something to just punish Karl with injections.  So funny.  Thank you, Leah, for a good time, as always.

C) Here's a short version...While in Little Rock I was talking to my friends Susanna & Charis outside of a Starbucks when this young boy comes running up to us, sweating & panting.  My first judgmental thought was, oh great, he wants some money or for us to buy something.  We he just stands there, right next to us, and doesn't say anything until prompted by Sus, "uhh, can we help you?"  Boy- "Yeeahhhh, do y'all have cell phones?" Me- "Uh, yes, can one of us make a call for you?" obviously none of us are handing over our pricey smart phones Boy- "Yeah can you call xxxxxxxx?  I just ran away from home and I need to call my friend."  Me- "Hmmm, well, maybe we should call your mom.  I'm sure she's worried about you!"  Boy (in freak out mode)- "NOOOOO she'll call the cops and I already got one fense and they'll take me to jail!" Susanna- "Uh, you mean offense?"  Boy ignores her.  Charis- "How old are you?"  Boy- "13." Me- "Yeah, we aren't going to help you run away.  So, there is actually a policeman in this Starbucks right here.  How about we go talk to him and tell him what's going on?"  Boy (freaks out even more)- "NOOOOO, I DON'T WANT TO GO TO JAIL!!  I just helped my brother bust out a window then my mom came out to smoke and I held up some broken glass to her and told her I was going to cut her and she said she's gonna call the cops." oh lord. what on earth is this boy gripping to his chest right now?  should be a duffel bag full of running away essentials.. what is tha..?  oh, that's a decorative 6"x6" canvas... hmmm...  Me- "OK well we are for sure going to talk to this policeman.  You are 13.  He is not going to be hauling you off to jail.  Come on..."  and then I dumped him on the poor policeman just trying to get a coffee... bye!


D) My flight from Little Rock got back really late because of weather delays (like 1 am), add to that the hour long drive to Sumter from Columbia and Karl & I were getting really tired and soooo ready to be in bed.  On one of the long stretches of country road we saw a car in the median that had clearly just run off the road, there was still like fog inside the car from the airbags deploying.  Karl quickly turned around to go see if he could help, we were the first ones to get to the car.  Well, it was a young man in the army that had literally just returned from Afghanistan, was on his way to Shaw Air Force Base, and fell asleep at the wheel.  He was so shaken up and upset at what had happened so we offered to stay with him until the tow truck and police got there.  An hour later (2 am) nobody had shown up.  The Army Man's supervisor had ordered him to not wait for very long and to leave after an hour so he asked for a ride back to Sumter at this point.  We agreed (for the record, I thought it was odd to leave the crash site although I have never been in this situation so I didn't argue).  We drove about 30 minutes and got to his hotel in Sumter when he got a call from the police demanding that he get back to the crash site.  It's 2:30 am at this point. Are you kidding me?  So we drove him back to the site.  It's 3:00 am at this point.  Karl has to be at work at 7:00 am.  We wait about 15 minutes.  Drive him back to his hotel.  It's 3:45.  We drive towards home only for him to call us because he left an important paper in our car.  We drive it back to his hotel. It's 4:00 am.  I want to die.  Where is Ashton Kutcher?  This has to be a joke.  In bed at 4:45- best.feeling.of.my.life.  no good deed goes unpunished.

Maybe now you can have a better understanding of how I have turned out to be the way I am.
Hannah K.C. Burton

Wordless Wednesday

WT.



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Happy Mothers Day!!

So Friday Karl & I went bowling with a couple of his work friends.  At the bowling alley they were giving a discount to moms so they asked me if I am a mom to which I responded, "nope."  I felt sort of slighted.  Then today at church they had all the mothers stand up and again, there I was not standing.  Again, felt sort of awkward.  Normally I'm at home and with my parents, and not married on Mothers Day.  Then Karl & I went out to eat and the hostess said, "Happy Mothers Day," to me... I mean, is she assuming I'm a mom? Because that somehow offends me.  DO I LOOK LIKE A MOM?  Because although I'm of age and married, your assumption is now rude.  And now I'm over you.  So, I've entered this weird phase of married-without-children and now I'm acutely aware of it.
In other news: HAPPY MOTHERS DAY to my awesome mom and both of my awesome awesome grandmothers!!  I feel like the most blessed person everrr to have been raised by my mom, surrounded by my grandparents, and poured into by more women than I can count on two hands.  I mean seriously, I have just been absolutely submerged in Godly advice & wisdom, biblical knowledge, housekeeping tips & secrets, marriage tidbits & counsel, school & studying how-to, and just man... more information, knowledge and guidance than anyone deserves in a lifetime.  I am beyond thankful.  So, thanks Mom & Gammy & Nana.  Y'all rock.

Happy Mothers Day!!

Hannah K.C. Burton

P.S.- I realized today that I didn't have all of my bridal portraits on my computer... so I put them on and decided that it would only be appropriate to post some bridal bloopers and out-takes this week... because there are a lot (of both me and my sisters... your welcome Callie, Maddie, & Emma).

Her majesty majestic queen highness of the royal court duchess of Sumter

So my alarm clock did ring at 3 am this morning but not for the reason some of my friend's did; I woke up to get to the airport that's an hour away for my 6 am flight to Little Rock for a LONNNNNGGG overdue visit with friends and celebration of my best pal, Maggie & her fiancé (whom I adore), Blake. more on that after this weekend Well, as I sit here getting a sneak peek of the royal wedding via twitter, I can't help but weigh a few thoughts...
A) can't wait to watch the actual video footage in Little Rock tonight
B) ok ok ok, do we really love her dress that much?! I mean there's so much gushing going on. I would venture to say it's actually fruitless sucking up... I know, I know, ridiculous but personally, in April of 2011 you couldn't pay me to wear a long sleeved ball gown, just being real. Yes, the girl is gorgeous and maybe I'm slightly jeal that I'm not a real live princess but whatever
C) I accidentally fell on the RW bandwagon. I was totally uninterested (which is shocking considering my love of all things wedding) until I realized I would coincidentally be awake for it
D) siblings are where it's at. Pippa- hot.bod. That dress steals the show. Look out, Maddie, I'm comin and imma rock your wedding. And Hello Harry! It's about time gingers got world recognition and favor bestowed upon us because of our elite good looks.
E) most importantly, Karl tells me I am a princess. And a queen. And I believe him. And sometimes I act like one. So there. And don't even tell me y'all weren't on the edge of your seat for months waiting to see who designed my dress and what it looked like. Pa leeeze, I know.

Her royal highness,
Hannah K.C. Burton

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sweet success

Yesterday marked 8 months of marriage for Karl and I.  No, we won't continue to "celebrate" every month of marriage from now until the end of time BUT everyone so discouragingly and annoyingly told us how hard our first year of marriage would be so why not celebrate every month for our first year?  In that case, I'm not pregnant, I haven't given either of us food poisoning or burnt the house down, we're still married, and I've only ruined one load of laundry... so I would say that we have had an extremely successful 8 months of marriage.  Congratulations to us!  I love him more than I did 8 months ago and we find ourselves happier and happier every single day.  You know how pessimists (like myself) say things like "set really low expectations for yourself and you won't be disappointed."?  Well, along those same lines, I would say that such a ridiculously not fun, sucky, and down-right lame dating relationship definitely sets the tone for what cannot possibly be a worse marriage.  I mean, we never lived in the same city, never saw each other for more than 14 days in a row (and that only happened once), were separated by war & school & oceans & miles SOOOOO how on earth could it not only get better then that?  Enter our first year of marriage.  Golden.  Money.  Perfection.  Pure Joy.  Like, we could be living in a cardboard box together and it be easier than our dating relationship.  That being said, these past 8 months have been cake.  Piece of cake.  Put that in your pipe and smoke it, Mom & Dad (ahem, the "the first year will be really hard.")  mmmhmmm.  Now I'm certainly knocking on wood, I mean, we do still have 4 months to go that could really dish it out to Karl & I butttttt, I'll call it in advance that this entire first year of marriage will be amazeballs.

Done & Done
Hannah K.C. Burton

25 things

I was thinking in the car today about how weird it is that Karl didn't know me before high school, as didn't 80% of my current friends so I started thinking about weird parts of my history that really help make up who I am... enter one of my favorite things: a list.  A list of 25 things about me you may or may not know.  Enjoy.  Or fall asleep.
1. I've never broken a bone or had stitches
2. I didn't think I suffered from claustrophobia until I got married and Karl started cuddling me a lot... now I think I do.
3. When it comes to food, I am extreme and a little obsessive.  See this post
4. I spent 1st-3rd grades living in Atlanta, Georgia and 4th grade in St. Louis, Missouri.
5. I loved Georgia and hated Missouri... everyone called me Ginger Spice in Missouri.
6. In 6th grade I was the tiniest girl in the grade
7. because of #6, at a friends birthday party, a bully picked me up by my overalls and punched me.  Yep.
8. I remember the first time my mom said a bad word.  I was 8, she said "crap" and I cried.  Damaged goods, this girl.
9. I credit my mom for teaching me how to hold my own when interacting with stubborn store managers
10. I've talked my way out of an U of A parking ticket- I think this is worthy of listing.
11. My mom wouldn't let my sister's and I start to shave our legs until we had "the talk" with her
12. "the talk" would happen when you stayed home from school sick
13. I had perfect attendance until 7th grade... that was no accident.
14. I now have a love/hate relationship with bribery and leverage so Karl & I have a "no bribery" policy
15. Me & my older sister, Callie, kept a basket full of junk in our rooms as "prizes" to get our little sisters to do our chores for us and to not tattle on us when we hurt them
16. I H-A-T-E dancing shows and I have no idea why- so you think you can dance, dancing with the stars... they all make me want to rip my eyes out
17. I'm obsessed with babies
18. I'm a makeup snob/label holder
19. Since weaning from my daily wedding blog reads, I've moved on to interior design blogs
20. When my family moved back to Texas when I was 10, we lived with my cousins while we looked for a house... that means there were 8 girls between the ages of 4 & 14 under 1 roof.
21. #20 comprised the most fun months of my life; I don't think our dads can say the same.
22. When I was in nursing school, sometimes I ignored the call lights during clinicals... shameful
23. Karl & I eat hot dogs for dinner at least once a week
24. I rarely eat dessert- not much of a sweet tooth at all.  Chips, on the other hand...
25. My favorite thing to purchase- pillows.  I LOVE pillows.

Hannah K.C. Burton

today...

Has been a very rotten day.
"Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour"- 1 Peter 5:8
I'm confident that today I'm an easy target and the devil is certainly prowling.  Woof on today.  


Tomorrow I will consider putting today into perspective... but not today.  Today, today sucks.
Hannah K.C. Burton