On The Road Again

Hit the road Jack...I mean Ryan.

As I flew back to NC today, Ryan and his dad started driving to Louisiana. It will take them a few days and LOTS of time on the road. They have their map all ready and the car and truck loaded down. Hopefully they will make it to Louisiana on Tuesday without any problems. And you know what that means..... we get our house on Tuesday!!!!! We are so grateful to have a place that Ryan can move right into when he gets there. He then checks into Ft. Polk on Wednesday. Tad is staying for the rest of the week to help get things settled...and play golf and bowl of course. Boy time!!! It is a big week for Ryan!!! He has a lot going on and I am so excited for him. I am also very proud of him and this new start he gets. I can't wait to join him in June and start decorating that house of ours!

(Insert random change of topic here) So, all of our wedding fun is over. We have had such an amazing time these past 2 weeks with all of the festivities. It has by far been the best time of our lives up to this point. We are so grateful for all of the hard work that people put into these events. I have said it before and I will say it again (because I can), I believe that it is in the most significant points of your life that people show their true colors. Yes, you can quote me on that one ;) I have been amazed at how people have responded to this significant point in our lives. Of course there are people who I thought would be very supportive and they weren't (I am opting to not discuss this portion...). And with all things there are opposites. There have been people who have really surprised me in how generous they have been.

Lesson learned: It's those small things that make a moment/event special. I do not remember the big things of my wedding...but I DO remember those little phone calls, messages, get togethers, conversations, and random acts of kindness given to us during these past few weeks. Those are the things that have meant the most to us. Ryan and I have talked about how much some of those people/things have touched us and how we can hopefully return the favor. Thanks everyone for putting up with us. We love ya'll!

Stay Tuned - Moving posts will start coming next! :)

Honeymoon: Ocean Isle Style

Well, we are back from our honeymoon (wishing we were still there...lol). We got to spend 5 days at Ocean Isle, NC at a resort called The Winds. We had SO much fun! It was so nice to be able to relax and enjoy some much needed time together. We even got to explore lots of things around the area.

Sunday: We relaxed most of the day. We finally got around to eating dinner at our favorite type of place - Japanese Steakhouse! We got sat at a grill with a nice older couple and their family. They were awesome to talk to and get to know. When we were getting ready to leave the server told us that our check had been taken care of. The couple paid for our dinner because Ryan was in the Army. I almost cried when I got in the car. It was so nice to see people who still care.

Monday: We drove to Wilmington on Monday and went to visit the Battleship and the Aquarium. We loved seeing all the history from the battleship. We got to see the engine room, the living quarters, and the weapons used during WW2. Ryan loved it! I had to practice my breathing as we walked through all the tight spaces within the ship. Let's just say I would NOT be able serve on that ship. The aquarium was fun too. We played and laughed as we saw all the different fish and sea creatures. Make it known that Ryan wants a turtle now!!

Tuesday: It was a gorgeous day to lay on the beach. I think the sun got to Ryan because he passed out. LOL. It was so nice to just lay out and laugh. We then got ready and went to the bowling alley. I am pretty sure we will always bowl no matter where we go. I almost kept up with Ryan this time. :) Bowling is just our thing! Our other thing...Chinese. Yes, we got Chinese take-out that night and just enjoyed being in our suite.

Wednesday: I think we were exhausted at this point. We slept in LATE today. Then we noticed that the Putt- Putt place in town was open. I had previously talked a lot of junk about my putting skills, so Ryan challenged me...and I lost. LOL. One day I will beat him at something! We had fun though. :) We topped off the afternoon with ice cream and a stroll down the pier. It was gorgeous. That night we went out for our BIG dinner. We ate at a nice seafood place on the water. We stuffed our faces with some of the yummiest seafood.

Thursday: We had a nice big breakfast and checked out of our resort. It was so sad to leave suite 301. We saved our room keys and our "Newlywed Koozies" for our memory box (that is getting rather full these days). We have also decided to go back on one of our anniversaries! It was the perfect start to our lives together! Now we are headed to Utah for more wedding celebrations!

Our Wedding Day

Currently Ryan and I are sitting by our beach side villa looking at the ocean and relaxing. It's still early in the day so we thought we would write down some little things about our wedding before we forgot them - plus, I KNOW ya'll are just dying to hear about it. LOL.

We got married at 3:00 on April 16th, 2011 on my family's land in front of our 9 acre 'pond'. The location was beautiful. We also had a gorgeous white tent up for the reception afterwards. Everything was decorated in our colors; purple, black, and silver. Our cake topper even showed up last minute! We had a Mario and Princess Peach cake topper because Ryan is obsessed with Nintendo stuff.

Our wedding day will always be a day to remember because it was the day that I married my best friend....oh yeah, and it was also the day that a tornado hit Wake Forest! Over 16 deadly tornadoes hit NC on April 16th. We knew that this weather was coming before the wedding. In fact, it is the one thing that made us very anxious prior to the wedding. We already had our Plan B...and C and D. :) I for sure thought that my wedding ceremony was going to be in a tent while it was pouring down rain. However, our prayers paid off! The weather held off during our ceremony and we were able to get some GORGEOUS pictures. I will never forget walking towards Ryan. I felt like a princess and he had the biggest grin on his face. It felt like we were in a bubble. Taking our vows and getting those wedding bands are the strongest symbol of our love. It was an amazing moment...then the bottom fell out.

Our reception was wonderful. We loved being surrounded around our friends and family as we all celebrated. We stuffed our faces with good ole NC BBQ and we danced like fools. We only had to take a good hour break while a tornado came through. Yes, my dad had to announce in the tent that a tornado was headed our way and we all had to go into the nearby houses for shelter. Now, if you know my family, it is no surprise that we just all went inside and had a good time there playing cards and laughing. After a while the tornado (that hit about 5 miles away) passed and we were able to go back and continue the celebration. WHAT A DAY!!!

As Ryan and I left for our honeymoon the next day, we drove past some of the area that was hit by the tornado. Large homes were left in rubble. I couldn't help but cry as I saw people's furniture and personal belongings smashed under the frames of the houses. Families were picking up stuff and some were just crying. It was so surreal to know that the happiest day in mine and Ryan's life was also the saddest day for others. Ryan and I counted our blessings that day. We were so lucky to have been safe and surrounded by our loved ones. As you can see our wedding day was an interesting one and by far the best days of our lives up to this point. We are best friends. We are soul mates. We have a good life ahead of us!

*** No worries - our professional pictures will be posted when we get them! Thanks to all of our loved ones who were able to share this day with us. For all of our friends that couldn't make it, ya'll were there with us in spirit. We love ya'll bunches!

One Fine Day

You know that theory about being patient because some things are worth the wait? Well, my patience has FINALLY paid off! The best way I can describe yesterday is that it was one FINE day!

My day started off with a relaxing massage with Chelsea and Caroline. Confession - I had never had one before. It was everything I had expected and more. I will admit some parts kind of hurt. The massage therapist said I was a little tense. I'm sure wedding planning stress had nothing to do with it. ;) After all the tension was worked out, there was nothing but relaxation. I almost fell asleep a few times, but I am assuming that is normal! After the massage the girls took me to eat at The Flying Biscuit. The food was almost as amazing as the massage. Fat and Happy - that's how I like it!

At my Girls Night

Later that evening the girls and my sisters all reunited again for my bachelorette party/girls night. Tiffany, Danielle and Taylor fixed me dinner (lasagna and other Italian goodies). And what would a bachelorette party be without an outrageous cake?!?! Thanks Danielle! Oh yeah, thanks Tiffany for the games...entertaining to say the least. :) I can't say enough about how grateful I am for these girls. They are amazing ladies who bring smiles to my life.

The Boob Cake. LOL!

Last but not least, I got to pick up Ryan from the airport at 11:35 pm. We were both exhausted from our days, but that did not stop us from acting like little kids when we saw each other. Nothing beats those airport reunions. There is that extreme amount of emotion that overcomes you - relief, happiness, joy, tears, smiles, giddiness. I love it!

I got my kiss! :)

Ryan and I always try to do something special for each other when we have these airport reunions. This time I made a shirt for Ryan saying, "Welcome home...now kiss me!" On the back it said, "Larsen."

It feels SO good for Ryan and I to be back together. It is a crazy feeling going from being half a world away to all of a sudden being right beside each other. All I know is that we love each other more and more each time we are together. We get married in less than a week now and we are more than excited about it!!!! Let the fun begin!

Showering the Bride

I had Bridal Shower #3 today with the ladies from work! The Media Center ladies (whom I love to DEATH) were in charge of this one. They had the cutest towel cake set up (not to mention the delicious real cake). :) Where do they get these ideas!?!

I got a variety of gifts at this shower - including of my favorite gifts thus far. Ryan and I got matching luggage tags with 'Just Married' stitched into them. SO CUTE! They will really come in handy with all of our traveling!

Over the past 2 years I have spent LOTS of time with these ladies. In fact, most of them saw my love story as it actually unfolded from the very beginning. Yes, they laughed with me (at me) when I talked about embarrassing myself in front of Ryan. They gave me tissues when I had to send Ryan back to Afghanistan. They even became my cheerleaders when I was a giddy mess. It has been so nice sharing this experience with them. Today was a perfect way to end a long day of work.

Mrs. Vey is AMAZING!

On The Move

Ryan is officially on the move! His things have been packed up and picked up. They are now making the long journey back to the US of A, and within a few more days Ryan will be making that trip too. For the past few weeks it has been a scavenger hunt to get all the signatures that he has needed to leave Italy. There has been a lot of stress as far as deadlines, papers, and plans go. However, now that the paper work is almost done, the idea of actually leaving is settling in. Ryan has made wonderful friends in Italy - brothers to be exact. They have experienced things together in Afghanistan that many of us will never know about. They have also had some of the best times together, just being guys. Even though Ryan has a lot to look forward to in the future, I know it is hard for him to leave this part of his life in the past. Ryan's job is something that he loves and has always given his dedication to. There are some pretty fantastic Sky Soldiers in Italy that will ALWAYS be a part of his life. Although distance will now be a dividing factor, we look forward to keeping in touch with many of them!

Marryin' Month

April is FINALLY here! This is going to be the most exciting month for Ryan and I! Just look at all of the fun things we have coming up...

• April 9th - Ryan moves home!!! Since his home has been rather nomadic recently, he says that home is where ever I am. If that is the case, Ryan comes home to me in NC next Saturday! I can't wait! Those airport greetings never get old.


• April 16th - If you follow this blog and you don't know what happens on this day then you should be ashamed of yourself! RYAN AND I GET MARRIED!!! I don't know what else to say about this day except it is going to be the start of a beautiful life together. :)


• April 17th - 21st - Honeymoonin' it up at the beach! We plan on this just being the most relaxing, fun, and romantic, well deserved week that we have ever had. The nice thing about where we are going is that it is secluded and romantic, but also still close to some of the local attractions. Plus, it's the beach. What more could we ask for?!! Ryan has only been to the beach a handful of times in his whole life...I'm going to show him how a week at the beach is supposed to be spent! Haha.


• April 22nd - We fly to Utah!! We have made this flight together several times - so we are pros. This is also the first time we will have seen Ryan's family since his leave in December/January. Happy reunions!


• April 23rd - Our Utah Reception for all of Ryan's family and friends! Bring on more celebrations for us!


• April 26th - Ryan moves into our house in Louisiana!!! And I will be getting one heck of a Skype tour. LOL. I will be flying down in May to visit and then I will officially move down there in June, after the school year is over. The important thing is that this will be the place that we will call OURS for the next 2 years of our life. :)

I am overwhelmed with all of the great things that are in store for us. Ryan and I are so grateful for the way things have fallen into place for us. There are so many wonderful things ahead of us and so many wonderful people that we get to share these moments with. We love ya'll! PS- I apologize in advance for the "Yay, us!" blogs that will occur this month. This only happens once...so be patient with us! :)