3....

Well there are just 3 short days left until we head out! I can't believe how fast the time has flown. I remember sitting down with David and making a big giant to-do list of things that would HAVE to get done before we moved. I also remember thinking we will NEVER be able to get all of this done before we go. And sure enough... here we are a month and a half later and nearly everything has been checked off the list.

There has been so much going on this last week. After our "going away" party we saw a few more friends and got to say goodbye. My first goodbye to Mike and Rach was a very emotional one for me.... I never have been very good with goodbyes. I should've just passed it off as tears from the amazing pizza at Tutta Bella maybe! ;-) We also said goodbye to our dear friends Jeff and Crislee with a GIANT Claim Jumper happy hour appetizer feast. Our eyes were definitely bigger than our stomachs that night. No tears that evening thankfully- just a lot of laughter and love. I felt those heart strings being tugged as we walked away though. I also tried on wedding dresses for the first time with my mamma this week. It was very surreal to walk out in wedding gowns for the first time and see myself. I think that may have been the moment that the wedding mosquito bit me because it made me more excited than ever for the day David and I finally get married. No tears from Mamma or myself... but I will say I liked the first one I tried on the best. And it was a great start and preparation for when I'm actually ready to "say yes to the dress." :-)

We also got a bunch of our engagement pictures back this week. Our friend Bart Durbin is getting his company going and we get to be his models as he begins his photography portfolio. He took more than 700 photos, narrowed it down to about 325, and we narrowed it down to about 60. They all turned out really great and I'm SO EXCITED that we have these special photos to remember this time. You get a special sneak peek of one of the photos above. There will be more posted online soon but I figured anyone following us deserved a sneak peek. We are actually going to do a few more engagement photos tonight out on the pedestrian bridge over Lake Union where David proposed at sunset tonight. MY POINT OF VIEW: I am excited to take more photos because I think it's fun. DAVID'S POINT OF VIEW: He does not want to smile or kiss me in front of the camera anymore. 3 hours of that the last time was plenty for him. WHAT I KNOW: He'll be happy we have those photos when we're done and it will only be an hour or so this time... so.... he'll survive. :-) Haley wins.

Last night we got to spend time with David's parents who are watching David's niece and nephew while his brother and sister in law enjoy a much needed vacation for their anniversary. We brought over pizza and got to play and hang out with the kiddos. Every time we spend time with family, I go home thinking, I can't believe we're leaving this. Then I just have to remind myself that two years will fly by and we'll be back with family before we know it! My grandma always used to say she wanted to put a brick on my head so I'd stop growing so much in between the yearly visits. I think I finally understand what she was feeling.

So today is the packing push. Everything will go into boxes and suitcases today and tomorrow. The deep cleaning will ensue. We are going to try to get everything done that we can in the next two days so that when we pick up the truck on Monday morning we can load quickly. My parents are coming over today to help so hopefully that will help push things along. I just know we're going to have that moment 3 days from now where we look around our empty apartment and think... wow... we did it.

3 days....