Quote of the week

"The ultimate issue of faith isn't whether we get the gift we seek, but whether we trust the Giver to be good."

Leith Anderson

Houston or bust

Maurice and I went to Houston this weekend to visit his family, and it was a great weekend away. I got to meet some of the aunts and uncles and cousins that I hadn't met yet, and a good time was had by all. And the cherry on top of our Houston sundae... we got to go to Crate and Barrel, or the mother land, as I like to call it... and we snagged us some stuff for our first place once we get married. This may not seem like such an exciting thing, but San Antonio in all it's lame-ness has failed to build a Crate and Barrel, and so we have to find one whenever we go out of town. It makes us truly happy.

I would like to show you guys a few pictures from the weekend... however... if there's one thing that Maurice and I are genuinely bad at, it's remembering to take pictures. I hunted down my battery charger the night prior-to, charged that baby up, maurice brought his big fancy camera, with his new battery attachment thing that he's been so excited about. We were a couple very prepared for some picture taking.

And we didn't take a single one the whole weekend.

next time

Quote of the week

"Half the world is composed of people who have something to say and can't, and the other half who have nothing to say and keep on saying it."

- Robert Frost

Our Story

In keeping with the idea that this blog is in lieu (yes i dictionary.com-ed the spelling of that word) of, but not limited to, a wedding website and all its grandiose story telling, I figured I would take this opportunity to tell our story, for anyone who may not know how all this came about.

It was a snowy, wintery night in San Antonio... jk that never happens. But it was in San Antonio, and it was during what they call the "winter months" here. It was the day after Christmas to be specific and the year was 2006. I had been invited to a surprise birthday dinner for a friend, but had nearly made up my mind not to go, since I would only know one or two people at the dinner. Little did I know... way across town was a guy named Maurice in much the same predicament. He too had been invited, but did not know anyone else who was going, and he had also made up his mind not to go. But God in all His wisdom, did His thing... and we both wound up being coerced into going at the last minute. I walked into the restaurant and took a seat next to one of the only two people I knew there. Already sitting in the seat across from me was a tall, handsome guy who promptly introduced himself. His name was Maurice. Since everyone else at the dinner seemed to know everyone else, except for us... we quietly engaged in conversation across the table. Shortly into the conversation, he told me he had just moved back to San Antonio from New York City, and being that New York City is my favorite city on planet earth... the conversation took off from there.... and as they say, the rest is history.

After that night, we were in contact with eachother within a few days. We spent the better part of 4 months getting to know eachother and building a deep friendship. We liked eachother immensely from the very beginning, but made every effort not to rush into it. I think it's safe to say that by the time we were officially dating... we were in love. Falling in love with him was the quietest, easiest thing I'd ever done. Shortly after we started dating, there was talk of the future. A few months later, there was talk of marriage. Then around October, he started making plans to take me to New York for my birthday in January. I didn't know then just how big his plans were. During that time, unbeknownst to me, he was cavorting all over town looking at rings, getting advice from my sister and brother-in-law, talking to his parents, talking to my dad, etc etc. Then finally, January came and we left for New York...

And it was wonderful. The food was great, the weather was perfect, and I had the opportunity to meet some of his wonderful friends. Then on my birthday, we got up, and he had decided to take me to Brooklyn Heights for the morning. BH is just across the river from Manhattan. It's full of quaint streets, corner cafes, and lovely little shops. It was where he had lived in New York, and it's my favorite place in New York. And my favorite place in my favorite place in New York is a spot called the Brooklyn Promenade. It's more than a spot really, it's a walkway that lines the river side of brooklyn heights and overlooks the city. Its a row of park benches and street lamps with a killer view, and the world is utterly perfect as you're walking along it. So you can imagine my excitement over getting to visit this spot again. It was the first place I wanted to go when we reached Brooklyn Heights, but Maurice kept stalling, and took me to nearly every place in BH before we were finally able to go. Finally we reached the promenade and started walking. Eventually we reached a quiet spot and decided to stop and look at the view and take pictures and what not. Maurice fumbled in his pocket for the better part of 10 minutes, but I didn't pay much attention.... it was my birthday and I was having a great day. After he was done fumbling in his jacket pocket, he looked me in the eyes and told me a series of really sweet things... and after he was done, he told me he had a question for me. I instantly realized what was happening, but before I could even speak, he had gotten down on one knee and pulled out a ring. He asked me to marry him, and I said yes or yeah or something to that effect and a few moments later, after collecting myself a little... this picture was taken by a sweet couple sitting nearby who had witnessed the whole thing...

Looking back... it's crazy to think how much our lives have been changed by deciding to attend a friend's birthday dinner. I cannot, and don't want to, imagine how different things would be if God hadn't brought us both there that night. Two years ago, we had never even met... last year, our relationship had just begun... this time next year, we will be married, and we could be living anywhere from Houston to Philadelphia. When I look back on the eventful turns that these past few years have taken... I am so excited to see what God still has in store for us. It requires faith and hope and love... and I wouldn't have it any other way.

First big blog news

I'm going to be an Aunt!! Stefanie and Adam are expecting their first baby around December 12th. I've known that for a while, but Stefanie has officially finished her first trimester, and I have officially been given the green light to spill the baby beans! And what better way to do that than on the internet. I can't wait to have a niece or nephew, and Stefanie and Adam are two of the greatest people I know, so I know that they're gonna make awesome parents.


Here is the baby at 3 months

officially a blogger

Alot of you have been asking why we've yet to make a wedding website, and 1. Don't worry about it. 2. we just haven't had time, but 3. I wanted something that we could continue even after we get married. Then I noticed this growing blogging trend, and I thought I'd see if there's something to it. So here you have it... Kelli and Maurice's engagement/wedding/thoughts/life/marriage/whatever else happens blog. I wish I could tell you what to expect from this, but it's hard to say. Stay tuned...