ONE YEAR








….which gives me the right to a super sappy love post about my husband. Deal with it.

I don’t like blogging about my feelings. I guess I just like to keep personal things… personal.

But I have been on the verge of tears all day. Really happy tears. Happy because I have been married to the greatest guy in the world for 365 whole days.

Part of me is sad that we aren’t really newly weds anymore. But it doesn’t matter if you still feel like one right?

The day I married Scott I didn’t think I could be any happier or love him anymore. I couldn’t have been more wrong. I seriously fall more and more in love with him every day. And every day I am reminded of why he is so perfect for me. I truly believe that there is not another person out there who is more right for me than Scott.

While we were engaged people kept saying how the first year of marriage is the hardest, if that is true, then marriage is going to be a dream. Sure I didn’t expect to spend over a months worth of nights in a different country, and yes it was a little bit of an adjustment learning how to live with someone else, and sometimes we weren’t the happiest with each other, but it was all worth it. Because finding someone who loves you and makes you feel like you are the most beautiful, special, important thing on the planet simply makes life better.

While part of me wants time to slow down because it can’t have possibly been a year already, the other part of me is so excited for all of the unknown adventures the future holds. Either way I feel so blessed with the knowledge that I get to be with Scott forever. Because even eternity doesn’t sound long enough.

Ok enough of the sappy love stuff. (If you are still reading). I promise that won’t happen again. (Ok not until August 17th 2015).

We didn’t do much to celebrate today. After surviving over 12 hours of traveling yesterday (aka tortue), we spent the day driving out to Emerald Isle for my first Hiatt family vacation. Scott and I did get to sneak away a little to read some notes that our wedding guests left for us last year. And I surprised him with a little anniversary wedding video




It was a blast. Some of the notes very sweet and touching (and may have brought me to tears), and some were plain hilarious.

And our boy Anthony wrote us a really great one.


I am so excited for the future. The immediate future which includes being at this beautiful beach for the next 7 days, and the little more far off future, graduating college, starting a real job and having babies (jk that’s in the really far off future...or is it?)

Hope you had as great of an August 17th as I did!



ENGAGED

Let me just start by saying I am a planner. I like to know as much as possible about what is coming my way. Seriously. Sometimes I beg Scott to tell me the ends of movies so I can prepare myself to watch them. lols. So pretty early on in our relationship, I was sure that Scott was the person I was going to spend forever with. But that didn't mean we were rushing to get engaged or anything. In my perfect plan, we would get engaged in the early Spring and married late that Summer.

Let's just say I was completely blindsighted.

Over Christmas Break, Scott and I went ring shopping just for fun. It was going to be the first of many trips to the mall for my indecisive mind. Well the first ring I tried on, I fell in love with. I knew nothing could compare. Sadly, it was out of our price range. I tried to tell myself that was ok and I would find something else, but the rest of the trip proved uneventful.

A couple weeks later I was unaware that my dream ring went on sale for a ridiculously good price, and I was also unaware that as soon as it went on sale, Scott bought it.

So here I am thinking that I have like four months to find a different ring, and Scott is carrying it around in his pocket. The day he picked it up from the store, he realized he couldn't just hold on to it for a couple of months, let alone a week, and he decided he had to propose that weekend.

On January 26th 2013, I thought it was a normal date night. I didn't catch on to any hints, to any weirdness from Scott, his friends or my roommates, or any signs that a normal person should catch, because the thought of getting engaged was the FARTHEST thing from my mind. I always thought that when it happened, I would know it was coming and be able to prepare. Not the case.

Let me tell you how it went.


Scott told me there were these really cool ice sculptures at one of our favorite parks that we HAD to go look at. He told his friends to talk about them as well so I would think they were legit. He even had some of my coworkers casually mention them.

So all week I had been hearing about the most amazing ice sculptures in the world (and telling people to go see them as well... whoops), so by the time Saturday rolled around, I was pumped. Scott claimed he was playing basketball all day so I patiently waited for him to come get me so I could see these things!

When we got to the park there was this weird object covered in the middle of the snow.


Me being the completely unassuming and gullible girlfriend, accepted Scott's explanation that "they cover them to protect them"


When we reached the front of this mysterious object, I realized it was a fridge.

At this point Scott figured I was beginning to catch on becasue...

The first time we kissed we were next to my fridge. The first time Scott told me he loved we were next to his fridge. So naturally he had to propose near one too.

Romantic right?

But none of this crossed my mind.

I just figured the sculptures were in the fridge!



When I opened it there were no ice sculptures (shocker) but instead a bunch of pictures and colorful paper.

I still didn't understand what was going on.

I turned to Scott and told him I didn't think this was where the ice sculptures were. This was someone's art project.

He told me to take a closer look.


It wasn't just some random person's art project! It was pictures of us!

Legit thought that went through my head at that moment, "Aww Scott decorated a fridge for me. That's a cute, slightly odd, yet very thoughtful present."


I stared at it for a bit and then looked at Scott to figure out what we were going to do next. (And what we were going to do with this fridge).

He was still just staring and smiling so I turned back to the fridge and noticed there was a stuffed fish  (silly inside joke) with a note in its mouth.


Scott told me to open the note so I did.

I read the words "Cassie will you marry me" and I finally realized what was going on. It still didn't feel real. I remember thinking there was no way this could be happening, this is like months ahead of schedule, but I turned to Scott and there he was, down on one knee.

It was happening.


The next couple minutes were me mostly saying (maybe yelling) "This isn't real... there is no way this is actually happening right now!" over and over again.


with some tears of course.


Talk about an emotional roller coaster.

Me, the planner, had to process about a hundred different feelings while the love of my life was kneeling in the snow.

I was so in shock that I didn't even remember to take the ring... or even say yes.

Scott had to get up and hug to me calm me down and reassure me that yes, this was really happening.


He got back down, and told me to just look at the ring.

THE RING I HAD OBSESSED OVER WAS SITTING IN A BOX RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME.

Once I saw the ring, and saw Scott's cute smiling face, and his hands shaking in the cold as he held the ring box, I somewhat came to my senses (it might have taken me all night to process the fact Scott proposed) and said yes. Yes yes yes a million times yes.


He managed to slip it on my finger and give me some kisses in the midst of my constant confusion about the fact this was actually happening.



Our friends then jumped out from behind a tree, lit off some roman candles, and came to celebrate with us.


I never really wanted a super public engagement, but it was so nice having some friends there who were so happy for us.




^^ my face most of the night



I painted my nails gold that morning. Couldn't my roommates have convinced me to find a color that didn't clash with silver??



So cold but too happy to care. Don't mind my pink hands.





Our proposal isn't the most romantic one you will ever hear. But it was so perfect.

It was so creative, and Scott had put so much effort into it.

He completely succeeded in giving me the surprise of a lifetime.

I am so grateful for this day. And I am so happy that I said yes :)

OUR STORY





You know the saying love at first sight? I never really was a big believer. Can that really happen? Don't you kind of need to get to know someone before you start throwing out words like love? But then I met Scott. I wouldn't say it was love at first sight, but it was pretty darn close. Shall we say obsession at first sight? Our story didn't happen over a long period of time. It wasn't full of games or back and forth or waiting.  But Scott and I were made for each other- why wait?

From the moment Scott came into my life, I knew he was different. I fell faster and harder than I ever thought imaginable. To the outside viewer it may seem like we fell in love over a short period of time, but time really wasn't even a concept to us. It was just me and him, and nothing else mattered. I never really had to decide if I wanted to date him or if I wanted to marry him, because it just felt so natural to move into those next steps. And (thankfully) he was always on the same page. The day I married him I didn't think I could love him anymore than I already did. But I have fallen more and more in love with him each day after.  I truly without a single doubt believe he is my soul mate. And every day I am in awe of how perfectly perfect he is. 

*********************************

Scott and I met on August 26th 2012. My roommates and I went to a concert to meet up with my roommate's boyfriend and some of his friends. (That's a mouthful isn't it?) I wasn't actually thrilled to be going. It was the day before school started, I had to be at work at 6am, I was really tired and wanted nothing more than to go to sleep early. But after some convincing, I decided to go. 

Once we got there I noticed a cute tall blonde boy standing with my roommate's boyfriend.  Fun Fact: I actually had swore off boys for the semester THAT MORNING. I was just really tired of the whole dating thing and felt like I needed time to focus on myself. But of course when I saw Scott, I instantly regretted that decision. But then I thought to myself "hey you didn't give up flirting, just dating" and sat down next to him. We chatted the whole time, and hit it off like never before. It sounds cheesy but it was like we were the only two people in the room.

*we apologize to the girl sitting in front of us who kept giving us dirty looks for talking and laughing throughout the whole performance. If you are somehow reading this maybe knowing that you were there for the start of an eternal relationship will make you a little less angry?

We texted that night and all day after. I remember talking to my sister the next morning and telling her about this amazing boy I had hit it off with the night before but wasn't sure where it would go. It probably would just be another good story to tell. It wasn't just a story. Scott waisted no time and asked me out two days later.


Where he displayed his thriftiness by spending a whopping $3 total on our first date. And held my hand later that night.


We had our first kiss after a night of Comedy Sportz, an improv show that anyone who is anybody in Provo has frequented more than once. During the show one of the "players" came over and asked if Scott and I were dating and I got so nervous because we hadn't really had the conversation yet (BECAUSE I HADN'T EVEN KNOWN HIM FOR A WHOLE WEEK...told you... fast) so I blurted (ok yelled) "NOOOO" right as Scott was saying "yes." Whoops. Luckily that night we had that conversation and sealed our decision to date exclusively with a kiss. Pretty much from then on we were inseparable.


(The first photo ever taken of us... and of course Scott just had to be wearing a jersey)

Over the next few months our relationship only continued to grow. We learned how to like each other interests. Ok mostly I learned to like UNC and basketball. 


As time went on we realized we couldn't live without the other. You know what that means.


We filled the spring with hanging out with friends


And wedding planning


Which really was lots of cake tasting and getting our picture taken.

We were apart for the summer but Scott made a few trips to San Diego to come see me.


And then finally after the longest summer ever we were reunited and SO ready to get married.



August 17th 2013 was the day we became forever. 



Aka a giant party with all of our friends that I would die to go back in time and relive. 

Fast forward a wonderful THREE years of marriage and four moves, and we are somehow even more crazy about each other than we were on that day. Sometimes it is just so mind blowing to look back and see how we got to where we are now.  And how much more is yet to come. 


ANNIVERSARY

Scott and I celebrated our ONE YEAR a couple days early since we will be in North Carolina with his family on the 17th.

We stayed at the La Quinta Resort in Palm Springs and had a wonderful 24 hours filled with strawberry daiquiris, relaxing by the pool, exploring the beautiful resort, and eating.. a lot. 


Enjoying the beautiful scenery 


Much better.

Even though we were so hot and dying to go the pool, we went to the room first because I couldn't wait any long to give Scott his anniversary gift!

(Scott gave me his present the night before, I will include that in a later post)

Our room was so cute and rustic (?)

not sure if that's the right word but everything was wood and we even had our own fireplace.


The first year anniversary gift is paper.

Not sure if I will be able to stick with the traditions every year but I thought I would try.

I made Scott a scrapbook of my favorite memories from each month of our marriage.



And included random little notes and even a page of coupons (cheesy I know... but how else would I let him know that he can wear his beloved fedora outside the house one day this year)

We had a huge patio outside of our room with some great views


There were pools EVERYWHERE.

We could see two from our room alone.


FREE CHEESE CUZ WE HAVE BEEN MARRIED A YEAR!


For dinner Scott tried to channel his inner Lincoln Burrows and Desmond Hume


See the similarities?


We then sat outside and chatted about our favorite things about this last year.

 

After breakfast the next morning we explored some more, found an ornament, packed up, and said goodbye.

 
 

What a wonderful way to end our first year of marriage!