Being Sensible

Over the weekend, Adam and I ventured up to State College, PA to catch the Penn State vs. Iowa game and also to celebrate my future sister-in-law Cara's 21st birthday! We had been looking forward to the weekend for a long time and we were very excited to go up for the whiteout game.

Around noon on Saturday, it started to drizzle, and then the drizzling turned into a downpour. Thankfully, we were all in Adam's grandparent's RV enjoying chili and other football games on TV. Around 7, with the rain still coming down relatively hard, we all bundled up in sweatshirts, ponchos and hats and headed over to the game. Saying I was miserable would be an understatement. The game was wet, cold and the people in front of me decided to combat these two problems by making out through the entire first half. And to top it all off, Penn State played like crap, and they lost.

After the game, we met Cara and her friend and began the long trek down to the bars so she could be there and ready to party when the clock struck midnight. It took us longer than expected, and she actually ended up turning 21 while she was in the bathroom of a computer lab, complete with countdown and all.

Shortly after midnight, Adam's parents called to wish her a Happy Birthday and tell her to "be sensible." "Being sensible" then became the buzz phrase for her 21st birthday night. We went to a really cool, dirty and dingy Irish bar where everyone was getting warm and drowning their sorrows after the horrible game.

Overall, the celebration went off without a hitch: she got really drunk but didn't get sick (the sign of a successful 21st birthday), both the band and the entire bus on the way home sung happy birthday to her, she rode the children's carousel in front of the Giant at 2:30AM and Adam and I got to relive our long-lost college days.

Madness

I feel like the next few months might be the busiest and most exciting of my life so far.

For the past 16 months we have been waiting in anticipation for the big day...December 5, 2009, and with two and a half months to go, everything is moving very quickly. I'm sure that October and November will fly by and the big day will be there, staring me in the face.

This past weekend, we sent out invitations, met with the church wedding coordinator and went for the first floral meeting. Needless to say, it was so neat looking at pictures of flower arrangements and trying to pick the right color of roses for everyone's bouquets. I think the most exciting thing for me, was finally sending out our beautiful invitations and I can't wait to see who will come and share this wonderful day with us.

Other than worrying about all things wedding, I've also started back to grad school with a governmental budgeting class. Honestly, it's not a subject I am very interested in, but at least it will be over and I won't have to worry about it anymore after this semester.

Sorry this is just a boring life update entry, but life is pretty crazy right now!

What a guy!

Last weekend, Adam and I drove through Newark, Delaware on the way back from visiting my Grandma in Philadelphia. As we were going down Main Street, Adam asked me if I would go back to college if I could. I said no, because I think that it's exciting being in the working world: paying for your own stuff and a nice apartment, having responsibilities, working and being taken seriously (most of the time.) It was fun while it lasted, but I wouldn't want to go back to college.

Someone must have been listening to my comment and thinking, "hmmm I think this week would be a good time to give Rachel a good taste of grown-up life."

This morning, I got ready for work and headed out to my car. I Stuck the key in the ignition and nothing happened. Now, the reason I bought a brand new car was so I wouldn't have these problems anymore. So, pissed off and upset, I went back into the apartment and woke Adam up from his deep sleep. "Babe," I said, "my car won't start." Grumbling an inaudible statement, he proceeded to get up, throw some shorts on and walk outside with me, where we both confirmed again that my car was not starting.

Then came the big decision....what do I do now? Do I take the day off of work to call AAA and figure this out, or should I get Adam to take me to the train station and figure it out after work? We decided on the latter, and my wonderful fiance agreed to work from home and pick me up in the afternoon. So off we drove to the train station, he still shirtless and half-asleep and me still upset and wondering how much this will all cost, but when I got out, all he said was, "don't worry, I'm the man, I'll take care of all of this," and it made me feel much better.

Super Market = Not so super

Perhaps one of my least favorite errands to run after work is going to the food store. Adam and I usually go grocery shopping once every 2 weeks, but of course we always need something in between. Yesterday, I needed Catalina dressing and tomatoes for our taco salad.

The grocery store we visit also happens to be frequented by many elderly people. Nothing against older generations, but why must they do their grocery shopping at 5:00 on a Monday evening, when the whole working world goes to the store? Once, I was wearing my VA polo shirt while shopping and was accosted by a man in the produce section who wanted to know about his benefits (note to self: NEVER wear VA polo shirt in public.) Since we started shopping at this particular store, I have been almost hit in the parking lot twice, helped numerous other shoppers figure out the electronic scale and label maker, and have been asked by a little old lady to get the prune juice off of the top shelf.

Yesterday, I was not really in the helping mood and all I wanted to do was get home. I quickly grabbed my salad dressing and tomatoes and made my way to the check out lines. Of course all of the lanes with a checker had hoards of people stretched to the back of the store, so I made my way to the self check-out station.

In my opinion, self check-out lanes should have disclaimers posted above them stating that people must have enough knowledge to use them. I got into the line behind an elderly woman with only a small container of potato salad and some olive oil, thinking she would be speedy. Boy was I wrong! It seemed that having to type in the product code for her potato salad and weigh it was just a little too much for her, so she stood there glaring at the screen and refusing help from anyone, claiming that she "would like to figure it out by herself."

I could hear a collective sigh from the group of tired workers (who had only ventured into the store to purchase a few things for dinner that night) as they observed this lady ahead of them. Finally, one store employee took pity on us and opened another self check-out, which was quickly followed by a stampede of people to the newly-opened lane.

Maybe you should have to carry a special bonus card with you shopping to prove that you are a proficient self-checker, and if you don't scan your card, the lane doesn't work. Just some food for thought.

The Cat's Out of the Bag (Or the Apartment)

It was a sad day in the Cianfichi/Achuff apartment on Sunday as we said goodbye to Hailey, Adam's cat. Adam bought Hailey shortly after he broke his ankle his junior year in college. A few months later, I met Hailey when I went to a fraternity party at Adam's house. She was cute, but I'm not a cat person and I left the party wondering why a college fraternity guy had a little kitten. Over the next year, I watched the poor cat get locked in the bedroom during parties, fed weird food and given all sorts of odd alcoholic concoctions. She was the only female in a house full of messy, dirty boys. No wonder she tried to run away 3 times.

When Adam took his job in Baltimore and moved into his own apartment, Hailey was left for weeks at a time while he was away on business trips. He got calls from the management office saying that she would sit by the door and cry. He had her de-clawed after she destroyed a desk chair and one of my bags because she was lonely and bored.

Then, the other animal entered the picture. From the beginning, Tobey was fascinated by the cat. He would run around the apartment looking for her, and then terrorize her when he did find her. She would, however, get back at him by standing outside of his cage and pawing at him through the bars. When we moved into our new apartment, the complex changed the regulations regarding pets, so we thought about it and decided to attempt to find a better home for the cat.

On Sunday, Adam dropped Hailey off with a really nice family that lives in a big, beautiful house near his parents. Even though he was pretty upset about it, he said that the family was incredibly excited about their new pet and had already purchased her all sorts of toys and treats. She will certainly be spoiled and get tons of attention, and that makes both of us feel much better about the decision.

Metro Mania

For a year and a half, I have been riding the metro to and from work everyday. Two years ago, I would have never thought that I could ride public transportation every single day, but it's pretty easy and when I think about the money I'm saving on parking, gas and car maintenance, it really seems like the best option.

Usually when I get on the train, I put my sunglasses on, crank up my IPOD and read a book, and most of the time my rides are pretty uneventful. Last week, however, was an exception. On Wednesday, I was sitting in my usual seat when we stopped at one of the stations. The doors only stay open for about 10 seconds, so many times, you see people sprinting down the escalator to try to make the train, and often times, people force the automatic doors open so other people can run on.

Last Thursday, a woman ran on with her baby in the stroller, but her husband/boyfriend/baby daddy/flavor of the week man must have been behind them because the lady stuck the baby-filled stroller into the door to stop it from closing. The stroller was squished by the force of the door and the poor baby started screaming.

What a wonderful way to show your child how much you love them, shoving them into an automatically closing door. Stroller companies better start equipping their products will roll cages or something.

Red All About It

It's a bit overwhelming to be planning a wedding in the world of blogging, facebook and The Knot because there are so many amazing ideas out there when it comes to planning. It's hard to sift through everything to figure out what is really important to you. Obviously you can't have EVERY cute thing you see...it would blow your budget (and probably drive you crazy.) I have, however, decided to enduldge in a few wedding trends for December 5th.

About a month ago, I made the executive decision that the girls in the bridal party would all wear red shoes. Since they will all have different black dresses, I thought red shoes would be a fun and unique way to tie everything together. I even decided to match! Thus started the quest for the perfect pair. I finally found them at DSW for a reasonable price, so I bought them for everyone.

When Adam and I returned from our long weekend at the beach, I was surprised to see that they had already arrived. Of course I tore open the box and gushed over them (I mean, every girl loves shoes, right?) while Adam proclaimed that it looked like OZ had puked all over our living room. I can't wait to bring them along for my first dress fitting next week. Next on the footwear checklist is finding the perfect red argyle socks for the guys.

Weekend Getaway

This weekend, Adam and I went to check out the little house that his parents recently purchased in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. It was the first weekend they owned the place, so we christened it with a bottle of champagne (we drank it instead of smashing it against the house) and had a relaxing weekend at the beach.

On Saturday, they had a neighborhood picnic, so we all hung out there for a while before heading to the beach in the evening. Dewey Beach allows dogs after 5:30 PM, so we packed some sandwiches and watched the sunset. Tobey HATED the water, and would not go anywhere near it...so now we know not to waste our time bringing him again!

On Sunday, we stopped in Wilmington to pick up our wedding rings. They are beautiful, so I thought I'd give you a sneak peak before they get locked away for the next 4 months.

Happy Anniversary!

It's been one year since I started my little blog, and what an exciting, exhausting and fun year it has been! Whew...I get tired just thinking about it!

In the past year I have:

1. Planned most of the wedding: reception location, celebrated our -1 year anniversary, picked a cake, booked the honeymoon and had a great bridal shower just to name a few!

2. Vacationed in Hilton Head, S.C. and Boston

3. Met some memorable people on the train

4. Celebrated Adam's 23rd Birthday and (and mine)

5. Learned to appreciate football

6. Moved....twice

7. Had Tobey's manhood removed

8. Celebrated lots of holidays

9. Went back to school

10. Had bad days & good days

11. Purchased a new car

12. Learned to appreciate my wonderful fiance and his quirks

13. Had some interesting experiences at work and grew to respect the nation's veterans

14. Been grateful to have a good job, a nice place to live, and plenty of people who love and support me.

I know the next year is going to bring lots of new adventures (the biggest being marriage), and I can't wait to blog about them all!

Bridal Shower Surprise!

A couple of weeks ago, I was told that my sister and brother-in-law would be coming to Pennsylvania for the weekend, and I was asked if I would drive up to see them. So on Saturday morning, Adam and I made our way up to Mechanicsburg so that we could hang out, and so I could go mother-of-the-bride dress shopping with my Mom and sister. After finding a beautiful dress for her, we went over to one of our family's favorite restaurants in Hershey for what I thought would be a girls lunch. Little did I know, the girls lunch would include about 25 women and was actually a surprise bridal shower. Needless to say, it was a great shower and it was so nice to see everyone from my family and Adam's family in the same room. We also got some wonderful presents!

Here are a few pictures, courtesy of Adam's Mom: