Holy Mackerel, I'm Married

I'm assuming the title of this post says it all...

Yes, folks. That is me in the white dress. On July 13, 2019, a bit after 11:30 a.m., I became a married woman. 

And let me tell you, I have been TOTALLY out of the blogosphere for these past few weeks. (Naturally.) Me and my husband (!!!!) have been exploring Michigan's lovely upper peninsula, learning how to do chores around the house together, and generally figuring out what is "normal" in order to get our lives "back to normal." It would take far too long to tell you about all the adventures and long drives that we have encountered, but here is a list of Interesting Things that have happened during the wedding week(s).

1. Discovered that wedding dresses, even short-sleeved ones, are Exceedingly Warm in the summer sun. 
2. Smelled lavender oil before the ceremony that my wonderful and irreplaceable maid of honor brought (we don't know if it actually relieves stress, but it was something to do other than worry). 
3. Did NOT have a weeping breakdown at any point during the wedding stuff (which was excellent because I'm really bad with crying...once I get started there is no stopping me). 
4. Went to our car and discovered it plastered with sticky notes, full of balloons, and with an air horn rigged up to scare us half to death (thanks to my brother and the other groomsmen). 
5. Drove for...a long, long time. Well, I rode mostly, but I did some driving too. 
6. Ate, between the two of us, six 1/2 pound slabs of fudge from Mackinac Island and Mackinaw City ('twas delicious) 
7. Swam in the Straits of Mackinac, in the shadow of the bridge, in frigid waters with rocks bashing up our feet
8. Took a 2 hour detour over a one-lane seasonal dirt road filled with craters and sandpits, to a very poorly marked lighthouse (which was very pretty but not worth the hour long drive there and back off the main road). 
9. At the poorly marked lighthouse, an older couple asked us if it was our honeymoon. When we said it was, they were adorably excited and told us that they had honeymooned in the area 43 (or something close to 43) years ago.
10. Strolled at Tahquamenon Falls and Whitefish Point, and neither of us were very good at skipping stones. 
11. Got horribly sunburned on a Pictured Rocks cruise (it was supposed to rain so we didn't bother with sunscreen...then lo and behold the sun came out ten minutes into the boat ride)
12. Read through the book of Jude together and discussed it
13. Hiked 5-6 miles in the Porcupine Mountain wilderness, over mud, rocks, tree roots, and rivers, while being attacked by swarms of mosquitoes and accidentally taking a wrong turn which took us for quite a detour (it was still quite a fun adventure though!) 
14. Were so exhausted that we turned on the TV at our hotel after our hike and watched a part of a Spongebob movie, until we got so fed up with the awful commercials for the Dora The Explorer movie that we turned it off and just ate more fudge instead 
15. Drank Subway lemonade
16. Laughed a WHOLE LOT at each other--me at his inexplicable misreadings of signs and billboards, he at well...just at me
17. Listened to sermons (mostly by Voddie Baucham, who I wholeheartedly recommend), to Mariel of Redwall on audiobook, and to an eclectic selection of music. 
18. Realized that we (well, *I*) am a cold-hearted Michigander who does not understand how to small talk with friendly people like the kind you find up north and anywhere else that is not Michigan.
19. Enjoyed the 65 mile per hour speed limits (hehe) and were thankful for the passing lanes. 
20. Met my parents and siblings at their vacation spot to stay one night with them. We slept in a tent and it was FREEZING cold, but a worthwhile adventure. 
21. Went swimming in a much warmer and sandier spot, where they had a ginormous water trampoline, splash mat (I think that's what it's called), and other such things that were a blast. 
22. I read (and am reading) an excellent series by Maryrose Wood called The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place, and it has become a new favorite--very clever, well-written, and with its own certain "quirk" that I very much enjoy. 
23.  Organized my new closet (soooooo much better than sharing a space of an even smaller capacity with my two little sisters)
24. I was "banned" from doing kitchen work or most of the cooking, and was at one point told to avoid watching the kitchen because there was a "special project." It ended up being Irish soda bread (two kinds), and it was absolutely delicious. I ate a lot of it. 
25. Went to see Spiderman: Far From Home. It was good...but no spoilers. ;) 
26. Also saw the new Lion King, which was also pretty good. Then I was serenaded for the next, well, it's ongoing whenever we ride in the car, by "Hakuna Matata," and other old Disney songs.
27. Caught up with our families and went to church again, which was very nice. 

And now? Now, we are both heading back to work (he's at work right now, actually) this week, and are getting into the new "swing of things." I know this is a cliche statement, but it really has felt "like a blur." Here I am with a ring on my finger (a really pretty one too, he has excellent taste in jewelry), in our own place, an old, married woman! 

I don't have anything else to say, really...this post is just to, well, announce the occasion, and because I plan to keep blogging! I'm definitely not leaving. 

And now I shall say goodnight (it's evening where I am as I type this, so...), after I share a few more photographs with you. (Huge round of applause for my photographer, Stacy Brackins from Moments to Remember Photography...as well as a phenomenal photographer, she is a dear family friend and I am so glad that she was able to be there taking our pictures!) 

Goodnight!! (Oh, yes, and my last name has changed...maybe we're still working on the legal bit of changing it, but you know...it has changed from Holmberg...to Black.)