Holidays are finally here!
Once again, I find myself not looking forward to some of my favorite holidays, such as Halloween and Christmas. I am a sucker for going all out on Halloween, but BJ and I are so broke that we practically can't do anything. It's not that we don't have money for costumes, it's that we don't have money period. We barely have enough gas money to last us until Halloween (when he gets paid), so even our groceries are really going to stretch a bit. I'm half tempted to go sell myself on the corner (just kidding!). As for Thanksgiving and Christmas, I'm still not sure what exactly we're doing in regards to visiting family and friends. My parents are split up, but I assume we're still going to gather at Mom's to celebrate Christmas day; that'll make it alot easier than having to travel two separate places for my parents. However, we have my folks, BJ's folks, and then Ron and Lisa to visit. I'm looking forward to it, but at the same time I'm wondering if BJ and I are really coordinated enough to pull it off. *lol*
Wedding planning has gotten a little bit easier. During Apple Butter weekend, I went to Hagerstown to meet up with Kryssy and to pick out bridesmaid dresses for each other's weddings. I found "The" dress while I was there (on sale! Woo!), we figured out what color and style Kryssy wanted us to wear for her Spring wedding, and even though I thought I had a color picked out, I'm going with black for my ladies. I have several reasons for picking black for my bridesmaids (and no, it's not because I want to have a Gothic wedding): one, ALL of us are broke and can't afford to spend alot of money on a dress they (and I) would never wear again. Two, the guys are going to look formal in their tuxes (even with their Chuck Taylor's) and I think the girls wearing black as well would look even and nice. Three, you can buy black dresses much cheaper in a place like Penney's than a bridal boutique. Four, every woman needs a LBD in their wardrobe (according to the fashion industry). When I was in Victoria's wedding, my black bridesmaid dress only cost me nine dollars and it's something I will definitely wear again. When you're a bride on a budget, you can look past the "cookie-cutter" wedding traditions for something more in favor of your tastes and wallet. Besides, BJ and I aren't exactly the "cookie-cutter" type. :)
On a sad note, my younger brother got sent to Juvie this weekend. He did violate his probation, but Mom was hoping to get him into a hospital instead of a detention center. He had a hearing on Friday and he was sent to the detention center where he will remain until his next hearing on Nov. 6th. Dad was mad at Mom for a little while, Mom was upset, and I was too. During his hearing, he was dressed in the orange jumpsuit and had shackles on. I can't believe they actually put shackles on these kids! I guess there are kids out there who are extremely unpredictable and therefore need them, but it's still a horrifying vision of seeing one of your younger brothers in the situation. I hope and and pray that he'll be alright. I fully intend to send him letters while he's in there in the hopes it'll keep brighten his spirits a bit. I'm also hoping that this will be a hard lesson learned and it will never happen again, especially after he turns 18 in April.
Despite this depressing bit of news, my weekend did have a bright side. BJ and I cooked dinner and had Kim and her boyfriend Asher over, and then we went laser bowling. I ended up winning most of the games (I can't remember who won the last game; I was buzzed and very sleepy *lol*), which was surprising since it's been a long time since I've last bowled. Everyone had fun, and BJ and I were very relieved to get out of our apartment for something fun for a change. After moving to Lynchburg our social life (or lack thereof) had dwindled even more, but Kim has definitely helped alleviate that.
Well, that's about it. I have lab at two and I walked out of the house without shower, so I'm going to get to it. Update later.
Wedding planning has gotten a little bit easier. During Apple Butter weekend, I went to Hagerstown to meet up with Kryssy and to pick out bridesmaid dresses for each other's weddings. I found "The" dress while I was there (on sale! Woo!), we figured out what color and style Kryssy wanted us to wear for her Spring wedding, and even though I thought I had a color picked out, I'm going with black for my ladies. I have several reasons for picking black for my bridesmaids (and no, it's not because I want to have a Gothic wedding): one, ALL of us are broke and can't afford to spend alot of money on a dress they (and I) would never wear again. Two, the guys are going to look formal in their tuxes (even with their Chuck Taylor's) and I think the girls wearing black as well would look even and nice. Three, you can buy black dresses much cheaper in a place like Penney's than a bridal boutique. Four, every woman needs a LBD in their wardrobe (according to the fashion industry). When I was in Victoria's wedding, my black bridesmaid dress only cost me nine dollars and it's something I will definitely wear again. When you're a bride on a budget, you can look past the "cookie-cutter" wedding traditions for something more in favor of your tastes and wallet. Besides, BJ and I aren't exactly the "cookie-cutter" type. :)
On a sad note, my younger brother got sent to Juvie this weekend. He did violate his probation, but Mom was hoping to get him into a hospital instead of a detention center. He had a hearing on Friday and he was sent to the detention center where he will remain until his next hearing on Nov. 6th. Dad was mad at Mom for a little while, Mom was upset, and I was too. During his hearing, he was dressed in the orange jumpsuit and had shackles on. I can't believe they actually put shackles on these kids! I guess there are kids out there who are extremely unpredictable and therefore need them, but it's still a horrifying vision of seeing one of your younger brothers in the situation. I hope and and pray that he'll be alright. I fully intend to send him letters while he's in there in the hopes it'll keep brighten his spirits a bit. I'm also hoping that this will be a hard lesson learned and it will never happen again, especially after he turns 18 in April.
Despite this depressing bit of news, my weekend did have a bright side. BJ and I cooked dinner and had Kim and her boyfriend Asher over, and then we went laser bowling. I ended up winning most of the games (I can't remember who won the last game; I was buzzed and very sleepy *lol*), which was surprising since it's been a long time since I've last bowled. Everyone had fun, and BJ and I were very relieved to get out of our apartment for something fun for a change. After moving to Lynchburg our social life (or lack thereof) had dwindled even more, but Kim has definitely helped alleviate that.
Well, that's about it. I have lab at two and I walked out of the house without shower, so I'm going to get to it. Update later.