I am very happy to announce that today was a great success! It took a log time to happen, and many (including myself!) 
never thought it would happen, but today Melissa and I are finally husband and wife. The weather was beautiful (though a little windy) and Melissa was even more beautiful! The ceremony went off without a hitch and I was blessed to have my beautiful daughter, Kylie, participate in the ceremony. Additionally, my mother was able to come out from NY to join us for this celebration, and that means more to me than I can express. It was a small personal ceremony and we are very grateful that we were able to have the ceremony on the campus of the university where we met. Afterward everyone went over to Tower Inn to celebrate with us. The ceremony and reception were small and lovely, just like we wanted. While we both would have loved to invite more people to be with us today, we ultimately choose to keep it small and personal both for financial reasons and because planning anything larger was really causing us emotional stress. We are very happy with how everything turned out, and thank everyone for their participation, gifts, thoughts, time and well wishes! Photos from the day can be found here.
Category Archives: Melissa
Rehearsal Night
Tonight was the rehearsal for tomorrow’s big event, and I am happy to say that it all went quite well. We first brought everyone who is going to be in the wedding (and their families) out to dinner at a local Asian Buffet. Everyone seemed to really enjoy dinner and because it was a buffet everyone certainly had their fill. Afterwards we all went over to EMU’s boat house so we could rehearse for tomorrow’s event. The rehearsal went smooth and we are looking forward to tomorrow.
Another Birthday
Happy Birthday Melissa!!
Tonight we went to dinner at Outback (Melissa’s choice) to celebrate and enjoy an evening out. I also surprised her with an Open Hearts necklace from Kay’s that she had been eyeing for a while now. Unfortunately because her birthday landed on a monday this year we really didn’t have anything large planned. Besides, all of our focus has been on the upcoming wedding. It was still nice to have a night out, even if it was only a couple of hours.
Engagement Photos Done
Melissa and I finally got around to having Engagement Photos taken today. The pictures were taken at a few locations around the area by Sarah Sturgill of Captured Moments Photography. She has done pictures for us in the past and so we are confident that the pictures will turn out great. I have to admit, having the pictures taken was a lot more fun than I anticipated. There are few non-self taken pictures of Melissa and I as one of us is usually behind the camera, so I find that I am anxious to see, and have, pictures of us together. Sarah will also be taking the pictures at the wedding, so this will also give us an idea of what we can expect from that as well.
Predators of Today
Today we went to our local district library for a presentation on present day Predators and Prey. The presentation ended up being a series of activities that we were all able to participate in preceded by a short talk about how all organisms interact with each other to create an interconnected web we call the ecosystem. There were three activities that we all took part in, mainly helping Kylie through them as they were mini science type experiments. One was designed to show the various impacts that humans and animals have on our environment and those of each other. The second was a mock dissection of various types of fish and the types of things we would find in them including different chemical elements that humans have introduced into nature that end up in the fish. The last one, and by far Kylie’s most favorite, was the dismemberment of a real owl pellet (the regurgitated non digestible portion of an owl’s meal). During this activity Kylie discovered the remains of an entire Shrew skull in her pellet and thought that was pretty amazing. The lecture and activities were presented by a member of the University of Michigan’s Museum of Natural history, which we found ironic as we just visited there two weeks ago. It was an interesting and engaging few hours and we look forward to attending other such seminars and workshops.
Some Natural History
We took a trip out to the University of Michigan’s Museum of Natural History today, and spent a few hours walking around and looking through everything they had to offer. I have been in a number of Natural History museums, as they are my favorite kind of museum, and I have to admit I was impressed with the amount of exhibits that the University has. Kylie was most interested in the dinosaur exhibits and being able to sit in a dugout canoe. I was interested to see the display of all the natural wildlife that exists in our area, as was Melissa. While it was nice to visit a local Natural History museum, because it is associated with and operated by the University, their exhibits do not change very often, so I think it may be a while before we return to this particular destination, but it is very nice to know that it is here. We took a few pictures while we were here as well.
Can You Hear Me Now?
For a long time now I have been telling Melissa that I honestly thought something might be wrong with her hearing. I have noticed that we seem to be turning the volume up on the TV more and more and she seems to not hear me frequently. So today when we walked into Sam’s Club and the sign said free hearing tests, I said let’s go. She thought I was joking at first but I insisted and so she reluctantly agreed. Well low and behold, Melissa does in fact have some hearing issues with her left ear, to the point that she needs a hearing aide. She is not very happy about the turn of events, but we got her one right on the spot and she tested it out in the store. She admitted that she does hear considerably better with it and though she doesn’t really want to need one, she realized that she really does need it. So we bought the one right then, and she has been wearing it all day. It’s going to take some getting used to, obviously, but I am having a fun time showing her how loud she used to set the TV, or watching as she “hears something for the first time.” Her right ear is borderline as well, so there is a possibility that she may need one for that ear in the future as well, but we will deal with that when it happens. Until then, she needs to adjust to this one, and become less self conscious about it. I also had my hearing tested, and with the exception of some tinnitus in my right ear, my hearing is pretty good. Though I was able to view the scar tissue from my tube surgery when I was a kid, and honestly it looked pretty neat.
Almost a New Home
Tonight we got to our furthest point so far in our hunt to purchase a house, we had a house inspection performed on a property that we placed a bid on. I accompanied the inspector through the interior and exterior inspections and learned a lot about what to look for in a house. The outside inspection was not as long as the inside inspection and that was mostly due to all the snow we got last night rendering many items in-viewable. However, what we lacked looking at on the outside we more than made up for on the inside! The inspection lasted about three hours and after everything was said and done Melissa and I have decided to walk away from this property. There were enough little things wrong, and a few major ones, that made us decide that even though the house was cosmetically very nice, this just wasn’t the house for us. It by no means was a waste though, not only did the inspection reveal these things to us in time to walk away, but I also learned a great deal that I hope to remember for future viewings.
Merry Christmas
Another Christmas has come upon us, and I hope it finds you happy, healthy, and among those you love. Kylie, Melissa, and I all got to spend the morning and early afternoon together, as is the custom. Kylie seemed to be happy with everything Santa left for her and the items that Melissa and I got her as well. When I asked Kylie what her favorite gift was, she named off everything, so I take that as a good sign. After Kylie left Melissa and I just spent the rest of the day relaxing, and wishing Kylie could still be with us. Hopefully everyone else had a great day too.
Second Annual Secure-24 Holiday Party
Tonight was my second S24 Holiday Party, and once again it was a blast! Once again it was at The Fillmore and we had 
a room at The Westin Book Cadillac, which means the venue was awesome and our room was amazing! The party, like last year’s, was incredible. The Killer Flamingos performed all night, and they rocked! Like last year there was an excellent open bar, delicious food, and some pretty sweet raffles. However, due to the economy and some budgeting issues, there were some differences as well. This year there were no professional photographers roaming the party, no caricatures, and no delectable donuts at the end of the party to take home. That being said, the party was still a blast! In fact, this year might have been better than last year on a personal level because this year I knew more people in the company, so we felt more included. We are already looking forward to next year, and there is even talk about Ren, Alex, and I all rocking out bow ties! While I am not certain if that will actually happen, I am certain it will be another blast!