l'afrique, so chic

well, tomorrow my little brother heads down to south carolina, where he will meet up with his aunt and uncle, then on monday he'll board a plane to head to africa. i am so excited for him--at 13 years old, he will get to see part of the world that many of us will never see. i can't believe how fast he and my sister both have grown up... seems like just yesterday they were just babies! zech is going with a mission group from his uncle's church to tanzania, where he'll spend about 3 weeks. it's weird, because i want to give him all sorts of instructions about how to see things there... you know, remember that just because they seem primitive to you, and just because they don't believe what you believe, doesn't mean they don't have tons to teach you... try to find something about each person you meet to bring back with you... treat them as equals and friends... look for a greater purpose to your life... but i'm not his mother, and i also know that how we see the world isn't something that can be dictated to us. being a parent will be interesting... already i feel this urgent need to impart some of the knowledge i've gained through life to my brother and sister so that they can learn the lessons i've learned without the struggles or hurt, yet i know that most of us operate in a way that requires us to experience lessons before they stick. so, i am anxious for zech, but hopeful that he will come back with knowledge that will shape him into an even better man than he was already destined to become...

enough philosophisin'.

i now have appointments with the florist and the seamstress where i bought my wedding dress. when i made the appt to get my dress fitted, the lady was like, "bring your shoes with you." i said, "i don't have my shoes yet, but they'll be flat, so it doesn't really matter, right?" well, you would have thought i said that i was going to make them alter the dress without trying it on. she said, "well, but.... uh.... but you have to bring your shoes!" and so, between tuesday after work and last night, i visited 9 shoe stores until finally finding the simple, boring silver ballet flats i had been seeking. you wouldn't have thought it would be such a chore to find freaking flat dressy shoes that arent' going to show anyway so they don't even have to be anything special but they still have to sort of match a wedding dress, but me and my feet... well, we always have an interesting time finding shoes.

also discovered this new used book store just down the street from our house. it is fabulous. oh, how i love books...

and people, today is 100 days 'til our wedding... can you believe it?! i can't!