Want to be a bride?

Tonight we had dinner with both sets of parents...it was a really nice evening and it is interesting to think this is now my family. Both Dad's and both Mom's will be mine. What an odd thing...one day they are his and then the next they are also mine. We do not really know each other that well, it has only been two years since we all met, they do not know all my stories like my parents do and yet I can imagine years from now taking care of them as I would my parents.

The love I have for Ryan goes beyond he and I to the people we both love. What an amazing miracle and awesome glimpse into what God created this marriage to be. We are not only bonding ourselves to one another but also to each others families and welcoming these people into our hearts and lives forever. WOW!

I am pretty sure this is a common issue for Brides...the guest list. We had initially hoped to keep the list to under 100...Ryan even said 65 once, which I knew was nutty..as of right now we have 258! Now there really is no one specifically to blame on this one...it just seemed to keep growing and growing. We changed the location of the reception to allow for more people and will probably down grade the food a bit, sorry to those of you attending no filet mignon. But really I have felt good about the whole thing, mostly because I love that we have so many people we want to include. Almost everyday I think of another person...or I am reminded of another person by Ryan, or his mom, or my sister, or my dad...or my very bad memory finally waking up and remembering someone obvious.

It is a wonderful thing to think about all of these people being there for our big day...and if it means some of you have to stand at the church and sit on each others laps at the reception I promise there will be enough room on the dance floor!