Kari Brooks

it always feels good to cross things off a ‘to do’ list..

when i was in 5th grade i made this list of things i wanted to do before i died.
at the time it included some really funny things.. like meeting the president and starting a county wide recycling program..
while i dont have that actual 5th grade list anymore.. i do have a new list that i made a few years back. some of the things on that list are pretty funny as well. but for the most part they really are things i think i need to have done before i die.
well, in the past 3 weeks i have been able to cross off a few more things.
one was hike through a rainforest. derek and i did this in st. lucia on our honeymoon, and it was incredible. a trip through the rainforest was on the original list as well… mrs. follmer would be so happy to hear about this.
the second thing to cross off is donating hair to locks of love. this morning i went to the salon and donated 10 inches of hair. it was sad to see the brown ponytail go.. but im convinced it will look lovely on someone else’s head.

two items checked off… feeling pretty productive. i wonder whats next off the list… meeting the president?

it’s official.. iowa has a new drivers license.
and i have a new last name.

it’s been awhile and a few things have happened since the glorious day of my birth. first of all, i had a great birthday… of course! i had a (few) great birthday dinners, spent time with friends and family, and even got a few pretty sweet gifts.
(here is a little highlight list for you, al! a snowboard and tiffany bracelet from derek, a coach bag from nicole, some great books from steph, and a plethora of home-made heart-shaped cards from my students!)

besides my birthday, and not be ever be overshadowed.. there was a wedding. i know you all have read about it on everyone’s website, and hopefully even read the day by day honeymoon on dereks site… we had a great time with everything! the whole experience was incredible. its almost too hard to describe, talk, or write about. its the biggest production i have ever planned, and was over so quickly. almost like a dream. its funny how many times i have looked through the photos that our friends have sent us. what a great nite! i could try and talk about all sorts of things about the experience.. but here are a few short thoughts:
1. trying to sleep the nite before your wedding is ten times worse than the nite before christmas ever was. if you wake up at 4:58 am.. dont plan on going back to sleep, just watch ‘troop beverly hills,’ and enjoy the time alone.
2. having a brunch that included chocolate fondue and mimosias (thanks to dereks aunt) was the best way to start out my wedding day!
3. having that brunch turn into a surprise lingerie party with tons of great friends and family was a great ending to the morning. how fun!
4. letting someone else do all of the decorating at the church and hotel turned out being a great decision. i got to spend the day taking my sweet ass time getting ready, enjoying dewski, and visiting with good friends.
5. everyone was asking if i was going to cry.. which is a weird thing to think about. but the most emotional part of my day was reading a little note from derek while getting ready. the reassurance of how incredible the day was… overwhelming. (that and the little hair from ninja.. )
6. holy shit… i love being the center of attention.. but walking into a church with about 500 eyeballs looking only at you can be really intimidating.
7. derek looked great.. wow.
8. i am so glad about choosing ’songbird’ for the unity candle song. i love that song, and i think that was the most memorable part of the ceremony for me. matthew was amazing.
9. a little embarrassing when your kissing for the first time infront of everyone and your husband thinks you should be done, and you go in for another one….
10. our limo ride was great! it was just what i needed at that time. good friends, good drinks, and a great occasion.
11. i was so happy with the way the reception looked, the way the food tasted, and the way the band sounded. i feel like that all came together really well. thanks to my parents for that party!
12. it was so incredible to be there, dancing with derek, looking around to all of our friends and family who were there just to support us. what an awesome feeling.
13. trying to talk with everyone was so hard to do.. i wish there would have been 3 more hours in the nite.
14. finding champange, chocolate dipped strawberries, and 2 ipods in our hotel room was a pleasant surprise!
15. the next morning derek and i woke up at 7:30 and could not even think about going back to sleep because we were so excited talking about all of the people we had seen, the good times we had, and generally just how amazing the whole evening had been.

there is so much more.. and i havent even begun to talk about the honeymoon, which was perfect. derek and i had a great time in st. lucia. it was just the right amount of things to stay busy with and days to just relax. it really was paradise there.. coming back was so hard. (all except for the fact that our puppy was here..) more about the honeymoon later…

thank you to everyone who came, sent love, and helped out with the wedding. we had an indescribable evening. it really was more than i imagined, and i am so grateful for that.

…..its also offical that this is the most sappy i have been in a long while..