Going to the Chapel

And I'm gonna be a bridesmaid!!! :)
I'm flying to Seattle after work today because Kristi is getting married on Saturday!!
I am very excited about this weekend, although I am a little nervous about the weather. The rehearsal dinner is going to be a cookout in a park from 4-9pm tomorrow, and the low is 48 degrees! Eek!
Packing last night had an extra degree of difficulty because most of my cold weather clothes are in storage, since its been warm in New Orleans for the past 2 months. I think I managed pretty well regardless though- I had a few long sleeve shirts and sweaters in my closet, so I packed them, along with both a light jacket and my pea coat in case I get really cold. My dear boyfriend thought the pea coat was a little much, but my friend Lauri who is already up there assured me that she has worn Kristi's pea coat once this week already.
I also really like the way I packed- I stuck to a basic color pattern of blue, green, and black, so everything goes with everything else.
The best thing so far about being Kristi's bridesmaid is the dress (similar to this one, but a bright aqua seersucker fabric). Everyone says that their bridesmaids will be able to wear their dresses again, but Kristi's is the first I've seen that I would actually wear again. In fact, I've had this dress for a year and I've spent the warm portions of that year cursing the fact that I couldn't wear the adorable dress just hanging out in my closet! Even better, the reason I've had it for a year is that when we bought it, it was on sale for $30!
I am also excited about the dress because my mother brought me back some beautiful glass jewelry from Italy, and the pendant and ring she gave me will go perfectly with the dress. I am also wearing some dangling silver and blue earrings that mom lent me, and at the reception, I plan to stay warm with a shawl that my brother's girlfriend was kind enough to lend me.
Despite having to pack yesterday evening, I also managed to go for a nice long 4 mile run. I haven't run that far in a number of weeks and I could really tell. I had a great run and felt wonderful during the whole thing, but I was really tired afterward and I'm feeling pretty achy today. This just tells me that I need to be more diligent about getting in a long run at least once a week. I don't like the thought of losing my hard won endurance. On the other hand, I've enjoyed mixing up my workouts lately. I've recently added yoga, weightlifting, and swimming to my workout options, and it has been a lot of fun.
Other recent news is that my friend Xiujuan just told me that she is having a baby. I think this makes 13 friends who are with child this year. There must be something in the water. :P
So I will end this post with congratulations to Kristi, Xiujuan, and all my other friends who are engaged, getting married, or having babies this year.