Carrie’s Blog

I woke up bright and early to take a quick shower before heading over to the Murthy’s house to get ready for the Indian ceremony. Ali, Furman, and Gabby graciously woke up early too, and chauffeured me to the Murthy’s house.

Mama Murthy started with my hair, adding in the extensions so I would have a beautiful long braid, then added the flowers on top of that.

Then, on went the sari and lots of jewelry. Meanwhile, Sid was getting ready elsewhere in the house, but we were not allowed to see each other.

Once I was dressed and ready to go, Sowmya and I headed to Kahler Hall with Ali, Furman, and Gabby close behind. We arrived to find more of my friends there already, getting help with their saris. They looked great!!

I also saw the decorations for the first time – wow! I was so happy with how everything had turned out. Kudos to my awesome decorator!

The gold elephants lining the aisle were pretty sweet.

For the next hour or more, I waited patiently inside a room while Sid arrived and the ceremony began. I would’ve liked to be able to watch it all, but I still was not supposed to see Sid. It seemed like forever before it was finally time for me to enter. The anticipation was really building!! I couldn’t wait to see my husband.

Finally, it was time for me to enter. Dave escorted me in, followed by an entourage of friends and sisters. As I entered, a sheet was held in front of Sid so we still could not see each other. This was perhaps the most emotional part of the entire day, because there was so much anticipation. We were standing only inches away, yet still couldn’t see each other! The sheet was held between us for a good five minutes (which, of course, felt much longer), before it was finally removed and we saw each other for the first time on our wedding day. Sid looked so great! And what a feeling it was to look into his eyes and know that soon this would be my husband.

The rest of the ceremony was wonderful. For what seemed like a long time, Sid and I held a coconut together while we received blessings from other married couples, who came up and poured milk on the coconut.

We took our seven steps together, symbolizing our vows to each other, and before we knew it, we were married!

The ceremony ended, we took our photographs, ate some lunch and mingled. Then, before we knew it, we were off to prepare for ceremony number two!

Sid and I arrived back in Maryland (well, VA actually, since we flew into Dulles) around 5am on Saturday, February 16th – one week before the wedding. Brian and Melanie graciously picked us up at the airport and let us crash at their place before we went to brunch to meet up with Sowmya, who then chauffeured us around to run some important pre-wedding errands.

We ended up at the Murthy’s house briefly to see Mr. Murthy and a good family friend hard at work putting up a lovely entrance arch to their house, in preparation for the Homa (Sunday) and the Puja (Friday). Mrs. Murthy, Sowmya, Sid and I were then off to my parents for a wedding shower. It was great! I had no idea so many people were going to be there, and it was so wonderful seeing all those people I love in one place.

Afterwards, Sid and I headed back to the Murthy’s to prepare for the Homa the next morning. The Homa was a very cool experience. I loved getting all dressed up in such a beautiful sari and wearing all the jewelry and hair decorations.

Once the Homa was over, Sid was shuttled back to the airport so he could get back to Wyoming for a week of work before the wedding. I headed to the Lancaster’s house to celebrate Braden’s 3rd birthday. I can’t believe he is already 3 years old!! The party was a lot of fun and I had way too much junk food.

Afterwards, I went back with my parents and got ready for the week of work ahead. I worked in the office Monday through Thursday, squeezing in lots of wedding errands in as well. We did our final walkthrough at the zoo on Tuesday morning, and Tuesday evening I was able to meet with the decorator to pick out some final pieces, like the backdrops for the wedding ceremonies. I also saw the elephants and the mandap for the first time, and I began to get reaaaally excited!

My mom and I ran lots of wedding errands in the evenings, looking for a tiara and cake topper and sand for the sand ceremony. We made a good team, and somehow managed to get all the random odds and ends we needed.

Thursday night, I stayed with the Murthy’s to prepare for the Puja. Friday morning – the day before the wedding!- Sid got back into town around 5am, after another all-night flight. Sowmya picked him up and he got to the house just as I was waking up. We traded places – he got in bed to get some much-needed rest, and I began getting ready for the puja. The puja was very nice – it was intimate and warm.

Afterwards, Sowmya whisked us away to the spa for pedicures and manicures for herself and me and a massage for Sid. It was a very nice, calming couple hours in a whirlwind day! As soon as we left the spa, it was back to the madness as we headed to my parents house for the rehearsal. Ali and Furman were aleady there, safely arrived after a long drive from South Carolina. I scurried to get everything together – peoples printed-out lines for the readings and the programs to fold. The dinner was yummy and satisfying thanks to my mom’s efforts. The rehearsal was rather unorganized, but it would have to do! People headed home – Sid, Sowmya, and their parents back to their house, and I stayed with my parents. I had a great time catching up with Gabby, who had flown in from Louisiana, as well as Ali and Furman. Finally, I retreated to take a relaxing bath and took some time to collect myself. It wasn’t until 2:00am I finally got to sleep, totally exhausted but full of excitement too. I was about to get married in the morning.

More to come with the wedding recap!

What a busy last few weeks!  I plan on doing a series of updates in the next week or so… hopefully a recap of the wedding, honeymoon, update on the new house, and even a running update (wow, it’s been a while since I’ve had anything to say about running!).  And, some pictures to follow.  Stay tuned! 

Well, after the offer on our 2nd house got accepted, things started to go downhill.  The sellers were not willing to replace the broken furnace (in fact, denied that it was broken after our inspector found a crack in it),  so we were not getting good vibes from the deal and walked away.  We have now made an offer on a third house, which we are also very excited about.  It’s smaller than the first two, but also more friendly to our budget!  It is in good shape – not a fixer-upper like the previous two, but also has potential for plenty of projects if we are so motivated.  Hopefully, third time’s the charm!

And I can hardly believe it, but we are leaving TOMORROW to head back to Maryland!  The wedding is coming up so fast, and it is so exciting.  I am getting slightly more nervous each day that Sid will face weather-related trasportation problems getting back to Maryland the day before the wedding.  Let’s hope everything goes smoothly!!! 

Last but not least – Happy Valentines Day! 

We have already made offers on two houses!  The first one was turned down – it just so happened someone else made a higher offer the same day.  But, our second offer was accepted!  It’s a decent sized house in an awesome location.  Has an unfinished basement that could be pretty sweet once finished.  And, a nice little backyard.  Lots of potential!

We are going along on the inspection tomorrow.  Very exciting – we just might be moving into our new house within a week of coming home from our honeymoon! 

I can’t believe how fast the wedding is coming up!  I will be on my way back to Maryland in one week! 

Yesterday, Sid and I viewed at least 15 houses with our realtor.  I like our realtor – he has lived in Laramie his whole life, and knows the area very well.  He’s down-to-earth and not pushy, but very helpful and friendly. 

Viewing the houses was great – we were able to cross a lot of houses off our list and narrow down our choices.  We really like three or four houses, and still have one left to view tomorrow.  We are happy with how quickly we have been able to move along with the process.  At this rate, it’s likely we will make an offer before the wedding!

Only 19 more days til the wedding, and less than two weeks til Sid and I are back in Maryland for the Homa and wedding shower.  It is coming up so quickly!  We are still ironing out the final details.  It’s exciting to know so many of our family and friends will be together in one place! 

We have officially started the home-buying process: today we submitted our application to be pre-approved for a loan.  We are planning on getting in touch with some realtors this week so we can start viewing some houses!  Ideally, we would be able to make an offer before we are off on our honeymoon.  At the same time, we don’t plan on rushing such a big decision - we just want to be ready when the right opportunity presents itself. 

I have enjoyed experimenting with some new recipes lately – or making up my own recipes.  Today I created a potato casserole with corn and beef, flavored with a few cloves of garlic.  Over the weekend, I made my own homefries with breakfast.  I also love making tunacakes on nights when I don’t know what else to make.  And today, I made a yummy chocolate-coconut dessert with a graham cracker crust.  I accidentally burned it some around the edges, but the middle was quite tasty! 

Sid and I ran for an hour on Saturday.  It felt pretty good; though progress seems slow, I feel like my endurance is there.  I can’t keep up a good pace for the life of me, but I can keep going for a long time, and usually feel better after the first 20 minutes.  The run really took a toll on me afterwards, though.  We went down to Denver to help a friend move, and by early evening, I was totally pooped and trying to shut out a mild but resilient headache.  I was relieved to have Sid drive on the way back! 

The wedding continues to creep closer and closer!  Most RSVPs are in, and we are working on settling final details.  Our rings were finished today and are being shipped tomorrow – I am excited to see them!  Sid and I are also getting more and more excited for our honeymoon in Chile.  It will be quite an adventure, and we are definitely looking forward to the warmer weather!

Yesterday was the one-more-month-til-the-wedding day.  I finally booked a DJ, and things are really picking up as we start to finalize all the details.  It’s going to be such a busy week, but a joyous one with plenty of friends and family and love. 

In other news, Sid and I are trying to get back into a regular running routine (which will undoubtedly be disrupted by the wedding and honeymoon, but hey, we have to start somewhere!).  We ran 25+ minutes on Monday and 35+ minutes yesterday.  We are learning how to dress appropriately, although we both need something to cover our faces – it really stings when you go running in 5 degrees or colder with nothing covering your face!  My lungs have been burning at the beginning of the runs, so I am hoping something to cover my mouth will help with that as well.  Hopefully I am not doing any permanent damage to my lungs! 

I am absolutely loving working from home.  It kind of makes me wonder why more people don’t do it.  It’s good for companies, because I can work even on snow days, and I also end up being much more productive.  It’s good for workers, because there’s no stress of being stuck in traffic, you don’t need to dress up, and you can create a workspace to your liking and comfort.  I also like the aspect of being able to work on east coast time – I basically roll out of bed and get to work by 7:00am (9:00am EST), which means I am done by 3:00-3:30pm (5:00-5:30pm EST).  This will come in very handy when I start taking classes again. 

I also met with two different mortgage consultants this week.  Both had very good news, as Sid and I will be able to be pre-approved for much more than we are even looking for.  We are looking forward to moving along with the process of finding a house!

Now that Sid and I have made our big move West, I thought it was good timing to start up another blog. It seemed a useful tool for keeping in touch throughout college, and my hope is that this, too, can serve as a way to keep family and friends in the loop on the day-to-day happenings in our lives here in Laramie.

So far, we are really enjoying Laramie. We’ve met lots of great people – smart, open-minded, friendly, athletic people – and we have been getting involved with various groups here, such as a Wyoming Adventure Running Team (more of a club than a team really).

It’s quite cold; I think the lowest temperature so far has been -10 (which does not include the wind chill!). But the beautiful mountain views out our bedroom window help to make up for it. With mountains on the east and the west, we get some breathtaking sunrises and sunsets.

Though Sid’s job got off to a slow start, it seems to be taking off now. His coworkers are all very excited to have him (as they should be!) and Sid seems to be enjoying his work. Though I am still working with Westat, telecommuting is quite a change. The first week was a bit rough because our internet wasn’t set up yet, so I was working out of coffeeshops, the library, or anywhere else I could get free WiFi. However, now that I am settled into my home office, I absolutely love telecommuting.

That’s it for now, but stay tuned for more!

Carrie