Well, I am a guest blogger...ok, not really a guest, but a stand-in for my ever-popular, expert blogger, and amazing finacee Heidi...

I cannot wait for October to roll around...I cannot wait to spend two weeks in Hawaii with my friends and family, to show my kids what a real beach looks like, and I am over-the-top excited to get married to the beautiful and talented Ms. Rademacher. Those of you who know her already know how amazing she is, but like Evan in Superbad, I want to shout it from the rooftops...however, this blog will have to do for the time being.

Before that, I do want to share some things I have learned throughout this wedding-planning process...in no particular order:

1. I now truly believe there is a color called, medium dark tealish blue green.
2. Just because you adjust the cost of something in a budget spreadsheet to reflect what you paid for it does not mean you are "on budget"
3. It is possible to love someone more and more each day
4. Vows you make during the wedding ceremony are not the same as things you would say in a toast.
5. Microsoft might have a discount for just about anything.
6. No matter how much you have booked, paid for, planned for, you are never close to done.
7. The snorkeling company we used in Maui last time needs to do a better job of advertising.
8. Eight is my favorite number...I didn't learn this through the wedding process, but seemed appropriate filler for number 8.
9. A "casual" wedding may mean no tux, but it doesn't really mean casual
10. Apparently Heidi has to get makeup, hair and nails done, get into her dress, put on here shoes, make adjustments to all of it, and all I have to do is "show up".

This blog-site is dedicated to keep people informed about the going's on with Heidi and I, but I think it needs to go beyond that to explain just how special this day is, how special she is.

So here are a few comments about what I have learned about and from her, and what she means to me. There are not enough words to express how happy I am to have met Heidi. She has taught me not only to love again, but to love without reservation or conditions...unconditional love. She is there at a moment's notice when needed, by anyone. She has shown me that I can do anything, and inspires me to accomplish things I never thought possible. I see the joy she brings to her friends, family, Skyler and Spencer, and it takes me aback. She is beautiful, smart, compassionate, caring, funny, and wise. She is my everything, my best friend, the last person I want to talk to when I go to bed, and the first when I awake. I cannot think of a person I would rather marry than Heidi Kirsten Rademacher.

I am still trying to figure out what I did to get her to love me...but then again, I don't really care about the "hows"...

I now return you to your regularly scheduled blogger...see you in Maui!

John