Britt's Wedding

Last weekend I had the great honor of being the maid of honor in my best friend's wedding. It was an incredibly beautiful day filled with so much celebration and happiness.

Here is Little Bear taking a nap on Brandon's lap....such a sweet boy.

Above is the flower arch for Mike and Britt after the wedding ceremony. Below are the beautiful bride and groom with the bridesmaids.

This weekend I had the great opportunity to celebrate Braydon's sister's 30th birthday at the Andrews' residence in Moneta, Virginia. We are able to grow our vision and dreams for our own wedding and make memories with their family. Much more thoughts to come soon!

********************************

"To us family means putting your arms around each other and being there."

-Barbara Bush

Welcome Home Little Bear!!

I have to get going to work right now but I wanted to post some new pictures of our little Bear! He is such a well-behaved boy!! We are having sooo much fun with him

Today is my second day at my new job and so far so good!

Sorry so short, more to come!

**********************

"They can because they think they can."

-Virgil

A little more in NYC, a lot more in MSP

"Love is when the other person's happiness is more important than your own."

-H. Jackson Brown

Well I'm coming off of another great week at home! I had a nice stint of 8 days off from work so Braydon and I crammed in as much as we could do to enjoy the week and plan for our wedding! Above is a sneak peak from our engagement photo session, there will be many more to come!

Below is a photograph taken at Lake Calhoon after dining at Lucia's, my favorite restaurant. I can't wait for this to be an even more frequent date for us :)

There are so many exciting events approaching this summer! To provide a quick sneak peak.... my best friend, Britt, is getting married, Braydon and I are going to Roanoke to visit his family, I'm starting my new job, Bear is coming in 2 weeks, we are running a half marathon, going ''up north'' a few times, celebrating a friend's marriage in Green Bay and having our own retreat in Lanesboro, MN. And....oh yeah, planning a wedding!

Last weekend I hosted a wine tasting for Britt, we had such a wonderful time catching up with friends and celebrating her soon-to-be wedding.

This is officially my last trip to NYC; its bittersweet, but I am really looking forward to so much ahead. I also can't wait to be close to my family and friends. I'll update again soon, for now I'm off for a run in the sunshine.

And how could I neglect to post the latest and greatest picture of our little Bear. He is 6 weeks old now and is estimated to be 6.5lbs when he is full grown.

*******************

"Love is when you put the needs of someone else above your own. It is not a feeling, it is an action that provokes a feeling."

-Tim Keller

The Start of Summer

Well my dad mentioned that I have 4 final legs (2 round trips) until I am back home for good...I suppose that's down to 3 legs now that I'm back in NYC. This past week at home really made me excited to move back to Minnesota. At first there was a little ambivalance in my leaving the city and my first RN job--I really enjoyed my adventure here and have learned and grown so much. However, this past week provided so much love, optimisim and joy from all my family, friends and my new job that there is really no question of my excitement and eagerness to move back to Minnesota.

This past week also gave me a sneak-peak of all the fun summer has in store...besides running in the sun, evening strolls around the lake, dinner on the roof top and warm sunsets, here are a few other summer activities we managed to fit in....

Last Friday Braydon and I hosted a 'Jersey Shore' party...basically we all dressed up as TV characters from a current reality TV show, it was pretty amusing!

Braydon was hard at work the week before I arrived building this 'puppy potty pad' for the porch of his condo. Of course Bear will have ample walks and time outside but just in case he can't hold it or its the middle of the night...this is our back-up plan. Note the new pig watering can compliments of Target :)

If you can't tell from the picture below, I'm soo excited for Bear's arrival.

This is Bear's 4.5 week photograph, I can't wait to meet him!

On Sunday my mom and I hosted a bridal shower for my best friend, Britt. We had a wonderful afternoon full of friends, desserts, tea and showering Britt with love.

Britt is the beautiful bride to be in the center with a white dress.

On Tuesday night we by far had our most adventurous, summer-time experience. With the temperature in the low 70s and the water temperature somewhere in the 50s we decided to go wake-boarding with a few friends of ours. Despite being a little chilly in the water, we had a blast and are certainly itching to get back out on the lake!

Until next time, love and peace to you all!

***************************

"Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe."

Saint Augustine

Changes

Well, life just keeps on changing for me! Over the past few months I've kept my eye out for RN jobs in the Minneapolis area. My plan for quite a while was to continue oncology nursing and begin a new endeavor sometime in July. About a month ago I applied for a job at the recently built Fraunshauh Cancer Center at Methodist Hospital in St Louis Park, MN. Methodist is a really special place for me. It is a smaller community hospital where I interned during college, it provided me with my first real exposure to oncology nursing. Not only did I find my love for oncology medicine at Methodist, I also became enamored with the staff, vision and general friendliness of the hospital. I had all hopes to be a RN after graduation at Methodist; however, when the economy did a landslide last year the hospital had a brief hiring freeze. So about 2 weeks ago I interviewed for the RN position at the cancer clinic; the Fraunshauh clinic was opened after my internship completed so I never saw the final building--and what a beauty it is! So the day after my interview I was called back and offered the job! The position will be 'normal' hours 9-5, Monday-Friday; what a difference it will be from working all nights on mostly weekends and holidays. I feel so blessed to have this job (and schedule) especially during the first year that Braydon and I will be married. I'll not only be able to sleep during normal hours but I will also have the weekends to enjoy with my friends, family and Braydon too! The job also provides new and exciting opportunities in the outpatient sector of nursing--it entails a lot of education and long term support to patients (and as you know,I love nothing more than educating and establishing therapeutic relationships with people facing cancer). I also look forward to having time to study for the Oncology Nurse Certification test and perhaps go back to school to get my masters degree in the next year or two. So nonetheless there are undoubtedly a lot of changes in my life during the next 6 months but I truly could not be happier and more gracious for these blessings.

Above is the entrance to the Fraunshauh Cancer Center and below is the 'Hope Garden Walk,' an area for patients to relax and reflect.

On an entirely different note of changes, look at how much Bear has grown!! Every Monday our breeder sends us an updated picture of Bear--Mondays have become my new favorite day for just this reason! Last week I was at a pet store with my Mom, we had just finished a little wedding shopping (so I was in the wedding mood...) and I bought the below shirt for bear! haha, I can't wait to put it on him ;)

*****************************

"The key to change is to let go of fear."

-Roseanne Cash

What Cancer Cannot Do

I found this poem in one of the hospital's waiting rooms, if your life (or a life of a loved one) is affected by cancer, I'm sure you will come to appreciate this poem too...I just love it.

What Cancer Cannot Do

Cancer is so limited...

It cannot cripple love,

It cannot shatter hope,

It cannot corrode faith,

It cannot eat away peace,

It cannot destroy confidence,

It cannot kill friendship,

It cannot shut out memories,

It cannot silence courage,

It cannot reduce eternal life,

It cannot quench the spirit,

It cannot lessen the Power

of the Resurrection.

*********************

"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage."

-Lao Tzu

Wedding Website

As promised... check out our new wedding website! We cannot wait to share this special event with all our great friends and family!

http://www.theknot.com/ourwedding/JenniferCarlson&BraydonAndrews

**********************

"Love puts the fun in together, the sad in apart, and the joy in a heart."

-Author Unknown

Little Bear, Twins Game, St Olaf, Nurse Braydon, Lucia's

Due to my lack in previous posts, I'll continue to update a bit more from the previous few weeks. I absolutely love the photograph above, I took it on an evening stroll with Braydon to Sebastian Joe's Ice Cream Parlor. The church is so beautiful at night and is just a block away from Braydon's condo--something tells me we will become regulars at Sebastian Joe's when we are married :)

So for a few more highlights of the past few weeks....two weekends a go Braydon and I had the great pleasure of checking out the new Target Field, and what a gem it is! I've posted a few pictures below of our time at the game. We spent the game rooting on the twins and catching up with my high school friend, Adrienne, and her boyfriend, Wyatt. Unfortunately, after the game I came down with a nasty case of food poisoning...but that's a whole different story.

I also had the pleasure of showing Braydon around my old stomping grounds at St Olaf College. We went down to watch a track meet and during our stay I showed off the beauty of Olaf. Below is a photograph of the St Olaf chapel and one of the main common grounds.

It seems so strange that just a short year ago I was studying away for my final exams and a student nurse in clinicals. So much has changed in a year, especially my professional scope of nursing practise...one year a go I couldn't give a medication without permission from a RN, now I'm treating acutely ill bone marrow transplant patients, placing IVs, caring for chemotherapy reactions and actually being a teacher (rather than a student) to the people around me.

The next few days of my weekend consisted of regaining my strength from the food poison bug....a big thank you goes to Braydon for being my nurse...it felt a little strange being the sick one.

Little Bear is now two weeks old and I've attached below an updated picture. I cannot wait to meet him in person (only 4 more weeks!). A little more about Little Bear...he is an apricot toy poodle from a breeder in Northfield, MN. He will be about 7 pounds when he is full grown, I cannot wait to snuggle with him, walk him, play with him and dress him up in little coats and costumes (I am already planning for him to match Braydon at the wedding with a baby blue bow tie). I absolutely love animals and I think I'm going through withdrawal here in nyc...

Lastly, I love this photograph of Braydon and I below; we are sitting outside of Lucia's Bakery in Minneapolis. It is my, and my mother's, favorite restaurant/deli in Minneapolis; it also happens to be the site of our first date. This picture was taken after meeting up with my mom, dad and brother on a Saturday morning for coffee and breakfast. I cannot wait to make something like this a weekly routine. I love catching up with my parents and brother, and of course sharing Braydon with them all too...it brings such happiness to me.

Well off to work, peace and love!

PS. I'm working on a wedding website for Braydon and I so look for that coming soon!!

*************************************

"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."

-Ghandi

Loong overdue!

Hello hello!

My goodness I do apologize I have neglected this blog for quite some time. Since my last posting I've traveled home twice and so much has transpired!

First and foremost, Braydon and I have chosen a wedding date...10/10/10! What an easy date to remember! It would be my Grandmother Barbara's 79th birthday...so in a small way it is our tribute to her. I will go more in depth in wedding plans later but for time being: the wedding will be at Braydon's parent's house outside of Roanoke, VA. We are hoping for a beautiful fall day so we can be married outside on the dock. Braydon's dad will be marrying us and we hope to have an intimate crowd of close family and friends. Minnesota friends and family: do not worry, you will not be left out of the celebration! Later in October we will have a reception for the Minnesota gang :)

Also of great excitement...we are getting a puppy! He is an apricot toy poodle and was born while we were visiting his breeder. The puppy will be named Bear and we are so excited to meet him this June. He is the one on the far left in the picture above.

I've got to get going to work but in the mean time I will share a few pictures from my first visit home...there will be more to come!

Braydon and I in Loring Park on our way to a night in downtown. The beautiful Basillica is behind us.

Braydon and I at my mother dear's birthday party.

Brandon and his two girls: Biggles and Amy.

Amy and I showing off our rings--we joke that the boys went shopping together :)

Bailey being groomed by his mama...look at his face! Can't wait for Bailey Bear to meet Little Bear.

**********************

"We can have a positive attitude towards life, or a negative attitude. We can focus on the good or we can focus on the bad. Keeping a positive mental attitude is one of the keys to success.

The choice is always up to you!

Braydon+Jenna=Engaged!

It is officially one week past due for this post. So much excitement, love and joy has occurred and my blog has not quite caught up! I suppose I should start from the beginning…

Last Thursday night Braydon flew into New York City for an Easter weekend visit. Late Thursday night Braydon met me at NYU Medical Center on my break for a few minutes to say hello. He handed me a plastic easter egg detailing our first holiday (Memorial day) together, I gave him a hug and was back to my job. Friday morning Braydon picked me up from work and shared breakfast with me on the East River. We watched helicopters come and go, ships sail by and people scurrying off to work. Throughout the day on Friday Braydon surprised me with easter eggs outlining each holiday we’ve spent together. On Friday evening we rode a subway to Grand Central Station, walked through Bryant Park and Times Square and arrived at the Hudson River’s Pier 81 on the west side of Manhattan. The weather was beautiful; 65 degrees, clear blue skies with a soft breeze. We were a little early for our scheduled dinner cruise so we strolled along the pier together. Out of (seemingly) nowhere, Braydon asked me what I would think if he talked to my dad about marrying me. I looked at him and said, “Well, you haven’t…” Braydon quickly corrected and shared with me his time spent with my dad the previous weekend. They toured the new Target Twin’s Field and had lunch together. Long story short, my dad gave Braydon permission to marry me and become his son-in-law. On Pier 81, Braydon whispered a few ‘sweet-nothings,’ handed me one last easter egg with a paper stating, “Easter weekend 2010, we got engaged!” He knelt on one knee and showed me the most beautiful ring I have ever seen. With shock and awe, I quickly said yes while he placed the ring on my finger. We were on a quiet pier together when one man walked by with his dog and said, “congratulations,” it was the perfect acknowledgement.

Newly engaged, Braydon and I boarded the World Yacht Cruise, we planned to have only a cocktail on board, but to my surprise we had the ‘premiere’ yacht experience. The front of boat greeted us with a table for two, complete with a waterfront view and a full course menu including champagne. During the three-hour waterway excursion we wined and dined on delicious fare and viewed the whole shoreline of Manhattan. We called our parents from the top of the boat while we cruised under the Brooklyn Bridge and sailed by the Statue of Liberty. It was undoubtedly a night we will never forget.

The rest of Easter weekend was just as memorable. Saturday morning we ran along the river (on the shore we sailed by the previous night), and during the afternoon we traveled to the Chelsea neighborhood. We lunched at the Chelsea Market and walked along the ‘Highline,’ a restored railroad track turned into a public park. For dinner we ate at my favorite Mexican restaurant and enjoyed the NCAA basketball game too. Sunday we woke up early to attend the 7am Easter service at St Patrick’s Cathedral. We had Easter breakfast at Norma’s restaurant at Le Parker Meridian and took a stroll through Central Park. Sunday we joined all my New York family for dinner to share our excitement and joy. Our fairytale weekend came to a close but the enchantment continues. Braydon and I could not be more excited to start this new adventure together and are so blessed to share this happiness with so many family members, friends and loved ones.

Love and Peace

Braydon picking me up from work and enjoying breakfast on the river.

We're engaged! My beautiful ring below :)

Cheers! On our dinner cruise

Braydon calling his mom underneath the Brooklyn Bridge.

Braydon in front of St Patrick's Cathedral.

Together in central park and stopping mid-run for a picture of the nyc skyline.

All the family celebrating the engagement!

“Once in a while love turns ordinary life into a fairy tale.”

-A quote given to Braydon and I from his mother on our engagement night.