What's in a (last) name

When Jason and I got engaged I was not sure that I wanted to take his last name. Let's be honest, Ross to Griesenauer is quite a change! My reasons for not wanting to make the change had a lot to do with losing my sense of identity. I've had this name my whole life, 27 years to be exact, and I really could not imagine going by anything else. I was so often referred to by my last name or some version of it in high school and college that it really was just as much a part of my identity as my first name. If I changed my name it seemed like that person would no longer exist. Changing it would mean I would no longer share a common name with my parents or siblings, but not changing it would mean I would not share a common name with my husband or future children. Jason never pushed the issue and said he would be supportive of my decision either way.

A month or so before the wedding I finally decided that I would change my name. In the end it was important to me that Jason and I share a last name and I thought it would complete our union and really make us a family. And although Jason never said one way or the other, I do think it was important to him too and I think he may have been a little dissapointed if I had decided to keep my name.

About a month after the wedding I went to the DMV and Social Security office and legally had my name changed. I was still a little hesitant to make the change, but as I was walking out of the DMV with my new license I looked at my new name spelled out and just got a huge smile on my face. I was actually really happy to officially be a Griesenauer! Jason was out of town for business at the time. Even though I had told him I was going to change my name, I'm not sure he really believed me. When he got home from his trip I told him I had something to show him and pulled out my new license. He also got a huge smile on his face and seemed really happy that I actually went through with it!

It's been a bit of a process to get everything changed i.e credit cards, bills, accounts etc. and there are still many things that are in my maiden name. But legally it's changed and that's all that matters. It's been an adjustment introducing myself to people as Lauren Griesenauer but I'm getting used to it. I have to confess that spelling this sucker is not easy. When Jason and I first started dating it took me a while to learn how to spell his last name. I thought I had it down, but the first time I tried to spell it out loud for someone I totally messed up! I was leaving a message for someone at work and had to start over and spell it again and explain that I had just gotten married. How embarassing! It's going to be a feat to teach our children how to spell their name someday!

I am happy that I decided to take Jason's last name and in the end I have found that changing my name did not change my identity but only added to it.

Happy Thanksgiving!

This year I am grateful for:

• Jason. He has been my best friend for almost 5 years and now I get the honor of calling him my husband as well! He keeps me sane and helps me keep things in perspective. I don't know where I would be without his constant love and support. We are enjoying every minute of marriage and looking forward to our first holiday season as husband and wife!


• My family. I appreciate everything they do for me and the unique, special relationship I have with each one of them. I also feel very lucky to have acquired some wonderful in-laws :)


• My nieces, Millie and Merrill. I am so grateful to have them home and that Jason and I are able to play such an active roll in their lives.


• Our house. We are blessed to have a nice home filled with nice things and we look forward to creating many happy memories. We have truly made our new house our home and we could not be happier there!


• Friends. Jason and I have a great group of friends that we know we can always count on.


• Jobs. I am very grateful that in these tough times, Jason and I were both fortunate enough to maintain our jobs.
• The future and the endless possibilities that come with it.

Jason and I are looking forward to spending Thanksgiving with our families and eating lots of good food!!

Hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Wedding Pictures

We finally got our wedding proofs back. Check them out!

Reception

I'm a little behind on my wedding posts, but that's ok. It's fun for me to relive it everytime I write about the different parts of the day!

September 12, 2009

Between the ceremony and reception Jason and I and the wedding party rode around town on a trolley, making some stops to take pictures. We had drinks and snacks on the bus and it gave us a chance to spend some time with the wedding party and get the party started!

Just Married!

Woo Hoo, I can eat!

The wedding party

We stopped to take pictures at Lafaytte Park - it's so pretty!

And Washington Avenue for some urban shots.

Then to Citygarden for some Arch shots

One of my favorites of the day!

Then we headed to St. Louis Union Station for our reception. I have to say, our reception was awesome! Everything turned out so perfectly and it was better than I ever thought it would be. The reception was held in the Grand Hall at the Marriott at Union Station. I was a little nervous how things would come together because the coordinator who was responsible for our wedding changed 5 times from the time we booked to the actual wedding date. I was worried that some things would get lost in translation or slip through the cracks, but everything was absolutely perfect!

Some of my favorite moments:

I loved our wedding party entrance into the reception. We decided to let each groomsman choose the song that they would walk into with one of the bridesmaids. They picked some pretty interesting and diverse songs, but I think it turned out really cute and showed a little bit of each guy's personality not to mention some of their smooth dance moves ;)

Our entrance into the reception. I had envisioned walking up the stairs into the Grand Hall since we first went and checked it out and it was just as awesome as I thought it would be. As we came up the stairs I was blown away by our friends and family clapping and cheering for us. It was in that moment that I really realized how amazing it was that all of these people were here for us and that they were genuinely excited and happy for us. It sounds cheesy, but I really could feel the love in the room from all of the people that mean the most to us and it was just an amazing feeling. I think my brother's friend, Mary, said it best when she said, "You are like a rock star at your wedding." That's exactly how I felt ;)

My sister and Jason's cousin, Jake, both gave great speeches. They were both touching and funny and just confirmed what a wonderful family we have. My sister swore she wouldn't cry but she did choke up just a bit - which of course made me choke up!

The food! YUM!

Our first dance

The father/daughter dance

Mother/Son Dance

Our DJ, Jimmy Hussey, was awesome and I highly recommend him for any event. He was not cheesy and didn't talk too much like some DJ's can. He just played great music and kept everything on track all night. I spoke to Jimmy a few days before the wedding and he told me that I had the smallest "must play" list he'd ever seend from a bride (I think I had maybe 5). He was used to seeing pages of detailed play lists from brides. I told him my thinking was that he's the expert and he will know how to read the crowd and play the best music that will suit everyone. I trusted him to do his job without me micromanaging him. He said that it was refreshing to hear and promised it would be a fantastic night. The dance floor was PACKED all night long! It amazes me to look at some of the pictures and see how many people were out there! We got tons of compliments on the music and many people said how much fun they had dancing the night away!

The night went by so fast it seemed like it was over before it even started. Jason and I had so much fun celebrating with our friends and family. Once we got up from the table, we never went back. We were dancing and talking the whole night. We didn't even get to eat a piece of cake - there were 3 pieces at our table- we just never made it back to enjoy them! (Sidenote: since we did not get to enjoy any cake, we broke out our top tier before we left for the honeymoon and dug in! Who wants to wait a whole year?! I figure I can get a replica made for our first anniversay and we will be just as happy! Hopefully, we did not curse our marriage ;))

It really was a magical night. We got to celebrate with a room full of the most important people in our lives, the food was delicious, the music was great, and the dance floor was packed all night. What more can you ask for?

Counting My Blessings

It's been a rough week for us. Jason's Uncle Skip passed away on Monday. He was diagnosed with cancer less than two weeks ago and it was advanced to the point where he asked for no treatment - just comfort measures. Everything happened so quickly. When he first went into the hospital it was thought that he had pnemonia or some other relatively minor problems. Jason was able to visit him last week and while things weren't great, no one expected to lose Skip so soon and it's been very difficult to come to terms with. Skip was only 53 years old and leaves behind his wife and two kids that, at ages 18 and 21, are far too young to be without their father.
Jason and I have spent time talking about Skip and Jason has shared with me some of his childhood memories of his Uncle. He was a great man and will be very missed.

As typically happens when faced with mortality, I have been spending a lot of time thinking about my life and all those that make it so great each and every day. It's easy to remember to count your blessings in times of grief, but over time it's easy to let the day to day things like work and keeping up the household become the focus and sometimes we take the people in our life for granted, expecting that they will always be there.

So, today I am counting my blessings and feeling extremely grateful for my amazing husband, family and friends who are truly what make my life great. I am going to try my best going forward to not let the little stresses become the focus and instead focus on appreciating the people in my life and the time spent with them. It is my goal to not only remember this in times of grief and reflection, but each and every day. Because no one knows what God's plan is and I want to make the most of every minute of this life.

Weekend Update

The weather in St. Louis was absolutely gorgeous this weekend! Jason and I took full advantage and spent tons of time outside soaking it in before the cold returns.

Friday night we enjoyed catching up with our friends Emily and Joe over sushi. If you are a sushi lover you should go to Tani in Clayton and make sure to try the Oh My God roll! It's delicious!

Saturday we spent some time with Shannon, Scott, Millie and Merrill. Jason and I discovered several small playgrounds in our neighborhood and thought they would be a perfect place to take the girls. We all had fun playing!
Millie loves going down the slide!

Merrill enjoying the fresh air

Who doesn't love swinging?


Saturday night we celebrated Jason's Dad's birthday. We had a great time going out for pizza and hanging out with Jason's parents and his sister.

Today was our fall kickball tournament. It was another beautiful day to be outside. Our team, The Balldozers, took third place!

Action Shot

I have a very important position on the team - score keeper ;)

Millie and Merrill came to cheer us on

LOVE this pic of Millie and Jason!

So cool :)


The 3rd place Balldozers!


Hope everyone had a chance to enjoy the beautiful weather this weekend!

Halloween

Jason and I started our Halloween off enjoying chicken chilli with my family and seeing Millie and Merrill dressed up. Later we headed off to a costume party at our friends Daniel and Jessica's. Halloween is usually not my favorite holiday, but we had a good time celebrating with everyone!

Millie the Elephant :)

Merrill the Peapod! Too Cute!

Millie and Merrill greeting Trick or Treaters!


This year I dressed up as a trophy wife and Jason was my "sugar daddy"! We thought it was appropriate and funny since we just got married. I think we looked pretty cute :)


My Husband :)

There were some great costumes at the party:
Hall and Oates

Kayne West and Taylor Swift

Kate Goselin and the dad from Little People, Big World.

Hope everyone had a great Halloween!