Fall in Iowa

We have been busy spending as much time outside as we can while the weather is still nice.  Fall is by far my favorite season and it really is beautiful here in Iowa.  Here are a few pictures from the last couple of weeks!

At the Palisades letting Charley swim

Taking a hike on the Sac n Fox Trail

Pumpkin patch time...it was FREEZING this day

Labor Day Weekend

This weekend was packed with fun activities.  My sister, brother in law and nephews came in from Chicago for the long weekend.  We had so much fun going out on the boat, going to the park and going to the Kernals game.  Ryan even got to help drive the boat with Uncle John which he thought was pretty cool, although I am pretty sure his highlight was meeting the Kernals Mascot "Mr. Shucks" and running the bases after the game.  We also had an early celebration for John's birthday!  Here are some pictures from the weekend.

Driving the boat

Running the bases after the game

Helping Uncle John blow out the candles.

Just another day at the pool.....

This past weekend was the annual K9Splash where they close the pools down and let your dogs go swimming.  It is so comical to watch and Charley absolutely loves it!  She even made the newspaper on Monday.  We are such proud parents :-)  Here are a few shots from the pool.  It was pouring down rain so I didn't take too many pictures.

 I could use a hand guys

 Diving in

Just doing some laps

Where did the summer go?

This summer has gone by WAY too fast!  It has been a full range of emotions since the very beginning.  The last three weeks have been exhausting for us and we are ready for some down time at home.  This month started off with horrible news when my Uncle Bob passed away from cancer.  He was an amazing man who's life ended way too soon.  John and I headed to Vienna, IL with the rest of our family to say goodbye.  I have so many great memories of my uncle but I think my favorite is the week I spent with them one summer.  Even as busy as Uncle Bob was with farming I never would have known it because we spent the entire week horseback riding.  It is truly something I will never forget.  John and I stayed with my cousin Scott and his wife Misty and little boy Jace.  It was really great to get to hang out with them just wish it was under different circumstances.  Hopefully soon we will all be able to get together again.

The following weekend I headed to St. Louis to celebrate my best friends baby shower.  Seeing and hanging out with my friends from high school was so much fun.  Its amazing how much we have all grown up but have not grown apart.  I can't wait to meet baby girl Taveau this fall as well as Renee's twins!  So much excitement going on in all of our lives and it is wonderful to be apart of!

Me and the new mommy

Me and my mommy starting to think we are looking more and more alike!

This past weekend I headed to Lake of the Ozarks for another celebration,  Kelli's Bachelorette Party!  I could not be happier for her and it was great to see some friends from Kansas City that I haven't seen since I moved 3 years ago!  Kelli and I used to tell each other that some day we would look back and laugh at ourselves for being worried that we were going to be single forever.  Well we definitely had some good laughs over the weekend!  I have so many wonderful/crazy memories with Kel.  We decided we definitely don't see each other often enough and are going to make it a point to get together more once the wedding is over.  Can't wait to see where life takes us!!!

Me and the Bride-to-Be

This weekend John and I are both FINALLY home!  We are planning on getting on the boat on Saturday with some of the fire department and then sunday is take your dog to the swimming pool.  It's sad but the dog day at the pool is something we truly look forward to.  I will make sure to have my camera and get lots of pictures!

Honeymoon Cont...

Next stop was Venice.  I have to say this was our least favorite of all the cities we went to in Italy.  I think because we were so relaxed in Cinque Terre that going from there to busy Venice was a bit much.  We probably would have liked Venice a lot more if it was our first stop on our trip.  We spent two nights in Venice and enjoyed walking around and going to Mirano island.  Here are a few shots from Venice.

Had to get a shot of John and the fire hydrant!

Last stop before heading back to the states was a night in Paris!  We were exhausted at this point but are so glad that we got a quick tour of Paris...maybe one day we will be back!



Our Honeymoon in Italy Part 1

John and I had an AMAZING time on our Honeymoon in Italy.  We saw so much in the 10 days that we were there.  It was so nice to get away just the two of us with no connection to the world.  We had no cell phones, no computers, and couldn't even read a newspaper because it was all in Italian.  That being sad there was a devastating earthquake while we were in Italy only a few hours from where we were and we had no idea it even happened!

We started our journey in Rome.  To be honest we were probably the least excited about going to Rome but felt we needed to since we were going to Italy.  We were pleasantly surprised by Rome.  The history is unbelievable and the food was delicious!  We loved where we stayed it was a cute 5 bedroom B&B that was perfect and close to everything.  Our favorite parts of Rome were the Colleseum and the Trevi Fountain.  Here are some pictures from Rome

Next stop on our journey was Florence!  We took the train from Rome to Florence which was surprisingly very nice and comfortable.  Florence was one of our favorites.  Again we stayed in a small B&B which was very comfortable, nice and close to everything.  I think our favorite part about Florence was relaxing.  We saw a few sites but mostly enjoyed walking around the town, sitting outside enjoying a glass of wine and for John it would be seeing the statue of David.  I had by far the best bottle of wine I have ever tasted at a small restaurant here which I pretty much raved about for the rest of the trip.  We would definitely go back to Florence if we ever make it back to Italy :-)

Next on our list was a place that we were by far the most excited about and that ended up being far better than we could have ever imagined.  We were off to Cinque Terre to the town of Manarola.  If you ever have the opportunity to go to Italy you really shouldn't pass up this region of the country it is BEAUTIFUL!  The water is a beautiful turquoise and the mountains and towns are filled with lemon trees and brightly colored buildings stacked on top of one another.  We picked to stay in the town of Manarola (Cinque Terre consists of 5 towns all connected by a walking trail and railway).  I am so glad we stayed in this town.  It was very quiet and I think one of the most beautiful out of the 5.  We stayed at the top of the town and had a room overlooking the sea.  It was breath taking.  When we arrived at our hotel we were presented with champaign and caviar.  Our first thought was "oh no did we mis-price this place?".  We spent our first full day hiking from Manarola to Cornilia which was about a 2 hour hike up in the mountains with some of the most amazing views.  Our pictures definitely do not do it justice.  Day 2 we took the train to the 4th town (some of the trails were closed due to mud slides).

Too be continued......

A day off of work!

So after the wedding I decided to take Monday off of work and spend a relaxing day with John and Charley.  We had to return some tuxes down to North Liberty so we decided to pack up the car with some fishing poles, some lunch and head to Kent Park.  Charley was SO excited to get in the pond and swim, she definitely lives for the water.  She also lives for playing catch which caused some issues when we attempted to fish.  She thought us casting meant she needed to go retrieve the bate from the pole...this is when our relaxing day turned not so relaxing.  Charley literally was going crazy wanting to chase whatever we were casting into the water!  So needless to say, this might have been Charleys last fishing trip.  Here are a few pictures from our day.

Mr. and Mrs. John Cannon

We made it!!!  The day finally came, and besides it being 90 degrees for pictures it was a PERFECT DAY.  Seriously it could not have been any better.  My nerves during the day were at an all time high but once I saw John things just seemed so much better.  John and I took pictures before the ceremony which was a GREAT idea!  Our photographer found a spot for John and I to see each other without anyone else there.  It was perfect.  The look on Johns face is something I will never forget. 

We then spent a few hours taking photos and relaxing before the cermony.  When the cermony started out of no where a cool breeze picked up and it felt unbelievable!  I remember standing up there taking our vows with my veil blowing in the breeze and thinking how lucky I was to be marrying this wonderful man. 

Thank you to EVERYONE who made our day so special, especially to our parents!!!!

So here's to the new chapter of our life as husband and wife.  Can't wait to see where life takes us!

Here comes the bride...

We are down to the final stretch.  I have been so bad about posting on here lately as John and I have been so incredibly busy lately. 

March was a very busy month.  I was so lucky to have two showers as well as John and I's Bachelor/Bachelorette party.  We were so excited that so many people were able to make it and make for some great memories!  If its any indication on how much fun our wedding will be, LOOK OUT!

With April came wedding crunch time.  I feel like this month has FLOWN by.  We had a great Easter with John's family up in Independence, IA.  It is becomming some what of a tradition and John and I really look forward to getting together with everyone. 

I have had to go up to Madison, WI for work for two weeks now which has added to my stress levels.  Last weekend John and I headed to St. Louis to finalize wedding plans and get our MARRIAGE LICENSE!!!  I have to say this whole table #'s/arrangement is way over rated.  I am not sure how wedding coordinators do it but I am very thankful that mine seems to have everything all figured out!  It was nice to head out to the winery, listen to the band they had and realize "wow we are getting married here in 2 weeks". 

So now we are down to the wire...I feel like we have 1 million things on our to do list (in all reality its like 11).  I kind of keep forgetting that all these vendors are professional people and probably don't need me to call them to remind them of what time they need to be there 5 times a week.  OOPS!  Every time I pick up the phone I feel like I am stating a disclaimer of "I swear I am normally not this crazy...". 

I have also become VERY interested in the weather these days (okay find I am stalking accuweather.com and mostly because they have the forecast a month out, yes I know I am losing it).  Right now they are saying 76 degrees low of 56 and sunny.  We will take that!!!  Yes, I know this will change 900 times in the next 11 days haha. 

I cannot begin to say how excited I am to marry John.   We are so blessed that so many of you will be able to make it to St. Louis for the wedding!!! Your love and support means the world. 

Okay back to checking things off my list to try and save my sanity (or at least what is left!!!)

The Dress is in...

Okay there won't be any pictures to post since John reads this blog but, my DRESS IS IN!!!  I was anxious/nervous to go try it on hoping that I would like it as much as I did when we bought it and when it was 10 sizes too big...The verdict is in...IT'S PERFECT!  I am sooo excited!  I went down for my fitting crossing my fingers that it would fit and besides i being about 6-12 inches too long it was perfect.  Seriously how many girls are 6'3?  I don't get why they have to make them so long (probably so that you pay money to have them hemmed!). 

I keep telling John that the dress is a bright fucia color, but he doesn't believe me.  This week we got our invitations so I am headed to the post office after work to load up on stamps...they should be in the mail in the next few days!  Wow this wedding is really getting close. 

I went on a shopping spree this weekend (okay maybe it wasn't that bad to be called a spree) because I am thinking I need a new wardrobe to be Elissa Cannon (or at least that is what I am telling John).  I mean my whole identity is changing so I think it's out with the old, in with the new :-).  Poor John, hope he knows what he is getting himself into. 

From here on out things are going to start getting crazy hectic!  T minus 67 days and counting :-)

My First Wedding Shower!!!

This is a little late to post, but better late than never!  In January my bridesmaids threw me a wonderful wedding shower in St. Louis.  It was so much fun and so great to see so many faces that I don't get to see very often.  I was very impressed that my bridesmaids (who all live in different cities, none of which is St. Louis) were able to coordinate everything via email.  Thank goodness for technology!  Everything was absolutely perfect, I am truely blessed to have these people in my life!  It was also a great weekend for catching up with old friends.  I love that I am so close still to the friends I grew up with in High School.  We have all taken such different paths in life yet still when we get together it is like nothing has changed.  I love it!  My sister also brought my nephews down with her and I always love to see those little guys.  Ryan was a huge help with opening presents and a great entertainment value!

Here are a few pictures from the shower!  As you can see Ryan really enjoyed the flowers on teh cake!

My sissy and MOH signing my cookbook

A platter I received with my new name!

Ryan enjoying the cake...what a ham

Two of my bridesmaids and best friends!

Johns New Look

You may be thinking that he looks the same as he always did which is kind of true.  John decided after thinking about it for many years, to get LASIK done!!  I am pretty sure I was way more nervous about this than him.  He was so excited to never have to wear contacts/glasses again.  I will have to say, I was very disappointed that the Valium did not affect him ONE BIT!  I was really looking forward to some blackmail videos.  The doctor said that since he is a pretty relaxed guy normally that he wasn't surprised that the Valium didn't do anything.  (If it were me, I am sure I would have been floating in the clouds since I can be a headcase).  The procedure lasted all of about 20 minutes and we were out of there.  John was in pain for about an hour and a half but after that was feeling good and able to see!  I am so jealous and think I will have to get it done someday as well!  Here is a picture of John before going under the laser!

Christmas in St. Louis

I have really fallen behind on posting!  This month has been CRAZY so far to say the least.  I have a feeling its going to be like this until the wedding!  John and I headed to St. Louis for Christmas around the beginning of January.  My sister, brother in law and two nephews also came down so it was great to have everyone all together!  I can't believe how big the boys are getting and how hilarious they are (and pretty cute).  Opening presents with little ones is just so much fun, makes Christmas seem magical again when you see their eyes light up. 

John and I also took advantage while we were in St. Louis and did our food tasting for our wedding.  It was a day FULL of food considering we tried food at the winery and then went back home where dad was making prime rib! We also got to see my Aunt Marie, Uncle Marshall and Megan my cousin.  We had a great meal, lots of wine and was so good to catch up with everyone.