Moments of Musing

Three Years of Marriage

Filed Under: anniversary, Marriage, wedding //

Three years of marriage

Two babies &

Still my 1 favorite love story. 

You’re my soul mate, team mate and my best friend. You make the good days great and the bad days better… There’s no one I’d rather walk beside life with. I love you to no end. Happy Anniversary to us!


Honeymooning in Brazil

Filed Under: honeymoon, wedding //

When I went through my entire blog for my “Through the Years” post, I realized that while I have discussed our “Annimoon,” I have never discussed our honeymoon (in detail). This surprised me quite a bit because it was hands-down one of my favorite vacations, ever. 
If you’ve followed along for a bit, you know our honeymoon search was extensive. When we finally chose to go to Brazil, we were ecstatic. Upon arriving at the airport (the evening after our wedding), our excitement level amped up when we were asked if we wanted to be bumped up to a (1) nonstop flight (2) leaving sooner! Yes and yes, please and thank you!

Our destinations in Brazil included Rio de Janeiro and Buzios. Our boutique hotel in Buzios was an amazing find, just as the city was, as well. It’s not too well known here in the U.S. but it is in South America and we were among many other international travelers while there. Think Nice, France meets Ibiza, from what I know of those places. 
If you have any questions about our trip there (hotels, food, transportation, safety concerns, clubs, etc.), feel free to ask me! I’ll let photos do the rest of the talking. 

RIO:

honeymoon, south america, just married, brazil, rio de janeiro, buzios
honeymoon, south america, just married, brazil, rio de janeiro, buzios

honeymoon, south america, just married, brazil, rio de janeiro, buzios

honeymoon, south america, just married, brazil, rio de janeiro, buzios
honeymoon, south america, just married, brazil, rio de janeiro, buzios

honeymoon, south america, just married, brazil, rio de janeiro, buzios
honeymoon, south america, just married, brazil, rio de janeiro, buzios

BUZIOS: 

honeymoon, south america, just married, brazil, rio de janeiro, buzios
honeymoon, south america, just married, brazil, rio de janeiro, buzios
honeymoon, south america, just married, brazil, rio de janeiro, buzios
honeymoon, south america, just married, brazil, rio de janeiro, buzios

honeymoon, south america, just married, brazil, rio de janeiro, buzios


Two years of living our vows

Filed Under: Marriage, wedding //

Two years ago, I woke up slightly nervous but so ready and excited to become your Mrs. After years of long distance (over 4,000 miles worth…), we overcame the odds and I truly believe we are stronger because of it. 
Despite all of the (amazing) changes, adventures, and experiences that have followed, it is still one of the best days of my life. Thank you for being my husband, thank you for making me your wife, and thank you for bringing Sebastian into this world with me. 
I couldn’t have picked a better –or funnier– team mate and life partner to grow old with. Cheers to two years of living, living our vows and creating a beautiful life together. Happy Anniversary..I love you so much!

Love Week: Changing to Married Name

Filed Under: Marriage, wedding //

I always knew it would be tedious to change my legal name to my married name. What I didn’t know it how I attached I’d been to my maiden name. Thankfully, I didn’t have a middle name so I was able to make my maiden name my middle name. After I made that decision, I got to doing the procedures needed for a legal name change. The process was not only longer than expected but there were also some challenges–one of which was pretty costly. The steps I went through were as follows:

bride, bridal portrait, anniversary photos, changing to married name, last name change, married name change

1. Request another marriage certificate from the county we were married in. Wait for it to be mailed back from New Jersey to Chicago where we lived at the time. 

2. Submit a name change application to Social Security, along with our marriage certificate and my passport. I received a letter confirming receipt of the application and then a few weeks later, all my documents, including my new social security card. 
3. Submit my application for a new passport to reflect my new name, along with two color passport photos, my old passport, my new social security card, and my marriage certificate (for good measure). 

4. When we moved back to New York, I then applied for a new driver license. For this in-person application, I brought my current (at that time) NYS driver license, new social security card, and marriage license. 
***5. Applied for a name change with my student loan servicing company. Because I was completely unaware that I had to do this, this step was the costly one. Sure, the others may have had small fees but this one cost me thousands. This is why: I didn’t learn that I had to change my name until I attempted to reapply for my loan repayment program late last November. The name change took about a month to process. By the time I made sure my name was changed and reapplied for my loan repayment program, my enrollment had lapsed and I was charged the normal loan payment fee for January. To say I was upset, irate and disappointed is an understatement. I have never missed a payment and I had gone about doing the things I had to but it felt like I was being penalized. Thankfully, the situation was resolved and my repayment application was approved once again!
I’m hoping this post will help any of you who are getting married and/or changing your name in the future. 

Anniversary photo shoot previews

Filed Under: anniversary, love, Marriage, wedding //

“Wedding days are beautiful and meaningful and they mark what’s considerably the happiest day of each couples life. But the aftermath of a wedding is many, many happy days that aren’t as loud, or as profound as the actual day itself, but they’re just as meaningful if not more. Anniversary sessions say ‘We still do.’ And isn’t that what it’s all about? Looking at each other and still wanting to say I do, over and over again.” – Hayley of Hay Alexandra Photo

When I first had the idea of doing a First Anniversary Shoot (a month early for weather reasons), I said I wouldn’t share the photos because some people think it’s weird to wear your wedding dress again. Well let me tell you, brides– PUT THE DRESS ON AGAIN! 
Seeing my husband look at me and tell me how beautiful I looked in the dress brought back all of our wedding day memories, but even more special than that was the reminder of how happy I am to be married to the love of my life… Plus, I’ve gotten more wear of the most beautiful (and expensive) item of clothing I’ve owned.
The shoot itself was so much fun. It was 3.5 hours of traditional and non-traditional locations and poses. Our photographer, the super sweet and talented Jen Larsen of Jennifer Larsen Photography, even sent us a preview Saturday afternoon, a mere few hours after the shoot! Imagine my thrill in the middle of an apple tree farm. 
Without further ado, here are a few previews:

If you’re in the NY/NJ area and you’re in the market for a photog, you should really consider her!!

To Travel and Beyond