So total fail on my part. Here I was promising to update once a week, and weeks have gone by with nothing. It's not like I haven't been on my computer. I have. Alas, I've been at a loss as to what to write.
February has been a pretty crazy month so far. In the beginning of the month, Mike and I went on a St. Rose Alumni sponsored bar crawl to celebrate the 2 year anniversary of when we met. Lots of fun and considering we met at an alumni event, it was a fitting way to commemorate it.
Last week my save-the-dates came in. We (I) made ours through magnetStreet and they came out beautifully. I love the idea of magnet save the dates. Two sets of friends that I have did magnets for their weddings, and I still have both on my fridge. It's a great reminder and it makes people look at my face every time to go to get some milk. Score! So after spending far too many hours assembling the envelopes and watching quite a bit of White Collar on Netflix, the majority of them were sent. General consensus has been good. Also, I got to send 3 of the magnets to different countries, which made me feel pretty cool. The woman at the post office wasn't impressed.
Last weekend I went home to go dress shopping with my mom, her best friend Debbie, and Mike's mom for the wedding. At the end of the day, my mom was the only one who bought a dress, but it's so gorgeous that we can't consider the day a bust. Chances are she'll outshine me at the wedding. It's all the bling she'll be wearing. Which brings me to shameless familial advertising:
My mom is now a representative for Premier Designs. They have a lot of really nice jewelry. My mom did her first training show on Sunday and she's off to a great start. Even I bought a few things, and I rarely wear jewelry. So if you're in the market for a gift for some one, or you just want to treat yourself to something nice, let me know, and I'll put you in contact with her.
On a different note, I've been thinking a lot about the big name change that's coming up in September. Shortly after Mike and I became engaged to be married, I decided that I would change my last name to his. It just seemed like the easy thing to do and I wouldn't have to constantly be correcting people if I kept my last name. So I was pretty set in this decision until I looked in the mirror one day and said, "Who the hell is Shelby T? That's a completely different person." Than I started having a mini panic attack. Right there in the bathroom at work. I wasn't ready to stop being Shelby H. And I'm still not.
I know who Shelby H. is. She grew up in a family that's both small and big. She traveled half way across the world and back again. She lived on her own for 2 years and had her own health insurance at the age of 21. She has done things that she's proud of and she's made some mistakes that she's trying to learn from. The person I am right now, on February 22, 2012, is because of the things I've done as Shelby H. and the people I've known and loved as Shelby H. I don't want to give her up without a fight.
But I also know things will change on September 28th. It won't be an instantaneous thing where I wake up and am suddenly a new person. It will be a gradual change. My years married to Mike will shape me and change me in ways that I'm pretty sure will be for the better (fingers crossed!). So ten years from tonight, I know I won't be the same woman that I am right now. And while that's a scary thought, it's also a good thought. Because we all need to change and evolve in order to survive.
So began a long decision making process that I believe I've finally come to the end of. Mike has never insisted that I take his last name, which is one of the reasons I love him. So I know that this decision has been mine. I have decided to hyphenate my name. I will be Shelby H-T. And yes, I will have to constantly correct people. And I know that I will get catalogs mailed to Mrs. Shelby T. But that's ok. Because Shelby H-T will be a combination of who I was, am, and will be. And as sentimental as that sounds, I like the symbolism behind it. I get to keep myself and my family, but also bring Mike and his family into my life, and this is a great way to show the world. All conservative and liberal arguments aside, this works for me. And I'm really excited to find out who Shelby H-T is.
What I'd like to know from you, my friendly readers, is what your view points on the whole name changing thing are. If you're married, what kind of decision process, if any, did you go through? And if you're not married, I'd love to hear what you think on the topic. As it's something I've spent a lot of time thinking about, I'm really interested in hearing what everyone else's thoughts are.
