And now, I pronounce you ENGAGED

Saturday night, Dallas and I attended our engagement party which was hosted by the CEO, the president and their wives. I'd never been to an engagement party before so I had no idea what to expect. It probably wouldn't have mattered. Dallas and I were blown away. We walked in and the piano player launched into the opening notes of "Here Comes The Bride". And that hit me square in the solar plexus. I turned to Dallas and whispered, "Hey. We're getting married!"

I have discovered that you can go through several months living your life like a spectator. This is not to say that I wasn't in touch with reality because I can still taste the salt of the New Zealand air and smell the orange groves of Florida but I have not allowed my mind to ponder the actual wedding day. Dallas and I have certainly discussed the details at length but I guess I was approaching the whole thing in a clinical, businesslike way. When I heard, "Da, da, dada. Da, da, dada", I could immediately imagine myself walking down the aisle and THAT took my breath away.

I've been with my company for five years and my colleagues have become my surrogate family. I know without a shadow of a doubt that if I needed to, I could call any one of them for help. Dallas is in the same boat. New Zealand is so far away but he too, is fortunate enough to be surrounded by friends who are now his brothers. These are the people who were at our party. It was very humbling.

After we had mingled for a bit, Dallas and I were called to the center of the room for the toasts. My boss started things off and I felt my eyes sting. Following that, my CEO took his turn. My eyes started to leak. Then, one of the girls at work had her say and I struggled for composure. Finally, Dallas's best man gave a short, beautiful speech and I dabbed away tears. Then it was my turn to say something. I tried to articulate to everyone there how much the party meant to us and how grateful we were and I struggled with the words. I am emotional by nature so fighting back tears is second nature for me but to bathe in the love and heartfelt good wishes from everyone just rocked my world. Thankfully, Dallas stepped in and spoke eloquently for both of us.

I find myself overwhelmed a lot lately. Yes, there is a modicum of stress involved in planning a wedding and sometimes, the mechanics of my career can cause me to chew Tums like candy but when I look at the big picture, I can't possibly complain. My life, our life, is pretty damn great.

The truth is, it always has been but it's only lately that I've recognized that.