full of news...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34824610/ns/technology_and_science-science/?GT1=43001
a slug that can produce chlorophyll!!!!!!!!?!?!?! How freaking cool is that? Call me nerdy, but this could be our solution to the energy crisis. Someone better get on that.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34829978/ns/world_news-americas/?GT1=43001
Unfortunately, in other news, a 7.0 quake hit Haiti today followed by two large aftershocks of about 5.o... the death toll is predicted to be immense, hospitals crumbled to the ground. The country is covered in dust... My prayers are with the country and everyone of their inhabitants' family and friends. Haiti is a beautiful country rich in biodiversity and a portion of their income is based on eco-tourism... Hopefully this quake does not push their status further into impoverished that before.

In less, international science related news... the cake topper came in the mail today and its gorgeous, I absolutely love it. In other more serious and saddening "mail" news Rocky's memorial stone came in the mail yesterday.. I caught myself hugging and holding it like a child today, only for a moment, I swear... *sigh* I miss my little Rockypoo...

Sweat related news... I did some working out today! Julianne's Cardio Ballroom dancing totally kicked my ass. I had to pause the hour long dvd for a few minutes to catch my breath. This left my muscles crawling!!! Thank you amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/Dance-Julianne-Cardio-Ballroom-Hough/dp/B002LSI1GY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1263341078&sr=8-1

Also, yesterday we finalized our "wedding party" :-) there will be 5 bridesmaids and 5 groomsmen... I don't know what exactly the etiquette is regarding asking the remaining 3 lovely ladies to be in the wedding... but Im very excited to have my "sisters" by my side!!! The MOH's have already been alerted, my Burkert sista's from another mista's. <3 Along with this, we've started drafting the guest list... we have a lot more guests that I had anticipated... we're looking at about 200 (so far).

In other wedding related news... I have the sweetest idea for the numbers for the tables. Now, I know there are only a handful of people who read this... Michael, Andrea and my mother are pretty much the only ones I'm aware of so I'm going to share the secret. *shhh* I've come to terms with the fact that, although the dogs are very much a part of our family, they will not be able to be present at the ceremony, sadly. However, I've been searching for a way to incorporate the little mutts somehow. In the shower yesterday, it finally hit me!!!! How adorable would it be to dress the pups up in "formal attire" (bow ties and flowers for the boys and girls respectively) and take their picture with an oversized styrofoam and/or cardboard number decorated appropriately to coordinate with the theme of the wedding?? Now, since everyone in the bridal party has puppies what could be better than having "dogs of the bridal party showcase"?!?! Oh not to mention, the dogs in the family/bridal party are FLIPPING ADORABLE and a lovely mix of big/small/male/female. I think it will really be adorable. One thing I've had in mind for all the tables is that I don't want them to look exactly alike. I'm not a very "uniform" person... I'm all for the "whimsy" in things... I also have started drafting a poem... Andrea gave me the idea! What a helpful FSIL! :-) I was sincerely lacking creativity last night and I came up with a few stanza's... Michael thinks its cute so far. I also would like him to contribute a few lines... so it will really be something special. :-) 1 more thing before I go!!! The "coordinator" of Blue Falls Grove http://www.bluefallsgrove.com/ has officially "pencilled" us in for June 25th 2011! I don't want anything to be cliche about this wedding... except, of course, the fact that it is, in fact, in the most popular wedding month, but that's it! I PROMISE!! I'm really getting very excited about this whole thing... I've also come to terms with the fact that Mike doesn't really ever want to talk about anything wedding related especially on the phone, or at the bar, or at home... or anywhere else really. Haha. So I'm just going to dive into this! Some of you may know that I had an AMAZING job my senior year in college as a program coordinator which, HIZZAH! I got to plan events for an entire year!! So I've got some experience with this whole "coordinating" and "deligating" and OF COURSE "not forgetting any little detail!" Plus, I have an amazing wedding party, and amazing family, soon to be family, and lots of people with experience under their belt. This is going to be entirely too much fun. :-)

So all good news, bad news, sad news, wedding news aside... I hope everyone has a lovely Tuesday. Three more days til the weekend!