My 30 Day Countdown

I know its been a while since I updated the blog. During the final month leading up to the wedding I thought I would be sweet and do a facebook status update every day for 30 days.

29 It's the final countdown to the wedding. 3 Gonna upload a pic a day until wedding Day. This is one of our first dates. We went out bowling and who do you think won that night?28

28 days and Counting. Early in the relationship we decided to head out to the city for a night of fun with friends and dancing. We didn't realize it but the first place we went to was only playing 80's music so after an hour of hanging out we head to the place next door which had songs I could recognize. And nothing tops a night off like Pizza early in the morning.

27 days to go. Another picture from dating in the early days. Shincy may look all cute and innocent but she was hustling me in pool. She says it was beginners luck.

26 days left. Valentines day 2010. A day of surprises for Shincy. Started of with Church while roses were delivered to her houses. Then to the movie theaters to watch Valentines day followed by reservations at a Thai restaurant and finally cheesecake to top the night off from the cheesecake factory.

25 days to go. Last May I had Sunday afternoon brunch with my sister and brother in-law as well as my cousin's and Robin at a new Thai Restaurant my sister had discovered. All the women in my family love Thai food so I was helpless to resist.

24 days to go. When Shincy and I started getting close in our relationship it was time to bring some of our friends together to celebrate. We all met up at Bacci's one evening and my boys were impressed with all the hot friends that Shincy had.

23 days to go. When a relationship turns serious its time that the families get involved. We all go over to Shincy's house one day to meet all her uncle's aunts and cousins. I used my charm, humor and dashing good looks to woo them all and get the ok to marry their precious baby girl.

22 days to go. We had a weekend free so it was time to take a long drive for an all day date. What better place to go then to Atlantic City! Neither of us gamble so we just went to hang out. We spent the day walking the boardwalk, hanging out at the mall there and just cruising through the casino's watching people loose their money. But the best part of the trip was on the road we were hungry so we pull off at a random exit in jersey and find a little pizza shop in a no name town. It was the best pizza either of us have ever had and we have no idea where we found it.

21 days to go. Our first formal event together. It was a beautiful wedding with an amazing backdrop and great reasons to dress up and take pictures. We look good all dressed up.

20 days to go. As a good boyfriend it was my job to make Shincy's birthday special. I decide to throw her a surprise birthday dinner and invite a few of her friends. They are all waiting at the restaurant and Shincy is telling me that she doesn't really want to go out to eat and that she is already full. She is making it hard for me to surprise her but with some prodding she agreed. She acted surprised when she saw all her friends there. Later I find out that one of her friends slipped up and told her about it so she was practicing her surprise face all day and was just busting my chops. I still don't know which friend told her but when I find out, I'll figure a way to get you back!

19 days to go. It didn't take a lot of dates for us to know that we had something special and would end up married. When you are single you have no clue what cut clarity, and color, even mean. After doing tons of research and asking all my married friends I was armed and ready to find that piece of jewelry that truly says I love you. I head off into the city and onto the diamond district to find Shincy the perfect ring. I end up haggling my way into a great deal for a custom round cut ring with a halo of diamonds in a medium setting. I hope Shincy likes it!

18 days to go. Being the hopeless romantic I had to find a way to propose in a big way. After buying the perfect ring I go to her family and get permission from them to marry their daughter. They loved the ring and knew I made their daughter happy so I got the green light. So the plan was to take a cruise to the Bahamas. We get to the security gates and I empty out my pockets into her handbag. I had the ring hidden in my camera case. She had no idea that she was holding the ring that I would soon be proposing with.

17 days to go. Even though i had the ring I wasn't sure how exactly to give it to her. I could do it on the boat over dinner, on their private island, or do I wait til the Bahamas. I decided that Atlantis was the best place to set the scene to propose. We get on the bus heading for paradise Island and I have the box with the ring inside my pocket. As we are touring the island I am trying to find the best backdrop to get down on one knee. I discover an intersection where the path of the hotel comes down and intersects with the main path leading to the beach. There is a fountain there which I decided would be the best spot to propose. So after a day in the lazy river, hanging out in the pool, and spending some time at the beach we head to the Atlantis aquiarium. After that I tell her I wanted to show her somewhere cool. I take her for a little walk until I find my spot. I tell her a little story as I reach into my pocket and pull out the ring. I get down on my knee and ask her "Will you marry me?"

16 days to go. "Will you marry me?" Instead of getting a yes from her I got an "of course". I don't even think she remembers what she said in that moment. She was nervous and didn't even realize that she got a ring. Since we were far away from home we couldn't tell our family and friends yet, we decide to go up to random strangers and tell them that we just got engaged while showing off the ring. Some people were like "why are you talking to me". Others were so excited for us it was as if we were telling our best friend. One lady even flagged us down after we told her so she can show her mother the ring. Also you will notice that in every picture we take afterward her hand is up so she can blind the camera with the ring.

15 days to go. Once we returned from our trip it was time to tell our family and throw a big engagement party! So we hired a photographer, rented a hall, and put on our finest attire. We had people dance, sing, and share a few words about the new life we would soon start. While it was an engagement party its purpose was for people from both sides to come together and approve for us to get married. Took a lot of planning but it was a day we will never forget. In 15 days we are going to blow that party out of the water!

14 days to go. When you live so close to Manhattan you don't go there unless you have to. The city has so much to offer but its sometimes a hassle to get in. In the summer of 2010 we decided we should take a trip into the city. We did some shopping, walked around the city, and took a walk through central park. As the evening came she recommended a nice Italian restaurant and finished it off by going to watch In the heights. It was a good date for 2 people about to get married.

13 days to go. One Saturday night there was a fair in town so we head over to check it out. She doesn't like going on rides to much but she agreed to go on the tame ones. To end of the night we take this picture on top of the Ferris Wheel. A cliche shot I know, but it was still romantic to get to the top with my arms around hers and looking over all the houses.

12 days to go. Planning a wedding takes time and we booked a lot of things as soon as we could. When we booked our photographer we got a couple of hours with him so he can take our engagement pictures. The photographer brought us to a beautiful park that had a lake in the middle. Shincy wanted the pictures to come out amazing so she bought this cute blue dress. The problem was that it was the middle of fall and it was freezing outside. We were chasing down geese for pictures and walking through leaves all while shivering. While taking pictures the photographer would hold Shincy's Jacket and she would rush to grab it as we moved to our next photo spot.

11 days to go. I am a guy who likes to follow my own tradition. One of those traditions is to have my birthday at Santoor restaurant. I have been having it there for over 7 years now. When I turned 28, Shincy was in charge of my party so she took me out to my birthday spot while getting a cake from my favorite bakery (Buttercookie). It was great because I had my friends there, my cousins, my new family to be, and the new friends I had made by meeting Shincy there. Thank you baby for an awesome 28th Birthday party (October 11 2010).

10 days to go. It was Halloween 2010 and we had aranged to take her sisters kid's out for trick or treating. Shincy saw a side of me where I taught the kids how to maximize their candy load and we have candy til today from that night.

9 days to go. Shincy and I have very different tastes when it comes to food. She love ethnic food and I love American. Get her some pad thai food and she is happy. For me a cheeseburger is what I crave. So when we go out its always a compromise when it comes to picking the restaurant. One of her favorite spots now is Sushiya. They have good sushi, rice orders, noodle orders and even curry. We go there often, so when we heard Robin was throwing a dinner there after proposing to Nima, Shincy was ecstatic. Not only because Nima got engaged that night but because she could chow down on some monster rolls and Thai Chicken Curry.

8 days to go. My cousin Nima had her engagement party at The Sterling, which is the same place that we are throwing our wedding. It was great because Shincy and I got to preview how the place looks like fully set up and decorated. We got a feel of how the stage would be set up and the view every table has to the center. We got to preview some of the food that we could possibly use for our own wedding. She had an awesome event and set the bar so now its time for me and Shincy to see if we can top last years event.

7 days to go! So what better way to introduce your fiance to the people you work with then the department holiday party! It was a cold night in December but that wasn't going to hinder us from dressing up and hitting the party. I wasn't sure what kind of reaction I was going to get from my co-workers but everyone told Shincy that I was a great guy and everyone commented on how beautiful a women she was. Thanks crew for saying good things about me to her! Thanks Shincy for proving to the guys I work with that I wasn't just making you up!

6 days to go. Happy Easter everyone! Speaking of holidays when you have 2 people coming from 2 different families, holidays sometimes are about compromise. During Christmas of 2010 Shincy's cousins were having a get together and so was my cousin Omar. Instead of picking one or the other we decided to take a trip to New Jersey in the late afternoon and then drive all the way to Astoria afterward. It was a busy day but it was great to be able to spend Christmas with the person you love while being with the people who love you.

5 days to go. So when I get a romantic idea in my head I have a tendency to run with it. So the 30 day countdown to the wedding was only thought up 30 days before the actual wedding. So during my anniversary earlier this year I got an idea in my head. I took Shincy out to dinner the night before our anniversary and handed her a sealed envelope. I told her to open the envelope before she went to sleep that night and can pull out the first item. Then the next morning she can pull out one item every hour until she is finished with the envelope. She is the inpatient type but she agreed to hold off looking at everything all at once. Inside the envelopes were 12 pictures, each representing a month of the year. On the back of each picture was a story (similar to what you are reading) of what happened during that month. So by the time she had finished seeing all the pictures it was time for our date where I took her out to recreate the first time we met.

4 days to go. So far Valentines days this February I decided to do something traditional and mix it up with something new. Valentines day is always busy, so the night before I took her out to her favorite restaurant Nan King. We were dressed up in her favorite color as well Red. After dinner I took her out to see a romantic comedy. The next day she had work but I was off all day so it was time to be romantic. What better way to be romantic then to prepare a 3 course meal for my hard working baby. So I hit up the supermarket and got all my ingredients together. For appetizer I made mini-pizza with the sauce being made from scratch. The main course was flavored rice with chicken. For dessert we topped ourselves off with cupcakes made from scratch as well. I wasn't sure how things would come out but she had a smile on her face after the meal.

3 days to go. After the new year hits every accountant knows that tax season is about to begin. People start getting their w-2, companies begin getting their reports in order and accountants start their long days and weekends at work. What makes it worse for us is that were planning a wedding at the same time. We had to cut back on regular "dates" and spend the time we did have together on wedding plans. Since it was harder for her I tried to take on as much responsibility as possible. I would go out and meet the vendors, pick her up after work if we needed to go somewhere, and just say I love you when she was feeling stressed. It was a tough time but we got through it and the wedding plans are coming out great!

2 days to go. As the days get closer to the wedding, people come up to congratulate me. I get advice from some of them. Some tell me that its not to late to run. Other offer me their experiences and lessons that they have learned. With the last few months being as busy as they were we still found time to appreciate the people in our lives. My best friend Phil got married and I stood as his best man.. Her friend Bushra also got married and we made sure to be there. While we are lucky to have each other in our lives its our friends and family who have shaped our lives. As we start our journey together we will remember to not forget those people who have brought us so much joy, listened to our cries, and offer a hand when we are down. We thank you, to everyone who helped us with our wedding and in our lives big or small.

One Final Day to go. This is it. Tomorrow is the big day. When you propose the marriage is so far away. You have all that time in between to pick out the flowers that you want, the wording on your invite cards, and picking the song you want to dance to. Doing all that you don't necessarily realize the scope of what it actually means. I still can't believe that tomorrow I am getting married. Shincy and I went to city hall to get our marriage license and then the realization of how official everything is started to hit us. I don't even know if its going to hit me fully until I see her walking down that isle in her beautiful wedding gown. I smile at her and think back to all the good times we had, and look forward into the future and see us raising a family together. At that moment I know I will have made the best decision of my life. Shincy I love you and I am excited for you to be able to call me your husband.

April 30, 2011 Facebook status changed to Married