Once Upon a Time...

...there was a sweater.

Not just any sweater.

A 100% cashmere, snowy white sweater

better than a wedding dress.

You see, after almost a year of dating and finally deciding "Yes!" this is what we wanted, convention and hassle seemed the least desirable thing imaginable.

So we set up a plan. Wedding preparations were FUN, with a covert, secret-like feel to them, and nobody asking annoying questions. Deciding what to wear. The bishop as conspirator. Getting a marriage license after swearing to secrecy the brother and in-law who accompanied us to the

county office. Laughing and smiling at the "Are you married yet?" questions and hearing about the bets people had going. Telling Adrie in detail the plan because she a) she didn't understand, and b) nobody would take her seriously. We Christmased. We vacationed. We even went back to work for a day.

After spending the day of New Year's Eve at work, I came home to get ready and open my much-anticipated new sweater, overnighted to me from a J Crew in the middle-of-nowhere-but-they-had-the-only-small-white-in-the-country. AND. There is was. The plastic electronic anti-theft device still firmly attached to the underarm. Would that deter me? No. Here I am, in my cashmere-sweatered glory, with my new groom.

The fun part of the story is that JCrew was mortified and overnighted that sweater to some store that could actually remove the dreaded device. And for my trouble, they gave me a handful of gift cards for my next purchase. You know, in case I ever elope again. Kidding. Kidding.