From Wedding Plans to Weeds and More

Bridal today, rain or shine!

2010-05-16T10:58:00.000-04:00

I've considered myself lucky to not have to worry about rain on my wedding day, since we are doing our ceremony and reception indoors. Well now that my bridal is scheduled for 5:00 pm with a 40% chance of rain, I'm getting anxious about the weather. My photographer and I are looking for back-up locations (can't do Prestonwood because of a wedding today). Time is set for 5:00 so we can't do earlier. Any ideas? Here is an iPhone shot of my bridal bouquet, courtesy of Cydney and The English Garden. I love it!

Wow

2010-05-11T22:29:00.000-04:00

We are in the midst of finalizing the details for our wedding that is now only 39 days away. Wow. This time has flown by, and its speeding up it seems. I imagine these next weeks will be a whirlwind. It doesn't help that I have been working tons of overtime (thankfully at time and a half) and being blessed with lots of activities throughout the week to keep us busy.

So far, we've heard back from about a third of our group, with 81 yeses and 11 nos. Jake and I have vowed to tell the other if we've already checked the mail. It's cute, he calls me and reads off each response card and tells me what people want, little notes written, etc. I'll leave you with a fun picture from our April 11 engagement shoot, courtesy of April Sirit, Evoke Photography.

Engagement Pics, Blogged!

2010-04-26T20:49:00.000-04:00

Wow so many updates to announce! I don't have much time but I will share that we've been blogged! Please visit the website of the lovely April Sirit for our post here. I'll post as soon as we get the files.

Wow

2010-04-18T10:50:00.001-04:00

In less than 9 weeks we will be husband and wife. Although it doesn't feel like it, we've actually made a lot of progress in the wedding plans lately. Here's an update at 62 days away.
- Jake got our wedding bands on Friday
- We finalized Groomsmen attire
- We had our engagement pictures taken last weekend
- Our invitation addressing is almost complete

I have my first shower next weekend - I'm very excited and looking forward to it! I am working on some random wedding tasks while Jake is catching up on sleep on this beautiful Sunday. He got up with Tucker and let me sleep in :)

This week I'm hoping to order candy, sparklers and matches, as well as finalize our linen rental with CE.

87 days

2010-03-24T19:40:00.000-04:00

A long time ago, a guy named Jake proposed to me. We had probably 435 days in our engagement. Now we are down to 87. Wow. I am so happy it is almost here! We have a lot to do, but we are getting things checked off the list. I am also happy to say that I have some updates :)
- We met with Cydney from The English Garden to get a better idea of our vision. It was a productive meeting, Jake even came along. He is a very good sport and actually shows a lot of interest in the planning. Of course, it is his party too so its nice to share the load.
- We worked on our vows and readings for the ceremony this past weekend. It is all becoming real!
- My friend and sorority sister Sara is addressing our invitations, she picked them up last weekend - these should go out mid-April. I loved her font options - I will definitely post some samples when I get the chance

Hope you guys are all enjoying this beautiful weather! I have lots of gardening to do

Florist, Honeymoon and Invitations!

2010-03-01T11:06:00.000-05:00

I am so excited to finally annouce that we have decided to use The English Garden for our florals and wedding day decor. Cydney was so amazing at the initial consultation and her proposals were very detailed that we couldn't have asked for more. We are thrilled to work with her for the big day as she has truly captured our vision and will work within our budget to make our day everything it can be :)

We have also booked our Honeymoon for the Riviera Maya, Mexico. I love having a tropical vacation to look forward to and an excuse to shop for anything honeymoon-related.

Our invitation order is going in today and we expect a proof in the next couple of days. Assuming everythings fits on our Response and Accommodations cards, we should be in business!

Its crazy to think we have only 3 fulls months left before the big day. Its definitely crunch time now!

Happy Early Birthday to Jake, plus a flower update!

2010-01-16T17:21:00.001-05:00

Jake's birthday is Tuesday. Have I gotten him anything for his birthday? No. Do I have a lot of "ideas" well, yes. Luckily I have Monday off so I should have plenty of time to play birthday fairy. Happy early birthday Jake!!

Florist meetings are in full effect. At this point, the frontrunner is Cydney with The English Garden, but I have one last meeting and I haven't received any written propsals at this point. During our meeting, Cydney got up a couple of times with creative ideas, grabbing flowers from her fridge to illustrate. She also seems to be very flexible working within my budget, and will incorporate what glassware/containers/materials I have in order to help derease costs. Speaking of this, I need to get her some photos and lists of what I have already! She's even helped me come up with a more official color scheme based on the color of the bridesmaid dresses. Jewel Tones!

Photo credits in order of appearance:

Photo from the My Bouquet Floral Design Blog's, Jewel tone Purple post

David's Bridal Style 83312 in Sangria

Time...

2010-01-10T22:20:00.000-05:00

Why don't I ever believe someone who says that time will fly by? Or why don't I take them seriously? I'm amazed at how quickly life has been going lately, but luckily we have a lot to be thankful for so its times like these that I try to slow down.

January is an incredibly busy, yet PRODUCTIVE month for us. I've found that since I can't get away with as much wedding "research" at work anymore, that it has to be done at home.

Here are my goals for the next few weeks (in no particular order in hindsight)
1. Book florist by second week of February
2. Order bridesmaids dresses by end of January (this means shop with Sarah/Jamie if necessary?)
3. Complete honeymoon research by end of February, booking if necessary
4. Finalize menu by second week of February, have invitation order placed in the next week
5. Begin super secret wedding gift project for Jake :)

I'll leave you with a picture from our mini-engagement shoot at the fair with Evoke in October

Under 200 Days!

2009-12-05T08:58:00.000-05:00

Since my last post we've come to the conclusion that Costa Rica will no longer be on our list for possible Honeymoon locations. We do want to go to Costa Rica one day, but we've realized that we do not have enough time to see all of the things that we want to see in such a diverse country, and we'd have to move around a lot, which would not be the relaxing trip that we want.
So now we are targeting Caribbean locations with beautiful beaches and good dive locations nearby. I haven't done a dive in some time, but since Jake has his advanced certification I'm totally comfortable diving with him.
Also, we are now under 200 days to the big day - 196 from today. Its been a busy time - we had two engagement parties, Thanksgiving, and now we are coming up on the holiday season. I have a huge project at work going on, so I've had to put wedding planning and also blogging to the side.
I do have a picture to share from our mini-engagment session at the State Fair with our photographer, April Sirit of Evoke Photography. We had an awesome time at this shoot and look forward to our full session in the spring.

Costa Rica

2009-11-20T13:37:00.001-05:00

(Image from TripAdvisor)

My workload today is pretty much non-existant (knock on wood) so I'm doing some research on our potential Honeymoon destination today! I'll post any must-sees or dos for us if I come across any :)

Good Intentions

2009-11-16T15:27:00.000-05:00

I had very good intentions of doing some solid Honeymoon research over the weekend. I did find some helpful articles and reviews that talked about what to see/do in Costa Rica, but I wasn't sold on any particular resort or area. I did get a little side-tracked before the research began as Jake and I sat down to finalize our budget and look at our guest list again, which led to research on bulk florals, etc, so I digress.

I started a list of what we wanted to actually do on the Honeymoon (if we went to Costa Rica) and this is the list that I have so far (literally):
Costa Rica - zipline

I know that I can add to that from what we've discussed already - horseback riding, possibly scuba diving, touring local volcanoes, hitting up a spa, and I'd love to spend some time on a beach, weather permitting. Costa Rica's "rainy" season starts in April/May, so we would expect some wet weather if we go in June, but I've read very different extremes on how rainy it actually can get during that time. It shall be an adventure though!

Friday the 13th

2009-11-13T14:00:00.002-05:00

Since we got engaged in February on Friday the 13th, I will always feel like every Friday the 13th is special. It has been a whole 9 months since we got engaged. According to my wedding tracker, we only have 7 months and 6 days to go! This means that we have since passed the halfway mark in the wedding planning process, and I feel like there is still a lot to do - probably because there is.

Today, I called Olga to schedule my appointment to drop off my wedding dress, so I can check that off the list! I'll be dropping it off mid-January to be pinned and cut before my first fitting.

Here is a list of the other things that need to be done in the grand scheme of things for our wedding:

Bridal Party Attire
Florist
Save the Dates
Wedding Website
Vows/Ceremony
Invitations (which we can't order until after our tasting) - note to self, need to schedule tasting!
Honeymoon

In the meantime, Jake and I have some Thank You notes to write for gifts that we received at our Engagement party last weekend. We also hope to do some research for the Honeymoon this weekend :)

My Lazy Boy

2009-11-12T15:59:00.000-05:00

Here is an "action shot" from our walk during my lunch break today. As you can see below, Tucker was not interested in walking! I do love it when he lays like this though :)

My Dog is Fratacular

2009-11-06T10:39:00.000-05:00

At the State Fair a few weeks ago, I bought Tucker an NC State Block S collar from the Unleashed booth. Since Jake and I are State alums, we thought it was only proper for him to represent our Alma Mater. When I was talking with JP, Unleashed's owner, I mentioned that we were having trouble with Tucker pulling on his walks. He recommended that we come in to get him a harness, so we did just that. Unleashed on Lake Boone Trail is an awesome dog store that has tons of dog-friendly treats, food, collars, leashes, and of course, toys among other dog-related items. If you are in the Raleigh area, I highly recommend them! And treat your dog to a trip to Unleashed - Tucker loved it as he got lots of treats during the harness-fitting process.

So back to the harness. Of course we had to get a manly harness for our son, since he is such a handsome boy after all. So no pinks, purples or anything like that. The best option that they had in Tucker's size at the time was a pattern called "Bone Hunter" in camouflage fashion. Here's a picture of Tucker sporting his new look as he stopped to check out the ducks on one of our lunch walks this week.

I think he looks mighty fratastic, don't you? Camo and a Block S collar would make any NC State frat boy proud. And the harness has been one of our best dog-purchases to date. Tucker rarely pulls and I feel much more in control on our walks. I'm very grateful especially since Tucker hit 78 pounds this week and at 10 months, has a lot more growing to do!

Home-grown Rose

2009-11-05T16:48:00.000-05:00

I was out on our balcony Tuesday night and realized that my Climbing Rose had a new bloom! This will probably be the last rose of the season, but it was too beautiful to leave outside. It's still lovely sitting on our kitchen table. This is just an iPhone shot, but I love it!

Kiva: Loans that Change Lives

2009-11-02T10:14:00.000-05:00

I'm taking a break from Wedding Related posts today to tell you about Kiva. In a nutshell, Kiva is a micro-financing website that connects lenders, such as myself, to hundreds of Entrepreneurs worldwide who are trying to become more economically self-sufficient. The loans start at $25 a piece - lenders come together to collect enough for an Entrepreneur's loan. Then over the course of a few months to a year, the Entrepreneur will pay back the loan. You are able to search different regions, genders, and types of business before you make the loan. I've contributed to a Fish Seller in Azerbaijan and a Poultry farmer in Vietnam, for example. Once the loan is paid back, you are able to re-lend it to other needy individuals or groups.

Most of the businesses will keep track of their progress and keep lenders updated through journal entries. Its very fulfilling to know that just a small loan from one person can combine with loans from others to help get a small business off the ground. Kiva makes it very easy to make a difference when you are physically worlds away. I encourage you to check out their website and learn more about the Kiva story. Visit http://www.kiva.org/ today!

Real Wedding Find on Green Wedding Shoes

2009-10-28T16:49:00.002-04:00

Green Wedding Shoes is one of my favorite Wedding blogs for inspiration. Now that I have more time to actually read wedding blogs again, I had to share a Wedding that I found inspiring. Please check out Megan + Simon's Backyard Wedding on Green Wedding Shoes. It has color, it has style, it has succulents! I also LOVE the bouquet shown below.

(Photo credit: JAC Photographers)

Going for a R-I-D-E

2009-10-27T13:55:00.000-04:00

One of Tucker's favorite things is going for a ride. Until Jake and I are completely, 100% ready to put him in the car, we cannot say the "R" word. If he hears it, he will bark until you just have to get in the car, forgetting whatever else it was that you were supposed to do before you left or bring with you. So here is a recent picture of Tucker on a ride, nose out the window, taking the world in as every Chocolate Lab should. :)

A New Look

2009-10-27T12:20:00.000-04:00

I have another confession: I was never really in love with my Blog template. But luckily, I found one that I feel suits me and the blog, its Rounders 4 by Douglas Bowman. Wherever you are, thank you Douglas!

Back to Blogging!

2009-10-27T12:06:00.000-04:00

I know I've fallen behind on blogging, okay? The first step is acceptance - no denial here. Its very clear that I have been slacking off when Jake has asked me 2 or 3 times since my last post if I've updated my blog at all. The answer now will be, YES! October always has been an incredibly busy month for my family, so I can put some of the blame there. Work also has been extremely busy - I've been working overtime every week which is nice when the paycheck rolls around but long days are not my favorite (are they anyone's?).

We have our first wedding-related event coming up the first weekend in November, our Engagement Party! Mom and I still have a lot of work to do to prepare, but we are both looking forward to it. I don't have any real updates in terms of wedding planning, except that Mom's friends have called dibs on my Bridal Luncheon. Oh and Jake and I took some fabulous engagement pictures at the State Fair last week! We had a lot of fun with April and Emily, her lighting assistant. I expect to have proofs sometime around December and I'll be sure to share once I do!

THE Bridesmaid Dress?

2009-10-06T11:02:00.000-04:00

This past Saturday, my local Bridesmaids joined me at David's Bridal for our first Bridesmaid dress outing. We had a lot of fun and I felt like it was a huge success. If I had to decide on a Bridesmaid dress today, this would be *the one* - I know, this is completely different than what I had in mind when I went. I originally wanted black, then greens and blues. Well the dress itself (style 88312) didn't wow me in the green or blue options that they had. But what I did really like was the color shown below, Sangria!

Here is a link to the dress on the David's Bridal website. The best thing about it, besides the fact that its fun, flattering on everyone, and could definitely be worn again are (drumroll please) the POCKETS! I have a few pictures from our outing that I'll try to get on here soon - they are on already Facebook for those of you who can view them already.

So, if I go with this as the bridesmaid dress, then Sangria and green (with accents of yellow and orange) will be our colors!

Another Bouquet I love

2009-09-28T13:40:00.000-04:00

I definitely want a colorful bouquet with lots of rich greens, succulents, and maybe even some non-traditional greenery additions. I love the Billy Buttons, Succulents, and Dahlias in this bouquet. Ideally, I'd like yellow to be more of an accent color than the main color in the bouquet, so I'd cut some of the BBs from this and add different colored dahlias, roses, anemones, etc. Plus that gray stuff that I think she calls Kangaroo Paws would have to go.

Photo Credit

More Chuppah Inspiration

2009-09-28T11:14:00.001-04:00

I found some beautiful Chuppah pictures while catching up on some blog-following this weekend. Seeing how these are put together should definitely give Jake and I a better idea of how to build/assemble our chuppah. And we probably should go ahead and start looking for materials soon. Regardless, here are the photos, enjoy!

Photo Credit

I particularly like how the flowers hang down in the back of this one. Love that its simple but still very elegant. Maybe I could find some fake flowers that would string easily to create this effect?

Photo Credit

I could not resist...

2009-09-26T21:54:00.000-04:00

This is our venue, the ballroom of Prestonwood Country Club (photo credit Tamara Lackey Photography). I really like this set-up a lot, but we won't have a band, instead we'll have Jeff Simpson (Simpsound) as our DJ for the ceremony and reception. I'm also debating having a head table or a sweet heart. I see the positive aspects of both. Do I want to be with the bridal party or alone? Even as I think about the differences I can't decide. But I do need to consider lighting options and videography as well. So much to do!

Prestonwood spotted...

2009-09-26T20:53:00.000-04:00

Ashley of Story Photographers just blogged about this beautiful Prestonwood wedding of Allison and Scott. Its always fun to see our venue set up and to get ideas on all the ways to use the space. I've been seriously neglecting the good ol' blog - I keep saying, "I've been busy," and I have been, but I need to get some wedding things done, stat.

Ask my two, yet to be asked bridesmaids to be bridesmaids
Schedule our tasting
Get serious about flowers - do I want to DIY the centerpieces and have the florist do the bouquets/bouts?
Schedule meetings with florists - how many is a reasonable number to interview?
Figure out flower budget (eeek)
Schedule an appointment to try on bridesmaid dresses @ DB
Work on guest list and start getting addresses for e-party
Are we going to do Save the dates?

Yea, the list could go on and on. When I sit down and think about it, the 8 months we have left just keeps shrinking and shrinking. Oh and can we please figure out the Honeymoon plans?? And when do vows come into play, and music? I wish work wasn't so busy right now so I could get a lot more wedding tasks taken care of on the clock. I'll leave you with a picture from the wedding mentioned above. Hope you all enjoy the weekend! (And Go Pack! Great win vs Pitt!)

The Registering Process

2009-09-13T15:36:00.000-04:00

We thought the registering process was going to be easy. Everyone says its so much fun, and they are right, it is. But I believe that the registering process is much better after its over. Sure, I know we may tweak some things online later on down the road, however I'm glad that after 5 hours of analyzing options, we can say that our first registry is done. The Bed Bath and Beyond store in Cary Crossroads is daunting, and Jake's napping now after we finished round 2 earlier today. We broke up our visits into kitchen/fine dining the first visit and bed/bath the second visit. I think we made wise decisions and I hope that we'll be happy with our choices for years to come.

Yes, we are still planning on registering at Crate and Barrel in addition to BB&B - we have considered adding a Macy's or Belk's, but we'll just have to see how much we can handle!

Quarantined

2009-09-09T11:50:00.001-04:00

After a busy week at work last week and a short trip to the beach, Jake and I came back to Raleigh Sunday. Monday morning I took him to Urgent care and he was diagnosed with Swine Flu! He had a terrible fever Monday and Tuesday, but is improving every day. I'm basically waiting until it hits me. We ate off each other's plates Saturday night, but since Sunday we've been avoiding contact, practicing good handwashing, etc. My management has asked me to work from home this week to avoid spreading the flu if it is in fact in my system... So Jake and I are quarantined for now.

Fun Web Finds

2009-08-28T11:28:00.002-04:00

Work has been mostly slow this morning (knock on wood) so I've been able to check out the usual wedding blogs that occupy my time so well. Today I found three very unique posts, from the Editors of Martha Stewart Weddings, Snippet & Ink and Style Me Pretty.

The Bride's Guide idea is to use Radicchio as a stamp that creates a very nice rose. You can see the post here. I'm intrigued, but not sure how I would apply this to our wedding...
I love the Chuppah that S&I calls to attention here - it wouldn't necessarily fit into our overall feel for the wedding, but I love the colors and the free flowing fringe on the sides.
The Orange and Teal Bash posted on SMP is super fun. I love the lanterns on the Chuppah and the fabulous pops of color. Again, a little out of our realm but still very cool to see.

So not necessarily anything that we will be using, but hopefully this helps make your Friday go by a little faster as it did for me :)

Prestonwood Pictures

2009-08-26T16:14:00.006-04:00

This past Sunday June (FMIL) and Liz (FSIL) went with me to take another walk through Prestonwood. They were setting up for a banquet so there were some tables out in the ballroom but I took some more pictures to get a better feel for the space. Here are some of the pictures from our visit!

We are very excited about hosting our ceremony and reception at Prestonwood - luckily the room is gorgeous so we won't have too much decorating to do but we'll still dress it up a bit :)

Aisle Mock-Up

2009-08-22T14:53:00.005-04:00

I took some time today while Jake played video games in this rainy weather to lay out the vases I have in order to get an idea of what our aisle could look like. I can't quite decide if I like the vases lined up in a straight line or grouped together, kind of overlapping. I took pictures of both set-ups below.

Lined up straight, even with the aisle about 2-3 inches apart.

Grouped or bunched together - I think I will need more vases to get the full effect of this one.

So far I have a total of 11 vases ranging from 10 to 19 inches. I only have three that are 16 inches or greater - I'll need to get a better variety of vases in the 14-19 inch category. I like the look of having all different sizes instead of lining them up by height. Hopefully I'll be able to get some shopping done tomorrow and find some more.

I do need to do some research on floating candles. The diameter of these vases is from 4 to 5.5 inches. I'm guessing that the candles should all be the same size around 3 or 3.5 or so. I want white floating candles. I think the water heights inside the vases will vary as well, but I don't think I want them to be higher than 2-3 inches from the top.

The dimensions in the half of the ballroom that we're using for the ceremony are 48x62. With a chuppah at the end I'm guessing our aisle would be about 50 feet long?

My Very Own Inspiration Board

2009-08-21T15:08:00.007-04:00

Out of boredom at work comes my very own inspiration board, from images that I've found across the web. Unfortunately I don't think there is a way to make this show up as a larger image in the blog post, but you should be able to click on it to be taken to the full-size image. Credits below from left to right.

Photo credits from left to right: Carrie Patterson Photography, Ink & Peat, J. Crew, lovethecard.com, J. Crew, Ink & Peat, Keily and Greg's Nestledown wedding shot by Dana and Jeremy, and Martha Stewart weddings

A Chocolate and Peanut Butter Revelation!

2009-08-21T12:27:00.009-04:00

After having my paws in a huge bowl of Peanut Butter M&Ms this past weekend at Mom's and then having some Reese's Pieces at the house, I've come to the conclusion that the M&Ms definitely fulfill both a chocolate and the peanut butter craving, while the Pieces are just kind of peanut buttery. Don't get me wrong, both will suffice in a movie theater or on the road for a quick convenience store fix, but I have to admit that I like the Peanut Butter M&Ms better than the Reese's Pieces.

Now I just need to find out if Mars will make Peanut Butter M&Ms in different colors to go in my candy bar...

10 Months To Go!

2009-08-19T10:40:00.004-04:00

It's amazing how time passes so quickly. Everyone keeps telling me the older you get the faster time flies. I feel like summer started yesterday! This is just a reminder that I need to kick it up a notch in the wedding planning world.

Here are pictures of some non-wedding related things that make me happy. These were all taken on my iPhone. I need to take a picture of Jake soon so that I have a more recent one of him. I guess its time to upload the pictures from my camera over the last few weeks!

Tucker watching a hummingbird at the feeder

I love these little guys!

These are the beautiful roses that Jake gave me for our 4 year dating anniversary and 6 month engagement anniversary! They smell amazing and the colors are beautiful. I think if I go with the Emerald and Aqua color scheme that I will be incorporating orange tones in the flowers to add a punch of color. Thanks for the inspiration and the beautiful flowers Jake!

Bridesmaid Dress Ideas?

2009-08-14T14:05:00.003-04:00

I've had some time today to surf the net looking for suitable bridesmaid dresses in the Emerald to Aqua range. This is what I've found so far. The main qualifications are that they need to be in the appropriate color range and be about knee length. My motivation for having non-matching bridesmaid dresses is so that each bridesmaid can choose a dress that 1) suits their body type, 2) they will wear again, 3) they can spend the amount they choose to spend, ideally keeping it from $50 to $150.

From left to right, we have:
Francesca's Collections, Blue Moon Dress, $38
David's Bridal, Style 83176, originally $120, on sale for $59.99
J. Crew, Silk chiffon Juliet dress (in tropical aqua), $180
J. Crew, Silk tricotine Cecelia short dress (in oasis green), $225
J. Crew, Embossed-cotton Aubrey halter dress (in sea green), originally $98, on sale for $78.00

I do know that a couple of these options don't meet the criteria, but I think this gives a good representation of what styles and colors go well together. I'm certainly open to more ideas if anyone wants to share some with me!

Being Indecisive, as Usual!

2009-08-14T10:49:00.004-04:00

I've been thinking lately about colors and I'm starting to drift away from the Black bridesmaid dresses idea. I think if I had to pick two colors today, I would choose Emerald and Aqua. Here are a few pictures that I've found lately that are swaying me to use non-matching dresses.

From Sara & Ryan's Wedding

Image via Offbeat Bride

I'm Back!

2009-08-10T13:38:00.003-04:00

I have been uber-busy the past month with work, family obligations, etc. This past weekend Jake's brother Justin and his new wife Elizabeth got married and we all had so much fun! It made me realize that there are a lot of little details that I should probably get started on. I'm ready to kick it into high gear and get the rest of this wedding planned. Here's what we have booked so far:

Venue (Ceremony and Reception): Prestonwood Country Club
Officiant: Reverend Barbara Lodge (read her blog here!)
Photographer: April Sirit of Evoke Photography http://www.evokenc.com/
DJ: Jeff Simpson of Simpsound Productions

As for the other things we know so far - I have my Mom's dress that will be getting altered early next year. I'm very excited about this! Jake and I are going to build our chuppah and we should get started on this soon.

I need to figure out:
Bridesmaid's dresses - how about asking the rest of my bridesmaids to be bridesmaids first?!?
Flowers - do I want to have a florist do them all or can I do some on my own?
Transportation - including getting the guests/wedding party to and from Prestonwood as well as for us to the hotel afterwards
Honeymoon - we need to start researching COSTA RICA!!! We definitely want to go to Costa Rica and zipline through the rainforest, go to the beach, go horse-back riding and scuba diving

I know there are many other things TO DO but this will work for now! I hope to have more time this week to catch up on other blogs I like to follow and will post things that I love :)

Bouquet Inspiration

2009-07-25T17:58:00.004-04:00

I found it, my new favorite bouquet, pehaps ever. I've never seen anything like this but I love it. Courtesy of Snippet & Ink, from the Sneak Peak of Anli & Kenneth's Wedding.

So much to do!

2009-07-09T09:23:00.002-04:00

Okay so between a fabulous beach weekend over the 4th and staying busy at work I've been neglecting the good ol' blog. Here's what's going on in my own little wedding planning world.

Today we will meet with a potential videographer
I have my first dress appointment Tuesday (gasp!)
We need to schedule meetings with potential officiants

I have a couple of invitation books to go through to figure out what we like. We need to get serious about invites and Save the Dates if we are going to do them. Everyone keeps asking me if anything is new and I haven't really had much to say but hopefully there will be more substantial developments soon!

Need a Good Laugh?

2009-07-02T14:07:00.003-04:00

Thanks to the lovely Megan's blog (Meg{Moir}) I found an awesome non-wedding related blog that made me literally LOL at my desk. You will giggle (at the least) at every post. The blog is called Stuff White People Like, and it is completely hilarious and very true, at least in my experience. So check it out here: http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/ and enjoy!

Making an Exit: Bubbles or Sparklers?

2009-07-01T09:33:00.005-04:00

I'm waiting to hear back from the Social Director at Prestonwood as to what rules they have regarding the sendoff at the end of the reception, but in the meantime I'm contemplating whether we want to exit to bubbles or sparklers. I'm not afraid of sparklers at all so that won't be an issue for me, but I think that since our sendoff will be around 11pm that the sparklers would look better than the bubbles at night. I've found some pictures of both at Prestonwood to give you an idea of what it would look like.

(Image by Robin Lin at www.robinlin.com)

(Image by Tamara Lackey at www.tamaralackeyblog.com)

Fun in the Sun

2009-06-30T11:04:00.004-04:00

As promised, here are some fabulous pictures of Tucker and his friend Toby playing at the beach this past weekend. They both had a great time and got some really good naps afterwards as well! I'm very excited to take Tucker to the beach for the long weekend over the holiday - he will have other dogs in the house to keep him company, Jade and Katie, and maybe even Bridget too! Maybe I can round up some more wedding related items to post this week?

Beach Bound

2009-06-26T15:01:00.003-04:00

I am very much looking forward to going to the beach this weekend. Jake, Tucker and I plan to have a great time with friends in the sun and sand. Bocce ball and frisbee throwing are definitely on the agenda! Oh and I'm very excited to see Tucker's reaction to the ocean this time around. The last time we were at the beach it was pretty chilly and he wasn't quite as strong of a swimmer. I will be sure to take some pictures to share!

Hope everyone has a great weekend wherever you are!

Found: Awesome Florist Blog!

2009-06-23T16:06:00.005-04:00

Thanks to Snippet & Ink I believe I have found my favorite Home and Floral Design Blog, Housemartin, which is the blog of Pam Zsori of Ink & Peat. I love how she incorporates unique and unexpected natural elements into her arrangements, including thistle, succulents and more. Here are a couple of images that really stood out to me. I think I'll save these for my floral inspiration collection!

(All images from Housemartin)

One Year to Go!

2009-06-19T11:54:00.003-04:00

On this day next year, I will be tying the knot! I like to call it our "pre-anniversary" if you will. I'm very excited and I know that this year is going to fly by. We have been researching officiants this week so we have been productive with wedding-related work! I hope to post some of my personal photos of garden and puppy related items this weekend.

One thing that I have found that I know I want to incorporate into our ceremony is one of these adorable ring bearer bowls from Etsy seller, Paloma's Nest. We haven't decided if we will have a ring bearer/flower girl yet, but I also think it would be neat for one of the members of the bridal party to carry our rings down the aisle. I love that this can be used as a little jewelry bowl after the wedding!

(Image from Etsy Seller Paloma's Nest)

Things Tucker Likes...

2009-06-18T16:38:00.002-04:00

Every time we are out and about with Tucker it is a new adventure. He will chase after anything that moves, whether its a squirrel or a leaf blowing down the sidewalk. I thought it was about time to start a list of the things that attract his attention..

Bunnies
Frogs
Bugs
Birds
People, and he is especially interested in the people walking by that are clearly afraid of him (how they are afraid of him I have no idea)
Ducks & Geese (still birds I guess)

There is also a list of dead things that Tucker has tried to bring home:

Half of a dead snake (the mowers split this temptation in two - twice as hard to avoid)
Runover frog
A dead fish floating in the lake
And a dead bird that had flown into a window...

Thankfully Tucker responds very well to the Drop command, especially when I have to use the really mean voice since I don't want to go anywhere near the dead snake/frog/bird/fish in his mouth!

Color Ideas

2009-06-16T11:55:00.008-04:00

If you haven't been to Snippet & Ink's blog yet, you are missing out. They post something new every day, whether its a featured sponsor, creative wedding photos, fun giveaways or inspiration boards! I'm going to use green as one of my wedding colors, but I don't know what my complementing color should be... Here are a few of my favorite Snippet and Ink inspiration boards in colors that I can seriously see myself using.

Emerald and Aquamarine

Summer Lovin'

Jadeite and Lawn
(All images from Snippet and Ink - click on the board titles for the original S&I post as well as photo credits)

To Do List...

2009-06-15T12:54:00.002-04:00

So I have another boring post today since I wasn't able to post any this past weekend. I did have a great time out with friends Friday and with the girls in Pinehurst Saturday! Here are the things I hope to accomplish this week:

Schedule my first alteration appointment with Olga to see what we can do with my Mom's dress
Email Prestonwood regarding the room dimensions for the ceremony and reception, also find out when the tastings usually occur (yes!)
Start researching flowers and florists

Am I missing anything? I need to look at the different checklists floating around online to see what else I should be doing right now. Probably should register soon and start looking at invitations though!

Catching Up...

2009-06-12T12:45:00.003-04:00

So this week has been busy both at work and at home for me. I have a lot of pictures from last weekend as well as some from during the week that I need to post. I'm leaving the office early today so I hope to get around to posting some this afternoon. I also need to catch up on the blogs I haven't been able to read this week. There is a chance I'll find something I love and share with you here!

Happy Friday everyone!

Bridesmaid Inspiration

2009-06-08T20:26:00.012-04:00

Some of you may know that I don't want all of my bridesmaids to wear the same dress. I don't think its necessary to make your closest friends suffer through the process of getting measured, getting fitted, and then paying for a dress they will probably never wear again. In my opinion, the least a bride can do is let her maids pick out the style, that way they can each have a dress that is flattering and comfortable to them and there is a better chance they will wear it again!

I want to have black bridesmaids dresses - yes black. At this point I think knee-length cocktail type dresses will do. Nothing too frilly or fancy, but nothing just cotton either. I don't know the particular fabric that I want, but I love the pictures below. I think everyone looks great and hopefully it will be an easy solution for my yet to be announced bridesmaids!

(Images by Trever Hoehne, found here)

Plant Rehab

2009-06-06T14:49:00.013-04:00

A couple of weeks ago, Jake's Mom, June, my future MIL, gave me a plant to "rehab" for her. I have a before picture of the plant but it really makes it look worse than it was.

When I first received the plant, it was mostly brown and had no blooms - basically it looked dead. I thought that maybe it wasn't getting enough water, but then found out that it was getting too much water, and probably developing some kind of mold disease, because it didn't have proper drainage. Jake got out some tools and made a bigger hole in the bottom for me. This "saved" the plant!

Here are some before and after pictures, as well as pictures taken during the pruning process to help take care of the plants. Get yourself some gloves (these were like $4.00 at Target - they don't have to be fancy) and don't be afraid to get a little dirty.

This is the true before shot, taken this morning before I started to prune these bad boys. Now for this plant pruning is basically just pulling all of the dead/brown stuff off of the plant. Keep in mind this is after I've had them for a few weeks - the better drainage has made a world of difference.

You have to actually pull on the plant folks. Don't be afraid. If you mess up and pull off some leaves (or half the plant) its not the end of the world.

So you can use two hands - I didn't in this case since I was taking the picture with the other hand.

1. Grab on to the good part of the plant with one hand and the bad with the other.

2. Pull the bad part off of the good part, trying not to damage the green part of the plant in the process.

3. Repeat until the plant is happy and all the dead is gone.

Now wasn't that easy? Seriously, all it takes is a little time, some patience, and maybe a drop of sweat or two if its hot enough out, but not only do these plants look prettier, but they will probably grow better from here on out as well.

June, I'm happy to say that this plant has been revived. If you want it back, I'd love for you to enjoy it. They do look like mini-sunflowers!

Introduction to the Top Balcony

2009-06-06T12:13:00.007-04:00

This is a close-up of my Drumstick Alliums that are mid-bloom right now. These two are about 3 feet tall. I planted these as bulbs at the end of fall last year. Currently, they are in bloom on both our front and back balconies, but I believe they are smaller out back since they are in a smaller pot and probably not getting as much sun. I can't wait until these open up completely and are full purple.

The four-leaf clover looking plant is made up of multiple bulbs called Shamrock Iron Cross. The little pink flowers from it are very cute and dainty and one of my favorite things about this plant. They typically only open when its cold outside. I'll try to get a close up of them to share. These bulbs are repeats from last year - I just replanted these about 3 inches deep at the end of April or so. I have extra bulbs if anyone wants some! They are very easy to grow and maintain, I promise.

Oh, and the pots below it in the picture with the dead stuff? Those are from my tulips and crocuses, early spring bulbs. Sadly with the random cold snaps and strange NC winter weather we had, only one of my tulips actually opened up this year but the blooms were such a tease. I plan to take these pots down, harvest and store the bulbs over the summer/fall, and then re-plant them in the winter. In the meantime, I could plant Dahlias or other bulbs I have sitting around to enjoy this summer.

This is a Cypress Vine. It is supposed to have red flowers, but for some reason the only ones I've seen so far are white - you can see a small white bloom on the center stake. Although you can't see it in this picture, there are teeny tiny little red blooms that should open up soon. These are said to attract Hummingbirds! I need to clean out and refill my feeders.

Dog Days of Spring

2009-06-06T11:51:00.004-04:00

This morning Tucker had us up around 8:30 for the day, which wasn't too bad. We took him for a swim at the lake but we didn't take the camera so we have no action shots to share with you. Let me just say that this dog loves to swim. Here are some recent pictures of Tucker just being himself. We like to hang out on the balcony (weather permitting) and of course he loves to sit in "his chair" and watch anything that moves.

(All images taken by Me)

In the bottom left he was definitely watching some geese in the lake across the street. If he could keep his mouth shut, Tucker would be a great hunting dog. He is very attentive and is easy to train. I'll have to make some videos of his tricks soon - I started teaching him to roll over this morning, and he already knows how to do the trick we call "Nose" - I put a treat on his nose and he pops it up into the air, maybe catching it, maybe not.

The Real Deal

2009-06-05T13:11:00.005-04:00

For future reference, this is a picture of a ceremony in the Prestonwood Country Club ballroom. Our ceremony will be in the same place facing the same direction, but I don't really want it to look as plain. We will not be renting different chairs - I'm fine with the look of the Prestonwood chairs and they are comfortable, so we will be foregoing the extra $$ for Chivari chairs.

I think a chuppah, an aisle runner, lots of candles, and some pretty floral arrangements should dress this up nicely.

(Image from aweddingminister.com)

Ceremony Ideas

2009-06-05T12:32:00.007-04:00

I've tried to describe the kind of decor ideas I have for our ceremony, but I feel like words don't really do it justice. If I had to write out the description, I would say that I want the aisles to be lined with tall cylindrical vases filled with water and floating candles. I'm not sure if saying "lined" is accurate - from the picture I've found that I'm using as my inspiration, there are tons of candles to create this effect. See for yourself, and let me know what you think!

(This image is from Jenna & Jeff's Wedding on the Knot)

I think the wide aisle runner and the chuppah also "speak to me" in the picture. I do like how the candles are of all different sizes but I would rather use vases that look more like this:

(Image from Keily & Gregg's Nestledown wedding via greenweddingshoes.blogspot.com - shot by Dana and Jeremy)

Thanks to the local Marshall's I've been able to round up about 8 vases or so already, all of varying heights. I need to find out the dimensions of the room over at Prestonwood to get an idea of how long our aisle should be. Once I know that, then I think it will be easier to decide if I want to go with this look or if I would rather have the candles just at the front with the chuppah, like this:

(Image from asouthernsoiree.blogspot.com, Jamie and Michael's Wedding)

I guess that's enough of my ceremony ideas for now. I'd love to hear what you think! Feel free to leave me a comment, send me an email, or just call me up with advice :)

Love this Surprise Wedding from 100 Layer Cake

2009-06-04T12:07:00.000-04:00

I think that as every Bride to Be starts the planning process, and at many other points along the way, one always jokes that they should just elope. Of course that would be great until you have your parents, family, friends, etc to answer to.

I love that this couple cut down what was left of their engagement from 7 months to 7 days. If only we could pull this off!

Jumping right in

2009-06-04T11:07:00.001-04:00

First, welcome to my blog! I've known for a little while that I wanted to start a blog and I'm happy to have gotten around to doing it.

I have a few "goals" to accomplish with this blog:
1. Keep track of wedding plans to share with friends and family
2. Use the blog as a place to share and store my wedding inspiration links/photos that I've found on the web and from other bloggers
3. Track the status of my container garden and maybe include some pictures and how to advice for those who are developing green thumbs of their own
4. Follow wedding-related and other inspiring blogs and share my favorite posts

My intentions are to not let this blog interfere with my daily work or home tasks. I imagine I'll be posting a lot from work, but since mobile posts are possible, we'll see how the iPhone works as well! I hope to round up most of the inspiration pictures I've bookmarked and blogs that I follow and add them to this in the near future.

Until we meet again,
Brit

From Wedding Plans to Weeds and More

Bridal today, rain or shine!

Wow

Engagement Pics, Blogged!

Wow

87 days

Florist, Honeymoon and Invitations!

Happy Early Birthday to Jake, plus a flower update!

Time...

Under 200 Days!

Costa Rica

Good Intentions

Friday the 13th

My Lazy Boy

My Dog is Fratacular

Home-grown Rose

Kiva: Loans that Change Lives

Real Wedding Find on Green Wedding Shoes

Going for a R-I-D-E

A New Look

Back to Blogging!

*THE* Bridesmaid Dress?

Another Bouquet I love

More Chuppah Inspiration

I could not resist...

Prestonwood spotted...

The Registering Process

Quarantined

Fun Web Finds

Prestonwood Pictures

Aisle Mock-Up

My Very Own Inspiration Board

A Chocolate and Peanut Butter Revelation!

10 Months To Go!

Bridesmaid Dress Ideas?

Being Indecisive, as Usual!

I'm Back!

Bouquet Inspiration

So much to do!

Need a Good Laugh?

Making an Exit: Bubbles or Sparklers?

Fun in the Sun

Beach Bound

Found: Awesome Florist Blog!

One Year to Go!

Things Tucker Likes...

Color Ideas

To Do List...

Catching Up...

Bridesmaid Inspiration

Plant Rehab

Introduction to the Top Balcony

Dog Days of Spring

The Real Deal

Ceremony Ideas

Love this Surprise Wedding from 100 Layer Cake

Jumping right in

THE Bridesmaid Dress?