genius!

Real Simple just sent out their weekly wedding email...

It includes a link to their Wedding Flower Finder which selects flowers based on time of year, colors and size. I love widgets and this one is actually useful!

I did it twice and selected Fall, Yellow/Green & Purple/Blue with Large blooms:

This bouquet from theknot.com has both hydrangea and lisianthus!

The little widget also recommends Dahlias - love these:

Another from theknot.com with calla lilies, roses, dahlias, and cymbidium orchids. I'd prefer a more muted soft pink or yellows and blues...

things that make you go awwww

Couple celebrate 80th wedding anniversary I love that the official wedding anniversary symbols go all the way up to 80... ♥

inspiration

I'm pretty sure inspiration boards are a requirement in the blog world... here's one from Snippet & Ink that I LOVE:Snippet & Ink

Now, I just need to work on creating my own that incorporates shells and sea horses!

yes, i'm still awake...

Best of craigslist tonight - love the description:

UNIQUE ONE OF A KIND GIFT FOR THE BRIDE AND GROOM WHO HAVE EVERYTHING, OR THE ANNIVERSARY GIFT FOR A GOLDEN COUPLE.

BEAUTIFUL DETAILED WEDDING PARTY MADE UP OF MINISTER WITH BIBLE, BRIDE WITH BOUQUET, GROOM WITH TAILS, AND 3 BEAUTIFUL BRIDESMAIDS. DELICATE AND SPECIAL BASED ON BEING MADE FROM PIPECLEANERS IN THE 1930s. $75 for set. pics upon request.

wii weekend

The weather is terrible so the "run" I was planning on taking today has now morphed into a hour on the wii fit... but I'm just wondering if anyone has had any weight loss success on this thing?
I know several ladies over at WeddingBee have talked about buying it but nothing about their results. I guess it's better than sitting on the couch blogging ;)

Now it's the groom's turn

Together we've discussed suit options and I've bought the groomsmen's ties, but now it's allll Andy:

Andy’s suit & tie. We’ve got the pocket square, but no tie.

He won’t wear a navy suit and prefers a 3-button (I like 2-button), but here are some dapper options, courtesy of Jcrew.com and Banana Republic. Can you tell I've been influenced by last night's Mad Men marathon?

Don't the BR guys looked incredibly bored?!

This is more my vision than Andy's, but I think groomsmen’s socks are a fun touch and they double as a gift ;)

Also, Andy's on the prowl for his own tie!

Here's what I had in mind...

Andy's take on the theme - I love it!

both from VeraBradley.com

I'm hoping the VB tie works out... I ordered it from the Oak Brook store and it should arrive Friday! I'm a little worried about the blues and greens matching but I hope this is one more thing I can cross off the list!

So, the socks... what do you think, uber lame? added expense?

Mr. Baby 'Bowski

Andy just made my day by sending this to me at work...
I wish I was there!

best. toast. ever.

I know this is old, but it's still awesome!



Best Wedding Toast Ever!!!! (Amy's Song) - video powered by Metacafe

200 days

…until we say I do
…left to get in shape
…to find the dress & shoes
…of wearing just one ring
…left ‘till we’re at the beach
…until we’re husband and wife. ♥

wedding wardrobe

The Dress

I’ve set an appointment to go dress shopping with my mom. I have gone into a few bridal shops since the engagement, but I haven’t seen anything I like. I hope it goes well and doesn’t involve a mother-daughter meltdown… plus I refuse to pay full price so I will be getting my negotiation on. Not really sure what I like, but I haven’t seen it yet…

Shoes

I want a colorful shoe, but I’m not sure if heels will work well on the beach or lawn… without these little guys from Solemates.com! Score!

Here's my colorful shoe inspiration - not sure why I chose yellow, I'll probably go with navy or green...

Note the groom's socks... I'll be blogging about these later!

happy st. patrick's day

Last night and tonight's workouts killed me... I've been too tired to even READ blogs and I've got over 400 posts to catch up on...

Hope you had a good holiday/weekend and drank a pint of green beer. I'm bound and determined to have my first glass next year, but instead I will console myself with this awesome rendition of "O, Danny Boy."



Sadly, this song reminds me of the Saved by the Bell episode where Slater's lizard dies...

wedding DYI #1

I’ve order the critical piece to my first wedding DIY project – the Save the Dates!

I can’t wait to reveal the project, but in the mean time here is a hint… it involves linen paper and a typewriter font:

a tough decision

Yesterday I had a stroke of money-saving genius but it also makes me a little sad…

We’ve decided to cut our spring trip to St. Simon’s for engagement photos. Not going will save beacoup l’argent, which can be used to pay our wedding photographer and just less money in general. Plus we'll have enough vacation days for both trips.

I wish we were still going, not just because I need a mini-vacation, but because I wanted my mom to see the island before the actual wedding. Oh, well. I suppose we can take on the online virtual tour of the hotel over and over.

trixty tie…

Yesterday I finally purchased all of the groomsmen’s ties and pocket squares – even Graham’s – but Andy’s tie is much more elusive…

Here it is in its natural habitat:
I keep getting my hopes up every time ebay alerts me to a “Vera Bradley tie Cambridge” but more often than not it’s the “tie tote” not a neck tie.

(You’re probably thinking, “Uh-doy, why don’t you search for ‘neck ties’?” but not every seller remembers the neck. Also, I refuse to pay retail for ANYTHING so I guess I’m making this harder than it needs to be, but that’s how I roll.)

apparently georgia weddings are in this year...

From perezhilton.com:

Sources reveal exclusively to PerezHilton.com that Mandy Moore and Ryan Adams got married on Tuesday!

The pair had a small, simple ceremony in Savannah, Georgia.
Moore and Adams got engaged last month and dated on-and-off for about a year. A friend of Mandy's tells us, "She's very very happy." And another source confirms that Adams is completely head-over-heels about her and a changed man. Congrats to the happy couple!

there goes the harp fund...

Let me just say, the entire point of getting married in SSI, originally, was to save money and have an intimate/fun wedding on the beach.

Keep it small, simple, use their inclusive “elopement package” and then return for the reception/party with friends and extended family. This has been increasingly more difficult with every email from my package photographer.

The photog and I reconnected last night… and now, somehow, we’re now talking about spending $1250 just in photography services. That doesn’t include prints, albums ($400) or videography ($700).

No. Can. Do. I refuse to dump my entire savings on this wedding and WILL NOT go into debt because of it. I do not expect my parents to help me pay for a wedding in a place they’ve never even gone to… but seriously, how the hell am I going to pay for this thing?!

Enter Hallmark:

Everyday since the contest began I have been going to Hallmark.com to win $4000 for the wedding… Now I really fucking need to win.

oops!

Yesterday marked 7 months until the wedding... and I kinda missed it!

(as of today)

love!

I love these "By the Sea" themed invitations from Printable Press that were posted on today’s A Practical Wedding:

It makes me want to both throw my design in the garbage and inspires me to do more with the design, layering effects and colors.

PP's website also gives printing tips, vendor recommendations and printing estimates which is helpful in this stage of the (non-existant) planning process.

lame

work was evil today. then i did my taxes and ate a bowl of cereal. this is how lame i am. now i'm off to BFX 5/36 with Ed... peace!

Not even a free McCafé Monday hazelnut fat-free latte can save me…

Doesn’t this look delish?

Mine didn’t look like this – it was served in a tiny disposable cup – but it was free so I won’t complain and only 110 calories.

Even with an afternoon latte, I hope I can stay awake during tonight’s BFX class (#4 out of 36) and give the 120% effort Janylle demands…

She wants us to track our food and excercise so I've been using www.thedailyplate.com/ to keep an eye on things.

It's an okay site and since most foods have already been entered it's easy to keep track of the foods you eat most often. Based on your current weight and the weight you want to be it recommends your daily caloric intake and deducts physical activity points. I have trouble finding normal activities that I do in class, but there's a plethora of bizarre activities and the amount of calories they burn, for example:

-19th Century Dancing 200 cals/hr

-Accordian playing 120 cals/hr

-Butchering Animals 400 cals/hr :(

-Operating a lathe 200 cals/hr

-Maple Syruping 333 cals/hr

But there are some practical everyday items that could apply:

-Cleaning house 265 cals/hr

-Desk work 120 cals/hr

-Manicure (receiving) 64/hr

-Watching TV 67 cals/hr

-Napping 60 cals/hr

I guess you could call it the poor girl's Weight Watchers ;)

how cake saved my life

I overslept this morning and had about 20 minutes before I needed to walk out the door. Stupid time change! I actually woke up at 5 am stomach time, which is 6 am eye time... according to Grandma C. Anyway, I was able to hop in the shower and get to work (early) thanks to this little miracle…

“Indulge in some time-saving goodness.”

It’s not exactly a dry shampoo but it works pretty well. My only qualm with the powder is that it’s more red than brown or dark blonde, but since my hair is a mixture of all of those colors it blends – at least it blends better than baby powder. Also, it smells like cake, which is kind of fun but can be overwhelming for the first hour or so… unless you’re already wearing Vanilla Frosting by Bonne Bell and then you won’t even notice.

i can read your mind...

Helpful Hive

A big thank you to my physical friends and my virtual friends over at WeddingBee that have offered their opinions on my invitation dilemma… I can’t believe what an awesome response I’ve received. You ladies rock!

Based on the 74 votes (and counting!), the winner is the rounded corner-sea-horse-flourish w/bleed-design!

I will try out some of the suggestions – swapping the sand dollar for the sea horses, trying adding the small “spacer flourish” at the bottom. Now I’ll need to take the theme and morph it into our Save the Dates…

a perfect night...

Our furniture arrived Tuesday but Andy and I both had class so we waited until last night to pick it up. We managed to assemble one bookcase and the TV stand during LOST – I am so impressed by the quality and can’t wait to post photos!

Pretty furniture combined with Chinese take-out and LOST made for a perfect night…



Tonight I’m back to boot camp. I am still hurting from Tuesday so I hope I’m not too limited at tonight’s class. I don’t want to drag the group down!

BFX 2/36 - Edit

Last night at BFX (according to our instructor, a much cooler abbreviation for the program) Ed gave us our 12 minute mile test… I made it around the track 11 full times in 12 minutes, but I have no idea what the distance of the track is so that really doesn’t tell me anything.
We also did 25 minutes of squats, medicine ball exercises and line sprints… boy, can I feel it today! I can barely stand up or sit down without my legs convulsing or my abs trembling. As Martha would say, “it’s a good thing.”

Edit - 4 hours later...
It hurts to cough and laugh… I’m definitely feeling the burn!

invitations indecision

Here are my top 4 choices for the wedding reception invitation - this piece will help me begin designing the entire invitation suite.
The invitation would be mounted on navy/night colored card stock and I haven't yet decided if I'll be printing on white or cream paper. Here they are in no particular order...

(Click to Extra-Enlarge)

#1

#2

#3
#4

Please help me decide and vote at the poll on the top right!

Bridal Fitness Extreme (BFE) 1/36

Last night wasn’t too bad, but that’s because we didn’t get started.
I got weighed and measured and if I get all of the numbers back I have no problem posting them… it's a great motivator! We had to do 3 laps around the track and then as many sit-ups and push-ups as possible in 1 minute. The person with the best results at the end of the 12 weeks get a spa day, plus we all get a free t-shirt.
Here are my figures:
Weight: 146 lbs
Height: 5’ 7.5”
Sit-ups: 20
Push-ups: 10
Hips:
Waist:
Body Fat %
Arm:
Abs:
Thigh:
Tomorrow night we do the 12-minute mile. We were instructed not to eat a lot before class unless we want to throw it back up… now that’s what I like to hear about a workout ;)

workout wtf

I will admit, I was the kid in class who always over thought each homework assignment and multiple-choice test question. I really thought I had done my research on tonight’s Bridal Extreme class but after Googling the title, I found some disturbing results:

“In addition to traditional Boot Camp activities, Bridal Fitness Extreme includes two water exercise days and a free tee-shirt.”
What?! Water exercise? Bikini shopping a couple weeks ago is what prompted me to sign up for this class, I don’t even own a swim suit right now. At least they're throwing in a free t-shirt... maybe I can wear it in the pool.

“You pretty much die each class and come back to life," said bride-to-be.
Wow, really? I just died on Saturday after playing Wii with my future-nephew-in-law... this class is going to kick my ass.

Finally:
“Tethered participants in the Bridal Fitness Extreme program climb the stairs...”

Great! Now I'm part of a team? I'm going to be the body the other girls drag up the stairs and gets cropped out of the photo.

Destination Wedding Tickets - CHECK!

I just purchased our tickets to and from Jacksonville for the wedding and our honeymoon... Woo-hoo!

weekend round up

We were able to work on a few wedding things...
- Purchased remaining groomsmen's ties and pocket squares, still need Andy's
- Confirmed matron of honor and ring bearer and best man
And had some fun over at Andy's parents'...

-Found this cute sweater for e-pics at Ann Taylor Loft

- I ordered the Canopy furniture and we should have it by the end of the week - can't wait.
- Tomorrow I begin the Bridal Fitness EXtreme classes... I'm so nervous/excited!
- Finally, I do NOT recommend watching "How to Make Friends and Alienate People" it was painful watching Simon Pegg and Kirsten Dunst play unlikeable characters and each other's love interest.