K & M

[Kay]

Kay & M ~ I’m leaving our names out to protect the not~so~innocent!

Kay
36, never been married, no kids
Bachelor’s Degree in Finance
Currently interviewing but unemployed

M
35 (in a couple of weeks), never been married, no kids
Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology
Employed with the State Division of Youth Services


Our story is soooo untypical… we met a long time ago but had no recollection of one another… which is odd because we both grew-up in the same incredibly-small town, his mom was my English teacher for 2 years, and he was 2 years behind me in high school.. yet we have no memory of each other!! I moved away for college and fun, he did the same. About 4 years ago, we both moved back to our small town, both still single, both quite lonely relationship~wise, feeling a little older, and wondering if maybe real love/marriage just wasn’t going to happen for us….

The week after Christmas last year I went out of town to have lunch with my best friend and her mom and proceeded to say I was finally in a place where I felt like I really wanted to date a nice guy or buy a house and give-up ~ I wasn't for sure! :bbredface: I hadn’t dated for ~ 7 years because I previously had a 3-year bad relationship and just didn’t have what it took to date again nor had I met anyone I really liked. Well, best friend & best friend’s mom mentioned “M” had said at Christmas that he would really like to meet a nice girl, he hadn’t dated in a long time either, and he had moved back to our small town, too. “M” is my best friend’s little sister’s husband’s best friend (ya got that?) and a good family friend of my best friend’s family. So, my best friend’s family has known me my whole life and known him his whole life… but, they never put us together. And, that day, they both looked at each other and crinkled their noses and said “naaaahh ~ it wouldn’t work!” Well, I was intrigued by what they said and went looking for him on my best friend’s little sister’s MySpace account… and there he was… with a big smile! I couldn’t believe there might actually be a nice, single guy in my small town that was educated, with a job, etc… (the pickins’ is slim around these parts! :cloppy:) I emailed best friend’s little sister, she talked to her hubby i.e. M’s best friend… the men scoped me out for a few days and did their “guy talking” …M finally sent me an email… we emailed for a couple of days & had two or three overnight phone conversations. Our first date was January 8, 2008, when I made him a homemade lasagna lunch at my place (totally out-of character for me). It was an immediate attraction and the oddest feeling ever. He was wonderful! We had another date at his place 3 days later!! We both realized we had “floundered around” and not finished college until late in life – he got his Bachelor’s at 32 and I just went back to school in August 2007 and graduated this year, August 1, 2008. Hence, I’m job hunting now. We also both had super-crappy prior relationships – one big one each - and neither one of us had been in a loving, respectful relationship before… or ANY relationship, for that matter, for nearly 7 full years!! Is that not crazy??!! It is also incredibly neat how we know all the same people and have so many of the same friends and acquaintances… yet we never met each other!!! He was even the Best Man in my best friend’s little sister’s wedding and it just so happened I was the amateur videographer that day… and I even filmed him… but they’ve been married since they were 21 so we don’t remember each other from that wedding, either. Regardless, we have somehow found each other and it has been truly wonderful and a huge blessing every single day. We both like to joke that we are in our mid-30s, doing all the things that mid-20-year-olds do… basically, we are starting our lives about 10 years “late” - - he’s been on his job only 2.5 years, I’m just now going to start the job I’ll retire from, we will buy a house and get married next year, etc. ~ all in our mid-30s!! It may seem a little late in life, but it is NEVER too late to be happy!! We have been dating a little over 8 months now which may seem a short time to some people – but we have taken a few things slow… we do not live together…. basically because I am financially independent & too headstrong to do that… and if/when I decide to do this “forever” thing, I just want the living-together to be the “bonus” or the “gift” we give each other for marriage. Though, at this point, I’m dying to wake-up next to him every morning and sleep next to him every night… as I currently restrain myself to just a day or two a week. ha We know this is going to last, forever. So, I will steal this quote from When Harry Met Sally… "When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible." :soppy:

The Proposal….
There is NOT one yet!!! I am in the pre-engaged stage!! I have not bought anything (big), I have not visited vendors, I have not picked a date or planned anything in stone yet…. We talk about a lot of things and throw ideas around but I am quite traditional in that I want to wait until he is COMPLETELY FOR SURE and TOTALLY READY to spend the REST of his life with me AND he gets on his knee and proposes FIRST - - and then once that rock is on my finger, I’ll go PLANNING CRAZY!! I'm a total Type A personality in some ways ~ as in, I'm an organization freak! I like dreaming and getting ideas but I don’t want to make plans until I’m officially engaged and can REALLY enjoy it!! So, for now, I just browse OW constantly, look at my Bride’s magazines, and change my mind daily about what we may or may not do when the time comes. NOT having a job leaves me with lots of time on my hands so I am currently wedding crazy. Actually, I knew we were going to get married someday, around April…. then, by July, I was for sure. We planned a big trip to Quebec City, Canada for my college graduation the first week of August. Two weeks before we left, he took me to three jewelers and just “happened” to want me to try on different engagement rings – being that I am quite traditional – I was sooo freaked-out but it was a TON of fun!! He buys me jewelry quite a bit so that was no biggie – but ENGAGEMENT RINGS??!! I almost cried thinking, at 36, my childhood dreams, though now altered for reality, are finally coming true! Everything he said made me think he was going to propose while we were on vacation… but then he didn’t… and I was quite upset… and then he told me (and his mom, who was also quite upset – I have the BEST FMIL ever!)… that prior to us leaving for vacation, his brother’s fiancé had asked him to not propose while they were engaged… and their wedding is October 3rd. I won't comment on that besides, Oh Well.

So, Starting October 4th, the pressure is ooooooooonnnnnnnnnn!!!! hee hee hee


BTW, the reason I wanted to started an OW journal is because when the time comes, I want to share some secrets and gifts and etc.. and alllll of our friends and family members are on MySpace and even though I will be updating them with stuff now and then, I want to save OW for the bridezilla griping, the frustrations, the surprises, the questions, the DIYs, the true feelings no-matter-what-they are, and all the things I can’t say to my immediate world, I will just go ahead and share with the OW world… and hope no one I know ever finds this site!! Hee Hee Also, I’ll post our pics once it is official.. so, this journal may be quiet for a couple of months… but, I’LL BE BACK!!! :D

[starsthrumysoul]

Aww, welcome to OW!! I've never been the first to welcome someone (being a relative newbie myself, just a few months) so hello!! I love your story and am SO glad that you're getting something you've always wanted! It's sweet that he took you ring-shopping, and it's also sweet that you know it's coming! I knew that mine was coming too and, though it's not necessarily traditional, it makes for a lot of exciting anticipation!!

So welcome, and enjoy the pre-engagement stage!!

[vicky_vicky]

Welcome! You have such a nice story! Like starsthrumysoul said, enjoy the pre engaged stage!!

I am also two years older than my fiance.:D

[Kay]

Some pics of us..

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/usatfarmersville.jpg

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/mygraduation.jpg

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Quebec.jpg
We were at a 400th-Anniversary festival here!

[Tadswife]

You guys are so cute together. I know the feeling of starting late in life finding your "soul mate" I was 26 when I met my 37 year old huband. I am now 31 and he 42 and we have been married for 2 years. I am greatfull I started later and was blessed with my dh. We got engaged 5 months after we met so 8 months is a wonderful time to get engaged!:D Welcome and enjoy the pre engagment stage. It's a fun place to be

[Kay]

Thanks for all the nice comments!! And yes, I'm a craddle-robber.. he's 1 year and 5 months older! I told him we are NOT allowed to get married during the few months that it would show in the paper that he's 2 years older! :biggrin:

Well, M & I have been throwing around ideas for this future wedding that is not "certain" yet (ha) and we are going to have a funny, theme wedding.. we want something completely different and memorable... based around theme of the princess that kissed a frog who became a prince!!

This is our BIG SECRET... He is going to walk around & greet guests in his white tailed tuxedo...and then... when the ceremony starts... to the surprise of everyone except our photographer (who already knows because she heard us talking at a local restaurant - small town) and the best man - who we are going to tell at the very last minute... my "groom" is going to walk-out in a big FROG outfit and after the laughter dies down, his Princess bride will walk out (tiara and all).... when we kiss, we are going to have a fog machine go off and some "magical wand music" (we don't have the logistics clear yet) and *POOF* - he is going to have his velcro-frog outfit off immediately - and be standing there in a white tuxedo with tails and a big crown!! If you can't tell, he was almost a theatre major in college and he's a big ham and we just want a FUNNY and DIFFERENT wedding. This was all his idea. We have a few logistics to work-out but I KNOW we can pull this off with style and class and total hilarity!! I'm sooo excited!! Also, he would kill me if he knew I was writing our secret here - because we promised not to tell ANYONE AT ALL ~ NOT ONE PERSON - but, I'm not paranoid of OW!! The world is a big place! HA

Anyway, I am going to be the one to keep the classy in the wedding and still infuse the Princesss/Frog/Prince theme. My main color will be lavender with silver and splashes of pale pink. I'm actually looking at a white dress with lavender crystals ~ I just need to get a hoop for it so it looks "princessy"

So, here is his frog outfit...

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/FROGFORPHOTOBUCKET.jpg



Here is my Inspiration Board
(I stole some ideas from people here, I've been reading journals nonstop!)
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/MyInspirationBoard091308.jpg

I KNOW I said I wasn't going to post anymore but we have lots of ideas, I'm very excited, and I'm even MORE excited that his brother's wedding is less than 3 weeks away... thank goodness!! I can't wait for this to get official so I can really go wedding crazy! :D

[bichonlvr]

Love it...it all looks great!

[Kay]

I went to M's house today to hang-out a bit and have lunch before he went to work (he works nights usually) and I was getting some iced tea while he ran upstairs and I am NOT a nosey person.. but there was some mail laying on his counter... and there was an envelope from the jeweler that had the ring we liked the most.. it had been addressed to his formal name....and there was a written card laying beside it. I had every opportunity to open that card and read what it said but I did not. I felt really excited but then I reminded myself that maybe he went back and looked at it again and they got his address at that time. I do not know HOW they got his address - the place is nearly 2 hours away from us. Still.... it does seem like a really good sign!! If he has bought me a ring already, I really hope he doesn't wait until Christmas to propose!! We shall see...

I know I should be more excited but it was almost surreal. I put the envelope back down and sat on the couch drinking my iced tea.... :cool:

[starsthrumysoul]

Aww, you two are TOO CUTE together!! I'm excited to hear about people's reactions to the magical transformation you two have planned for the wedding! :-P

Keep us up to date on the details :)

[Kay]

My sister found this Cake Topper and I HAD to buy it! It came in today! I luv it! Not for sure if it will be for the Groom's Cake or the regular cake but one way or the other, it is soooo getting used! I am going to look everywhere until I find a tiny little silver crown to super-glue on the frog! If you look closely, the Princess has a rope around the frog's neck! LOL :rofl: No, we aren't "freaks" ~ I just think that is soooooooo funny! M is working all day today so I can't show him until tomorrow! He will CRACK-UP!!

Btw, my sis is going to be my MOH ~ and she is going to be TERRIFIC!

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/CaketopperforPhotobucket.jpg

[Kay]

Well, I wasn't going to post much in here but I'm jobless and wedding crazy!!

So....M and I know we are getting married... we talk about it constantly.. it's just all a matter of waiting for his brother and FSIL to get married (NEXT WEEKEND) and then the door is open for him to make it official ~ cross your fingers that it's before Christmas ladies! We also know where we want the CEREMONY to be.. this is a state park... the park is HUGE with a big waterfall on the backside ~ great for pics ... and this pavilion can be rented from 8am to 10pm for $65 a day ~ any day of the week ~ and there are inside, clean, "real" bathrooms for use by the guests about 100 yards away behind the pavilion. We will possibly have an early-May ceremony at around 6pm ~ dusk ~ the time that all other park guests (but wedding guests) must leave! I luv the location. We are even going to have our engagement pics taken here. So, here are a few shots of the pavillion...

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Pavilion1photobucket.jpg
We will get married up at the front - I will cover that bbq area with a big marble board and a white tablecloth and a big flower arrangement. I saw another wedding here do this exact thing.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/pAV2PB.jpg
Side view from a small side parking lot


http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/PAV3PB.jpg
View of the water from the side of the pavilion

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Park2pb.jpg
View of another area of the park

[Kay]

O! I am also going to...

*probably rent chairs and have the tables removed (I hope so!!)
*clean the ceiling fans a day or two before ~ I noticed today they were dirty
*remove all trash cans but maybe one and put a WHITE bag in it

Apparently, the park supervisor really works well with weddings. I am excited. I am going to orientaltrading.com and getting some of these signs ($4.95) so guests can find the pavilion - the park is big and the pavilion is only on a small lot of the entire area...

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/weddingsignfromorientaltrading.jpg

[caligal85]

O! I am also going to...

*probably rent chairs and have the tables removed (I hope so!!)
*clean the ceiling fans a day or two before ~ I noticed today they were dirty
*remove all trash cans but maybe one and put a WHITE bag in it

Apparently, the park supervisor really works well with weddings. I am excited. I am going to orientaltrading.com and getting some of these signs ($4.95) so guests can find the pavilion - the park is big and the pavilion is only on a small lot of the entire area...

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/weddingsignfromorientaltrading.jpg

Oh I love those signs! I'm going to have to look into those. Apparently the parking is a little bit away from our chapel.

[Kay]

This is my inspiration pic for a candy buffet ~ I literally tore it out of one of my wedding invitation catalogs and scanned it! I already have some of the ribbons, you can get those clear boxes at Wal-Mart... like 50 for $12... and the "cool" swirl pops are super-cheapt at Oriental Trading!! I like this idea better than a bunch o' scoops. :D I think this will be inexpensive and oh-so-cute when we are looking at nearly 50 kids at the reception!! I really hope this ends-up being in my budget...

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/candybuffetpb.jpg

Princess Pops at Oriental Trading $5.99 dozen..
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/princesspops599doz.jpg

Huge Swirl Pops at Oriental Trading $7.49 a dozen...
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Jumbo749doz.jpg

[Kay]

Hi! I don't know if anyone is reading this but I just want to say that I know I'm posting a lot of ideas, etc... and we are not officially engaged... but I know it is coming, sooner or later... and I really want to get married for under $5000k. This being said, I have a lot of time on my hands now while I'm job searching and working from home (I am a medical transcriptionist from home). So, I'm spending $5 and $10 here and there for little things... and I don't mind doing that one bit... the quicker I can get a jump on things, the better... So, I'm going to start sharing things I have bought and ideas I already have. Again, I have not met with any vendors or venues or done anything "BIG" and won't do so until we are officially engaged... but all these little things are fun for me and they will slowly add-up to make it easier once dreams become reality! :D

So... the first thing I will want to do... besides being so happy I call the entire world... who knows, I may dial random numbers just to tell them I'm engaged!! Wonder what the responses would be??!! HA HA HA

THEN, I'll want to ask the ladies to be my bridesmaids. I have already paid for a dozen cookies, in lavender/pink/silver, shaped like this BIG wedding cake... to be shipped to me. I got them from jskcookies.com ~ she is the nicest lady ever. She told me when we are engaged, I just need to email her and she'll have them in the mail to me within 24 hours, packed carefully. I am then going to attach a card with ribbon ...I have already made the card here at home with some scrapbook stuff I had. I will then take them to each girl ~ and mail at least 2 of them. Here are the cookies in white... they may not look it but they are big.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/weddingcakecookiesJSKlady-1.jpg


Here is the poem on each little card..
It makes me happy,

It makes me smile

to think that M & I

will soon be walking down the aisle.

And I would be honored

to have you say,

"I'll be right there with you

on your wedding day."

Will you be my bridesmaid?



Once I have the cookies and the cards together, I'll repost a pic of them!! Geez, let's hope that's not around Christmastime! HA

[Kay]

I heart VistaPrint! As soon as we have a date, I'm ordering our STD magnets from there... it is currently 25 magnets for FREE and 50 for only $7! WOW

If he proposes before Christmas, I'm sticking these in our Christmas cards (which I also plan to make and buy from VistaPrint).

Here is what I've currently made-up.... I've blurred our names.. and no date is set, yet...obviously.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/STDforOW.jpg

[caligal85]

Those cookies are adorable! I wish I had done something like that but I couldn't wait until one of my girls got back from China, so I just emailed her and the other one I took to dinner. Hopefully I can take the one who was in China to dinner when she visits at the end of October.

[Kay]

Thanks Caligirl.. I just hope the cookies taste good... I'm sure they will. I mean, really, is there any such thing as a really bad iced sugar cookie?? hmmmm... not in my book! :D

So, I just want to say I rented the Sex In The City MOVIE...
*spoiler alert*
...what Big did, in my opinion, is absolutely unforgivable. Period. No way would I ever forgive someone that left me on my wedding day. Grrrrrr I bawled through that part.

As for her Vivenne Westwood gown... I was drooling the entire time... sooo beautiful!!!

[EarlyBird]

Hi! I don't know if anyone is reading this but I just want to say that I know I'm posting a lot of ideas, etc... and we are not officially engaged... but I know it is coming, sooner or later... and I really want to get married for under $5000k. This being said, I have a lot of time on my hands now while I'm job searching and working from home (I am a medical transcriptionist from home). So, I'm spending $5 and $10 here and there for little things... and I don't mind doing that one bit... the quicker I can get a jump on things, the better... So, I'm going to start sharing things I have bought and ideas I already have. Again, I have not met with any vendors or venues or done anything "BIG" and won't do so until we are officially engaged... but all these little things are fun for me and they will slowly add-up to make it easier once dreams become reality! :D

So... the first thing I will want to do... besides being so happy I call the entire world... who knows, I may dial random numbers just to tell them I'm engaged!! Wonder what the responses would be??!! HA HA HA

THEN, I'll want to ask the ladies to be my bridesmaids. I have already paid for a dozen cookies, in lavender/pink/silver, shaped like this BIG wedding cake... to be shipped to me. I got them from jskcookies.com ~ she is the nicest lady ever. She told me when we are engaged, I just need to email her and she'll have them in the mail to me within 24 hours, packed carefully. I am then going to attach a card with ribbon ...I have already made the card here at home with some scrapbook stuff I had. I will then take them to each girl ~ and mail at least 2 of them. Here are the cookies in white... they may not look it but they are big.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/weddingcakecookiesJSKlady-1.jpg


Here is the poem on each little card..
It makes me happy,

It makes me smile

to think that M & I

will soon be walking down the aisle.

And I would be honored

to have you say,

"I'll be right there with you

on your wedding day."

Will you be my bridesmaid?



Once I have the cookies and the cards together, I'll repost a pic of them!! Geez, let's hope that's not around Christmastime! HA

i wanted to tell you that i LOOOVE YOUR JOURNAL AND IDEAS. also, i wanted to just let you know that when my fh and i first got engaged the date and everything were up in the air. i got ideas and little things little by little. i even wound up getting the rings and favors and gifts for my attendants done. My mil thought i was crazy but then when we decided on the date and place i didnt have MUCH besides the photo florist and stuff like that. most of my little stuff was/is done.. it was the BEST decision i ever made. If you and fh are okay with it and it doesnt freak him out (some guys it might) then go for it.. buy here and there and you wont go wrong)

[Kay]

Awww Thanks! He is not freaked-out at all. He knows I'm online doing wedding stuff constantly. I haven't bought anything "big" that I couldn't eat (the cookies) or re-sell on E-bay... but I also feel fairly comfortable knowing he loves me, I love him, and sooner or later, we will be spending our life together. In the meantime, I'm getting little things here and there and have lots of ideas/plans... someday, it will be official and our day will come. :jp4:

[caligal85]

I read the words spoiler alert and just kept on reading. What is wrong with me?!?!

Anywho, so are the brother and FSIL married yet?? I'm dying for it to be your turn.

[Kay]

Their wedding is next weekend!! We are leaving town early Thursday morning (5 hour drive) for his brother's wedding. Thursday night is the family-only rehearsal-type dinner at an upscale steakhouse (mmmm, good free food), Friday evening is the wedding ~ I'm 1 of 4 bridesmaids and M is going to do the marriage ceremony (but he is not a pastor or anything, a real pastor will be in the audience to do the "legal" stuff), and Saturday we'll have brunch with some more family members and etc... and M & I are going to the Kansas City Renaissance Festival Saturday before driving home. Fun!

And poor M, his mother is the greatest woman (seriously), but she is already picking-out our honeymoon spots and suggesting we run away and elope in November!! Last night she was trying to talk us into getting married on a cruise ship!! :fish: ha Such a sweet lady she is.. and I would be all for something of the sort... I've even looked at getting married on cruises... I've also tried to talk M into going to NYC and getting married somewhere "cool" like Central Park or Rockefeller Center or Union Station... and then going-off to a fabulous honeymoon... but M feels like he waited a long time to meet someone and fall in love, so he wants a BIG wedding... he's got a lot of friends that are going to give him a "hard" time and he will love it, I know. So, I told him we will do whatever he really wants, as long as I get to spend the rest of my life with him. If we do definitely go ahead with our outdoor wedding, frog theme and all (which he still wants), then I told him I would go gung-ho about it, whatever WE decided. Anyway, we do not have a house, the housing market in our town has drastically changed in the last six months and interest rates are up and even when I do get a job, I know about what I am going to make (I am only applying at one place, hence the long wait)... So, we are looking at wedding expenses and house expenses so if we have a local big wedding, then we just need to be reasonable about our budget and HOPEFULLY, our guest list... as it is, I think 125/150 is tooooo many... he does not. He wants 200 but doesn't realize that means feeding 200. Silly boy.

Anyway... his parents are paying for our honeymoon, that's our gift to us from them... there are 3 children in their family and that is what they do for all 3 of them. They are big-time travelers and have been to 58 countries, last count, so I know we will go somewhere great... so far with them we have looked at 14 days in China, 17 days in Turkey, a 17-day cruise that went from Italy to Belize, and the most recent, a 14-day cruise around the tip of South America. They belong to a lot of travel clubs so whatever we do, we will get upscale/good accommodations. Yay us! Regardless, his mom wants us to get married IMMEDIATELY after his brother does. HA They are so sweet. I told M last night that he was awful lucky they were leaving town for a month cuz then he would only have ONE woman pressuring him - HA - they are going to Croatia for 22 days, leaving 4 days after the his brother's wedding. And, I don't really pressure him. We talk about this and that but that's about it. I know a proposal will come, in time. Hopefully, before Christmas. We shall see...

[Kay]

I posted this in another forum so wanted to share on here.. Vana turned me on to VistaPrint and I am now IN LUV with them!! I have soooo many things from them, already. I spend at least $5 or $6 a week.

Anyway, when the time comes, I am going to throw a Bridal Party luncheon for just the bridesmaids and my MOH. I am simply doing this as a "thank you"

I am getting these invitations on VistaPrint for FREE ~ again, thanks for all the VistaPrint info Vana ~ I am in luv with VistaPrint!! Here is what I have designed so far (and btw, with VistaPrint, you can save all your designs, FOREVER!!) I HEART VISTAPRINT!!

Front of invite..
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/front.jpg

Inside of invite..
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/inside.jpg
The bottom part in small letters says No Need To RSVP ~ I won't take no for an answer!

[EarlyBird]

ps, look for the "free" or "half off" uploading fee!!! i get these all the time, and these links are GOOD forever. that means that if you keep the link you can forever upload your pics for FREE!!!! (i did one for half off)

wow great idea about the "luncheon" invites!!

[Kay]

So..... M & I talked all the way back from KC about "our" wedding. It was really neat to hear him get excited. Now, if he'll just go buy me a ring and get on his knee! HA

Anyway, I'm trying to talk him into having a "Cake & Champagne" reception... really, a dessert reception - with a big bridal cake, a cool groom's cake (He wants a custom made dragon - with the wings made from fruit roll-ups! HA), some fancy chocolate cakes from a local restaurant (about $45 each and sooo worth it), some wonderful cheesecakes his aunt makes, plus a huge beautiful pink & lavender candy buffet... plus, tea, coffee, and champagne, of course. I think this would be a huge money saver and he is warming to the idea but he really wants a sitdown dinner ~ we are going to wait and see what my parents decide to pay for (or not). Still... I think this would be a great idea. Anyone else out there had just a "dessert" reception???

BTW, cross your fingers for me ladies... I REALLY want him to propose BEFORE December ~ so I can send out our STDs in our Christmas cards. I know it's just a matter of time... :soppy:

[caligal85]

Here's hoping and wishing it happens soon!

[Kay]

Well, I'm at home. Bored. Thought I'd post some pics of a few things I've already bought and stored away. These are all my FREE VistaPrint finds...

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/MOHsisNotecardsforherThankYoubag-Vi.jpg
Notecards for my MOH (sis) - They will go in her Thank You bag o' goodies

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/BMabestfriendNotecardsforherThankYo.jpg
Notecards for one of my BMs - They will also go in her Thank You bag o' goodies

[Kay]

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/MoreFreeThankYou-FreeatVistaPrint.jpg

More Free Finds at VistaPrint - Just Married Thank You cards - at the inside on the top it says in grey/silver writing "Thank You From Kay & M"

[Kay]

I'm a budget bride and here our my budget finds so far... I'm quite proud! :D

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/E-bayGuestBookandMemoryBook698.jpg
Beautiful Guest Book (top) and matching Memory book - Brand new - still in their original plastic cases with tags attached - they are all sparkly and lavender - I like lavender and I like sparkly (HA) - Retail price on the set is $38.47 but I paid, with shipping and handling, on E-bay $6.98 total. They are very nice inside with beautiful silver lining! This was a terrific buy!

[Kay]

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/JCPenneyLilacChargers.jpg
I found 4 of these lilac Chargers - BEAUTIFUL! I am going to put them on my candy buffet and put cupcakes on them. They are currently on JCPenney's website for $57.99, on clearance for $27.99 ~ I found them new at a local "returns" store for $12! Luv them!

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/OurPotteryBarnToastingGlasses.jpg
Our Pottery Barn toasting/champagne flutes. I only paid $1.99 for the set ~ Ebay!

[Kay]

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Wal-Mart50ThankYouinSilverfor400.jpg

50 Thank You Cards with Silver Foil writing ~ clearance aisle at Wal-Mart for $4. I am hoping to not use these, at all ~ I'd rather have personalized Thank Yous from Vista Print and etc... but, it's good to have back-ups, just in case we are "flooded" with gifts someday! HA HA HA

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/SilverRehearsalInvites-599.jpg
I LUV this find! This is a set of 50 envelopes and 50 pre-folded papers/programs/invites - in SILVER! I luv the feel of the paper. I actually used my printer (which is pretty-much OUT of ink) to test and see what it will look like. I think I'm going to use these for Rehearsal Dinner invites. I got the entire set, already opened, for $5.49 at a local thrift store. Online, these exact envelopes are $10.98 ~ let alone the paper. Anyway, I am in luv with this little find o' mine. :D

And that's all for pics tonight... just wanted to share some junk in my closet! HA

[bichonlvr]

Nice finds!!!!!

[katrina7875]

Don't you just love great deals?

[MrsDM]

Wow! You have some great ideas! Enjoy your pre-engagement stage, the anticipation only lasts so long!!!

[Kay]

Katrina ~
Are you kidding me??!! I am the "Deal" lady!! I want Macy's items on a Dollar Store budget! HA I told "M" that I had a dream that I found this WONDERFUL big beautiful wedding gown at a thrift store for $25 ~ and I didn't know what I was happier about ~ the fact that it was soooo beautiful and fit perfectly or the fact that it was only $25!! He cracked-up because this is sooooo me!!!:jphappy:

I am soooo going to be a "budget" bride and be careful. There are three things I will splurge on and that are very important to me ~ the dress, the cake, and the invitations. Even with those items, I'm going to make it my goal to attempt to make the wedding cost less than the ring (cuz I know him, and I bet I'll have a lot of leeway there, ha) ~ it will all depend on what my parents tell us they are giving us, plus what type of reception we decide to have, and etc. I also REFUSE to charge one dime on my credit cards. As soon as I get a job, those are getting paid-off and cancelled (except for one). I just want to start our life basically debt free. I also have him agreeing that once we are engaged we will open a joint savings account and every dime of our wedding money is going in that account, to start building our joint savings ~ which we've agreed we won't touch until we are at $10K. There is a reason I was a Finance Major in school....LOL :D

BTW Katrina, I saw your red/green christmas balls/ornaments in glass bowls for centerpieces & I'm thinking of getting some pink & lavender sparkly ornaments and getting some glass containers and seeing what those would look like ~ if we get married in the summer, no one will know the better and they will just look pretty, I think. Once the Christmas stuff is out, I'm going to try one and see what I think. Hope you don't mind I "borrowed" your idea.

[EarlyBird]

thats a GREAT idea. i think im going to do the same thing for my cocktail hour. I was told that i needed something on the cocktail tables and i think i will do this.
thanks

[Kay]

I went to Wal-Mart looking at the Christmas Store today ~ and there were aisles of beautiful sparkly purple, lavender, pink, blue, green, silver, every color imaginable balls & ornaments. Anyone could do this.

[brendalin]

I love all your ideas! You are getting some great finds too!

[caligal85]

Just catching up on your journal and loves all your finds. I'm the same way when it comes to being thrifty. My friends and family usually can't believe the stuff I find for cheap. It's a gift. :)

[Kay]

So, I posted this in the DIY forum (I'm bored) and thought I'd put it in my journal, too. I'm on my way to FF's house in a second and wanted to put this in here while it's still fresh in my mind...

We live in our hometown so most people who come in town for our wedding can & will stay with their parents, friends, etc. I decided I want to leave hotel "thank you" snack-bags for the people who do have to pay for a room ~ which should be about 10 rooms, max. Having said that, I bought the below gift bags at Wal-Mart (10 for $4.88) and a packet of raffia to make bows ($1.77). I am going to tie-in some pink/lavender/silver ribbons (that I already have) with the rafia.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/HOTELBAGSPB.jpg

Since there are so few bags, I am going to either "paint" Thank you on the bag in pink OR put a little notecard in each bag. I am also going to put the following tags on each bag (which have our names and our date on them) - a set of 20 on E-bay is $3.99 plus $1.55 s/h = $5.54.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/hotelbagtags.jpg

So, with those things now bought and ordered... I will wait until the week of the wedding to buy "fillers" for the bags. I am currently at almost $40 but don't want to go over $50 for fillers. Here is what I am thinking.. but I would welcome more ideas from any of you... and again, I will only have 10 bags (max) to fill...

*Mini water bottles - 2 per bag - $2.50
*Pringles - 1 can per bag - $10
*Apple - 1 per bag - $5
*Orange - 1 per bag - $5
*Microwave popcorn - 2 bags per bag - $5
*Big Symphony Candy Bar - 1 per bag - $10

This leaves me at a total of $37.50 for 10 bags.

This is currently my idea for a surprise hotel welcome/thank you snack bag. I may also use pink/lavender/silver tissue paper in the tops of the bags...

[EarlyBird]

so i just wanted to pop in here and tell you that i posted in your diy post about these bags.. just some suggestions i wanted to give :)

good luck

[Kay]

I'm cleaning and reorganizing my house today. I just went through the closet and took all my wedding finds and put them in totes, stacked neatly. Now, no mess! Yay! While I was in there I took pics of some items I bought back in July, when I just "knew" it was going to happen... sooner or later! :winktongue:

I bought these maple-sugar buckets ~ or whatever they really are ~ for the flowers/centerpieces. They have vines engraved across the tops of them. There are two small ones missing from the set cuz I didn't get them in the picture. I got them on Ebay for like $17 (including s/h). I have no clue how big or small our wedding will end-up being so I may have to buy more later.
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/FlowerbucketsforHP.jpg


I got these favor boxes at Wal-Mart on the wedding clearance aisle ~ I heart that aisle, same stuff they have in the craft department, just marked down! I got 100 platinum/silver favor boxes, plus the hearts and the ribbons for $24 plus tax. I may end-up using these on the candy buffet but instead, I'd like to put Hershey's Hugs & Hershey's Kisses inside them with a tag saying "Hugs & Kisses from the New Mr. & Mrs!" and placing one at each setting. I will also use my own pink & lavender ribbons.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/FavorBoxesforHP.jpg


You have now seen everything I've purchased. I have no job and am quite broke so I won't be purchasing anything new until I have a job and hopefully soon, a proposal. I know I started this journal before I am actually engaged but I am confident in us and him. It's sorta odd that we talk about our wedding (quite a bit last night) but I have no clue when this is going to be offical... but I think he is either waiting for Christmas or for me to get a job... or for the "right" moment... all I know, is that someday (next year) ..I'd bet a million dollars that I'm spending my life with this wonderful man. :wub:

[EarlyBird]

dont worry, fh and i ALWAYS spoke about the wedding even before we were engaged.. I knew it was coming b/c he started not wanting to talk about it like 2 weeks before ;) I dont know WHY HE thought i would forget about it if we didnt talk about it.. but guys sure are cute like that hhaa

[Kay]

LMAO!! Like you would forget??!! Men Men Men... :tongue:

[ktmb34]

i love all your cheap ideas. I've been banned from talking about weddings. we've been together a year today and we decided after a year proposal is free game. So for about the past 2 months i can't tell him what rings i like or even talk about weddings. Rarely I get to talk vaguely about it. Thanks for all the tips though! there IS a way to have a wedding cheaply!

[Kay]

LOL! "M" tells me we are going to have a "cheap" wedding and a fabulously expensive honeymoon (we are!). He talks about it ALMOST as much as I do. I'm fairly cool about it though (if I do say so myself). He knows I have what I call my "wedding laptop" and I've researched all sorts of stuff and I'm on here but we really only talk about it in terms of "our future" ~ sorta depends. I don't want to push too much or anything like that ~ when it is right, it'll be right. I'm fairly positive he was going to propose in August and then was asked not too... so now, he's probably just waiting for Christmas... who knows. All I know is, sooner or later, it'll happen.. and this girl is going to be PREPARED!

On another note, I had a totally fabulous job opportunity pop-up yesterday and got an interview TODAY! I have my fingers crossed because this was just completely out-of-the blue and would be FANTASTIC!!! BETTER than what I was even hoping to get!! :D

[Kay]

FF & I celebrated Halloween last night and I wanted to post this..

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/HalloPB.jpg

[NOTKT]

Very cute! Haha! I just read your journal, things are moving along nicely. I did almost the same thing before DH proposed, but did not actually buy anything. Just a TON of research! It pays off when you have a short engagement!

[Kay]

Thanks! I needed that encouragement. I agree ~ what I've done already should make it easier (and less expensive) once he does propose ...but I'm not buying anything big until he asks ~ actually, I'm pretty much done with pre-purchases. We are in an odd situation because we are planning to buy his parents home after they move into their new home ~ and construction starts on their house in January. I also don't want to live together before we get married but he wants too. He also knows I'd like a May wedding. So, if he were to ask at Christmas, that leaves me four months! :bbeek: I'm not sure I can afford a wedding in four months, depends on the job situation. I also have no clue if their house will be done by then. Lots of "ifs" so I'm just waiting and seeing for now ~ besides, I REALLY want a job. I had a GREAT interview last week and I have another interview in the morning! Yay! It looks like my attentions will be focused on a job and getting out of the house more now ~ thank goodness! :o

[EarlyBird]

rest assured, you CAN do a 4 month planning thing.. however, its high stress and your vendors may use that to charge you more.
however, i would go ahead and have a year and 4 month engagement instead :) makes life MUCH easier

[Kay]

GOOD NEWS!! I got "THE" dream job today ~ AND I took a second evening/weekend job for the holidays ~ TWO jobs in ONE DAY!! YAY!!! I could not be happier if I tried... well, unless I was engaged! HA :jphappy:

[caligal85]

That's so great! Congratulations! I hope you can celebrate big tonight!

[Kay]

He took me to lunch today and we celebrated!! He is working tonight! I am soooooo HAPPY!

[NOTKT]

Yay! A BIG congrats to you!

[caligal85]

How's the job going??

[Kay]

I love the daytime *dream* job and the second job is just seasonal/holiday retail employment which seems to be going well, too. So far, so good. Not having a job (a real job) for 3 months was terrible for me ~ I am soooo glad I finally have real income & a work-social-life again. The "good" thing is that I am focusing more on work, bills, etc.. instead hoping/wondering when I'll be planning our wedding!! :bbredface:

[Kay]

Just checking-in to say... no news on the proposal/wedding front yet. I'm working ALLLLL the time ~ this is my first day-off in a good week or more ~ and it's only a half-day off ~ I work tonight 2pm to close. Soo... things are wonderful between us even though I see him less with all the working... I'm still thinking he better get to practicing "knee" lifts or something... cuz sooner or later... he better be on one knee! :wink:

[Kay]

Hi!! Just updating! Things are AWESOME on my end. I love my new job, I am finally salary, and things are great in those aspects. As for our future, FF told me Christmas Night (as we were laying in bed) that he had ordered me a ring! He told me tonight that not only has it already arrived but he has shown it to several of his guy friends!! I was trying to admonish him for being so blabby but he said he couldn't keep a secret from me ~ he's soooo sweet and so excited! I can't wait! He is also talking about us, our future, etc a lot lately ~ it looks like we will be buying his parents home in June (they start construction on a new house this month) and we are looking at a June or September (outdoor) wedding ~ probably September so we can finalize the loan, move, etc.. and not be rushed for anything. So, soon, things should be official and then I will really start planning!! Our 1-year-anniversary is next week!

O! I've decided on the "blue" for the wedding... my shoes!
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/MySomethingBlue.jpg

[Goin2thechapel]

Oh my goodness. I just caught up on your entire journal!!!!! excellent Ideas and I love the pavillion! I too am gonna check out vistaprint...I'd like to see what that's all about.

And I will certainly keep my fingers crossed that your ring comes to you next week!!!!!

[NOTKT]

Wow! Everything is really coming along! I like your shoes!

[Kay]

Thanks for the comments ladies!! I got my nails done today ~ just in case!! I'm soooooooo super excited! I just KNOW this time next week, I'll be E~N~G~A~G~E~D!! Geez, I hope I'm right!! :jphappy:

[snu]

I love all the great deals you've found! Add me to the list of people who need to check out Vista Print. :bblol:

How exciting he has your ring, and you know it's coming SOON!! Isn't it the best feeling? I was pre-e for quite a long time, too so I know how you feel. I can't wait to hear how M proposes. I'm sure it'll be totally worth the wait! (as it was for me!)

[bichonlvr]

I can't wait for the engagement story :)

[Kay]

Thanks for all the positive comments! The thing is, he is not very good at "planning" a~n~y~t~h~i~n~g so I do NOT expect some big or fancy or surprise proposal. Our anniversary is Thursday & I work Friday so we are planning to go out Friday night ~ to see "Bride Wars" & Ruby Tuesday's for dinner (about the best restaurant we have in this small town) and that's it. If I had to say, I would think he would do a private, short, romantic proposal in front of his fireplace after we get home??? Who knows. Geez, he better not wait until V~day! I'll shoot him!

I was soooo excited today that I did a tiny bit of wedding shopping. At the local Dollar Tree I got five rolls of lavender & silver wire ribbon for the bouquets - on sale for 50 cents a roll!! I also got a cheap wedding card box. I was surprised they had those there. The one I got was a dark silver with a pale silver swirly design. It came folded-up so I opened it and its very big and I actually like it quite a bit. I think I'll reinforce the bottom, add some of my own ribbons, and go with it! That's a $20 savings.

At Wal-Mart I got four packets of Christmas drape on clearance - basically, four white "fluffy" tablecloths with silver glitter - sorta like cotton - I thought this would look nice under the candy buffet and/or cake table - they were 25 cents a tablecloth! I also picked-up five pink lemonade lip balms in these cool sliding tins - for 97 cents each - to throw in the five bridesmaids bags. To save money, I've decided to give the bridesmaids lavender gift bags filled with various items and a bottle o' wine each ~ I was previously going to buy them cloth bags but with a new house and a big honeymoon, I want to do nice things but on a budget. The gift bags will have.. so far.. Paula Dean creme brule candles, a small tote bag of makeup-type items like the pink lemonade lip balm, maybe some Bath & Body works lotion, etc... I had a good list of ideas for the bags but have completely lost it.

Anyway, I am sooooooooooooo excited - because I feel like we are about to make specific PLANS - and that is soooo awesome! Funny, I haven't even thought about what the ring might look like ~ I just keep thinking that in six months, we could be living in the same house!!! Aaaaahhhhhh :whoohoo:

[EarlyBird]

kay, i just read this and im so excited for you!!!

like i told you before though--- enjoy this time

i remember when i knew it was coming.. i drove myself crazy and after it was over i was like wait i liked the suspense.. go back :)

heheh cant wait to hear about it when it happens!!!!!!

[caligal85]

Yay! How exciting for you. My FH is not a great romantic planner at all, hence him just handing me the ring. I hope your proposal goes swimmingly.

[bichonlvr]

The story will be special in it's own way! Mine was different and great for ME! HA HA!!! :)

[Kay]

Well, I write with shame today. It's taken me a couple of days to get back on here after my "I am soooo sure he will propose on our anniversary!" He did not. :bbredface: We had a nice dinner and he did get me a pretty pink & white sapphire ring ~ which he calls my "diversion" ring.. but that's it. I was pretty letdown and hurt. I don't think he "got that" ~ I came home around midnight and didn't sleep all night Thursday night. Friday, I told him I was hurt cuz he had built everything up so much.. and he didn't get it, at all... he said "You know I have the ring, you know I'm going to ask sometime, I couldn't ask on our anniversary ~ the only thing I have left is the element of surprise!" Well, I don't like that explanation. :huh: But, I do love him. It took me until yesterday to quit being mad and hurt over the whole ordeal. Now, I think he's knocked the wind from my sails a bit. I KNOW he will propose, we will have a wedding & a honeymoon, and a house... but I'm just sooooo ready to live with this man... and I'm a planner... I want to know EXACTLY when I can plan for this to happen. He, on the other hand, believes every plan he has ever made has fell through, so he hates to plan. Normally, we even each other out. In this case, it just sucks.

So, I have NO CLUE when he will ask... and I don't even want to think about it... he says we can move-in the house in June and he told his mom a September wedding... he already called his best friend and asked him to be his best man and told him... he told his parents last week and they cried... so, he is planning something... but I have no hopes for it to be anytime soon. He mistakenly believes a woman can plan a wedding in a 3 months ~ and, at this point, I don't want to talk about it for a while... :whyme:

Well, here is my "diversion" ring... which I do love, despite...
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Picture.jpg

[NOTKT]

It's a very pretty ring! Hopefully he decides soon! Guys don't ever understand how long the planning takes. :)

[Tadswife]

it will happen hon.. I asked my dh everyday if he had gotten my ring yet and when he was going to ask me to marry him, Everyday I asked! drove him crazy. he told the more I ask, the more I will have to wait. Don't worry hon, he will ask you, i'm sure he is planning something really special and he want's it to be a suprise, i'm sure he want's to do it when you least expect it.:hug:Till then just be try to be patient.The proposel will be somthing you will relive over in your head and to others who will want to know how he asked.

[Docsgirl]

That ring is very pretty. And hopefully the big ring will come soon! Sometimes guys are weird about proposing on holidays, anniversaries, etc. Some plan to do it then and some think it's a cardinal sin or something....my hubby re-proposed with my ring the day after Christmas. His response was "Well, I wasn't going to do it ON Christmas".

[karkar]

I just had a chance to read your whole journal and I must say you definitely are a planner!!! I feel a lot like you at times, well when you werent working... I'm not working and I spend a lot of time planning my wedding.

Congrats on the new DREAM job and you're ring is beautiful!

Seems like you two are definitely supposed to be together forever, so the proposal will come... soon and if not I'll fly to where you are and give him a kick in the butt ;)

[Kay]

Thanks for the comments! I luv my job. It's awesome... and going from wayyyyyy too much free time to just evenings/weekends and having a salary... well, I wouldn't trade it for anything. I hated sitting at home. Stick in there ~ you'll find a job you love soon ~ it took me 4 months!

And, I am NOT AT ALL concerned that we won't be together, forever... and forever will probably start this year...I am a total Type A planner and don't mind that I'm like that... I can already see that it will save us a ton o' money... so, if you are like me in that aspect, go ahead and plan ahead of time while you have the free time... I've seen my budget go from 11K to 6K to 3K. Seriously. It's awesome what I've learned on here and realized I can cutout or cutdown or DIY.

Anyway, I'm now just happy and hopeful... but seriously have NO CLUE when/where he will propose... the man is wonderful wonderful wonderful but he can't keep secrets from me so a surprise proposal for me is going to be nearly impossible. :bbeek:

[janny1010]

Great ! How nice to share the interesting wedding story !!!!

[Kay]

HE PROPOSED!!!!!!!!!!!! I SAID YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/myring.jpg


Last night (Friday night) he asked me to marry him and I thought he was kidding around and then I realized the ring was there and he meant it and I said YES and then he put the ring on my finger and I cried... but the LONG version is...

My fiance works as a therapist/counselor for juvenille delinquents at a residental treatment center and Sunday night they had an "incident" at work and he got to play "prison guard" and ended-up with a broken tailbone... literally, he fractured his coccyx. :( He can barely sit down and he is off work for six weeks. :( Having said that, he was PLANNING to take me to Bride Wars when it FINALLY came to our tiny town (last night, two weeks late, of course, cuz we live in the sticks)... and he was going to have "Kay, Will you marry me?" on the big screen last night... BUT, he hasn't been able to sit down for a week let alone could we go to the movies so I took my doggy home last night then came back to his place and he was sitting on the couch, in pain, on his little round "donut" pillow (ha), like an old man with hemorrhoids or something (ha).. and he said "Babe, I feel like I'm sitting on a rock, will you help me up??" And I helped him up, and there in the donut was my ring, in its box, opened-up... and he put one knee under him and said "This is the closet I can come to bended knee right now, but will you marry me??" I was like "are you kidding? are you joking? seriously?" I cracked-up and I said yes and then I hugged & kissed him and then I got the ring and he put it on me and then I cried and cried. We told his parents and called lots of our friends last night. We told my parents this morning and the rest of our friends. Nothing is official official yet... but it looks like September 19, 2009 will be our day. Yay!!! :jplove: He keeps calling me "wifey" and I love-love-love it!! I am honestly so excited and so overwhelmed with all the good things I can't even think straight!!! Yay!!!!!!!! is all I can think to say, for now!!

[snu]

What a perfect and sweet story! Congrats! :jplove:

(and I hope he feels better asap! poor guy! :( )

[FutureKelley]

I'm so happy for you!! Welcome to the engaged club! :winktongue:

[TeacherSonja]

Congratulations! Such a cute proposal! I hope he'll get better soon.

[Kay]

So, it's been a whirlwind, wonderful 48 hours since he proposed and I've gotten BUSY! I'm soooo glad I did my research beforehand. So far we decided to DEFINITELY go with 09~19~09, that the colors are definitely lavender & pink with accents of silver, that the guys are wearing grey tuxedos, and I reserved our ceremony park/pavillion for the rehearsal and the wedding today (on the phone) and the check will be mailed tomorrow (they give you two weeks to get the check to them). Here is another picture of our pavillion in the park:

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Pavilion1photobucket.jpg

We also started looking at reception sites ~ the one thing that was very much up-in-the-air ~ and it is stillll VERY MUCH up in the air. We need to make a permanent guest list - we made a tentative guest list tonight and it looks like we would have to invite around 160 and only 144 would probably show-up. So, that knocked-out at least one reception site (too small) and we eliminated another cuz we decided we didn't like it. So.... this week I am going to make it my mission to find a reception site AND I'm ordering 25 Magnet Save~The~Dates for FREE from VistaPrint! I redesigned them so here they are:

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/vistaprintstd.jpg

[Mrs.Goff]

Your ring is beautiful ... Congratulations!

[amisteratwisterandme]

Congratulations!

I am so happy for you.

[NOTKT]

Yay! Your day finally came! I'm so happy for you! You have plenty of time to plan now! yayayayayay! Congrats! I want to see more pictures of that pretty ring!

[Kay]

Today was another great day. We talked about the number of wedding guests with his parents and they agreed/realized it was not going to be small ~ probably around 150 people attending with maybe 180/190 invited. So, I'm thinking we are going to have the reception at the Country Club ~ they will allow us to bring in all the bottles of champagne we want (BIG money saver if I buy cases ahead of time) and we can have my cake, his groom's cake (he wants a dragon), and have my mom make a cake, his aunt is making some cakes, and I'll have a candy buffet. The club will also provide a hot "buffett" of various finger foods ~ swedish meatballs, small quesadillas, etc and they will have a bar available with a bartender ~ and guests can buy other drinks of their choosing. I'm soooo darn excited! I know the next 8 months are just going to FLY by!! His mom forwarded me SEVEN emails tonight that were sent to her by family members and friends of theirs saying how happy they were for us!!! :jphappy: We have lots of great things going-on. Who know getting engaged would be so wonderful!! Life is good. Real good.

[Docsgirl]

Awww! Congratulations! :ura1::ura1::ura1:


Gorgeous ring and I absolutely love your engagement story....sooo cute! "I feel like I'm sitting on a rock"...tee hee.

Hopefully your FH feels better soon!

[Kay]

I'm just checking to see if my new ticker works...


..and it does not not. :(

[Kay]

We have had a horrible ICE STORM here and I have not had Internet for 3 days - I only have a little bit of time tonight so I wanted to post a picture of my tiara!!! I LOOOOVE IT!! It was only $27!! I want to wear it around the house ~ ha!! It looks more like a "headband" in person cuz I have LOTS of THICK THICK hair and a big head! HA Anyway, we have purchased allllllllll sorts of things for the wedding already (yay!) and made alllllll sortas of decisions ~ in one week and one day!! WOW!! So, I'll post much more later. I have soooo missed the Internet. Here's my tiara:

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/ztiara.jpg

[Mrs.Goff]

I can see why you LOOOve it, it's very pretty. Congrats on getting a good deal.

I know what you mean about missing the Internet, I was also without power for 4 days and I was SO bored. lol

Can't wait to see what all you've gotten done.

[Kay]

Well, I have Internet again. Thank goodness. So, we have been super-busy with planning some work on a house were buying (yay), picking out furniture together (too funny since we've learned our tastes are pretty-much opposite), and buying all sorts of wedding stuff.

So far, we have:
*mailed the non-refundable deposit to the park!
*bought tons of pink and lavender napkins for the reception ~ they are the big, banquet napkins and they are currently $1 for a pack of 36 at The Dollar Tree. Cool.
*Bought the flower girl basket ~ its a pink willow basket with a pink liner and I'm going to put a silver ribbon with bows around it.
*Bought my tiara (obviously)
*etc etc etc

We have decided on the Country Club for the Reception - basically, a Cake & Champagne Reception. We are having a cash bar but complimentary champagne, hot appetizers/finger foods, wedding cake, groom's cake, my mom's cake, some friends famous carrot cakes and cheesecakes, punch, coffee, and iced tea. I am going with his mom to meet with the club to discuss all the details, pick the food, reserve the club, etc. I'm so darn excited!! Yay!!

We have also decided to take a Mediterranean Cruise for our honeymoon ~ Italy, Spain, etc. We are looking at 2 or 3 right now so nothing specific but the Euro was down to under $0.79 to the dollar on Friday so we are getting a good deal.

His mom and I were talking tonight (I love my FMIL) and we are inviting WELL over 200 people now. Yikes! I'm super excited and also sorta freaked that they might just all show-up! Yikes again!!

Well, being engaged is awesome. He calls me his wifey and his fiance and Mrs. all the time. I love it. I love him. We are buying a house (locked in at 5.25%), repainting the rooms first, moving, buying furniture, planning the wedding, getting married, and then going on a big fat honeymoon! WOW What an awesome year! I'm super happy~happy!! :D

[FutureKelley]

Wow, you've got so much done already!!

[NOTKT]

I'm really happy-happy for you too!

[vicky_vicky]

Wow you got such a beautiful ring! Sometimes our darlings can do magic cant they?

Congratulations!!


Hey you have already so many things done! I really need to get busy there!! Hehe!

[Kay]

Thank You All for the nice comments!! This wedding thing is awesome! I was a little stresssed but now I'm organized and handling things much better. :bbredface:

So, we have...

*Ordered 100 Invitations, RSVPS, & colored (matching) envelopes!! I'm sooo excited!

*We also ordered 144 (a gross) of matching address labels with our new address on them to put on the RSVPs!! They are sooo cute! I'll have to post pics later!

*Ordered 250 "Hugs n' Kisses from the new Mr. & Mrs" tags for the silver boxes I bought for wedding favors ~ we are putting Hershey's hugs and Hershey's kisses in the boxes!!

*Made the guest list which is now at 285 (plus some co-workers we haven't considered yet) and we "estimate" around 200 will show-up (for reals) ~ which means we have to order more invites and I may have a heart attack walking down the aisle in front of that many people. The good thing is that I won't freak until July when the RSVPs start coming back in!

*We picked-out our china pattern. We are registering for Mikasa China and we chose "Parchment"
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/MikasaParchment.jpg

*We have a close date on our house so it looks like we are moving in together (possibly) sometime in April! Yay!!!

*We are going on an Italian/Mediterranean cruise for our honeymoon ~ which means we will probably fly to Rome, Italy and stay a couple of nights pre and post cruise soooooo... we've decided to go with an Italian food theme at the Reception ~ Bruschetta, Focaccia Pizza, Italian Meatballs, etc..

*We have a cake tasting scheduled tomorrow but we are going to change it. The lady we have pretty-much already chose only charges $1.25 a person ~ Yay!! I've decided on a four-tier, round cake, no spacers or anything between it ~ something sorta like this (minus the fruit!!)

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/3_tier_stacked_sugared_fruit.jpg

or this (minus the flowers!)

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/auciello_wedding_cake.jpg

I want a BIG FAT cake ~ we are having a strawberry layer - 14 inch, a chocolate layer (fudge or german we aren't for sure which yet) - 12 inch, a carrot cake layer (my favorite!) - 10 inch, and a lemon layer - 8 inch!! PLUS, he is having a dragon groom's cake - not a big stand-up one but a lay-down type of cake!! I'm soooo excited about the cakes cuz they are sooo much less than I had anticipated! YAY!

Photography, of course, is another story... VERY expensive... more about that later...

[Kay]

Also, I rented/reserved 150 white chairs for only $1.50 each ~ we get them from Friday to Monday for that price! And, if we need more, they have more. Below is sorta the look I'm going for... except our park pavillion has open sides ~ so our wedding is basically an outdoor/covered wedding.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/beautifulaisle.jpg

[NOTKT]

Wow! Everything is moving quickly! That's great! I love all your ideas and pictures. You definitely will have to post up your invites and address lables :)

[Kay]

Thank You! The invites/RSVPS/etc shipped TODAY! YAY! So, I'll post them when they get here!! I love checking my mail lately!

[Kay]

Today is Valentine's Day & future hubby & I have had a great day so far! We went and picked-out new tiles for our countertop ~ we are buying a home that has butcher block countertops that we can't stand so we had an estimate for installation and looked at tiles ~ today we decided on a rustic/stone/slate tile and backsplash! We are soooo excited! We also bought new light fixture covers for the house ~ for the kitchen. Little things make a big difference.

When we were at Wal-Mart buying light fixtures he bought the aisle runner ~ it's 120 feet long (WOW), is printed with what looks to be a flower backing ~ and comes with a white paper backing. It was only $20.

He also bought me some beautiful pink and purple tulips and after I've enjoyed them on my counter for a few days, we are going to plant them at our new house.

Tonight we are having some dry-rub famous ribs his parents had shipped to us as a V-day gift and some sweet California wine they bought me for V-day. Nice.


We also stopped by and looked at the mens' tuxedos. It would be ~$165 for the men to have grey... ~$125 for the men to have white... and ~$85 for black. I am quite frustrated with the men having to pay so much to rent a tuxedo and shoes... (shoes are included in that price) but I want them in tuxedos. It will only be a money issue with one man and he's really happy to be in the wedding but stilllllll. I think that's expensive. FH doesn't. Anyway, my wedding colors are pink, lavender, & silver and I didn't want ANY black in the wedding... BUT... I just can't stand the tuxedos being so expensive... so, I'm going to go with BLACK tuxedos with grey/silver vests and silver ties. What do you all think of that?? I hope someone reads this and responds cuz that's the dealio at this point.

Also, we got a tip on a less expensive photographer today so I'm going to check him out. We are also considering engagement pictures. He said that if I want them, we can have them ~ and they aren't very expensive around here. I just haven't decided. I suppose it would be nice to have some pictures of us together. We'll see...

Hope everyone has a great Valentine's Night! :soppy:

[FutureKelley]

I'm so happy for you Kay! You have so much accomplished already and I can tell how excitied you are by your posts! :)

[Kay]

Awwww Thank You So Much! Life is great these days! My Cup Runneth Over. :jpcoffee:

[f77g4]

I just read through your whole journal Kay....and the anticipation you had leading up to the proposal was quite something. I'm so glad I didn't know beforehand or I would have been going nuts. FH and I were together for 7.5 years before he proposed and we lived together for almost 5 before the proposal...whenever someone would ask he would just say that marriage wasn't in his vocabulary - he even said this like 2 days before he proposed...lol...so needless to say I was quite surprised and excited.

You were smart to plan things ahead of time - I never did as I thought I would be setting myself up for disappointment.

I'm so glad it worked out for you.

I personally think that the grey tuxes would go much better with your colors then the black. Who knew there was such a price difference on tuxes? I would almost think that the black would be more expensive due to supply & demand, etc. Maybe talk to the guys and see how they feel about the price of the grey tuxes....your FH doesn't think that its bad and personally I don't either. I know when FH went to prom with me his was over $200 then because of the style he got. You should see if the groom gets his for free after renting so many - a lot of places still do that.

So have you picked your bridal party and sent the cookies to the girls, etc?

Are you still going with the frog and princess them? Have you been dress shopping yet?

[amisteratwisterandme]

I don't think the black will look bad at all. I guess it depens mostly on what you want though.

Most people do the black tuxes and don't consider them part of the wedding colors anyway (I think)

What color bridesmaids dresses are you going for?

[Kay]

Hi! Thank You All For the replies/answers! I haven't been on here in a while. So.... I have lots to post! :)

We decided on EXACTLY what the men are wearing! They are wearing black tailed tuxedos with grey/silver vests and grey/silver ties (long ties, not bow ties). They are also renting black shoes. They are coming from Jim's Formal Wear and the price is $89 for the tux (everything) and $18 for the black shoes. I must say, they are SOOO nice in person! And, the silver/grey with them looks fabulous. FH thinks the men will like black more because it is slimming, the silver vests and ties will set-off the wedding nicely, and the guys won't worry about getting pictures taken all over the park and getting their tux dirty! So, here is a picture of the exact tuxedo we reserved for the five groomsmen, my fiance, and my father:

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/themenstuxedos.jpg

[f77g4]

Very nice!

[Kay]

The Bridesmaids are also RENTING their dresses!! No Kidding!! At the same store! We went in on Monday to look at tuxedos and there were these BEAUTIFUL, formal, pale pink, satin, strapless dresses for RENT for $65!! The store carries the dresses for rental only ~ in sizes 0 to 30! Awesome deal. They are heavy, thick satin, they come with a pink sheath for the ladies to wear around their arms, they are a pale/creamy pink like I like with a little sparkles/flowers on the top/bodice part. They will be very flattering in any size. The ladies are all happy with them, too!! I will try to go take a picture of them but here is the closest I could find on the Internet:

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/women.jpg

Since our colors are pink, lavender, & silver ~ the women will all be carrying lavender bouquets of flowers! That was a bridesmaid's idea! :)

[f77g4]

OMG that is such an awesome deal - congrats on finding that rental shop! Woohoo!

[Kay]

My mom ordered her dress from JCPenney's and it came in today. She was so excited that she brought it by my work to show me! This is the exact dress she ordered except it is silver/grey ~ and it is beautiful! My FMIL is wearing almost the exact same dress! Luckily, I believe my FMIL's dress is beige!

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/mom.jpg

My dad is wearing a tuxedo like the men BUT his tie is pink & silver with a tiny bit of black in it! Very nice. I'm so glad my parents are excited and happy for me!!! Yay!!

Also... We bought the aisle runner. And, I reserved a local hotel room (2 doubles) for one week for me & and my sister, who is flying-in from Seattle, ~ it's a new hotel so it needs business ~ it has a pool, restaurant, lounge, and free wi-fi ~ total cost for 2 people for a week??? $162!! That's like $18 a night! I decided to stay the week with my sister in a hotel room since FH & I are moving-in together when we close on our house (which should be next month) ~ I thought he could have a week in the house with his best friend from Colorado and I could have a week with my sis. It will be good for us. ((I also told him no whoopie for 2 weeks before the wedding! HAHA)) Also, the appraissal was done on Monday so that's speeding-up the closing process on the house!! Yay!! More things I can cross off the to-do list!

[Kay]

And... my LAST post for this evening... The INVITATIONS, RSVPS, ENVELOPES, LABELS, etc... are ALL here!! They arrived yesterday!

First, here is a picture of our Save-The-Date magnets. They came in weeks ago ~ I got 25 of them for free from VistaPrint.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/wed3.jpg

Now for the stuff that came in yesterday... I used the VistaPrint business card "maker" to make these little cards ~ they are going to be hole-punched with a heart puncher and I am going to tie them with pink & lavender ribbons to little silver boxes filled with Hershey's Hugs & Hershey's Kisses. They are the wedding favors. I am going to put one little box at each place setting! :soppy:

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/wed1.jpg

[Kay]

This is the best picture I could get of our invitations ~ they are pale pink

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/wed5.jpg

The RSVPs (with matching labels, free on VistaPrint)
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/wed2.jpg

I love how everything matches ~ even our outer envelopes match! I got 100 of the invites & rsvps, 144 matching address labels, & 250 of the hugs n' kisses tags ~ total with s/h was $165. Awesome! Of course, now we have to order more but that's okay!! They aren't fancy but I like them. I like more that I got to design them! It was fun!

[Mrs.Goff]

Everything looks great. Congrats on getting such a great deal on the dress and room rentals. I love the little car you used on your "Paperwork".

[Kay]

Well, I'm still awake so I wanted to post what I'm thinking about for a hairstyle. I believe I got this inspiration picture from someone else on here ~ thank you if I did. Anyway, I don't look a thing like this girl ~ but I like her hair color, I like the bangs, the style, etc.. and my hair is almost that length now so this should work, except I'm wearing a tiara/headband and veil.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/wedding-hairstyle-25.jpg

[Kay]

I fell in love with this dress long before I was engaged.. and I know I want something with pink, something with tulle, and something that looks like a ballgown and is "different" ~ the shop that I rented the tuxedos and the bridesmaids dresses at can get me this dress for around $400. I am considering it, I just wish I could try it on first. Here it is:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Mydresspearandcerise.jpg

[TeacherSonja]

Wow, everything looks perfect! I love your ivitations and the RSVP cards. Great deal on the BM dresses.

[Kay]

7 months from today will be my wedding morning!!! Eeeekkksss!!! :o

[Docsgirl]

Love all your paper products and that dress is awesome! I love dresses with color! :D

[f77g4]

Everything looks great and such good deals too.

[f77g4]

I saw this and thought of you

http://www.myweddingfavors.com/princecharming.html

Super cute!

[FutureKelley]

That dress is so beautiful!!

[Kay]

Thank You! The dress also comes in pearl & ballet pink ~ but I think I like the white with the dark fuschia color better..
Here's the ballet pink:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/ballet.jpg

[f77g4]

Both are pretty but I am partial to fuchsia..lol...but would the ballet pink tie in more with your colors?

I'm glad you liked those candles of the frog prince!

[f77g4]

Look what else I came across

http://mydreamwedding.weddingstar.com/8651+Princess+Bride+Kissing+Frog+Prince+Figurine+_ category:cake_toppers;

[Kay]

I just found that same topper on E-bay but I'm not sure I like it. I don't know yet. We'll see.. I wish it was a bit more whimsical and I don't plan to have a dress like that. Thanks for the idea tho!

The other frog topper I got (long ago) I've realized is wayyyy too small. So, I'm going to keep it & put it on the top layer when we have our 1-year anniversary dinner/cake! HA

[Kay]

Well, to answer a couple more questions...

*yes, the pale pink (ballet pink) dress would probably go with the wedding colors more closely but I wanted a stronger pink so we'll see.. I think I am going to start trying on wedding dresses next month! I refuse to try on anything that doesn't have something PINK in it!

*Yes, we are still planning to do the Frog & Princess thing. We are expanding on it a bit. We are going to include the entire bridal party in on the deal ~ though the majority of them won't find-out until the evening before. It should be fun. The only reason we would end-up cancelling the frog idea is if his frog outfit doesn't fit or can't be fixed by a seamstress. I think he is going to go ahead and order it now so we will know... IF it gets cancelled, I won't care. We are getting married, that's really all I care about.

And, in other news..

*The wedding budget has nearly doubled. I had like $2200 for everything... and then we buy some stuff... and more stuff.. and I'm still at $2200... and I want to add 2 more items which total over $1000. In the end, I think the actual amount spent on everything will be double the original elcheapo budget. :bbredface:

*The guest list is nearly 325 people.. actually, after last night, I believe it is over that number. We don't expect that many to show however, I did a rough estimate of local people that I thought would probably show-up and it was over 200. I sorta hope people show and leave their children at home. We had dinner at the country club Friday night and they told us they had a wedding reception for 250 last year and it worked-out fine. My main "concern" is that a large majority of that number is CHILDREN.

*On that same note...I would LOVE to have a wedding WITHOUT children. He says no. His mom says yes. One of my bridesmaid's is balking about it cuz she has 3 kids. Originally, when I envisioned my wedding, I wanted no children. It's just crazy to me that we are going to feed appetizers and cake to 100+ kids ~ at least, I think it is that many ~ the actually number of invitations we are sending-out is only like 130. I will have to add-up the kids. Plus, there will be a bar with plenty of adults drinking. I wonder why people even bring their children to such occasions?? Can't they get a babysitter for just one night?? Maybe I sound harsh because I don't have kids and don't understand. Anyway, I don't really enjoy being around kiddos (especially some specific ones I'm thinking of that misbehave all the time - grrrrrr). So, I'd be perfectly happy without kids... sad but true... :bbredface: I wish I could get him onboard with this notion, too.

[Mrs.Goff]

Is it possible for you to visit a local daycare and hire a few people to watch the kids in another room at the venue during the wedding? Or maybe even some local high school students (that you know). I know it'll cost ya and believe me I understand being on a tight budget. It's just a thought. You could even do box lunch type meals for them. A sandwich, cookie, juice and an apple in a brown paper sack.

You could do the box lunches for them to save on money, even if you don't get someone to watch them. Maybe just for kids 13 and under.

Just a few ideas, I don't know if they'll work for you. Just trying to be helpful.;)

[f77g4]

Thats a lot of kids to have at a wedding reception - wow!

I think the youngest on your guest list is 10 and the only reason is because she is my first cousin and I invited all first cousins but I stopped it there or we would have had a lot more kids since a lot of my cousins have kids, etc. And my family is just too large to start expanding multiple generations.

I would definately inquire with your venue about a kids meal as that could save you some money. Someone else on here did that and the kids meals are like 1/2 the price.

[Kay]

I don't know what I'm going to do about the kid situation ~ but I don't feel well ~ I've had a stomach-ache all weekend long ~ so I don't want to think about the "boring stuff" for now. :bbredface:

What I do want to think about... are these GREAT shoes I bought for this summer! They look soo fantastic on, too! I am going to try really hard to get a dress to match them for the rehearsal dinner! Sometimes, it's really fun just being a girly~girl. :pompom:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/rehearsaldinnershoes.jpg

[caligal85]

I don't think you're crazy not to want to children at your wedding. The last two weddings I went to had children screaming during the ceremony and I have no FREAKING clue why the parents didn't leave with them. IT DROVE ME BATTY! At one, the kid was so loud you couldn't even hear the vows. At the same time, some people take great offense because they have darling angels/cutie pies/cuddle bunnies. I think it's a sticky situation.

The majority of the children at my wedding will be family that I love and adore and a few friends have children that they will bring and I had reasoned that if my ceremony was later in the evening, it would be more conducive to a no children wedding. As it is, we're having it earlier and so there will be children, but I have a feeling my mother will make sure that no peeps are heard.

[f77g4]

I came across a couple other cake toppers that fit you theme

http://cgi.ebay.com/Princess-Kiss-the-Frog-Prince-Wedding-Cake-Topper-Top_W0QQitemZ120330251555QQcmdZViewItem

http://www.weddingbedazzle.com/servlet/the-5547/wedding-cake-topper-top/Detail

This site had favor boxes in your theme

http://a1weddinginvitations.net/Wedding-Favors.htm

And I just had to show you this

http://www.myjeanm.com/engine.cfm?iCatID=15399&ssource=googlebase

http://www.eyecatchingcreations.com/mystore/product_info.php?products_id=533

http://www.bluerainbowdesign.com/DesignDescription.asp?ProductID=PR12505144858qRMMK Q919jx1hi0145ys5b&ReferringID=BRDGoogleBase

[Docsgirl]

I saw these today as I was checking out candy for our favors and instantly thought of you! :D

http://products.proflowers.com/CherryMoonFarms-CMF//FrogPrinceChocolates-30002119?viewpos=2&trackingpgroup=cg1&ref=CPNCMFSRCHgoogkwd_assorted+chocolates_b&prid=CMN10P&catid=cg1

Too cute!

[Kay]

Thanks Girls! Some of those are hilarious!!! So far, I've not bought anything around our "theme" ~ the Frog and Princess ~ but, if we definitely go ahead with it, I'm going to put the story of the Frog & Prince on our programs ~ for people to read when people show-up to the wedding ~ He didn't want anything on the invites cuz he doesn't want people to get a clue of what we may be planning (like anyone would! Ha). We have some pretty good plans to do it right and make it hilarious BUT... We've GOT to get my dad onboard ~ a very hard task and we aren't sure HOW to ask him ~ he may throw a big fit and refuse to walk me down the aisle. And, we've got to get his suit and crown ready. The rest will be easy and funny~funny~funny! I'll know more as our date gets closer.

[Mrs.Goff]

I was searching for favors (ugg what a pain ... lol) and seen these and thought of you.

http://www.favorfavor.com/mm5/graphics/00000001/8213w.jpg

http://www.favorfavor.com/page/FF/PROD/8213

[Kay]

I went shopping today and bought a couple of items for my bridesmaids! The plan is to buy each of them a big bag & fill-it with goodies ~ at this point, I don't know if the "big bag" will be a personalized cloth bag or a cool tote-type bag I see out somewhere or just pink & lavender gift bags ~ it will all depend on finances.

Today I bought them all little packs of 2 makeup bags:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/bmgifts.jpg

And I got them all scarves!
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Picture004.jpg

I had been planning the makeup bags but the scarves were on sale & I just went for them! Yay! I had a list of items I wanted to put in each bag but I've lost it somewhere. If memory serves me correctly, I think they are each getting: Paula Dean Creme Brule candles (bought), the makeup bags filled with items like pink lemonade lipgloss & various bon bons nail polishes/lip glosses, the scarves, personalized notecards for each girl, etc. I also bought wine bags & have bought each of them what I think is their favorite bottle of wine. I am also buying each one of them a matching necklace to wear with their strapless dresses during the wedding. I think I found "the" necklace today ~ but they only had four and they were pricey ~ so, I'm still looking. We'll see. I really want them to like their gifts and know that I am thankful they are taking the time to share this experience with me. :hug:

[EarlyBird]

Kay, did you do the personalized note cards from vista print?
I did this for my mom and grandma and fh's mom. of course, i order there so often, i made the purchase with each order :)
but i also got each girl a t-shirt too from there.

[Kay]

Yep! VistaPrint! I already did 2 of the 5 ~ each one is different ~ and I realized last weekend they have some NEW ones that are soooo cute!! Did you see the ones with the bunnies playing in the grass & flowers??? Adorable!

I am also thinking about having them t-shirts made to wear the "day of" before we are all dressed ~ but it will depend ~ finances are tight because we are fixing-up a house, buying a house, and planning this wedding for so many people. It's a hectic year and we are trying to do everything on our own ~ and my new salary is not what I want it to be so I have to be very careful with any funds. Ugh. :bbeek:

[Kay]

Some updates...

*We are having children at the wedding. I'm resigned to it. The guest list is over 325 and I'm too nervous to see where it is at at this point. I do know we have to order about 30 to 50 more invitations probably.

*The wedding is *sorta*going to take a back seat because the day after M proposed, his parents made us an offer to buy a home they already owned that was empty ~ not the family home we thought we would be buying from them ~ and we were very happy about this offer! Since then, M & I have been doing the loan process thing and are currently making some improvements to the home before actually buying it. I am hoping we can close by April 15th but it could be June or July, depending on how long it takes for some of the work to get done. It is sorta fun to write out a long list of all the things we want to do to our new home & the things we are doing ~ last night we picked-up new window & door trim paint, bought a caulking gun and some caulk, and bought new letters for the mailbox ~ little things that make a difference. Unfortunately, we also want a new dining room table & chairs, a new bed, a new deep freeze, etc... So, it is stressful thinking about all the home expenses plus the wedding ~ all in ONE year. Geez... we are soooo going to NEED our honeymoon!

*And on that note, I am very stressed-out... like, sick-to-my-stomach stressed out for a week now... which is very unlike me. My job is a good job but very stressful, the new house is wonderful but we WANT to do so many "little" things ~ that alll add-up financially, and then there is the wedding ~ that seems to be a never-ending money pit. I feel like, if we are actually expecting 200+ people to show-up at the wedding, then we need to take the time to do some things nicely ~ I want a $500 string quartette, I want colored linens at the country club or else white (AFTER we booked it, they changed all their linens from white to cranberry red), I want some sort of centerpieces on ALL the tables at the reception, I Want Want Want. :bbredface: Still, I feel like I will have more of a handle on things once we send-out the invites (July 1st) and start getting the RSVPs back ~ so we know how many people are actually showing-up and how many tables I'll need to decorate, etc. Anyway, venting here helps.. so thanks!

[Kay]

FH's brother got married in October and had a rehearsal dinner ~ for just immediate family and the photographer ~ 13 people ~ paid for by FH's parents (of course) ~ and the bill at the end of the night ~$900! I thought my FMIL was going to have a heart attack. We all thought it was ridiculous ~ except the greedy bride.

So, ever since then, FH & I have vowed to have an inexpensive rehearsal dinner. His parents are paying for our honeymoon and selling us a beautiful home ~ they’ve done enough already ~ we want to make the rehearsal dinner inexpensive for them ~ and fun but not fancy. We expect 24 people at the dinner ~ cuz we have 5 groomsman & 5 bridesmaids, our parents, the pastor & his wife, the coordinator (my sis) & her husband. So... FH REALLY REALLY wants to have a cookout! After a lot of talking last night, we compromised & I think we are going to go for it!

Our plan is to have the rehearsal dinner on our deck next to our pool. Our deck is HUGE and will easily accommodate 2 big grills, lots n ' lots of chairs, etc. We also have a big sunroom off the back of the house, in case it is raining and/or cold in September ~ you never know around here. So, I'll borrow 3 very long business/folding tables from my sister's work, line them up and put picnic-type tablecloths on them, sit hurricane lamps on them (or the equivalent), and sit chairs down each side. FH wants to grill 24 T-bone steaks …and some chicken for some of us that like chicken better. I told him we could do this ONLY if everyone eats on paper plates and uses paper napkins and throws everything in the trash afterwards. I’m thinking we could have tubs of macaroni salad, potato salad, baked beans, etc from Wal-Mart. Before leaving for the rehearsal (which is 30 minutes away from our house), we could put baked potatoes in the oven on low. We can stop by a local restaurant on our way back in town and pick-up three or four dozen of their fabulous rolls. I’ll throw together a big salad. We'll setout a table with gallons of iced tea & sodas. We'll have some buckets of ice. We'll also have some buckets of ice with bottled beers. We'll have a Wal-Mart $20 cake for desert. I plan to kick everyone out at 10pm, latest! At the end of the night, the plates can go to the trash can, the uneaten food can be given away, the house will still be clean, and the dishwasher can take care of all the silverware and ladles we used.

I think this cookout he wants is doable – it’s a compromise between us cuz FH wants to cook good steaks for everyone and I want the house clean for me to come home to for our wedding night the next night. It would also be relatively inexpensive ~ maybe $200 max for 24 people.

I’d like some more ideas as far as easy stuff… if anyone has any??! I may do some little decorations… I might get some sandbag luminaries, some tiki torches (we already have some), string some lights around the pool deck, etc… If you have any ideas/photoss of easy but neat stuff, send them my way! Thanks!

[Kay]

And, totally on MY dime, I'm going to order 50 personalized stadium cups that have our names and wedding date on them – reusable cups - for everyone to drink out of at the rehearsal dinner - and they can all take a couple home with them, too!

I like the look of these ~ in translucent purple or green ~ I mean, who says the rehearsal colors have to match the wedding??

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/stadiumcups.jpg

And this is the logo I would use.. with our names and our date... sorta keeping with the car theme throughout everything. :)
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/clipartforstadiumcups.gif

[f77g4]

Wow that is a huge guest list and wow you do have a lot on your plate with buying the house, planning the wedding etc.

The good thing about a house those - or at least in my opinion - is that as long as it is liveable, you can always do these little things as time goes on as you have the money. That's what FH and I are doing - last year we had expenses like buying a lawnmower, etc and we wanted our lawn nicely landscaped. This year we are going to be staining the deck and next year we hope to get the driveway paved and redo a couple of rooms, etc.

Best wishes for a happy home.

As long as you look for deals for the wedding personally I think you can have what you want but at a reasonable price. Look on craigslist and kijiji in your area because as brides get married they don't have the place to store things any more and will be looking to get rid of things and weddings unfortunately get cancelled or postponed.

I've gotten my invitations (brand new Brides brand DIY ones), vases for my centerpieces, pewmarkers, cardbox and all kinds of things from kijiji and really haven't paid a whole lot.

Everything will work out!

[f77g4]

I love the idea of the cookout. We are doing something similar but more of a buffet style with appetizer type food like my parents did for both mine and my sister's high school grad parties - easy, not overly expensive, and very filling! I'm sure you'll have a great time!

My parents are hosting our rehearsal...plan for decorations include tulle which I got cheap from ebay, white lights which I got cheap from kijiji and punches of color with fake flowers, etc. Really simple and inexpensive.

[EarlyBird]

Just a suggestion, this is something im having my parents do since it looks like the rehersal is in their back yard.. spend the little bit extra and have a cleaning person come clean your house after you leave for the wedding. my aunt did this b/c all 20 of us girls left from there after makeup, hair etc. Basically, she just hired one of the insured companies and when she got home the next night, her house was immaculate with nothing to worry about.

[EarlyBird]

where are you ordering your cups from????????

[FutureKelley]

Those cups are so cute!!

And I think a cook out is a great idea! Actually, I think I may suggest that to my FMIL. I know she is trying to find a place to fit us all that won't cost a fortune.

[Kay]

Just a suggestion, this is something im having my parents do since it looks like the rehersal is in their back yard.. spend the little bit extra and have a cleaning person come clean your house after you leave for the wedding. my aunt did this b/c all 20 of us girls left from there after makeup, hair etc. Basically, she just hired one of the insured companies and when she got home the next night, her house was immaculate with nothing to worry about.

Great Idea! And, I actually know someone who is insured that I recommended to a friend as a full-time housekeeper!! Thank You!

[Kay]

where are you ordering your cups from????????

Discountedcups.com ~ pretty good prices and a TON of hilarious, cute, whatever-you-want clipart for the cups...

There are other places, especially on E-bay, that you can get good deals on cups from ~ you can sometimes get stadium cups ~ like the kind you get at football games ~ for inexpensive. I've heard stadiumcups.com is good, too ~ but they sell on E-bay for cheaper than they do their website. And, if you don't want 100 or 200 or etc, you can get quantities of 50 cups on E-bay for cheaper.

[f77g4]

Just wanted to show you this

http://www.weddingstar.com/can/pagebypage

I know you've seen the cake topper but thought the cake might be some inspiration for you.

[Kay]

Just wanted to show you this

http://www.weddingstar.com/can/pagebypage

I know you've seen the cake topper but thought the cake might be some inspiration for you.

OH MY GOSH!! That's AWESOME!! I LOVE IT!! I may just do that!!!! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU

[f77g4]

OH MY GOSH!! That's AWESOME!! I LOVE IT!! I may just do that!!!! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU

I'm glad you like it - I saw the magazine the other day in the store so I went online trying to find it.

[Kay]

For the Rehearsal Dinner, I think I am going to try to model my invites after these:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/tablecloth-red-rd.gif
I've already bought red & white checkered tablecloths.

[Kay]

My boss at work brought-in pictures of her sister's wedding reception at our country club (a few years back). She had votives lined-up along rows of long tables and votives in the window seals ~ a very nice touch that I plan to copy. I had no other idea what to do ~ since she used tulle on the ceilings and I'm not good with tulle and didn't want to use it. Then, this weekend, at Wal-Mart, in the potting soil/garden aisle ~ I found my decorations ~ ~ lighted paper lanterns!! I talked to my dear FH tonight and he said it sounded good, too ~ and he is going to help spring for them!
Here are my inspiration pictures... it will be dark by the time we get to the reception..
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/paper-lanterns-garden-falls-amber.jpg

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/paper_lanters_081008.jpg

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/lanterns2.jpg

I think I'll get white and pink and lavender! :) I'm really excited I found these.

[Kay]

*The Good News*
FH & I went through our budget from now until September and not only are we going to be able to buy new furniture for our house & lots of odds n' ends things we need (like a garden hose, a new light fixture, etc), but we are also going to be JUST FINE with the wedding budget!! YAY!! We OVER estimated everything and UNDER estimated our income. We also did this without considering ANY of the possible wedding gift money we may get and we set aside a chunk for the honeymoon. Yay!!! I'm soooo excited!! We are going to go spend $100 on paper lanterns tomorrow and another $125 on a beautiful, beautiful chandalier for our house that we found at the local Habitat for Humanity today!! I feel sooooo good about having a beautiful and fun wedding without breaking the bank!! So does he!!


*The Sad/Bad News*
Well, I got my first "wedding vent" email tonight. It was from my sister, also my MOH. She wrote a very spiteful and mean letter. Frankly, I was floored. I cried and cried. FH was mad and wanted to call her. I didn't let him. Now, obviously, I've calmed down. I am not sure how to deal with her without making her madder ~ but basically, she is flying-in from Seattle and staying a week here in town (she hasn't seen our parents in 2 years) and she is getting a hotel room here in town. She already spent nearly $600 on her plane ticket. I found a discounted hotel here in town for $162 a week and offered to pay for it. She said NO. She doesn't like that hotel. So, I found ANOTHER hotel here in town - $350 for the week. NO. She said I needed to quit treating her like a child, blah blah blah and she can stay where-ever she wants. I realize she can stay anywhere she wants but I felt guilty that she was going to spend over a $1000 just on the plane ticket and a hotel - not counting her rental car, her meals, etc. I was thinking like I think - which is like a cheapskate - and was trying to help her get a cheaper room - and she was PISSED OFF at me. I don't know. I have no clue how our wires got crossed. I was really, really upset earlier. Now, I just am at a loss for words as to what to say to her. I don't want to make her madder so I may just let her cool off. In the meantime, it sure is upsetting. FH & I spent WELL over $1000 on his brother's wedding in October and we didn't even get a thank you! So, I am very sensitive to people spending a bunch of money on our wedding. I suppose she is sensitive about staying in the most expensive hotel in town. Makes no matter to me, but geeeeez... that was the meanest email I have ever gotten from my sister, EVER. :sob: I feel horrible.

[Kay]

And... to clear my mind... Centerpieces.

We are having long rows of tables with votives on the tables and I have silver buckets I am going to put ice in and bottles of pink champagne and use as "centerpieces" ...sorta like this...
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/343817Bottle-of-Champagne-in-Silver.jpg

Since I only have 12 silver buckets, and we are having nearly 100 kids at the reception (I am scared to do the headcount at this point), I was thinking I would space-out, between the buckets, lollipop centerpieces. I decided NOT to have a candy buffet (no room for one) so this would be a great alternative. The only thing I know, is that I want to use the BIG swirly lollipops. I need to find some better inspiration pics. Here are the only two I like so far...
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/kidscenterpiece2.jpg
(I like the lollipops but I would want more, like a bouquet of lollipops)

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/sweet_702.jpg
I don't want tags on the lollipops

Anyway... that's my last reception idea... and then I'm almost done with the reception... I need to get tealights, a wooden set of letters that say "LOVE" for the cake table, a guest book pen, rope lighting for the head table, my cake server set (I have his), and pick-up those lanterns tomorrow!! WOW! This all seems to be coming together so easily. This makes me very happy! :)

[Mrs.Goff]

I seen this picture and saved the link long ago. I love the dumdum bouquet on the bottom left hand corner.

http://bp1.blogger.com/_O5jClkwww5g/SI-Sjo8iYcI/AAAAAAAAAwg/lDviHdRWmaY/s400/collage4.jpg

I know it's not what you're thinking of but I thought I would share.

As for your sister. I'm sorry to hear that she was so mean to you. Is there a possibility that she's angry that she isn't staying with you or was that her choice? Really you never know it could be something else in her life that is stressing her out and your email just set her off. You know us ladies sometimes lash out at the wrong people.

I hope that she apologises to you and that you two can move on.

[Kay]

Thanks for the nice comments... I hope we work things out, eventually... for now, I don't realy know what is wrong. She sent me another email this morning going-off. I am at a loss for words right now. It's really upsetting. And no, she doesn't want to stay with us ~ she knows FH is staying at the house with his best man and I was going to stay in the hotel room with her. I can't even think about this right now, it's too upsetting. :purplex:

[f77g4]

Thanks for the nice comments... I hope we work things out, eventually... for now, I don't realy know what is wrong. She sent me another email this morning going-off. I am at a loss for words right now. It's really upsetting. And no, she doesn't want to stay with us ~ she knows FH is staying at the house with his best man and I was going to stay in the hotel room with her. I can't even think about this right now, it's too upsetting. :purplex:


Aww hun:hug:Sisters can be hard to understand sometimes!

[Kay]

We are going to ITALY!!!!! YAY!!!!! :jphappy:

My future in-laws wedding gift to us is our honeymoon! We have been looking at places and last night we finally agreed on a great place ~ and my FMIL told me tonight (about an hour ago) that she was going to go ahead and book it ~ I just have to take her my passport!!! YAY!!!!!! We would not be able to pay for this ourselves so this is a WONDERFUL gift and we are SUPER EXCITED!!

We will fly from the U.S. to Rome, Italy and spend 2 nights sightseeing (The Colosseum, etc...). Our ship leaves on the afternoon of the next day and we will travel for 8 days with stops in Genoa, Italy ~ Villefranche (Nice), France ~ Barcelona, Spain ~ the island of Palma De Mallorca, Spain ~ Cagliari (Sardinia), Italy ~ and back to Rome, Italy!! Our ship will arrive back in Rome SUPER early the last day so we are going to spend another night in Rome before we fly back to the states!!! I am sooooo excited!!

Here is our route:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/OurHoneymoon.gif

AND... we get a balcony room!!! YAY!!! Here is a pic I found of a balcony from our ship:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/balcony.jpg

Here is the picture of our main dining room (it is 3 stories) ~ we have TWO formal nights ~ the rental place told us FH can keep his tuxedo an extra three weeks for only $50 more so we had planned on doing that anyway!! YAY!!! I sure wish I could go to dinner one night in my wedding dress! HA
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Voyagermaindiningroom.jpg

[Kay]

Here are pics of some of our ports!

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/RomePiazza.jpg
A Rome Piazza

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/MallorcaSpainsmaller.jpg
The Island of Mallorca ~ Spain

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/NiceFrance.jpg
Nice, France


YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Kay]

And... our ship has:

*an ice-skating rink
*rock-climbing wall
*in-line skating
*23 hour restaurants
*Ben & Jerry's ice cream (Oh Yumm!!!!)
*Vintages wine bar (we like wine!!)
*Lounges (obviously)
*Casino (of course)
*Golf simulators
*9-hole miniature golf course
*Day Spa & Fitness Center (for all the Ben & Jerry's)
*Basketball court
*Yadda Yadda Yadda

There is also a 5-store theatre!!! OH THIS WILL BE SOOO MUCH FUN!! I LOVE my future in-laws ~ but I love the idea of sharing all this with my future hubby more than anything!! He is soooooo excited!!!! Me toooo!!!


Disclaimer: We won't need any of those activities ~ this is our HONEYMOON, after all! ha!

[f77g4]

Oooh how exciting!!! I wish we could do something like that!

Congrats and how exciting! You're sure to have an amazing time!

[FutureKelley]

Oh wow, what an amazing gift!! I'm sure you two will have the time of your life. :D

[TeacherSonja]

That's an awesome gift! I'm sure you'll have a great time!

[Kay]

Thank You Everyone! We are THRILLED!! I am probably going to watch "Under The Tuscan Sun" like 10 times before we leave! HA

In other news..... We are closing on our house MARCH 30th!!!! YIKES!!! :bbeek: I'm SUPER excited and SUPER busy!!! This is wonderful and a tiny bit scarey and exciting and and and and and..... :kap:

[f77g4]

Yay how exciting!

[Mrs.Goff]

Man you're having a exciting week. Congrats.

[MrsDM]

Congrats on your trip to Italy!!! I've never wanted to go there, but looking at those pictures, I really want to go!!!!!

Also, congrats on the set closing date!

[Kay]

Thank You for the well wishes everyone!! It has been a GREAT week!

My camera battery died & I had to get a new one. It came in the mail tonight so I wanted to post a picture of my Flower Girl's dress! I bought it last week. It is sooo cute on her ~ especially because she is so much shorter than this dress is long so we will have it hemmed and it will flare-out all "princessy" on her. She put it on and said she felt like a princess. She was soooo excited!


http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/162.jpg

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/163.jpg
The lace is a pale pink so it will look really cute with her pink flower girl basket and the bridesmaids pink dresses!

[Mrs.Goff]

That dress is adorable. I bet she does feel like a princess.

[Kay]

Well, my week did not turnout ALL good..

*The electric power steering fluid pump went out of my car and after parts, labor, and etc the bill is $900 and I can't have my car until Wednesday! :icon_barbar: That is A LOT of money and VERY frustrating.


*In other news, FH & I will be living together one week from today. We close on our house March 30th (next Monday) so this week is packing, moving, packing, moving, packing ~ and I feel stranded at my place cuz I won't have my car until Wednesday evening. What a horrible feeling. My car is my independence. Well, I figure I will get everything here at my place packed-up and put in the garage and come Thursday, we will start moving EVERYTHING to our new home. May this next week go quickly and smoothly...

*Since the wedding has basically been put on the back burner due to moving expenses, moving to-dos, and etc.... I've decided that once we get moved-in, unpacked, decided on who gets which closets, and are happily living in our new world... then about mid-April, the wedding planning is VERY muchly back ON ~ and as of May 1st, the wedding is TOP PRIORITY. I made a "little" list of to-do's a few minutes ago and the list is HUGE!! Yikes!! I didn't even realize how much I really need to get done. Well, when the time comes, I'm going to be moved, organized, and ready to go ahead full-speed. In the meantime, it's me and a bunch of boxes and that's a miserable feeling to a Type A organizer. :upsidown:

[f77g4]

I wish you good luck this week - I hope the moving goes quickly and smoothly!

[Kay]

Tonight is my last night living alone. Forever. :soppy:

FH & I have been moving all night tonight and tomorrow he and a groomsman are moving ALL of my stuff from my place to our new house and the last 3 items from his place to our new house. We are closing on Monday but since his parents own the house, they are letting us move early. Tomorrow night, we start our life together....

(even though the wedding isn't until 09~19~09)

I am making him use the "Cold Mountain" wedding and say "I Marry You, I Marry You, I Marry You" (three times) before we go to sleep tomorrow night. I am so happy, I could cry... but my body is too exhausted from moving all night long. Ha

[Mrs.Goff]

Aww, congrats!

[TeacherSonja]

Wow that's so exciting! Congratulations!

[f77g4]

Aww how exciting!! Good luck!

[amisteratwisterandme]

I am sure you have more important things to do tonight, but wanted to just take a minute and wish you well.

(I wanted to severely hurt my fh when we first moved in together. Hope it is smoother for you guys!)

[NOTKT]

Congrats! Savor the moment, haha!

[FutureKelley]

Congrats!!

[Kay]

Awwwww Thank You Everyone! What a great group of girls on here!! Well, we moved in and Thursday night was our first night together ~ and it is sheer bliss. For reals. We've had glitches (my car broke down, again), the dryer wouldn't work, the washer exploded water all over the laundry room floor, and the cat n' dog are getting a little fiesty with one another ~ ~ but we are GREAT! I wasn't nervous or anything ~ it just feels "right" for us to be together. It's wonderful. Sorta like nothing changed ~ except good things got added-on, if that makes sense?? I don't know ~ I thought it would be more of a BIG change and instead, its just nice. :whoohoo: Well, the unpacking and moving is horrible, of course. We have one more load of clothes to get from my townhouse before I turn in the keys on Tuesday and we have atleast two more loads to get from his place ~ but no biggie ~ by this time next week, we will be completely moved, hopefully completely unpacked, and TOMORROW we close and the place is in our names!! YAY!

[f77g4]

Congrats & glad it is going well!

[TeacherSonja]

Congratulations! I'm glad that everything is ok.

[Kay]

I said I wasn't going to do anything wedding related until May (yeah, right) but I did find this beautiful dress to take on the cruise with us ~ we have two formal nights and FH is taking his tuxedo so I'll get him a tie with some pink in it and we'll be good to go! Pictures do not do this dress justice but here it is:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Picture008.jpg
I love how it is sloped at the bottom. It fits me perfectly and I am now on a very healthy but strict diet (I've seen too many episodes of Bulging Brides lately) so... it will fit even better come September! It has a built-in slip, is 3 layers at the bottom and has a cowl neck. The fabric is the type that I can fold in the suitcase and it will travel very well! Anyway, I found a dress online like this for over $100 but I found THIS dress at a local thrift store last night after work, marked wrong, with the store tags still on it (but the price was marked out)... for $5!! I was so excited! I think the lady at the counter was a little put-off by the mistake but she sold it to me anyway! I ran home and showed M and he loved it too ~ BEFORE he knew the price! There are two girls at work going on cruises and they've found cute dresses at thrift stores for $50 so I can't wait to take this to work on Monday and show them! We are all bargain shoppers! :geek:

There isn't anything else to report besides I'm really proud of how things are going with me and my diet and exercise routine and I'm ready for summer to get here. Also, we have decided to have engagement photos made! I called the guy Wednesday and we are going to have them done in May! We've decided to wear jeans, dark shirts, and casual shoes ~ and probably have them taken at our new home or somewhere local near a park or where there is some water ~ that isn't too far of a drive away ~ cuz if it's in our town or really close-by, he doesn't charge extra for an outdoor setting! So, I'm looking around for a good place now.

[Kay]

Well, the wedding planning is now my main priority!! We are moved-in, mainly unpacked, and the wedding is 4 months and 26 days away! NOT that I'm counting! HA The only "big" thing we have to do with the house is get the pool open and I will MAKE SURE that happens (I'm a waterbaby) so now it's pretty-much focusing on the FUN stuff ~ the WEDDING!

So, today I bought my veil! I LOVE IT! I found it on my lunch hour at a local thrift store for $5!! I am telling you, God is watching out for me. No kidding. I had almost decided to not go with a veil because every extra dollar seems to add-up these days so this was just wonderful! It is exactly what I wanted ~ except it needs to be steam-cleaned and pressed, etc. Other than that, it's thick, full, and good to go! Here's a pic I had future hubby take of me tonight in it:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Picture014.jpg

And, I've decided to go with pink roses for the wedding. My bouquet will be pink roses and possibly a couple of lavender roses (if I can get them) and maybe a few white roses tipped in pink. I don't want "BIG" roses, just smaller/medium sizes. Since the bridesmaids are wearing pink dresses, I am going to attempt to order them lavender roses and they can all carry small bouquets of roses, too. Believe it or not, around here, roses are the least expensive. And, I am going to use one pink rose for each guy's boutonniere! I am making them by myself (with my sister and family's help, of course) and here is what I sorta want them to look alike:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/boutineres.jpg

Other than that, I am going to meet the cake lady on May 8th, we are having engagement pictures made May 16th, and I am currently spending about an hour every evening trying to finalize the humongous guest list. Last night FH added 28 invitations! At this point, I'm not phased by numbers... :whoa:

[Kay]

O! And.... I am on a diet and exercising and being VERY healthy and so far I am down SIX pounds!! I have a goal to lose 15 pounds (at the least) by June 1st. :bbmrgreen:

[Mrs.Goff]

YaY, for wedding progress.

Congrats on finding your veil. Before paying someone to steam it, try hanging it in the bathroom with the shower on as hot as it goes, for 10 minutes. It works perfectly. I did it and couldn't believe how well it worked. The wrinkles were just gone and the fabric was SO soft. Add a mist of your favorite perfume and let dry. Voila, perfection.

[Kay]

I found a beautiful ballgown dress yesterday ~ it was actually from the Joli prom collection ~ and tried it on after work last night ~ I was just SURE this was THE dress and was prepared to walk out with it in hand... HERE IT IS...

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/joliprom.jpg

Well, as beautiful as it is... it definitely was NOT the dress for me. I am wayyyyyyyyyyyy too SHORT to wear a ballgown.:ooh: I literally looked like a ball. I told the lady at the shop that and she said "You are correct. Most girls come in here and they want a ballgown so they just buy it and I can't say anything but...you really have to be taller to pull off a ballgown." So, I am going to look for an A-line dress. Ugh. I am determined to have a dress in my possession by June 1st ~ and hopefully, one I love. Oh Well. At least I'm learning along the way. I was talking to my FMIL last night about it and I'm only 5.3 and my FSIL is under 5.2 and she was saying how there is no way she can wear ballgowns either. Who Knew. Ugh.

[Moon.Dust.]

yeah. I'm on the same boat I'm 5'3" only add to it I'm overweight!:bbeek:

baaad combo

[Kay]

I finished the guest list tonight!! Yay!! This has been my goal for about two weeks but I've only worked on it a few minutes a night. "His" invite names and "My" invite names are now consolidated and there are no duplicate names. Yay!

Actual number of invitations going out ~ 178

Actual head count of people invited ~ 469
(that's about 100 kids)

Actual number of people I think may show-up ~ 170

Number of chairs I'm renting ~ 150!! HA!! :bblol:


So, now I can order the rest of the RSVPS (we only ordered 100 the first time) and we are ordering ALL NEW invitations cuz we don't like the first ones and there is a problem with the envelope sizing so those first 100 invitations are getting thrown away.

Also, we decided tonight that our wedding time is being moved to 6pm. It's September. It's outside. It could be hot ~ and 3pm is the hottest time of the day ~ so, we are going from 5pm to 6pm!

This planning is getting really "REAL" and really FUN, too!! :)

[f77g4]

It can be so amazing with what type of dresses we like and what look good on us sometimes eh? I hope you can still find a dress that goes with your theme and makes you feel like a princess!

Good news re the guest list! That is a lot of invitations - wow. And the head count? Wow. Why do you think that so few people will come?

[Moon.Dust.]

Actual number of invitations going out ~ 178

Actual head count of people invited ~ 469
(that's about 100 kids)

Actual number of people I think may show-up ~ 170

Number of chairs I'm renting ~ 150!! HA!! :bblol:
and to think I was spazing over numbers!

[Kay]

Good news re the guest list! That is a lot of invitations - wow. And the head count? Wow. Why do you think that so few people will come?

Because 14 pages of the people on the list are friends of his parents ~ people who his mom says will send a gift but not show-up ~ she's been sending gifts to their children's weddings for years so now she says it's "payback" time ~ her son waited until he was 35 to get married! HA His brother, at 37, got married last year and they didn't send invites to some people she knew and there were some hurt feelings. This is a small town ~ getting an invite is more out of respect sometimes. And, they have a lot of friends and family out of state and some out of the country. PLUS ~ we invited everyone at his work and nearly everyone at my work so many of those people want to be invited but only 3 or 4 from both of our jobs will actually attend the wedding.

[f77g4]

Because 14 pages of the people on the list are friends of his parents ~ people who his mom says will send a gift but not show-up ~ she's been sending gifts to their children's weddings for years so now she says it's "payback" time ~ her son waited until he was 35 to get married! HA His brother, at 37, got married last year and they didn't send invites to some people she knew and there were some hurt feelings. This is a small town ~ getting an invite is more out of respect sometimes. And, they have a lot of friends and family out of state and some out of the country. PLUS ~ we invited everyone at his work and nearly everyone at my work so many of those people want to be invited but only 3 or 4 from both of our jobs will actually attend the wedding.

I'm from a small town too and thankfully we don't do that. I hope for your sake that FMIL is right and most won't come. That would just be a crazy amount of people.

[Kay]

I'm pretty sure we won't get that many to show-up ~ but I'll know in July when RSVPs start coming in. We are doing hot appetizers, cake, & drinks for the reception so if for some reason 250 or so showed-up, it wouldn't be a big deal cuz the country club can handle up to 350 plus there is an outside area... I don't know... I'm just not worried about it. Check back with me August 1st, however! HA :bbeek:

[amisteratwisterandme]

Glad to see that you are having fun with the planning.

[FutureKelley]

Oh my gosh, I don't know how you are staying calm when you are planning on having that many people! :bbeek:

I understand about the having to invite everyone thing. My mom and step-dad wanted to invite a lot of people from Michigan who we knew wouldn't come, but thought would be offended if they were left out. Thankfully, about 1/3 of the people invited did not come because of that... there is no way we would have been able to afford it otherwise!

[Kay]

My boss's son got married recently and my boss brought me a big box of glass votives to use for my wedding. Their wedding was red so I'm going to put them in the freezer and then pop-out the red candles and throw them away ~ and replace them with cream (vanilla) candles. ~ all I have to do is buy the candles. I already bought 16 small candles for $4.97 at Wal-Mart. Some of them have never been used, however. Nice. Here's a picture of my free/borrowed stuff ~ she also brought me a big roll of white tulle for free!

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Picture030.jpg

[Kay]

I went shopping this weekend. I bought my card box and a matching guest book pen. They are both in the eyelet (sorta lacey) fabric. Made by Martha Stewart. At Wal-Mart they were super cheap ~ $7 for the guest book pen and $14 for the matching card box. I'm happy with them. I have to put the card box together myself but it's covered in that "lacey" sorta material and it's really heavy ~ I like it. I think I will spruce it up with some of my own pink and lavender ribbons, etc ~ and make it where you can't take the top off without destroying the box.
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Picture033.jpg

[f77g4]

Wow - how nice of your boss!!! :)

Good finds at walmart - I really like those and thought about them for ours too but they were more expensive then $7 here....

[MrsDM]

WOW! Your boss rocks, that is so cool that he/she gave you all that!!!

[Kay]

We are 2 days away from the FOUR MONTH mark! WOW! FH is working tonight so I decided to get some stuff done!! I completely organized my office/wedding room into boxes for the reception, ceremony, etc... It's such a great feeling! I also decided to go ahead and stuff my silver favor boxes since I had already bought the Hershey's hugs and kisses ~ I was shocked at how far the chocolate went ~ and I really tried to stuff the boxes with as many kisses as they could handle! I think these will be super-cute favors and overall, super cheap!! I got 65 boxes stuffed tonight and about 10 wrapped with ribbon and attached the "Hugs n' Kisses from the new Mr. and Mrs. tag" attached. Here is a pic of my handywork :) I used Hugs, silver kisses, and purple (dark chocolate) kisses ~ cuz our colors are pink, lavender, & silver!
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Picture083.jpg

[f77g4]

Great work - those are super cute!

[Kay]

Thank You So Much! :D

I was really pleased with how simple & fast they came together and how inexpensive they turned-out to be ~ I thought I'd be buying bags & bags & bags of chocolates between now and the wedding ~ but nope! They filled-up fairly easily ~ AND those silver boxes came with little, round, clear stickers to put on the bottom of the boxes ~ so I put those on over the ribbons to hold them on! :winktongue: I'm pretty excited about these ~ I just haven't decided if I want to put one at every place setting at the reception or just make a big, pretty pile of them (sorta in a pyramid shape) on the cake table or guest book table??? I'm leaning toward putting them sorta next to the cake at this point.

[Kay]

Today is my Birthday and last night I got surprise presents!!! :jphappy:

For starters, after work my future in-laws brought over a set of Paula Dean copper-bottom pots & pans!! They were actually on our Wal-Mart wedding registery but she knew I wanted them so she got them!! I was so excited!! I couldn't believe it! Here they are:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Picture093.jpg

Then, my future hubby came home from work EARLY (yay!) and brought me a BEAUTIFUL jewelry armoire which I am soooo in love with! I have needed/wanted one for a while now. Here it is:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Picture094.jpg

Just wanted to post my happiness! I love that my future in-laws bought something off our wedding registery ~ it was the first gift someone bought us! Yay!

[emilycake]

Oooooh! How nice of the in-laws and FH! I love that armoire! I need one so I can put my jewelry in ONE place instead of 15 little jewelry boxes!

[f77g4]

Happy Birthday!!!! :)

Yay for the gifts!!!

[MrsDM]

Happy Birthday!!! Those pots look awesome (love Paula Deen btw :))

[Kay]

Thank You All! I was super excited and I've never had Paula Deen! And as for the armoire ~ I soooo understand all the little boxes thing ~ I had jewelry here and there and NOWHERE ~ I could NEVER find anything and was always losing pieces. I LOVE that armoire and I really did "need" it. Anyway, it was a great B-day!! :) Thanks for all the nice comments ladies!

[Kay]

It's a beautiful rainy Sunday here so thought I'd post a few updates regarding the wedding. It's amazing how many changes actually end-up getting made the closer we get to the wedding. Let's see...

*We ordered 30 of the newly designed invites (VistaPrint again). They should be here any day. They have our picture on the back of them so I'm excited to see them. If we like them, we are going to order 170 more. I will spend the month of June addressing them and they'll go out the first week of July.

*We weren't able to do engagement pics cuz FH is working INSANE hours at his job lately ~ they have a bunch of people out for various reasons right now so he's working a lot of double shifts. Ugh. Our e-pic photographer is really cool tho and said we can just call him in June and he'll take our pics some Saturday for us! I mainly want the e-pics to use in our Thank You cards anyway.

*We registered for gifts ~ everywhere! :bbredface: We registered at Wal-Mart, JCPenney, and a local store here. His mom has asked us to register at one more local store here cuz she is friends with the owners and wants to give them business. They put your names and wedding date in the paper every week, too ~ so, that's cool. Registering was sorta odd cuz we were both very picky about what we chose ~ we wanted items we would use, we wanted, and that matched our home. I'm so glad we already have a home, we know our kitchen colors, etc. It really feels like our home is coming together well and the registery items would help, alot. Speaking of which...

*We love our home and I can't believe we've only lived here 2 months ~ we've repainted/redone the kitchen, planted flowers out front, I've decorated the fireplace mantle so it looks fabulous (IMHO), and the pool is now opened-up but we can't swim in it yet cuz we had to order a new pump and it won't be here til next week ~ besides, it's still too cool here and raining all the time.

*I still don't have a wedding dress yet. I've lost 13 pounds (YAY!) and sooo many of my clothes fit better plus I started tanning this week and that makes me feel better, too ~ but I need to go try-on dresses ~ I just never have anyone to go with me ~ all of my bms live out of town but one and she has TWO kids and TWO jobs and a busy life. So, it's tough trying-on a dress alone. Ugh. I am considering going out of town tomorrow, Memorial Day, and trying on wedding dresses at David's Bridal if they are open tomorrow (I bet they are). I am READY to buy my dress now.

*As for the frog theme.... we don't think we are going to do it... which is why I have never bought anything green or anything with frogs on it... I didn't think, in the end, we would be able to pull it off. FH has now realized that we are sending out 181 invitations and inviting nearly 500 people... and so maybe doing the frog/prince thing isn't a good idea cuz we don't know how to really excute everything and making a blunder in front of 200 people would be embarrassing... I've left the decision COMPLETELY up to him cuz it was his idea and it's his wedding, too... but I'm sorta glad we are scraping the frog suit ~ my dad would have DIED! So, it looks like we'll have a formal ceremony but outside. We have, however, decided to do some of the traditional vows AND say our own vows to one another, too. I know FH will do fantastic at this cuz he is so good with things like that. I hope I don't bawl.

*There isn't much else to say besides the rehearsal dinner/rehearsal cookout is still up in the air. We have decided to keep things simple-simple-simple and we think a cookout would be work for us that we don't want the night before we get married. His parents are paying and they have suggested the Country Club but FH is looking into something else. Whatever happens, we have bought some nice gifts for our bridal party members and everyone helping with the wedding so I'm excited to give them out that night!

*Anyway, there are a few things to do, a few more things to buy, and a few decisions to make but generally, I think, if we had his tuxedo, my dress & the bands, we could probably get married tomorrow. Financially, cutting-back on a lot of items has really made this much less stressful and simple for me. Oddly enough, it seems like the wedding is slowly coming together rather easily and feels like the remainder of my to-dos are simple..... hmmmm.... wonder what I'm missing??!! :velo:

[Kay]

So, I bought several items over the Memorial Weekend. When the "REAL" items finally arrive, I'll post those pictures ...but in the meantime...

I got a Swarovski Crystal Covered Letter "L" - the BIG size - for our cake topper. It was $23.50 total ~ including shipping and handling! I can't WAIT for it to arrive. "L" is the first initial of my new last name. Here is the picture of the way it will look:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/topper.jpg

I also ordered totes for my bridesmaids (and one for me!) ~ I was going to do this IF there was extra money and basically, I found such a good deal on E-bay that I couldn't not do it plus I have heavy gifts to give the girls (wine, candles, etc) and I didn't feel like the colored/paper gift bags would do the trick in holding everything. So, this is what I ordered for them:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/bmsbags.jpg

and I'm going to have a polka-dot ribbon either put across the top or tied/sewn to one of the handles, sorta like this:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/bmtoteswithribbon.jpg

I decided to go with pink bags with black lettering because regardless of what color of bag you choose, the handles are pink... so, I figured pink and black will appease all of them. Also, these bags were the biggest bags I could find so they should hold plenty of stuff and the girls can reuse them later-on for whatever they want.

[Kay]

I am considering buying a set of jewerly off E-bay for the wedding.. Swarovski crystals, faux pearls, and sterling silver ~ cheap but will do okay for one day and look nice ~ the 3-piece set is $24.95 but I would just wear the bracelet and the earrings ~I really like the look of them. I am wanting to borrow a friend/co-workers' necklace with pink pearls, possibly, so we'll see how they would go together?? Anyway, here's a pic of what I'm thinking about getting...

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/weddingjewelry.jpg

[Kay]

I will try to keep this super-duper short. TRY.

So, Memorial Day I went to David's Bridal (nearly 2 hour drive just to get there) and it was a bad experience ~ bad, bad, bad. For starters, two consultants got into a war of words over who should be my consultant ~ the girl who was running late with another bride's appointment or the girl who came in early for her shift. It was ridiculous. Then, they were SOOO pushy and IMMEDIATELY wanted me to buy THE FIRST dress I tried-on. The consultant kept saying "It's The One!" and she said that BEFORE I had seen myself in the dress. Ugh. I felt like I was in a bad episode of "Say Yes To The Dress" at Kleinfeld's or something. Also, for the record, it was the $99 sale weekend and there was NO $99 dresses left on the sale rack. The least expensive dress I tried on was $298!

So, I tried on six dresses. I really liked two of them. I was indecisive and put-off by the pushy sales people and the general attitude of the workers in the store ~ there was apparently some behind-the-scenes unhappiness between co-workers and I was getting **** treatment. On top of all this, the friend I had in town who met me there (who is NOT engaged yet) really wanted to try on a dress and the consultant wouldn't let her (they told her she wasn't supposed to be just walking around the aisles looking at dresses ~ SERIOUSLY??!! :bbeek:) ~ Anyway, I finally convinced my consultant to let her try on ONE dress ~ and the consultant said okay but then she left so I had to zip her up and everything ~ and my friend fell in LOVE ~ and called her boyfriend ~ and, to make a long story short, after 3 1/2 hours of David's Bridal BS, I left with NOTHING in hand and my non-engaged friend left with a $1300 dress, veil, blusher, slip, and bra set! I was appalled at the service at David's Bridal and shocked at my friend. I felt like I had been ran over. :velo:

More to come...

[Kay]

So, at David's Bridal there was ONE dress I really liked a lot but I was so put-off by everything going-on around me that I just couldn't make a decision to buy it or not. I came home and showed FH cellphone pics of me in four dresses ~ I told him I would NOT being buying a dress from David's so he could see them ~ cuz he absolutely does NOT want to see the dress beforehand. Oddly enough, FH loved the same dress I did ~ but when he said that, I blew it off and said "I didn't really like that dress!" and I Oooohed and AAAAaaaahed another dress on the cell phone trying to play down the one we both loved ~ I'm sooo sneaky! (HA)

Soo... I went to work today and showed the girls at work the pic of me in the dress I luved and showed them the dress online at David's Bridal ~ they all loved it the most, too. The thing is, the dress is on sale until June 1st and the sale will be back on over July 4th weekend and I have over 3 months to get a dress so I'm not in a hurry, but I currently believe this is THE dress!!! I'm pretty excited. I am either going to go back to David's Bridal over the July 4th holiday and get the dress OR I am going to attempt to purchase this exact dress, in my size, on E-bay. So far, E-bay has four of this style and two of them are in my size ~ and they are both $200 less than David's Bridal ~ which serves them right!

So, here is the dress... It is an A-line, strapless with a sweetheart neckline (I luv), side ruching with a side twist sorta (slimming) and my FAVORITE part ~ It has pale pink all over it but NOT ina prom-like way, in a wedding way ~ it has tons of crystal beading and pale pink flowers on the top, sides, back, bottom, and all over the chapel train and edging! It is quite beautiful! Pictures do NOT do it justice, for real ~ of course, I'm biased. :bbredface:

Here is a picture of the dress (but this is not me and I do not like this veil with it):
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/dress1.jpg

And here is a close-up of the beading:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/dress2.jpg

I will post pics of me in it when/if I finally get it!! I feel so "RELIEVED" now that I've decided on a dress ~ and EXCITED!!!

[Goin2thechapel]

What a VERY pretty dress!!!!

[f77g4]

Wow you've been busy! Really nice purchases! Who did you get the bags from on ebay? I've been looking but not finding any really good deals.

Love the dress too!

[Kay]

Wow you've been busy! Really nice purchases! Who did you get the bags from on ebay? I've been looking but not finding any really good deals.

Yes, E-bay. I had been looking and they were always too expensive ~ but this lady had a nice selection ~ inexpensively. Seller name was: monogrammedbagsnmore ...and, one of the item numbers she is currently selling (which is always the easiest way for me to find a seller) is #140309779232. She sells 2 bags for $19, 3 for $36, 4 for $35, 5 for $42, 6 for $49, etc.... I noticed she was SWAMPED with orders over the weekend and raised her prices a bit ~ on Friday I got 6 bags for $43 and that INCLUDES shipping and handling!! I told her I was in NO HURRY and she emailed back that she was SUPER BUSY and was glad I would wait. At those prices, I can see why! She has 100% feedback and has sold 170 items/auctions so I'm sure she will come through well. All the comments say "These bags are better than the pictures!" We shall see! I have high hopes!

[f77g4]

Yes, E-bay. I had been looking and they were always too expensive ~ but this lady had a nice selection ~ inexpensively. Seller name was: monogrammedbagsnmore ...and, one of the item numbers she is currently selling (which is always the easiest way for me to find a seller) is #140309779232. She sells 2 bags for $19, 3 for $36, 4 for $35, 5 for $42, 6 for $49, etc.... I noticed she was SWAMPED with orders over the weekend and raised her prices a bit ~ on Friday I got 6 bags for $43 and that INCLUDES shipping and handling!! I told her I was in NO HURRY and she emailed back that she was SUPER BUSY and was glad I would wait. At those prices, I can see why! She has 100% feedback and has sold 170 items/auctions so I'm sure she will come through well. All the comments say "These bags are better than the pictures!" We shall see! I have high hopes!

Ooh great - thanks!

[f77g4]

Ok so I just went to ebay and found that item you mentioned but when I went to view her store it was empty....plus it doesn't look like she ships to Canada...darn...oh well....thanks for the info.

[Kay]

Ok so I just went to ebay and found that item you mentioned but when I went to view her store it was empty....plus it doesn't look like she ships to Canada...darn...oh well....thanks for the info.

Sorry! I don't really know what happened?? Maybe she got overwhelmed with orders and decided to pull her bags for a bit??? If I find that she ships to Canada, I'll let you know! :)

[f77g4]

Sorry! I don't really know what happened?? Maybe she got overwhelmed with orders and decided to pull her bags for a bit??? If I find that she ships to Canada, I'll let you know! :)

Oh no worries at all. I might just see if my uncle will be able to do them if I can find plain bags fairly cheap.

[Kay]

I ordered FH a t-shirt to wear to his Bachelor Party ~ which apparently is going to be this coming month sometime (June). I told him about it and he thinks it's hilarious!! He's a big Xbox player/Gamer so his buddies will get a laugh out of it, too!

Here it is:
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/game-over-full.jpg

[f77g4]

Aww I saw those on ebay - it's so cute!

[Kay]

Thanks! I got it from crazy dog shirts for only $14.99! Oddly enough, I didn't even check E-bay ~ and I ALWAYS check E-bay! I suppose I just figured it was a good deal, regardless.

[Kay]

So, I came home tonight and found my camera I heart so very much (it was temporarily misplaced) and decided to take some pictures because I got some fabulous wedding items in the mail today! So, right here on OneWed, I got a FABULOUS deal from another OneWed lady ~ 5 cream-colored (more white) and 5 pink kissing balls ~ for $1 each!! They came in the mail today, with extra petals in case any fall off, along with 2 big cupcake stands I bought off her ($3 each) and a bunch of pink dots ~ the entire thing was $14.50 I think!! I love EVERYTHING ~ especially the kissing balls ~ and now I think I am going to get my hot glue gun out and make some BIGGER balls for the reception and/or ceremony!

Here's the shipment of goodies...
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Picture144.jpg


Also, just for grins... here is me and my Simo, my Yorkie... taken tonight, no makeup and hair falling-out of a bun...
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/060309MeandSimo.jpg

[Kay]

The cupcake stands are simply extras ~ I'm going to put one on each side of our cake ~ we are going to have a HUGE cake (if I have my way) but I know some people, especially kids, like cupcakes ~ so I'm going to order some cute cupcakes and put them on the two stands, on the "cake" table... with so many people on the guest list ...too much food will not be a problem!

By the way, I've been watching that show "CAKE BOSS" and one of his cakes is my new inspiration picture! I'm going to take the following two pics to my cake lady and tell her what I want... and then see what she tells me she can make and what I can afford! HA Oh Well... I'm dreaming big! By the way, our wedding is Sept 19th and she said I don't need to meet with her until the end of June because she is going out of town when we were going to meet originally... she just reserved that date for me and we'll pick-out the cake later. Cool, I thought.

Here are the two cakes I LOVE:

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/cakebossdreamcake.jpg

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/dreamcake.jpg

[f77g4]

Love those kissing balls!

Great pic of you and your pup!

Cakes are great too!

[Kay]

So, FH and I registered at two local stores ~ specialty stores that carry china, dishes, upscale home decor and canisters ~ and both of the registeries were in the paper in the last week! His mom pointed-out the second registry tonight! It's allll so exciting! I can barely believe we are down to the 3 month mark!

Anyway, FH picked-out this "Future Mr. Right" mug and put it on our registry table at one of the stores ~ which cracked me up because it was so out of place with everything else and so cute! So, I bought it for him and brought it home as a wedding gift to him! :bblol: Here it is:

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/Picture139.jpg


O! And here is the "china" we chose the day we registered ~ NOT what I would have thought we would pick ~ It is Mikasa, Sedona Brown, $40 a place setting, and very "everydayish" ~ and much prettier than the picture ~ it's a thick, deep satin brown with a copper and brownish inlay inside all the dishes. I am hoping to get 16 place settings. You never know??!! THe reason we went with this color/pattern is because the home we purchased is a 3-story real log home ~ the top two floors are 99% log walls and beams, hardwood floors, rustic fireplace, etc ~ only the bottom floor is drywall. So, we have been keeping with a black and copper decorating theme. Anyway, here's our version of china...

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/SedonaBrown.jpg

[f77g4]

Wow congrats on getting the registries set up - we haven't done ours yet :bbredface:

[Kay]

I've been meaning to take a moment and say... I am so glad for OneWed... maybe it is narcissism but I am so glad for OneWed. I don't know if one or ten people read my journal but I really do it cuz I need a "wedding outlet" ~ All of my BMs are married with kids and they all live hours away ~ except for one who is a former co-worker (that I luv) and she is married, has 2 kids (one is a baby-baby), 2 jobs, and... well... basically, everyone I know and love is not interested in a wedding ~ they all did it 10 years ago and they are too busy to deal with it now ~ which is probably why I am not getting a shower thrown for me. So, sharing anything with them is just boring to them and/or they think it is stressful ~ they ALL had weddings ~ I KNOW ~ I was in them and/or at them ~ it's just been so long for all of them, that they forgot that I never had this engagement or wedding time ~ which is FUN to me! None of them are into it, at all. :whyme: So, I'm glad I have a place to spread my enthusiasm, vent, share ideas, post pictures, and read others thoughts and ideas. I believe OneWed is the saving grace for all my friends... so they don't have to hear it all! HA :p Anyway, thanks to whoever you are out there, listening, commenting, reading, etc... It's nice.

[Kay]

Wow congrats on getting the registries set up - we haven't done ours yet :bbredface:

You only have TWO months!! You should go for it! I noticed in our paper tonight they have registeries listed by wedding dates ~ and at both stores, there are people registered for dates well past ours ~ one person is registered already for an October 24th wedding.

By the way, we did our second registry, at the store we were unsure of, in 30 minutes FLAT! We met at the store on my lunch half-hour and had pre-agreed to pick-up 10 items and leave ~ we didn't think we would like anything the store had and everything would be overpriced ~ WRONG! We had the time of our lives!! We ran around the store picking-up all sorts of stuff and not debating every item !~ which made us come to an agreement on sizes, colors, items, etc ~ very quickly!~ We left in 30 minutes, exactly ~ with at least 20 items that we really hope we get and we are very excited about! Afterwards, FH called me at work and told me that he thinks everyone should be required to register in 30 minutes! It was oodles of fun!!

[f77g4]

I've been meaning to take a moment and say... I am so glad for OneWed... maybe it is narcissism but I am so glad for OneWed. I don't know if one or ten people read my journal but I really do it cuz I need a "wedding outlet" ~ All of my BMs are married with kids and they all live hours away ~ except for one who is a former co-worker (that I luv) and she is married, has 2 kids (one is a baby-baby), 2 jobs, and... well... basically, everyone I know and love is not interested in a wedding ~ they all did it 10 years ago and they are too busy to deal with it now ~ which is probably why I am not getting a shower thrown for me. So, sharing anything with them is just boring to them and/or they think it is stressful ~ they ALL had weddings ~ I KNOW ~ I was in them and/or at them ~ it's just been so long for all of them, that they forgot that I never had this engagement or wedding time ~ which is FUN to me! None of them are into it, at all. :whyme: So, I'm glad I have a place to spread my enthusiasm, vent, share ideas, post pictures, and read others thoughts and ideas. I believe OneWed is the saving grace for all my friends... so they don't have to hear it all! HA :p Anyway, thanks to whoever you are out there, listening, commenting, reading, etc... It's nice.

I understand completely - I'm kind of in the same boat as you although my family has stepped in and will be throwing me a shower. It's definately nice to have an outlet for sure.

[f77g4]

You only have TWO months!! You should go for it! I noticed in our paper tonight they have registeries listed by wedding dates ~ and at both stores, there are people registered for dates well past ours ~ one person is registered already for an October 24th wedding.

By the way, we did our second registry, at the store we were unsure of, in 30 minutes FLAT! We met at the store on my lunch half-hour and had pre-agreed to pick-up 10 items and leave ~ we didn't think we would like anything the store had and everything would be overpriced ~ WRONG! We had the time of our lives!! We ran around the store picking-up all sorts of stuff and not debating every item !~ which made us come to an agreement on sizes, colors, items, etc ~ very quickly!~ We left in 30 minutes, exactly ~ with at least 20 items that we really hope we get and we are very excited about! Afterwards, FH called me at work and told me that he thinks everyone should be required to register in 30 minutes! It was oodles of fun!!

I know I know - I have an exam on Monday and honestly really haven't had the time. FH has been working a lot of weekends lately and it's something I want to do with him. Plus we don't really have much options as to where to register. Walmart and Sears is about it.

Hopefully after Monday we will have some time since FH will have several weekends off in a row.

[MrsDM]

I've been meaning to take a moment and say... I am so glad for OneWed... maybe it is narcissism but I am so glad for OneWed. I don't know if one or ten people read my journal but I really do it cuz I need a "wedding outlet" ~ All of my BMs are married with kids and they all live hours away ~ except for one who is a former co-worker (that I luv) and she is married, has 2 kids (one is a baby-baby), 2 jobs, and... well... basically, everyone I know and love is not interested in a wedding ~ they all did it 10 years ago and they are too busy to deal with it now ~ which is probably why I am not getting a shower thrown for me. So, sharing anything with them is just boring to them and/or they think it is stressful ~ they ALL had weddings ~ I KNOW ~ I was in them and/or at them ~ it's just been so long for all of them, that they forgot that I never had this engagement or wedding time ~ which is FUN to me! None of them are into it, at all. :whyme: So, I'm glad I have a place to spread my enthusiasm, vent, share ideas, post pictures, and read others thoughts and ideas. I believe OneWed is the saving grace for all my friends... so they don't have to hear it all! HA :p Anyway, thanks to whoever you are out there, listening, commenting, reading, etc... It's nice.

First of all, I LOVE YOUR DRESS!! Its so pretty!

Second, the pic of you and your pup...adorable!

Third, I couldn't agree with the above statement more! I'm the opposite of you. None of my friends are in a relationship, or serious/comitted I should say (you may remember my post in my journal!) But I agree, OW is great. Even though we are all hundreds of thousands of miles away from one another on here, everyone can add a little advice and love, which is always appreciated with the ups and downs of wedding planning!!!

[Kay]

Thank You Ladies! Logging-on here is soooo nice sometimes. So glad we all found each other! :innocent:

[Kay]

I haven't been on OneWed in over a week! We finally have our pool up and running ~ Yipeee!! So, along with the initial pool work (which was A LOT), plus we are staining our entire house, and we had house guests this week... so I've been off the wedding wagon... but I'm back on!

Updates:
*the groomsmen's shot glasses came in, engraved, very heavy, we luv them!
*the "L" jeweled cake topper finally shipped, it should be here this week! I can't wait to see it! Once it is here, I am going to meet with the cake lady and leave it with her. (I think??)
*all of our wedding invitations, remaining RSVPs, rehearsal dinner invites, and some other goodies have SHIPPED! They should be here via UPS on Monday or Tuesday!
*I've DEFINITELY decided to buy the dress with the pink beading (the A-line, with the side twist, a page or two up). I have an appointment out of town on June 24th and I am going to swing by David's Bridal and pick it up.

So....I bought THIS veil on E-bay tonight ~ without the tiara, I already have a tiara/headband. This was a completely unplanned purchase since I already have a white veil but I really liked the satin pink trim on this and I have continually told FH that I want pink, pink, pink... well, with the dress having a bit o' pink now, I thought the veil needed some, too! I'm super excited!
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/mypinkveil.jpg

[f77g4]

Love the veil! Looks just like mine only mine has an ivory satin trim. Once mine arrived from ebay I wasn't really happy with it and the seller sent me a 2nd one and I still don't know. I hope you have better luck with yours!

[NOTKT]

I really like the veil! :)

[Kay]

Love the veil! Looks just like mine only mine has an ivory satin trim. Once mine arrived from ebay I wasn't really happy with it and the seller sent me a 2nd one and I still don't know. I hope you have better luck with yours!
I am just hoping mine arrives without a bunch o' wrinkles...

[MrsDM]

Ooo! Very pretty veil!!!

[EarlyBird]

Kay!! im so sorry i have not been around to visit your journal!!! I love the dress but have not heard anything else. did you purchase it i know you said you decided on it, but did you buy and just need to pick it up or need to go and have it ordered? HAHAH you with your veil. your like me, never deciding on one thing!!!
i love it!

did you post pictures of the invitations yet? I want to see pictures of the stuff!!!

[Kay]

Kay!! im so sorry i have not been around to visit your journal!!! I love the dress but have not heard anything else. did you purchase it i know you said you decided on it, but did you buy and just need to pick it up or need to go and have it ordered? HAHAH you with your veil. your like me, never deciding on one thing!!!
i love it!

did you post pictures of the invitations yet? I want to see pictures of the stuff!!!

Vana ~ You crack me up!! I am going out of town on June 24th and picking-up the dress. That is THE dress. Hands down. And you are soooo correct about me and veils... ugh! I'm glad I bought this one tho! I hope it arrives and is as pretty as I think it is and adds just a touch more of pink to the wedding! I'm so glad you love it, too! Which reminds me, I started addressing invitations already! I will post a picture later tonight or later this week! I think they look pretty good. I'm getting really excited!

PS ~ I love your signature picture!!

[Kay]

Soooo... Today was SUPER exciting because... FH called and said I had a package in the mail!! And... it was our cake topper... it's an "L" (my future new last name) covered in Swarvoski crystals.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/005.jpg

I LOVE IT!!!

AND.... for even BETTER news... FH's mom brought over our FIRST WEDDING GIFT TODAY!!! :jphappy: It is from my FH's Kindergarten teacher and her husband ~ who happen to be good friend's with my future in-laws, also. We are soooo super excited! She brought it to him while I was at work (8am to 4:30pm) and he didn't open it. Now I'm at home and he's at work (4pm to midnight). So, when FH gets home, I am going to wake-up and we are going to open it together!! We made a pact months ago that EVERY single card, RSVP, and gift would be opened TOGETHER!! I'm sooo excited... just sittin' here at home... looking at our big box, wondering what it could be?? It is from one of the specialty stores we registered at here in town.... Hmmmmm
And cuz I'm a total dork... here it is...
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/008.jpg

[f77g4]

I hope for you that the veil isn't wrinkled but mine was extremely wrinkled.

Love the cake topper!!! Can't wait to see what the gift is!

[Kay]

It's official ~ after many, many attempts and changes, we are FINALLY having our engagement pics made THIS Saturday evening at 7pm! I'm going to do my nails on Saturday and pick us out some semi-matching outfits or figure out what we should wear. This will be our first pictures together, ever. I usually do not photograph well so I REALLY hope there are one or two pictures I like well enough to put on all the thank you cards. :geek:

[f77g4]

It's official ~ after many, many attempts and changes, we are FINALLY having our engagement pics made THIS Saturday evening at 7pm! I'm going to do my nails on Saturday and pick us out some semi-matching outfits or figure out what we should wear. This will be our first pictures together, ever. I usually do not photograph well so I REALLY hope there are one or two pictures I like well enough to put on all the thank you cards. :geek:

Aww how exciting! We just booked ours tonight too for next Friday night at 7pm. I have no idea what we are going to wear either and after 8.5 years together we don't have many pics together either.

Good luck on Saturday!

[Kay]

So, we opened the present..at nearly 1am in the morning, after he got home from work and woke me up. It was.. initially... this (decorative) antique pitcher we had registered for... I let FH open it and I sat there, sleepily watching... we wrote the thank you card (at 1am), both signed it, sealed it, and I went to sleep. Lo and behold.. I got-up the next morning before work and began cleaning-up the wrapping paper and box... and realized there was a set of salt and pepper shakers we registered for in the box that we had not seen the night before! I told FH is officially OFF gift opening duty! HA Anyway, here is our first gift from one of our registries... the pitcher is a dark, almost marroon red (my flash screwed it up) and matches a vase we registered for and our red kitchen ~ I registered for a bunch of pitchers everywhere because I am sitting them on top of our kitchen cabinets to be decoration when not in use. The salt and pepper shakers match a bowl and several other items we have on our registry for our dining table.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/261.jpg

[f77g4]

So, we opened the present..at nearly 1am in the morning, after he got home from work and woke me up. It was.. initially... this (decorative) antique pitcher we had registered for... I let FH open it and I sat there, sleepily watching... we wrote the thank you card (at 1am), both signed it, sealed it, and I went to sleep. Lo and behold.. I got-up the next morning before work and began cleaning-up the wrapping paper and box... and realized there was a set of salt and pepper shakers we registered for in the box that we had not seen the night before! I told FH is officially OFF gift opening duty! HA Anyway, here is our first gift from one of our registries... the pitcher is a dark, almost marroon red (my flash screwed it up) and matches a vase we registered for and our red kitchen ~ I registered for a bunch of pitchers everywhere because I am sitting them on top of our kitchen cabinets to be decoration when not in use. The salt and pepper shakers match a bowl and several other items we have on our registry for our dining table.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/261.jpg

Congrats on the awesome gift!

[Kay]

I hope for you that the veil isn't wrinkled but mine was extremely wrinkled.


The veil arrived today and I love it! The trim was a little bit pinker than I thought it would be but I think it will bring-out the pink crystals in my dress better this way. It was wrinkled but nothing major ~ it's currently hanging on a hanger in my closet, I'll steam it a few days before and it should be good~to~go... DEFINITELY worth the $10 (including s/h)!!!! I'm excited!!

[f77g4]

The veil arrived today and I love it! The trim was a little bit pinker than I thought it would be but I think it will bring-out the pink crystals in my dress better this way. It was wrinkled but nothing major ~ it's currently hanging on a hanger in my closet, I'll steam it a few days before and it should be good~to~go... DEFINITELY worth the $10 (including s/h)!!!! I'm excited!!

That's awesome!!! Who was the seller?

I'm kind of jealous that you've gotten a gift. We haven't gotten any yet but our shower is next Saturday so it should be nice.

[Kay]

That's awesome!!! Who was the seller?

I'm kind of jealous that you've gotten a gift. We haven't gotten any yet but our shower is next Saturday so it should be nice.

The seller of the veil was "garellk1axq" - she sells all sorts of different veils in different lengths and styles and etc. She has "$14.95 Buy it Now or Best Offer" on almost everything. She took my Best Offer quote of $10 and that included shipping. Excellent find, I thought.

Don't be jealous about the gift ~ we have no shower planned and apparently will never be having one ~ my MOH, also my sister, is in Seattle and one of bms (the only grouchy one, actually) said "Well, you would be getting a shower but your MOH is in Seattle so I suppose if you want one, you can plan it and throw it for yourself." SERIOUSLY. Ugh. Oh Well. All the other bms are wonderful but they ALL live in a different city and only ONE of them lives here with me. It's hard getting married at an "advanced age" ~ for Missouri, that is. :rofl:

[Kay]

It's OFFICIAL... THIS IS MY DRESS!!! I just bought it!!

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/dress1.jpg
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj21/yakadij/dress2.jpg

I WON this dress on E-bay tonight in MY SIZE for $200 which INCLUDES shipping and handling and a free David's Bridal 2-tier slip in my size!! The dress was worn once to a wedding a couple of months ago, never had any alterations done to it, was taken to the dry cleaners, and comes in the dry cleaners bag and with the David's Bridal bag ~ all for $200!! I had been watching E-bay EVERY day since I knew that was THE dress ~ and lo and behold, I finally found it in my size and for less than half of what I would have paid at David's Bridal this week PLUS all the extras!! I can't wait for it to get here and to show FH's mom and my bridesmaid that lives here!!! :jphappy:

[Kay]

Also...

*We had our engagement pics taken last night and it was just a disaster. The guy didn't know us and made us very uncomfortable and put us in odd poses. We think they will be horrible... I had to apologize to FH for putting us through that. :ooh:

*I have two weeks to finish putting together 183 (give or take 3 or 4) invitations and addressing them... better get to it... It's 95 degrees outside, what else is there to do??? :bbeek:

[f77g4]

Well we are only getting a shower thanks to my grandmother. My sister is my MOH and she's 19 so not really her thing and my other bridesmaid lives 1.5 hours from me and has 2 young kids. My grandmother took it upon herself to arrange something....I'm sorry to hear you won't be getting one and that your BM is being so grouchy!

Love your dress and glad you got it on ebay!!! Congrats on the find and purchase!

Sorry to hear about your engagement pic shoot....is it the same photographer you are using for your wedding? If it is I would look at finding a different one if he made you that uncomfortable. I hope you can figure something out!

[Kay]

Luckily ~ NO ~ the e-pic moron is NOT the wedding photographer!! Actually, two of my bridesmaids are sisters and their dad, a long-time family friend, is an amateur photographer with high-end equipment and he's won a few photography contests in the last couple of years... he showing-up to our rehearsal, the rehearsal dinner, the day of the wedding, the wedding, and the reception... and doing ALLLLL the photos we want... FOR FREE!!! This is their wedding gift to us!! He is going to give them all to us in digital format (I suppose on a camera card or jump drive or something like that) and we don't have to pay one penny for them!! I am soooooo excited about this that I can barely breathe! This guy is just wonderful and he is also meticulous about things so I know he will get some really great shots. We are getting him and his wife a $50 gift certificate to a restaurant for them ~ which doesn't even cover the costs of their hotel here for two nights ~ but, they would be attending the wedding anyway, they are wonderful friends. I am SUPER happy about him doing this for us and I know we will feel very comfortable around him ~ he has known FH & I since we were both grade schoolers and his wife is the person who actually first mentioned the two of us dating... and got the ball rolling... :jphappy:


Anyway, I had a doctor's appointment out of town today but I'm back (early) and I have the entire day off work (cool) so I think I'm going to sit here and FINALLY make a list of everything I have left to do with the wedding... I hope I don't get overwhelmed... I'm starting to feel REALLY happy and REALLY excited for the invites to go, for the wedding itself, and ESPECIALLY for the honeymoon!! I'm REALLY excited for Rome!!! I'll have to post a picture of the hotel we are staying at in Rome before and after the cruise ~ well, we haven't booked it yet but I am IN LOVE with it and hope my FMIL will be, too ~ it's within walking distance to the train, the Colliseum, the Trevi Fountain, etc...

O! I almost forgot... MY DRESS IS HERE!! ALREADY!! It came priority mail/insured from Oklahoma so I am going to call the post office and see if I can go pick it up this afternoon!! WHOO HOOO!!! :ura1:

[f77g4]

Exciting re the dress!!! Good luck!

Your honeymoon sounds so awesome!

[Kay]

The dress arrived. It fits perfect. I love it.

The invitations are 3/4ths of the way assembled and addressed. I am exhausted dealing with them and can't wait to get them out the door. Sad to say but true. I think once the invites are mailed, I'm taking some time to relax about the wedding. I screwed these invites up soooo many times, I'll be glad when this chore is over. The good thing is, they ended-up very cute and I do love them quite a bit!