Jessica and Jonathan 10/20/07

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Jonathan and I met in 1999 in Middle/High School. After a lot of drama with his previous marriage and divorce we're finally together again. He proposed on December 17th 2005 and we'll be married on October 20, 2007.

We have a church picked out and it will be booked officially when the reception site gets booked. I'm a staff member and long time memeber of the church and they are holding the date and time for me.

We have found a reception site but had to schedule a tasting before we booked so we'll be heading to that on Wednesday. Once we taste the food and deem it acceptable, we'll book the venue.

The photographer is a family friend who does weddings almost every weekend. He's holding my date as well until we're absolutely ready to book.

I'm a music major so my friends are coming to the rescue for ceremony musicians. They are even doing it for free... I'll give them something since they wont take my money.

We want to go to Sandals Grand Ochos Rios Resort in Jamaica for the honeymoon but have not booked anything yet.

I do have a dress that I had been eyeing since I first saw it on the cover of a magazine in the doctors office a couple years ago. I am in love with this dress. Why so early you ask? I got it off the clearance rack at David's for $99. I had tried it on several times before and loved it each time. I went with my mom to look at it and we ended up just buying it.

Other than all of that we really dont have anything. We have ideas for save the dates and invitations, but havent ordered anything yet. We're also doing a lot of research into transportation, DJs, cakes, favors, and other misc stuff. It should be fun! ;)

[Kacie_bride]

Well Jessica, welcome again to OneWed! I think you will enjoy your journal. I know I love mine! Let us know when you need anything and by the way, we love pictures!

[hummingbird521]

Welcome to onewed jennifer. you will find lots of friendly people here and lots of neat ideas and helpful info from the ladies.

[AngelinLove]

Welcome Jessica!!!

We look forward to all your updates. ideas, and definitely pictures!!!

[MOB Karen]

Congratulations & welcome to Onewed!! Sounds like you're doing very well in your planning! And a wedding dress for $99, what a steal!! Good job, Jessica!! Keep us posted on your plans!! :D

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I'm working hard on my guestlist. I've been hard at work for a couple of weeks compiling information and listing people's names. We need a potential guest count when we set ourselves up with the reception site. I think we're rounded off at 305 people invited, but only about 200 are going to actually show because of difficulty traveling and things of that nature. Its kinda exciting that "the list" is almost complete.

I've also been busy trying to hunt down engagement party invitations. I think we're having an engagement party in October and I need to send out invites at the end of August/early September. I know exactly what I want but I dont know how to make them or where to find them. I'll keep looking.

I have a tasting on Wednesday and will probably have a reception site in a week. I'm really excited!

Thats it for now!

[LaceyinPgh]

Congratulations on your engagement! Welcome to Onewed! We love to hear all about your plans. Since my wedding is over, I have to live vicariously through the brides to be. You are about 15 months out which is when I started to plan too. Let me know if there is anything you need. I have all summer to sit on my butt and read posts.

[Jenn060306]

Welcome to the board Jessica.
I can't wait to hear all about your wedding plans. Like Lacey i to live vicariously through other brides now that my wedding is over.
Congratulations! Best of luck with your planning!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I got an email from my officiant... he reccomended a pre-marital and marriage seminar/weekend that is being hosted at one of our sister churches for young engaged couples, young married couples, second weddings, and getting married with children. All of these classes are geared for the under 25 age group. Its free to members of the churches and I think it'll be very beneficial. We fall into 2 of those categories. Our officiant also mentioned that we could possibly benefit from some of the newlywed classes as some of them arent things that only apply to newlyweds. This seminar thing will last for 5 days... I'm not too excited about that, but we'll benefit from it for sure, we're also 5 minutes from the hosting site so if we have a few hours between classes/sessions, we can come home to either my house or his house. I'm excited!

I was looking over the info packet that Tommy (my officiant) sent me. Some of the classes are:

Living together for the first time
Communication for marriage
Dealing with the ex-spouse
Arguments and how to diffuse them
Family Planning
Faithfulness: Emotional and Physical
Dating your spouse
Making time for togetherness
Working/School and Marriage
Balancing home and work/school
Coping with homesickness
Church and marriage
Making time for other family without hurting your marriage

I'm really looking forward to a lot of those classes... We'll also get special counseling for 1 hour at the close of every day. Some classes are short (30 minutes) while others are longer (up to 2 hours). Here's a sample schedule of one of our days:

9:00 - 9:45: Making time for togetherness
10:00 - 10:30: Dating your spouse
11:00 - 12:00: Working/School and Marriage
12:00 - 2:00: Lunch
2:00 - 4:00: Communication in Marriage
4:00 - 5:00: Dealing with the ex-spouse
5:00 - 6:00: Couple Communication time (this is the time that couples have to talk about the classes they have encountered and their feelings about them)
6:00 - 10:00: Individual Counseling sessions (they are scheduled on an individual basis, there are 10 different counselors so we'll have a good choice on times and stuff).

I think we're going have a lot to talk about and it works out great because we're taking our vacation the next week. Hopefully this seminar (which some of my newlywed friends have said is wonderful) will help us work out some minor bugs that we're having a hard time with.

I feel very fortunate that some of the area pastors have collaborated to make this seminar for people in our area. I'm also glad that they have separated the seminars by age groups so that we're getting more specialized and helpful information.

I think I'm ready for bed... I'll update later!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I have pictures to load into my journal... because it takes forever and I'm not patient enough, I'm going to wait until tonight to load them up. If you want a sneak preview I have a thread going over in Bride Chat called "Pictures!!"

I'll be probably posting 1 or 2 pics at a time explaining what each of them are and how we'll be using it or the story behind it. I feel that will give everyone the best description of what I'm talking about and how it will be done/used and how it got into my head or hands!

[Kacie_bride]

I think the classes at the church are a very good thing!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

As promised I'm starting the picture point in my journal. This wont all happen overnight and will be a growing project. Enjoy!

My engagement ring and wedding band:

Jonathan and I looked for this gem for 9 months... yes nine months. We went ring shopping every month all 9 months. We ended up finding the ring at the store we weren't even going to go into. When we walked in I spotted it immeadiately. We had discussed a budget prior to shopping and I knew that it was way out of budget but I thought I'd give it a shot anyways. The set was over $10,000 and we had agreed not to go over $5000. My heart sank when I read the price tag and I told Jonathan that we should just go... he looked at it and told me that it was exactly what he had been looking for me. The clerk then delivered the news that it was on clearance for over 60% off. I almost jumped out of my skin with excitement. Jonathan put it on hold and then went back and got it. He held on to the e-ring for 3 months after he bought it before he proposed... it drove me nuts!! Here's the picture of the e-ring and wedding band:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Wedding/helzbergring.jpg

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

The Ceremony site:

This was so easy... almost too easy. My FH and I go to what I think is the most beautiful church in my area. We attend church every Sunday and I am a praise and worship leader as well as a singer for important services. It was a no-brainer that we would be going with my church. The church seats a little over 1000 people and has red carpeting. The floors, altar rails, pulpits, doors, and pews are all light oak. The pews have red pew pads on them. The stained glass window is HUGE and was actually donated by my neighbor before she passed away. The pastor is really awesome and he's really cool about everything. My friends and musicians at the church are going to be performing in my ceremony as well. The chandelliers in the church are frosted glass with crosses on them and there is a HUGE cross that hangs from the ceiling over the altar. The narthex is absolutely amazing and is a must see!! I'll have more pictures of it when I go to take pics... as for right now, I just have this small picture:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Wedding/sanctuary.jpg

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

The Dress:

My dress and I have some history. I spotted this dress when it first came out because it was featured on the cover of a magazine I saw in the doctor's office. I went home and looked for it and finally found it on David's Bridal's site. When I looked at the sizes I was discouraged because I didnt think I would be able to wear it. I am a plus sized bride so finding a dress was hard for me in this area. Boutiques only had small sizes and consigned dresses didnt fit because of alterations... I ended up at David's bridal and the consultant that I had told me that they were discontinuing that dress in all sizes and they wouldnt have anything close.... So I searched for other sytles that I liked. That particular David's Bridal didnt have anything I liked so we went to the larger one about 45 minutes away. I went with one of my best friends who just got married in 2004. She searched through racks of dresses and pulled out the dress... and it was in my size. I thought that I had died. Come to find out (after talking to my wonderful SA) that this was a trial dress in women's sizes that didnt sell in the women's sizes so they never released it. It only hit about 20 stores so this was literally the only one they had. I put it on and it was perfect. My friend agreed and so my SA advised me to try to get it soon because it is the only one they have and once its gone, there is no more. So I brought back FMIL and FSIL to view the dress and they agreed that it was perfect. I wasnt sure I wanted to buy it yet because it was $600 and thats a lot of money to spend when you arent 100% sure. I ended up taking my mom in May to see the dress and I looked through the racks but couldnt find it. I started to freak out. Jennifer (my SA) came over and could see that I was visibly flustered. She asked me what wrong and I asked her if someone had bought "my dress." She said "nope its right over here..." I was confused as to why they moved it so I asked her why it was moved. She then told me that they were trying to get rid of it and put it on the $99 rack. At that point, my mother said that we were going to buy it and wanted to see me in it. I tried it on and said "yes this is it" and then we bought it! So we ended up saving $500 on this dress and it is in prestine condition. I'm very lucky to have found this one!
Here it is!!
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Wedding/DavidsBridal1.jpg

[LaceyinPgh]

Your dress is precious. It is very fairy tale princess inspired.

[MsJessica07]

The dress is gorgeous! We all need to have that kind of luck when we find a dress!!! Inspirational for those just starting to find a dress ;)

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I guess this time I'm going to post cakes... this one will be difficult so bear with me...

My Cake:

I have several different pics that I'm using as inspiration to make one awesome cake. I'm going to have a few different flavors. One layer will be red velvet with cheesecake filling, another will be white cake with buttercream filling, another will be red/white marble with buttercream filling and another will be chocolate cake with chocolate filling. I like all of these cakes but dont want any of them exactly as is... I'll explain each picture in detail:

This cake is too small for what we're looking for but the floral design is amazing. I would do red flowers and black leaves and stems. I dont really like the stripes so I would get rid of those but have the top tier with what looks like a small bed of roses on the top that my cake topper will sit on:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Wedding/whiteonwhitecake.jpg

OK this one is more of what I'm looking for as far as size. I really like the detail on the cake but the flowers are a bit much for what we're going for. We might do a few small floral cascades but nothing that big... :
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Wedding/floralcascade.jpg

This cake has the seperators between the layers. Instead of having the rose petals in the cake I'll do actual sugar roses like you see in the first and second pictures. I kinda like the designs on the cake but not really... I really like this cake because the seperators are not too big so the cake isnt too seperated.:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Wedding/perfectpedestal.jpg

This cake has the swag that I like.. I dont like that this cake isnt round but its still very pretty.. The florals and swags are what I'm looking for.. probably black swags... on a white frosting. I would add the seperators that you see above... and yes this is Jessica Simpson's cake...:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Wedding/JessicaSimpsonCake.jpg

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I have a tasting tonight at our first choice reception site. Jonathan and I are really excited about it! I could have a reception site by Saturday!!

I have to get in touch with my prospective photographer. He's a family friend and he offered to come to my home and bring his portfolio and talk to us about what he can do for us.

I also got an email last night from my prospective cake baker and she's wants to come to my home and bring more than 7 different combinations of things I showed interest in! She's the best and her prices are low because she works out of her home... she's a really sweet person!

I'm going to update tonight after I go taste the food!! I'll also be updating with the reception site photos!

[Kacie_bride]

The church looks so beautiful! I love the dress! I love all your stuff! I think I tried on that same dress when I was dress shoping! I really liked it!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Alright so we have a reception site... This was a big decision for us and we're glad that we chose them. The food was excellent and the venue is gorgeous!

My Reception Site:

This was the biggest decision that we had to make (other than the dress). I had my heart set on a site in the city we're getting married in but the costs were ridiculous so we looked elsewhere. After much deliberation we decided to look for sites that would do all the set up themselves. A lot of the "empty" venues made you rent everything and then bring in a caterer and decorate yourselves... this wasnt going to work for us because we really didnt have anyone else to set up besides ourselves and it would be hard since that day so much will be going on. It can also get expensive... so we looked into all-inclusive packages. We looked at the area country clubs and while the atmosphere was nice the food was not or they were too small. We looked into hotels, but because we're in D.C. they had food minimums of $25,000 for a saturday wedding and they told you what time you could come in.. I didnt like that... I finally stumbled upon the Waterford by looking through the directory on the knot. I got in contact with them and we decided to look right away. When we got there we were able to tour the facility and see it set-up for a reception. The venue was amazing and the prices were GREAT!!! I call them super all-inclusive because everything is included... everything you could possibly think of. We decided to visit a few other places but nothing else compared. I took everyone to see the venue and they all loved it. So I had the tasting and we're booking the site!! Here are some pictures:

This is the lobby with the fountain:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Wedding/WaterfordFountain.jpg

Here is the room where our cocktail hour will take place:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Wedding/WaterfordCocktailRoom.jpg

Here are the ballrooms set up for receptions:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Wedding/BallroomatWaterford.jpg
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Wedding/AnotherphotoofWaterfordreception.jpg

So there it is and I'm truly pleased with everything so far!!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Alright so I have some updating to do. I am putting together my wedding binders. I'm trying to keep everything organized and make sure I have everything that I need in there. I'm having a hard time organizing it just right but I'll survive.

I have to meet with family to figure out names on the guest list and get the rest of these addresses. I have to order save the dates and I have to reserve the church. I also need to lock down an engagement party date and time and I need to book my photographer. Whew so much to do!

[ikkin510]

What works best for me is setting up a time line. I write everything I want to do for the month in my journal here. Then I also have a dry erase board that I write the months stuff in order of most important. I just got a plain binder and broke it into sections. It's really helpful.

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I got the wedding planner I wanted from Target!!! My best friend (MOH) got it for me and all kinds of wonderful stickers to decorate it! I have to photocopy some pages but I can deal with it!

I'm going to start posting in here what I need to get done just so its somewhere else besides Outlook. I'll be back in a bit to post that!

[cowboysbride]

Yeah for BF's! I can't wait to see your accomplishments!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Well I think that planning is going to go in a snowball effect for a while...

I have booked the reception site as everyone knows and so now vendors are going to go in a snowball effect. All of my vendors need to be booked by Feb 07.


I have my church... my date is on the calendar but we havent officially booked it.
I have a photographer who has my date reserved, but again we have not booked him
I have a cake person and I'll be setting up a tasting with her later on.
I have a florist in mind. There is a flower shop here that does amazing jobs on weddings so I'll be using them.
I have a hair stylist (thank you Grandma!)
I have a make-up arist (MOH/BF's sister)
I have my invites and save the dates picked out
I have my guest list done and all I have to do is finish compiling info about each guest (address, phone, and all that stuff)
I have a transportation company! They are awesome but arent booking quite yet. I have to call them in a couple monthsSo I guess I need to do the following by the end of the month:

Officially select engagement party date and send out invites
Set up another meeting with my pastor to officially book the church
Keep trucking on the guest list.. it will be done!!
Talk to our photographer and look at his work
See about ordering my save the dates (check on delivery time, how many we need, best way to order them, etc.)
Start looking through my PILES of sheet music for ceremony and cocktail music
Check off what I need and dont need off the registry list target gave me in my planner... also looking at Bed Bath and Beyond's checklist is helpful as well
Start looking for stuff for all my DIY projects (shopping trip with grandma!!)I think thats it... I'll add something if it comes up!! I'm so happy that I have so much accomplished so early!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I'm kinda overwhelmed after looking at the registry lists. Some of these things I've never seen or heard of. I have to google a lot of things to see what they are and it just makes everything take longer.... I'm lazy.

We're putting our heads together and trying to figure out what we have so we're not registering for things we already have or things we dont need. Target suggested that we register for camping gear but FH and I arent big campers so its kinda pointless. However, we're going to need sheets and towels so we need to make sure to register for pleanty of those!

I'm getting more and more excited when I talk to people about the wedding. Its been 7 months since we got engaged and it has literally flown by. Its amazing how fast the time went.

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I recieved a price sheet from the woman I would like to bake my cake. She's really reasonable at $2.75 per slice. She has yummy fillings but premiums for more than 2 tiers. I think we're going to try to keep the cake at 5 tiers instead of the 6... I'll just make the tiers a little bigger. We're doing separators so it will heighten the cake anyway. So I'm down to 4 flavors for guests which is fine with me.

[Kacie_bride]

You've got quite a list there girl! Don't get yourself overwhelmed right now. Just take it a step at a time. You've got plenty of time! You don't want to hold off and then be super swamped at the end, but you also don't want to have everything done 6 months ahead of time and then have nothing to do. That will drive you even more crazy. Everything is looking good though!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

You've got quite a list there girl! Don't get yourself overwhelmed right now. Just take it a step at a time. You've got plenty of time! You don't want to hold off and then be super swamped at the end, but you also don't want to have everything done 6 months ahead of time and then have nothing to do. That will drive you even more crazy. Everything is looking good though!
Dont worry. I think the seating chart for over 200 people is enough to drive me insane. We really have to get vendors booked early or else we could end up struggling to find someone. I have pleanty of DIY projects to complete, not to mention I'll be going to school during all that time. But I get what you're saying. I'm spreading things out so I can handle them! :bblol:

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

We have an engagement party date. Its better late than never! We've all decided on September 23, 2006. I'm really excited! We're having something similar to a cocktail party with finger foods, cake, and drinks.

I found some invitations that I like at Target and I went ahead and bought some of them. I still need 2 more boxes.

I'm happy we finally have an engagement party date and I can meet some of Jonathan's family that I havent met yet.

[Kacie_bride]

It sounds like you are going to have a pretty nice engagement party. I can't wait to see the pics of that!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I have confirmed the date, time, and location of our Engagement Party.

We're having it at my grandmother's home here in my city. The party will be at 7:30pm on September 23, 2006. My fiance and my mom decided on a Cinderella theme because they know I love Cinderella.

We confirmed a menu for the party. My grandparents (who used to cater weddings) are making a lot of this food. My mom, aunt, Jonathan, and I are going to be helping the day of. Here is the line-up:

Chilled Spinach Dip with water chestnuts in a bread bowl
Crab Dip (a cream cheese and crab dip)
Veggie Tray (with a yummy ranch dip)
Fruit Platter (with a yummy sweet dip)
Mini Sandwiches
Grandaddy's Meatballs
Chips and Dip (French Onion)
Salsa and Queso with Tortilla Chips (Salsa and Queso will be homemade)
Cake
Champagne
Sparkling Cider (for the kids and non-drinkers)
Sodas
Iced Tea
Coffee (Gourmet coffee we get from a specialty shop in the old town district)
Cocktails
Strawberry Daqueri'sSo thats the menu. People are going to eat some things and not others. I'll be making cards to put by everything so they know what it is. We're expecting about 50 people so lots of food is a must!

I found a picture of my engagement party invitations. Here they are:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Wedding/EngagementPartyInvites.jpg

I still need 2 more packs of them. I might need three. My mom and I are going out tomorrow to look for things for the party. I have a feeling that there will be a lot of DIY decorations and stuff like that.

My mom has some pics of me in my dress that I'm going to wear to the party. Its my little black dress!! Jonathan is going to wear an all black suit with a platinum tie. His jacket has platnium pinstripes in it too.

I think thats it for now... Tomorrow I should have more ideas and I'll see if I can get some more pics for you ladies!!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

OK so I got the other 2 packs and I have my MOH and 2 of my bridesmaids coming over today to help fill them out and address them all. One they are addressed, I can get the wedding stamps from the post office and then wait til its time to send them out.

Jonathan and I went to Bed Bath and Beyond last night after completely having a bust at Target. We're really trying to find things for the registry. Because we are registering in 3 different places, I dont want to register for the same thing in 2 different places. I also want to find the best price. So we went looking last night and found a lot of neat stuff!

I'm also on the prowl for tiaras and jewelry. This is particurlarly hard for me because I have a collection of tiaras and costume jewelry already from pageants. I want to keep the tiara around $100 and the jewelry the same.

I stopped by the church yesterday and picked up my official request for the church. I need to complete it and turn it back in. Jonathan and I have to schedule a meeting with the pastor again to talk and do some counseling. Jonathan has the week off next week so it'll be a good time to go.

I'll update when I know more... Tonight should be pretty fun!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

This week has been busy busy busy.... I havent done much in the way of wedding planning. I wanted to have my engagement party invitations filled out and started addressing them but that didnt work out. Instead we all ended up going out for one of my bridesmaid's 18th birthday. It was fun!

Instead of wedding planning, we've been doing a lot of home planning. We went furniture shopping (yes I know its over a year away). The furniture store was having a wicked sale and of course we picked out all of our furniture for around $2000 without the mattress.

We've also been checking out the floorplans at some of the area apartments and seeing which ones we'd like. We found one apartment complex that had everything we wanted. They had building entry codes, open parking, a full washer and dryer that wasnt cramped in a closet, no "walkthrough" bathrooms (the ones that have a door to the bedroom and a door to the hallway or common area), and they had nice big bedrooms! We really fell in love with the place. Its one of the more expensive places to live in the city though.

We have done a little wedding planning. After talking with my mom and FMIL, we have decided that parents and grandparents will all sit at one table. Because there is 10 of them, we cant do a round table that only seats 8, so we're going to do a long table (like the head table) right underneath the head table. Our head table will be 12 people and will be on a pretty high riser, the parents and grandparent's table will be on the floor like right in front of us. It kinda makes their special table stand out as well as makes it easier for them to all sit together.

Other than that nothing has really gotten done. I will be putting a deposit on the church next week, going to a counseling session with Jonathan, possibly interviewing DJ's, and getting these invitations filled out and ready to send.

[AngelinLove]

Good luck with all your plans!!! Getting furniture and looking at apartments is ALWAYS fun!!! I hope you find something perfect!!!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I got a bit of bad news today... the lady I had wanted to do my cake is moving across the country and wont be able to do it. She did refer me to some places but I dont know about it. I'm kinda bummed about it... she had the PERFECT fillings for her cakes. Hopefully her referrals are as good!

I got the little annoying stick-ons on the e-party invites. They are glittery so I had glitter all over the place... I had no goofs so i didnt have to rely on back-ups. I have to start filling them out tomorrow and hopefully have everything ready to mail by the weekend so I can just drop them in on Tuesday.

We're booking the church tomorrow. We have a counseling session with our Pastor as well. I'm a little nervous because we've had a few sessions but it was more wedding planning related. Basically talking about what we invision in our wedding and what we need to do to make that happen. This time we're actually digging into relationship stuff. Jonathan and I have had some pretty big disagreements in the past couple of weeks but have worked them out. Hopefully this counseling session will not start another disagreement. I'm nervous.

[WhiskeyGirl]

I got a bit of bad news today... the lady I had wanted to do my cake is moving across the country and wont be able to do it. She did refer me to some places but I dont know about it. I'm kinda bummed about it... she had the PERFECT fillings for her cakes. Hopefully her referrals are as good!



Lol...you should be glad you didn't get a call telling you she had died! That's what happened to us with our photographer a month and a half before the wedding. Perhaps since she's moving maybe she'll release her recepes to her succesor to make your cake. ;)

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Lol...you should be glad you didn't get a call telling you she had died! That's what happened to us with our photographer a month and a half before the wedding. Perhaps since she's moving maybe she'll release her recepes to her succesor to make your cake. ;)

OMG I'm so glad that didnt happen. She is such a sweet lady. Unfortunately she referred me to places that are bakeries instead of bakers out of their homes like she is. I'm certian I'll find something we like, Jonathan and I are so picky about cake that its scary.

I've already set up an appointment with one of the references and they are about 2 minutes from my house. They are very reputable but also a little more expensive.. Cathie was going to charge me $2.50 per slice and they charge $3.50. Thats a big difference when talking about 200 people.

[Kacie_bride]

OMG I'm so glad that didnt happen. She is such a sweet lady. Unfortunately she referred me to places that are bakeries instead of bakers out of their homes like she is. I'm certian I'll find something we like, Jonathan and I are so picky about cake that its scary.

I've already set up an appointment with one of the references and they are about 2 minutes from my house. They are very reputable but also a little more expensive.. Cathie was going to charge me $2.50 per slice and they charge $3.50. Thats a big difference when talking about 200 people.

I'm sure it will all work out with the cake! Don't worry about the marriage counciling. It'll go fine.

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

A lot has happened in the past week but here we go...

Tuesday Jonathan and I went to our marriage counseling session. It was our first official one because we booked the church that day. We've had sessions in the past but Pastor Tommy calls it official now. The counseling went well... Jonathan has an attention problem and Tommy picked up on it. He also noticed some things that we didnt realize. It was a good session.

We got the church booked. They want us to do our rehearsal late... like 6:30pm because around here thats still the height of rush hour, but we dont want to go any later. Also, our church's policy is that when you get married you only have 2 hours to set up... thats not the case for me. I have all the time I need. I like that because I'll have pleanty of time to get ready and wont have to worry about decorating and stuff.

Jonathan and I registered on Saturday at Bed Bath and Beyond. We only wanted to register for a few items because people were giving us hell about not being registered for the engagement party. We ended up registering for everything but kitchen and master bedroom decor (we dont know what size bed we're going to have and we dont know exactly where we're going to end up living). It took us 3 1/2 hours to register and the battery died on the scanner twice. It was a lot of fun though.. We're going to update our registry as things become unavailable. We're also going to head to Macy's and Target next weekend. Rather than waiting to register, we're just going to keep the registry updated.

Jonathan took me away for a romantic getaway Thursday and Friday. It was nice. There was a really nice tub in the room where I spent most of my time soaking, the hotel was REALLY nice, we went out to dinner, and had a great time watching movies and relaxing. The most important thing was we got to focus on each other and didnt really have any other distractions. We had been having a lot of problems because we werent spending any time together. Our time was being channeled into work, school, family, friends, and helping people out. We talked on "vacation" about how our pastor said we need to make time for each other. We got it resolved and had a wonderful weekend!

I send out my engagement party invitations tomorrow. I'm really excited about it! I spent a lot of time on them I'll take a picture before I mail them.

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Well I didnt get a good picture of the invitations so I'm not going to post them... but I did get them sent off. It was a relief. Now all that needs to happen is people will RSVP and everything will be done except for food.

I've decided that organization is going to be a must for me. I know all of my photos are online and obviously saved on my computer, but I'm also printing out my ideas to take to appointments and things like that. Sometimes its really hard to convey what you want so it seems logical to print them to give the other person an idea of what I'm looking for. This will also make it easier when grandma and I start making things. We wont have to look at the computer and haul it around.

So now I'm filling up my notebook with guest list spreadsheets, pictures, samples, and things of that nature. I'm also starting to create rough timelines to add. I'm adding my registry once its updated and all of my contracts.

Now I'm in search of a baker and deejay. I'm starting to see how important it is to book early with them. There are already people booked for my wedding date. Its amazing... I'm just trying to work quickly but with care. I want to get the best deal.

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I have an appointment with a cake baker tomorrow at 6:30pm. I have a few pictures and ideas to take with me, but I'm a little worried about the meeting. The lady has been super nice, but she's a little scatterbrained. She called me today and asked me what time my appointment was because she had a few times written down. She also told me on Thursday night that she would send me the directions to her shop on Friday morning and she only sent them to me after I sent her an email asking for them this morning. Her prices are reasonable though.

Jonathan and I registered at Target yesterday. We were not impressed with their service at all. The lady argued with us, we told her that we needed to register and she kept looking at us and telling us we needed to print off the couple's registry list in order to register... this was after we had already created our registry on their little computer system and handed her the paperwork. They didnt tell us how to use the scanner (thankfully Jonathan worked there in high school and knew). We tried to go to Macy's after that and there is only 1 person who does registries. She didnt show up that day so she called me this morning to set up an appointment... not a big deal.. we were already at the mall yesterday for Target.

So I havent been impressed with anything this week. I start school on Monday and I'm not happy about it... I feel so unprepared. I think I need some new clothes or something. Its not in my budget so I have to wait. I have 1 pair of jeans and a pair of gouchos... I need to at least get something else. I have tons of shirts.

I need to schedule an appointment with my projected photographer. He will give us firm pricing, show us his work, and make sure we get exactly what we want. He's just an email away, but I've been too lazy to do it.

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

An old friend from high school just contacted me via my wedding website and wants to get together. She got engaged in March and is planning. She wants to get together to help bounce ideas off each other. We have a monster of a wedding show here in September and she wants to meet up with Jonathan and I to do lunch and hit up the bridal show (of course her FH will be there too and is one of Jonathan's friends from high school). She said we can split up at the bridal show for a little while... the guys will go do their thing and we can go look at bridal accessories and things like that, then we can all meet up and go see the vendors we need to see. I think it sounds like a pretty sweet deal.

Speaking of sweet, my appointment with the baker is tonight. I'm a little discouraged that she didnt ask for flavors to try or anything, although she says that it is a tasting as well... kinda sketchy on that. She has done wonderful work (from her online portfolio) and is exclusively for wedding cakes. She does 1 wedding per day/weekend so that she can give full attention to your needs.

I'll update after I get back tonight... I hope its good!

[hummingbird521]

Good luck with the vendor. Hope the cakes taste great.

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Thank you! I'm a little worried, we want red velvet cake for sure and I dont know if she'll have it to taste... I'm really picky about my red velvet cake!!!!

[hummingbird521]

Thank you! I'm a little worried, we want red velvet cake for sure and I dont know if she'll have it to taste... I'm really picky about my red velvet cake!!!!

So am I. I hate the ones with the cream cheese frosting on them. I only like my mothers homemade version of it. Which we only get once a year on my brothers birthday. :bbeek:

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

So am I. I hate the ones with the cream cheese frosting on them. I only like my mothers homemade version of it. Which we only get once a year on my brothers birthday. :bbeek:
Ugh... I hear ya on the cream cheese frosting. We liked a cheesecake filling (the first person I was going to book had one to die for) with the red velvet. It wasnt cream cheesy and it tasted soo good! I make red velvet cake whenever I can, but I make my own buttercream frosting. Its yummy!

[septemberbride06]

Our cake is chocolate on one layer, Yellow on the second, and marble on top. We also got rasberry filling

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

The tasting went well! I was a bit surprised at how inexpensive she was. I saw the $3.50 per person and almost fell over because we want fillings, elaborate decorations, and lots of tiers. She said she would give us some stuff free since we would be booking her early (by the end of this year). She is going to make sketches and mail them to me so I can see what it will look like all together instead of in pieces. She's rather talented and her work is amazing. And of course the cake was yummy! I'll have you know that the red velvet was absolutely amazing with a vanilla custard filling.

I also got a call tonight from my photographer and he's making sure that I know that I will be well taken care of. We made an appointment for him to come to my home and show his work. We know that he's going to be the one we're going with, we wont be able to beat the price and we know he'll make sure we get exactly what we want. I'm excited.

I'm also going to the huge bridal show on Sept. 10th. I'm really excited about that too... I'm starting to feel everything. I'm a bit overwhelmed, but I'm looking at the calendar and seeing that we're almost at the 1 year mark... I still feel like it was yesterday that we got engaged. Its hard for me to believe that we've been engaged for almost 9 months... wow... its amazing!

[hummingbird521]

The cake sounds delicious. Vanilla custard pudding would be so good in red velvet. Glad everything is coming together.

[Kacie_bride]

I'm glad your cake tasting went so well. The cake sounds delicous. I'm really hungry right now, so it sounds really really good!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

It was yummy!!! I love cake too!

I have a pretty busy couple of months coming up. I'm going to list my to-do list for this "semester" (Sorry... I think in terms of semesters and breaks):


August
Register at Macy's
Wait to hear from cake vendors
Research vendor reviews and make a list of vendors with bad reviews so I can avoid them at the show
Start School (NWR but so important)
September
Continue to schedule meetings with bakeries
Meet with photographer and book with him officially
Attend Sept. 10th Bridal Show
Talk to DJ's
Have engagement party
October
Order Save the Dates
Schedule fitting with Angie for August 2007(yes she's already booked)
Continue talking to DJ's
Book Cake
Talk to Videographers
Schedule meeting with Travel Agent
Novemeber
Book DJ
Start addressing Save the Dates
Make business card inserts for Save the Dates
Do a very preliminary hair trial to decide what style I'm looking for
Help bridesmaid with baby (she's due Nov. 19th)
December
Book videographer (if I'm not using uncle pat)
Continue addressing Save the Dates
Start stuffing Save the Dates
Look for Calligrapher for Invitations
Talk to limo companies
Buy Christmas stuff when it goes on sale after christmasI think thats it... I'll add if I forgot anything... if anyone else sees anything I forgot, feel free to add below!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I started school this week. Classes were not what I expected but they are pretty interesting. Here's a breakdown of the classes:

Vocal Pedagogy: This class is very interesting. It looks at the psychological and physical aspects of singing. We also have "labs" that help teach us to fix problems that we face. I especially like the portion on the psychological challenges singers face... I think every singer in the class can relate to at least one of the challenges. Our teacher also focuses on us and makes us dig into ourselves by doing journals and things of that nature.

Intro to Computing: This is your run of the mill class on Information Technology. Because I'm an IT minor, it is my pre-requisite for all the other IT classes. Its interesting because we'll get into a lot of neat things with computer shortcuts and the teacher is really funny.

Music History in Society IV: This is my least favorite class. This is because it meets so early in the morning. The teacher is interesting but talks really fast and from what I understand, his tests are brutal. There is a lot expected of us outside of class, but its interesting. We're learning about Classical and popular musicians from 1870 - the present. We're already talking about some wonderful things and the songs I have to listen to for my quizzes are giving me lots of ideas for wedding music. There are some beautiful songs!

Choir: I'm still waiting for the results of choir, but I'm confident in the choir I auditioned for. We're doing the Messiah for our Hoilday presentation with the symphony orchestra.

Music in Computer Technology: This class is fun because 1) its taught by one of our fellow students (though he's a grad student, he's still pretty awesome) 2) We get to learn how to effectively compose music in different composition software and 3) we get to record in our recording studio and make a demo track or two and it will all be done on our own, without the help of a producer. To me its pretty cool, I'll know how to use recording studio software and hardware when I get to record my programs.

Internship for Music Theory 1: I like this class because I get to help students understand the same concepts I had trouble grasping (at first) when I came to college music. I get to tutor and teach the students a subject that I am highly passionate about, and its a lot of fun.

Recital Attendance: This class is pretty self-explainatory... I have to attend 10 student recitals during the semester. It kinda stinks because its a 0 credit class, but you have to pass 5 semesters of it... I'm on semester 5.

Private Music Instruction: This class is just me and my teacher. I like the one on one attention and I get to do a lot of the music that I have always wanted to sing but have never had the courage to attempt on my own. I also like fine tuning my voice and really getting the most out of it.

Masterclass: This is basically a performance class. Everyone who takes private voice from my teacher has to attend this class every week. We have to sing one of our pieces and we get critiqued by our teacher in front of the class. Its a good atmosphere to sing in because its a rather non-threatening environment and constructive criticism is given. We are all friends and so it makes it a little easier as well.

So those are my classes... I think they are pretty cool, not your run of the mill schedule, but its cool. Comment freely! I'll have updates regarding wedding stuff probably tomorrow!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Wow... I totally havent updated my journal in the longest..

School is going well. Lots of homework and not a lot of time for Onewed:sob:

Jonathan and I are having the engagement party this weekend. I've been busy busy busy. We're making food, finalizing guest lists (over 50 people responded yes) and we have to figure out how we're going to decorate. Pretty cool.

We attended the bridal show and got a lot of good information. It was hard to get through everything, but we did. We got a lot of free stuff and tasted some reallyyummy stuff. I even got my make-up done and Jonathan got a massage. It was a lot of fun.

Now we're trying to book our photographer, look for some decent videographers and Dj's. Its hard work. I'm also keeping options open for cakes as well.

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I'll be posting pics as soon as Jonathan's sister email's them to me. I think my dad has some, but I dont know where.

Well the party was almost a complete disaster. My family came down with some weird stomach thing and my aunt (who was supposed to do the cake and dips), my uncle (who was helping with all the yardwork that had to be done), and my grandfather (who was doing all the cooking) had to be taken to the hospital in an abulance all at the same time. So I was in tears because it was the day of the party, we had to watch my baby cousin, make all the food, make a cake that we have no clue how to do, and decorate for the party as well as disenfect the house.

I ended up calling a few friends and before we knew it, everything was coming together. My family was in the hospital, but because our ER was overfilled, they wouldnt let anyone back. Everyone was in the same room though so it helped them out.

I have to say that after everything was done and people started showing up, you would have never known that anything was wrong. We had all kinds of food and the cake turned out beutifully thanks to my maid of honor and grandma.

Everyone in my family who was at the hospital came home that night after a lot of people had left the party. They helped us open our gifts. We got a lot of nice things.

I hope to get some pics up soon. I looked horrible because i was sooo exhausted and I was starting to get sick. Little did I know that I was going to be out of school all week with the same thing.

[NicksBride]

aww I am sorry everyone got so sick. That is not fun at all. I hope they are feeling better.
Your classes sound pretty interesting. I just graduated from college and can you believe I miss it? haha.
Your list is doable, seems daunting now, but once you break it down and actually get things together it won't seem so bad. YOUR GETTING MARRIED!!!!:o

[Jopet]

Awww what a bummer that your family got sick :(, I am glad it all came together in the end for you but:). Can't wait to see some pics!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Wow its been a month since I've updated this thing. Nothing really has happend wedding wise...

We're in the process of booking the photographer. We're signing the contract soon. After that we're taking our engagement photos and ordering save the dates.

We're in the process of trying to buy a house. The housing market has slumpped here and so we can actually afford to buy! We've found a couple cute places but havent found "the one" yet. The process of looking is fun but oh so stressful and with work and school... its horrible.

FSIL has all the pics from the engagement party so I cant get them until she finds a way to get them to me.

Thats it for now I think... I know I've been away for a while... its so hard to keep up when I'm bogged down with schoolwork, work, and house stuff. I'm glad to be back with you ladies and I'll try to be better about keeping up.

[hummingbird521]

Good luck on the house hunting and congrats on getting to buy one.

[Kacie_bride]

Good luck on house hunting!!! I'm sure that is pretty fun!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I know its been forever and I keep saying I'm going to update but I havent gotten the chance. Now that school is starting to wind down I might be ok.

Jonathan and I bought a house and we take possesion of it on Dec. 16th. We bought a fixer-upper so we have a lot to do. Its a cute 3 level, 3 bedroom 2 1/2 bath townhouse in a really good neighborhood and we got it for about 70-100k below market value. Its really spacious and has a finished basement. It has lots of natural light and even a deck off the back of the house. We're very pleased.

I have my photographer booked but we couldnt score engagement photos in the fall at our battlefields so we're going to see what we can do in the springtime. I would have prefered fall but oh well... i'm not going to be picky.

I'm still waiting on photo's from FSIL from the engagement party and I'm also waiting to take photos of our house. Once i get the photos, I'll post them. I'll be doing some fun before and after shots so that should be cool.

School will officially be over for me on Dec 18th. I'm muddling through the last 2 weeks of class and I even have some days off which is very nice.

Thats it for now... Its time for me to head to school.

[Kacie_bride]

Congrats on the house!!! That is so exciting! Good luck on your last couple of weeks at school!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Jonathan and I attended a DJ showcase at our reception site and ended up winning a free add on for our DJ package if we book with them. Their prices are pretty reasonable and we really liked their style. Money is tight right now because of the house so we're afraid of putting down a deposit until after christmas.

Other than that, nothing has really been going on with the exception of school... I only have to go back there 6 more times so I'm kinda excited about that.

[BriansBride07]

Great news on the winning. How exciting that you found your house.

[NicksBride]

oh that is very exciting that you bought a house!!! The feeling is great when you get handed those keys!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

This is pretty NWR but still very exciting.

This past week was packed full of exciting things... and next week wont be much different.

Last week I had my last week of classes which was great because most of the music dept. teachers throw parties for all our hard work during the semester. We also had our annual Holiday concert that I was privilaged enough to sing in. Our basketball coach (from GMU Men's Basketball) directed a song... it was pretty neat. We also had the 5 year old trumpet prodigy play. Saturday Jonathan took me to Morton's steakhouse and it was wonderful! Afterwards we watched the Opera that I didnt get to watch the night before because I was in it. I came home to find that my dad's aunt and uncle sent me $100 to help with something in the house. Sunday I sang at a church and they paid me a sweet $150 for singing 2 songs.

This week we take possession of our house and start updating it. We're having a bunch of people over to help us and I think it'll be awesome. I also have exams, but only 4 for the entire week and they are all on different days so I wont be at school long. With the conclusion of my exams comes the conclusion of the semester. I'm glad its almost over!

So I know its totally NWR, but I'm still really excited about everything.

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I am posting pics of the house Jonathan and I just bought. Some of the pics are kinda blurry but i think you can still see them. Just a warning, the guy who owned the house before we did never cleaned up so the house was a mess when we got it. The kitchen was the cleanest room so that was like the storage area as you will see in the pics. These are all before pics... we've already done the prep work for the rennovation of the house and I'll explain as we go along. Sorry they are so big, I dont know how to resize them...

Enjoy!

Main Level:

Foyer/Hallway:

There is carpet here now and the walls are a beige color with nothing on them. We're going to darken the walls a couple of shades to an oat/light khaki color and keep the trim ultra white for contrast. We're also going to take out the carpet and put in hardwood floors. On the walls we'll put in something that will go with the rest of the decor in the house. The jury is still out on this one.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0030.jpg

Living Room/Sliding Glass Door:

The living room is the same beige color with carpet. We're going a little darker than what we have planned for the hallway and keeping the trim ultra white. We're adding crown moulding and relplacing the sliding glass door. There is a window (you cant see) that will have wood blinds and navy curtains. The sliding glass door will have new blinds as well. We're replacing the carpet with a lighter low maitnence carpet. We're also adding a light kit to the ceiling fan because there is no overhead light.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0031.jpg

Dining Room/Other side living room:

My favorite room at this point. Its beige and has recessed lighting! We're going to paint this room a deep red and add ultra white crown moulding, trim, and chair rail. We're pulling up the carpet and installing hardwood floors. We're going to use my music theme in this room and add a painting of a new orleans jazz band that I received for Christmas years ago and iron music notes. We're going to add wall sconces on the other wall with another painting.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/Diningroombefore-1.jpg

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Main Level Cont.:

Kitchen Cabinets/Countertop/stove/wallpaper:

Ok this just might be the most dramatic change in the house when we're finished. As you can see we have older, dated wallpaper, dark wood cabinets, white countertops (the counter actually has yellow patterns in it), mustard yellow stove, and mustard yellow flooring. We're getting rid of the wallpaper (as you see already), we're painting the cabinets white until we can afford to replace them, we're installing a blue stone laminate countertop, we're replacing the stove with a white electric flat top stove, and we're putting down a greyish blue slate flooring. I'm painting the walls a light yellow and using a vintage paris/european cafe theme with my fat chefs. I'm adding chrome hardware to the cabinets and replacing the faucet on the sink.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0033.jpg

Kitchen Windows:

We'll be replacing the blinds with white instead of the grey and adding a rolling butcher's block against the wall with a painting on the open bare wall. In the space between the windows, we're going to add wall sculptures.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0034.jpg

Ceiling and Light:

The light is in great condition but its not the look we're going for so we're putting in a white ceiling fan. There were false wooden beams on the ceiling that we're pulling down and just painting the ceiling white.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0061.jpg

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Basement:

Stairwell:

We're painting the walls in this stairwell the same color as the hallway on the main floor. We're keeping the wood paneling until we have a little more money to drywall the entire basement. We're going to replace the railing to make it more sturdy and have the stairs re-carpeted.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0039.jpg

Common Area/Laundry Room:

We're going to put in new tile and of course eventually add drywall. There is a lot of storge so we'll have to decide what to do about doors. We're also going to change all the light fixtures and add a deep freeze for extra freezer storage in the laundry room or in that area.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0040.jpg

Open Area:

His brother is going to live in the basement so this will be his "room." It has the paneling and new carpet so not much can be done until we're ready to update. The pieces of old carpet on the floor were left there by the previous owner so we are storing them in the utility closet. There is a "Casablanca" old movie poster on the wall that we're going to put in our office.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0041.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0042.jpg

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Top Floor:

Bedrooms:

This is a pic of the 2 spare bedrooms we have. The one on the left will be the office and the one on the right will be a guest bedroom. The hallway will be the same color as the the hallway downstairs and will have the white trim as well.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0043.jpg

Office:

This will be our office. Right now the walls are two different shades of beige and the curtains are velvet and brown. The carpet is a light beige but has brown spots all over it from never being cleaned. There are also no overhead lights. We're going to paint this room the same red we will have in the dining room and we're going to replace the windows. We'll replace the carpet with a light beige colored carpet (the same we're putting in the living room). We're putting up ultra white crown moulding and chair rail. We will install a wooden ceiling fan with a light for overhead lighting. We're decorating with the theme of old hollywood. We're installing wooden blinds and putting up black sheers that will be tied back. We're also putting up the casablanca poster that we have in the basement since its already framed and we'll each have photographs of our favorite old actors and actresses. We're going to use some wall art from Bed Bath and Beyond that goes with the movie theme.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0045.jpg

Hall Bath:

This room has gold striped wallpaper, mustard yellow tub and toilet, and a dark wood sink with a white sinktop that has black swirls through it. We are tearing down the wallpaper and replacing it with the deep red. We're replacing the tub and tile with a new white tub that comes with some pre-fabricated walls. The toilet will be replaced with a white toilet and the sink will also be replaced with a white wood vanity sink. We're putting up a new medicine cabinet and adding new lighting over the mirror. We're keeping the floor since it matches and is in very good condition. I am decorating with black and white photo's from around the world and accenting with black white and chrome.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0046.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0047.jpg

[ladymelissa]

Congrats, it is a pretty big house. I am sure it will look great when you are done with it!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Upstairs continued:

Here is the master bedroom. There is an icky straw-like paper wallpaper on the wall with the windows and there is literally dust an inch thick on the carpet. The other walls are beige (we think) and there is no overhead lighting. THere are shutters on the windows along with sunblocker shades to keep the room dark. We're painting the room bibbidy bobbidy blue (like cinderella blue or baby blue) and keeping the trip ultra white. We're adding ultra white crown moulding as well. We're replacing the carpet with the same carpet we're using in the other rooms. We're taking down the shutters and sunblockers and putting up miniblinds or brand new sunblockers and navy curtains. We're also going to add Monet's Japanese Footbridge painting to the room somewhere. Since there's no overhead lighting, we're going to add a ceiling fan with lights.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0048.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0049.jpg

Master Bathroom:

This was by far the most disgusting room in the house. There was black mold and soap buildup in the shower as well as a leaking toilet and sink. The floor is coming up and the shower was peeling back from the wall. We are gutting the bathroom completely and adding a new shower with clear glass bypass doors. We're putting in a new white vanity sink and a new wite toilet. We're also putting in a new floor which will be similar to the floor in the kitchen. We're putting up a medicine cabinet and new lighting over the medicine cabinet. We're painting the walls a very light blue and accenting with navy blue and chrome.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/CopyofPICT0051.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0052.jpg

[ladymelissa]

OMG! It really makes me wonder how some people can live like that!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Misc stuff i forgot:

Half Bath on Main level:

This bathroom is in better condition than any other one in the house. There is a gold and brownish wallpaper on the wall and the same sink thats found in the master bathroom. The floor is actually peeling up and under it there is a tile that is coming up as well. We're painting this bathroom the same color as the living room and we're installing a white pedestal sink and white toilet in it. We're adding lighting above the mirror that we're replacing with a wood framed mirror. We're using a palm tree theme in the bathroom for something different. The floors are going to be a darker stone that has hues of dark brown and green.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0036.jpg

Stairwell to the top level:

This is the same beige as the hallways and has white iron railing going down the wall. It also has the same carpet that is found throughout the house. We're going to paint it the same color that we're going with in the hallways and we're putting up wooden railing. We're also going to replace the carpet with the same carpet we're using in the rest of the house.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0053.jpg

Guest bedroom (top level):

This room isnt too bad. It has the wooden shutters and beige walls. It also has the same carpet as the rest of the house. We will be replacing the windows eventually and adding wite mini-blinds. We're painting the room a deep green color and accenting it with pastel curtains and bedding. We're keeping the trim ultra white and adding crown moulding. We'll be replacing the carpet just like in the rest of the house.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0044.jpg

Deck/Backyard:

This is in perfect condition so we're keeping it as is. We might do some landscaping but we're still debating on that.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/House%20before/PICT0035.jpg

[Kacie_bride]

The house looks nice. You guys are going to have a good time getting it all fixed and pretty!

[hummingbird521]

Your house looks nice and will look even more nice when you get it all done. congrats on getting it. I like the wood shutters in the bedrooms. But I am partial to them since our bedroom as them as well. They are so easy to keep clean and really block out the light at night.

[nic1124]

Congrats on the house and have fun remodeling. I'm sure it will look awesome !

[NicksBride]

You are going to be busy with that one.. Did people live there before you? It is going to look gorgeous when you are done, congratulations!!!!!

[brewsells]

I love the house, and the funnest part is getting it all fixed up the way YOU want it. Can't wait to see it when it's done.

[BriansBride07]

Love the looks of your house. Have fun remodleing it. Boy do you have your work cut out for you in those bathrooms. I really feel for you. YUCK! Sorry they left it so dirty for you. Some people just don't care. I'm sure you will have it all spifted up in a jiffy. Have fun.

[NicksBride]

Its funny to see how other people live, our house was just like that when we bought it, the floor was just BLACK from dirt and the KIDS room was so wet with rain from the leaky roof that the carpet SQUISHED and kids lived in there!! YUCK!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I know... I'm totally amazed at this house... After I took all the pics, I started cleaning top to bottom... the ceilings were brown and the paint was really white... I brought my parent's dyson over and had to dump it every 3 - 5 strokes across the floor. I couldnt stand it... it was nasty. The first thing my dad did was gut out the bathrooms so at least all that nastiness is out of there...

[NicksBride]

That is awesome, sounds like things are coming along slowly. We are still working on our house and we have been there for about 4 months now, it takes time, but SOOOO worth it! :)

[katieandalex]

Its a cute house other than that master bathroom...uck. A good little fixer-upper, but after seeing that you spent $250K on that makes me go ugh! Thats kind of insane...but then since the real estate is so high around you anyways....but a cute house. Congrats!

[NicksBride]

Have you ever seen "flip this house"? people buy a house in California or something and they flip it to get more money. WELLL most of the houses they buy are like $500,000 or something OUTRAGEOUS for a house that is in worse condition and needs MUCH more work. It amazes me, if I had teh money I would love to do flips... Sorry, went off on a tangent on that one. ;)

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

So I've started school and my classes are pretty interesting. I'm only going to school Tuesday Wednesday afternoon and Thursday but I'm working Monday, Wednesday morning, and Friday. Not a bad deal at all.

The class I'm most excited about is wedding planning and management. Obviously it'll go to good use!

We picked out our flowers. Total bill came to $850 which is $400 less than we budgeted for. I'm very happy with the flowers and they are coming from the most reputable florist in this area but the consultant wasnt as nice as I thought she'd be... but it was cool.

We're going to get our engagement photos as soon as the weather gets a little warmer. I'm kinda excited.

I made my appointment for the alterations to my dress. The seamstress is the most sought after in the area so I'm glad to make the appointment this far in advance.

I'm still debating on what to do about cake and we're deciding on Save the Dates... soon it will all come together!

I'm soo excited!!

[BriansBride07]

Great deal for the schedule of work and school, congrats on coming $400 under budget for the flowers. Things are coming along great by the sounds of it.

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

We booked our honeymoon!!!

Jonathan took me to a travel agent in the area that specializes in honeymoons and gave me the dream honeymoon that I specified on the information form (one of those name the dream honeymoon questions).

We decided on the Sandals Grande Ochos Rios Resort and Spa in Jamaica. We reserved their private honeymoon villa that has a private courtyard and private pool with butler service. Of course because it is a sandals we have all the all-inclusive privilages. We're leaving October 21st at 9:30am and coming home October 27th at 11:30pm.

Here are some pics:

This is the resort's manor pool (the closest common pool to our villa):
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Honeymoon/pool.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Honeymoon/ManorPool2.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Honeymoon/ManorPool.jpg

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Here are some pics of the resort in general:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Honeymoon/resortnight.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Honeymoon/resort2.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Honeymoon/Resort.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Honeymoon/GrandePromenade.jpg

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

2 of the 11 restaurants:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Honeymoon/deckrestaurant.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Honeymoon/beachrestaurant.jpg

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

Here is one of the waterfalls at the resort:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Honeymoon/waterfalls.jpg

Here is one of the secluded tented beds in the foliage:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Honeymoon/tentedbed.jpg

And last but not least... here is our room:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a206/luv2cheer717/Honeymoon/RomeoandJulietSuite.jpg

[ladymelissa]

It looks fabulous!

[lea m]

Looks beautiful! Congrats!

[shawnsgirl]

Wow, now that is amazing!!!

[NicksBride]

That is AMAZING! I am sure you are going to get some good use out of that pool ;) Congrats, that is really exciting!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I've had the week off and I'm quite pleased with whats been going on and whats to come.

Following what could have been a disaster with my baker, I found 5 more people that I could book in my price range and have set up tastings for Friday and Monday with 2 of them so far.

I went to AC Moore and bought 110 white votive candles. I know 110 is an odd number but it was all they had. They were 5 for $1 so I grabbed them quickly. I also got my unity candle to decorate and the stand.

I scheduled a facial for Friday. I've gotten several facials at this spa before and I really like it so I talked to the aesthecian (sp?) and she reccommended me to several products that I'm in love with now and also reccommended that I come in no more than once a month for a facial with her. The spa is giving me a discount since I'm there so much and even bumped me into VIP service. It makes me feel special.

I'm also going dress shopping with my MOH. She's going to pick out her dress for the wedding and I told her she can get pretty much whatever she wants thats black and long. We're going to head to breakfast and then shop on Saturday. It should be fun!

[WhiskeyGirl]

Wow!! I checked out the sandals resort with the private villas and I cannot believe the great prices ($381 bucks a night!! :D Cheaper then a hotel room in Hawaii most times) I think we're going to the Bahamas on our next holiday!! You are going to have a fab time I can tell!! It's beautiful there!! :D

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

So I'm feeling rather unproductive lately. I wanted to have a DJ, Baker, and my save the dates ordered by now but its not happening. We did book the florist which was a huge concern, but now we're trying to move on all the other things.

My MOH was supposed to go shopping with me the past 2 weekends to find a dress for her. She's wearing something different from the girls and I really want it to be whatever she wants. We went to 1 store 3 weeks ago and found a few things she liked but she's really picky. I need to get all of my BM's in to try on dresses because they take 7-10 weeks to come in and they need alterations, but I need my MOH to get her dress first cause I promised her first pick and I want them to be contrasting styles. She still has no idea what she wants so its becoming a challenge. I know its not really a big deal, but its a source of stress.

I dont want this to sound too negative... I am really happy about a lot of things. I'm really excited to see the day coming closer, but at the same time it can be really overwhelming so I think I'm just dealing with that right now.

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I guess I was having a down day because I'm feeling really good about my wedding planning progress.

I have a meeting with a DJ next Sunday. I am 95% sure we'll be booking him... he is very highly reccommended in the area and I cant believe he still has my date available.

My MOH and I are going dress shopping this weekend and then the weekend after that I'm taking a few bridesmaids out to scope out dresses and what they like.

I'm fairly certian that I've found the baker that we want to go with. I'm worried about deposits... she requires 35% and the DJ requires 50% so its kinda hairy scary as to where the money is going to come from.

Thats also the reason that we're waiting on the Save the Dates... They will be ordered in the next week (hopefully).

[NicksBride]

No worries, it sounds like you are getting stuff done. Just enjoy your planning, it shouldn't be stressful, just make lists and see what you have done already. Take a deep breathe and enjoy!

[Jacklynn]

Sounds like you are getting a lot of things done! And the hotel room looks great!

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I've been absent for a while and I'm really close to the wedding day so let me fill everyone in on what has happend wedding-wise since May.

We thought we had hit a little snag with the reception site at our 90 day meeting. When we booked 18 months in advance, our guest list was much thinner than it ended up actually being. Our ballroom had a 220 person limit, and that was cutting it really close with the number we were realistically expecting. We asked if we could be moved to the larger ballroom and we were told that there was another event going on in that one so we couldnt. By some miracle, that event ended up cancelling and we got the larger ballroom that has a 300 person limit and IMO is way more beautiful! We also finalized the menu while we were there!

Jonathan finally booked our wedding night suite! YAY! We're staying in a really nice hotel about 15 minutes away from the airport and the hotel decided that since it is our wedding night, they would upgrade us (for free) to a nicer suite!

The decorations are getting started this weekend. We didnt want them sitting around (things tend to happen when something sits around for too long). We're doing a lot of DIY so I'll post pics as I get them.

I added another bridesmaid... its a really long story so the short version is Jonathan had 1 slot left to fill on his side, he couldnt choose between 2 guys (one of them is married and his wife has been a good friend of mine since middle school and we reconnected), so he added them both and i added his wife. It worked out great and she's a super help since she was just recently married.

I've had 2 bridal showers and I have a lingerie party this weekend! I still have 2 more bridal showers to go (one HUGE one and one for all of my school friends) so I know I'm going to have a blast!

All of my music is finalized! I actually got to hear the vocalists sing the songs they are singing at the wedding in my studio class at school. I was crying like a dork but I think everyone understood.

My cousin is going to do our cake. We lucked out on this one since she's a professional baker!

I got my veil, shoes, handbag and tiara. They are gorgeous and go perfect with my dress! I also went for alterations and found out that she just has to bustle the dress and shorten the spaghetti straps. I ended up having to toss the bra which made the dress fit a lot better.

My flower girls got their dresses, all the men have been measured for their tuxes, and all of my bridesmaids are in the process of having their dresses altered.

I would say that I'm in pretty good shape with all of the planning. Its been really stressful and I know its only going to get more stressful as the time draws closer.

[KMS]

You've gotten so much done. Not too much longer to go! I'm glad that the venue situation worked out well for you.

[SoontobeMrsClark07]

I'm soo excited to see everything starting to come together. I need to still make a checklist of items that need to be addressed, but other than that, we're good!

I finally have a limo and video is almost finalized. I finalized the ceremony order with the pastor on Tuesday and have written a rough draft of the program. I have another fitting for my gown on Tuesday and I have to get the rest of my jewelry this weekend.

YAY!! I'm soo excited!!

[Goin2thechapel]

wow!!! 23 days to go!!! I'm catching up on your journal...Sounds like all of your ducks are in a row!!! Almost there!!