gettaway dress

Happy Friday everyone!!! Hope you all had a good week and are ready for the weekend! Not much planned for the weekend over here, I am going shopping for an interview outfit for my interview on Monday in Nashville. Went to the grocery yesterday - I have lots of yummy meals to make this weekend and next week including white chili and teryiaki chicken with rice & veggies - yum! Speaking of grocery shopping, this has been one of the biggest money savers for Matt & I lately. We eat dinner together every night no matter what and that used to mean that we would go out to dinner more nights than we cooked but since January we have been keeping a budget and saving all of our receipts. This has been a HUGE eyeopener! We use one of the budgeting charts from Excel and it is wonderful - I highly recommend! Anyways, we have been planning out our meals before we go to the grocery and only buying items on our grocery list not random extra stuff that is now sitting in the back of my pantry. So now we are saving sooo much money and eating better! I am very proud of us for keeping track and trying to do better with our finances before we say I DO! I think that money is sadly one of the things that a lot of couples fight over and I am glad that we are getting a handle on our spending before we start sharing money.

Onto other news... I have been looking for a dress to leave the wedding in and to maybe wear for the last thirty to forty five minutes. So it is not technically a "reception" dress because I will be wearing my gown almost the whole time, but Matt and I are leaving early the next morning for our honeymoon and I don't want to take my dress back to the hotel room plus I don't think Matt would know how to get it off of me haha (scandalous!) It has a corset back and I think it would just be easier for my mom to help me get out of it and take it back to my parents house than have to mess with it the next morning. I have not found anything that I love! I want something short and playful possibly pink and something I could wear on the honeymoon. Any ideas where to look? I have looked online @ Macys, Cache, and J.Crew but nothing is really speaking to me! I want it to be dressy, short, and summery. Let me know if you have any ideas! Have a great weekend everyone! Cheers!

wedding nonsense

So lately I have been kinda in a funk because I am done with the planning of my wedding until about April/May when I will go back into my vendors to confirm things. I am kind of sad because I just looooove weddings and everything that goes with them! Many people that I talk to are surprised that I am done with all of the plans, I have been done since before Christmas so now it is just kind of a waiting game. I don't know what I will do when our wedding is over. I have told Matt that we will have to renew our vows numerous times so I can have multiple weddings and in every season!
The only thing that I do not feel super confident in is the ceremony music. I find it difficult to pick songs for the ceremony. I mean people don't usually remember ceremony music - at least I don't, but I want it to be cohesive and sound pretty. I need to talk to my DJ about it, I have songs that I want but I just don't know if they all flow/go together.
Matt and I have started pre marital counseling at our church in Bowling Green and we love it so far. I was excited about it, but Matt was not too enthused. After our first meeting Matt loved it. It was so nice to talk to someone who was married, young, and didn't know us that well. I think since Matt and I feel so comfortable together it is nice to have a third party to look onto our relationship. We love our minister - he is great and we can't wait for our next meeting. Unfortunately he is not able to perform our ceremony because his brother is getting married the next day in a different part of the state. This was a major issue at first because we had ruled out anyone in Louisville marrying us. We wanted someone from our church in Bowling Green - the church that we joined together, instead of someone from the church I grew up in. I wanted the person that was going to marry us be someone that we both knew. WELL, it did not work out that way - but I think everything happens for a reason. The minister who married my parents 29 years ago (who is also the minister I grew up hearing from the pulpit) will be performing our ceremony. Matt and I will both sit down with him and get to talk about our relationship and commitment before the wedding so it is not like we are just showing up on the wedding day without ever meeting our minister. My parents are stoked and I really think they are honored that he is able to marry Matt & I and I am honored that Matt & I will share that with my parents.
In other news... I am still on the job search - I have gotten two offers one is full time but not great money and the other is in between part and full time and decent money, but I will have to commute some. THEN I recently heard from a dream job that I had emailed at the very beginning of the year. I was so ecstatic to see it in my email. I have sent them my resume and portfolio (hint - it has to do with weddings!) and heard back from them immediately. I hope to be able to meet with them soon and possibly have a job. I won't reveal yet, but hopefully I will hear something soon!
Matt and I started looking for our first apartment and we are so excited to have our own place to decorate and make our own. Though it is an apartment that is ok with us for now. Matt is still in school for another year and we plan to move as soon as he graduates, so apartment living is fine for now. We had initially hoped to move towards Nashville and that could still be a possibility, but all of the jobs that are in the picture right now for me are in all different areas (Glasgow, Owensboro, Bowling Green, and Nashville) - hopefully the one in Nashville will work out! If not we think we have found a place in BG to make our home! It is crazy that the countdown is almost in the double digits! Hope everyone is having a great week! Cheers!

birdcages & feathers - what a pair!

So I have finally selected my veil and I am very anxious and excited to see it! It is going to be custom made by TessaKim on Etsy check her out (http://www.etsy.com/people/TessaKim). I had found the perfect feather fascinator that I was dying for but I did not like the veil that came with it so I asked around and was able to get both that I was looking for. I am so excited to have this beautiful piece! The veil and fascinator will be two different pieces so I can wear just the fascniator at the reception. I also got it for a great price! I went to a bridal store and found almost exactly what I wanted and it was going to be almost 300 bucks - the majority of that would be the feathers which boggles my mind!
I also got my bridesmaid gifts on etsy and recently got them and love them! Can't wait for the big day - it is going to be here before we know it! I have officially started having crazy wedding dreams and it is really out of control. I wake up thinking that they are so real and that I am now married. The most recent dream was that no one was on time for anything - my bridesmaids were not anywhere to be found and my hair girl wouldn't answer her phone and never showed up! Many other bizarre things that don't even make sense. Anyone else out there having/had crazy dreams before their wedding? Hope everyone had a great Valentine's Day - I can't wait to be Hannah Valentine next year for Valentine's Day! Matt says it gets old when people ask if that is really his last name, but I am pretty stoked! Matt and I didn't get to go out or do anything because of work and Matt's night class, but I got some lovely tulips that I adore! Cheers to you all!

bridezilla!

So I was working last night at the basketball game and one of the ladies I work with asked me if I have had a "bridezilla" moment. I just thought it was funny because that is not the first person to ask me this. Do I seem like the person that would be a bridezilla? To those who know me best the answer would most likely be "yes" - BUT I think everyone would be surprised because I honestly don't think I have. I believe I have only cried once (no yelling - just tears). That is pretty good I think... For those of you who don't know me that well (which I don't think people really know me unless they have lived with me, cleaned with me, or done crafts with me (those are my intense moments). I am extremely particular and anal when it comes to certain things - a perfectionist actually. I get that from my dad - which is not a bad thing. The only bad thing about it is that I stress myself out and may pop a blood vessel one day. I do get bent out of shape easily. Many of you may be surprised though, because I can truly say that I have not had a bridezilla moment - yet. I pray that I am able to keep my cool and take everything with a grain of salt as the big day draws nearer.
A lot of people have asked me if I am doing a lot of the wedding stuff myself. Yeah, sure I can whip up some bouquets pretty fast and hand stamp a fleur de lis on the programs etc, but that would cause the crazy in me to come out. I would not dare put my fiance' or family through that. My mother and myself's philosophy is to leave it to the seasoned professionals. For my mother and I, it is worth the money to hire people to do everything. I am only getting married once and I want to remember it in a positive way, not me crying at 3 am because the centerpieces are not to my liking. Some things are just worth spending money on. I am not saying I have a huge budget either. As of now our spreadsheet says we are under budget and we have figured every possible expense in. I am very lucky to have a mom who is so budget savvy and whips up a spreadsheet better than me. We have been on top of our budget from the beginning and it has really really helped with the planning. We went in and started putting in what we wanted or projected to spend in each area that totaled up to the budget or close to. Then when we would go to our vendors we knew what we wanted to spend and could tell them. This made things so much easier. I was also very thankful that I was working for a wedding planner because I knew going into consultations with vendors how much I could get for something. I was not going to let them take advantage of my money. I truly believed that we have hired people that know what they are doing, familiar with my venue and each other and know what I am expecting.
I told all my vendors what I was expecting and that it was a lot. I was very nice and calm about it - no bridezilla veins were popping out. I just said that I notice everything and expect everything to be perfect. I would rather them know ahead of time than the day of when it is too late. I fully expect for some things to not go the way that I planned them to, but that is why I am so thankful that I have worked a few weddings in my lifetime. I have seen the mistakes first hand, and mistakes happen. I have also asked a TON of questions and I am not done emailing, calling, and going back in to meet with my vendors. I would much rather know what I am getting than be surprised. I want my wedding to reflect me - I want it to look like my personality is shining through, not just the vendors professionalism. So if I get a choice on how the napkin is folded or how the table is set I am going to decide - I am not going to let them just guess how I would like it. Yes, some may say it is anal - but it is the little things that can bring me joy or make me mad. If I were in my vendors shoes - which I have been - I would want to know how the bride wants everything. I would hate to just guess and it end up being completely wrong. Ok, well I could talk about this for days but I will stop dragging. If you are a bride planning their wedding, leave a comment of your most recent breakdown or bridezilla moment! And if you have not had one, cheers to you!

carnations

so I am sure as soon as you see the word carnations you think filler flower or yuck! Or if you are one of my Phi Mu girls you think Phi Mu's beloved flower. Well I really want to incorporate the carnation into the wedding but they are not the most attractive. Well I have found that with the right color and grouping them is really quite great - to me. I don't think I will be using the "rose" colored carnation that we are used to in the Phi Mu world, but a more vibrant and rich colored carn. Any thoughts about this? Check out some carns being used in these beautiful bridal bouquets and chic centerpieces!

things that are happening

so I thought I would put some pics on here to let you see some things that are in progress - just a glimpse, I can't give everything away! I promised some pics of the sketch of the cake/s, I put a couple on here but not all of them just so you can get the idea! Props to my amazing cake girl Chelsea from Baked With Love!

the ladies attire

So I talked briefly before about shopping/looking for bridesmaid dresses. Well I am happy to say that they are now officially ordered! YAY, I really can't wait to see them on the girls. The girls that got to try them on had to try on larger sizes so I did not get to see a true fit or the right color. BUT I knew it was the one! I really wanted a look that was not that typical bridesmaid dress that gets donated, used as a costume, or pushed to the back of the closet. I wanted something young, attractive, and wearable. I hope the girls enjoy the dress I have chosen, I am kinda jealous and may be borrowing from one of them in the future! I was looking for more of a party dress so they could wear in the future and get their party on at the reception! I will not reveal the dress, but I will reveal the color. The color is a dark gray, almost black. I think that the dark color is wearable again and flattering. The pop of color will be the amazing peonies, ranunculus, orchids & garden roses! The dress IS on here, take a guess! But you will have to wait until June to find out!