Wedding Wednesdays

The wedding is in 3 days!!! The reality has yet to hit me, but I'm still looking forward to it.
The plan was to work this week Tuesday-Thursday, but with yesterday being a snow day (*yay) and me being sick, I've only worked one day this week.

I still have a couple of small things to get done, so tonight I started on the wedding programs. Most of our details were DIY and this was no exception. We managed to get our programs on clearance at Michaels for $12.99 for 30 programs. We picked up two packs.

Sorry for the bad picture, my cell phone was all I had at the moment...

I love how they came out and can't wait to finish them either tomorrow (on my unplanned day off) or Friday. Either way, things are coming together and I'm ready to get married!

Ouch!

This is how I've been feeling since Friday of last week. I have been in pretty good spirits, but the weather changed very quickly and my allergies came in full force and triggered my asthma. Fun times. The doctor was able to see me last Friday when I told them that my wedding is in a week and I can't be having all of these issues. They were fantastic and I am so thankful that they could squeeze me in last minute.

The prescriptions they gave me are working well and the allergies are under control. There is only one problem now...

My cough. I have this dry, barking cough that hurts my chest so much. I have tried ginger root tea, silver tablets, Emergen-C, Chloraseptic spray, Tylenol Sinus (day and night) and nothing has worked for more than a few minutes! My inhaler works to open up the airways, but the cough is persistent.

The wedding is in 5 short days and I really can't be coughing up a lung at the altar. Any suggestions? Please tell me what works and will stop this cough! The doctor is supposed to call in another prescription in the morning, but it can be difficult to fall asleep.

Other than that, things are going really well! We're having a good time with my sister in town and we're just finishing up the final touches.

Bridal Shower #2

I have to admit that I love my job. I work part-time teaching English at a small Christian school to Middle/High School kids. Despite what many people think about this age group, I happen to love it. It's a great age to teach because you get them when they are at their most difficult stage and can really make a positive impact in their lives.

I guess I should have known something was up when one of my 7th grade girls started asking little details about the wedding or what my favorite dessert was. I figured that if they were going to do something, that it would probably be next week on my last day here before the wedding.

I had no idea what to expect when the Math teacher told me that she needed to talk to me and wouldn't let me leave the room to go to my next class. I was kind of freaking out a little bit. One of my students came to get me and she finally let me go. I walked to my class and there were the 7th graders saying "Surprise!" with the room decorated with balloons, decorations, cupcakes, cookies, chips, chocolate covered pretzels, and juice. It was so incredibly thoughtful and sweet. I even got a couple of presents!

The 6th grade was able to join us for the festivities and it was nice to have a day where both grades were together and we got to have fun as a group.

The party was so great and was much needed today. It really lifted my spirits and the kids had a good time hanging out!

I Can't Wait!!!

My sister is on the plane AS WE SPEAK and will be here in a couple of hours! I can't wait to see her and to spend time with her. She is the first person in my family who has travelled to see me so it makes it that much more special.

Seeing as we don't have too much time to go sight-seeing (due to the last minute wedding details) Phil and I are going to try to take her to Washington DC this Sunday so she can experience that as well. I love DC and it holds a special place in my heart because that is where Phil and I had our first official "date."

I just can't wait to pick her up from the airport! Phil and I are taking her to dinner tonight and she is going to be hanging out with me until the wedding. I was told that I could take her to meet and help with my classes one day next week and I think that both she and my students will enjoy that.

Right now I'm just waiting for Phil's mom to get here so we can leave for the airport!

Wedding Wednesdays (Bridal Shower)

I can't believe that the wedding is only 17 days away! I would love to say that it felt like time has flown by, but let's be honest...it hasn't. In fact, ever since we've been engaged, time has been moving so slowly...it's ridiculous! Phil and I were talking last night about how surreal it is that the wedding is just a little over two weeks away. It's been 8 months of planning and preparing and there's still more to do. Not much, but a few little things.

I am so fortunate to have the BEST Maid of Honor and future Mother-In-Law on the planet! They attempted to surprise me with my shower a couple of weeks ago and it was so much fun. I seriously loved it! They even got our pastor involved to try to "trick" me, but unfortunately, my super-sleuth skills detected that something was up and I figured it out. Ha ha!

The shower's theme was Candy Land which is perfect with my future last name being Reese. They made a candy "Reese" tree with miniature Reeses and a cake that was made to look like a Candy Land board that you had to get to Reese Castle to win!

Talk about dedication...It took them THREE HOURS to make this masterpiece!

We played a couple of games...Pictionary (Wedding edition) and How well do you know the groom? For every wrong answer, I had to chew a piece of Bubble Yum. I think I ended up with SEVEN pieces in my mouth! I did really well for most of the questions!

All of the guests were good sports and a lot of fun. They even arrived early to make gingerbread houses for me to choose which one I would like as "our new home." I was blessed with such amazing gifts and had a lot of fun seeing what we got.

The Bridal Shower was definitely a highlight of the whole planning process and I couldn't be happier with how it all turned out.

Next week...the bachelorette party!

Sister-Time!

Planning a wedding with your family out of state can be a little difficult. Don't get me wrong, I love planning the wedding, but sometimes I wish that my mom and sisters could be here to experience it all with me. I am fortunate enough that Phil's mom has stepped in and has gone to every dress fitting and venue meeting with me and I am so thankful for her.

The fact is, my mom and sisters live almost 3,000 miles away and I miss them. My mom and one sister are coming out the morning of the wedding due to their work and school schedules, but my other sister is a bridesmaid so she has to be out here for the rehearsal the night before. We have been planning on having her come out the Thursday before the wedding, but we were both disappointed that she wouldn't be able to come to the bachelorette party and hang out.

Last week things changed. Her schedule opened up and has allowed for her to come out early! I just booked the flight and will get to pick her up on the 16th! I will have a week and a half to have "sister time" with her and she will be able to come to the bachelorette party, meet the girls, help out with the little odds and ends that are left!

And...in March, my other sister is coming for a week visit during her spring break from college! I am so excited to be able to see my sisters this year and have them visit. The past couple of years, Phil and I have been able to make it to California, but this year we won't be able to swing it with the wedding so I am really looking forward to them coming out. I am planning a couple of DC trips and to show them around. Who knows, maybe we'll go to the Inner Harbor in Baltimore and check that out...and while we're at it...Gettysburg is pretty close!

28 Days to Go...

There's exactly 4 weeks left until we are married! We have been able to get things in order so there is not that much left to do at this point. I have been blessed with support and help from so many family and friends and all I can say is thank you!

This week I was able to get the favors finished and packed up! We also went to the post office to pick up stamps for thank you cards and bills, paid off the florist and picked out the parents/grandparent's flowers, and had a friend help me almost finish the centerpieces! As you could imagine, it's definitely been a great week and I can contribute that to the insane amount of snow days we've had this week!

All in all things are moving along smoothly and I really have no complaints. I am enjoying these last few weeks of preparing for the wedding, but I can't wait to marry my best friend. He is such an amazing man and I love him so much.

Hopefully I can finish the centerpieces this week and be able to do a "test run" on the programs.

It's Coming Soon!

I must admit that I loved every second of our winter break from school. Phil was able to take a couple of days off to have an extended holiday and it was nice to be able to spend that extra time with him.

The wedding is officially less than two months away! Of course, I am ecstatic and couldn't be happier. Things are coming along well and planning the wedding is still fun. Unfortunately, I am having one major problem. I am so excited that the wedding is almost here that I can't seem to get to sleep! I lay there thinking about the wedding so excited and all of the things that need to get done soon that my mind is racing and keeping me up. I try to get to bed and get some rest, but I lay there wide awake and am exhausted the next morning.

I'm hoping to be able to wind down a bit more before bed. Today I made sure to relax a little more and not put things away right before bed so that I will not be distracted with thoughts of "what more can I get done?" Hopefully, that will help.

I'm off to try to get some much needed sleep so I can be awake and alert tomorrow in the classroom. Have a good night!

Wedding Wednesdays

Response cards are sent out for people to respond, right? It appears that with every wedding, there are a number of people who either respond late, or do not respond at all. This tends to make it incredibly difficult when it comes to planning out tables and giving the final head count to the caterer/reception site.

Originally, I was not going to do response cards because it felt like it would be a waste of postage when they weren't sent back, but I folded to the pressure of being "proper" and sent them anyways.

We were lucky to receive most of them back by the RSVP date on the card, but we still have a number of guests who have not responded. I have decided that I will wait until after the holidays and start contacting those who have forgotten to respond.

In the event that people just don't respond...what do you do?

We Have a Full Day Ahead of Us

Moving day is tomorrow and I couldn't be more excited! There's still a few small things to pack, but all of the big things are packed away in boxes, labeled, and have a post-it on it with a color to show what room it belongs in. Yes, I am one of those people when it comes to moving.

I am also loving my job right now. It gives me so much flexibility and allows me to change things last minute. That's the great thing about being a teacher!

We still have a lot to do today that is not packing related, but that's ok. I welcome other things at this point. Some of the things we have to do today are:

1. Go to the Circuit Court to get our marriage license (yay!)
2. Go check out and decide on the tuxes the men are wearing.
3. *Hopefully, pick up the key for the new apartment!!!
4. Get Phil's desk and computer ready to move. It would be a lot easier to do now with the truck we're getting rather than waiting until February.
5. Finish packing my apartment.
6. Go to the bank to get the certified check for the first month's rent.
7. Pay rent at my other apartment.

I'm sure there's tons more, but that's all I can think of right now.

ps...I'm also ecstatic that our wreaths came in and the bridesmaid's gifts came in today as well!!!

Wedding Wednesdays

A couple of weeks ago I shared what one of our favors were. If you missed it, you can check out this post to see the awesome coffee favors we chose.

Well, today I got a phone call from my future mother-in-law saying that the rest of our favors came in and that she would drop them off at my apartment! Have I ever mentioned how blessed I am to be marrying into this family?! So, she came by with the box and I immediately had to open it. She was able to stay with me just long enough to see what it was going to look like. Of course, I was thrilled with how cute they were and she agreed.

These favors are different than the other favors in that they will have minor "assembly" necessary to make them "work". Basically, the cookie cutters come separate from the card and you have to do something to make the cookie cutter stay in the cut-out part of the card. Luckily, I remembered how they did it in one of the pictures so I tried it out and this is what the end result looks like...

Thanks for sharing the magic of our special day...Kathleen and Philip...February 26, 2011

I am thinking that I might want to tie the ribbon off to the side more so that the guests can see the whole phrase, but I kind of like it the way it is. Plus, it will be difficult to get it to stay in the cut-out part of the card.

The inside has a sugar cookie recipe that translates all of the ingredients to ingredients of a good marriage (i.e. patience, hugs, kisses, etc.). It's super cute and something that I hope people will be able to use.

The goal is to make sure we incorporate both of us into the wedding, so what's better than cookies and coffee?

Wedding Wednesdays

I know, I know, I've been posting a lot about the wedding, but it's because there's so much to it and I love planning it. Today's post will be a little different. I will not be talking about favors, centerpieces, or snowflakes, but rather the ceremony itself.

The ceremony is the most important thing in my mind. It is Phil and I making a commitment to one another in front of God and our family and friends. It is when he sees me for the first time in my white dress, where we pledge our love and lives to one another, and where we finally get to kiss and be announced as "husband and wife." The ceremony is what does it all.

I've been thinking about the ceremony a lot lately, mainly because we are going to have to think and choose what we want incorporated in it. It's been difficult for me because I feel pressured to do what other people think we should, rather than what I really want. Phil seems to be on the same page with me and is open to different things, but ultimately says that it is our decision. We were able to talk last night and get on the same page about the ceremony. 

I am confident that the ceremony will be lovely and that it will be just what we want. I feel that whether or not we choose to have communion, a soloist, poems, etc. that it will still glorify God and show our commitment to one another and to God. I am not any less of a person because I don't feel comfortable with some of the suggestions that people are giving. It is our day and will be worth it because I am marrying the man I love!

What's Left for the Wedding

In just four months I will finally marry the man I love! To say that I am looking forward to it is an understatement. It feels like I've been waiting for this my whole life. The wedding has been planned and there are only a few minor details that need to be taken care of before the big day.

Here's what still needs to be done:

• Order the other half of the favors
• Take care of the tuxes
• Have my dress altered (appt. in December)
• Finish the centerpieces
• Pick out specifics of the cake (in January)
• Hair/make-up trials (in January)
• Print programs (again...in January when we have our final guest count)
• Send out invitations (early November!!!)
• Order bridal party gifts
• Final prep (nails, highlights, etc) the week before the wedding

As you can see, there really isn't a lot left to be done. We've got it under control and I'm just doing the extra things I can do whenever I think about it and have the time. There is no way I'm going to be a "Bridezilla"! Also, I'm letting people help as much as they would like to. In fact, today I am going over to Mike's house and he and Jason are going to help me punch snowflakes for the centerpieces! How awesome is that?! I think it's great that Phil's friends are willing to help with the wedding and get all crafty with me!

Wedding Wednesdays

I am happy to report that our wedding photographer (and pastor's wife) just sent us the link for our engagement portraits! She did such an amazing job and we all had a lot of fun. Words can not express how happy I am with her work and the pictures. It seriously makes me want to buy a bazillion copies of them.

Here's the link if you would like to check it out:

reese.heirloomphotographybyjoan.com

Also, I finally figured out what I want to do for favors. We are having two different favors that are being alternated at each place setting.

 

Because who doesn't like coffee in the winter when it's freezing cold outside?



Phil absolutely loves coffee, so when I saw them I just had to order them!

 

The other favor is right up my alley. Since I love baking and we both love snowflakes we've decided on a snowflake cookie cutter with a sugar cookie recipe!

 

I think our wedding definitely represents both of us very well and I can't wait to see it all come together in February!

 

Wedding Day Hype...not so much

I was never that little girl who dreamed of her wedding day. In fact, I didn't start dreaming of my wedding day until I started dating. Even then, I didn't feel the need to have a big wedding.

I've always liked simplicity when it comes to weddings. I feel like the marriage is more important than the wedding. The wedding is just one day in your lives together while the marriage lasts for the rest of your lives.
It has been difficult for me when it comes to planning the wedding. It feels like we're wasting a lot of money just so everyone can "experience" our wedding with us. To be perfectly honest, I would be just as happy having a small ceremony with just the closest family and friends in attendance and a cook-out to celebrate. I still want the dress, a bouquet, cake, and pictures, but none of the fanciness is really needed.

Phil strongly feels that the wedding day is important, not just for us, but for others as well. I get it, really, I do, but the price tag is what gets to me....especially when we are still waiting to hear if his job will be extended past November.

Overall, I love planning the wedding and get excited when there are things to do for it. I'm sure that I'll look back and be so happy that we decided to have a traditional wedding, but for right now it's hard to wait. The wedding is pretty much planned and there's not much to do for a while. Despite it all, one thing is for certain...I can't wait to marry my best friend.

I'm wondering if anyone else felt this way or did they focus on the wedding day and look forward to all of the special events?

What NOT To Do

Finding people that you can trust can be very difficult, especially when planning your wedding! I've been very fortunate to find great vendors, but not everyone has had the same experience. Here's a list of a few things I've learned along the way that can not only help when it comes to planning your wedding, but with life in general.

• ALWAYS trust your gut instinct! This has been especially important with every vendor/purchase we've made so far.
• Never choose someone who is repeatedly late, makes excuses, and can't remember who you are.
• You get what you pay for! Know what you can get for a bargain and what you should spend more on.
• Use an expert for the most important things. When it comes to altering my dress, I want someone with experience who knows that they are doing!
• Ask friends and family for help. Don't just rely on outside help when you have or know someone who can do that same or better job for a better price.
• Be organized! I get a lot of comments and compliments for having the wedding planned already. Not only does it help the vendors, but you are less stressed overall.
• Know what you want BEFORE you go to see the vendors. There have been countless times where the vendors were thrilled that I knew at least an idea of what I wanted. It makes it harder on everyone when you have no idea what you want and expect them to make the decision for you.
• Don't be indecisive.
• Trust the experts. You are paying them for their knowledge and expertise, so why don't you trust their judgement? If they say there's too much bling in the flowers trust them!

These are just a few of the things I've learned so far. They have helped me and I hope they can help you too!

A Delayed Reaction

A while ago I wrote this post about whether or not I should buy my dress. It was a big decision for me since the dress was being discontinued and since I've been losing weight I would have to guess on a size that could either fit or be altered enough to fit to be able to order it. After much deliberation, I decided that it was the right dress and bought it.

Just a couple of weeks ago, I made a phone call to the store to see if they had a color swatch for the dresses and found out that my dress had come in already! We weren't expecting it until late-September, but decided to go ahead and pick it up that day since they said they could have it ready. So, off to the store mom and I went with Phil's Gram in tow this time.

Once we arrived at the bridal salon I tried on my dress and Gram absolutely loved it! She wasn't there when we picked the dress and I knew she really wanted to be a part of it so it was great to have her share that experience with me. It was definitely different to try on my dress rather than a sample dress. I still really, really liked it and how it made me look, but with the long drive down there and my less than helpful consultant, I still didn't get that wow feeling.

We took the dress over to Gram's for safe keeping and while I was there the other day, helping her prepare for a family gathering, I decided to try the dress on again. There was no pressure to "feel" anything and I really wanted to try it on and guess what...I started to get a little emotional when I saw the dress on!  So, I'm thinking that with all of the stress and pressure to get that "wow factor" that for me, the feeling was just delayed.

I am really happy that I decided to buy my dress. I would have missed out on the right dress for me if I would have only gone by an initial "feeling" instead of what my gut was telling me. I wish I could post pictures here, but we dont' want to risk Phil seeing the dress before the wedding...but after the wedding, that's a different story!

Adding a little sparkle

Being busy is something that I really enjoy. It keeps me active and makes me feel accomplished at the end of the day. Since I'm not working for another few weeks I've been trying to keep busy with running errands and getting everything out of the way before work starts...today was no exception.

This morning I was able to go to the gym (heck yes!) and get in a cardio work-out. Working out is something that makes me feel healthy and good about myself so it's great to be able to start my day off with it. After the gym I ran a couple of short errands and went back to Phil's house to eat lunch and feed my internet fix. Since I'm going to Virginia tomorrow to see my Boo (my maid of honor), I wanted to make sure to have the color swatch for the bridesmaids dresses so that we could get the paint needed for the centerpieces. I called the bridal shop to make sure they had the color swatch we needed and to see how much they would cost. While on the phone I mentioned to the saleswoman that my dress was ordered in a smaller size and wanted to try one on in that size to see how close I was to fitting in it. She surprised me by telling me that my dress had come in!

Once the call was ended, Phil's mom and I made plans to go down there, try it on, and pick it up. I had promised Phil's Gram that she would be able to see me in it when the dress came in since she wasn't there when I picked the dress, so she decided to join us.

The drive to the bridal shop is about an hour away, so we made our way down there. When we arrived I got to try on my dress to find out that it fit! I had ordered the size a little smaller so that we would be able to get it altered a smaller size if necessary. The new consultant that I had was a little underwhelming. She kept trying to push me to buy things and I was less than thrilled with her lack of attentiveness.

The one good thing about the trip was that there was a brooch that I had wanted to purchase there.

The dress itself is very simple so I thought an accessory would be nice to give it a little "bling" and "sparkle."

Overall, the day ended up being great and we were able to get way more done than originally planned! I'm definitely looking forward to a little "break" from everything and to see my friends down in Virginia.

Registering

With so much of the wedding planning done (for now) we're focusing on starting our registry. We started over the vacation by starting off doing it online when we had some downtime and I must admit that I love it. For me, it's the one time in life that you get to be specific and say what exactly you want. That doesn't mean that we're necessarily going to get everything on the registry, but it's fun to look and pick what we would like to have.

Starting online was the best thing for Phil and I. We were able to sit down next to each other and as I would scour the stores online, he would be able to watch the Weather Channel and give his opinion on what he liked and didn't like without it being overwhelming. I liked that since it was online, it was categorized for us and I could search for what the items were and pick from the list instead of walking into a giant store with unlimited options. Did you know that I'm incredibly indecisive? Well, I am and it can be a problem.

We plan on going to the store later on and finishing it with things we couldn't find online. Surprisingly, Phil is very interested in registering and wants to give his opinion on what is on the list and what is not! I'm looking forward to finishing it up and having one more thing checked off the wedding to-do list.

What do you think is the most important thing to register for?

The Perfect Shoes...

Today was, by far, my favorite day of our vacation. We went to the outlets where I found these...

These are my wedding shoes!!!

Are these seriously not the most perfect shoes ever?! These are the shoes that I will be walking down the aisle with and think they are absolutely perfect. We found them at the outlets today and as soon as I saw them I thought..."Those are perfect for my wedding shoes!" When Phil came in the store I immediately had him come over to see them and to my shock...he AGREED completely! He said that they "fit" me and my personality. When we looked at the shoes they only had one pair in my size. As soon as I saw them I just knew that these were THE shoes.

Now, I just have to learn to walk gracefully in them...