Happy/Sad Sick Days

Ladies. I'm sick. And when I say sick... I don't mean sick of wedding related stuff. And i dpn't mean I have spring fever. I mean, I woke up this morning and knew I was sick. I made a doctors appointment and yup, I was right...


Doctor Says:
I have pink eye
&
A sinus infection
:( [so sad & icky]

I work at a law office as a secretary/ receptionist so I don't really have direct contact with clients and such. So, I could be at work... but on the other hand I have 2 bosses. My one boss Bas has only one eye (the other is a glass painted eye - he lost his eye playing paddle ball without goggles/ he wear goggles now!) & my other boss Tam is having a baby (girl) - so it really wouldn't be a good thing if either of them caught pink eye from me.


Aside from that I have a doctors note to excuse me for three days of work, beginning today. So, you ask me and I ask myself what the heck am I going to do with two days off of work? Well let me tell you!!!


I'm going to:
:::clean my room.
:::do laundry.
:::watch wedding shows on demand.
:::work on wedding projects.
&&&
:::try VERY hard to find a {very local} bakery to make 275+ cupcakes as our wedding cake!


So Ladies. With that said... enjoy the rest of your week. Because my weekend begins NOW [even if I am under the weather and bound to my room - so I don't spread my sickness to the rest of the family & world!].

Heck, maybe I'll even do some shopping... INTERNET SHOPPING. I don't want to infect the world people! :)

FIRST MAILING

WE PRESENT TO YOU:

THE MAILING OF

SAVE THE DATES

[click above on SAVE THE DATES to see my 1st post about the SAVE THE DATES]

[FINALLY!] [above: HERE THEY ARE!]

[above: THERE SOME GO]

[above: ALL STACKED UP!]

[NO SNOW, NO RAIN - ONLY SUNSHINE]

PERFECT DAY FOR THE MAILING

[above: THIS IS IT! THEIR GONE!!!]

It was such a relief to get these babies off our hands (finally) and as soon as we pulled away from the mail box I turned to Rick and said... "Wouldn't it be awful if some punk kids decided to through a match in the box and burn up all of the mail?" & he said, "I would KILL them!" & we both laughed & said our guests weren't going to get Save the Dates if that ended up happening!

157 DAYS until OUR WEDDING [August 22, 2009]

SHOE LOVE

Remember the shoes from THIS post that I ordered from HERE?

Well they both are BLAH!

♥The mostly white ones with a touch of black are WAY too small. I wear a 7 1/2 or 8 and I ordered an 8 and their like a size or two too small. TINY.

♥The shoes that are equally 1/2 white and 1/2 black look extremely cheap and are too big.

So the search continues for BLACK & WHITE shoes to wear as a Bridesmaid in June.

AND I'VE BEEN THINKING... WHAT ABOUT THESE?

First pair below are from HERE (Also in black/white & cream/white)

Shoes below are from HERE

I'm thinking about re-creating my own design of the pair above with the bow... I could buy a plain black paid and hot glue a white bow OR buy a white pair and hot glue a black bow? Hmmm... maybe I should try that!

KNOW A GOOD SHOES PLACE TO BUY B&W SHOES?

ANY THOUGHTS?

COMMENTS?

Real Stress

As the wedding day draws nearer I'm beginning to REALIZE. And that is just it, I'm realizing how stressful this wedding planning thing is going to be/ and is.

Not only am I getting married this year...
I am moving out of my "parents" home.
I am moving cities.
My fiance' is moving out of his parents home.
He is moving from his current city.
My fiance' needs a car.
My fiance' will be finishing his degree in secondary education!
My fiance' will need a new job.
I will need health insurance.
It will be the first time both of us have ALL of our own bills.

SCARY!
[Good thing we are both really good with money & saving]

BUT have no fear... I have met my goal in my savings account prior to the wedding and I still have 5 months remaining to exceed my goal!

Aside from that wedding stress I am trying to put together Matron of Honor, Maid of Honor & Bridesmaid Duty Lists for my wedding party - I can't seem to find a good website that helps me out with this.
Can anyone help with this project of mine?

PREPARE YOURSELF FOR FUN STUFF TO COME TOMORROW!

Help Amanda

♥Meet Amanda.

♥Amanda is my Matron of Honor.

♥And she doesn't know what dress to wear for my wedding.

{her dress will be black - in one of these two styles below}

So, here's where YOU come in... VOTE on which dress looks best on her so that she can place an order for her dress!

STRAPLESS v. STRAPS

Fun [ERICA] facts about these dresses:

♥I found this dress at David's after my girls tried on EVERY single not floor length dress & I mean EVERY

♥The strapless one came into stock at the store 1st

♥At 1st I was only going to allow the girls to get the strapless

♥I feel in love with these two similar dresses and decided to give my girls a choice

♥When my sister Brooke first tried these dresses on she thought she ripped the dress but instead discovered that they have "hidden" pockets

♥I thought the dress with straps would look more flattering on the bustier girls

♥So far only one of my bridesmaids {for sure} wants the dress with the straps

RAVING ABOUT THE DRESS WITH STRAPS

I like it... that is why I made it an option. BUT I don't want only one bridesmaid to wear the dress with straps if NO ONE else does.

On the other hand if it were my Maid of Honor or Matron of Honor wanted to wear the dress with the straps and NO ONE else wanted to I wouldn't mind her being the only different one {their supposed to stand out & be special}.

If no one else orders the dress with the straps before the one Bridesmaid who wants it then I am going to make the dress with straps no longer an option! SO THERE - I spoke.

♥ Find the dresses at David's Bridal
♥ Find the shoes at Target

Contemplating...

Contemplating the earrings... I love them, I really do - but are they too simple for my wedding day?

P.S. You can't tell from the first picture but my hair is getting really, really, really long

& that alone makes me really, really, really happy! :)

Decisions, Dresses, DIY & More

BLOGGER FRIENDS: I present to you the FLOWER GIRLIES DRESS decision!

I bought the white ones - {with the help of Ricky on Saturday afternoon}I adore the dresses but highly dislike the pink sashes & considering my bridal party will be in black {not pink}, the flower girl dresses are going to remain with the white sash that was attached when the dresses were purchased! Can't wait to see my girls and have them try these lovely dresses on for fit.

Above: Close up of the dresses and the adorable {matching} headbands I bought them!

Above: Necklaces I made for my flower girls {pearls & pinks on a sheer ribbon} & their own little DIY painting project.

Above: I'll leave you the BEST for last these so very, very couldn't be more perfect bags that I added ribbon as the handles and sewed sheer flowers onto where the handles meet the bag for an extra little flare.

And don't forget the flower girl T's from THIS POST

{I'm proud of my craftyness DIY projects!}

And before I end this post I have been dying to check off an entire main item of the wedding & ladies this is it for my flower girls, dresses, their gifts, etc. FLOWER GIRLIES CHECK!

Dresses: Children's Place

Headbands: Children's Place

Necklace: Craft items bought at JoAnn's {white pearl beads, pink clear-like beads & white sheer ribbon}

Painting Project: Make it your own bought at JoAnn's

Bags: "Personalize" bags bought at JoAnn's {as well as sheer hot pink ribbon for handles, white sheer ribbon for mini flowers, and small round white buttons}

A NEW Me!

Today is the official first day of me trying to make a NEW me! :)

I don't think that I am perfect but I kind of like me how I am already however for my one and only wedding day I'd like to trim down on my arms, stomach, legs, back...
Well I just want to "TONE" a little.

SO in less than an hour i have to be at the gym warming up with my Matron of Honor for our very first day in KICK BOXING class!!!

I'm so excited. And I promise that after tonight - I will work on a "REAL" post with pictures and stuff to present later this week!

[Note to my body - BRING IT ON, because I want to look sexy & slim for my wedding day] ;)
Don't we all. :/


Ahh I have to be there at 6:50pm to register... and it is 6:33pm & I still need to change!

Do You Ever...

Do you ever...


Feel like you are making one of the biggest leaps in your life.
like OMGosh this better be the right decision.
like WOW, sometimes I don't know if I really can do this.

Well, that is how I feel today.


And the weather way really, really rainy yesterday - as it is again today.
And the Save The Dates still haven't gone out.

And today I feel like that isn't sucha bad thing.

Plans

This weekend Rick and I have MANY plans on our WEDDING TO DO LIST!!!

1. Send out the Save The Dates (YES, we still haven't)
2. Purchase Flower Girl dresses
3. Go to CVS and print pictures for my room :)
4. Take Bridesmaid shoes out to my sisters & get paid
5. Go to the bank
6. Go to the camera store
7. Cut Rick's hair
8. Wedding items/ gift research online
9. Work on some DIY Wedding Projects
10. Spend quality time doing something Ricky wants to do. ;)

Hopefully we'll at least get the Save The Dates in the mail TODAY - considering there are less than 6 months until our wedding & before we know if the invitations are going to be going out in the mail.

On that note --- it is 1:45pm & I still haven't gotten out of my PJ's!
I'll update you all at the end of the weekend on our progress on the WEDDING TO DO LIST.

A Bridesmaid & A Bride

That's right ladies. This summer I will be both a bridesmaid & a bride.

- As you know from my engagement story Rick and I got engaged on April 5, 2008.

- Rick has a twin brother who he does everything with and shares just about everything with.

- Scott [Rick's twin brother] proposed to his girlfriend April 24, 2008.

- Scott & LeighAnn are getting married this June.

- Rick and I are getting married this August.

- I am a bridesmaid in Scott & LeighAnn's wedding.

- LeighAnn is a bridesmaid in mine & Rick's wedding.

- I am a bride.

- I AM A BRIDEzilla [sometimes]!

So being both a bridesmaid and bride I decided to try and double on some things... like:

- bra

- shoes

[these are the only two things I thought of so far] :)

So for LeighAnn's wedding she is requesting the bridesmaids wear black and white patterned or black and white color block shoes. Call me crazy - but if i'm picking my shoes - why not make them work for more than one occassion. Therefore, because my wedding colors are black and white i'd love to find a shoe that is wearable with my bridesmaid dress and my wedding dress.

THE BRIDESMAID DRESS

(the color is more like the flowers, it is hard to tell but, yes, it is strapless and very fitting)

SHOES

I ordered both pairs of shoes from [here] can't beat free shipping & free return if you hate them!

More white than black

ONE SIDE

OTHER SIDE

Let me know what you think ladies!

Maybe i'll post a picture of me modeling (HA) the dress & shoes when the shoes arrive! :)

DIY: Bridesmaid Jewelry

Our DIY necklaces and bracelets for the bridesmaids were completed towards the end of January - sorry for the delay just trying to get caught up & share the crafty inexpensive idea with my fellow followers. :)

So here is a little sneak of my FH Ricky (sucha team player) crafting the bridesmaid jewelry (gifts) with me (Oh, & a close up of my e-ring!)!

Items Used:

♥ 1 Sheer Ribbon (for the necklaces) $1.99

♥ pack of 8 bracelets bought online at forever21 $3.80

♥ 2 bags of white pearl beads (6mm) from JoAnns $2.10 each (on sale)

♥ 1 pack of memory wire (contains 6 - but we cut them smaller) from JoAnns $1.25

♥♥♥TOTAL: $11.24

[[[$11.24/ 8 bridesmaids = ~$1.41 per bridesmaid for both a necklace and bracelet!]]]

How To:

♥ For the BRACELETS we cut the wire with regular pliers, strung the beads and bent the end under the beads. To tie in the grey on the bridesmaid shoes and the grey sheer ribbon for the necklaces I choose a satin-like grey ribbon and tied a little bow on every bracelet.

♥ For the NECKLACES we cut different size lengths of sheer ribbon (for different length necklaces and beading, thread the ribbon onto a large sewing needle and thread the beads onto the ribbon, to complete the ribbon they tie into a pretty bow. As pictured above.

Hope the girls love these handmade crafty creations!

Guess we'll find out in 5 1/2 months!

Retail Therapy: Dresses

If you knew me: you would know that I am obsessed with shopping online.

If you knew me: you would also know that I am a bargin shopper.

If you knew me: you would also know I am a sucker for SALES.

Although I didn't buy anything "on sale" it all was a very, very good deal & on Sunday I did some retail therapy with some online shopping.

I ordered 3 adorable dresses (FOREVER21) and although I will not be able to wear them for at least a month and a half longer (thank you Michigan... 30 degrees today) these dresses I could not pass up!

maybe for a wedding this summer?

maybe for attending a wedding shower?
maybe for one of my wedding showers?

FINALLY!

Today I found the dress of my dreams - the dress I will wear in less than 6 months at my August wedding!

So, my plan for today was to go dress shopping with my future mother in-law Barb, who I adore and her daughter (my future sister in-law) who I also adore. :) We got out of the house today around 12. And we went to three stores.
1st store: There I liked two dresses but I didn't love them. Sooo...
2nd store: There the people were such bitches (excuse my choice of wording) so I honestly didn't want to try on anything there. However I did & then I left.
3rd store: The final store - ending at David's Bridal. A little story about me and David's their dresses are beautiful. I love them. But I had tried honestly, no I mean honestly EVERY dress in that store. (I tried it on and if I didn't like it I would "X" it out in the bridal book I have from there at my house.) But I did pick bridesmaid dresses from David's for my girls and Bre wanted to choose whether she was going to order the strapped dress or the strapless dress (she ordered the strapless today... it looked so cute on her!). So arriving at David's Bre (my further sister in-law) waiting in line while Barb looked through all of the wedding dresses. Barb called me out of line and threatened Bre to stay in line because the store was VERY busy and there were people everywhere and no rooms open. I walked over to Barb to see the dress she had found... she said, "what about this one" Hmm doesn't look like I've tried it on before, wait is that a tea-length dress? NOPE! Hmmm.. never seen that dress before. As the rooms opened they were taking people back to a room. It was our turn. Our sales associate Tammy came out and am I glad that she was so pleasant. she let me show her the dress that Barb found and she gathered two other dresses for me, while Breanne and I ventured into the bridesmaid dresses to find her dresses to try on.
We met in room 17.
Where I grabbed that dress Barb had found and tried it on.
I tried it on and didn't want to take it off.
It was PERFECT!
After trying on a billion dresses (well maybe not a billion but at least 50+ dresses)
I have found THE ONE!
(Thanks for going with me today Barb & Bre)

It is sooo perfect.

I want to post pictures but Rick (my fiance') often views my blog. So maybe if I can keep him off of here for a week or two I can post a picture. :)

Until then: It is white, somewhat fitted, strapless, with a lace/ little beaded detail overlay, it has a beautiful cage train. It is exactly what I pictured myself wearing on my wedding day. I honestly did NOT want to take this dress of it made me feel so beautiful and confident. You better believe I walked out of that store with the dress in bag - in hand!

::::::: I'M SO HAPPY WITH MY DRESS ::::::: :) :) :) :)

DIY: Flower Girlies T's Completed!

That's right, I said it! The flower girl t-shirts are finished - just in time for the weekend, that being to begin new DIY projects!!! Bring on that big 'ol CHECK off my list of wedding things to do!

DIY: Photo Frames

Alright so I finally did it! I painted the only regular wooden frame that has been in my room for forever - to match the rest of my black and white decor. While this isn't much of DIY project it has been on my list of things to do for a very long time. [CHECK] Now I just need new photos for it.

AND this is a DIY photo frame. I bought this frame ages ago at Michael's craft store (it's one of those wooden ones that has a peg that goes into a hole that is drilled in the back). So ages ago I had bought this frame and a can of chalk board spray to make a chalk board photo frame - that didn't work with this frame cause the wood isn't fine enough so I re-painted it black let it dry. Used a stencil and white paint and Waa La - Ta Da! Not sure if I like the middle part... may change it this weekend - unless it grows on me.

As for WEDDING STUFF...
::: Almost done with the flower girl shirts. One more shirt to stitch (2 CHECKs for 2 flowers)
::: Going dress shopping for myself this weekend.
::: Today my Matron of Honor paid me back for her wedding shoes YEA $25 (2 down {CHECK} 6 to go - now I only need $150 more)
::: Today after work I am meeting a very nice girl by the name of Anna whom I am purchasing a strapless never worn bra. (CHECK)
::: How could I almost forget - Rick and I have finalized our guest list & I almost have all of the families address - So this weekend GOODBYE SAVE-THE-DATES/ you'll have a new home next week! (& that would call for another CHECK)

&&& Shhh don't tell but I am dying to go home and do some more crafts that I have started but aren't completed enough for a blog appearance. :) :) But don't worry I will share some more DIY soon!

I'm Lovin' Some of These...

About my future dress - that I have not chosen:

♥White
♥Would love a LOW back
♥Not a poof but not too clingy
♥Reflect timeless beauty
♥A little lace would be nice
♥Some beading detail is okay too
♥Price/Budget friendly


I JUST found some dresses that I have fallen for that are actually very, very, VERY reasonably priced!

Here's a sneak.

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

<- There is no full view or a back view of this dress. What the heck!

The back of the dress below is breath-taking & it reminds me of my future mother in-laws wedding dress.

Well that is all for now ladies. I'm going to look more into this website tomorrow while I am at work & if it is legit I'll share the link. :)

♥P.S. ALL of these dresses are less than $400 & Free shipping to boot!

HOT MAMA!

Bridesmaid Gift Idea

Last night I went shopping with my Matron of Honor [Amanda] and I was in search of cheap tank tops to make "Matron, Maid, Bridesmaid" Shirts. I know that NOT all of the girls want to wear one of these tanks BUT I also know my younger sisters [Bridesmaids] REALLY want one!

So, after walking around Old Navy I spotted the ribbed tanks that are usually 2 for $10 but instead their $7.50 each [OUCH!] After debating on tank top that reads "Matron, Maid, Bridesmaid" I weighed a decision that has yet to be made...

For everyone I could MAKE [I smell a DIY project] buttons that pin onto whatever their wearing OR sashes. :) And instead I could buy them all...

TA DA! This sun dress from Old Navy ONLY $15 & this way they could wear it again - rather than a "matron, Maid, Bridesmaid" tank. And we could all wear this (in different colors) for the rehearsal! Now only if I could find a coupon or something and I would totally jump on this thought.

$15 Sun Dresses x 1 Matron 1 Maid & 6 Bridesmaids = $120

I want great gifts for the girls but this may be pushing the gift budget just a little.

DIY: Flower Girl Shirts

I'm so excited to say I made shirts for my flower girls! Well, I have actually only made one shirt but I am determined to finish the other this week to check this DIY project off my list!

The flower is ribbon. I know right?

The ribbon pattern is by Martha Stewart

And I stitched the word "girl" with thinner matching ribbon.

For a DIY Bride on a budget:

- 2 Pink T-Shirts $5

- One spool of wide ribbon $2.40

- One spool of thin ribbon $1.30

Total: $8.70

ONLY $4.35 per shirt!