Tick Tock

We, dear readers, are rapidly approaching the 5 month and counting mark.

Source

At this point, Ben and I have been engaged for a leisurely 1 year and 9 months. We'd plan a little here, plan a little there, and, maybe some of you other brides who have been engaged for-ev-er can relate, up until now it has felt like we're planning this mythical "wedding" that will be, you know, sometime in the future, and everything will just happen because we say it will. Well it doesn't feel that way anymore. Everything finally, FINALLY seems to be actually happening. Our wedding is real, baby, and it's coming at me like a freight train.

This thought was recently brought to light this past week when several things happened:

1) I suddenly realized Save the Dates are due (if not past due) to go out before Christmas. Eeeek! Do we have all of our STDs done? No. Do we even have a solid guest list yet? No. Our familial habit of procrastination rears its ugly head yet again to bite me on the butt.

2) Ben and I started to discuss some financial matters, such as what our financial goals and values are, etc., based on a book we're reading together (Smart Couples Finish Rich, by David Bach),  and I was shocked to discover that we'll be a "household income" in less time than I thought. Note to self: Stop. Buying. Shoes.

3) I switched my cell phone service from my family's "family plan" to our very own newly-minted family plan. I'll tell you, there's nothing like a cell phone to really bring home the symbol of the bride leaving her family to cling to her husband!

So anyway, time's a-tickin' and this wedding feels more real to me now than ever. You know what that means.....the DIY craziness will commence in 3....2....1.....

What milestones made you fully appreciate the reality of your coming wedding? Are you as bad a procrastinator as I am, or do I get to take home the gold? I'd love to hear your stories!

To Inspire to Perspire

So, like many of my fellow brides, I would like to drop some poundage before our wedding.

Source

I have been chubby all my life and for years it has been a source of insecurity that just jumps out at me everytime I see a full-body photo of myself. In recent years I've really managed to come to terms with my appearance and have learned to love and understand my body and what does and does not work for me. Plus, the mister loves me just the way I am, so I've got that goin' for me too ; ).

Now, the funny part is, by the time the wedding gets here Ben and I will have been engaged for 2 YEARS AND 2 MONTHS!!! You heard me. 26 months and I wait until 5 measly months before to get my butt in gear. Oh well. Better late than never right? Besides, I'm not trying to move mountains here. My dress fits as is and I'm happy with how I look in it so I'm not exactly looking to drop 4 sizes. I have conceived a highly realistic plan to tone and trim that I know is totally doable if I stick to my guns.

And that's why I have this:

That's right, baby. A weight loss inspiration board!!!!!

Now you can see the full extent my wedhead has infiltrated my brain. When I first decided I would keep a food journal noting everything I eat, the water I drink, my weigh-ins and measurements, and my general feelings about the day and my progress, I also decided to print out some pictures that would remind me of why I'm doing all this. That's when my wedhead brain said "make an inspiration board just like you did for your wedding!!" And so I did.

Now up there you're looking at my wedding dress, two shots of the b-e-a-utiful resort we are going to on our honeymoon (more on that later!), some water, veggies and a scale, a picture of Kim Kardashian's fab body (because I'll never be a stick-skinny super model, but I could definately achieve this), and a giant lose weight easy-button that I wish I owned.

So now when I go to write down my meals and snacks in my journal I can whip this out and be re-inspired all over again. Let me tell you, the food journal is a wonderful tool. I have found that if I have to go to the trouble of writing it down and tallying the calorie, fat, and fiber count, I'm much less likely to eat it. This greatly helps when the cookies in our fridge call my name or when Zaxby's teasingly winks at me when I pass it on the highway. I wholeheartedly recommend it. I'll try to keep everyone updated on my progress and what works and doesn't work.

How about you? What are you doing to look your best on your wedding day? Got any tips and tricks for me? What restaurants seduce you off the road to hot-body town?

Color Me Greedy

Can I just take a small moment to sigh over the wonderfulness that is an Aqua and Poppy wedding?

This fabulousness is not of my own design. I totally stole it.

The red! The blue! The POP! I mean, really, it's one of the hottest combos of the year and I. Want. It. Alas, it is not to be. Yes, I already love the other colors we have chosen and the classy, chic vibe they give to our wedding, and blah, blah, blah, but that's not enough to stop the drool from dripping onto my keyboard every time I see it used.

This one too.

So what was my bright idea? I'll use it for our rehearsal dinner! Who says rehearsal dinners can't have colors? I already have a lot of stuff in that aqua, 'cause it's kinda close to our blue already, and it'll be super easy to add some red! Success!

Our rehearsal dinner will be a semi-casual outdoor barbecue at a beautiful local park. I want to be able to have a relaxed, Southern barbecue feel to offset the formal, fancy affair at the wedding and I think this color scheme will be lighthearted and fun enough to achieve our goal! Plus, I found this little guy that I so desperately want to use on our rehearsal dinner invitations:

Get it? A pig for the pork barbecue and the little hearts for luuurrrve. : )

So what do you think? Got any ideas for fun aqua and poppy outdoor babecue rehearsal dinner decor? Is it too macabre for this adorable little pig to invite guests to eat him and his friends? Let me know!

A Vision on the Hill

When I last left you, dear reader, in the hunt for our perfect venue, I had just had my wedding bubble burst: the Fernbank Museum of Natural History was WAAAAAAY out of our budget. What's a sad bride to do?

Well take a gander at this:

Isn't she gorgeous??? Allow me to introduce you to our lovely wedding venue: Bona Allen Mansion in historic Buford, Ga.

We found her quite by accident, while driving around on one of our aimless drives we like to make on weekends. Coming out of the historic district of Buford, Bona Allen presides over the horizon, perched on a hill at the edge of town and visible all the way down the main road. We couldn't help but stop and stare when we turned that corner and saw it shining in the sun. It was pretty much decided that day that if all the numbers worked out and the inside was as gorgeous as the outside, this would be the place we'd say I Do.

And so it is. Come May I'll walk up the beautiful brick walkway and marry Ben under the large arches on the front porch. The guests will be seated on the lawn under the big Magnolia tree and then everyone will enjoy a cocktail hour in the garden around back before moving inside for the reception. Here's some of the pics from our first visit to Bona Allen so you can all take a look-see. Forgive me, it was freezing and raining that day, and they were setting up for another wedding, so some of the pictures are dreary looking. It'll be much prettier in Spring!

This is the garden where the cocktail hour will be held. On the left is a better view of what it looks like inside the gate, but on the right is what it will actually look like in Spring. You know...with actual flowers and trees and stuff : )









On the left you can see an example of what one of the rooms look like. Reception seating will be broken up all throughout the rooms on the ground floor (it's pretty open, though) and in the balcony, on the right, as well. The balcony overlooks the main foyer where our cake and guest book will be displayed.

And finally, the patio outside where all the dancing and fun will happen. It needs some sprucing up, to be sure, but I'm not quite sure how to go about that yet. Hmmm. We'll see. Any ideas?

Putting On Your Fancy Pants

Source

No, not those fancy pants! (Please, anything but them.) I'm talking about wedding duds, and what they mean to you.

There are SOOOO many ways to describe wedding dress codes: casual, cocktail, semi-formal, formal, black tie, black tie-preferred, white tie, white-trash...ok, maybe that last one is just here in the south, but you get my point. What I'm concerned with is how to get the guests at our wedding to look like this:

Source

And not this:

source  Though let's be fair, these guys ARE wearing bow ties.

At least they know that weddn's are a time to pull out all the stops.

Anywho, between certain groups of family and friends and acquaintances on both of our sides, there is a high probability of some ...ummm...mixed... attire. I'm not trying to be a super-snob, I promise, I just want everyone to look nice at an event that we have put our very heart and soul (ahem, and hard-earned money!) into.That means no jeans, no T-shirts, no spandex, and please, for the love of God, no cutoff clothing. Nobody want's Uncle Billy Ray's dress-denim fray to snag on Grandma Lucille's sequined jumper, or Cousin Jackie's low-rider mini skirt to make Grandpa Bob's eyes pop out .

Also of concern is the fact that our ceremony will be outside in the middle of May (our reception will be inside) and here in north Georgia, May gets a little iffy. It could be a nice 70 degrees with a little wind like it was this year, or it could be touching 85 with baking sun like the year before, even at 5:00 in the evening. Trust me, we're praying for the former.

In the end, I think we're going to go with asking everyone to dress in semi-formal evening attire, and include the info on the bottom of the invitation so they can't say they weren't told. That means suits and ties for men, and cocktail dresses, or at least nice pants-blouse combos, for women. I figure if the heat gets too bad maybe guys can go sans-jacket and tie to lighten up a little bit.

What do you think? Do you have the same fears of underdressed guests that I do? Is semi-formal attire an appropriate choice? Let me know!