cute

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Love this bride's haircut. I might just have to take this to my stylist the next time I go...

marriage certificate poster

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Love this! Such a beautiful piece to hang on the wall and remind you every day of the commitment you made. Available soon (as a template) from Rifle Paper Co.

wedding crashers

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Not quite, but almost.

I'll start from the beginning. Sunday afternoon we got all spiffied up and left the house around 5:30 to make it to the reception by 6. We found a parking spot at the local country club and headed in the direction of other fancy looking people. Closer to the clubhouse we spotted a sign for the Jones/Brown* reception and headed up the stairs to the pavilion. There were plenty of people already gathered and servers were butlering hors d'oeuvres and champagne cocktails. Side note: we were not expecting alcohol of any kind at this shin dig. I spotted the gift table and just as I was finding a spot to place our gift, the future mister stopped me. The sign on the table said Miller - NOT Jones or Brown! And he didn't recognize the photos on the table either, or anyone else milling about for that matter. Crap! Whose wedding were we at and how do we find where we need to be? We asked a server - no help there. So we headed back toward the parking lot and found something that looked like a front desk of sorts.

We asked the woman at the front desk and she kindly told us that the reception we almost crashed was the Miller reception. And the event sheets she had didn't even mention the Jones/Brown reception. Could it be in another location? She didn't think so. Well, she finally got someone knowledgeable on the phone and as soon as she started chuckling I knew what we had done. The reception we were supposed to attend was SATURDAY, MAY 29th - not Sunday, May 30th. OMG! How does that happen! I am the queen of organization and somehow I had it scheduled as May 30th - not only on my iPhone, but also on my calendar at work (and, of course, in my rush to get out of town last Friday, I forgot the actual invitation on our fridge). HOW EMBARRASSING!

Oh well. We laughed it off and went out to dinner in our fancy duds. We still feel bad since we RSVP'd, but it was a high school friend of the future mister's and they probably haven't spoken in at least three and a half years, if not more. We tried calling the groom's parents and left our gift with the future mister's parents since they are friends of the family and were willing to deliver it for us. Any other suggestions on how to remedy our blunder?

*names changed to protect the innocent

the great kid debate

To have kids (at the wedding) or not to have kids? I'm not sure about other couples, but this has been one of our biggest debates during wedding planning so far.

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I LOVE children. I have been babysitting since I was 13, worked in various day cares, volunteered at the boys and girls club, and minored in Human Services in college. Despite this fact, I don't want children at my wedding (except for the ring bearer and flower girl). My reasoning is that we have a fairly limited guest list - 150 max. When you take into account that our extended families are on the large side, the numbers add up pretty quickly. In my opinion, having children at our wedding would take invites away from many adult friends and family members that I really want there to share in our love and marriage. Now I do remember attending a wedding when I was maybe 8 and I had so much fun! But there were less than 10 children there. Our number is closer to 50 or 60. Of course I know that not all parents would choose to bring their kids, but I don't want to take my chances.

Well, at the moment we are in the midst of working on the guest list. Although we had cleared the no kids issue with both of our parents months ago, concerns are being raised. What do you do if a person you really want to come to the wedding more than likely won't come if their child(ren) can't come as well? Do you make exceptions? My thoughts are no because if you make exceptions for one person you have to make them for everyone or risk upsetting/offending people.

While trying to come up with a solution, I came across a website for an event babysitting agency. They will send 3 or more CPR certified sitters to your event or even off site at a hotel. Now it is not in the budget for us to fork over the money for group sitters. However, this agency will also set parents up with individual sitters that will stay with their child in their hotel room.

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Do you think that this would be considered more of a meet in the middle? Or should I try to rearrange our budget to hire group sitters? Where do you stand on the great kid debate? Any thoughts, suggestions?

showers

I have some friends who are in the midst of planning showers or attending them. I've never actually been to one, so before I started reading wedding blogs, I was totally clueless. I had no idea that it was common to have a themed bridal shower! So after spending months on the blogosphere, here are some of my favorite "themes":

Tea Party

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I love tea houses because they seem so vintage. Not to mention the cute hats and delicious finger foods (anyone else like cucumber sandwiches??). But I don't actually like tea. Not hot, not iced, not sweet. Except for maybe Snapple Peach Iced Tea.

Around the Clock

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This seems like such fun! And a great way to include all the guests.

Stock the Bar

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One of my friends is having a stock the bar shower. Her husband-to-be works at a liquor store as the wine buyer and she used to work as a bartender. So appropriate!

Wine and Cheese

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Yum! I studied abroad in Italy for a semester, which is where I really learned how to enjoy wine. And in my opinion, nothing goes better with a glass of pinot noir than a slice of aged Parmesan. I'm making myself hungry.

Lingerie/Naughty and Nice

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This one's probably more appropriate for just friends or the bachelorette party.

And my absolute favorite - Recipes!

(I LOVE these - especially the recipe box!! - all from Rifle Paper Co.)

(This is pretty cool too - a customizable cookbook. Add your own recipes, personal photos, etc. - TasteBook)

I really enjoy cooking and trying new recipes. And I think it is such a great idea for a bride-to-be to receive favorite recipes from friends and family. It makes cooking so much more personal!

So tell me - what are your favorite shower ideas? Or what did you do for your shower?

signature drinks

So far there has been much waffling on the subject of alcohol. Late last summer, at the very early stages of planning, my father suggested a beer and wine only reception. This surprised us as it is well known that my father LOVES bourbon. Our initial thoughts were that we would upset our guests if we only offered beer and wine. Well over the past (almost) year, after getting feedback from friends, looking at the budget, etc. I decided that beer and wine only was probably a pretty good idea. However, the future mister was still opposed. So I suggested maybe doing a full bar during cocktail hour and then beer and wine only during dinner/dancing. Unfortunately, that option still concerned me regarding the budget so I later suggested a limited bar during cocktail hour (rum, vodka, bourbon - my dad's favorite, scotch - his dad's favorite, gin - his favorite and mixers). Again, I was still unsure of this option. Wellll, this past Sunday I think we both (finally) agreed on a solution!

Enter signature drinks.

Sunday evening we were sitting around watching LOST and the future mister made himself a gin and tonic. We had one lime left over from vacation but he wasn't going to use the whole thing himself, so I decided to make myself a drink too. We don't usually have the mixers for mixed drinks, but vacation with my parents sent us home with ginger ale and pomegranate-cranberry juice. Take a look at my creation:

Ingredients:
Ice
Absolut Mandrin
Pomegranate-cranberry Juice
Ginger Ale
Squeeze of 1 lime slice

Yum! I'm usually a mojito girl (or pinot noir), but this was surprisingly refreshing. And definitely less complex than a mojito to make.

So my final suggestion - wine and beer plus two signature cocktails (my crazy creation and gin and tonics). Surprisingly the future mister was totally on board with this idea! (Although he is still worried that his father will want scotch - and to that I say that's what flasks are for!)

Now here's where I need your help. If we end up having these signature drinks, what should I name them? I'd love something catchy and wedding related. Please help!

one year

In one year:

I will wake up to my last day as a single woman.

I will get prettified.

I will gush and gab with my favorite girls.

I will step into a dress that makes me feel like the most beautiful woman in the world.

I will walk down the aisle on the arm of my father (probably trying not to sob uncontrollably).

I will walk toward the love of my life - my complement - my best friend.

I will say my vows.

I will walk back up the aisle on the arm of my husband!

I will laugh.

I will cry.

I will smile until my cheeks hurt.

I will eat some amazing food and cake.

I will dance the night away with our closest friends and family.

And last, but not least, I WILL BE MARRIED!

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