#164: Emotions

So many emotions running through my body right now. I guess it's all part of life. Highs and lows. And sometimes they happen at the same time.

#163: Eighty-seven

There are 87 days left until our wedding! 87 is a special number to me, because I was born in 1987!! I hope that's not too much of a stretch for you.

To carry this theme even further, I will now provide you with a list of 87 things I have learned thus far in my wedding planning.

Just kidding. I'm only going to do 8.7. Yes, you read that right.

1. Do what you want to do. The wedding is about the bride and groom. If you want purple flowers, get purple flowers. If you want to serve escargot, "go" for it (really, though, don't...it's pretty gross). If you want to wear hot pink shoes, do it!
2. Don't stress over the little stuff. Chances are, you're the only person that will notice when a little detail isn't exactly right!
3. Don't forget that your friends have lives too. Your world may be 100% wedding, but your friends have things going on in their lives too! Don't forget to care for them.
4. Book vendors that you feel comfortable with! This should be a no brainer, but unfortunately, that's not always the case. I absolutely adore all my vendors!
5. Express your gratitude to every person who has done something for you during your engagement. Whether it be attending your engagement party or having you over to chat about wedding plans or offering to do your hair on the day of your wedding, make sure they know how much you appreciate them!
6. Take time for yourself. Wedding planning is stressful enough by itself. When you add in work or school and the rest of your life, it can get pretty overwhelming. Get a manicure or by a new shirt. It can really brighten your mood! You may think that spending money on yourself that could be used towards the wedding would be a waste, but trust me. It's worth every penny.
7. Start early. Now I'm not a huge promoter of super long engagements, but I do have to say that our eighteen month engagement has allowed me a lot more time to acquire certain aspects of our wedding. It has helped me spread out my spending so I'm not going broke. And it allowed us to get the big things out of the way (venue, photographer and dress)and then we had time to actually enjoy being engaged.
8. Don't forget what the day is all about! While a wedding reception is largely seen as a really great party, the ceremony happens first for a reason. The whole day is a celebration of your love for each other and about the joining of two lives into one.
8.7. (aka bonus #9). Book a honeymoon! I am yearning for our luxurious trip to Cancun! I know that I am going to be dead tired after it is all said and done, and a tropical vacation is just what I'm going to need. I think it's going to be great to relax with my husband for a week before entering this thing called married life.

So there is my list. I may have mentioned some of these things before, but everything I listed is 100% true to me. I have learned so many things on this journey thus far and I can't wait to see what the next twelve weeks and three days have in store for us!

#162: Baby Talk

Hope you didn't have a heart attack reading that title!

I meant THIS kind of baby talk:



Hope this brought a little smile to your day :)

#161: Flowers for the Shower

My mom booked the location for my bridal shower this week! My shower will be six weeks before the wedding and will take place at our church. We've always hosted parties at our house, but my guest list is so large that we have to move it to an outside location.

With that all set, mom started working on the centerpieces for the shower this week. She had some pink and green arrangements (silks) leftover from something and asked me if I had a problem with using pink at my shower. I replied with my newly acquired wedding related mantra, "I don't care." More on this mantra in a later post.

With my (somewhat) affirmative approval, mom set to work creating gorgeous arrangements to grace the tables at my shower. I am so excited! Can't wait to start working on wedding reception centerpieces (part of those came in the mail this week).

Can't believe how time has flown. 89 days until the wedding, 79 days until my last day at work, 72 days until move-in, and three more countdowns I'll spare you from for all my showers!

#160: GO RAMS!

J and I watched the VCU-Kansas game today. Since J goes to VCU, we were so excited when they won! I feel bad because I was more excited for VCU then I ever was for my own alma mater, George Mason. Can't believe the Rams are in the Final Four! This is only the third time ever that a double-digit ranked team has made it into the Final Four (Mason was the second when they made it in 2006).

In other news, we woke up to SNOW this morning. Yes, folks, it is the last week of March. At least I know one of my readers was happy (cough Diane cough)! I'm ready for the sun and warm weather though.

Bring on the beach, bikinis and bay breezes!

#159: We Are Family

Other than lunch with my two favorite "A" girls, I spent the rest of the day with my whole family! I can't wait to share what's been going on with my family lately! Big, happy changes. Life is good.

#158: Call Me Cindy

I love cleaning. Seriously. Laundry? Heart it. In fact, I love it so much that when I was about thirteen, my mom paid me to do the dishes, keep up with the laundry and clean all the bathrooms while my aunt, uncle and two cousins visited for two weeks from San Diego. And my aunt called me Cindy the whole weeks (short for Cinderella). I loved it!

Tonight, I again was cleaning the bathrooms, jamming out to The Band Perry, Taylor Swift, Chris Young and Kenny Chesney, among others. I did my usual routine of dusting, washing the mirrors, cleaning out the sink and wiping down the counters.

Then I had to tackle my least favorite chore...the toilet. There is nothing inherently wrong with a toilet. It's what happens in between cleanings that disgusts me. I'll spare you the details, but let's just say I banned certain genders from using certain bathrooms.

And I came to the conclusion that J can have that chore :)

#157: NC Destination Wedding Case Study

This post is going to chock full of pictures! I wish they were of my own wedding, but alas, I am not at post #250 yet! I came across this wedding on Style Me Pretty this afternoon and fell in love! I'm not going to do my likes and dislikes because I liked it all! I'm just going to post some pictures (okay, a lot) and give my commentary. Because doesn't everyone like comments from the peanut gallery? No? Oh well...here goes!

 I was sold by this picture! I absolutely love navy blue and cowboy boots. I love the mix of different dresses as well!

 What a gorgeous backdrop for a dress shot! This is one of my "must have" photos for our wedding.

 Um hello beautiful diamonds and sapphires! I've always wanted a sapphire ring (since it's my birthstone). I'm constantly on the hunt for the perfect right hand sapphire ring.

 I hope I get some funny shots of me getting ready! This one made me laugh out loud!

 I can tell how much all the girls in this shot love each other! I can't wait to take pictures with my girls. They mean the world to me!

 I would call this the Top Model pose. Love it.

 The flowers from this wedding were to die for! I personally wouldn't use these at my wedding, but I love the mix of carnations, lilies, roses and fillers.

 If I could have a dream wedding location, this tent would be it. I love the fabric and all the lights. So fresh feeling and so airy!

Be prepared to see a post with a similar idea to this :) Let's just say old photos+captions+clothespins+twine = Erin's special project! Can't wait to start getting to work on it!

Take a look at the whole gallery from this wedding! What do you love about this wedding? Do you dig cowboy boots under a bridal gown? It reminds me of an episode of My Fair Wedding! The bride had custom cowboy boots made for her wedding and David Tutera actually made her go through a bootcamp in order to "earn" her shoes. David's all about the heels for his brides! I'm partial to heels myself, but I've been contemplating my cowboy boots as a good alternative for reception sore feet.

#156: On the Hunt

The job hunt, that is. With 84 days left at my current job, now is the time to start looking for a new job!

My search began on google. Since we now have an actual address, I entered that into the maps search. When it pulled up the area, I searched nearby for "doctors." It yielded a ton of offices (considering VCU has a huge medical school, I wasn't surprised). I found a few offices that looked promising and saved the links to their websites.

I sent out my first resume on Monday night.  My heart was pounding as I attached my resume, and it beat even faster as I pressed "send." I have a few more offices to apply to, then it's just a waiting game!

#155: Home Real Home

We finally have a place for our little family to call home! We have looked high and low, all over Richmond, for a nice three bedroom, two full bathroom apartment, with an in-unit washer and dryer (not located in the kitchen). We also wanted the community to have a pool and a gym, along with a nice staff.

I know that my list makes me seem high-maintenance, but if I'm going to live in a place for a year (or more), then I'd like to enjoy every aspect of it! I didn't think that it would be too hard to find an affordable apartment with all my specifications, but boy, was it a chore!

I searched craigslist and google for apartments all over Richmond, but trying to keep in close proximity of J's Starbucks. Primarily because he still works there and will probably continue working there for awhile after the wedding, but also because most of his friends live within a couple mile radius of it. I want to keep him close to his friends!

We ended up visiting three different apartment complexes. The first one had definitely seen better days. It was visibly old, while still in very good condition. The sinks in the bathrooms were seashells...yup. Seashells. Strike one right there. Strike two was the "pass-through window" from the kitchen to the dining room. I kid you not, it was no bigger than my 21" computer screen. Seriously? No thank you. We walked out of there with the idea that if we HAD to live there, we could do it. But it wasn't our ideal situation.

The second complex was REALLY nice! We were both very impressed. It had every specification that we wanted and it had a lot of storage space. We made our mind up right there that we wanted to live there. About two and a half months after our visit, I went online to check out the prices again and try to find a phone number so I could contact someone about getting on a waitlist. That's when I had a heart attack! The prices had gone wayyyy up! The rent alone was out of our rent and utilities budget. So we sadly had to scratch that idea.

Then I remembered another complex I had looked at online. I wrote about our visit here. We left there after putting down a deposit to be put on a waitlist. Marie told us that she would contact us when any residents put in their 60 day notice. Not even a week later, I got a call and Marie told me that the 2 bedroom with a den option would not be available at all within our time frame (trying to move in the first week of June), but that she had a first floor three bedroom that would be available May 19th. I told her I would talk to J about it, but in my mind I had already dismissed it because I didn't want to live on the first floor. Something in the back of my mind tells me that I would feel very unsafe in a first floor apartment if I was there by myself late at night. J assured me it would be okay.

Last Friday, J received a call from Marie and she told him that another first floor three bedroom would be available June 8th. When he called me at work and told me this, I took it as a sign from God that it was where we should live. My paranoia about first floor living will have to take a backseat.  I asked if the first apartment was available still (it was a little cheaper), but it wasn't, so I told J to snatch this one up.

And now we have our own address. I've memorized it already. Can you tell I'm excited?

Here's a few shots of the community:

And here's a photo of what all the brand new kitchens and appliances look like:

Eeek! So excited. 78 days until move in day!

#154: Why I Blog

This post is primarily for myself. I've been feeling pretty down lately, especially with regard to my blog. I know you all are still out there reading it, but I've been feeling like I'm doing this for nothing. Sometimes I have a hard time coming up with something to post (although I know this will change drastically within the next few weeks).

I started this blog as a way to let people know how wedding planning was going in a place designed specifically for that purpose. It's so I don't bombard Facebook and Twitter with wedding-related posts because I know those can be annoying!

As I kept writing more and more posts (I can't believe I'm up to 154!!), I realized that writing this blog everyday is like writing in a journal. It can be frustrating, yet therapeutic. I plan on making my complete 250 posts into a book. I can't wait to look back on it in a couple years and remember how crazy life was while planning our dream wedding. I can't wait to read about my struggles and see how much God has blessed us during this process.

As for what you'll see over the next 96 days, I'm not 100% sure. I'll be introducing you to our wedding party, you'll get a guest post from J, and I'm sure I'll be posting some of our DIY projects as they get done!

Thanks for reading and for all the comments and support you guys have given me during our whole engagement. It's greatly appreciated and we love you all!

#153: Pink is the New Black

I've owned a hot pink pair of Keds for about three to four years. I don't think I've worn them more than a handful of times. The weather was super nice on Friday morning, so I decided to wear them out to run errands with Little Monster.

Within three minutes of stepping foot in Ulta, he managed to knock over a bottle of black nail polish onto the ground. It broke and splashed everywhere. Yup, you guessed it. Right onto my hot pink keds.

I was so bummed that I wouldn't be able to get the polish off my shoes. But, guess what?! I did :)

Here are some before pictures:

 I decided to try using acetone and a q-tip to gently rub the polish off. I didn't think it would work, but it worked well enough that I'm happy with the results:

 I'm bummed that a little of the color came off, but I'm so happy that they're cleaned well enough that I will wear them again! The side didn't clean up as well as the top, but when the shoe is tied, the laces actually fall right over the affected area. Score.

Just for the record, I took these pictures before the shoe had a chance to completely dry. I'm looking at them now and they are looking good!!

#152: Reunited and It Feels So Good

I mean to post this yesterday but I forgot! And because of that, you get TWO pictures today and not just one!

J and I went through his iTunes account and made a playlist with a ton of music for the wedding (pre-ceremony, ceremony, dinner and reception). I showed him what I had. He boycotted Benny and the Jets for the dance party because he said it was too slow and not dancing music. I then got to put it back on the playlist because it would be a fun song to listen to while eating dinner. So I won. And then I showed J my winning face (no affiliation to Charlie Sheen). And I was happy.

Then we got all dressed  up to celebrate my friend's birthday. Here's a shot of us on the party bus :)

All in all, it was a great weekend! And we get a part 2, next weekend!

#151: LDR

Today marks the 20th day in a row I haven't seen J. Tomorrow marks the day I will see him!

I hate long distance relationships. The phone calls and emails and texts are nice, but nothing can compare to the hand-holding and hugging. It's amazing how much of a difference a simply physical touch can make on a relationship. I remember several instances of me crying on the phone with J and he tried as best as he could to comfort me. And then I remember crying on his shoulder and how different it felt.

I'm looking forward to many, many years of waking up in the same city (hello, same bed!) as J. And just as many years of hand-holding (and rocking chair sitting later in life) and kissing and daily life living. Can't wait! Double digits :)

#150: 100 Days of...Non-Solitude

Today marks 100 days left in our countdown! I cannot believe the last 150 days have flown by so fast! (Not to mention that last 500+!!!)

If I had started this post earlier in the day, I would have made a list of 100 somethings. But alas, it is 10 minutes before my deadline, so you do not get such a list.

Maybe I should start singing a rousing rendition of "100 Bottles of Beer on the Wall" but make it wedding related. So maybe something like "100 Appetizers on the Waiter's Plate." Or "100 Gifts on the Gift Table." Or we could go with J's suggestion, "100 Sober Guests Standing Up," because "you give 'em a shot, and that's quite a lot..."

Yeah, I wasn't sure about that one either...but I love him.

#149: Lullabies

I seriously need a constant stream of lullabies by my bed so I can sleep through the night. For the past three nights, I have not able to actually go to sleep until late. Then, I'm constantly waking up (every one to two hours). I hear every sound, every murmur, every creak of the boards in my house. I know exactly who, in my eight-person household, is awake and moving around the house and what door they are closing or opening.

I'm not sure why sleep has been eluding me. The people I've mentioned it to have suggested stress and asked if I was having wedding nightmares. The first two nights there were no wedding nightmares, but last night was a doozy. I remember waking up, feeling pretty anxious.  In my dream, J and I somehow ended up very far away from our wedding venue, away from our guests AND I had spilled food on my dress. Tragic. There were some other details, but I currently don't remember what they were. J has assured me that this will not happen. Phew.

I'll admit it. The stress of wedding planning is starting to get to me. Considering it's 100 days from tomorrow (!!!!), that's understandable. There's been so much going on in my house and with my family lately, that it just adds to that stress. I'll share some of the happenings in later posts.

I'm not stressed about being married. I'm stressed about GETTING married. I don't get nervous at the thought of vowing to love and respect someone for the rest of my life. I get nervous at the thought that my guests will not be fed enough food. I don't get nervous when I think of all the hard times J and I will endure throughout the rest of our lives. I get nervous at the thought of the wrong song being played at the wrong time. I have poured so much energy and time (not to mention money) into this event, that I'm nervous everything will go wrong.

Then I tell myself: if, at the end of the day, I am married to my best friend, nothing else that happens on that day will matter. It could rain, they could serve the wrong food, I could trip and fall down the stairs in my four inch heels (okay, that one might matter), people could hate my cake, or our reception entrance song might get messed up. But none of these things can stop me from marrying the love of my life. And that's all that matters.

#148: Bring on the Sun

Confession: I like tanning beds. Please no lectures on skin cancer and all that. I've heard them all and yes, I am aware of the dangers.

I'm not the kind of person who tans every day, but come spring and summer, I like a little color! I've been in a wedding or had a major event every year for the past five years. My regular routine has been to tan for eight to ten minutes two or three days a week for four weeks before the event. This year is kind of a BIG event :))

I've looked into spray tans, but honestly, I'm not digging it. The possibility for error is much too high. Streaks, discoloration, color transfer (onto my WHITE wedding dress? I don't think so!), and an orangey look are not part of my ideal agenda. Also, since we'll be honeymooning in Cancun, I'd like to have a base tan so I don't turn into a lobster there! And a spray tan can't do that for me.

So for my wedding, I'll be hitting the tanning bed. I'm not going to go overboard or go every day. I'll also be spending time outside, getting some natural rays! I'm ready to have a beautiful bronze glow on the day I marry my best friend!!

#147: Divide and Conquer

As promised yesterday, today I will be sharing the stories of how my family and I spent the weekend going through and claiming items that my parents were willing to part with.

Since J and I are moving into an apartment, we don't have a lot of storage. I self-imposed a two bin maximum on Christmas items (which was quite a struggle, considering Christmas is my favorite holiday). I told my family that J imposed this maximum, but it was really self-imposed (I swear, I don't always try to make J out to be the bad guy).

First up, this guy:

My first thought was, "WHAT is that?" Giggles and big laughs ensued. This, my friends, is a basket. A Santa basket, to be more specific. Sad to say, he ended up in the trashcan.

Next up, some things I snagged for my own collection:

1. A (Southern) California snowman. The title should be self-explanatory:

2. Paper reindeer. I hate gold, so these are going to be spray painted silver. My mom has so many gold things that my parents were holding things up and then saying whether they were paintable or not. So what if I'm a little predictable!

3. A small collection of trees! And yes, the gold one is getting painted silver. For sure.

And now I will introduce you to the artistic side of Erin. From way back in the day, I introduce you to handprint Erin of 1991:

Chyea. J isn't the only artist in this relationship. And if our kids have any of my talent, they'll give their dad a run for his money ;)

I also snagged some things made by my grandma (mom's side). I think these little coasters are SO cute and even cuter in their "scarf" holder:

Needless to say, after almost eight hours of going through things (with a nap break and a dinner break in there), my storage area in the basement was overflowing and a little stress-inducing:

I'm happy to report that, with the help of David Tutera (keeping me company) and some crazy mad energy at 10pm, I managed to get (almost) everything into a bin with like items. See those blue-lidded bins? They're now stacked six-high. Most excellent. Hopefully only about eight to ten more weeks with all these bins! Then we'll be in our own place and we can start unpacking!

#146: Christmas in March (For Real)

I know I promised you updates and pictures of things I've acquired from my parents this weekend, but I am currently exhausted. After I shower, I plan on promptly passing out in my comfy bed.

Pictures and hilarity to ensue tomorrow.

Hope you all had a great weekend!

#145: Christmas in...March?

Today my parents and sister headed off to our storage unit to get all of my sister's things out so she can pack them up for when she moves at the end of the month. I stayed home with Little Monster so they could get everything packed into the cars quickly.

They were able to get everything home in one trip with their two cars. And they also had a few boxes for me. I was SO sure that there was only one box of books in there, that I was shocked when they said they brought home FOUR boxes of my stuff. Ugh.

I spent about an hour sifting through everything and managed to get three bins of old college notebooks and all of my books down to two. Not bad.

It was quite a walk down memory lane. Seeing all my old notes and tests (and some really bad grades), I wondered how I only received two Cs in my whole college career.

I also found a couple of things from high school (including all four of my yearbooks!). I was in a program called Teacher Cadet, which is kind of an orientation into the teaching profession. It was a year long class. The first two quarters consisted of us learning about different learning styles and how to compose lesson plans. Then we headed into classrooms to implement all we had learned. I was placed into a first and second grade combo class (which I was in when I was in first grade and then subsequently skipped second grade altogether) during the third quarter. I ended up liking that age range so much that I stayed there for fourth quarter as well, even though I was able to move around to other grades. Today I found all the cards the kids made and gave to me on my last day with them.

And then I found this guy...

You really shouldn't be shocked about this find. Of COURSE I own the Wheaties Box with Steve Nash on the front. Of course. (Oh, and FYI, he didn't hit the chopping block. I'm going to hold onto him as long as J will let me...which I have a feeling won't be long.)

I had help during this whole process...more or less...

And then there was the box of stuffed animals and dolls...I only ended up getting rid of the beanie babies (does anybody still have any of those?!) and kept all the dolls I've had as long as I can remember. Never getting rid of those.

I also got to shop in my mom's home office. It is the antiques warehouse of the world! She's got so much good stuff. And she was gracious enough to give a lot of it to my sister and I today. I'll post a little about that tomorrow :)

Today was a productive day overall, but there is MUCH more to be done tomorrow. And then I have to figure out how to pack all this stuff...

#144: Praying for Japan

Obviously, the earthquake and subsequent tsunamis in Japan have been all over the news today. I have been praying for safety for all those affected. Here's how you can help:

1. Text "redcross" to 90999 to make a $10 donation to the Red Cross. It will show up on your next phone bill.
 
2. Globalgiving.com has established a Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund. You can donate directly on their site. They are working directly with organizations such as International Medical Corps and Save the Children.

3. Pray! Pray for the people affected, pray for the country as a whole, pray for the leadership of the country. Pray for all those who are volunteering their time and money and skills to help those who have been affected. Pray for all the families who haven't found their loved one yet, and for all those who have lost loved ones.


Information on how to donate obtained from CNN.com.

#143: Come In, Do You Read Me?

No, this isn't aimed at you readers who don't comment (although it would be fitting! I've been feeling a little unloved lately!), but rather it's about the topic of communication!

I've always believed that any successful relationship, whether it be romantic, friendly or family, has to have open lines of communication. You can't be in a happy, flourishing relationship without it. Without communication, ties can become stagnant, without progress and without hope.

Sometimes I wonder what it would be like if our relationship had taken place one hundred years ago, or even fifteen. No internet, no texting, landline phones only; how would we handle it? Would we be as successful as we are now? I'm sure letter writing (ah, the lost art) would be our primary form of communication. J and I have written each other letters (well, mostly I send cards and he sends letters. what can I say? Hallmark steals the words right out of my mouth sometimes!) and we talk on the phone at least once a day (even if it's only for ten minutes), but let's face it: we text and facebook/gchat A LOT.

But more than just that sense of communication is the idea of being transparent and not hiding things from each other. Being open and honest is SO important. I remember back in the beginning of our relationship I would omit certain things or feelings I was having from a conversation with J because I didn't want to hurt his feelings. Now, almost four years later, I realize that omitting those things really hurt our foundation. We've had to work through a lot of things (and by we, I mean I) to get to where we are now. I'm sure there are still things that don't get brought up, but I'm certain once we're married and living in the same city/house, that will change. There will be an urgency to our issues because we will be cohabitating and not just chatting on the phone or on gchat.

Since we've been engaged, there have been a lot of issues brought up and worked through. I can only hope that this progression continues as we work through our premarital counseling and through the beginning stages of our marriage. 

I openly welcome any ideas/suggestions/thoughts on how to keep open lines of communication, especially from those that are/have been married!

#142: American Idol

I really wasn't sure that this season of American Idol was going to be any good without Simon, but I have been pleasantly surprised. The new judges are great, but I think the talent is even better!

My dad and I like to watch Idol together and chat about it (like we're music experts or something). And out of the Top 13 that performed tonight, we liked seven of them total. That's pretty good in my book!

Here's my top 3:
1. Scotty McCreery: Obviously he's #1 because he sings country. And with a voice like Josh Turner...
Here's his performance from last week. He sang Garth Brooks proud this evening :)


2. Pia Toscano: She's the powerhouse of the group and definitely the best girl in the competition! This is also last week's performance for her. She performed Celine Dion tonight (which is usually a big NO NO), but the judges lapped it up.


3. James Durbin: He's one of the two rockers in the Top 13. He reminds a lot of people of Adam Lambert, but here's the kick: James can actually make it through a song without screaming! Amazing...



And because number one always deserves a little extra...here's another video of Scotty performing "Ol' Red" by Blake Shelton at a festival last fall:

#141: Outfit of the Day

It's Tuesday. This is good news because that means it's no longer Monday!

Today's outfit was created in my mind prior to me actually seeing the pieces all together. I wasn't sure it was going to work, and even once I got it on, I still wasn't sure it worked. I decided to wear it anyway.

Tell me what you think!

Shirt: Kohl's (gift from grandma)//Necklaces:H&M//Skinny Cargo Pants: Target//Shoes: Payless

#140: Countdown Within a Countdown

Ya'll know I love countdowns. Obviously. So here's another one for you:

In 100 days, I will be no longer employed by my current boss! As sad as it is, considering I've been here five and a half years, I'm excited to start a new job in a new place with new potential friends!

My last day of work will be June 15, ten days before the wedding. With those ten days off and our eight day honeymoon (which we leave for the Monday following the wedding), that's a whopping 19 day vacation (although I'm not sure the ten days before the wedding will be much of a vacation for anybody...)!! We'll hopefully be back in Richmond the night of July 4th (our return flight arrives in DC at 9pm) or the morning of July 5th.

My goal would be to find a job and start on July 11th. I know that seems like a ton of time off, but I feel like I'm going to need some time to get settled in, finish unpacking, do laundry, grocery shop and do all the domestic diva things. Especially since J will be living in the apartment for four to six weeks before I get there. I'm sure he'll have the place spotless before coming up for the wedding though :) right, babe?

So that means, in hopefully 126 days, I will be starting a new job!

#139: Home Sweet Home

I've spent a lot of time recently (especially since we found our apartment complex) thinking about how I want our home to look and function. I never thought I would be the girl to get giddy over dressers and rugs and accent pillows, but...here I am. And I'm excited.

I find myself perusing the pottery barn and crate and barrel websites for inspiration, then looking somewhere less expensive to find actual pieces. We've actually acquired an oak "secretary" type table that we're planning on using in our entryway to house our keys (in a cute bowl, of course) and to put outgoing mail and other such things. My great aunt and uncle were so generous to offer it to us and they also offered us an armchair! We weren't sure at first if the size and/or color was right (it's a light sage green), but the more we thought about it, the more we're sure it will work and will be a great addition to our home! I've always been wary of buying/getting furniture from craigslist, thrift stores, etc (mainly fabric furniture), so to get pieces from family is great. And what's even better is that they're holding onto this furniture until we have a place to put it! Such a blessing, because God knows we have NO free space anywhere right now!

I have a lot of DIY projects to do for our home (not to mention 500 times more than that for the wedding!), but first I need to learn how to sew and I need the weather to warm up. My major projects I'd like to get done before we move in are:

1. Sew all accent pillow covers using the fabric I've acquired over the past year. I have three great black and white prints for our bedroom, and a great flannel fabric for our living room, with possibly enough left over to make a table runner of some sort.

2. Strip and stain or paint my cedar chest. I received it as a gift from my great aunt (the same one mentioned above) and it used to belong to my great grandmother. It holds a special place in my heart and I've been storing things for my future home in it since I was 15. I've obviously had to expand my storage quite a bit, but I've loved using it over the years. Josh and I plan to put it in our bedroom if space allows. I'd like to use it to hold heirlooms and things especially important to us. Right now it's painted cream and I'd like to be able to see the natural wood before I make my decision about staining or painting it.

3. Slipcover my armless chair. I think I've sat in this chair maybe ten times since I got it seven years ago. I love the design of it and I'm planning on finding a nice black/white/gray fabric to slipcover it for our bedroom. I'll also need to paint the legs/

4. Paint metal jewelry holder. J and I found a great metal jewelry holder for me. I'd been looking for one for awhile and there it was in Home Goods, just waiting for me! The only problem is that it's cream so it'll need to be painted to match our bedroom. I was thinking originally of painting it black, but as time has progressed and we've settled on black furniture, I'm leaning more towards a metallic gray or white. Not a big job, and should be able to do this and get it off my list as soon as the weather warms up and stays warm.

So there you have just one of the MANY lists rolling around in my mind. And don't worry, as I get these projects done, there will be tons of pictures to show you!

Do you have any DIY projects you're waiting on Spring to start?

#138: Checks!

Got a few things checked off my list today!

We had our second tasting at our venue today. Unfortunately, J wasn't able to come this time, so it was just me and mom. It was definitely a better go-around this time for the entrees, if you remember the first go-around!! (Hard to believe that was last October!)

We settled on our entree choices and are very excited to meet with our coordinator one-on-one (our venue's tastings are like an Open House, so it was a little hectic!) to finalize everything and to also order our linens, chair covers, etc. Having this part decided is such a huge burden and now I'm even more excited to eat at my wedding! And don't tell me "the bride and groom never really get to eat at their wedding" because that will not be true at mine.

I am ALMOST done with my bridesmaids' gifts! This has been a long process and I'll be so glad to finally have that huge project off my list!

My next project is to work on our candy buffet. I'll be spending the next couple of hours researching candy types, prices, colors and amounts. Should be fun!

PS: Also did a photo shoot with Jewel Peach today (the awesome photographer who did our engagement pictures: here, here, here and here!). Can't wait to see the finished product!!

#137: Pizza!

Went over to my friend Alyssa's house after work tonight. Her family has a tradition of making homemade pizzas and this was my first night experiencing it! Boy, was it amazing. I definitely indulged. And no, I'm not telling you how many pieces of pizza I ate...

It was nice being able to catch up and hang out with Alyssa and her parents. And her little Yorkie, Deuce. Unfortunately, duty calls and I must get to bed so I can get sleep for my busy day tomorrow!

Working in the morning, then a second tasting at our venue. From there I'll head to my friend's son's first birthday party, and then I have a photo shoot at 4pm. Hopefully, I'll have some good stories for you!

What are your plans for the weekend?

#136: Non-existent

According to the magnet wall in my office, I have one nephew and he is ten days old. It is so pathetic that over the past two years I have not managed to update photos, to include my other nephew and beautiful niece. Not to mention, maybe a picture of J and I!

So I set off tonight, flash drive in hand, to get photos printed at Target.

Who knew they closed the photo lab (and all the self-service machines) at 9pm, when the store itself doesn't even close til 10pm!! Argh!

Hopefully, I'll get these photos printed soon! Like, before I leave my job in three and a half months...

#135: Great Expectations

In preparation for our next premarital counseling session, our pastor asked J and I to write 20 expectations we have for marriage. He said they could be big picture things, like "I want to stay home once we have kids" or little thing like "do the dishes every day."

I haven't finished my list yet, but here are some that didn't make the cut:

1. I expect to be treated like a queen everyday. No chores, no job, and an endless shopping allowance.

2. Breakfast in bed every morning (no earlier than 10am).

3. Flowers sent to me every day.

4. An exotic vacation at least once a year (we'll get one in this year though :)).

5. I want J to bear our children so I can keep my figure.

Yeah, kind of unrealistic ones there...

Maybe I'll share a few of the ones that did make the cut. And then all you married people out there can laugh at me.

#134: Home Goods

Now that we've found our home, it's time to furnish the darn thing!

I'm sure I've talked about furniture before, but just to recap:

We own virtually nothing. Between the two of us, we have:
1 dresser (J)
1 desk (J)
1 Lazy Boy Recliner (me and I love it!)
1 armless chair (me, and it's in pinks and browns and yellows...definitely needs to be recovered)
2 tvs (one from each of us/J got a pretty nice flat panel that can last as our main tv until we can afford a larger one and mine is a little 15" old school tv that works just fine and will go in our guest room)

And there you have it. We have nothing to eat off of, nothing to sleep in (recliner does NOT count) and nothing to keep our clothes in.

My main priorities are:

1. Master bedroom furniture: I plan on getting two dressers and two nightstands for our room from IKEA. Our color scheme is white, black and gray (with a splash of canary yellow), so their black-brown color will work perfectly. I'm also going to buy the protective glass tops they have available to protect our investments :)

2. Living room: We've registered for an ottoman and side tables, along with an inexpensive media cabinet. We'd like to get a pretty nice couch, one that will last us for a few years and maybe even into our next home. We've done some shopping around, but I think we might have to visit a furniture showroom to find one we really like (and can agree on!).

3. Dining Room: Obviously, we need something to eat off of. I'm hoping spring yard sales will yield a nice six person table with six fairly modern looking chairs to go with it. All at a reasonable price. This is not a crazy idea. My friend Jennifer (one of my BMs) got herself one at a yard sale and her mother-in-law helped her paint them and recover the chairs.

Our guest room would obviously be next in line for me, whereas J's office would be next in line for him. Which is fine, because they're kind of our own specific projects, so to speak. I have a clear idea of what I want my guest room to look like (first job is to slipcover my recliner and put that baby in there!), and I'm sure his office is going to look amazing.

We're hoping to start our lease at the beginning of June, which would give us at least two weekends to paint and move things in.

Any suggestions on where to buy a nice couch? Preferably a store with a location in Richmond :)