NUMBER 198

a while back, i deleted one of my old email addresses. little did i know that it was hooked up to my blogger account and with it, would go all of my images from previous blog posts. *insert sad face* i started my little blog 4 years ago to keep our wedding guests informed of events and my diy crafts leading up to our wedding day, and i've continued to blog (mostly on and off) since then. just thought i'd revisit our wedding day because i'm feeling a bit nostalgic:

our wedding was classic and perfect for us. i remember trying my best not to let the whole planning process stress me out. my top priorities (after the dress) was good food, pretty flowers, and live music – all 3 were present and accounted for. the whole day went by in a blink – it was perfect, and i'd do it all over again in a heart beat (with a little more hairspray).

number 171

today, andrew and i are celebrating our 3rd anniversary. and by celebrating i mean, having 2 of his best friends come stay with us for a couple of nights for a golf tournament tomorrow and another just passing through. i'm ok with that because i'm an awesome wife (that, and he's taking me out of town for a romantic date saturday night!)

i've known my husband for 11 years, and we've been “together” over 5 out of those eleven. you see, when i was 15, i had an embarrassing huge crush on an older 18 year old guy at our church. obsessive high school dream crush. 6 years later, during my senior year in college, we went on our first date.

our first year together was filled with lots of "this-is-SO-crazy-that-we’re-dating"s quickly followed by lots of "i've-never-felt-like-this-before"s. and telling my mom "i think i might marry him" just in casual conversation. i can honestly say, from day 1, i knew something was different. it's always just felt "right"… and it still does. i can't imagine anyone more perfectly made for me. we complement each other seamlessly, and i'm just so thankful that he's such a huge part of my life.

happy anniversary, andrew. i love you a massive amount, and i'm SO excited for what is yet to come.

number 14

really quick: i promised that i'd post a picture of the inital flower letters. i'm planning on wiring them to the gate on the fence outside the church. i'm quite pleased with how they turned out!!

number 11

heyyy friends! yet another weekend has passed without wedding planning -- it's good to give yourselves a little (or big) break from it now and then! honestly, at this point, there isn't TOO much left to do! however, save the dates were sent out yesterday!!! i feel like i've conquered a small feat in finishing those things! 1 point for me!

while i was NOT wedding planning, i was having some fun in the sun with some of my favorite girlfriends! the girls and i traveled to virginia beach to celebrate my friend, and zeta big sis, courtney's final weekend of bachelorette-dom. the weekend was filled with lots of laughing, lounging, and of course, lingerie. saturday was the ideal beach day. 78 degrees - not a cloud in the sky. you can see that i got a little 'sunkissed' myself -- which now, has turned into a tan! woo hoo! 2 points for me! we had such a great time celebrating with court and the girls, i only wish i could do it more often!

while i was having a busy weekend with the ladies, andrew was "man caving" with one of his best friends, andy, in richmond. don't be mistaken -- "man caving" has nothing to do with exploring, hiking, spelunking, or even being outside, for that matter. a man cave is a sanctuary where men can go to be with their friends and away from any kind of female influence in order to work or play without interruption. their activity of choice this weekend was surfing the interwebs for disgusting and outrageous videos and, of course, madden. man, i'm so sad i missed it.

meet andy: his going to be a groomsman in our wedding!! andy and andrew were roommates for two years at radford and have remained close friends ever since. :) we love some andy.

friday is andrew's 26th birthday! he's growing up!! too bad wedding workouts start today - i guess i can make an exception for some birthday cake! right? haha happy early birthday, boo!

i don't have much wedding related info to post now, however, check out my photog crush. http://www.jenniferfarris.com/. i'm really crossing my fingers for this one! that's all i've got! love y'all!

number 9.5

my second post. please contain your joy.

i have yet to ask all my potential groomsmen to stand with me. however, i believe they know who they are. i guess i am not as proactive as laura. anyway...

i also have yet to pick out a tux. i know you ladies are just dying to see it. i have decided on a classic black tux, white shirt, black tie. when in doubt go basic and classy.

as laura mentioned, we saw a potential band. unfortunately, they did not live up to my expectations. i believe finding a band that is suitable to our tastes and price range will be the hardest part of our wedding planning adventure. oh by the way, it is an adventure no matter how simple you try and make it. needless to say we are still on the hunt. (dinosaur jr., make it happen sissy!)

we met with a caterer on saturday: visions. they provided laura and i with lots of menu options and some delicious samples. i am still salivating at the thought of their chicken trumpets. in addition to great food, they also provide the table linens, chair covers, etc. in the colors that boo really wants. i hope they are on top of their game because that would be one less thing to stress about.

we watched the hills last night. as all of you who watch the show, and some of those who don't, know that two of the characters are spencer and heidi. i watch this program hoping to see spencer catch fire. unfortunately he hasn't yet. my point: anyone who has relationship like spencer and his super genius fiance heidi, SHOULD NOT get married. i hope they are acting. i hope they aren't like this in real life. and the hills is definitely not real life. santa isn't real either.

number 9

really quick : i promised that i'd post a picture of my bridesmaid craft that i worked so hard on! they were a labor of love, trust me!!!

i made my five bridesmaids a puzzle out of cork board and painted the "clues" onto each piece. they read "wheel ewe (a female sheep) bee m+eye brides maid". needless to say, they all said yes!!

they took a little (or a lot) of time to make, but i was really proud of them, and my girls are definitely worth it!!

number 8

BRIDESMAIDS!!!

the tradition of the "bridesmaid" is believed to have originated from roman law, which required witnesses at a wedding to ward off evil spirits. i have 5 beautiful ladies that have willingly accepted the position to beat up anyone who gets in my way down the alter. along with 1 maid of honor, and there's no tellin' what she'll do!! haha.

drum roll please...

the first announcement goes to the gal who's put up with me the longest: stacia outten (now petrancosta) has been my best friend since the 7th grade. both being the new girls in dequeen, arkansas, we immediately became attached at the hip and have been able to remain best friends since - despite only living in the same town together for 1 year. she's definitely one i know i'll be able to call on until i'm wrinkly and gray - no matter how many miles separate us - i'll always refer to her as "my best friend from arkansas". love you staysh.

my best friend throughout high school was the complete opposite of me (except we were both awesome, duh!) lauren smyth was captain of the cheerleading squad, tall, outgoing, and an amazing dancer. no one will ever know how we hit it off so well and stayed friends as long as we have! she was definitely my saving grace at chatham high school, and i know without her advice and shoulder to cry on every now-and-then, i wouldn't have made it through alive. i love her like my very own sister and know it'll always be that way.

i can't remember the first day i met alex or the first conversation we had. i just remember always being friends with her. alex moses and i both joined zeta tau alpha as freshmen, our first year at virginia tech, in the spring of 2004. throughout our four years together, we have become undeniably best friends. she's such a strong, genuine person - anyone would be lucky to have her as a friend. lucky me! i can always count on alex for a great time, a big laugh, or a carrie underwood sing-a-long - all which are necessary at some point or another. AND she shares my appreciation for a good craft project! i love you, al.

you'll never hear me call this one "emily". emily tretiak, or "tretiak", has fallen victim to the same curse as i, being referred to as only your last name all throughout college, and possibly forever - even after marriage - as i've been told. tretiak was my sanity junior/senior year at tech when we both decided to take on positions as president and c.o.c.(vp1) for zeta. she was definitely the brains of the outfit and always stood beside me, looking tough, when i had to reprimand. in other words: she's my best friend who gives me strength, confidence, and tells me the truth (even when i don't always want to hear it). she's a super classy gal, and i know i'll always look up to her, and not because she's a lot taller than i am! i'll add that she didn't even get mad at me when i demolished the interior of her jeep with taco bell. xoxo. love you, girlfriend!

last but certainly not the least of the bridesmaids is my new sister: sarah wyatt swanson. she's got to be one of the coolest chicks ever -- and we're going to be family!! not only is she the most creative person i know, she plays the drums in a band -- a REAL band!! so awesome. sarah is andrew's older sister, and i, not having any real sisters of my own, am SO excited to finally be getting one! from the first time we met, she has always been so great to me, always accepting me with open arms. sarah, honestly, is the icing on an already perfect cake (probably made by mrs. avery). haha. i love her so much already as andrew's sister, and i know that we'll continue to be great friends as sisters-in-law.

as the caboose: miss emily baxa will be straightening up my train (no pun intended) and calming my nerves. i chose emily as my maid of honor because she's definitely earned it. emily and i lived on the top floor of EastAJ our freshman year and became best friends as new members of zeta tau alpha. inseparable doesn't even describe it. we did EVERYTHING together, even shared the same sorority big sister (shoutout to courtie!) - making us "twins". how fitting. even now, she is my other half. i could go on and on forever about the countless memories we've shared and how much i love her, but i would start crying in front of the computer. in being my MOH, i don't expect her to keep me sane for the next 6 months, i just want her to stand beside me on my wedding day like she's done every day for the past 6 years. i love you, em. thank you for being my very best friend.

these are my very best girls: they have no idea what they're in for ;) i love y'all.

number 7

weekend wrap-up:

we did a lot this weekend, not enough to say that we were 'crazy busy' by any one's standards. but a fun weekend, to say the least!

friday, we all went to hear a band that was in the running for the reception. we quickly discovered that it wasn't much to get excited about. i'll just say that we're still searching for the right one. any suggestions? throw 'em our way!

saturday was a lazy day. it rained a lot, so andrew and i stayed in and made some adjustments (mostly additions) to the guest list. this thing is out of controllll. how anyone could ever plan a "small" wedding is beyond me. a solution to the issue has yet to be determined.

andrew and dad went to the nascar race in martinsville on sunday. a little father and son-in-law bonding - complete with mullet hunting and redneck watching! mom and i used our girl time to shop and think about the reception's floral arrangements. after being given a few estimates from local florists there were a lot of comments floating between us such as "oh...WE could do THAT!!" and "So-and-So loves that kinda stuff!!!" i mean, really, a handful of hydrangea can't be TOO hard to arrange!

monday, us girls made a trip to hobby lobby to find some wedding goodness and coincidentally bumped into a bridesmaid as well!!! (name announced later!!!) i've found so many little wedding accents that i want to attempt myself - my evenings will definitely be occupied this week! these are my next two projects: a wedding card gift box and 2 floral initials for the gate in front of the church. here are pics of what the finished projects are supposed to look like:

do-able? i think so! finished project pics will be posted!

also, i've been working very diligently on save-the-dates. they're pretty much completed, and my envelopes came in yesterday! friday is the estimated date of departure! get exciiited! they're fab! (as are the return labels!)

i have 1 more bridesmaid who has yet to receive her invite, so as soon as i hear from her lovely self, i'll be publicly announcing my 6 favorite gals! (along with a mini-bio! yesss! can't wait!)

that's all i've got! love y'all!

number 6.5

this is my first foray into the blogosphere. bear with me.

i just wanted to give all the ladies who read this wonderful blog a man's insight into some of this wedding biznass. i went with boo (laura) and my 2nd mom (debbie) to meet with potential cake maker(s) and caterer. i do not think it is as bad as the stereotypical male would lead you to believe. the process was not painful or boring. in fact, i like having some input (thank you boo) on what i will be eating on my wedding day. did someone say crabcakes?! nom nom nom.

speaking of food, i believe that it (along with music) set the tone for how much fun guests are gonna have. good food can make a decent wedding great and bad food can make a great wedding horrible. same can be said for music. pro tip for all prospective brides, and those soon to be, it is better to have no music at all than craptastic music (band or dj). anyways, food can serve the same purpose. delicious food brings people together and, in my opinion, makes a crowd happy. and seeing that the people you love most are at your wedding, you should want to make them as happy as you are. plus they give you presents. simple math: great music+ delicious food=happy boo.

number 6

gah!! it hasn't even been a month yet, and i'm already slacking!! last week was a super busy wedding-planning week. mom and i headed up to lynchburg on tuesday and guess what?! we accomplished what we set out to do! yes, ladies and gentlemen, i have found my perfect wedding dress! without giving everything away, here's a sneak peek!!

hah i'm such a tease! this picture is nothing. this is the most beautiful dress that was ever made, as far as i'm concerned, and i feel amazing in it! it makes the big day seem that much closer! we've already put a deposit down on it, so i'm not just dreaming; it really IS mine!

the busy day continued with shopping for bridesmaids dresses, meeting with a potential caterer, and going over cake designs with a baker. i'm really excited about andrew's groom's cake, it just might outshine my own. haha lbh: never gonna happen. haha just kidding, boo! the other reason i've been so busy is because i've been crafting something very special for my bridesmaids. these are some of the most important ladies in my life, so i wanted to spend some of my own time and talent in designing the perfect way to extend my invitation for them to stand beside me on my wedding day. these will be going out this week! i'll post a picture once the girls recieve theirs, so you can see too!

1 more thing: andrew and i met with the rector at the episcopal church of the epiphany in downtown danville yesterday! IT'S OFFICIAL! september 26 is the big day! i'll be printing and finishing up save-the-dates tomorrow and tuesday - hopefully they'll be in the mail by next week. between all that and trying to stay within budget (rearranging some figures here and there), i'm still suprisingly not stressed! everything has gone pretty smoothly, no hang-ups yet! we're currently looking for a band too!!

we've got a lot of things in the works, but with the dress behind me now, everything else will be a breeze right?

number 5

which one to choose?! us girls had SO much fun saturday. we went to 5 different stores, and i tried on about 25 different dresses. i'm having a tough time deciding -- every dress is so pretty! i was able to zero in on a certain type of silhouette that is most flattering, and we decided that ivory looks best with my skintone. mom and i are headed up to lynchburg tomorrow to try out a few bridal salons there and to see what j.crew has to offer in the bridesmaids department! (glad i already have my mind made up on that one!)

one woman at a store that shall remain unnamed brought out a light blue beauty and thought it would look faaabulous on me. thank you for your excellent opinion. not. we did come home with some fun stories and gorgeous pictures, most of which i'll have to keep to myself until the big day. here are some fun ones i am allowed to share:

i had to try on just ONE ballgown. this one was massive - you can't tell all that much in the picture - you'll just have to trust me. mom and mrs. avery thought it would be fun to play dress-up too! here they are: one wearing a crown, the other wearing a veil. presh.

tomorrow's a busy day! dress shopping again and meeting with the caterer and cake decorator! yay! more updates when i have them. love y'all!

number 4

i am so excited, i can hardly contain myself! tomorrow, mrs. avery (andrew's mom), my mom, and i are going to raleigh to look for my wedding dress!!!! we are going to be three very weepy women. i know that as soon as i see myself in that white dress it's going to hit me like ton of bricks -- "i'm getting married!! i'm REALLY getting married!"

as if this picture won't give me the chills already. no, this woman is NOT me. she could be my long lost twin, no? i found this picture on a snippet and ink inspiration board. the photographer was linda chaja. it really is beautiful --makes me want a birdcage veil and a taffetta gown real bad!!

what do y'all think of me as a bride?!

haha. mom and i went and visited with a florist this morning. apparently i have "really good taste" in flowers - another way of saying that everything i wanted was expensive. ouch. luckily i don't have my heart set on any one flower in particular so i was able to have a few options availible. i will tell you that the bridal party's bouquets and mine will be mostly white - as will most of the floral decor at the ceremony and the reception. very clean and crisp! i'm getting more and more excited with every detail that is planned!! on next week's agenda is the caterer and the cake decorator. yum - food - my favorite (andrew's too!!)


i've gotten some great responses about our blog! i'm really excited that people are reading it! the site address will go out on our save-the-dates. my hope is that this will be a place guests can come to get up to date information about our planning, registries, event locations, or just to say hi! feel free to leave a comment-- i'm checking all the time!! love y'all!

number 3

well... i had my first wedding mini-nightmare last night. it had to happen sooner or later, right? might as well be sooner. i call it a mini-nightmare because it wasn't INCREDIBLY horrible, just horrible enough for me to be "perturbed" if it did happen. in my dream, apparently the chosen color for the day was red -- remember, our wedding isn't being held in february or december where red would be fitting for a valentines or christmas themed wedding. just red... in september. now, i don't consider myself a "control freak"; nor have i ever been told that i have that characteristic, but i do have ideas of what i envision for our big day, and it doesn't include red satin sashes or giving out candy canes as favors (not meant to offend anyone who has chosen to do this! just not for me!) . to make matters worse, the flowers were awful! picture: gray flowers with hints of mauve. mmm. again - not at this wedding!

overall, not that bad! i'm glad i got my first little scare out of the way! i also dreamt that they allowed facebook at work and that i had huge diamond earrings to match my engagement ring - both of which aren't happening anytime soon. i don't believe i have too much to worry about in the whole dreams-come-true department!

on a funnier note: when i was in one of my best friends, stacia's, wedding last december, i dreamt that the other bridesmaids were passing me while we were marching down the aisle. i don't know where my brain comes up with these things!

number 2

this weekend i was able to go play with some of my very very best girlfriends in richmond. the weekend was planned to celebrate emily's (my roommate 2/4 years at vt) 24th birthday, enjoy the gorgeous, premature spring weather, and relive the college days by pretending we still get a spring break. it was definitely a bonus that andrew and i got engaged just one week ago, and i was able to share my excitement with my best gals. we definitely made the most of our time together, and i'm already looking forward to our next time together!


shoutout to my girlfriends: thanks so much for being so supportive and excited for andrew and i! i love y'all too much!

i'm planning on working on our save-the-dates tomorrow. i'm making them myself, so when you get yours in the mail, be really excited about it, and be sure to tell me how great of a job i did! hah. i'm just kidding. (not really) i'm very excited about them because (1) i designed everything and (2) i'm a little obsessed with my color scheme - more on that later! i don't want to give TOO much away!

thats it for now! love y'all!

number 1

hey yall! i'm trying out blogging as a new way to keep everyone updated on the progress of our wedding. we'll see if i can stay devoted to posting and actually keeping this current! andrew and i have always talked about getting married, but last week, we made it official. i'm really excited to get the ball rolling on this and put my creativity to good use! check back to see what projects we're working on and fun things i find along the way. love y'all!