Successful Dress Fitting

In addition to having both of my bridal showers in the last 10 days (which I can't wait to share with all of you!), but I also had my second dress fitting. I was very nervous for my first dress fitting a few weeks ago. I'm not really sure what it was but as we drove into the parking lot I started to feel a little nauseous and sweaty. Later that evening, when I was telling my bridesmaid, Amanda, about the situation we laughed tremendously remembering the episode "Change of a dress" from Sex and the City. (For those of you who aren't crazy SATC fanatics, it's an episode in which Carrie tries on a wedding dress and has an allergic reaction and panic attack.)

In case you want to check it out, here's the only video I could find. It's kind of a long video so if you want to only see the dress experiment gone awry scene, skip to 2 minutes and 8 seconds in. :)

Now don't get me wrong, I may have felt a little light headed a nervous, but in no way was my body rejecting the idea of marriage. I'm pretty sure the reason for my nerves was my concern that my dress wasn't going to fit. Back in May when I ordered my dress I requested a size smaller than I really was. I wasn't happy with my weight and I made sure to give myself the motivation to make a change.

My first dress fitting was nine months later and I only really started working on changing my bodies for two months. When it came time to try on the dress there was some good news and some bad news.

The bad news was that the dress didn't zip up all the way. Instantly I was crushed. The good news was that the dress would also need to be taken in. It turned out that the dress wasn't able to zip because it was too tight on the very top thanks to my rib cage. But thanks to some change in my habits the dress needed to be taken in throughout the hip area.

After my measurements were taken and the pins were in place the seamstress started working on the hem of my dress and adding the bustle.

My second dress fitting was just a few days ago. This time the nerves were gone and I was back to feeling excited to try my dress on again. This time when I stepped into the dress it zipped up quickly and easily and I breathed a sigh of relief. It was a perfect fit! I stepped onto the platform in front of the mirror and I almost cried. I loved it!

With only 6 weeks until the big day I'm running out of time for the dress to be altered again. Rather than lose more weight, my goal is to tone up my upper body, get a little tan, and look picture ready for the big day.

Any fun dress alteration stories? Any tailoring nightmares stories? I'll like to hear the good, the bad, and the fun!

Just 40 More Days

That's right!! There are just 40 days left until Zac and I tie the knot! I can't believe how quickly time has flown by. We started out with 16 months to plan our wedding and now with just over a month left we still have plenty to do.

The last two weeks have been busy, busy, busy but also VERY fun. In the last week alone I've had my second dress fitting and attended both of my bridal showers. I can't wait to share all of the amazing details from both parties. I had such a fantastic time at both events.

The first shower was a Feather the Nest themed affair that took place last Saturday at my home.

The second shower was a fun cocktail party hosted by my bridesmaids last night. There was a lot of champagne, lace, and laughs!

I'm sorting out photographs from both parties and there will be plenty of details shared this week!

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!

Wolf Lakes Open House

Saturday, March 10th was the open house event at our wedding venue, Wolf Lakes Park. Zac and I were excited to see the venue again, walk around the grounds, and perhaps get some decorating ideas for the ceremony. Zac was mostly excited to eat the food. (We were going to have an opportunity to try a sample of our food options so that we could pick out our menu.)

The weather was pretty perfect and the day turned out to be really fun. My parents were happy that they went with us since my dad had only seen photos of the Wolf Lakes on the venue's website. After walking around and seeing the place in person, he said he thought it was absolutely beautiful.

Here are a few pictures from the day:

Zac and I arriving at the venue. They had all of the couples take a photograph as soon as we walked in.

The linen options were displayed on a table by the entrance. Zac and I have selected the brighter shade of yellow for our table napkins. At the wedding, these napkins will be displayed on the tables in the glasses just as they are seen here.

We chose Barb's Cakery to make out wedding cake. Here is their cake display:

One great thing about the open house was that we were able to see what the ceremony area looks like with the seating set up. The Lakeside venue, which is where our ceremony will be held, has angled seating rather than straight rows. We have decided not to have the seat covers and sashes as you can see in the picture below. (It was an additional expense that we couldn't justify.) So our seating at the ceremony will look a little different. 

The alter had some beautiful decorations set up by our florist, Brown Bunny Flowers. We love the vases on either side filled with baby's breath. The decorations gave us an idea of what we could do for the alter on our wedding day.

This is the aisle that I will be walking down. In May, the plants will be full and the walkway will be covered in greenary. I'm a little nervous about the steep walk down in my wedding shoes, but thankfully I'll have my dad to lean on during that walk.

The buffet line during the reception should go very quickly. The venue has a newly built double sided buffet that should allow for our guests to get their food without a long wait.

Throughout the open house, there were a few presentations by Doves Away. The releasing of the does was pretty amazing. 

One bride and groom couple were asked to help with the demonstration.

Though we won't be releasing doves at our own wedding, Zac and I thought that it was quite the sight from the audience.

This is the fountain on the English Garden side of the venue.

It's a beautiful spot for photos.

We loved the decor that was set up at the English Gardens altar. The yellow flowers hanging from mason jars covered in lace...amazing!

One thing for our guests to look forward to on the wedding day are boat rides around the lake.

After walking the grounds of the whole venue, Zac and I headed back to the Lakeside altar to see if we could incorporate the decor that we had seen on the English Gardens side. Don't we look puzzled? :P

The whole day was wonderful! We successfully picked out our menu and got a bunch of ideas for decor. In addition we were also able to talk to a few of our vendors who were at the event. We will be meeting with our photographer in just a few weeks to take care of some final details. Just 7 more weeks until the big day!

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

My first bridal shower is a week from tomorrow (Saturday, March 17)!!! I am so excited to see everyone and the enjoy the day. The shower is going to take place and my home. My mom is setting everything up in the backyard, and I'm sure it will be beautiful!

This afternoon I decided to check the 10 day forecast to see what weather we should anticipate for the event. Look what I found.......

Eeeeekkkk! Looks like it's supposed to rain! Nooo! Hopefully things will change in the next week and the forecast will show a beautiful sun picture underneath Saturday's date.

Everyone do an anti-rain dance, and think sunny thoughts! :)

Rehearsal Dinner and Post Wedding Brunch

As the wedding gets closer so do the many events that come along with it. In addition to all of the fun events I discussed in the last post, we also have the rehearsal dinner and the post wedding day brunch to look forward to.

Last year when we first began planning our wedding and picked a day we settled on the first Saturday in May, which turned out to be Cinco de Mayo. At this point we were planning on having a backyard style wedding at Zac's grandparents home. When we eventually decided to have our wedding at Wolf Lakes Park instead we found out that Saturday was unavailable. So instead of a Saturday, Cinco de Mayo wedding, our big day will be on Friday, May 4th.

This change of date actually worked out very well for us. Not only is having a Friday wedding less expensive, it also frees up our Saturday to have a post wedding day brunch that embraces the theme of Cinco de Mayo. A themed brunch will be a lot more fun than a themed wedding. We're hoping that the brunch will give our out of town guests the chance to mingle and relax before heading home.

We have tons of ideas for decorations and food for the brunch. Zac and I are excited to have the party at our house the day after the wedding. The backyard is getting a little makeover (which I will be sharing a little later) and we plan to set up as much as possible before the wedding. Our goal is only to worry about the food and drinks the morning of the party.

With the brunch details taken care of, the only event left to think about was the rehearsal dinner. Zac and I didn't give it much thought at first. We figured that we would have everyone join us at a restaurant. Going through the list of restaurants close to our home, we chose Daily Grill as our favorite. It has such a great atmosphere and we had a great time last year at our engagement dinner.

The weekend of Zac's 30th birthday, we threw out the restaurant rehearsal dinner idea, when his mom, Tammie, came up with a much better plan. Zac's party took place in our backyard with tables set up on the lawn underneath our tree. Tammie suggested that with a few more lights added to the space, our backyard would be perfect for the rehearsal dinner. Zac and I completely agreed.

To go along with the Cinco de Mayo weekend, we'll be having a mexican cantina themed rehearsal dinner. The best part is that since our post wedding day brunch has the same theme we don't have to worry about decorating our space for more than one party. Since our wedding is on a Friday, our rehearsal will be the night before. Our Thursday will be spent setting up tables and chairs, and decorating for the mexican cantina rehearsal dinner that evening. Our table and chair rental should last for a few days which should allow for us to leave everything set and ready for the post wedding day brunch. We want to make things as easy as possible on everyone who is helping us out with these events and having the rehearsal dinner at our house will definitely make things easier.

I can't wait to share all the details of these events. Just another 56 days until our rehearsal! Ahhhh! :)

Two Months To Go!

This morning I got this Facebook comment from my bridesmaid Kim:

Lovey......2 months from today we will be making more memories in one day that will be remembered forever!!! I am so excited for all of the events leading up:) Love you chick!

Isn't that so sweet?! I just love her.

Today is March 4th, which means that there are only two more months until our wedding!!!

That also means that everything is going to start to get crazy....but in a good way. There are so many things coming up in the next two months and I am so excited for the fun to start. Thankfully I have some very understanding managers who are able and willing to give me time off for all of the upcoming events.

So what's on the calender? Here we go:

March 10 - Wolf Lakes Park Open House

Our wedding venue hosts an annual open house event for all of their brides and grooms. Each couple gets 6 tickets to the event, so Zac and I will be bringing our parents along with us. During the open house, we will have the opportunity to walk the grounds, taste our food and alcohol options, meet and speak with different vendors, and talk wedding with other Wolf Lakes Park brides and grooms. Zac is expecting to see a few of his co-workers at the event and I hope to see my friend Rebecca whose sister, Sara, is getting married in April. (Sara is also blogging about her wedding journey. Check it out here.)

I'm super excited about the event. Not only will it be another chance for us to see the venue and take notes about last minute details that we might be forgetting, but it will be the first time that my dad has seen the grounds. Though he has seen pictures of Wolf Lakes Park online he hasn't had the opportunity to visit the venue. I'm excited to see what he thinks of the place.

March 17 - Bridal Shower #1

In just two weeks, my mom is hosting a bridal shower for me at my home. In honor of my love of owls, the theme is Feather The Nest. I'm looking forward to seeing everybody and I hope that the weather plays nice as the event will be taking place in our backyard. My mom has been very excited about throwing the shower. I often get phone calls from her filling me in on updates and ideas for the shower. It should be a fantastic party.

March 24 - Bridal Shower #2

My super sweet, amazing bridesmaids are hosting a second bridal shower for me the week after my Feather The Nest bridal shower. As most of the guests attending the shower hosted by my mom will be family, the guests at my second bridal shower will be friends from high school, college, and work. The shower is going to be an evening cocktail party. I need to get on the ball and find a dress! :)

March 30 - In Town Bachelorette

Before the out of town bachelorette weekend in April, I'm headed out for a night of fun with my girls here in town. It's sure to be a fun night of dancing and a few cocktails.

April 13 - April 15 - Out of Town Bachelorette Weekend

The bachelorette party is going to be amazing! The girls and I are headed to San Diego for some fun in the sun by day and some drinking and dancing by night. If all the girls are able to attend, there will be 6 of us travelling down south for the weekend. In addition, my brother's girlfriend, Deanna, lives in San Diego so hopefully she'll be going out with us at least one of the nights.

When it comes to taking trips with the girls, San Diego has always been our go to spot. The stories we have from our trips to S.D. are ridiculous, and I'm excited to add another one to the book. San Diego has also become tradition for bachelorette parties in our group.

Sarah's Bachelorette Party 2009

Amy's Bachelorette Party 2010

Two weeks after the bachelorette party weekend Zac and I are getting married!

In addition to all these wonderful events Sarah, Amy, and I all have birthdays and little Tyler David will be born! These next two months are going to be out of control. I must remember to hydrate!

Bridesmaid Dresses: Amanda's Dress

Back in October, the girls and I set about changing their bridesmaid dresses from David's Bridal selections to different, less predictable options. After a lot of searching we came up with our final selections. (Click here to check it out.) Later that month we found out that Amy and her husband, Scott, were expecting their first child. Though little Tyler should be arriving before the wedding, we decided to get Amy a different dress; one that would be more comfortable for her post baby body. She ordered a dress from a maternity store online, and once the dress came in we realized that it was more pink than grey. Thankfully, we had a few other options available, and we were able to quickly change her dress with no problem.

Meanwhile, Sarah, Kim, and Amanda ordered their dresses and we thought that all was ready to go. Sarah and Kim received their dresses with no problems and with only a few alterations needed. (Kim's dress was a little big on her and needed to be taken in, and Sarah's was a little long.) A few months had gone by and Amanda still hadn't received her dress.

Amanda had chosen this beautiful dress from a store online:

When a few months had gone by and she still hadn't received the dress, Amanda began sending email after email to the company. Unfortunately, she did not get a response back. Eventually, she disputed the charge through PayPal, got her money back, and we were on the hunt again for another beautiful dress for Miss Amanda.

The search didn't last very long. Amanda was on her game and quickly found a few options that she loved. This dress was the one that we both loved the most:

Isn't it sassy and sexy?! I think that it will look great on her. Amanda plans to order it in the next day or so and it should be arriving in about 3 weeks. Cross your fingers, knock on wood, say a prayer, etc. that this dress works out for us!

So our dress selections have gone from this...

..... to this, and I couldn't be happier. I think the dresses are all going to look fantastic together. They all have their own personality but they mesh together pretty well. I love the different shades of grey. I can't wait to see how the pictures look with all of the girls and I together. Just a few more months until the big day!

RSVPs Are Rolling In

A few weeks ago Zac and I sent out our wedding invitations. Since then we have been excited to check the mail everyday and find RSVP envelopes waiting for us. It's so nice to discover one or two of these little grey envelopes hiding in the sea of junk mail and bills.

I've read a few stories from other blogs and wedding websites about brides and grooms getting back RSVP cards without names. It can bring some confusion wondering who will or won't be attending the big event. To make sure we didn't have to worry about this confusion, I decided to create a way of tracking who our RSVP cards went to. Before placing all of the RSVP cards in the invitation envelopes, I wrote a small number on the back of each card. Here's an example:

The number on the card was matched up to a a guest. I kept a list with guests and their coordinating numbers.

This numbering method has already come in handy. We've received a few RSVPs without names and without the numbers on the back of each card I would have been clueless in regards to who had sent back a response. Instead, it was super easy to flip over the card, check the number, and refer back to my list.

Has anyone else used a similar tracking system? How long did it take to get back te majority of your RSVP cards? I'd love to hear how this went for other brides. 

We're getting Maui'd

Our honeymoon is booked! When things get a little stressful, and we begin to realize that there are still a bunch of things still left to do, we just relax and remember that 1) at the end of all of this, we'll be married, and 2) in just a few short months we'll be in Hawaii!

You might remember that last year we started thinking about where we wanted to spend our honeymoon.(Read about it here.) Though there were a few different places that we discussed, the idea that kept coming up was Hawaii. Zac has been to Hawaii a few times and loves it, and having never been, I was excited at the idea. So, just one week after saying 'I do', Zac and I will be on a plane heading to Maui. Zac's family has friends who live in Maui and who have generously offered their home to us for our visit. We are so grateful for their generousity and we can't wait for a relaxing, fun honeymoon.

Befor our plane takes off, Zac and I will be driving down to San Diego for a few days of fun. My older brother and his girlfriend are sweet enough drop us off at the airport and watch after our car while we're gone. It'll be nice to spend a few days with my brother. Since he lives 6 hours away, we don't see each other often.

Just a few more months!!! We're so excited :)

Anyone have any fun honeymoon stories or plans they'd like to share? Been to Maui and have ideas of things for us to do? I'd love to hear it all!