gift registry confusion

Today Lance and i went to Bed, Bath and Beyond to officially register for gifts and let me tell you it was awesome. You get to create a list of all the things you want in your home that people will actually buy for you! Its going to be like a Christmas. We started off in the cookware section and spent a longtime debating about which Callhalon set to get. We decided on the more expensive set because it looked cooler:

It is a 13 piece stainless steel set and dishwasher safe.

We also registered for a really nice knife block set, a stainless steel universal steamer, a giant pasta cooker, a fondue set and most exciting of all..... a jigger.

Since we are *hopefully* moving in to a place that has all stainless steel appliances we chose to keep that theme with our registry items.It is so exciting for the things that I have dreamed about owning since I was a little kid shopping in home store with my mom are actually going to be mine.... and I don't have to pay for them!! It's so exciting!

Although we registered for a lot of things... and decided on a bathroom theme, we still haven't decided on both bedding and china. Tomorrow we plan on going to Target and Belk to see what they have to offer in terms of bedding.... but we are unsure about the whole china situation.

We both agree that we will never use the super fine china.... but in terms of the everyday china, we want it to be of high quality and not something that we can just go out and buy. We've been debating on 2 sets..... Lenox Opal Innocence Carved (which we can get at Bed, Bath and Beyond (BB&B) as well as Belk):



or Lenox Vibe (which is only available and BB&B.)




We love both collections and really can't decide! We know that we want to use white so that we can pair it with other pieces that come and go as styles and trends change, but in terms of which we want to use everyday.... we are so unsure. It's such a big deal what china you register for and since it is so expensive I know we can't have both. Price also isn't a huge factor because there is only a $10 difference between the two sets.

We also didn't register for flatware or stemware because of the same reason. These pieces have to match the china so until we decide which china to get we can't chose the flatware or stemware. Who knew that it would be so hard to decide what we wanted to eat off of and drink out of, hopefully we can decide soon.

i just love weddings

Today I was honored to be the Maid of Honor in my friend Deanna's wedding.



The wedding was held on her now husband's parents farm in Greeneville, Tennessee. It was one of the most beautiful outdoor weddings I have ever been to with the breathtaking views of the Appalachian Mountains. It wasn't too hot and the rain held off thank goodness. The reception was held next to the river under a beautiful tent. The bouquets and boutonnieres were made out of sunflowers and there was blue gingham print on the tables. It was absolutely beautiful and perfectly fitting for Deanna and Frankie.

I enjoy being in and at weddings to get ideas for myself and to share in the very special moment for the couple. There is just something about weddings that just brings out the best in people and proves that love really does exist and life can be wonderful.

more and more photographers

i think i should have started this planning a year and a half ago... its not like i wasn't engaged then.

i'm getting very overwhelmed. i feel that I am so far behind in my planning compared to others and scared that it won't turn out right. I'm afraid that I'm not going to be able to have the wedding that I want without paying more for it. I just keep praying that everything will be okay.

Now on to photography:

So far I have emailed Jonathon Campbell, Camryn Holt Photography, Kristen Steele Photography, Julie Roberts Photography, Eric McCarty and Joe Hendricks Photography. I love all their work they have posted online so I'll first have to eliminate some by cost alone. Then I plan on setting up meetings with 3 or 4 whose cost is good so I can get to see more of their photography and get to know them as people. I've read a lot about how a great photographer treats their client more like a friend than a client and thats what I want. I want them to really capture who we are and the type of pictures I want. Hopefully once we meet with them we'll know and can maybe talk the price down :)

Reception, Pocketfolds, and Photographers... Oh My!

I came home this weekend for my brother's high school graduation





and decided that it was time to start planning. With the wedding 8 months away I need to get on the ball because it will be here before I know it. I'm planning on quitting my job in June so I can come home and spend more time on the wedding but I have a feeling that starting now is what is best. Needless to say I have my work cut out for me.
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This morning I dragged myself out of be at 7:30 to meet with the events coordinator at Boxwood Bistro at 8:15. I was about 5 minutes late....




I was so excited because this place is A-MAZ-ING. It perfectly personifies what I want for my reception and has so much character! She had already met with my mom and discussed preliminary reception plans, but it was my job to ask further questions and discuss cost. Well cost is definitely something that it will be. I found out that ordinarily they charge $10,000 to rent the restaurant out for the night. JUST THE RENTAL FEE AND DECORATIONS... FOOD NOT INCLUDED. Needless to say I was disappointed because $10,000 is our ENTIRE budget. But since we are getting married on a "holiday" that they are not normally open for hopefully the cost will go down considerably, but we'll just have to see. In the meantime I'm going to be scoping out other reception locations that cost considerably less and maybe I can just have Boxwood Bistro cater.


After I got back home, disappointed, I decided to attempt my DIY pocketfolds so that I could order that paper. It actually turned out really well. The first attempt was a complete failure, but the second one was perfect! I was so excited that I actually was able to make something myself and it look good!






Pretty impressive huh? The paper I will be ordering will actually be black, however white was all I had available to purchase from work in small quantities. Now that I know I can make this and it doesn't take that much time I will have to order my paper soon. The invitations don't need to go out until late October, but since I'll be in school then I would like to have the pocketfold part finished before August.


I have also been emailing a bunch of photographers in the area to find out prices and set up meetings in June.. I had no idea that it cost so much to have someone take pictures and create a book for you. I really want something that is all inclusive.... engagement pictures, all day of the wedding, and then an album created for me as well as all the pictures on a dvd. I also would like someone who will do a "trash the dress" thing after and include bridal portraits... all for less than $3500.... I'm not sure this is possible. It is just another expense I didn't realize was so much. We really need to have engagement pictures taken so that we can create and send out the Save the Date magnets. Since we are having a holiday wedding I would like to send them out sooner rather than later... like July 15. Hopefully I can find someone that is good and inexpensive... but we'll see... I'm beginning to think we might have to up the budget.

From the Beginning

I've been enagaged since September 2005, however decided to defer our wedding until we were out of school and a bit older than 18. Now that we are 23 and college graduates we've decided that it is FINALLY time to get married and start our life together. This blog will chronicle the journey of our wedding planning including all the ups and downs (but hopefully more ups) as well as my attempt as a DIY bride.



unfortunately we don't have any pictures of the proposal... but this picture was taken in florida circa 2007