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4.29.2011

I keep forgetting!!

I guess with all that's going on, I keep forgetting (even though I STILL research it like crazy!!) that we are going on an amazing vacation in 2 months...our honeymoon!

It seriously keeps slipping my mind!  I guess I'm so caught up in making the wedding perfect, I just forget that we get to go relax afterwards.  I am definitely ready for white sandy beaches (and a Pina Colada!!).

Our schedule is booked solid from now until our wedding weekend.  I know it's going to make our wedding feel like it is "tomorrow".  That makes me very happy, but also a bit sad that it will all be over.  I have thoroughly enjoyed this planning process and talking my mom like 500 times per day about it all!

So, here's to just 2 more months this Tuesday!!
CHEERS!

4.26.2011

Thumbprint Guestbook Tree.

I am sooooo excited about our guestbook!  We are not doing your traditional "sign on the line" type of book!

We are doing this!


This poster will be laying on the table for guests to come "Leaf their thumbprint"!  How cool is that!  Everyone will use the green ink pads, print their thumbs, then sign by their print!  I can not wait to have this hanging on my wall forever.  

Paul leaving his mark
Here it is, hanging on our wall!


If any of you are in the market, check out GreyDogDesigns on Etsy.  She is so great and very helpful!  Thanks for all your help, April!!

4.25.2011

I'm ready!

It's been really crazy lately.  Really crazy.

I am trying to learn how to take a deep breath, not get worked up, anxious, or annoyed so easily.  There will always be things that will go wrong, or just not the way you had planned.  I am not there yet (not there at all yet) but I am working on it day by day.

It has really been sinking in lately that...I AM GETTING MARRIED!  I am ready to stop worrying about the little things and seriously enjoy these last few months before it's all over and I begin my new life as Mrs. Parks.  I am so ready to marry my best friend.  I am so ready to see him on my wedding day.  I am so ready to say "forever".

It is so crazy to think of yourself as the bride!  The one this whole day is about (well, one of two).  It is very surreal, and sometimes it is hard to believe.  I still can't picture it being ME at the alter!  But, whether I can picture it or not, I AM READY!!!

4.20.2011

freaking.out.

In the beginning of this wedding process, everything was going so well!  I mean, I ordered my dress online, got it in, and it was perfect (well, nothing a few alterations couldn't handle)!  I have been able to make decisions fairly easily, and everything has just been falling into place.  I wasn't quite sure what all the fuss was over about being stressed out.

UNTIL NOW!

It seems like nothing is going my way lately.
Here we go...

1.  We had to cancel our engagements pictures last weekend b/c of the weather (very windy).  Well, that's what we thought at 7:30am when us and the photographer made the call.  Annnnd, of course it was the WRONG CALL b/c the weather turned out to be G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S!  It was too late by that time to take them.  FRUSTRATION.

2.  My bridals are scheduled for this Friday!  My mom is driving down from AR Fri morning.  My dad is picking up my portrait bouquet from my wedding florist in AR tomorrow so that my mom can bring it with her.  My hair consult is today at 1:15, then my real appointment is Friday at 2:45.  My portraits are outside in the woods at 5:30 on Friday.  All scheduled out so lovely :)  Except mother nature might decide to let the sky fall out starting today and through the weekend.  I don't know the last time you tried, but it's PRETTY DIFFICULT to predict the WEATHER!!!  What do I do?  I'm trying to ride it out as long as possible and see what this crazy southern weather will do.

3.  Me engagement ring is a Tacori design (yes, that means knock off!  we had it made :) ).  I have been searching the metroplex for this oooooone particular wedding band that goes w/ this ring (according to their website).  I finally found a lovely jeweler in Dallas who has contacted Tacori and is ordering one in for me to try on so I can see how it looks before purchasing!  So I've been waiting for a little over 2 weeks now for the ring to come in from, and about an hour ago, I got a phone call from the jeweler that Tacori sent the WRONG RING!!!  So, now what?  I sit and wait.  Again.  And hope they have the correct ring to send in for me to try.  Because if they don't, I don't know what I'll do!

4.  It took me a few months to find a salon that would do hair on a Sunday and on a holiday weekend!  (wedding is Sunday, July 3).  I finally found one!  I knew they were going to charge extra for having to open on a day they are not typically open.  I was fine with that and very much appreciate them doing it.  What I didn't know is that it is going to cost double for everyone to get their hair done.  I am sick to my stomach.  What a mess!

5.  I went with my friend Tiffany last Friday to get manis and pedis for all of these "so-called" pictures!  I wanted to try the new shellac polish, thinking it would still last for my bridals a week later!  It was the WORST nail salon experience of my life!  They got all messed up in the drying process (something w/ the way the polish dried).  So they had to completely re-do them.  I am not sure if any of you have tried the new gel polish, but go w/ the OPI brand, NOT shellac!!!  It is a much longer process than just getting a regular mani w/ regular polish.  We got there are 2 and I didn't leave until FIVE PM!!!!  When they redid my nails, the decided to give me another manicure, which means cutting of the cuticles, etc.  Only, they had already been cut, so there was nothing left to cut off!  So, they CUT ME!  Anyway, my nails turned out ok and my toes look great!  Annnnnd....all of that, and no engagements and possibly no bridals.  I am not one who gets manis and pedis often.  It is normally for a special occasion.

BREATHE!  I keep telling myself to just breathe.  I realize in the grand scheme of things, these are all very minor hick-ups.  But, it sure doesn't feel that way to this bride!

OH, and oooone more thing....after our what supposed to be engagement shoot, I was scheduled to go take my dress back to the alterations lady b/c I decided it was too long and I was having trouble walking in it.  She called me around noon that day letting me know we were going to have to reschedule b/c they had been out of power due to the high winds for a day or so.  Thankfully, this all got taken care of on Monday, when I was able to take my dress in.  And I picked it up yesterday! It is perfect :)  Ok, that is all...just thought it was better to end on a positive note :)

4.15.2011

Disaster Area!

No matter how hard I try these days, I can not for the life of me keep my study clean!  Every single time I straighten it up and put all of my stuff away, I come back in with an idea and string it all out again!  It is a never ending cycle!  I think I need more table space.  That MIGHT help, but then the tables would just be a mess too.  I guess it is the artist in me, we are not clean people!  Don't get me wrong, I like a clean work area, but sometimes it just gets messy (ok, a lot of times!)

See for yourself!


4.14.2011

what would you do?

Remember back at the first of the year, after lots of searching, I said Sean and I finally found the perfect place to go for our honeymoon?  Well....looks like things might be changing!

I am a trip advisor addict!  I can't stop.  I should probably stop, but I just can't!

So, the place we have chosen is a boutique hotel w/ all-inclusive.  The all-inclusive is a new option they have come up with back in January I believe.  Here's the problem...the reviews are starting to go down hill, and down hill and down hill.  Apparently they do not have the staff to keep up with the demand of all of their customers.  I think word has gotten out about this place, and it's hurting it!  It's not such a private, hidden little fantasy anymore.   Their are kids EVERYWHERE and if there is a wedding, forget any service at all, basically.  How can a place go from TOP NOTCH (like, I'm not kidding, not ONE bad thing said about it, other than the beds are too firm) to almost every review complaining!

We have options...we can still cancel our room reservation.  We have 2 tickets flying into Cancun, MX.  So, really, we can go anywhere that is driving distance from Cancun.  There is an Excellence Resort just down the beach from our first hotel option.  It actually has the same owner as 1st option, but it is a large, adults only all-inclusive.  Not the smaller, boutique style we were wanting.

So what would you do?  Would you stick to your original plan (and wait over 30 mins for 1 drink?!) or would you switch to the larger, more crowded, but great service resort?  The rooms are almost identical, so we aren't giving anything up other than a more quiet place...

WHAT WOULD YOU DO?!

4.11.2011

from wine to gardening.

We just cooked this for dinner, and oh my goodness it was so good!  We had to open a bottle of white wine for the sauce.  I am always more than willing to open a fresh bottle for a recipe.  That must means the meal will be that much better with a glass of wine to tag along :)

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/03/chicken-and-mushrooms-in-garlic-white.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+weightwatcherspointsrecipes+%28Gina%27s+Skinny+Recipes%29

Dinner is over, a few glasses of vino have been consumed.  Now what?  Leave it to Sean to find something else to do for the night..."Let's go plant the plants we just bought!".  So, outside I go.  Hopefully they will end up in the ground :)

weekend of yummy food.

This past weekend, Sean and I had lots of yummy food (nothing new, really!)
Friday night, some friends came over for some drinks on the patio before heading to Brio, a delicious italian bistro!  Sean and I had never been so it was nice to try somewhere new.  We had great conversation and enjoyed catching up with the Ochs.  Sean and Ryan grew up together and he and his wife don't live very far from us.  They have 2 adorable kiddos which keeps them very busy, so we don't get to see them very much.  But, it's so nice that us girl's get along b/c you never know how you and your significant others, "others" will get along :)

On Saturday, Sean and I woke up and worked in the yard popping weeds and crab grass out of our yard.  It's a lot of work, but it is starting to pay off.  Our yard is finally looking spring ready!

Around 2 o'clock, we picked up Sean's parents and headed to our local town square Crawfish Krawl!
We went last year and had a really good time.  The Ochs met us (2 days in a ROW we got to hang out
with them!) with their 2 kids and we all sat and baked in the sun for a few hours.  It was VERY hot!

Sean and I waiting in the crawfish line!


Big pot of crawfish going into the boiler!


YUMMY corn and potatoes!


We got the first scoops out of this fresh batch!


After a long line of waiting, we finally got to enjoy our crawfish and beer :)


I think we might have had a few too many beers.  We came home and Sean fell sound asleep on the floor for an hour or two :)

4.02.2011

trip to arkansas.

so i am seriously behind on keeping my blog updated.  this post is a few weeks old, but still blog worthy :)  it's a long one!  sorry :(

a few weekends ago sean and i drove to arkansas with a packed full schedule of wedding appointments!  our first stop was friday night in little rock (maumelle to be exact) to stay with a good friend of mine.  this stop was a little out of the way, but necessary.  this friend is able to print all of our invitations and extras for FREE!  so i designed them, and he printed them!  so we had to drop in to view proofs.  we got all the business out of the way and then went for mexican and margaritas!  yumm!
here is a sneak peak of the invitations...
eeeeeeearly saturday morning, sean and i got up and hit the road for fayetteville!  next up, event rentals, florist, and caterer.  we had one appointment after the other...makes me tired just thinking about it :)

we picked out our table linens, napkins, and a few other things.  we even took a fake centerpiece to lay out on the table to make sure we liked the way it looked!  my mom did all of this and it looked great!
after this we were all starving (and how my dad and sean were able and willing to sit through all of my mom's and mine back and forth i will never understand, but thank you!) so we went down to dickson street for lunch.  my mom and i barely got finished before we were rushing out to meet our florist (the boys didn't tag along for this one, which was fine by us!).

i love our florist!  her personality and mine totally clicked and i felt like i have known her a long time.  good sign.  so we brought in our basket full of goodies to show her what we had in mind, and our centerpiece from the above picture, quickly morphed into something more like this....
happy with the result :)  we talked about everything imaginable about bouquets, flowers on cake, the guy's boutonnieres.  we covered it all!  thank goodness, check that worry off the list!  here is a preview of how my cake will look...

moving right along.

our next appointment was at 2pm at my parent's house w/ the caterer!  we ruuuuuuushed as fast as we could to get from fayetteville to bentonville in time to greet her.  no such luck.  when we pulled up, she and the boys were sitting around the yard petting the animals waiting us to get there to "direct" things.  haha!  we talked about layout of how it will go, the flow of things, etc.  i can not WAIT to eat this yummy food!!!

our laaaast appointment of the day, WINE TASTINGS!!!  we all hopped in the car and drove over the state line into missouri to the liquor store!  we met with staff there to help us decide on wine and beer.  it was the perfect way to end a very very busy day!  lots of things to check off my list, which is a very good feeling!

on sunday morning my mom and i drove BACK to fayetteville to look for me a veil and ribbon for a craft project we are doing.

we once again were rushing back home to meet with the wedding coordinator at 1 at the house.  this was the best appointment yet b/c we got sooo much figured out and i feel 10 million times better about our "at home" wedding reception.  phew!

the rest of sunday afternoon was spent in the barn working on other projects for the wedding....





last but not least...signature drink cocktail tastings by my father the bartender.  so fun, and so yummy!

(sean felt i needed to wear his hat for this picture.)
it was a great great weekend!  we always have the best time when we go visit the mountain.  i love it up there :)