Ring Question

Once again I'm thinking about the most random things pertaining to the wedding. I've been thinking about the ceremony and the giving and recieving of the wedding rings.

Now my question is, what do you do with your engagement ring?????

Do you wear it?

Do you not wear it?

Do you wear it on your right hand?

If you're a married gal, what did you do?

If you're an engaged gal, what are you going to do?

If you're neither what do you think you'd do?

I'd love to know because I don't have a clue!!!!

On an unrelated note, the interview went well, I fumbled on a couple of questions and they gave a dang problem solving test, hello I'm the worst test taker in the world, it's nice to meet you! The good thing about this job is they want to move fast so they told me they'd have a decision made by Friday!!! I'll be on pins and needles until I hear!

Interview!

I have an interview in an hour and a half!!! I hate interviews! I get so nervous and feel like I'm fumbling on my words! Fiance actually likes interviews, I think it's just because he has a scottish accent and the people who are interviewing him either can't really tell what he's saying or are just entranced by the accent.

Anyway I went to Macy's yesterday and bought a new suit because I am in desperate need of suits! They had some seriously cute suits but I was trying to go for the I'm sophisticated and professional look so I got a nice navy one and the jacket fit perfectly however I didn't bother to try on the pants.....when I got home Fiance asked if I had tried the pants on and I said yes, a little white lie that ended up biting me in the toosh! I put the pants on today and they are old lady pants!!!! You know the ones that have the ridiculously high waste. Ugh! I'm wearing the stupid suit anyway, I'm hoping that my Brooks Brothers french cuff shirt will offset the nightmare of the high waste!! Say a prayer for me!!!!!

Flower Girl Gifts, Part II

So to go in the cute basket for my two little flower girls I got them this book.

It's so cute and I figured it would be something they could look through and kinda sorta comprehend what they'll be doing the next day, they are only 2 years old after all. Added bonus the little bunny Emily is going to be in her Aunt's wedding so I thought it was even more appropriate! : )

Bridesmaids Gifts, Part I

So I know that I posted about the tartan totes (and I'm still probably going to get one for my mom) but when I went to the mall with my mom this weekend I found the perfect totes for my girls!!!

These are called enVbags and they are awesome! The main purpose of these are for shopping, instead of using plastic bags or paper bags, use some of these! But they are also great for the beach, gym, or anything else your little heart desires!! And at a whopping $10.95, how can you go wrong!? I think my favorite thing about them, other than the price and the fact that they are super cute, is that they come in these tiny little zippered bags all folded up that are perfect for throwing in a suitcase and bringing fun souveniers back from a vacation or honeymoon! I had to get one for myself as well (in the striped pattern) I know my girls are going to love them!

Tagged!

I was tagged by Miss Etiquettely Correct to list 5 songs I am embarrassed to admit I like.

Here are the rules:*Link to the person who tagged you and post the rules on your blog.
*Share 5 songs you are embarrassed to admit to others that you like and tell why.
*Tag 7 random people at the end of post.

Barbie Girl – This is one of those songs that I have to sing whenever I hear it, but last year when Fiance and I were driving home from a wedding it came on and we sang the whole song with him singing "ken" and me singing "barbie" it was hilarious!
Hey Ya - Andre 3000 – This song wouldn't be embarrassing normally, but my girlfriends and I actually have specific dance moves to this song and yes it wasn't that long ago! :)
Devil went down to Georgia – Charlie Daniels Band – Love it, Love it, Love it, always have. It's a southern thing I guess.
Fancy – Reba McIntyre – This goes back to my days when I was a hard core country music fan and this song always gave me goosebumps, still does!
Pina Colada – Rupert Holmes – The lyrics to this song are so awful but there's just something about it that I love, I really don't know what it is but it makes me happy.

I am never very good at knowing who has done what tags - so here are the people I am tagging, but if you have already done it, no worries :) Happy Daily, Riley, Topanga Bay, My Life as a Married Girl, Preppy Bride, Belle I am, Bell of the Ball

Flower Girl Gifts, Part I

I love my little nieces and I'm so glad that they are going to be in my wedding! I love my nephews too, but there's four of them and I didn't want to choose just two of them and I definitely didn't want to have all four of them in the wedding!! So I decided to just go with the little girls, since there's only two of them! : )I really wanted to get them some cute flower girl gifts and I knew that I wanted to get some kind of basket to put all of the gifts in. I thought about doing a pretty white wicker basket but then I went to World Market and found these.
I got them the one with the pink flowers, I thought it would be something colorful and different and they could use it to store their toys in. I also found there flower girl dresses at Marshalls!!! I got them right around Easter and they were only $24.95!!! I was so excited about what a deal I had gotten and they look so precious in them!!!

5 Things Friday!

This weekend is going to be a little different.....

1. Go to dinner with Fiance tonight.

2. Meet my mom tomorrow morning for a Bridal Trial Makeup session.

3. Go see Mamma Mia with my mom.

4. Go to a Crab Feast party with Fiance Saturday night.

5. Sunday celebrate my BIRTHDAY!!!! : 0)

(picture from here)

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Look what I found!

I was taking a break from looking for a job and went to the LLBean website and there they were! I've been trying to find a cute bag to put my bridesmaids gifts in! I don't know if my SIL would appreciate this though since she lives in Scotland and is probably sick of plaid! But I will definitely be making this tote somebody's gift! Maybe my mom will get one since she's in love with all things Scottish ever since Fiance and I started dating : )

Might be nice for the groomsmen too, but I don't know if Fiance wants to go the "tote" route as part of his gifts : )

I can't stand it anymore!!!

Update before I do my actual post: still applying for jobs like crazy (I think I've applied to at least 16 actual jobs and sent my resume to about 10 people) and I haven't heard anything back yet. So keeping my fingers crossed!

Okay onto my post! My photographer mailed my CD of my bridal portriats today!!! But I can't stand it and want to show you the pictures now! I wanted to wait to show them beacuse I wanted to be all picky and show only the good ones, but I've changed my mind and decided that I need to keep it real ya'll! So I'm putting it all out there the good, the bad, and the ugly!

Before you go and look at them though, I need to give a shout out to my favs, or the ones that really look like me....so here they are in no particuler order 2,5,6,9,11,12,13,14,20, and 22.

13 is my favorite!!!

The rest of them really don't look like me either because of the angle of the camera or the way that I'm standing (the one's of me on the pier unfortunately didn't turn out well AT ALL)

Go and check out my Bridal Portraits!!!! I'll be posting my favorite one's on here as soon as I get the CD!!! Let me know what you think!!!

I got an Award!

I got my first blogger award!! Thanks E!!!



And now I get to pass it on to two other bloggers!

I choose Em and Etiquettely Correct, two fabulous blogs!!! : )

Bridal Portraits

My portrait session on Saturday went GREAT!! Even though it was rediculously hot, about 98 degrees, I had so much fun!!!

And it was the best feeling when I went to the mirror and saw what I looked like in my dress with my hair and makeup done and my jewelry on....to see the whole package......it was a great moment!!! My hair turned out perfect, it was just the look I was going for. I can't wait to post some pics!

But until then I'll give you a little something special.....meet one of my adorable angel flower girls.....also known as my neice Lily....she is a ham and might be stealing the spotlight!!! Oh well that's what I get for having such a cutie pie in my wedding! : )

One of my favorite quotes a la Lily: "It's called poopie Daddy"

(that's the dress she's going to be wearing but it doesn't shine like that, I think it must have been the flash that my sister in law was using...)

A to Z Meme

Yea!! My first real tag!! The lovely Miss Magnolia Belle tagged me!! Thanks sweetie! : )

A. Attached or Single? Engaged
B. Best Friend? Fiance, my mom, Amanda, and Kristen
C. Cake or pie? Chocolate Pecan Pie, Buttermilk Pie, and Pumpkin Pie, in other words pie!
D. Day of choice? Friday, the whole weekend lies ahead of you
E. Essential item? gotta have my purse with all of my stuff in it
F. Favorite color? It changes, but right now I like pink the best
G. Gummy bears or worms? worms
H. Home town? West Point, VA
I. Favorite indulgence? Manicures
J. January or July? July, it's my Birthday month!
K. Kids? in the next couple of years!
tL. Life isn’t complete without? Love and Laughter
M. Marriage date? October 11, 2008
N. Number of brothers and sisters? Four brothers
O. Oranges or Apples? Apples
P. Phobias? public speaking
Q. Quotes? "Begin doing what you want to do now. We are not living in eternity. We have only this moment, sparkling like a star in our hand - and melting like a snowflake. Let us use it before it is too late." - Marie Beynon Ray
"Grow old along with me! The best is yet to be." - Robert Browning
R. Reasons to smile? There are too many to list!
S. Season of choice? It's a tie between Summer and Fall!
T. Tag 5 people: Etiquettely Correct, The Prep-E Girl, Belle of the Ball, That Bride, My Life as a Married Girl
U. Unknown fact about me? I turn splotchy red on my chest and arms whenever I feel intense emotions of any kind.
V. Vegetable? Sugar snap peas, tomatoes, and avacados
W. Worst habit? procrastination
X. X-ray or Ultrasound? I've had an x-ray before but never an ultrasound
Y. Your favorite food? crabs, shrimp, pasta
Z. Zodiac sign? Leo
Z. Which zoo animal is your favorite? Monkeys!!

Tough News.

I'm sorry I've been absent the past couple of days, but I got some bad news at work on Tuesday. Myself, along with about 50+ other people got told that our jobs were going away effective September 30th.

Needless to say I was shocked and very upset, the company that I'm with was the company that I got my first job out of college from so this has been really hard news to digest. I've been applying like crazy to just about everywhere I can. I know that there's really no good time to get news like this but with the wedding fastly approaching, I'm feeling a little panicked. On the good side at least they've given us until the end of September but on the bad side I'm losing my job. So if you all could keep me in your thoughts and prayers I'd appreciate it and if you know of any jobs in the Richmond, VA area let me know! : )

On a happier note my bridal portraits are this weekend, but I haven't mentally prepared for them because of everything else that's going on so I'm just going to wing it! Hope everyone has a great weekend!

On a Roll!!

I got so much accomplished this weekend!!!

I managed to not stress about the reception, although it's still in the back of my mind but I'm not worrying about it right now.

Got the list together for my photographer, I'm going to give it to her on Saturday when I see her.

I didn't get to call the hair salon and the bridal salon but that's first on my list to do tomorrow.

Fiance and I talked about what 'our song' could be and he said he's got one that he listens to at work that he thinks might work (he's bringing it home tonight for me to listen to so I'll let you know how that goes)

I ordered my Reception & Direction inserts for my invites.....I needed something that was a little more detailed than what the invitation company had to offer....I ordered off of vista print and got a card that I was able to put the directions to the recpetion on the front and accomodations on the back....I think they'll turn out pretty good and they are SUPER cheap!

AND........here are the extra things that I was able to get accomplished..........

I got a dress for my shower in August from TJ Maxx and it's a BCBG originally $160 and I got it for $29.99!

I got some really pretty vintage looking frames ($6.99 each) for my Bridesmaids and I'm going to put these poems in them that I got from Miss Prep-E Girls blog! And then I'm going to give them a picture of me and each one of them at my wedding....after the fact.

And finally I got some wooden letters ($12.99 each) that I'm going to hang on the Church doors with what else but Tartan Ribbon!

(photo from Martha Stewart)

(I'm going to get my rear in gear and take pictures of my shower dress, frames and the letters but they are at my parents house so it might be next week when I post them)

20 Answers for my Swap Partner!

Basics
What is your favorite color(s)? yellow, light pink, aqua, orange, light green and olive green
“Shabby chic” vs. “straight, clean lines” – what’s more you? I would have to say I'm more "shabby chic"
Where’s your favorite vacation destination (you have to have been there before)? Outer Banks NC
Pick ONE: shoes, clothes, purses. This is a really hard one, but I'd have to go with PURSES
Describe yourself in three (3) words. Happy, Loyal, Quiet

Music (personally, I think you can learn a lot about a person based on their feelings about music):
Favorite song of all time? Southern Cross
What is one song you secretly really like that no one would believe you if you told them? Every song I can think of no one would be surprised by but I am a big Jimmy Durante fan....
What would you consider the “theme song” of your life? The Glory of Love (from Beaches)
If you could see any concert – what would it be? An Elvis Concert
Name the radio station most commonly playing in your car. What’s the genre? Q94 it's a pop music station.

Holiday
What is your favorite holiday? It's a tie between Halloween and Christmas
What food item is your holiday not complete without? candy corn for halloween and peppermint bark for Christmas
What’s your favorite holiday memory? being with my family and the anticipation of Santa coming
Is there a holiday tradition that you cherish? If so, what is it? I think it would have to be getting the whole family together, it doesn't happen that often!
Lights: colored or white? One colored tree with fun and funky ornaments and one white tree that's a little more glammed up and white for all other decorating.

Deep Thoughts
If you could get advice from any woman (dead or alive), who would it be? Mother Teresa
Name three (3) “simple pleasures” in your life. Weekends, talking to my mom, naps
What is your dream job – be honest! I'd love to be the person who get's to decorate Beach Rental Houses
If you could play any character on TV or in the movies, which one would you pick? I'd love to be a Disney Princess like Arial!!!!! That would be so fun!
What car would you most like to be the "spokes model" for? Mercedes!

5 Things Friday!

Okay number one on my list of things to do this weekend is to work on not stressing about the wedding and enjoy planning it! (which I absolutely love the planning part, I just need to win the lottery so I don't have to worry about the stress part)

Number two -- get my photographer a list of the people we will be taking pictures with after the ceremony. To help things go along as quickly and smoothly as possible. : )

Number three -- Call hair salon and bridal salon and remind them of my bridal portraits next weekend!!!! Yea!!!

Number four -- Sit down with Fiance and figure out what 'our song' is going to be, becuase we don't have 'a song' like a lot of couples do.

Number five -- Order inserts for Reception & Directions to include with the invitations.

I think I've got my work cut out for me this weekend! I have a baby shower that I need to shop for and then attend on Sunday as well, so busy bee that's me!

Thank you!

Thank you ladies for your sweet comments and helpful suggestions! I feel truly blessed to have such a great group of online friends!!! I am going to take your advice and try to keep it all in perspective and really try not to get stressed out by it. And I'm going to definitely use some of your suggestions!! I know it will all work out in the end but when I'm in the heat of the moment, it starts to get to me.

When God closes a door, He opens a window, yesterday afternoon I got an email from my photographer and the album that comes with my package isn't offered anymore through the company she goes with.......so she's upgrading me to the next level at no additional charge!!!!!!

Keeping it all in perspective and remember the main reason for this day, deep breaths, and a glass of wine tonight ; ) (or two)

I'll be posting my 5 things Friday in a bit!

Thank you, thank you again!!!

Serious Freak Out!

Let me start by saying that I'm the kind of person who is really uncomfortable talking about money. I also really don't like the thought of my parents having to spend a lot of money on me for my wedding. Even though I'm the only girl and they only have to do it once and all that, I still feel bad. If I had the money I'd pay for it myself...but I don't. So when the budget came up I tried to make it as small as possible but that's turned out to be a stress for me becuase I'm constantly trying to figure where I'm at, how much have I spent, how much is left, etc.

My mom and I met with the manager of our reception site yesterday to go over food and layout of the club and all that.......and talk about costs. It was going great until he brought out a sample contract and what the cost would estimate to be. Oh you know, only like more than DOUBLE what we had budgeted for!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm trying to cut everywhere I can now and it's so freakin stressing me out! Fiance and I are paying the alcohol portion of the wedding (my parents don't drink and it wasn't offered as part of the budget for the wedding) which is perfectily fine with me but fiance had a freak out of his own, totally different story for another time. So we had originally thought we'd have open bar the whole time but now we are thinking open bar for the cocktail hour and then beer and wine for the rest of the event. I'm hoping that's going to cut down the cost. And then we aren't doing a sit down dinner instead we opted for a pasta station, carving station, and some appetizers. Anyway I'm just freaking out about the whole thing now. I feel like I'm going to have a George Banks moment and start throwing hot dog buns on the ground!!!!

SWAP!

I'm getting excited about the Christmas in July Swap! If you're interested in joining in head over to Miss Prep-E Girl and check it out! I'm a newbie to the whole Swap thing so I can't wait!!!!

A Must Read for every Southern Bride....

(Courtesy of Amazon)

And any other bride who needs a good laugh!!! A while ago my sweet mom bought me "Somebody is going to die if Lilly Beth doesn't cath that bouquet The Official Southern Ladies' Guide to Hosting the Perfect Wedding"
It's hilarious and kind of scary becuase I read it and was shaking my head in either agreement or I was relating to it. Besides being downright funny this book has some seriously southern recipes in it that yank me back into my childhood.

One of the recipes that I remember my Grandmama making all the time was 'White Trash' and let me tell you I LOVED that stuff!! She actually kept it in a mini trash can on the kitchen counter and it's one of those memories that will stick with me forever.

Here's how to make it: spread a few feet of aluminum foil, shiny side down, on the counter. Melt 24 ounces white or vanilla bark candy, according to directions in a big bowl (careful-it's easy to burn if you're impatient). Mix together 2 cups plain Cheerios, 2 cups plain Wheat Chex, 2 cups small pretzel knots, 1 cup almonds (nuts can be raw or toasted but can't have a speck of oil on them) and 1 cup pecans. Add the dry stuff to the melted stuff and mix gently but thoroughly. Spread out on the foil to cool. When cool, you can break up the really big chunks by scrunching them up in the foil. (this is an excerpt from the book)
It's some kind a good ya'll!
Hope everybody had a lovely Fourth!!

100 Days and Counting....

Until my wedding day!!! The Fourth of July will officialy usher in the double digits of the countdown! I'm feeling so many emotions ya'll....excited, nervous, happy......those are just a few!! I definitely feel like I'm in good shape as far as the planning goes, but I'm the kind of person who likes to have everything done way in advance.

For example, I will start Christmas shopping 8 months before Christmas with the intentions of having it all done way before the holiday season starts. But those intentions are short lived because it's inevitable that I'll be scrambling right before to get all of it done. I don't think that will be the case with my wedding though! At least I hope it won't be : )

My mom and I are meeting with the manager of our reception site next week to go over layout and food so I will feel ahead of the game when that's done! I'm taking a break from the 5 Things Friday this weekend but I'm sure I'll get some stuff done anyway and I'll fill you in on Monday!

Hope everyone has a GREAT Fourth of July! Fiance and I are just relaxing on Friday and then going to a friends house Friday night for a party. Saturday I'm heading to the Rivah to hang out with the Fam (I'll try to take some pics to post) and I'm going to be making my ever popular 'Fruit Pizza'. I've been making this for a while and it always gets rave reviews, I think I originally got the recipe from allrecipes.com. It's super easy to make!

Here's a picture of Paula Deen's version (I love Paula Deen, obviously!)

Ingredients:

1 package of sugar cookie dough

1 package of cream cheese (regular is the best for this)

1/2 cup of sugar

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1 cup of strawberry's sliced

1 kiwi peeled and sliced

1/2 cup blueberries

1/2 cup pineapple chunks (drained)

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 and roll out cookie dough onto a pizza pan (or it can be a square pan if you don't have a pizza pan) cook dough for about 8-10 minutes just until it starts to brown a little. I like my dough a little undercooked because it's so moist that way. Meanwhile mix the cream cheese sugar and extract together until smooth. Let the cookie dough cool and then apply the cream cheese mixture and top with sliced fuit (you can really use any fruit you like for this). It's so yummy!

Have a great holiday everybody!

A Gift for my Shower....

I'm having two Bridal Showers for my wedding. One is in August and that one is going to be for my girlfriends and then we are doing the Bachelorrete later the same night and the other one is going to be in September for my family, i.e. Grandmothers, Aunts, Cousins, Sister-in-laws, etc....

My first shower is being hosted by my awesome maid and matron of honor and my second shower is being hosted by my sweet cousin.

Here's what I've been thinking about recently....I want to get them a gift for throwing me the showers but I'm not sure what it should be. I just want to show my appreciation to them for putting all kinds of work, time, and effort into doing something for me. I was thinking maybe a nice candle but that's as far as I've gotten. I know you ladies are very creative and have some awesome ideas so I was wondering if you wouldn't mind sharing??

Much thanks in advance!!!! : )

My Invitations are here!

As with the rest of my wedding theme I wanted to go with classic and elegant for my invitations and since I absolutely love pearls I knew this was what I wanted for my invitations as soon as I saw it!

And as a little added bonus the best man's dad actually works for a printing company and was able to order these for us at a great discounted price!!! So the best man's actually got them to give to us....I can't wait to see how they turned out!!!