Dear USPS,
You may or may not know that our wedding is coming up in approximately one month. You should know due to the increased amount of mail going to and from our house, but I understand you're pretty busy and may have overlooked this news.
I understand that we are living in a new house on a new street that even 911 doesn't know exists, but you've been delivering our mail since February. Granted, the first few weeks were a bit rough, but I didn't fret too much because this relationship was new for everyone. We had a few rough patches since then (like the time you lost Keegan's present) but overall, I'm satisfied with our relationship.
It has now been 5 month since we started seeing each other and I figured you got the routine down. We give you mail (such as our invitations) to deliver to our family and friends and you bring us their replies and gifts. Not too hard.
It has come to my attention, however, that you have been severely lacking on your job. After getting anxious/annoyed/mad/disappointed at our guests for not sending back their RSVPs on a timely manner, I decided to email a few of them to see what's up. Turns most of them responded a month ago. However, we haven't received any of their replies. We don't have any neighbors that steal our mail. We're the only house on the road (that anyone's living in,) so it's not like you're accidentally delivering our mail to someone else. I'm going to ask you point blank, WHERE THE HELL ARE MY RSVPs????!!!
How is it that you can deliver every single bill and piece of spam mail on time? Those RSVPs were already addressed and stamped for Pete's sake. All our guests had to do was mark if they were/weren't coming, throw them in the mail and you delivered them. How hard is that?!
You have pissed off an already stressed out bride. If my RSVPs are not delivered by July 1, I'm going to be coming down to your house and giving you a stern talking to. A piece of advice? Don't piss off brides. They can get vicious and you don't want to see that. You and Forever21 are on my naughty list.
No love,
Aislinn
(So as you can tell, USPS has lost a fair number of our RSVPs. I was wondering if our invitations had even been delivered since we've only gotten about 1/3 of the responses back, so I emailed a few friends to double check they received their invite. All of them had and most of them said that they had mailed back their RSVP a month ago. Now, I wouldn't be to worried or upset if this had happened to one or two people. Things get lost in the mail and I understand. However, I talked to at least 7 people who said they sent back their RSVP and we still haven't gotten them. Now I'm wondering how many more have been sent and not received from friends we haven't spoken to yet. I really don't want to hunt down the rest of our guest list to figure out if people are coming or not. Anyone have any suggestions? Is this something I can/should go down to the post office about? There are three different locations in our small town, so I'm not even sure which one handles our mail. I don't want to come off as a crazy bride, but I really don't feel like badgering our guests if they've already sent back their RSVP. Should I be worried about gifts our gusts have sent as well? Any ideas, suggestions or similar stories will be much appreciated.)
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Monday, June 25, 2012
Emily Post and I Are Finally Friends
*Sorry for the lack of posts over the weekend; Keegan and I were in KC, MO for his cousin's wedding. This was supposed to post on Friday, but obviously, it didn't, so here it is now. *
I finally gave in and Miss Emily and I became fast friends on Tuesday night. I decided to push my wishes of everyone getting the same thank you note aside and banged out 5 simple but effective thank yous in the span of about an hour.
I made a file in Photoshop so that the thank yous would be the right size to fit into the envelopes we used for our RSVPs since we had a butt-ton of them left (and yes, a butt-ton is a unit of measurement....at least in my world.) Our thank yous came in a about 5 x 3.5 inches. Just big enough to write a quick note, but small enough that I wasn't trying to fill it up with random garble.
I decorated them with leave and clover punch outs and stuck them in envelopes with the Love postage that was originally used for our invitations.
You say you want examples? Well here they are!
I finally gave in and Miss Emily and I became fast friends on Tuesday night. I decided to push my wishes of everyone getting the same thank you note aside and banged out 5 simple but effective thank yous in the span of about an hour.
I made a file in Photoshop so that the thank yous would be the right size to fit into the envelopes we used for our RSVPs since we had a butt-ton of them left (and yes, a butt-ton is a unit of measurement....at least in my world.) Our thank yous came in a about 5 x 3.5 inches. Just big enough to write a quick note, but small enough that I wasn't trying to fill it up with random garble.
I decorated them with leave and clover punch outs and stuck them in envelopes with the Love postage that was originally used for our invitations.
You say you want examples? Well here they are!
I love the itty-bitty leaves! They're like 1/3 inch big.
Please ignore that strange green tint in the upper left hand corner. My scanner does strange things.
The thank yous I made were mostly for guests who couldn't come to the wedding except for the one guest who is coming but sent their present early. I figure for this guest and for any more who send their presents early but still come to the wedding, they will get this thank you for their gift and a wedding picture thank you for coming to the wedding. Best of both worlds!
What did you do for early thank you notes? Did you make them right away and send them off or did you make Emily cringe and wait until after the wedding so that everyone had the same thank you? Am I the only one who gets annoyed by not everyone having the same one?
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
I Love Our RSVPs
I'm actually insanely proud of our RSVPs. I know, it's a strange thing to be proud of, but I am.
I know that many bees have had the problem of people not writing their names in the M_____________ spot. Miss Mink solved this by writing a small number on the flap of the envelope. Ms. Gazelle, Mrs. Lox, as well as other bees have bought invisible ink pens that you see with a black light.
I decided to side step the entire problem by printing our guests' names directly on the RSVP. Now, there was no way for them to forget to write their names, and I didn't have to go searching for a tiny number to figure out who sent back their RVSP.
I also added three lines for our guests to give us music suggestions. This was partly a selfish decision because I didn't want to have to make up a play list for our DJ. Keegan and I have such drastically ranging music choices from hard rock to Celtic music so we figured we'd ask our guests what they wanted to listen to.
Some of our guests have given us some good choices,
Yes, my family didn't indicate how many are coming. I feel like its a safe bet to assume they all are.
Some have laughed in our faces...
And some haven't put anything down at all (which honestly annoys me a bit, but whatever.)
These lines also worked out for our guests who are not able to come. Many of them have written us small notes with their regrets.
"I'm so sorry I cannot attend your special day"
"Hope you will visit if you come out East!"
"Very best love to you both - may you have years of great joy!"
(I think, this one was kind of hard to decipher.)
So yes, my RSVPs are a strange thing to be so proud of, but I am. Some of them have done their original intention and helped us come up with playlist for our DJ, and others have give us some laughs and well wishes from loved ones.
What have you been most proud of in your wedding planning? Anyone else proud of their RSVPs?
Monday, June 18, 2012
Rapunzel, Rapunzel, Let Down Your Hair!
I was cursed blessed with absurdly curly hair. I had ringlets all over my head, similar to Shirley Temple. My mom actually had someone ask her if she permed my hair when I was two.
As time went on, I found out that with about 2.5 hours of work, I could tame my curly hair into a slightly straight mane.
Obviously, my hair resembles Rapunzel's in no way, shape or form. Like so many other girls, I'm trying to grow my hair out for the wedding. My hair has always been super thick, however, due to the medications I took for the last 2.5 years, it was getting thinner and thinner. When I showered, I would pull fist fulls of hair out and even more would fall out when I brushed my hair. In January, I decided to go off of all of my medications cold turkey. Since then, I've been hoping that my hair will regain some of its fullness by the wedding. I don't care about length as much because when my hair is straight, it's down to the middle of my back.
So what does all of this talk about my ridiculously curly hair have to do with weddings? Why wedding hairstyles of course!
When I first got engaged last October, I found this hairstyle and fell head over heels in love:
personal photo / age 3ish with my Poppa
Personal photo / College graduation 2011
Obviously, my hair resembles Rapunzel's in no way, shape or form. Like so many other girls, I'm trying to grow my hair out for the wedding. My hair has always been super thick, however, due to the medications I took for the last 2.5 years, it was getting thinner and thinner. When I showered, I would pull fist fulls of hair out and even more would fall out when I brushed my hair. In January, I decided to go off of all of my medications cold turkey. Since then, I've been hoping that my hair will regain some of its fullness by the wedding. I don't care about length as much because when my hair is straight, it's down to the middle of my back.
So what does all of this talk about my ridiculously curly hair have to do with weddings? Why wedding hairstyles of course!
When I first got engaged last October, I found this hairstyle and fell head over heels in love:
I promptly saved it to my wedding folder and pinned it on Pintrest. Months later, I am still in love. I am a little worried that my hair will turn into Shirley Temple ringlets however, instead of these loose flowing curls.
I kept saving and pinning similar hairstyles
Don't have the source, sorry!
I thought a bit more and realized that I'm getting married in Missouri in August. That automatically means that it's going to be muggy and sticky outside. I figured I could deal with my hair down for the ceremony, but after that, I would want it up so I could dance and party with our friends without worrying about my hair.
Audra, Keegan's cousin and one of my bridesmaids, has graciously offered to do my hair and makeup as well as the hair and makeup of the rest of my girls. She showed me this up do for the ceremony and I thought it was perfect.
I wanted something quick and easy to do so that I could be away from the reception as little as possible. I also love how fun and quirky it is.
This weekend, Keegan and I are going to KC for his cousin's wedding. Audra will be there, so we're going to do a hair and makeup trial. I'm so excited to finally meet Audra, as well as do my hair trial. I really want to see how much time the up-do will take so we can make sure I won't be away from the reception too long. I'll make sure to get pictures!
Anyone else have their hair down for a hot summer wedding? Should I just put it up for the ceremony as well? You think I'll come out with long, flowing curls or look like Shirley Temple?
This weekend, Keegan and I are going to KC for his cousin's wedding. Audra will be there, so we're going to do a hair and makeup trial. I'm so excited to finally meet Audra, as well as do my hair trial. I really want to see how much time the up-do will take so we can make sure I won't be away from the reception too long. I'll make sure to get pictures!
Anyone else have their hair down for a hot summer wedding? Should I just put it up for the ceremony as well? You think I'll come out with long, flowing curls or look like Shirley Temple?
Friday, June 15, 2012
The Mason Jar Manifesto
The Mason Jar Manifesto has been circulating the wedding world as of late. I found out about it through a bee on Weddingbee. If you don't feel like reading the entire thing (even though you should,) basically, the post is about the fact that lately, the wedding industry has convinced brides that they need everything. The key word being things. If you're take a stroll down wedding lane, you get bombarded with images of buntings, cute straws, vintage this and that and DIY everything. Don't get me wrong, I love the fact that today, brides are able to make their weddings about them and the relationship they have with their future spouse, but so many brides (including myself) get caught up on the things and not the marriage.
Jonas put it best when he wrote:
"We’re getting lost in details. The whole wedding industry is drifting away from what weddings are about and we’re all part of the problem – bloggers, photographers, planners and vendors – all hypocrites feeding the detail beast.
Strip it back.
Peel the layers off.
And start again.
At the center of every wedding we have a girl. Who fell in love with a boy. Or a girl who fell in love with a girl. Or a boy who fell in l… you get my point.
The rest is fluff.
If you read magazines and wedding blogs today, you’d think it’s all about the dress, the decorations, invitations or a million other things.
THINGS.
It’s not.
It’s about celebrating love, a manifestation of commitment, a gathering of friends and family.
Because you’re in love."
When I first read the manifesto, I thought to myself about how proud I am that I haven't gotten caught up in the WIC (wedding industry complex) that focuses so much on the wedding and not the marriage. But honestly, I'm just as guilty about worrying about things and not so much about what a wedding means and symbolizes.
Lately, I've been stressing about our lack of centerpieces (yes, I'm a 1.5 months away from my wedding and don't have centerpieces.) After reading the manifesto, I sat for a moment and thought, "What if we just don't have centerpieces? What's the point of a centerpiece anyways? To look pretty? We're not having flowers, and I have no need for vintage typewriters or mason jars. What if people, ate, talked, and interacted with each other instead of looking at the random centerpiece placed on a table? Will anyone really miss it?"
I felt this amazing weight lifted off my shoulders when I thought about not dealing with them. In all honesty, how many people notice the centerpieces? If you think about it, they're going to be sitting at the tables to eat and then hopefully they'll be up mingling and dancing. Stressing out less about a thing was such an amazing feeling.
I've gone back and read over our ceremony a few times lately and I have to say, I'm in love. I love this text that Keegan and I have put together that means so much to us. This text, during our wedding, will show everyone how much our love and marriage means. Reading our ceremony brings back the idea that this whole wedding is really about a marriage. Two people, in love, joined for eternity. Suddenly, all the things don't matter anymore. All that matters is the fact that at the end of the wedding, we'll be married. No one will notice if we have bunting or not (I'm sure not many of our guests even know what that is.) No one is going to miss the centerpieces, the signature drinks, the flowers, or the cake. Suddenly, I'm not going to miss them either.
I know that in the next 1.5 months, I will still worry about things. It's hard not to. This wedding will be 10 months in the making by the time August rolls around and it will be the biggest party/get together/celebration that either one of us has planned. We want it to be a wonderful experience for us and our guests, so worrying about certain things like food, drinks, and entertainment is a must. However, we can lessen the stress on ourselves by remembering that this celebration is about marriage, not about mason jars.
How do you feel about the WIC? Do you agree with the idea that weddings seem to be focused more on things than the marriage? Anyone else say "screw it" to what is considered "traditional" for weddings (i.e. centerpieces?)
Jonas put it best when he wrote:
"We’re getting lost in details. The whole wedding industry is drifting away from what weddings are about and we’re all part of the problem – bloggers, photographers, planners and vendors – all hypocrites feeding the detail beast.
Strip it back.
Peel the layers off.
And start again.
At the center of every wedding we have a girl. Who fell in love with a boy. Or a girl who fell in love with a girl. Or a boy who fell in l… you get my point.
The rest is fluff.
If you read magazines and wedding blogs today, you’d think it’s all about the dress, the decorations, invitations or a million other things.
THINGS.
It’s not.
It’s about celebrating love, a manifestation of commitment, a gathering of friends and family.
Because you’re in love."
When I first read the manifesto, I thought to myself about how proud I am that I haven't gotten caught up in the WIC (wedding industry complex) that focuses so much on the wedding and not the marriage. But honestly, I'm just as guilty about worrying about things and not so much about what a wedding means and symbolizes.
Lately, I've been stressing about our lack of centerpieces (yes, I'm a 1.5 months away from my wedding and don't have centerpieces.) After reading the manifesto, I sat for a moment and thought, "What if we just don't have centerpieces? What's the point of a centerpiece anyways? To look pretty? We're not having flowers, and I have no need for vintage typewriters or mason jars. What if people, ate, talked, and interacted with each other instead of looking at the random centerpiece placed on a table? Will anyone really miss it?"
I felt this amazing weight lifted off my shoulders when I thought about not dealing with them. In all honesty, how many people notice the centerpieces? If you think about it, they're going to be sitting at the tables to eat and then hopefully they'll be up mingling and dancing. Stressing out less about a thing was such an amazing feeling.
I've gone back and read over our ceremony a few times lately and I have to say, I'm in love. I love this text that Keegan and I have put together that means so much to us. This text, during our wedding, will show everyone how much our love and marriage means. Reading our ceremony brings back the idea that this whole wedding is really about a marriage. Two people, in love, joined for eternity. Suddenly, all the things don't matter anymore. All that matters is the fact that at the end of the wedding, we'll be married. No one will notice if we have bunting or not (I'm sure not many of our guests even know what that is.) No one is going to miss the centerpieces, the signature drinks, the flowers, or the cake. Suddenly, I'm not going to miss them either.
I know that in the next 1.5 months, I will still worry about things. It's hard not to. This wedding will be 10 months in the making by the time August rolls around and it will be the biggest party/get together/celebration that either one of us has planned. We want it to be a wonderful experience for us and our guests, so worrying about certain things like food, drinks, and entertainment is a must. However, we can lessen the stress on ourselves by remembering that this celebration is about marriage, not about mason jars.
How do you feel about the WIC? Do you agree with the idea that weddings seem to be focused more on things than the marriage? Anyone else say "screw it" to what is considered "traditional" for weddings (i.e. centerpieces?)
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Why I'm Not Having A Bachelorette Party
When I first started wedding planning, I thought there were certain things that "made" you a bride: showers, veils, long white dresses and bachelorette parties among other things. Now, after a little over 8 months of planning our wedding, I've realized that this is far from the truth. After reading countless blogs and spending too many hours on wedding websites, I realized that what makes someone a bride is the fact that they will be marrying the love of their life. No matter if she does it at the courthouse with jeans on, she is a bride.
Now back to why I'm not having a bachelorette party. My bridal party consists of my two sisters, both of which are under the age of 21, Keegan's cousin, Audra, and our friend, Sarah. Since both of my sisters are under 21, we can't go bar hopping or clubbing, neither of which I am actually a fan of anyways. For the older girls to be able to partake in some adult beverages, we'd have to go to a restaurant. Bachelorette party at Applebee's? Not quite what I was thinking.
Second reason is, Sarah and Audra are not from Columbia where the wedding will be held. I can't and don't expect them to try and plan an itinerary for a place they don't know or have never been to.
Third, and probably the biggest reason that I'm not planning a bachelorette party is the fact that instead of having a traditional rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding, we are having more of a family and friends get together. I want to be able to spend as much time with our friends and family that are coming from out of city/state/country so it would feel rude to me to leave in the middle of this get together to hit the town with my girls. Doing a rehearsal, dinner, and then trying to squeeze in a bachelorette party just seems like too much for one night, anyways.
Originally, I thought of having a joint bachelor/bachelorette party with Keegan and his boys, but that was nixed pretty quickly. I'm sure his boys already have something planned for him and that doesn't include his bride and her younger sisters. I would never think to ask Keegan to cancel his bachelor party just because I won't be having a bachelorette party. The only thing I asked is that everyone comes back in one piece and some pictures are taken. I want to see what those crazy boys are up to!
Don't get me wrong, if the cards fell the right way, I would love to have a bachelorette party. Unfortunately, I can't make my sisters 21 before August (not that I'd want to, they're growing up so quickly as it is,) and I can't ask my girls to come all the way to Missouri on any other day. The reason the bachelor/bachelorette parties have to happen the night before the wedding is because so many of our wedding party are from out of city/state. They're already doing so much for us by standing by our sides during the wedding, I couldn't ask them to come out a different weekend and spend more money.
So those are some of the reasons that I'm not actively planning a bachelorette party. Now if my girls want to take me out to drinks after the family gathering, I wouldn't be opposed. We just have to wait for the younger girls to go to bed :-D
Monday, June 11, 2012
Emily Post, I Am Not
As you may (or may not) know, Emily Post is the latest guru on wedding etiquette. She has a website that explains the do's and don'ts for a wedding which can be found here.
Now, I haven't read through her entire website, but I'm sure that I've broken a few of her wedding rules already, and honestly, I don't care. One that I am worried about however? Thank you notes.
Already, we have been getting wedding presents (and money) from various guests. Some are gifts from people who are not able to make it, others are from guests who know we don't want to lug a bunch of wedding presents from Missouri to Mississippi, so they just had the gift sent to our Mississippi home. Either way, the gifts are rolling in and I'm starting to think about thank you notes.
Now, Miss Post says that wedding thank you notes should be sent within three months of receiving the gift. That is of course, perfectly do-able after the wedding (watch me eat my words...) but what about the gifts we've received before the wedding? Most people, would buy (even though Emily disagrees with this practice) or craft a thank you note a few days after receiving the gift and send it off. I, on the other hand, am neurotic and want all of my thank yous to be the same. This wouldn't be a problem if I wasn't hell-bent on making a thank you note with a wedding picture on it like:
Now, I haven't read through her entire website, but I'm sure that I've broken a few of her wedding rules already, and honestly, I don't care. One that I am worried about however? Thank you notes.
Already, we have been getting wedding presents (and money) from various guests. Some are gifts from people who are not able to make it, others are from guests who know we don't want to lug a bunch of wedding presents from Missouri to Mississippi, so they just had the gift sent to our Mississippi home. Either way, the gifts are rolling in and I'm starting to think about thank you notes.
Now, Miss Post says that wedding thank you notes should be sent within three months of receiving the gift. That is of course, perfectly do-able after the wedding (watch me eat my words...) but what about the gifts we've received before the wedding? Most people, would buy (even though Emily disagrees with this practice) or craft a thank you note a few days after receiving the gift and send it off. I, on the other hand, am neurotic and want all of my thank yous to be the same. This wouldn't be a problem if I wasn't hell-bent on making a thank you note with a wedding picture on it like:
I love love love these thank yous. The way I see it, if I'm spending a butt-load of money on wedding pictures, I might as well get some use out of them and send them to as many people as I can, right?
So this poses a problem. I have these gifts that need thank yous, but I am crazy and want all my guests to get the same one. Will they compare thank yous? I highly doubt it. Its more about my sanity. Now, if I wait until after the wedding, it will still be in the "correct" three month time line that Miss Post says is acceptable. However, since these guests have sent their gifts so early, will it be strange to them to receive a thank you three months after they sent it? Will they realize that I'm crazy and wanted to use a wedding picture for my thank yous? Will that make me look lazy? Will they honestly even care?
So, I need some input on this. Is it ok for me to wait until after the wedding and use a wedding picture for the thank you notes for gifts we received before the wedding, or should I suck it up and just send them a different one?
Friday, June 8, 2012
Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!
Yesterday, my boss called me into her office to speak to me. I felt my heart drop as I thought of all the things that I could have done wrong. I couldn't really think of anything as I sat in the chair opposite her desk. All of a sudden I hear, "R and I have decided to pay for your wedding flowers. I heard you say that you're not having any flowers and I want to give them to you. I believe that every girl should have exactly what she wants on her wedding day."
.................uh what?
I stared at her blankly and asked her to repeat herself. Yep, I had heard correctly. R, a volunteer at the art gallery I work at is a florist by trade and has connections to get flowers for my wedding at cost. T, my boss had decided that R and her were going to go in together on the cost so that I can have real flowers at my wedding. She said they were going to be paying for my bouquet, bouquets for my girls and flowers for the flower girls.
As I sat there in utter disbelief, she asked what kind of flower I wanted besides tiger lilies (my favorite flowers ever.) I told her that I hadn't really thought about flowers since we weren't going to have any and asked if I could get back with her. I left her office speechless with my mind racing.
When Keegan and I first started talking about the wedding and our budget, I figured we wouldn't be able to afford flowers. After a few emails to florists, including a family friend, that thought was confirmed. Honestly, I was disappointed for about a day, and then realized how much money we were saving and now able to spend on other things. Also, as much as I love flowers, I felt bad about the fact that they would die the day after the wedding. My mom had fake flowers at her wedding and she still has her bouquet. I love that idea and decided I would make my own bouquet out of fake flowers.
Back in January, Keegan, my mom, and I went to Hobby Lobby and got enough flowers and other supplies to make my bouquet for under $25. I was extremely proud of what I paid for my huge bouquet, but it didn't actually get finished until April.
All along, I've looked at decorations and centerpieces that don't include flowers. While I still don't have our centerpieces pinned down, (shut up,) I'm 99% sure of what I want to do, and it doesn't include flowers.
With my boss so graciously offering to pay for my flowers, I'm so torn. I love what Keegan and I have come up with so far. I think that our wedding, from the ceremony down to the decorations represent us and who we are. And we didn't need flowers to do that. On the other hand, Keegan said it best when he said "We would be crazy to turn this offer down. It's free flowers!"
I honestly don't know what I'm going to do. I don't know if I want to dive into the world of flowers and figure out what I like/don't like, what's in season in August, and how to keep them alive for the wedding. Also, we didn't invite R who would ultimately be putting together the bouquets. If we do "hire" him, I feel like he should be invited, but wouldn't it be tacky to give him an invitation now? Or is it implied that he's invited since he's a vendor?
Currently, I'm leaning towards politely declining my boss' offer. It is so unbelievably generous for her to do, but I honestly don't have the time or mind power to dive into the world of flowers. Also, as a small detail, I would feel weird that my girls would have bouquets, but the boy's wouldn't have bouts. Also, what about corsages for the moms and grandmas? I feel like if half of the wedding party has flowers, everyone should, but there's no way that I would ask my boss to pay for more.
I think that Keegan and I need to sit down, look at some pictures, and talk about this over the weekend. Hopefully by Monday, we'll have an answer for my boss.
Anyone else have someone unexpectedly pay for something for their wedding? Did it throw a wrench into your plans, or did it make your life easier? Any opinions on what we should do?
.................uh what?
I stared at her blankly and asked her to repeat herself. Yep, I had heard correctly. R, a volunteer at the art gallery I work at is a florist by trade and has connections to get flowers for my wedding at cost. T, my boss had decided that R and her were going to go in together on the cost so that I can have real flowers at my wedding. She said they were going to be paying for my bouquet, bouquets for my girls and flowers for the flower girls.
As I sat there in utter disbelief, she asked what kind of flower I wanted besides tiger lilies (my favorite flowers ever.) I told her that I hadn't really thought about flowers since we weren't going to have any and asked if I could get back with her. I left her office speechless with my mind racing.
When Keegan and I first started talking about the wedding and our budget, I figured we wouldn't be able to afford flowers. After a few emails to florists, including a family friend, that thought was confirmed. Honestly, I was disappointed for about a day, and then realized how much money we were saving and now able to spend on other things. Also, as much as I love flowers, I felt bad about the fact that they would die the day after the wedding. My mom had fake flowers at her wedding and she still has her bouquet. I love that idea and decided I would make my own bouquet out of fake flowers.
Back in January, Keegan, my mom, and I went to Hobby Lobby and got enough flowers and other supplies to make my bouquet for under $25. I was extremely proud of what I paid for my huge bouquet, but it didn't actually get finished until April.
Here is Keegan modeling it. It's had a few changes since then, but it's basically the same.
All along, I've looked at decorations and centerpieces that don't include flowers. While I still don't have our centerpieces pinned down, (shut up,) I'm 99% sure of what I want to do, and it doesn't include flowers.
With my boss so graciously offering to pay for my flowers, I'm so torn. I love what Keegan and I have come up with so far. I think that our wedding, from the ceremony down to the decorations represent us and who we are. And we didn't need flowers to do that. On the other hand, Keegan said it best when he said "We would be crazy to turn this offer down. It's free flowers!"
I honestly don't know what I'm going to do. I don't know if I want to dive into the world of flowers and figure out what I like/don't like, what's in season in August, and how to keep them alive for the wedding. Also, we didn't invite R who would ultimately be putting together the bouquets. If we do "hire" him, I feel like he should be invited, but wouldn't it be tacky to give him an invitation now? Or is it implied that he's invited since he's a vendor?
Currently, I'm leaning towards politely declining my boss' offer. It is so unbelievably generous for her to do, but I honestly don't have the time or mind power to dive into the world of flowers. Also, as a small detail, I would feel weird that my girls would have bouquets, but the boy's wouldn't have bouts. Also, what about corsages for the moms and grandmas? I feel like if half of the wedding party has flowers, everyone should, but there's no way that I would ask my boss to pay for more.
I think that Keegan and I need to sit down, look at some pictures, and talk about this over the weekend. Hopefully by Monday, we'll have an answer for my boss.
Anyone else have someone unexpectedly pay for something for their wedding? Did it throw a wrench into your plans, or did it make your life easier? Any opinions on what we should do?
Jumpin' The Boarder
Is just what I may have to do if my passport gets denied again.
Yes, again. As in, it's been denied twice already and we're working on a third time now.
Some back story: I was born in Canada and moved to Missouri when I was about 9 months old. My dad had dreams of going back to Canada eventually so he never bothered to get me American citizenship. There was never any problem with this until last October when my grandma died suddenly. I told my mom I wanted to go with her back to Canada for the funeral no matter what we had to do. This meant that I had about a month to get my passport so that I was able to go back over the boarder. Long story short, my passport got denied but I was able to go over the boarder and back because I have a green card and I'm a permanent resident in the States.
Anyways, when Keegan and I decided to honeymoon in Canada, we figured it would be easier to apply for my passport again than to fight with boarder control and possibly not be let over. Well, we were wrong. We went to Walgreens to have my picture taken because they boast to be passport picture takers. We had tofight with explain to the photo lady that they can in fact do Canadian passport pictures, they just don't have to cut them out for us (Canadian passport pictures are rectangular, not square like American passport pictures.) After some discussion, we got what we thought would be an acceptable picture, put everything I needed into an envelope and sent it off to my mom so she could sign off on it (to get a Canadian passport, you have to have someone sign off saying that you pictures is a likeness of you and that you're aren't a bad person to their knowledge. This person also has to have a Canadian passport and know you for over 15 years or something like that. Kind of ridiculous if you ask me, but no one asked me.) Anyways, my mom didn't send off my application for about two months because my youngest sister, in one of her cleaning sprees, had lost my mom's passport.
Eventually my passport was sent off and we waited. And waited. And waited. Finally, on Wednesday, we got a package on our doorstep that was a little too light and flat to contain a passport. We opened the envelope and saw that I was denied again. The reason? Apparently there was a shadow behind my head in the picture. A freakin' shadow. Arrrgggg
I called my dad and asked if it was even worth trying again (since you know, we're getting married in about a month and a half,) and he said if we got it off ASAP, there was a chance. Back to Walgreens we go, to get my picture taken for the third time. After arguing with the lady again, we get the picture and notice that what the officials could be mistaking as a shadow could possibly be my frizzy hair. No joke.
We're going to send it off and see what happens. Worse comes to worse, we have a few options:
1. We try and get over the boarder with my other documents and see if they'll let us pass. If not, we can either drive back to MO/MS or take a tour of Michigan (my least favorite option.)
2. Just decide now that we're not going to Canada and figure out a different honeymoon. I want to go back to the Smokey Mountains, so that's always an option.
3. Not go on a honeymoon right away. We could save Keegan's vacation days for the holidays and go on a honeymoon early next year.
4. Take a tour around the Mid-West and see some of our friends. We have friend and family in Columbia, Springfield, Kansas City, St. Louis, Illinois and more. I'm sure we could fill up a week going from place to place and seeing people for a couple days.
So now we wait again. Half of me hopes that I get the passport, half of me just doesn't want to deal with it anymore.
By the way, we were just able to apply for Keegan's passport on Monday. The lady at the post office said they're getting done in about 4 weeks, but I'm not holding my breath that he gets his in time as well.
Anyone else have to suddenly change their honeymoon plans? Anyone have any tips for getting around the government? (kidding....sorta.)
Yes, again. As in, it's been denied twice already and we're working on a third time now.
Some back story: I was born in Canada and moved to Missouri when I was about 9 months old. My dad had dreams of going back to Canada eventually so he never bothered to get me American citizenship. There was never any problem with this until last October when my grandma died suddenly. I told my mom I wanted to go with her back to Canada for the funeral no matter what we had to do. This meant that I had about a month to get my passport so that I was able to go back over the boarder. Long story short, my passport got denied but I was able to go over the boarder and back because I have a green card and I'm a permanent resident in the States.
Anyways, when Keegan and I decided to honeymoon in Canada, we figured it would be easier to apply for my passport again than to fight with boarder control and possibly not be let over. Well, we were wrong. We went to Walgreens to have my picture taken because they boast to be passport picture takers. We had to
Eventually my passport was sent off and we waited. And waited. And waited. Finally, on Wednesday, we got a package on our doorstep that was a little too light and flat to contain a passport. We opened the envelope and saw that I was denied again. The reason? Apparently there was a shadow behind my head in the picture. A freakin' shadow. Arrrgggg
I called my dad and asked if it was even worth trying again (since you know, we're getting married in about a month and a half,) and he said if we got it off ASAP, there was a chance. Back to Walgreens we go, to get my picture taken for the third time. After arguing with the lady again, we get the picture and notice that what the officials could be mistaking as a shadow could possibly be my frizzy hair. No joke.
We're going to send it off and see what happens. Worse comes to worse, we have a few options:
1. We try and get over the boarder with my other documents and see if they'll let us pass. If not, we can either drive back to MO/MS or take a tour of Michigan (my least favorite option.)
2. Just decide now that we're not going to Canada and figure out a different honeymoon. I want to go back to the Smokey Mountains, so that's always an option.
3. Not go on a honeymoon right away. We could save Keegan's vacation days for the holidays and go on a honeymoon early next year.
4. Take a tour around the Mid-West and see some of our friends. We have friend and family in Columbia, Springfield, Kansas City, St. Louis, Illinois and more. I'm sure we could fill up a week going from place to place and seeing people for a couple days.
So now we wait again. Half of me hopes that I get the passport, half of me just doesn't want to deal with it anymore.
By the way, we were just able to apply for Keegan's passport on Monday. The lady at the post office said they're getting done in about 4 weeks, but I'm not holding my breath that he gets his in time as well.
Anyone else have to suddenly change their honeymoon plans? Anyone have any tips for getting around the government? (kidding....sorta.)
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Forever21, You're On My Hit List
About 3 weeks now, I ordered this beauty from Forever21:
I thought it would be a perfect accessory for my hair on my wedding day, and at only $3.80, it was a total steal. About a week later, I got the yellow Forever21 package in the mail and hurried inside to open it. I slowlytore opened the yellow tissue paper and was greeted with....
Not my hair flower. Not even close. According to the shipping information included in the package, I had gotten some girl's earrings who lived in Texas. I mean, her name started with A as well, but I honestly don't understand the mix up. Apparently, neither did the Forever21 customer service girl I spoke to. She seemed quite surprised that I had gotten someone's order besides my own. The customer service representative said that they were going to refund my money and I could do whatever I wanted with the earrings.
A week later, they still hadn't refunded my money. I called their customer service again and was told that sometimes there could be a "hold up" in the money transferring, and if I don't get it in another 7-10 days, I should call again.
I was waiting until I got my money refunded before I bought my hair flower again, but since it looked like it could take another week before my money got refunded, I decided to re-order my flower to ensure I had it for my hair trial the weekend of June 23.
I went onto Forever21's website, found the flower, and was thisclose to buying it when I noticed that the cream option was out of stock. They only had "dusty pink" and fuchsia, neither one of which will go with my wedding ensemble.
Well crap. I did a quick Ebay search to see if anyone was selling it there, but no luck. I then turned to Etsy to see if I could find something similar. Apparently the trend now is to make the ribbon flowers with the singed edges a la:
They're not ugly, but not my cup of tea (nor in my wedding colors.)
I finally found a few that I wouldn't hate if I had to buy them
(Only I ordered mine in cream)
I thought it would be a perfect accessory for my hair on my wedding day, and at only $3.80, it was a total steal. About a week later, I got the yellow Forever21 package in the mail and hurried inside to open it. I slowly
A week later, they still hadn't refunded my money. I called their customer service again and was told that sometimes there could be a "hold up" in the money transferring, and if I don't get it in another 7-10 days, I should call again.
I was waiting until I got my money refunded before I bought my hair flower again, but since it looked like it could take another week before my money got refunded, I decided to re-order my flower to ensure I had it for my hair trial the weekend of June 23.
I went onto Forever21's website, found the flower, and was thisclose to buying it when I noticed that the cream option was out of stock. They only had "dusty pink" and fuchsia, neither one of which will go with my wedding ensemble.
Well crap. I did a quick Ebay search to see if anyone was selling it there, but no luck. I then turned to Etsy to see if I could find something similar. Apparently the trend now is to make the ribbon flowers with the singed edges a la:
They're not ugly, but not my cup of tea (nor in my wedding colors.)
I finally found a few that I wouldn't hate if I had to buy them
But neither of them are exactly what I was looking for. I'm going to message Forever21 and see if they happen to have another cream flower in stock; if not, I'll have to buy something else.
Anyone else have a company mess up their wedding ensemble?
Update:
I ordered the flower with the headband. The flower is detachable, so I can try it both ways, as a headband and as a clip. Hopefully it'll get here before my hair trail on the 23rd!
Update:
I ordered the flower with the headband. The flower is detachable, so I can try it both ways, as a headband and as a clip. Hopefully it'll get here before my hair trail on the 23rd!
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
RSVP Dissapointment
I knew when we decided to get married in Columbia, that it would be a destination wedding for 99% of our guests (destination meaning out of city, state, or county.)
I knew that for my family to come, it would mean them getting passports, driving or flying over 1,400 km and paying for a hotel for multiple nights.
I knew that a lot of Keegan's family lives in different states (Washington, Arizona, Maine.)
I knew that a lot of our friends have just graduated from college and have moved onto jobs in different cities and states (California, Missouri, Illinois.) Along the same lines, I also knew that since they are in their first year of their jobs, they don't have a lot of vacation time or extra money.
I knew all of these things when we decided to get married in Columbia.
So why does it bother me so much that we have more guests not coming to the wedding, than those able to attend?
Even though I knew that Columbia was a drive or flight for all of our guests except for my immediate family, I selfishly hoped that most of our guests would be able to come to the wedding. Even though I knew this, it still hurts every time I open up an RSVP card and see the "no" box checked.
When we first sent out our invitations, I was so excited to check the mailbox and see who would be coming to our wedding. Now, I just do it so that I can give accurate numbers to our vendors. I still get beyond excited every time I see the "Wouldn't miss it for the world!" box checked, but I do get sad when I see that some of our favorite people won't be able to see us on our special day.
On the other side of things, I have been amazed at the people who have said they are coming so far. I didn't expect any of my family to come because lives in Canada. However, one of my uncles and cousins on my dad's side and an uncle, and aunt and uncle from my mom's side have already said they're coming. It means the world to me that they are taking the time and spending the money to come all the way to the States just for a weekend.
As of now, we've had about 31% of our RSVPs back. About 48 people have said they're coming, however over half of that is our wedding party and their families, so really about 20 people will be guests that aren't part of the wedding party. 47 people have responded "no" and I expect to see that number increase significantly.
I understand why our guests are not able to make it to the wedding. Like I said, it's a drive or flight for 99% of the people we invited. Vacation times are short and money is tight. A lot of the guests that are not able to come are older guests of Keegan's parents or my family. I knew from the get go that my 80-something year old grandparents weren't going to haul themselves on a plane and fly to the middle of Missouri for a weekend. It still broke my heart a little but to see their RSVP come back with the "no" box checked.
This is honestly the main reason we decided to honeymoon in Canada. I knew that a lot of my family wouldn't be able to come and that honestly, my grandparents don't have much time left. Our honeymoon will be the first time that Keegan has met any of my extended family (except for my mom's mom who passed away late last year,) and it may be the only time that he gets to meet my dad's parents. While I still have dreams of lying somewhere warm and sandy, I know that taking our honeymoon and visiting with my family is so much more important. There will always be time to go to the beach (especially now that we live 4 hours from the Mississippi coast,) but family won't always be around.
For now, every "no" RSVP that we receive will hurt, but that just means that we'll have to celebrate with our friends and family that can't make it a different time. I'm still so excited to celebrate with our friends and family that can be there. It's going to be an amazing weekend and one of the best times of our lives!
Anyone else been disappointed by their RSVPs? Did less people come to your wedding than expected?
I knew that for my family to come, it would mean them getting passports, driving or flying over 1,400 km and paying for a hotel for multiple nights.
I knew that a lot of Keegan's family lives in different states (Washington, Arizona, Maine.)
I knew that a lot of our friends have just graduated from college and have moved onto jobs in different cities and states (California, Missouri, Illinois.) Along the same lines, I also knew that since they are in their first year of their jobs, they don't have a lot of vacation time or extra money.
I knew all of these things when we decided to get married in Columbia.
So why does it bother me so much that we have more guests not coming to the wedding, than those able to attend?
Even though I knew that Columbia was a drive or flight for all of our guests except for my immediate family, I selfishly hoped that most of our guests would be able to come to the wedding. Even though I knew this, it still hurts every time I open up an RSVP card and see the "no" box checked.
When we first sent out our invitations, I was so excited to check the mailbox and see who would be coming to our wedding. Now, I just do it so that I can give accurate numbers to our vendors. I still get beyond excited every time I see the "Wouldn't miss it for the world!" box checked, but I do get sad when I see that some of our favorite people won't be able to see us on our special day.
On the other side of things, I have been amazed at the people who have said they are coming so far. I didn't expect any of my family to come because lives in Canada. However, one of my uncles and cousins on my dad's side and an uncle, and aunt and uncle from my mom's side have already said they're coming. It means the world to me that they are taking the time and spending the money to come all the way to the States just for a weekend.
As of now, we've had about 31% of our RSVPs back. About 48 people have said they're coming, however over half of that is our wedding party and their families, so really about 20 people will be guests that aren't part of the wedding party. 47 people have responded "no" and I expect to see that number increase significantly.
I understand why our guests are not able to make it to the wedding. Like I said, it's a drive or flight for 99% of the people we invited. Vacation times are short and money is tight. A lot of the guests that are not able to come are older guests of Keegan's parents or my family. I knew from the get go that my 80-something year old grandparents weren't going to haul themselves on a plane and fly to the middle of Missouri for a weekend. It still broke my heart a little but to see their RSVP come back with the "no" box checked.
This is honestly the main reason we decided to honeymoon in Canada. I knew that a lot of my family wouldn't be able to come and that honestly, my grandparents don't have much time left. Our honeymoon will be the first time that Keegan has met any of my extended family (except for my mom's mom who passed away late last year,) and it may be the only time that he gets to meet my dad's parents. While I still have dreams of lying somewhere warm and sandy, I know that taking our honeymoon and visiting with my family is so much more important. There will always be time to go to the beach (especially now that we live 4 hours from the Mississippi coast,) but family won't always be around.
For now, every "no" RSVP that we receive will hurt, but that just means that we'll have to celebrate with our friends and family that can't make it a different time. I'm still so excited to celebrate with our friends and family that can be there. It's going to be an amazing weekend and one of the best times of our lives!
Anyone else been disappointed by their RSVPs? Did less people come to your wedding than expected?
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Taking Notes
On Friday, Keegan and I went to his co-worker, J's, wedding in Tuscaloosa, AL. This was the first wedding that I had been to since a friend's wedding back in May of '09. I was excited to go and see how a wedding all comes together now that I'm almost finished planning my own. The only downside was that during the entire wedding, Keegan and I were comparing J's wedding to our own. It wasn't a what-we're-going-to-do-better-than-them comparison, but more, paying attention to the details that worked/didn't work and things we wanted to do/don't want to happen at our own wedding. As a downside, since we were taking notes throughout the entire thing, it was kind of difficult to just sit back and enjoy everything.
Anyways, some notes we took:
- Try our best to get the wedding started on time. I know that things can/will go wrong, but I really don't want to keep our guests waiting. It was kind of awkward just sitting there, surrounded by people we didn't know waiting for the wedding to start.
- Along those same lines, we need to keep things moving once the wedding does start. J started the processional, and once he had walked up to the ceremony space, it was another 5 minutes before the grandparents were seated. Then another 5 before the wedding party started. It took at least 10 minutes for the entire wedding party to walk up to where J was standing. The entire time, J looked so nervous/awkward and I felt bad for him.
- While I enjoyed the ceremony that J and his wife had crafted for themselves, to me, it was very textbook. I'm not saying this is a bad thing, everyone should have a ceremony that fits their relationship. However, for Keegan and I, it solidified our decision to write our own ceremony. I love that our ceremony is so personal to us and incorporates all aspects of our lives.
- If our videographer wants to put a mic on Keegan, or my dad (our officiant,) then we need to make sure that it is plugged in and working properly. The entire ceremony, the mic on J's officiant kept going in and out, making it very difficult to understand him.
- Once the ceremony is finished, we want to have my dad make an announcement for our guests about what they need to do next. J's officiant made an announcement that we were going to enjoy a reception right next to the ceremony space, but we didn't really know what to do. Food was set out, but we weren't sure if we were supposed to start eating yet. All of the guests just stood around for 20 minutes before someone made the jump and started the food line.
- Make sure someone announces everything that we are doing if we want our guests to pay attention. J and his wife decided to cut the cake right away, but no one made an announcement and half of the guests were still walking from the ceremony space or talking to each other, so no one really payed attention. This also happened with the garter/bouquet tosses. I wasn't expecting everyone to come up and participate, but it's no fun to throw a garter to only 2 boys under the age of 10. I felt really bad for the bride and groom because a lot of people missed important parts of the reception.
- Keegan and I were originally going to serve only appetizers at our wedding, but after seeing J do the same, we were glad that we changed to having a full pasta bar. J's wedding was at 6:30 (ours will be at 6,) right at dinner time. I know that a lot of people, including us, had come straight from work and had not eaten dinner before the wedding. While there were a lot of appetizers, there wasn't enough food to count as "dinner." Keegan and I actually went and got dinner after the wedding because we were still hungry.
- I'm glad that we are going to have basically a party after our ceremony. J's wedding was only about 2 hours from start of ceremony until they did their exit and it felt very wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am. Everything happened so quickly, so a lot of things were missed by guests. I don't think the bide and groom ate at all, and they hardly had time to go around and greet all of their guests. Since so many of our guests are going to be coming from out of town/state/country, I really want to be able to spend time with them. I thought that our 5 hour time frame was a bit crunched, but after seeing J do everything in the span of 2 hours, it makes me less worried about being able to fit everything in and see everyone.
- I think that Keegan is coming around to having a candy bar after seeing the one at J's wedding. Woohoo!
Again, I just want to re-iterate that these points are in no way of saying that J's wedding was a bad wedding. In fact, I enjoyed myself a lot, and I loved being able to see on of our friends marry the love of his life. Some of these point are things that Keegan and I want to avoid doing because it doesn't fit us and our wedding. Some of the things that we saw at J's wedding solidified that we made the correct choice for us.Overall, I am so glad that we were able to see J get married. Not only because we got to see him so happy, but selfishly, it helped us figure out a few more of the nitty-gritty details for our own wedding.
We get to go to another wedding at the end of June for Keegan's cousin. I'm beyond excited to see L & K as well as finally meet a lot of Keegan's family. I'm also doing my hair and makeup trial with Keegan's other cousin, Audra who is one of my bridesmaids. I can't wait! After L&K's wedding, we'll be next!
Anyways, some notes we took:
- Try our best to get the wedding started on time. I know that things can/will go wrong, but I really don't want to keep our guests waiting. It was kind of awkward just sitting there, surrounded by people we didn't know waiting for the wedding to start.
- Along those same lines, we need to keep things moving once the wedding does start. J started the processional, and once he had walked up to the ceremony space, it was another 5 minutes before the grandparents were seated. Then another 5 before the wedding party started. It took at least 10 minutes for the entire wedding party to walk up to where J was standing. The entire time, J looked so nervous/awkward and I felt bad for him.
- While I enjoyed the ceremony that J and his wife had crafted for themselves, to me, it was very textbook. I'm not saying this is a bad thing, everyone should have a ceremony that fits their relationship. However, for Keegan and I, it solidified our decision to write our own ceremony. I love that our ceremony is so personal to us and incorporates all aspects of our lives.
- If our videographer wants to put a mic on Keegan, or my dad (our officiant,) then we need to make sure that it is plugged in and working properly. The entire ceremony, the mic on J's officiant kept going in and out, making it very difficult to understand him.
- Once the ceremony is finished, we want to have my dad make an announcement for our guests about what they need to do next. J's officiant made an announcement that we were going to enjoy a reception right next to the ceremony space, but we didn't really know what to do. Food was set out, but we weren't sure if we were supposed to start eating yet. All of the guests just stood around for 20 minutes before someone made the jump and started the food line.
- Make sure someone announces everything that we are doing if we want our guests to pay attention. J and his wife decided to cut the cake right away, but no one made an announcement and half of the guests were still walking from the ceremony space or talking to each other, so no one really payed attention. This also happened with the garter/bouquet tosses. I wasn't expecting everyone to come up and participate, but it's no fun to throw a garter to only 2 boys under the age of 10. I felt really bad for the bride and groom because a lot of people missed important parts of the reception.
- Keegan and I were originally going to serve only appetizers at our wedding, but after seeing J do the same, we were glad that we changed to having a full pasta bar. J's wedding was at 6:30 (ours will be at 6,) right at dinner time. I know that a lot of people, including us, had come straight from work and had not eaten dinner before the wedding. While there were a lot of appetizers, there wasn't enough food to count as "dinner." Keegan and I actually went and got dinner after the wedding because we were still hungry.
- I'm glad that we are going to have basically a party after our ceremony. J's wedding was only about 2 hours from start of ceremony until they did their exit and it felt very wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am. Everything happened so quickly, so a lot of things were missed by guests. I don't think the bide and groom ate at all, and they hardly had time to go around and greet all of their guests. Since so many of our guests are going to be coming from out of town/state/country, I really want to be able to spend time with them. I thought that our 5 hour time frame was a bit crunched, but after seeing J do everything in the span of 2 hours, it makes me less worried about being able to fit everything in and see everyone.
- I think that Keegan is coming around to having a candy bar after seeing the one at J's wedding. Woohoo!
Again, I just want to re-iterate that these points are in no way of saying that J's wedding was a bad wedding. In fact, I enjoyed myself a lot, and I loved being able to see on of our friends marry the love of his life. Some of these point are things that Keegan and I want to avoid doing because it doesn't fit us and our wedding. Some of the things that we saw at J's wedding solidified that we made the correct choice for us.Overall, I am so glad that we were able to see J get married. Not only because we got to see him so happy, but selfishly, it helped us figure out a few more of the nitty-gritty details for our own wedding.
We get to go to another wedding at the end of June for Keegan's cousin. I'm beyond excited to see L & K as well as finally meet a lot of Keegan's family. I'm also doing my hair and makeup trial with Keegan's other cousin, Audra who is one of my bridesmaids. I can't wait! After L&K's wedding, we'll be next!
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