The Loose Ends... (& the Music!)

Right now, I feel like I'm drowning in small details. I feel like every project is half-completed, and we'll never get to the finish line.

The programs? Printed, but not assembled.
The ceremony? Edited, but not printed.
The vows? Started, but not finished.
The signs? One base coat down, one to finish. Assembly and ribbons still required.
The Thank-Yous? Half purchased, have to get the rest this week.
The seating charts? Assembled, but need to get the easels.

I know things will come together sooner or later, but I just wish more of this was done. It's a really crappy feeling knowing the fate that awaits you for the next 10 days --- glue guns and paintbrushes galore.

We're STILL finalizing the final guest count, which keeps teetering between 164-170.

The one thing we have done is the music playlists for the day (and that was only because I outsourced this to my lovely sister and maid of honor). I LOVE all the music we're having! I can't wait to share it with you, so here it is:

Pre-Wedding

Plain White Tees- Write You A Song
The Last Goodnight- Pictures of You
The Proclaimers- 500 Miles
Adam Sandler- Grow Old with you (With Billy idol intro)
Taylor Swift- Love Story
Ingrid Michaelson- The Way I Am
Frank Sinatra- You make Me Feel So Young
Matt Nathanson- Wedding Dress
Josh Radin- I’d Rather Be With You

Processional

1,2,3,4 - Plain White T's
I'm Yours - Jason Mraz

Post-Wedding

Katrina and the Waves- Walking on Sunshine
Natalie Cole- This Will Be
The Monkees- Daydream Believer
Diana Ross and Marvin Gaye- Ain't No Mountain
Sonny and Cher- I got you Babe
The Turtles- Happy Together
Captain and Tenille- Love Will Keep us together

Cocktail Hour

Dean Martin- That's Amore
Michael Buble- Sway
Jason Mraz- Beautiful Mess
Frank Sinatra- Moonlight Becomes You
Michael Buble- Everything
Billy Joel- For The Longest Time
Frank Sinatra- Embracable You
Gavin Degraw- Follow Through
Dean Martin- You’re Nobody Til Somebody Loves You
Michael Buble- That’s All
Phil Collins- True Colors
Sara Bareilles- Many The Miles
Michael Buble- The Way you Look Tonight
Dean Martin- Everybody Loves Somebody
Jason Mraz- You and I Both
Nat Cole- L.O.V.E
Michael Buble- Crazy Little Thing Called Love
Dean Martin- Memories Are Made of This

Reception

Jason Mraz- Lucky (First dance)
Irish Eyes... (Father/Daughter dance)
My Wish - Rascal Flatts (Mother/son dance)
Michael Buble- Feeling Good
ACDC-You Shook Me
Stevie Wondie- Signed Sealed Delivered
Etta Jones- At Last
Kenny Chesney- The Good Stuff
The Commadors- Brick House
The Weather Girls- It's Raining Men
Casper- Cha Cha Slide
Bobby Vinton- Beer Barrel Polka
Tiffany- I think we’re alone now
Rascal Flatts- God Bless The Broken Road
Billy Joel- Just the Way you are
Sir Mix Alot- jump on it
Brian Setzer- Jump Jive n Wail
Michael Jackson- Beat it
Elton Jon- Crocodile Rock
The Four Seasons- December 1963
John Mellancamp- Jack and Diane
Whitney Houston- I wanna dance with somebody
ABBA- Dancing Queen
Chubby Checkers- The Twist
The Isley Brothers- Shout
Lionel Richie- All Night Long
Toby Keith- Me Too
Journey- Don't stop Believing
Sir Mix a lot- Baby Got back
Marcia Grass- Electric Slide
Jackson 5- I want you back
The 4 tops- I can't help myself
Journey- Faithfully
Van Morris- Brown Eyed Girl
Michael Buble- Save the Last dance

Some of the reception songs have changed and others have been added, but this is the basic gist: fun, happy music. I'm so excited -- I have a feeling this will make for a very enjoyable mood all day!

Set in Stone...

Remember WAY back in March when I mentioned that our wedding ceremony includes a memorial brick in the garden? No? Refresh your memory here. So I took a ride over to Wilder Park yesterday to scope out our brick location, what plants were in bloom, and the overall parking situation. I can report only good things!

Plus, I can prove photographic evidence!

Hey look! That's us!!



Sorry for the stinky picture, but seriously, how cool is this?!?!?!

Just Say No.

As the days continue to drop and our wedding inches closer, I find myself trying to make last minute additions to the wedding. As soon as I talk myself out of something, I talk myself into something else.

At this point, I'm finding the tedious details to be painful and overwhelming, simply because I have no interest in planning logistics. I'm anxious for our day to arrive, I'm anxious to say our vows and exchange rings, and I'm anxious to jet off with Tom to the other side of the world. The rest is becoming one big, beautiful blur, and yet, I still feel compelled to continue to add to it.

There has to be a point where I just start saying "No." In the wedding planning world, where there is continuous sensory overload, it's tough to stop imagining small details that would "be so perfect."

Today, 200 blog posts later, I'm still struggling. And then, I came across one of my favorite bloggers, offering her no-nonsense, practical and thoughtful ideas, and it seemed like she was speaking directly to me:

"If I've learned one thing planning this wedding, its this: The times that you say 'NO, that is not who we are, that is not what we want' will be vastly overpowered by the times you say 'YES YES YES, this is who we are, this is what we want, this is how we live'." - Meg at a Practical Wedding

So true.

A Little Late to the Game

Did you know that March is designated as "National Crafts Month"? I did. And I've started my celebration late.

It's no surprise that I love me a good project, especially one that has instant results.

I actually started these organza flowers a few weeks ago as a test run. They were pretty simple, actually, and I had churned out 3 in less than half an hour. Plus, I only spent $10 on the organza, and I have plenty left over!



Mine are made out of blue and green, and I'm hoping I can figure out a way to make them into hair clips for my nieces. The ones I made were a bit more curly around the edges, but I like them that way. If I figure out a good use for them, I'll be sure to post the final result.

Last night, I left the wedding projects behind and moved into home decor. Not for my house (though those projects are beginning to swirl in my head, too!), but for my nieces' bedroom. The two oldest of the bunch are moving up to a "big girl" bedroom to make room for little Charlotte, who will be arriving in just 6 short weeks! So, last night, I dug my trust little sewing machine out from the depths of my closet, fired it up, and whipped up 2 pairs of curtains and 3 throw pillows. Tonight, I'm finishing up the last of the 3 pillows. Soon, Becca and I will start with the last of the accents, which I'm most excited about. I'll definitely post some pictures once the room is finished!

Since I was already on a crafty roll yesterday, I ordered a new set of calligraphy pens and white India ink to address the invitations.


(Clever calligraphy from Once Wed)

I informed Tom that once I finalize and verify all the guests' addresses, I'll be launching a hostile takeover of his computer and printer so I can begin the printing, then will start the white ink process in batches throughout April and May. This way, June will roll around and all I'll have to do will be to purchase the stamps! :)

And what's an envelope without an invitation?



That's right --- I'm breaking out the Gocco. I know I've made a series of false promises with this, but I really have no choice anymore. I have to start this and figure it out, in case it doesn't work...

And maybe, just maybe, if I'm not too burned out, I'll finally start on the ribbon wands I mentioned.

I've purchased a TON of ribbon a few weeks ago, but I still have to purchase the dowel rods for these and the flower girl wands and paint them before I begin anything...

A Recap Among Recaps

So this is going to be a ridiculously long, picture-filled post. My apologies.

But, as we stand 4 months out from the wedding, here's the plans/inspiration so far:

This is the bouquet that started it all; Most of my decisions have stemmed from this picture:



The ceremony venue:



The apparel:

The ties for the gentlemen:


The flower girl dresses:

Symbolic of the black dresses my sisters are wearing:

My HOT shoes (but in blue):

The accessories:

The rings:

The paper:

Invitation inspiration (but blue, not pink):




The programs:


The favor boxes:

The details:

Our wine "guestbook":

Our personalized brick:

So I think it's shaping up nicely!

I'm Running Out of Topics...

So while this really is a trivial detail, I thought I'd share anyway.

Below are photographs from our florist's wedding (actually photographed by our photographer, Kara!)

Kristen, our florist, did all the flowers for her own wedding. This is the card holder she'll be providing for our wedding (using the same flowers as my bouquet, of course!):



Hard to see? Sorry. It's a HUGE vase (I think almost 3 feet tall), with a floral rim on the top. It's pretty, it's secure, and it's pretty obvious in person what it is.

(All photographs from Kristen's portfolio)

PS - According to the USPS tracking, my ring should arrive today, Tom's tomorrow, and our ties on Monday. Hopefully I'll be able to do a BIG, GIANT recap on Monday or Tuesday complete with photographs of everything! :)

Making it Official, With Stone...

I'm sorry I keep dwelling on the same subjects this week, but I'm just super excited that we are FINALLY making some headway in the planning. Besides the rings and ties (which I'm still patiently waiting on), I'm finalizing the ceremony site today.

While it's still a little early to be making our last payment, there's a reason for the madness.

This bad boy right here:



Part of the ceremony "package" with the park district is a free engraved brick to be placed in the garden where the ceremony takes place. Tom and I thought it would be more fun to have the brick there the day we were getting married, instead of after. So, we have to pay the money and choose our inscription this week to meet the deadline before August.

I am sooo excited about this brick! I've already decided that we're going to make a big, obvious sign with an arrow pointing towards it that says something like "Look Down" to point it out, and I want to get a picture of our rings with it. :)

The Moral of the Story...

When I first started planning the wedding, you would have thought I was competing in a race. I was running, no, sprinting, to plan every detail. Little did I know that planning is more like a marathon --- you need to take it slow, make deliberate choices, and let yourself feel the effects.

I have found, with the exception of the purchase of my wedding dress, that hasty decisions have left me unsatisfied or overspent. Take for instance the purchase of the flower girl dresses this weekend. One week of frustrated shopping, and I was ready to settle for something I didn't want. Then, by chance, I find the perfect choice where I least expected it, for 1/2 of what I wanted to pay. Ditto with the honeymoon. I was so desperate to choose something and have concrete plans, that I almost missed getting the deal of a lifetime on our top choice!

The same school of thought, then, should be applied to my shoes. Why waste $70 on a pair of shoes I will most likely wear once? All because I'm too anxious to wait for the summer shoes to arrive in stores?

When I think back to the original planning stages and compare that vision to the current one, I am absolutely amazed by how much has both changed and stayed the same. As all the pieces begin to fit together (venues, attire, decor), I find myself so unbelievably excited. I can absolutely picture the day in my head, from the moment I see all my nieces all dressed up and waving their wands to the first moment Thomas and I have alone. The more I picture these moments, the more I find the small details matter less and less.

So I guess all of our mothers have been right all along ---- patience really is a virtue.

Stupid Purchase??

So while at the Salvation Army shopping for part of Tom's Halloween costume, I ran across this:

Well, minus the iron stand. The price? $12.50. What it's selling for at Target is $29.99.

I didn't buy it. YET.

I figured I could sleep on it and go back the next day (today) and pick it up if I wanted to. And I do WANT to. I'm just not sure if it's worth it.

The idea would be to get 2, (I can always purchase the other from Target or check out a different Salvation Army since they get Target cast-offs), and set up a table at the ceremony for beverages.

Like this:

Cute idea, no?

As much as I love it, and know it would be fairly simple to pull off (some water, lemonade mix, some sliced lemon to float on top and a few cups), I feel like it's definitely something we could do without.

But on the other hand, for $50 (after purchasing both jars and the table cloth), it seems like it could be a nice touch that is much appreciated. Remember, it will be a warm, June afternoon outside and I'm sure people would appreciate some cool water & lemonade.

Hmmm. Maybe I could just buy the one for $12.50 and serve water only...

Thoughts??

PS - In case you're wondering and I didn't mention it earlier, Tom's Halloween costume is the Hulk. He's teaching at his elementary school this morning, so he's been directed to take lots of pictures of him and the kids. Hopefully I'll be able to post them this weekend!!!