Next Week!

I didn't realize my last post on here was April. I am so not good at keeping my blogs current.

The big day is already next week! I can't believe how quickly time went by and that I'll be a Mrs. soon! Everything's been going according to schedule and I seem to be okay as far as my timeline for everything. I'm just looking forward to seeing how the photographs and video turn out.

I'm also in the middle of trying to get all my payments done. I need to get that organized as well. Instead of giving the vendors tips (I found that most people don't even tip their vendors, especially if they own the company providing the service), I bought each of them a bottle of wine and will be writing them a card. I know it's not much and people would probably prefer tips. I'm debating whether to slip a $20 bill in each envelope just for good measure.

Officiant Pt. 2

We finally received confirmation from our officiant a few weeks ago and I was able to make an appointment to meet her this past week.

I'd seen her at a TWC workshop we'd gone to last year, so I was eager to have her run our ceremony since she seemed really nice and knowledgeable. Her office was located off Nimitz, which was super busy on Wednesday afternoon. It's a good thing we left an hour early so we didn't really have to worry about being late. It took some time to find her office though because the numbers weren't lined up the way I thought they'd be.

Once she came out to get out, we went into her office, which included plush carpet and a super-comfy sofa. She went through what the ceremony would be like and included details that I hadn't thought about. I got a really good vibe from her and she was easy to talk to. She made it so that BFC and I wouldn't have to worry about our ceremony at all.

I asked her to come to our rehearsal as well since that would help us understand the run-through a little more. I can't believe there's nearly only 3 months left!

Engagement Photos

BFC and I went to take our engagement photos with Gary and Janelle from Phillips Photography yesterday. Talk about an interesting experience! The session took place at the Koolina beach park near Paradise Cove. We ended up having to go up on top of some rocks and pose there as the waves were coming up behind us.

I liked how they didn't make us do any major "fake" posing where we had to gaze at one another or anything major like that. I guess now that I think back, there could have been other shots taken, but I know the majority of what we did will look nice when the photos are developed.

Gary put one of the pictures up on his FB and I thought it looked great! I can't wait to see the rest of the pictures.

Bands

BFC and I went to TWRS this weekend to purchase my wedding band since they were having a special on a designer's set of bands. I decided to get a very simple, thin wedding band. They threw in a few engraving and it will also have a small, small diamond placed on the inside of the ring.

I can't believe we're already into March...which reminds me that I have to email the wedding coordinator my new amounts, including the ring bearer shirt and my wedding band. I hope I'll still have enough to purchase the bridesmaids' gifts.

Planning Continued...

It was a productive week in wedding planning. I finally booked the room for the night before and night of the wedding. I know that will take a load off my back not having to worry about getting to the hotel at 7 or 8 in the morning to start taking pictures.

I ended up getting the jr. bridesmaids' dresses pretty quickly, but I'm going to be returning them tomorrow and getting bigger sizes. I guess the dresses run small (kind of like bridal gowns), so the bigger, the better. I do really like how they look though and they're going to be cute on the girls.

I've also been having problems finding speakers for my DJ. I actually stumbled upon this company called "Just Play Productions." They basically rent out equipment to people and all you have to do is plug your IPod in and it'll play whatever. It's a steal at less than $200 to rent for the entire function. I do have to read out the contract more thoroughly though before I actually sign it and send in my money. The guy I talked to was really nice and he did seem knowledgeable about what the room looked like and how the sound system would be in that particular ballroom.

Now the only real things left to worry about are....
1)Getting BFC's tux
2)Getting the groomsmen/ring bearer tops
3)Getting my wedding band
4)Receiving the new jr. bridesmaids' dresses
5)Waiting for final confirmation from our officiant

I better recheck my checklists...

Amazon.com Pt. 2

I received all of my stuff from Amazon this week! I couldn't believe how fast everything came. The wedding card box looks a lot smaller than I expected, but it's still pretty nice and it came out to be a good price. I also purchased stuff for my bridesmaids' gifts.

The jr. bridesmaids dresses came in today and I really like the color, but I'm not sure if BFC's niece will fit her dress. It looks like it may be too small. I think CC will be able to fit hers though. I'll have to give it to MOH so she can try it on.

Amazon.com

Spent many hours of the weekend looking up wedding stuff on Amazon.com. I don't know why I didn't think of doing it before. One of the things I was looking for were the jr. bridesmaids dresses. I ended up finding a style I liked. I hope that the dresses will fit them, but I figure, at least they could be altered if anything. I also ended up finding some cute gifts for the bridesmaids and a gift card holder/container thing for the reception.

I did want to order a few more things, but they weren't covered by the Super Saver Shipping and I would have had to pay nearly $9 for S&H for bubbles! I couldn't believe it, but I guess it's because they have to ship it here. There was something else that I had put into my shopping cart, but deleted because of shipping rates as well.

I was thinking of looking for jewelry to wear as well, but I guess I could stick to looking at places down here.

Flowers Pt. 2

After meeting with the other florist, Emi, I told BFC that I really wanted her to do the wedding. She was really nice and when she asked me for the budget for flowers, she didn't make a comment or face. She just continued on with her checklist and showed us different pictures of her work. I actually liked her ideas better and feel that she fit well with us. BFC felt that she was nicer as well. We were both holding our breath as I opened the proposal email from her stating what she'd charge us for everything. I was so relieved to find that her price was actually much better for what she had agreed to do for our ceremony. I guess it was a blessing in disguise that the other florist wasn't able to meet since she's the one who referred me to Emi in the first place. I can't wait to see how the final products look at our ceremony.

196 More Days!

The countdown has actually reached under 200 days left until the wedding! I can't believe how fast things have been moving. I'm beginning to already feel stressed out since there are still some things that we haven't done yet. We still need to find tops for the groomsmen and dresses for the jr. bridesmaids. I have to tell the MOH we need to get on it during Spring Break. I'm hoping we'll be able to find something that will look good on both of them...

The florist situation is also kind of rocky. I'm waiting to meet with another florist tomorrow and if that doesn't pan out, I need to call the other florist I met with from TED to make sure we can book her for that day. I'm debating on what I really want and the lady from TED really helped me see how different the bouquets could look from what I was picturing in my head. Maybe the other lady from EF will be able to make something a little different...

I've also got to find someone to alter my dress, which means I'll have to lug it somewhere for the seamstress to look at. I also need to find an appropriate pair of shoes that I can wear with the dress. Hmm...speaking of which, what color should I have the bridesmaids wear...black would probably be the best because it can match pretty much anything.