Showered with love, part two

Last weekend was a busy one for me! Friday consisted of my first dress fitting and taking my dress home, AND our cake tasting. Saturday I had TWO showers, back to back. Before our couple's bowling outing, my aunts & cousin Katie threw us a bridal shower. It was so sweet and special, and I loved every second of it! Here are some pictures from the shower:

Beautiful table! 

Adorable cake!

Bridal portraits of my mom & aunts.

Waiting for guests to arrive.

Sweet, sweet friends!

Highlighting & tabbing bible verses in our bible.

 Opening presents

 Our gorgeous dishes!

Room full of sweet ladies!

Couple's Bowling

Last weekend, Nathan's sister & brother-in-law treated us to a little couple's outing, including dinner at Razoo's in Fort Worth, and then bowling and billiards at Main Event. Here are a few highlights of the night. {You know you like the sweet socks!!}

We had SO much fun! I actually ended up beating Nathan with my best bowling score ever. {Gotta brag. This never happens.} And, of course, Nathan, Travis, Sam, and I had to hit up the arcades AND use our tickets on whoopie cushions, candy, and a rubber ducky. So we didn't have enough tickets for the really cool prizes.. so what! Nate won Sam & I both a stuffed animal from the crane machine, which is way cooler than those other prizes you have to use your tickets on. {I ate all of the laffy taffy. No big surprise there.}

A big surprise

So, today was my first dress fitting in Fort Worth and little did we know, we are taking it home. Not much room in my tiny car for such a large dress.

Showered with love & pajamas

So, I figured I should go ahead and blog about my first couple of showers before the next two, so my posts aren't incredibly long.

Lingerie & Pajama Shower

A few friends and family members threw a lingerie and pajama shower for me about a month ago and it was SO much fun! I absolutely loved it. The cake was adorable, and the cupcakes were from my favorite place in Fort Worth (J.Rae's Cupcakes on Foch St. near W. 7th). If you haven't been there, you MUST go! It was just such a fun shower... I felt so special! And, I got some very pretty things too!

I'm so thankful for sweet friends & family that have spoiled me rotten, lately! I've been SO very blessed. Thank you girls for being there for me, helping me when I need help planning, throwing me an amazing shower, and for just being wonderful friends! I love you all SO much!! :) xoxo

Slow progress...

Well, it's official! Invitations are addressed, stamped, and ready to be mailed!! Mom and I tag-teamed and got them done after work today and I think we're both needing a hand massage.

What's next, you ask? Well, we still have to finalize the cakes and catering menu, I have dress fittings, another wedding shower, and continued thank you notes to write. As RSVPs come in, I've got to work on place cards and table assignments. I'm still working on a bunch of my DIY wedding projects and I have a feeling I'm going to be doing these until wedding day. I could go on and on and on....Ohhh the joys of a short engagement! Not a whole lot of planning time. Keeps you on your toes!!
Good news: wedding favors are in and they are {adorable}. I love them. :) AND, table runners are in. Also adorbs.

Random thought
Can I just say that I am beyond excited to (re)decorate what will be the (almost) hubs & I's humble abode? Because, I totally am. In fact, I've already begun the transformation from "man cave" to absolute beautifulness. No pictures here, but maybe once the home becomes a little more complete once I've moved after the wedding. Mk? :)

It's been real {random}.

Invitation etiquette

So, according to my sweet mother, proper wedding etiquette says you handwrite each wedding invitation. Joy! :) Therefore, we've begun doing just that. Handwriting 300 wedding invitations. Hand cramps, anyone?

Oh, and let's not forget the mound of thank you notes I'm working on as well. :) Much to do today!!!!

Planning pointers

So, several people have been asking me to keep track of the must do's and don'ts of wedding planning. Of course, this is my opinion! :) So here goes -
DO
Hire a fabulous florist. This isn't something you want to scrimp on. You can do beautiful arrangements for fairly cheap if you include a lot of pretty greenery accented with some of your favorite flowers. I chose to use different types of ferns and other greenery that have a vintage feel.
My florist: Scott's Flowers in Stephenville, TX

DON'T
Feel like you have to spend a {ton} of money on the perfect dress. However, I would recommend staying away from the massive boutiques that have hundreds to thousands of dresses. Go with a smaller boutique that offers a few designers that you're interested in.
Helpful tip: Buy TONS of bridal magazines!! You'll find every style, brand, and price range of dress and you can begin to figure out what your dress style is. Many times, a certain brand will catch your eye.
I actually found my dress at Bliss Bridal Salon in Fort Worth, TX. I found "my" brand in every magazine I looked at the night before, set an appointment, and found my dress almost right away. I would recommend trying a couple of bridal salons, though, because this is a BIG decision and you need to be at perfect peace with the dress you choose. :)

DO
Book a baker that makes delicious AND gorgeous cakes. Notice I said {delicious} first. It is a cake, after all. People are going to eat it, and I think it's pretty important that it tastes good.
My Baker: Your Cake by Design, Donna Hamer, Aledo, TX

DO
Set a budget. Boy, are we learning this the hard way!! Yikes! There is a LOT you have to spend money on, and there is also A LOT you don't have to spend much money on. It's important to figure out what is more "important" (shall we say) and go from there.

DO
Hire a fantastic photographer for engagement AND wedding photos. After the wedding, you're going to want things to remember your day by, and what better than beautiful photographs? Choose an experienced photographer that can show you past wedding work.
My Photographers:
- Engagement Session: Derrick Tribbey Photography, Dallas, TX
- Engagement Mini Session: Kim Hawkins Photography, Abilene, TX
- Bridal Portraits & Wedding Photos: KT Photography, Fort Worth, TX


That's all for now! More tips later, I promise. :) For now, I must get my beauty rest.

Look what arrived today!

Finally!! {Custom designed by me.}
I do love the chevron! :)

This week's to do list!

This is a big week! Holy cow, I have so much I need to get done. Here's what it's looking like so far:
Monday (Today): thank you notes, painting, & finding vintage suitcases {Check!!}
Tuesday: finish painting & thank you's, order gifts, check on invitations & hopefully pick them up!!
Wednesday: shower hostess gifts, paint, & organize things to take to MO, mail invitations
Thursday: pack what I'm taking to Missouri this weekend, pack for weekend in Fort Worth
Friday: gown fitting appointment, cake appointment, pick up engagement ring, and prepare for showers
Saturday: TWO wedding showers
Sunday: thank you notes, thank you notes, thank you notes!!!

It's going to be a crazy, exciting, fun week. I'm sure there are a thousand more things I have to do, but that's basically the jist of what I need to get done. :)

well, hello there!

We're {less than} six weeks out and I've just decided I have time to blog about the wedding. Let's start from the beginning, shall we?

The fiance proposed on Spring Break in March on a little getaway he had planned. You can see the proposal story on our website, here!

Since then, I've been busy busy planning like crazy since we decided on such a short engagement! Within the first month of planning I found & ordered my dress, found the venue, and began the oh so long list of important details. I don't want to give too much away, but I will let you in on a few of my projects. :)

My first to do was wedding party "will you" gifts. This was a lot of fun, but took some time! I scoured Michael's & Hobby Lobby for wooden boxes, the right color paint, tulle, lace, ribbon, etc. Here's what I came up with! I made these for my flower girls & bridesmaids. I think they turned out pretty cute!

Once I figured out what style of wedding I wanted {which is quite eclectic}, I began searching Pinterest & Etsy. I guess you could say it's a mix of vintage, modern, and trendy elements. I know it sounds weird, but I think it's going to turn out perfect. :) It's really coming together well with a lot of help from the florist and my sweet, patient mother.

Here's a little preview of the venue:

For the ring bearers, I decided to do something fun. Mustaches seem to be everywhere right now and I figured this would be an adorable "will you" gift for a couple of cute 4 year old boys.

Now, today I basically worked on thank you notes after an amazing shower on Saturday and I painted a few things. But, the thing I'm MOST excited about is the couple of gems I found in my parent's attic. I've been collecting some family heirlooms as decor for the wedding and I LOVE these. :)

Can't tell you what I'm going to do with them just yet! But I do have a few things on my mind.