Day 197

As the Holidays are here, we have already set up our beautiful Christmas tree  :)  I am so proud of it and I have to let it be known, that I LOVE CHRISTMAS!!  It is my absolute favorite holiday of the year!  Here is a picture of our tree.  My next blog, I promise, will be about the wedding  :)

Days 175- 196

Hello dear friends.  I apologize for not posting in a while.  School has been a bit crazy and then with the holidays upon us, I must say things have been a bit overwhelming.  I do have a bit of exciting news!  As many brides come face-to-face with her wedding day, I myself have felt that I need to get in better shape so that I will look the best I can.  I will be taking two classes next semester that shall help with this, one being yoga and the other one modern dance.  I am so thrilled for this  :)  I also was blessed enough to have Anthony purchase  new bikes for us  :)  

I absolutely LOVE my new bike and here are some pics of it.  I will be posting some wedding news shortly here.  

Day 174

Since my last blog, I have been searching for bridesmaids dresses and I have found some amazing pieces.  I must say bridesmaid dresses options have changed!  Some of my favorite designers are Jenny Yoo, Jim Hjelm, and J.Crew.  I know my girls will look amazing in anything but I am excited to see them in some of these gorgeous dresses.  I have posted some of my favorite ones I found.  Maybe we shall see my girls in some of these!  Enjoy!

Days 171 - 173

Hello dear friends.  I know I have been talking in my past posts about some major weddings news and I am finally ready to share that news!  Without any further ado, we have decided to change our wedding colors!!  I have been honestly thinking of this for some time, but recently it has come full circle.  I think the breaking point were seeing the greens in some lighting photos is where I knew deep down that things were going to have to change.  

I am thrilled to announce that our new colors will be Shades of Reds!  I cannot begin to tell you how excited this makes me, and what a huge relief it is to me.  :)  I have already met with Jennifer (our florist) and we were both on a roll today with all the new flower choices.  i will blog soon about the flowers, but I can say that there are going to be some amazing displays of floral at our wedding.  I am all about the flowers and there will be tons of  flowers on our wedding day.  :)  

As this journey progresses I have to say I have learned a lot of things about the wedding industry but one thing for sure is that you always have to follow your gut and make sure that you are getting what you want on this special day!  

Day 170

This blog is dedicated to our dear UT LONGHORNS.  I had the great pleasure of going to the game this weekend with our dear friends Jason and Morgan.  It was a beautiful day and great company.  =)  I am also happy to say that UT won against Baylor!!  Now they are ranked #3!  Hook 'em Horns!

Days 167 - 169

Hello my dear friends.  I know it has been a while since I have posted about the wedding itself and I must say school has been keeping me very busy lately.  I am happy to say that I recently got my first "A" on my Sociology test and completed a very long paper!  

I promise I will be back on my wedding stuff shortly here.  I have some exciting news and some major changes we have decided on!!  I promise they will be BIG and I cannot express how thrilled I am about them!!  

Again I want to say, how proud I am to be an American and to witness history in its' making!!  I found this awesome pic and I had to share it!!  Congrats again to the president-elect Barack Obama!!

Days 154 - 166

It is with my greatest pleasure to say that Barack Obama will be our new President!!  I cannot tell you how happy I am and proud of our nation!  It is time for change and I truly believe that Obama is ready to help our country be all that it can be!  I will continue to pray that Obama and his family will stay protected and that he will lead our country to a better place than what it has been the last 8 years!  Congratulations to Barack Obama!!!

Day 153

Just a quick little post to hopefully brighten your day  =)  Anthony and I recently bought the puppies some cute halloween costumes and I had to share with you some cute pics we took recently.  I hope you all enjoy these!!  Happy Halloween my dear friends!!

Days 147 - 152

Hello, I just wanted to post a quick blog to Congratulate UT Longhorns for beating Missouri on October 18!!  It was my first game this season to go to and see again how awesome they are!  I am so proud of them and I must say Colt McCoy has a real good chance of getting his Heisman Trophy!  So it is with great honor that I say, "We're No.1"!!!  Hook 'em Horns!!!

Day 146

Hello  =)  I just wanted to write a short blog today, to announce Ariel and Beckham recently won a Puppy contest!!!  I am so proud of both of them and knew they had a good chance!!  Check out the contest and who they were up against!

The contest was held by my hair salon, Keith Kristofer Salon, if you go to their website and look under photo galleries you will see the contest!  

Again I cannot tell you how proud we are of them and believe me they got a little prize from us!!  Here are some recent pics of them after getting groomed today!

Day 140 - 145

Hello dear friends.  I am very excited to share this news with you guys, first and foremost I would like to send a huge CONGRATULATIONS to my dear friend and bridesmaid, Sonya!!  She was proposed to about two weeks ago and happily accepted Tony's proposal!  I am so happy for both of them and I cannot wait to see what they are planning!  Sonya will be an amazing DIY Bride, since she is so creative and artistic, I am so excited for them!!

The second exciting news is that, I have officially set up our Wedding Website!  I had been planning on doing this for a while and it is still in some stages, but it is up and working!  So please check out and let me know what you think!  Please feel free to give me any ideas on how to spruce it up some!  =)

Day 135 - 139

I am happy to say that we have officially mailed all of our Save The Date Cards and I was very happy with the way they turned out, especially with the calligraphy on the addresses!  She did such an amazing job.  If anyone is interested in where I found her, through a wonderful lady named Lauren from The Pink Tulip.  Lauren is amazing and sweet, she is also going to be helping us design all the menus, programs, etc.  I am very excited to work with her on everything!  

I am also excited that I have been planning a luncheon for my bridesmaids in two weekends!  I cannot for all of them to meet!!  Hope everyone has a great weekend!  =)

Day 133 - 134

A video I found that I loved, that should remind everyone the importance to VOTE!!!

Day 12- 132

Hello my dear friends.  I just wanted to do a small blog because today I found the cutest shirts for my puppies and I had to share them!  There is this great dog store in Austin called Dogadillo in the Hill Country Galleria.  Lauren, the owner, is amazing and friendly.  I love their store and all the unique gifts for dogs!  I fell in love with these UT shirts I found for Ariel Marie and Beckham.  Hope you enjoy the pics and soon I will be posting about our Save The Date Cards!!  =)  

Day 117 - 126

I have been a bit under the weather lately, but I knew I was getting better when I stepped out of the house to do a little shopping.  I went to a local store here In Austin called Sanctuary, and they had the Mindy Weiss collection, which I absolutely LOVE!!  I ended up buying this cute bag to hold my wedding day shoes and some cute slippers to wear on my wedding day while I get ready!  I wish I could of gotten some more things, but maybe later on.  

Also we have decided to focus a bit more on the decor recently and I am excited to say that I finally feel confident that our vision is slowly coming together.  I don't want to give away too many details but we are thinking of some drapery work also to help make the atmosphere a bit more romantic and secluded from the other part of the hotel.  =)  Keep checking in and I may post soon some pictures of what I have in mind!   

Day 103 - 116

Hello my dear friends, sorry it has been a long time since I have last blogged.  I had my first test this week and my second one next week so please keep me in your prayers!  As far as the wedding planning is going, very well.  We are in the middle of trying to pick out linens for the tables and reception area and our transportation for the day.  I met with Greg last week at the Westin and he showed me some real great linens and I hope that everyone else likes them.  I also had the great pleasure of taking my mom along with me so she could see what our vision is for the wedding day.  I think she really enjoyed herself and she really loved the hotel.  We got to see some of the rooms they will have for guests and let me say I was very impressed.  

Finally we receieved our Save the Date cards and they are beautiful!!  I cannot wait to have them addressed by a calligrapher and send them out!!  Here are some pics and I hope you all love them as much as I do!!  

Day 96 - 102

Hello my dear friends.  I hope everyone had a wonderful Labor Day Weekend!  Anthony and i had a very relaxing weekend, which are few, especially since we went to a great outdoor concert on Sunday.  I was able to see Jack Ingram, Corey Morrow, and Pat Green LIVE!!  The weather was a bit hot, but it was worth seeing all those amazing artists!!  Also Anthony was thrilled to have the official kickoff weekend for college football, so here is a shout out to UT, "HOOK 'EM HORNS"!!  

As far as the wedding goes, things are moving along.  I have begun to look for bridesmaids dresses and let me say there are a ton of options out there.  I really think I am going to stick to satin materials for them so there can be a small amount of harmony.  I also have been searching for inspirations and I have found this one blog that I absolutely LOVE.  It is the blog from Southern Weddings Magazine, and I encourage everyone to check them out!!  Also look under their featured pros and see all the amazing photographers they have listed!  I could look for days at all the amazing work out there!!  Check them out here. Until next time!

Day 95

Recently a dear friend read me a poem about marriage and I thought it was beautiful; therefore I want to share it with you all. It is from "The Prophet" written by Kahlil Gibran.  Enjoy!

Then Almitra spoke again and said, "And what of Marriage, master?"

And he answered saying:

You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore.

You shall be together when white wings of death scatter your days.

Aye, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.

But let there be spaces in your togetherness,

And let the winds of the heavens dance between you.

Love one another but make not a bond of love:

Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.

Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup.

Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf.

Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone,

Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music.

Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping.

For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts.

And stand together, yet not too near together:

For the pillars of the temple stand apart,

And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow. 

Day 87 - 94

It has been a while since my last entry and I must say it has been a bit busy with school starting, and planning a wedding. I have had my ups and downs recently, but I just wanted to write a small blog.  With all the trials and tribulations of wedding planning I must give a huge shout out to one person whom I could not of done this without, my future mother-in-law! Her help has been invaluable and I have to rave about how amazing she is!  I have heard my share of stories about mother-in-laws being difficult or over-bearing, and I just have to brag how blessed I am with Anthony's mom!!  She is determined to help us plan the wedding of our dreams and has been there with us every step of the way.  I am very grateful for her and I cannot wait to officially call her my mother-in-law.  =)  So to those out there with great mother-in-laws, lets thank our lucky stars!!!  =)

Day 83 - 86

I know that many (not mentioning any names....Anthony) are not too fond of Martha Stewart, but I love her!!  I wish I could be as creative as her, but since I can't, I love reading her website and finding some inspiration there.  I love getting her "weddings" magazine, and I have recently started using this new tool she has on her website, to help keep all my vendors lined up and little reminders of balances.  It also can help create the guest list and eventually help with the seating chart!  I am crazy about these new tools she offers, and it has been a great help for me already.  I honestly feel like I have a backup for my hard copies and it is virtual so if I leave some information at home I will be ok as long as I can get to a computer  =)  I recommend any bride-to-be, to check out her site and use this tool! 

I am also going to post some pictures I have found through either her website or magazine that have inspired me!  I am really loving the idea of using ribbons and flowers!!  I am not going to give away too much information, but I just loved these pictures I found!  Enjoy!!

Day 81 - 82

i have recently realized that bridesmaids have a huge responsibility.  When i started reading up on it, I was amazed myself, and have thought to give my girls a bit more guidance.  I know that I have picked such a great group of girls, but I can understand where it may get a bit overwhelming.  I recently came across a post that was very interesting, and had great information in it about being a bridesmaid!!  So please enjoy!

Dessy.com: Bridesmaid Dresses | Wedding Dresses | Flower Girl Dresses

Day 78 - 80

I just wanted to share with all my wonderful friends, that we have decided to go with a videographer, and we picked an awesome husband/wife team.  The name of their company is Elite Video Productions.  I had the chance to meet with them last night and was very impressed with their work.  I also had the pleasure of taking my future mother-in-law to the meeting and she admitted to me later, that she had teared up watching the videos they shared with us.  Her reaction was exactly what I was hoping for and ensured me that my gut was right, in going with them to shoot our wedding.  I cannot express how excited I am to book them and see how they picture our wedding day!!  I recommend you checking out their site and seeing how awesome their work is.  Hope you enjoy, and ladies, grab some tissue because you may shed some tears!!  =)

Day 76- 77

This past weekend, I was able to witness an amazing couple exchange their vows.  Peter & Darrel got married on 08-08-08 at the Angel Springs site, in Georgetown, TX.  It was a beautiful ceremony and a great reception.  They did an awesome job reflecting their love and personalities in every detail.  =)

I was honored to be a part of their day and I cannot wait to see the pictures from Andy!  I was so glad to hear that Andy was their photographer as well, and it truly has become a family affair.  =)

Here are some of the pictures I took of their day, so enjoy!!

Day 69 - 74

I have some great news, I BOUGHT MY DRESS!!  It has taken a couple of months but I have "THE ONE".  I cannot say too many details about it but I can say it is a beautiful light ivory color and I LOVE IT!!!  

I was also lucky to have two of my bridesmaids there with me to see it and try it on.  Sonya actual came in from out of town to spend some time with me in Austin, and Morgan, whom now lives one block away from me, where there to celebrate with me on my purchase!  We went to Trudy's for some great mexican food and awesome margaritas!!!  The conversation did turn from wedding talk to some very interesting sex talk, and that is all I am saying about that!!  ;)  

Then the next morning Sonya and I went on Town Lake (aka Lady Bird Lake), and she kicked my butt!!  I am more than determined to get in the best shape of my life, so I can look amazing on my wedding day. Sonya had me doing running intervals and let me tell you, I had no clue how hard it was going to be!  But I am proud to say I hung in there, and survived.  I hope she can come visit again soon so she can push me some more  =)  

I do have to say though, I am very blessed with some awesome bridesmaids, and could not of picked more amazing women!! I have a total of 5 bridesmaid including my Matron of Honor, Susan, whom has risen to the occasion many times already, and there is Sara Marie, Sonya, Morgan and Roxana.  I cannot wait for all of them to meet each other because I have a feeling we are all going to have a blast together!!  

With the wedding being less than a year away, I cannot wait for the many adventures I am going to have with these women and I know that they will not fail me!  Love you girls!  Here are some pics I found that seemed appropriate!   

PS.  Sonya has also started her own blog, so check it out here.

Day 66 - 68

I did not originally have a lot to blog about until I recently came across so many blogs on weddings.  I have found some very interesting, and I had no clue how much information is out there.  I have listed on my links some of my favorite ones and I recommend checking them out.  Some have great ideas and have inspired me.  Here is one of my favorite pictures I have found and I so wish I had seen this before and I really would of been inspired! I can't wait to use some of the ones I have found in our wedding  =)

Day 61 - 65 (our summer vacation)

Day 55 - Day 60

I am very happy to announce that we have a florist!!!  Her name is Jennifer Pavlovich, of Jennifer Pavlovich Designs, a floral couture studio.  I had found her through watching one of my many wedding shows, this one was "Platinum Weddings" on WeTv.  I loved her work and decided to contact her.  We met and talked about our vision for our wedding and I felt that she knew exactly what I was looking for.  Also what I love about her work, is her creativity and designs.  I am looking forward to seeing what her ideas are and seeing just how everything turns out!  Check out her website and see other weddings she has done.  I will post a couple of my favorites.  

Day 54

I just wanted to announce that it is official, we have a photographer!!!  We decided to go ahead with Andy Peterson of Studio563, and cannot tell you how excited we are!  We visited with Andy today and it was a pleasure to see him and pick out our favorite engagement shots.  I know he is going to do a fabulous job on our wedding day!!  

Day 53

I am very excited to say that we just got our proofs emailed to us from Andy and they turned out AMAZING!!!  I had no doubt Andy was going to work his magic and I cannot wait to order our favorites and have the actual prints!!!  I have posted some of them and if you follow this link it will take you to Andy's blog so you can see the one's he posted. 

Day 50 - Day 52

Yesterday I traveled to San Antonio to meet with Greg and of course for some cake tasting.  =)  I first want to say the meeting with Greg was very productive and I even got the chance to look at some samples for our Save the Date cards, and I have feeling they are going to look smashing!!  Then we were off to taste some cake at The Ultimate Cheesecake Bakery, and it went very well.  Tom, the owner and husband of the woman who bakes all the wedding cakes, was very nice and professional.  I enjoyed the cakes VERY much, especially the lemon cake and red velvet, and I have a feeling we will be having them design our cakes!!! 

 Also we have decided to go with Chiavari Chairs for the reception, which I am happy with  =)  I am happy to say that things are slowly coming together and as long as we take our time it will all be great!

I must admit though that it is harder than I thought to bring our vision to life, but at the same time interesting meeting new people and seeing all the different options.  For instance, I had the pleasure of meeting a florist in Austin, Jennifer Pavlovich, and we hit it off right away!  I had a great time meeting her and talking to her about our vision with decor and the flowers, especially feeling like she understood very well what I wanted for our wedding day.  I cannot wait for Anthony to meet her and hopefully he will like her as well.  =)