1 Year Wrap Up

   Since it has almost been a year since the wedding I have been thinking back to the craziness I was experiencing this time last year.   I spent a lot of time on the WeddingBee website, I had a whole folder of pictures saved on the computer, and a folder with those clear protective sheets filled with pages I had torn out of magazines with notes about what and why I liked specific elements (Yes, I still have it. It is hard to get rid of something you put so much work and time into).  Here are a few of my inspiration pictures.

See all the blue and yellow. 

 More blue and yellow, and also the tea length bridesmaids dresses.

 Hydrangeas.... my biggest want!

This photo inspired my picture of the flowers on the boardwalk.

My hair inspiration.

 And the photos that made me NEED a trash the dress photo shoot!

In order to achieve the things I wanted and maintain our budget our wedding was definitely a lot of DIY. Which should be no problem as I come from a crafty family right?! Besides all the brides on WeddingBee did it and pulled it off and their weddings looked amazing. As all of our family lives out of state and so did my bridesmaids I was doing the projects solo, I think many/most of the WeddingBee brides had helpers. I had quite a laundry list of projects were DIY.

1. Save the Date cards- designed and ordered from VistaPrint
2. Invitations- Brides Magazine Blank that we designed and had printed at Office Max and put together by a very patient fiance and I.
3. Welcome Bags- With Hydrangea stamp, itinerary which I customized from a template that another Bee posted on WeddingBee, fish water games, & pencils.
4. Table Numbers- The numbers were pre-printed and we stamped the blue accents. It is hard to find plain white paper products for weddings.... seriously been to every store that carries wedding items 50 times over.
   
5. Seating Cards... Have I mentioned how hard it is to find plain white wedding paper products. I also wonder how many of our guests realized they were grouped at tables together for a reason. I not only wanted you all to meet as there is likely no other time so much of both of our families will be together but I literally spent hours with note cards arranging and rearranging you into groups that I thought had a lot in common. (If you are curious ask I still remember)
6. "Guest Book" Cards- We stamped them with the same stamp that was used for the table numbers and seating cards.
   
7. Centerpieces... With some help from Mr. Ford in arranging those roses so beautifully and my girls in coloring the water blue and gluing ribbon around the votive candles.
8. Thank You/Candy bags... I stamped the "Thank You" and made the chocolates.
9. My necklace- I couldn't find what I wanted at a reasonable price... so I just made it.
10. Wedding Bouquet- The flowers came from Sam's Club, with some floral tape, ribbon, lace from my mom's wedding dress, and pins I had just what I wanted.
11. Programs- again designed by us and printed at Office Max, we used a hole punch and some ribbon to attach the bubbles.
12. Program Basket- I glued teal ribbon around the handle to make it match.
    
13. The tulle along the wedding party table and cake table with lights.... done by my father and maybe a helper (I was stressing over the wedding taking place while we were supposed to be rehearsing).
    
14. Card Bird Cage... I wove some ribbon through it and voila a beautiful card holder....
 

 AND my helpers didn't arrive until Thursday and I was working up until 1pm the Friday of our rehearsal. I would not recommend taking on this much alone for anyone else... but as they say "If you want something done right" or in my case "just the way you picture it in your head".  And it did.... For the things I didn't do on my own I picked, checked, and double checked the details which meant leaving pictures and pieces of teal/aqua ribbon with all of our vendors (Just ask Jim they all returned the pieces of ribbon when he picked up our orders). I literally had a swatch of ribbon with me at all times for at least 6 months.

I also wanted to share a few details that meant a lot to me but you may not have noticed....

My blue shoes.... colored bridal shoes were popular... not sure if they still are. This color of blue is my birth stone and matches the other stones in my engagement ring.

 Along with some lace from my mom's wedding dress that was on my bouquet I also wore my mom's mom's wedding ring and my dad's mom's engagement ring as my something borrowed.  It was great to have a piece of them there with me on my wedding day.

 The flowers that sat on our "altar" were to represent family members who had passed away.

 The parents and bridal party walked down the aisle to Love Your Love the Most by Eric Church and I walked down the aisle to History In the Making by Darius Rucker.

 See my pretty ribbon on the basket and those programs.

 The Breakers Hotel where we had the wedding and reception actually remodeled their ball room the October before our wedding. It had been oranges, reds, and darker yellows and by coincidence they changed to yellows and blues that matched our wedding colors! HOW PERFECT!

 The reception hall before. Notice the blue water with floating candles.

 My dad is always being a super helper... He carried my boots up to the ballroom so they would be there for me when it came time for Jim and I to battle.... you may have missed that if you left the reception early.... so I'll tell you. I WON! ;)

 I had pictures of our parents and our grandparents on their wedding days on our cake table. And our cake topper was a Willow Tree cake topper (and the design was one of those pictures I left to ensure it was done just how I pictured it)

I think it was hard for those who were not here with me to grasp just how much I cared about the details and getting exactly what I was picturing in my head to become a reality. I spent a lot of time explaining myself and justifying my choices to others which caused a lot of unnecessary stress and tainted some of the experience for me. I have spent much of the last year holding on to some resentment and hurt feelings over what happened but just like the pictures, folders, and endless scraps of teal/aqua ribbon it is time to let go. As always it was a learning experience and a I am so happy that I feel it turned out as close to my mental picture as I think is possible to achieve in reality. Of course the very best part was that I married my best friend.

What to do? What to do?

    It is hard to believe but Jim and I have already been married more than 10 months! So that means in less than two months (45 days to be exact) we will no longer be "Newlyweds".  So the name of the blog must change.... although I am not sure what this next phase we are entering should be called.  We will no longer be "newlyweds" and are not yet "parents" (although I dearly love my fur babies). I am hoping to still use the blog to share with our family and friends little bits about our daily life and of course more adventures. I have seen several people who are doing the 365 project and really like the idea of taking notice and documenting the little every day things.
I am officially requesting your suggestions! You better take the chance... I rarely need help in making plans!
Should I do a separate blog for the 365 project or just wind it in with my regular (or as of late rater irregular) blogging? Also what about that name? 
I look forward to your suggestions!

Yummy!

Yesterday Jim had to go to Charleston and on his way home he picked up something sweet for me! :D

Cupcakes from CUPCAKE!!!

 

The one on the left looks a little smooshed but not bad for making the long trip here to me! Also notice the wooden coin in the middle. It is good for one free cupcake! Isn't that a cute idea? A little different than the normal gift card. Now to keep it somewhere safe until my next trip to Charleston.

Valentine's Day Wreath

I have mentioned before my holiday decorations for our little window.... the ones that annoy our cat, Scarlet. And I often get frustrated when I have a picture of something I am looking for in my head but can't find it in any store. This time I decided to try to make it myself.

It started out with a trip to the local craft store. Where I got an assortment of wooden hearts.

A 9 inch quilting hoop.

 

Red, pink, and white paint. As well as clear based glitter paint.

 And the always handy Aleene's Original Tacky Glue.

 After painting all of my wooden hearts and the quilting hoop. I used wax paper to protect the table. It is better than newspaper because then the wet paint doesn't stick to the newspaper and make them hard to remove.

 After gluing on the first "layer" of hearts. I spent quite a bit of time arranging and rearranging the hearts until I had them in the perfect order to fit on the hoop.

 And the second "layer" of hearts. Again much arranging and rearranging.

 The final product. I just need to add a little ribbon and hang it in the window to drive Scarlet crazy.

 

 I really enjoyed making my own wreath. I only wish they made wooden circles that are a bit thicker and solid, as balancing the hearts on the hoop until they were securely affixed was rather difficult.

What do you think? Do you ever have difficulty finding what you had in mind?

1st Goal Achieved! New adventures to come!

 
            I met my first weight loss goal so I got to treat myself to my first reward!

                          Cute, huh?  This should also help with the running as well.
   Jim and I also went for a bike ride along the beach again today and have scheduled our first camping trip! We are really excited to venture out to some new state parks. You can see how many there are here in South Carolina.

 

I am especially interested in:

Caesars Head State Park/ Mountain Bridge Wilderness Area  (#5)
Jones Gap State Park/ Mountain Bridge Wilderness Area (#23)
Paris Mountain State Park (#37)
Table Rock State Park (#45)
Those seem to be closer to the mountains and a little more "roughing it" than we do now, no water or electricity, and serious hiking! Unfortunately Tucker will not be going on those trips with us. I am excited for a new challenge.

Update

Sorry I have been a bad blogger lately. Getting back into the swing of things after the holidays was interesting, especially since this was my first weekend that wasn't three days long and my first 5 day work week. I was getting rather spoiled. Jim has slowed down somewhat, I have a feeling that it wont last long. He had been going through the process of testing for the new tactical medic program here which consisted of a written test, physical agility testing, & interview. The team is a pilot program that will be working with local law enforcement He found out last week that he did make the team, needless to say he is very excited. At the upcoming awards banquet the six firefighters that made the team will be pinned. I am looking forward to it very much, although it means I will be missing the 5k I had registered to run that evening. Who starts a 5k at 7pm on a Friday night anyway?!  I do plan to attend the expo on Thursday and Jim and I plan on running a 5k Saturday so that my training is not a waste. Hopefully the weather holds out as last year the marathon was canceled due to snow. You may remember this picture.

 Hopefully February will be more of an exciting month. The weather seems to be warming up. Proving this to be one of the more mild winters I have spent in SC. Although the weather has been anywhere from sunny and 68 on New Years day to  cold, snowy, icy, and in the 30's on the 10th.  We have already been plotting our next camping trip once the weather warms up more. 

Book Love

As I have already talked about I work with kids and have a love for books.... I am frequently buying books to use for work and definitely have favorites. So lately I have been looking at building a little library so by the time we have children I have plenty of reading options. Several years ago my Aunt Chelle gave me a copy of The Complete Tales of Uncle Remus which she remembers her grandmother reading to her and her brothers.




So far I have been collecting a few of my favorites. The first Caps For Sale in which a cap peddler loses all his caps to some mischievous monkeys, I distinctly remember the teacher making great motions when reading this to the class. The second was Olive the Other Reindeer, which I like as it is a play on the Christmas Carol line "All of the other reindeer"... I love when they use rhyming and plays on words.

Then the other day while at Kohls I noticed they had Eric Carle books as a part of their Kohls Cares for Kids program. This is where they offer popular books for $5 a piece and they have coordinating stuffed animals. If you didn't already know one of my all time FAVORITE children's books is The Very Hungry Caterpillar so I got the caterpillar as well! Isn't he cute? I also got The Foolish Tortoise, The Grouchy Ladybug, and The Mixed-Up Chameleon books.

Some of my other favorite books are The Christmas Tree That Grew.... about a family who buys a tree with a root ball to plant in the yard of the new home they will be moving into after Christmas and the tree grows and grows to amazing heights.

 

Then there is The Wuggie Norple Story. This is about a dad that brings a cat home to his family and as it grows he brings home other animals to compare to the growing cats size. My parents hated this story as the characters have very difficult and imaginative names. 

Jim has expressed a desire to have Corduroy as he remembers this story well.

I also like Harold and the Purple Crayon because it encourages imagination. 

I think Love You Forever is as much for the children as parents. I always tear up at the end. 

Jim also loves If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. 

A classic that I think everyone loves. 

What were your favorite/most memorable books from childhood or reading to your children? What would be on your "must have" children's library list? I know I have a lot of parents and educators as readers.