weekend review.

hmm...i've wanted to blog the past few days, but i haven't really felt like there is anything to blog about. i can't even really remember what we did on friday night, but i can remember thinking on saturday that it wasn't really blog worthy.

then there was saturday. hmm ... i don't remember what we did then either. oh wait, yes i do. i started writing the next paragraph and then i remembered. we woke up, took showers, decided that we didn't want to spend the day sitting around the house. as we were discussing what we were going to do, i remembered that it was gail ferguson's birthday party {60!} at the pool hall, and she had asked us to be there. we headed to the pool hall {i said a little

"ugh" under my breath to be heading there again}. travis shot around and i messed around on the computer, looking up other stationery and invitation websites. then i started looking for a website template for my company. we ended up being at the pool hall almost all day long. we went back to the house for a little cat nap, but then we were right back up here {i say "here" because guess where i just happen to be while typing this ... }. we ended up staying until closing time. i got really into a logo design i was making, so i didn't mind. in fact, i was trying to throw touching finishes on it after my dad had shut off the power to the building. it was fun too because travis and sierra had a little crash course in all there is to learn about computers. sierra thinks she would like to know how to take a computer apart and put it back together, and also how to design on the computer.

when we got back to the house, i showed travis the web templates i had found and talked about different ideas and options.

sunday was a lot of fun for me. the weather in oklahoma right now is unbelievable! it's so mild and it's august!!! it felt more like a cross between spring and fall. my parents had gone out of town on a bike ride with a group of friends, so i dropped sierra at church that morning, and then headed back home. travis asked if i wanted to go to tulsa. even though we have to drive there all week for work, we really just wan

ted to get away. as i was sitting in the car thinking of thi

ngs we could do with very few dollars spent, i remembered that we had a gift card to the amc. we got to town, headed to the office to pick up a file that travis needed, and then grabbed a little fast food action as a late dinner. after that we went to the halloween costume shop followed by barnes and noble. barnes and noble was so crowded! there were people everywhere! we were there for about 40 minutes or so when we headed around to the theatre.

it had been ages since i had been to the amc 20 {41st and yale} and travis had never been. we decided to watch the ugly truth. oh. my. gosh. i thought i was so funny. it's definitely vulgar and innappropriate, so no small children, but hilll-arious! i laughed so hard at one point soda went up my nose. painful, but well worth it! everyone in the theatre was laughing. i know we've been watching quite a few movies lately, but it was fun to watch one in the theatre, and in a regular-sized theatre ... not the baby screens that many of the theatres in town have.

and then today. today was a good day. i got to talk to two of my good friends -- andrea and kate. did a little work for sixbyte this morning and then headed to one of my clients. it was a lot of fun to answer kate's question "what are you doing" with "headed back from a client visit." my contracts that i got signed go into effect tomorrow, so i had to get a little more information and really get the ball going. yay!

i have a feeling this week is going to be a busy week. i'm helping andy with her save-the-dates {yay!}. i have to design an email blast for one of my clients. i have to finish reconciling the accounts for sixbyte. i have to figure out the layout of my parents' pool hall website with travis. i need to take care of our books. i need to invoice {yay!} my client. i think the list goes on.

for now, i think i will sign off. i feel like my eyes are too heavy to stay awake. i better get started on all i have to do.

christmas cards.

sleigh bells ring, are you listening?

okay, so in my search, i'm running across my old designs, and getting psyched to design some more. this. is. what. i. LOVE. i love it. love. love. love it. i am still excited about élever and still believe in the company, but when i start doing this kind of design, something just comes alive in me. i can work for hours and hours, never stopping, and i never get in a bad mood. i wish there was a better way to describe it, but i love it!

i was at the office until almost 9:00 with travis waiting with him. he had to go to a client's at 9:00 {it's a dealership, and he can't do some of the updates until after they close}. turns out the lot was still trying to close a deal at 9:45 when i called to tell him i was home ... he hadn't even gotten to start yet! poor baby. he made it home a little after 11:00.

since it's so late, i'm going to bring this to a close ... but i will leave you with the designs i was talking about above. sweet dreams!

lunch with jen + christmas in august.

today started out incredibly frustrating, but quickly turned around when i met jen for lunch at mcalister's. it had been some time since we last saw one another.

it was so much fun hearing about how quickly her photography business is taking off {jennycollierphotography.com}. i just knew it would, and i'm so excited for her!

after lunch we headed over to peek-a-boo to check out their fun baby products. while there we noticed yet another store is already bringing out their christmas decorations. jen is already getting christmas cards together for her clients. i mentioned that i had cards already designed and would be happy to partner with her if she ever had a need for card designs; it would allow her to focus specifically on her photography and not have to take extra time on cards, birth announcements, etc. i told her i would get a few examples to her, and thought that i would post them for you as well.

as jen and i were talking about, you have to have product that you might not necessarily choose but will suit the needs of different customers. i've tried to include a nice selection. i'm sure i'll post more in a few days.

weekend review.

this past weekend we spent most of our time at the lears' house. on saturday travis and his dad fixed one of my parents' lawnmowers while i picked up pinecones in the yard. there were tons that had been blown down in the storm. i have several battle scars on my legs ... i was actually bleeding in a couple of places. i think those were some of the sharpest pinecones i've ever held! i also got to take a ride in dee and steve's new car. have i mentioned they got a new car? i keep meaning to. they bought it the weekend sue and the boys were in town.

they got a 2009 hyundai santa fe. there's is a midnight blue color, but i was unable to find a picture of it online. it's really roomy. it was funny because we passed steve on our way to the house. he was driving his truck in the opposite direction. when we got to the house we asked where he had gone. dee told us he had gone to "look at some tires." i guess so!

on sunday we spent time at the lears again. travis and his dad were working on a riding mower this time, but were unable to find the manual they need to work on it. we'll probably spend next weekend with them working on it now that my mom was able to purchase the necessary manual.

while the boys were tinkering, dee and i took amanda lunch at work and then we headed to look for a mother-of-the-groom dress again. we were hoping with fall right around the corner, they would have new arrivals. we didn't see anything we liked {and very few new things, really}. most of the items were from the summer that we had already passed over when we were shopping earlier this spring and summer. hopefully as time goes on, more items will come in. i really think that we need to make a shopping trip to tulsa. muskogee really has so little.

we spent time playing with connor and giving him a bath ... just to watch him get wet and muddy playing with tido in the backyard at the lears'. i can't believe how much he has grown! travis and i were just talking about that; then i came across a picture of him earlier today that made me realize just how much he really has grown. i think he may need a brother or a sister puppy once we get a place of our own.

harry potter and the deathly hallows.

i have finished the harry potter series {again}. for the past few weeks my free time has been spent with my nose in a book, reading each installment one right after the other. i have read the books before, but it has been some time since i last did so. i also had read each of the earlier installments several times more than books five, six, and seven. {i think this happened because i used to read each of the books leading up to the release of the most recent movies}. as time went on, life of course grew busier, and i've not found the time to read all of the books before the release of the last few movies. it was a lot of fun reading books six and seven because i remembered very little about them. book seven was a treat because i didn't remember anything about it. i even started crying last night! {ridiculous, i know}. i didn't cry in the sixth one when dumbledore dies, but i did find myself crying in book seven when harry has to be so brave! since i had read the books before i really didn't think they would make me cry.

as i was blowing through the last book {i started reading it sunday night when we got home from travis's parents' and finished it monday night after work} travis kept asking me, "what are you going to do when you finish these books? you don't have your shopaholic books, and you've already read the little lady agency books." what shall i do, indeed?

guess how we spent last night.

on the couch. watching a movie. surprised, aren't you?

so yesterday we woke up late {i can't imagine that all of this late night movie watching is having an impact}, hurried around and got to sixbyte about 20 minutes late. i was the one driving and was so exhausted. i told travis i was afraid we may have to switch seats because i really thought i was going to fall asleep a few times. instead, i stayed awake while travis took a quick cat nap in the passenger seat.

i don't technically work for sixbyte on thursdays, so i carried in my quillow {quilt that folds into a pillow} that i always keep in the car, and proceeded to fall asleep underneath my massive desk. it's pretty dark under there, and this way i don't look like a total slacker should the mailman or any clients walk in. instead of finding me snoozing in the chair, i am completely hidden under my desk. the office is always freezing, so i have a fleece throw that remains on the back of my chair at all times. i laid my head on the quillow, snuggled under the fleece throw and took a nice long hour and a half nap! i couldn't believe i slept that long! the floor was freezing because the office is so cold and there is only a thin layer of carpet covering the concrete; once i buried my head under the blanket and drifted to sleep, i hardly noticed the cold. who would have ever guessed that i would find myself sleeping under my desk?? {i had really odd dreams about the guys in the office while i was sleeping -- david handed me a folder full of unused water balloons; the police showed up to look for tom; travis's backpack was sitting on his lap on fire, but he never even noticed. weird i tell you}.

we got home a little after 6, ate sloppy joes {yeck}, gave connor a much needed bath, and then travis popped in a documentary on linux. i watched for a little bit {it's actually interesting} and then i hopped in the shower. i had to forego my shower in the morning rush to make it to the office. after my shower, we headed to wal-mart to stock up on toiletries and the orange soda that travis was craving. we stopped in at the pool hall, but only stayed long enough for travis to play a few games. there weren't a lot of people there and we were pretty tired. when we got home, we decided to watch "knowing."

i asked travis if it was a scary movie. he told me that he thought it was supposed to be an adventure, much like national treasure. was he ever wrong. while i wouldn't call this a scary movie, i would definitely say it's a thriller, and i'm not a fan. the movie was so creepy! my adrenaline was pumping even after the movie was over. i couldn't bring myself to walk down the hall or back into any of the rooms without adequate lighting. when travis came in to tell me good night i had him lay with me because i was still so spooked. ridiculous really.

eight to a table.

so, i'm trying to decide if i want to have assigned guest seating at our tables. i've been to weddings that do, and i've been to weddings that don't. both seem to work. everything i read says that you shoudl have seating assignments because it simplifies the process. for now, i'm still torn. i did come across these table number assignments that i like.

most importantly we just want everyone to have a good time, be together, mingling, and not feel confined to their seats, assigned or otherwise.

date night{s}.

on monday travis had gotten a reimbursement check from work. driving home that night travis said, "i think we should take some of the money from the check and go on a date tomorrow." i think i lit up like a christmas tree!
"a real date? you and me?"
"well, no, i was thinking i could take someone out and you could take someone out."
okay ... i was kind of asking for that. still i couldn't stop smiling and travis was so sweet and started holding my hand.
normally i hold my hand up {picture a halting movement} when it comes to spending money. but you know what? i just couldn't do it this time. the idea of a real date with my love sounded wonderful!
we started talking about what we would do and where we wanted to go.
...
well, as you know monday night and tuesday became a little crazy for us. our date night turned into movie night on the couch. {still one of our favorite things to do together}.

we pushed our date night to wednesday {last night}. we stayed at the office until after 6:00, and then headed out for our night on the town, just the two of us. we stopped for frozen custard at freckles and then headed across town. we were going to go to the aquarium, but then we decided that would be better for a saturday. in the end, we were going to go to the movie theater and watch a movie. {i know. not too exciting or out of the ordinary}, but we were out of the house, splurging on a little something together. of course, i would develop a horrendous stomach ache and find myself spending time in the public restroom at books a million {where we had stopped while waiting for our upcoming movie}. sorry for the overshare. when i was feeling a little better, we started back across town on the hunt for a particular book travis wants. not eight minutes into the drive, my stomach was killing me again! we made it to the library ... and i made my way to the restroom again. we closed down the library. it was ridiculous. by this point, we were terribly tired, and we headed home.

our date night is doomed.

on the drive home we heard "i had the time of my life" by patrick swayze and jennifer grey. travis turned it up and we were singing along. he said, "this kind of makes me want to see this movie," just as i was thinking the same thing. we listened to it a little longer and i said, "this should be our last dance of the night at the wedding." travis started laughing and said, "i knew you were going to say that." {will we, or won't we? who knows. the music part is one of the hardest things for me because music plays {no pun intended} a huge part in my life}.

we got home around 10-ish. amanda loves dirty dancing, so we called to see if we could borrow it. my uncle david was actually staying the night at the house, and as all of the bedrooms are occupied, he was going to sleep on the couch. we decided to head to amanda's instead.

she was doing laundry and was in and out of her apartment. we fixed macaroni and cheese ... and cuddled up on the couch once more to snuggle in front of the television. just the two of us.

so again, our date night may be doomed. the great part, though? i just like being with my boy, no matter what we're doing.

i love you, man.

so the week started out a little crazy, but still good. tuesday night when travis got home, we were both pretty worn out from the weekend and the previous night. we decided not to leave the house at all. instead we fixed dinner and settled into the couches to watch i love you, man. i hadn't seen a lot of previews for it, but generally like paul rudd's movies, so we decided to give it a shot. i. thought. it. was. hilarious!

i love all of the actors in this movie. rashinda jones is adorable! and i love her haircut. i've considered getting my bangs cut into a full fringe instead of just a side-swept bang. i loved her hair, so i'm even closer to making the decision now. i had been post-poning because of the wedding. i was afraid i would hate them and they wouldn't have time to grow out, but now we have plenty of time.

back to the movie, though. so funny. so cute. and check out this ensemble of characters:

the only other thing i will say about this movie is that it's almost painful to watch. your heart is just going out to the guy the entire time. you feel so bad! kind of like "meet the parents." but if you can endure, many laughs are in store.

crazy kind of week.

again, i've had much to post about but have been waiting until i had the pictures that coincide. i thought i had my memory card with me today, i tried to make a point to remember it, but alas i didn't. so as not to disgruntle my readers, i'll go ahead and update ... and once again add the pictures later.

this weekend travis's "nephews" tyler, ryan, hunter, and kayden came for a visit with aunt sue. this is the third time we've seen sue in about a month's time. quite unusual and a welcome change. and even more unusual, two of the times were at the lears'. if you remember, she came down the week that steve was in the hospital, and then again this weekend.

i made sure to get several pictures of the boys playing with connor and travis {but some how i didn't end up in any of them}. oh well. at least we're taking pictures again.

travis's cousin eric's ex-wife amber also came into town. it was the first time we had seen her in about 7 or 8 months. she was really glad to see the family again and really misses everyone. she left on sunday to head back to mississippi.

monday was pretty uneventful. travis, justin, and danny had league. it was a pretty important round as the season is winding up, and they were tied for first place. unfortunately they all shot well below their usual scores. it was a bit of a rough night. after league travis and i headed over to hastings {we've been spending a lot of time at the bookstore lately}. we were going to splurge on a couple of magazines, but in the end we decided that we would go home and watch a movie instead. we ended up watching two movies. the first one was called wargames, and it starred matthew broderick. it was his second movie to star in. while it was a bit of a cheezy '80s movie, i still really enjoyed it.

travis told me before we watched it that matthew b. was really young in it; i didn't realize how young until we saw the movie. i thought the girl in the movie was really cute, too. {she was also in the breakfast club}. apparently the movie was really popular, but like i said, i had never heard of it. it was right up travis's alley, though, since it was all about computers, codes, and things of that sort. after watching wargames, we moved onto it's sequel wargames: the dead code {released in 2008}. travis thought this one was pretty cheezy, but i still thought it was cute. the story includes the original movie's plot line. again it was about hacking into systems, and i think travis enjoyed that part of it. because we stayed up watching the movies, we got to bed a little late. poor connor was so tired. i laid him in the bed and went to brush my teeth {which upset him apparently}, then got into bed. i had barely turned the light off and snuggled in, when travis came in to tell me he was going to get amanda. she was going through a rough time, so he went to check on her. i was a little worried because i had just been lying in bed thinking that i never heard back from her earlier in the day. after he left, i closed my eyes and decided to try to get a little sleep. i knew he would call me if anything was wrong. it had barely been five minutes since the car pulled away when there was a loud bang outside ... and the electricity went out. connor and i got up to look around {poor baby just wasn't going to get any sleep}. we walked around the house, i heard someone in the front lawn {turns out they were just passing through} but i tried to wake my parents. they didn't wake when i knocked, but a few minutes later my mom came in my room with a light, looking for the electric bill so she could report the outage. a few minutes later my dad came in. then travis called to tell me everything was okay. apparently it wasn't just little connor who wasn't going to get any sleep. after about 45 minutes or so my parents went back to bed. connor and i got into bed {again} and i had just drifted off when travis called to tell me he was bringing amanda back to the house. connor and i got up {yet again} to let them in, and she crawled in to bed with connor and me. we were up for hours talking; my heart went out to her. i think we finally drifted in and out of sleep around 5 in the morning. travis overslept his alarm for work and didn't even get up until 8:30! i stayed home with amanda and we slept until 11 or so. i got up and let her sleep for about another hour and then took her home to her apartment. we sat at her apartment for a few hours and then i headed back home for a nap. what a way to start a week, right?

our gift to you.

we haven't yet decided what we will do for favors, and we may end up doing something nontraditional that won't fit in any of these boxes. i came across several today, though, and thought i would post my favorites.

i love the wax seal on the top of the box. i've considered using this kind of seal for our wedding invitations. if we decide to do that, this would be a fun way to incorporate it again.


how fun are these buttons? you could do so much with vintage buttons.

these boxes look like they would be a lot of work, but i couldn't help but think how pretty they are. maybe if i started on them today, they would be ready by next fall!

this favor box, is actually a miniature version of the actual favor box. this mini box was used to put chocolate on the guests' pillows. we won't have many out of town guests who need to stay in a hotel, but what a great idea for those guests who will be traveling to our wedding. i definitely want to keep this in mind.

finally, these boxes are really pretty. i like that they are perfectly square, and how beautiful is that monogram?

Posted by Rhiannon at 7:58 AM No comments:

andy's engaged!

it's official! my dear andy's engaged! this weekend ryan hurst proposed to ms. andrea lindsay kurys in las vegas. we couldn't be happier for the two of them!

baby shower.

anyone having a baby any time soon? i found this picture {again while looking for wedding ideas}. it's supposed to be a wedding cake, but i think it would be excellent as a baby shower cake {on a much smaller dimension, of course}. what do you think?

home decor.

while looking for new wedding ideas, i stumbled across this picture. while the cake is beautiful, {it's not exactly my style} it was the mirror in the background that caught my eye. sigh. how i wish we had a house with a place to hang a mirror like this one.

girls' night out pictures.

kate, rhiannon, + jenny. two of my favorite girls. they've kept me sane these past few years. i hate not seeing them everyday like i used to, and i love. love. love. when we get together to catch up.
jen collier is one of my favorite friends. i miss her so much!

cute picture of roxie, lindsay, + kate.

sisters. sisters.

this is another fun shot from the night.

roxie, kate, rhiannon, jen, and linner.

yum!

It is becoming more and more common to see wedding cakes in colors other than the traditional white. While I don't know that I can see myself foregoing a beautiful white cake, I did see this cake today, and I think it's absolutely fabulous! Chocolate cake is my favorite, afterall, and this one is gorgeous. I know the groom's cake is often representative of a hobby or interest of the groom, but how fun would it be to have two cakes like this, one chocolate and one white, much like a couple in a dress and tux. I've been thinking of cookies all day ... now this delicious-looking cake is making my mouth water.

pool party pic.

this picture was given to us this weekend. while it's not my favorite, it's one of the few we have together this summer. {we have really got to get better about taking pictures again}. this was taken the weekend we went to nancy and wes's with my parents and sister.

summer-summer-summertime!

well it's girls night out.

for the first time in some time, we had a girls' night out. kate's sister {twin, lindsay} was in from philly. none of us had met her before as it was her first time to tulsa. on thursday evening, i met kate and lindsay at kate and nick's apartment around 5:30. we sat around having a few cocktails and getting to know one another. around 8:00 roxie showed up, and we all prepared to head to wild horse saloon. lindsay wanted to ride the mechanical bull. when we got there, absolutely no one, and i mean no one {unless you count the bar tenders} was there. we considered playing beer pong, but then discovered that caravan had free beer all night for ladies, and decided to head there instead. jen was meeting us, and we called her just in time for her to change her route and head to caravan.

the night was so much fun. i was upset that i didn't have my camera {i had even carried a larger bag than i would normally take out so that i could bring my camera with me}. we got some really great pictures on lindsay, jen, and roxie's cameras. as soon as they are sent to me or uploaded to facebook, i'll make sure to post them here.

the five of us had such a fun, fun time. i told the girls that we would definitely have to commit to doing this more often.

comments.

oh mylanta! i actually have comments on my blog! and quite a few. i was getting so discouraged that i had some many posts and no comments. ha! pathetic, i know. thanks for brightening my day!

sweet home alabama.

i haven't watched the movie sweet home alabama since before travis and i got engaged. while i was at the office today waiting for some things to print, i got on youtube and came across this clip http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8_c7da9wuA. i had goosebumps watching the beach scene {not surprising since this is the scene travis proposed to}. just thought i would share and maybe bring a smile to your face, too.

to purchase or not to purchase?

this is the veil i am thinking about buying. i really like it because you can style and pin it however you want it. it's shown in the store's cataloge several different times, and it looks different each time. when i was in the store for a fitting, i tried the veil on with the gown and amelia and i both really liked it. i've decided that i am going to get it afterall. the veil that i already had was quite a bargain, and even if i pay for two veils, i won't have spent that much money {i think $75 total for both}. i'm even considering wearing the other smaller one later in the night at the reception ... but i haven't decided.

wedding gown.

above, in all of it's glory, is my wedding gown! the dress shown is white; my dress is ivory. i felt the ivory would work well for a fall wedding, especially one in the countryside. while i love her big billowing veil, mine, as i've mentioned before, will be a birdcage veil. i've already purchased it {but i don't have pictures of it}. i have it in a hat box at home. i'm thinking of purchasing a different one, however. at the time i purchased my gown, the store didn't carry the birdcage veil. the veil that i purchased, though lovely, is more of a blusher veil and slightly shorter and offers no coverage for the side of my head. when i went for one of my dress fittings, the store now had several birdcage veils available. i'll let you know what i decide.

i'm really happy with my dress selection. since i was going for a vintage-inspired vibe, it has thrilled me to no end to hear every single person who has seen me in the dress say that it is "very grace kelly" or "has an audrey hepburn air."

i will have to post pictures of my jewelry later. i opted for diamonds {though i considered pearls} because they just remind me of old hollywood. though it is a small detail, the jewelry is what really made the dress for me. when i saw the vintage {i really need a new word here!} jewelry with the dress, i fell in love.

i really like the buttons that run along the back of the dress. they work nicely with the "dots" on the birdcage veil where the netting comes together.

wedding blog.

i have {finally!} created a wedding blog that is just for me. i don't want travis to have access to it because i want my wedding gown and other attire to be a complete surprise to him. i'm having a lot of fun with it though, and much like a wedding planner, it feels good to have all of my ideas in one place, organized nicely. the only thing i don't like about it? it's online, so i don't have access to it unless i have internet. i've considered printing it out, but with all the ideas i have, it's enough to fill up a book of it's own! there would be no room in my planner! {even if i do get the russell + hazel binder}. maybe i will keep the former planner and the new planner. one could be for contracts, documents, etc. and the other could be my own book of pictures and ideas. hmm ... maybe i need two coordinated russell + hazel planners ...

now i'm just getting carried away! sounds like life has practice tonight, so i should head that way. i'll post more tomorrow.

bridesmaids' gowns.

 

 

i'm really happy with the choice the girls and i made for their gowns. we had two pages of dresses picked out ahead of time. this was on the list, but hadn't made the top choice. we saw someone else in the store trying it on and decided to give it a go. once the dress was on, it quickly became our top choice. while all of the dresses looked great on the girls, this one looked fabulous on everyone. it was flattering on all body types and just made everyone comfortable.

this is also not a color we were considering. i had planned to go with latte {which matches a lot of the bronze fabric that we're using} and champagne, and each girl's dress was going to alternate colors. when we saw this color, though, we were all drawn to it. it's very flattering. i also like that it's a neutral {i especially like this now that i'm considering a slight color change}. we decided we could alternate their bouquets, ribbon, etc. if i decide i still want to alternate.

rug rat: childhood memories.

sunday night while travis and i were lying on our stomachs on my bed talking about the upcoming week, he did the cutest little thing. he raised up off of his stomach onto his knees and put his head on the ground. {much like this woman}.
he began scooting his head across the bedspread flattening his hair against his head. he would do it a few times and then run his hand along his flat, slick hair. he realized what he was doing and started laughing. he said, "i used to do that all the time when i was a little kid. i would push myself all across the living room floor." i asked him if anyone had ever taught him to do a head stand because what he was doing reminded me of headstands. we were taught to sit on our knees, stretch our arms straight out in front of us until we were doing "the superman" {as our teacher called it}, put our hands on the floor, tilt our head to the ground, stick our elbows out the the side, balance our knees on our elbows, and then slowly push up to the sky. while travis had never heard of "the superman" position, he had learned how to do a headstand in a similar fashion. "do you know who taught me how to do it?" chuckling ensued, "my dad [steve]. he used to do all kinds of goofy stuff like that with us when we were kids." i couldn't help but giggle myself picturing steve and travis in the middle of the living room doing headstands! what a great memory.

let's take this chance and make this love feel relevant.

last month my cousin kendra got married. her wedding was so much fun, and she looked beautiful. watching her and dean promise themselves to one another was so touching. it made me so much more ready for our wedding. i had the opportunity to tell most of my family that we had postponed ours until next fall. it was so hard to say while we were wrapping up such an incredible day with kendra.

i am about to sound like the most selfish person in the world {good thing very few eyes other than mine will see it.} i was also a little hurt by what so many people had to say. most said, "oh good. it was really going to be a burden for us. this will give us a year to save." the time travis and i were engaged to the date of our original wedding was almost one year. people would have already had a year to save. granted, i understand that the economy took a nose-dive, but i don't expect people to go spend tons of money on our wedding. we just want everyone there to celebrate with us. i hear, "oh good," "oh what a relief," and "thank goodness" so many times i thought i was going to scream. here i had just made this enormous decision to postpone a very, very special day ... and everyone else was thanking me for making their life easier. it was rough just because i felt like my heart was breaking a little and everyone else was just relieved.

... but enough of my pity party ...

being at kendra's wedding really did make me so excited about mine and travis's upcoming nuptials, and i can't wait until next fall. for now, i will enjoy this extended engagement, and realize that it really is a blessing. it will give us time to be engaged, because, come on, that's not something most people get to have for long. you only get to have fiance for such a short period of time, and then a husband forever. we will also have time to get everything in order exactly the way we want it. it will give us more time to house-hunt. more people will have the opportunity to prepare for the wedding. and we have a lot of weddings along the way that can also help us prepare for ours. kendra's is something we looked forward to, and now that it has passed, we have david mcdonald & his fiancee's and andrea kurys and ryan hurst's. {we even get to go to maui for theirs!}

a few inspiration boards.

when i first set about to plan our wedding, i had images from the great gatsby enter my head. i wanted something romantic and vintage. something very audrey hepburn, but also very much like a fairy tale, that went along with the nature of our story {but not the over-the-top-cheesy disney fairytale}. something classic and timeless. i was so surprised to find inspiration boards of several other brides that matched just that. below are a few of my favorites.

i particularly like the birdcage veil, the chandelier, the vintage car, and the wedding cake in this picture. i knew before seeing any wedding pictures that i wanted a birdcage wedding veil. i never realized they were making such a comeback. and even though they are trendy now, i still want to stick with it. i would love to decorate with chandeliers and have them hanging from the trees outside at the lodge. i am having a terrible time finding some that aren't hundreds or even thousands of dollars. even plastic ones that look like crystal would work ... but i haven't uncovered any just yet.

for this next inspiration board, i think i just like the overall theme and vibe. while this cake is very different from the one above, i still like it very much. i thought that i would have square stacked cakes, but i'm finding more and more round stacked cakes that i like.

how fun are these frame photos? i would love for our photographer to snap a few like this.

i like the color scheme and antiquing of this inspiration board. i also really like the cake topper. i don't know that i am big on the cake {it's beautiful, but i don't think it's for us.} i also like the bride's bouquet. i'm having a difficult time choosing my flowers. i love lilies and thought that i would want to use those. then i thought i had decided upon "black" calla lilies {which are really a deep purple} but i'm really drawn to hydrangeas {and the beautiful array of colors they come in for fall}.

this inspiration board just seems so romantic.
i think this venue is magnificent. the board just screams "old hollywood glamour" to me. it's completely different from the lodge, but i still just love it. again we have chandeliers, and while these colors are not colors i'm using for our wedding, i am always a fan of red. i do plan to use sparklers {in lieu of flower petals, birdseed, rice, bubbles, etc}. i think it will a fun touch since our wedding will be in the evening and the reception after dark.

this inspiration board actually captures the eggplant color that i want to use at the wedding. i wish we had been able to find this color in the guys' tuxes. instead their vests and ties will be a mix of the champagne and bronze. i also love the hair pin & the cake. i plan to incorporate lavendar stems, but i don't think i will have entire bouquets comprised of lavender alone.

this inspriation board may be a little hard to see {but i think if you click on it, it will open it up to it's full size}. my favorite thing about this particular board? the incredible{!} flower path with the large vases running alongside. we will have a long walk from the lodge to the arbor, and i would love, love, love to recreate an aisle runner similar to this one. the streamers hanging from the trees are also a nice touch. and how fun is that bathtub? i don't know what we would do with one ... and i don't think that the budget will include a line for bathtub, but still, how creative.

at this point, we're not using pink, but this inspiration board is enough to make me reconsider. i was originally drawn to it for the antiquing. the muted pink {like the bridesmaids dress in the lower right hand corner} may find its way into our wedding scheme. and how could you not love the chandeliers? gorgeous. also, if i am able to get a vintage car as our "getaway car" would you please remind me that i want a pretty wreath on the front?

the following board uses a lot of the same pale pink as the board we just looked at. i just like it's romantic feel as well. since our wedding is going to be at the lodge, i considered the look of the plank table ... i think it may be a little too rustic for the look we're going for, though. great for the rehearsal dinner, maybe?

since the wedding is going to be outdoors, we're considering lawn games like croquet. i saw this picture of the bride and flower girl and thought it was just darling. fun, right? i also like the shoes worn by the girl in the bottom lefthand corner.

this last picture is one of my all-time favorite inspiration boards ... and i am seriously. seriously. seriously. considering working with this color palette. while i was so set and ready to move forward with the colors that i have, now that i have another full year to play and plan, i may find myself mixing it up a bit. this still uses the purple that i love ... but it's more pomegrante {i think that may even be what they call the color} than eggplant. and we see that delicate, antiqued pink color again. i just love it all. {oops, the color is fig, not pomegranate}. either way, i think these colors are perfect for an outdoor fall wedding.