Weddingbee Blog

After the wedding was over I thought, ‘Well, that’s that. No more wedding planning for me.’ My sister is already married and most of my friends are, too. I figured I’d be done with planning, but you know what? I’m not. Guess what? Remodeling/building a house is like wedding planning. Who knew?

Well, someone did. My coworker joked that remodeling his kitchen was like wedding planning all over again. I didn’t understand that then, but I do now. Here are some ways wedding planning is related to remodeling/building a house.

First off, there are SOOOO many decisions. What style of house or wedding are you going for? French Country? Modern? Art Deco? Ranch style? Then there is size. Will you have 100 guests at the reception or will you be building with the intentions of someday adding to your family? Let’s not even get started with color. I could talk for days about color. Color of the floors, walls, ceilings, tile, etc.

Second, there are just as many people involved in putting a wedding together as there are putting a house together. Bridal parties, photographers, plumber, architect. Here are a few things I figured out about the players:

1. DOC = main contractor
2. Michaels or Jo-Ann’s = Lowe’s or Home Depot
3. Bridezilla = Homeownerzilla
4. Weddingbee, Snippet and Ink, etc = Apartment Therapy, Coco + Kelly, etc

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We had debated doing a “first look” quite a bit. Mr. S was all about it, I was a little more hesitant. I even posted about it this summer. I finally decided that if it was something that he felt was really important for us to do, I would throw caution to the wind and go for it.

Our timeline was tight on the wedding day, so I left the hotel in the limo with the bridal party around 2:30, arriving at the church around 2:40. The ceremony started at 3:00 on the dot, so it was a quick look! I waited in the limo after the bridal party went into the church and waited for the “all clear” that Mr. S was all set and waiting for me in our designated spot - a little garden on the side of the church.

Mr. S waited patiently with his back turned in one part of the garden.

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“Goody bags” is probably a more appropriate name for our out-of-town bags. And that’s because we gave one to every guest in attendance. Out-of-town bags would also be appropriate, though, because all of our guests were from out of town. Either way you look at it, these darlings were stuffed to the brim.

I blogged about the baggies and their adorning stamps, here. Beyond the muslin bags, though, I got blank tags from Hobby Lobby (around $2.99 for 25) and the “I Do” stamp from there as well for around $3.99.

But what’s inside, you’re wondering…
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I am not going to lie, this trip was not the easiest one I’ve taken. There were so many emotions blended together. But unlike any other, I was so calm and relaxed (I think I used my stress and anxiety quote of the month the last two weeks… hehe).

Saying goodbye to my family was not easy either, but the fact that my mom said, “We’ll see you before the wedding” made it easier for me. But I was still a little worried about how Curly was going to take the flight. I did train him for the last two months so that the 15 hours in his travel cage wouldn’t be such a shocking experience, but there’s no way I could fake the turbulence and altitude.

Once we landed in LAX, the stress began. First, because I was really scared about all the stories I’ve read about how sometimes at immigration, they give an extra hard time to people that come on K1 visas, but I guess those were just isolated situations because I actually got treated very nicely. After they checked my papers, they asked me how Mr. Poodle and I met, we chatted for a little bit, and I was officially welcomed to the United States… YAY!!! They reminded me that we should “be legal” within 3 months.

I started the (really long) wait for my bags, and later had to hunt for them. I was surprised that I didn’t have any bigger problems getting them, since each time I’ve come to California, one of my bags has been lost or delayed. I didn’t have problems with the bags, but once I tried to talk to people to find out where I had to go to pick Curly up, the problems started!!
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Boasting both luxurious resorts and secluded island hideaways, the Caribbean makes for the perfect honeymoon getaway. Today, we’re giving away 5 copies each of Fodor’s Bahamas 2010 and Caribbean 2010 guides!

To enter, just leave a comment below! And be sure to check out Fodor’s great tips for Caribbean travel, broken down by top destinations. The contest ends Monday at midnight PST. Good luck!

Hey all!

Join me for some fun conversation as I make my Bee TV debut tomorrow evening at 7PM EST!

With a few months of newlywed-dom under my belt, I’ll definitely try to share some insights with you about life after the wedding. Also, I may even whip out some dancing, but I can’t make any promises. I’m excited to “see” you all tomorrow night!

Hey, y’all! Have you read this article in the New York Times Magazine?

The Obamas’ Marriage

If you haven’t read it, go now. Seriously. Right now. It’s mind-blowingly honest and real. Regardless of your political persuasion, we need more honesty and reality around marriages. They talk about ups and downs, decisions and families and figuring out how to make a marriage work with what might be the world’s toughest external factors.

Oh, where to begin to blog about how this story resonated with me?
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I dread exercising. I know, that’s horrible - and to my credit, I like walking around the city, water sports, hiking, and the occasional run. But the Big E, which I define as getting up early to go to the gym, trying to figure out complicated machines at said gym, and getting frustrated at said gym, is not my idea of fun.

So what’s a roly-poly Hammy to do? Enter the world of Buff Brides!

Source

For $11 on Amazon, the Buff Brides workout book is a small but worthwhile investment. It leads you through a 12 or 24 week strength training regimen targeted toward common “problem” areas for brides - arms, back, abs, etc.

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Catch up on the story here!

After leaving the Alfred Angelo boutique, I went to Olga’s Bridal to try on some Mon Cheri Bridal and La Sposa gowns that I had found on The Knot. I was really excited to try on the MCBs & LSs. They were so soft and dreamy and romantic looking - totally my style. Here’s what I had planned to try on:

In my head, this was “The One”. I was head over heels for this dress. The bottom is just so flowy and ethereal.

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My parents threw us the first of our 2 engagement parties back in June, at their house upstate. Having two engagement parties is totally excessive, I fully admit. And I’m embarrassed to write that I’m partially to blame for it. Not thinking the FIL Trail Mixes were going throw us one, I badgered Mama TM into having a low-key BBQ at the family home, which turned into a 40-person+ extravaganza that was seriously amazing.

Of course, about a week later, the FILs offered to throw us an engagement party down in Miami, hence the fiesta double! As country and down-home as my parents’ soiree was, I had such a blast. The BBQ really made me feel good about our wedding choices so far, as I was reminded how I am always at my happiest when dirty besides a campfire after a day of drinking, eating and dancing. Here are a few shots, all taken on my camera.

Right before we embarked on a tubing adventure down the creek near my house, 3 friends and I decided to see if we could all fit into one inner tube. Turns out, we could. It was getting out that was difficult.

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One of my favorite things to do is to declare that I’m going to grow my hair long, then chop it off a month later. A year ago, SistahChips threw a “I’m turning 30—Let’s Wig Out!” party and I donned this realistic looking beauty:

I’m the one on the right, in case you couldn’t recognize me in such subterfuge.

I fell in love with that $15 iparty wig and quickly decided to grow out the bob I’ve maintained since Katie Holmes-Cruise cut her hair off. But my hair grows very slowly and I am very impatient. It’s just now shoulder-length and beginning to look not-as-awkward.

In the midst of my Great Hair Grow-Out, we got engaged and “You’re growing your hair out for your wedding, right??” became a common question (Why? I don’t get it!). I’m ambivalent.
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