A bit of a short post today as I really don’t actually have much to say about this topic—I think the pictures do most of the talking for me. I mentioned previously that my amazingly talented mother was going to make amigurumi cake toppers for us. She’s still working on the groom, but I couldn’t wait to show you how far she’s gotten. The little bear bride is done!
I have this fashion philosophy that for every outfit, there should be just one “wow” component. If I’m wearing a print, everything else will be somewhat neutral. Statement necklace means the rest of my accessories are simple. If I’m wearing something short, then I won’t show any cleavage. Some people are really good at knowing when to mix prints or layer necklaces—I’m just not one of those people, and it helps me to focus on one element.
Long winded intro, but for my wedding look, I’m trying to decide what my “wow” accessory is going to be. I’ve decided this is going to be one of three things: earrings, a belt, or a hair piece.
Before I get into options, here’s something I’ve already picked out: a simple necklace.
(Photo via Edor on Etsy)
I got this one, except for two hearts. Super simple, and brings in some of my green color. (Side note: I am OBSESSED with Edor. I can’t remember how I first found the shop, but it’s perfect for minimalist, everyday jewelry—super affordable too. I think everyone I know has been gifted an Edor necklace from me recently.)
So, I have some places to play around. Perhaps some spangly earrings that bring in my colors?
After I got over my insane panic attack over reception seating, I took a chill pill and kicked back to enjoy the rest of the time leading up to the wedding. To be honest, after the dry-heaving incident I sort of checked myself out of all the wedding stuff. It’s hard to describe, but I think I realized how wound up and insane I was getting over a wedding. One day. Not even a full day! Let’s be honest—weddings are fun, but they can also be stressful. And I did not want dry-heaving stress to get in the way of my enjoyment of family and soon-to-be-husband time. Our family and friends were in town and it was amazing to be able to spend so much time with them. Why should I waste that precious time stressing and worrying about small things?
So I didn’t take many pictures. I didn’t try to squeeze in last-minute projects. All that stuff that I had promised myself I would do? All those DIM projects that I thought were so necessary? Yeah, they would have been nice I suppose, but I am glad that I could let them go. Instead, I spent time with my friends, family, and hubs-to-be. And you know what? I look back now and have such wonderful memories of that week (you know, post dry-heaving). Really, it was one of the best weeks of my life.
One night, we went out with Mr. CA’s parents to get drinks down by Pike Place Market. Of course we had to do touristy Seattle things while everyone was in town! Another night, we went out to a fabulous dinner with family and friends. Basically, there was lots of eating, laughing, and fun during that week.
kaylyn is selling a pair of Giuseppe Zanotti golden heel pumps. She is asking $400 for the size Euro 39 shoes.
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The first time Mr. Squirrel met my dad, my dad casually asked him how we met. We awkwardly looked at each other and mumbled…”at a bar-type place.” My dad thought we were embarrassed to have met at a bar, so to make us feel better, he replied. “There’s no shame meeting in a bar. I mean…it’s better than having met online.” I could have melted in my seat. You see, bees…
We met online.
Whew.
I mean “technically” we physically met at a bar for the first time, but if we are going to keep it real…we met online. To be fair, this doesn’t bother Mr. Squirrel at all. All his friends and family know. I am the one who likes to keep this fun fact on the DL.
Like I mentioned early on, I had moved to a new city for graduate school and everyone else in my tiny program was also from out of state. Honestly, I was just hoping to meet some people to hang out with so I could get to know the city better.
OK, you guys. I’m all about traditions—I love them. I love making new ones and having old ones that I can rely on. I love seeing all the different traditions people choose to incorporate into their weddings. But from day one, there was one tradition I knew I would be modifying—the garter toss.
See, I love this part:
Image via Lover.ly / Photo by B.Wright Photography
And I hate this part:
Katie1359 shows off her silk gardenia hair clips.
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The dreaded diet and exercise—two words that can strike terror in the heart of any bride- or groom-to-be! But if you have specific goals in mind and stick with a plan that works for YOU, it might not be as bad as you think. It might even be rewarding and make you feel healthier than you’ve felt in a long time. Remember that there is no magic bullet—fad diets don’t work nor does starving yourself. (I’ve had several friends who refused to eat any real food in the months/weeks leading up to their wedding. Please don’t do that.) It’s all about making small changes to your lifestyle and habits and eventually finding the ones that work best for you. Here are some food-related changes I’ve made.
Image via FaithfulProvisions.com
Cooking more meals at home.
Hive, I have so much love for my family. We Skype every Sunday night, we travel back and forth between Houston and Seattle as often as we can, we text each other all the time…we stick together. My parents both work in the oil industry, and with all the company mergers during the ’90s, we moved around a lot when I was a kid. Moving can definitely bring a family closer together. So naturally, it meant the world to me that my parents and little bro were there to watch me get married.
After Mr. W and I frolicked around in our fancy duds for couple’s portraits, it was time to line up with the fam for a second round of photos. A few strands of Mama Wallaby’s updo were astray, so I helped pin them back in place.
And then the photo blitz began. Our photographers had sent us a “family photos checklist” to complete a week before the wedding to make sure they didn’t miss anyone. That really sped up the process. I think we got those bad boys done in, like, 15 minutes! As she and her assistant clicked away, Kat shouted out: “Liz and Mom!”…”Dad, you’re next!”… “Liz and Dad!” until we had taken photos with every possible arrangement of family members.
Mama Wallaby and I shared a private mama-daughter moment:
I wasn’t going to blog about this because I thought it would come across as a really self-involved, irreverent rant. And honestly, I’m not upset about it anymore. But a few readers noticed in my last post that I seemed to be harboring feelings of regret toward our Catholic ceremony, so I should probably just come clean.
First of all, no one forced me to have a Catholic ceremony. I grew up Catholic and went to Catholic school for nine years and a Jesuit university. The church where we got married is the same parish that I’ve attended my whole life, and it’s attached to my old grade school. When I thought about my wedding ceremony, I didn’t even consider having a secular ceremony—not because I don’t respect them or because my family would have been upset. My brother and several cousins have had really beautiful secular ceremonies, as well as many bees.
The priest we planned on having as our officiant told us late in the game that he would be on sabbatical during out wedding, so a new priest to the parish would be officiating for us. I feel bad saying anything negative about a priest, but I’ll be honest: he didn’t make my wedding day any better. I don’t know if he was actually an angry guy or if that was just his schtick, but he was kind of sarcastic and gruff, and my ceremony was not at all what I pictured it would be. Like Mrs. Coach, I struggled with suppressing the bad memories that flooded me every time I thought about our ceremony, and it’s taken me some time to come to terms with it. I realize now that I was being a wee bit melodramatic, and having things go wrong at your wedding can make for a great story. So I promise I’m not upset about it anymore. Moving on!
We left off at the unity candle. Whoo-friggin-hoo! Mr. Unicycle walked me over, and we each grabbed a taper candle, lit the middle candle with it, and blew it out. You can hear in our video that he asks me “Just light it and blow it out, right?” and I say “Yeah.”
Photos by Jennifer Shaffer Photography
Then the priest got the rings from our Best Man and Maid of Honor and blessed them before we exchanged them.
