web-crush

I am really loving realsimple.com
I'm seriously, totaly enamored. This is every domestic woman's dream site. Literaly simple to the point of minamalistic sometimes, I love the uniqueness. All pics below are from them.

^ super simple and effective

^also pretty (AND edible!)

^ these two would be great for a Thanksgiving dinner or a Fall Wedding

^ game night (which is totaly awesome to me, knowing my Darling's love of all things game -not sport- related)

^ GREAT idea for a Mexican Fiesta! (or Mardi Gras)

DIY thank you cards

This past week has been crazy! Our church just finished Vacation Bible School and I helped in the morning before going into work at 1. It was a blast! We had a ton of fun and it went really well. Our theme this year was Gadget's Garage and we decorated with gears, cars and (mostly) homemade robots ^_^ I'll have to post some pics of them later.

And over the past week we received our first wedding gift (THANKS AUNT PAT!) and finally got to work on the thank you notes. I personally think they look fantastic :) I made them with stamps from A.C. Moore and cards from Staples. The cladagah symbol is the one we want to use on the invites.







195 days to go!

registry obbsesion

When we went last Saturday to register at Target (which we occasionally refer to as Targay due to the complete lack of respect a friend of ours was treated with when she worked at one such store, which will remain unsaid) I was thrilled. And we had a blast. Yes, Kevin snapped at Cousin after the fifth time she said ewww to the color blender we admired *rolls eyes* and yes we were hot and sweaty and hungry but it's just good plain fun when you get to run around a store (you don't work in) with a scanner gun and scan anything your little heart desires (though I DID tell both of them - more than once- that NO, they could not put a bag of potato chips on our wedding registry).

And now, three days later, we are finally at a position where we could possibly leave it alone. We now have a decent amount in every price range (under $10 = logical. $11- $30 = logical. $31-$50 = also logical. $51 and UP = not so logical....) but I have to say, it is so difficult to leave it alone! And now that we registered for a blender, food processor, can opener, and crock pot from there, when we go to Sears/Macy's/JCPenny next weekend, do we register for ANOTHER blender/food processor/can opener/crock pot?

Anywho, I wanted to share some brainstorming. I have a fairly large amount of vases on our registry and was thinking of what I could do with the things (aside from the obvious, clearly) and google presented me with these lovely photos (which might also make great center pieces)....






http://www.weddingobsession.com/2008/09/14/do-it-yourself-jell-o-centerpieces/



http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/chicago/plants-flowers/terrarium-in-a-vase-at-nouveau-classics-054559




http://vowweddings.wordpress.com/2008/05/26/interestingcenteriecesgalore/





http://kabloomofsandysprings.blogspot.com/2008/04/bridal-shower-good-advice.html





http://www.thecakeblog.com/2009/04/party-must-have-hurricane-vases.html

Ode To Strangers

I love meeting new people.
Really, I do. I don't get to do much of that being cooped up in a small office everyday even if I love my job. All today and yesterday we had meeting after meeting and to one of them, a shareholder brought his girlfriend. As she couldn't go into the meeting but didn't want to wait in the hotel alone she stayed in the office with me and we chatted. Well between then and this afternoon, I think it's safe to say I've made a new friend.


Being my super-introverted self, sometimes I forget how great it is to meet new people and how fun it is. We talked about everything from what color my bridesmaids dresses would be to religion to her teenage daughter and even to President Obama and war in Iraq. It's not very often you met someone you are so different from but can communicate so well with.


When Kevin and I met we were little more than strangers. And I just smile when I remember what that strange IM became over time. It makes me truly appreciative of serendipity and chances and strangers when it occurs to me that's what we were. We were strangers that met under fairly common circumstances that likely could have ended in one awkward conversation and never gone further than that. But something pushed us to keep the conversation going. To learn more about each other. To truly know each other. That's what I want our marriage to be like.


Weddings and marriages are not the same thing. A wedding comes and goes and often is a once in a lifetime thing. A marriage is a lifelong commitment. Weddings are about telling the world "HEY - I love this (wo)man and I'm here making a public display of that". Marriages don't have to be so public. In fact, I think it's the private, intimate parts of a marriage that make it worth so much. When she packs his lunch for him even though she doesn't have to be up for work till 7. When he takes the laundry upstairs because he knows how heavy the hamper can be. When they simply TELL each other how much they care and love each other. That's the truly beautiful part. That's what I want. I don't just want a fancy party. I can't wait to look at the man I love and say "Yep, he's the one I married." and be totally and completely proud to share his name and be his wife. And you know what? I am still (and always will be) totally and completely proud of him and thrilled to be his girl.

flowers ^.^

just tried my hands at making a wedding bouquet ^_^ feedback would be lovely.
They're purple and green mums and white daises (even tho daises are technically mums also)

update

mkay. I have realized that apparently, I'm not the best at telling people what I want/like (particularly my mom and my almost-mama-in-law) The ideal wedding in my mind is very very simple or rather than simple, it's minimalistic almost. Clean lines, simple whites and bold colors. I think the worst thing someone could say to me about anything involved in our wedding is that it was overkill or too showy.

That said, as cool as the flower covered elephant is, NO, I do NOT intend to have a flower covered elephant at our reception.

... soooo aside from the horrors of trying to explain how I want my wedding to look without coming off mean and being TOO picky

-we've basically taken a sledgehammer to the guest list and as of last night have it down to 137

-I tried my hand at bouquet making last night and am actually really pleased with how it turned out (will post pics later)

-talked about cake so much last night, idk if i will even get CLOSE to eating cake for another 2 weeks

-some insight on this would be helpful to the extreme: we cannot afford to feed all the people we would like to invite to the wedding. I personally (and Kevin too) think that the ceremony is the important part of a wedding even if the reception is the part every guest looks forward to. Would you think it in bad taste to invite only a portion (about half) the people invited to the ceremony to the reception? Would they be honored we wanted them to be at our wedding even if we couldn't afford to have them come to the reception? Or would they feel cheated out of something fun?

blog-crush

MUSHROOM CAKE !!! - the quirkiness of this astounds me :)

this ^ is actually a model wedding cake made by a seller on Etsy! :-O

simple and pretty

my favorite idea yet on this site ^_^

THE NEW OBSESSION: http://victoriawithroses.blogspot.com/