Down Time

After the ceremony we had about an hour to take pictures. It felt like a lot longer, but we had a lot of fun.

The Ceremony

I am going to finally finish my wedding day posts!


The ceremony... it was perfect... We were married by B's uncles from Holland. Dutch Priests (yes catholic priests married us outside the church). They made it very personal and unique. We had some of our best friends and siblings in the bridal party. The weather was unbelievable, take that all you skeptics who said outdoor weddings in August were for crazy people... It was a GREAT day.




It all started with some anxious ladies.... waiting... waiting...

Followed by what we called "the flying V", but mostly the girls were just blocking me for the big reveal

My brother walked me down the aisle, that was really special and fun. He kept having to tell me to stop talking! "I can't hear the music" "I can't see b" "when do we start walking".... you know usual pre aisle chats.


Then it began...

Oh, did I say perfect, well... almost, I put the ring on the wrong finger....oops....

Mr & Mrs.

Preparation for the Big Day- How many outfits will you need???

In addition to all the wedding plans, I worried about what I would wear to all the pre-wedding events. After all, I was the bride and all eyes would be on me. Pictures would be taken that we would look at for years to come... I wanted to look good.
What is appropriate for a bridal shower, a bachelorette party, rehearsal dinner etc... the list goes on.
Just something else they do not tell you to budget for... new outfits!
Here are some samples of appropriate pre-wedding "I am the bride" ensembles.
Bridal Shower:
Dress comfortable for lots of sitting. Wear layers if you get nervous with lots of people staring at you, you can take the sweater off to cool down.
Dress classy, something that says, I am an adult that is mature enough to get married and I am not a slut (for real some of these ladies will not know you and first impressions are everything)

This example is simple yet classy and you can throw a jacket or a cardigan over it if needed. Appropriate for a shower that is happening at a specific venue, such as a restaurant.

This is comfy, fun and feminine! I wish I had worn this to one of my showers! This perfect for a shower at someones home or in a backyard.

Bachelorette Party:

This is one that I struggeld with. I wanted to look my age and be stylish, but I also wanted to look classy. There is a thin line with Bachelorette Parties were some brides can look trashy. I went with a black skirt and a white tank that I paired with a fun necklace. Flats are important if you plan to walk a lot and dance the night away, but thats just me because I prefer flats over heels.


This is a fun black dress that is not too revealing, but shows enough leg that you can't wear it to church. This would be good for a dinner and girls night out style party

This pant look would be perfect for bar hopping

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Rehearsal Dinner:
Depending on the type of event you are having for the rehearsal dinner, it is important to dress like the next day, you are going to be a Bride! If you are going to the Church for the rehearsal remember to dress appropriate for that, again, layers are great!
 
I knew that I wanted to wear white to the rehearsal considering that this was the one weekend in life that I could wear all the white I wanted and its ok!
 
Here are some samples of what I think are great for the night before your big day
This is fun and young looking, you could easily wear a sweater over it to the Church if needed.
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
This dress is elegant and still young looking. Even something you could wear again!
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Some other outfit ideas to keep in mind are bridesmaid luncheon, day of wedding "get ready outfit", day after wedding if you have a brunch or family events.
 
It can be overwhelming, but no one told me to prepare for these. Again, you do not have to buy all new outfits, but if you are like me, when it comes to that day it is a lot easier to get ready if you have something new and exciting to put on.

Preparation for the Big Day- Beauty Adventure

My Beauty Adventure happened in one day, 4 days before the wedding. I did not really follow the schedule that all the wedding books tell you... at this time you should be ... blah blah...

I went and got my eyebrows (and upper lip...yikes) threaded! It was great! I have very sensitive skin and can not get waxed (for real, had a BAD experience that I will tell you after a few glasses of wine).

The Threading was great! I recommend for all skin types because it is not harsh on your skin at all, I was not red at all and the pain was 4 out of 10!

(this is not me)

My next beauty appointment that day was my nails  I got Axxium Gel on my nails. This is by OPI and it is a gel polish that goes over your real nail to make them extra hard almost like acrylic, but it is supposed to not be harsh on your nails. Well.... it was great, the first few days. About day 5 (day after the wedding thank goodness) they started to chip, When they chip... it pulls off the top layer of your real nail! OUCH. I would go ahead and say, if you have nice natural nails, keep them natural.

Here is a sort of close up of my nails on wedding day.

Ceremony Starts at 4:30pm

August 28, 2010

As long as everyone made it to the ceremony site by 4:30pm and was ready to get married or be part of a wedding we would be in good shape... that is what I kept telling myself. Whatever happened before that did not matter.

I made an itinerary for the day... I did not look at it once. (well of course I knew it all in my head) I was truly so calm and together on our wedding day, I even surprised myself.... it was bizarre. Honestly, I have a wierd feeling that someone drugged me... seriously. Either that or, I just knew that it would all fall into place and whatever happened was no longer in my control.....

It was a BEAUTIFUL day! Not a single cloud in the sky! It was a comfortable temperature for late August.

We started our day at the Salon getting all pretty... it was 8 woman which made for a 5 hour process.... we had fun though :)

The ladies with their totes

First things first....

Little sister

Cheers with the Maids

Then it was my turn...

Then came the tears....

It was a great way to start the day. Drinks and laughters, a few tears! We were ready!!!

Night Before

August 27, 2010

We were off to a great start! All things on schedule... everyone was on time to the rehearsal and they actually were willing to help and pay attention. Not that we doubt our friends, but you go in assuming that they just want to get the party started and want to rush through the rehearsal.

Quick facts about Rehearsal:

• SOO glad that we had one!
• I had a bag full of Ribbon Bouquets from the Bridal Showers and we did not use them.
• The ceremony muscian was late causing a frustrated groom, surprisingly, I was ok with it.
• I cried, a lot! during the practice vows. I had to wear my sunglasses during because it helped me to not whimper at every word.
• Run through with your bridesmaids is key, for some reason they all want to ask the pace you want them to walk....

So after the rehearsal, my in-laws hosted a dinner for everyone at a local restuarant. It was a perfect venue, the only thing I would have done differently is had assigned seating. Otherwise, we had a great time!

Behind me you can sort of see the bags I have to my bridesmaids, I think they were a hit.

Here are the ladies, after I had 2 glasses of wine and chose to give public speeches about each of them, needless to say... more crying. (sisters not pictured)

Here is one of the groomsmen posing with his new tie for the wedding day

Here is my father in law, he chose to wear his favorite T-shirt to thank everyone for coming, and in case they did not know him, well of course he was easily identified now.
















The dinner ended well and then we parted ways. The guys headed out to the bars and the ladies headed back to the hotel for some Champagne! It was a lot of fun! We had champagne (in paper hotel cups) and then ended up having a dance party in the hotel parking lot! A perfect way to end the night before my wedding day!

Good times with great friends and family! I actually did get some sleep that night, but that might have been because of the wine and champagne that I drank....

Day of story to come...

Mr & Mrs.

Just wanted to check in to say.... we did it, it happened and we are MARRIED!

It was a fabulous weekend and I will have many pictures, stories and more as soon as I finish soaking it all in.

We are off to Savannah, Georgia for our Honeymoon. Its a mini-moon, as we are driving, so we will spend 4 nights in Georgia.

Stay tuned for posts to come....

Welcome to our Wedding Weekend

We have many guests coming from all over the world for our wedding. Many of them will stay with family, my house, in-laws and at local hotels. We have already made 2 trips to the airport to pick up family from the Netherlands!

As a Thank You to our out of town guests, we have created a Welcome Bag. Each guest at the hotels will get a bag when they check in. I kept the bags simple, sweet & salty snacks, some kisses (its a wedding of course), gum, tissues, bottled water and some advil! It should be enough to get some one through the night or help with the morning after!

I think that they turned out nice, atleast, I would like to get this when I checked in!

Week of the Wedding

The week before the wedding did not come quick enough, however, it is moving rather quickly! We each had a to do list for each day of the week. So far, we are doing great at checking things off the list!

I have also enjoyed that B and I have both had the week off work! It is so nice to wake up and just be able to live.... have some coffee, talk, listen to music, watch the news and then start the day! We are having a great week, lots of family time, productive activity and healthy meals!

Only 3 more days :)

Ok, and I am a dork, here is a pic of our Marriage License! Almost official!

Lesson Learned... in spray tan

Attention all pale skin people, I know you are out there! I am fare skinned and tan-challenged! I could lay out all day SPF 50 and all, and I would FRY. A bright red sunburn rarely turns into the bronzed babe that I want to be.

I could go to the tanning bed for about 3 months and finally have the coloring that I prefer as well as 4 types of skin cancer to go with it ( ok not funny, but ser... tanning in the fake n bake is not good for you)

So, whats the bride to be to do? I have a man who works outdoors all summer long who has a very bronzed look (face, arms, legs). Together in pictures we are the epidemy of Opposites attract! White Skin meets Tan Skin.... let me find an example:

Exhibit A- the night we got engaged- do you see the skin contrast??

Ok, now that I have proved my point, I will show you how I decided to resolve the issue. I decided to do as the Rich and Famous do- Spray Tan by a professional Spray Artist. I have used the Mystic Spray tan machines before, but this woman convinced me that this would be much different, more effective, last longer, and so on and so on.... So, I gave it a shot. I met Lyndsey who owns her own business and does spray tan in her basement. We hit it off and I felt comfortable letting her see me half naked so she could give me that bronzed look.

Here business is called Tantrum Tan- http://www.tantrumtanning.com/faqs.html

I will let you read up on all the dos and donts of spray tanning.

Ok, so here is my candid message of what to expect:

DO expect to have extreme black looking skin immediately after treatment

DO NOT plan to go in public after- yikes

DO NOT shower for atleast 8 hours- it will wash right off (when you do shower, know that some will wash off and you should scrub and exfoliate to make sure the top layer does wash off)

DO plan to wash your sheets the next morning because while sleeping the first night it will rub off.

DO plan to have orange hands and feet- they told me no orange- they were wrong

It does NOT smell!

As of almost 24 hours and a shower later does NOT rub off on white clothes!

It DOES give you a great tan that is noticable

With all of the above said, I am glad that I gave this a trial before the wedding. It seems to only get worse as the days goes by.... I recommend the spray tan ONLY if you have time to exfoliate your whole body daily as well as you do not have to go out in public a lot with skirts, swim suit or sandals on....

Here are the pictures in progression of days:

NIGHT OF- Tan lines showing my before and after skin. I did not go full commando, I kept the bottoms on... as you can see.

Next Day Toes- look pretty good from this angle

Side view of day 2 feet... yikes

Day 2 Hands.... double yikes

\

Day 4- Ankles and feet... very blotchy

My face is back to normal color now, in Day 4.

Lesson Learned- well I guess that I should not do this for the Wedding. If I were not blogging about my wedding I would say, Be as you are, accept your skin for the color it is and do not try to change it... but... I am writing about my wedding so, my lesson is.... stick to the tanning bed and I have 20 days left, so I better get there in the morning.