And They're Off!

The invitations have been printed, assembled, stamped, addressed.... and now that they're officially in the mail and being received, I'm happy to share them with you! We are totally in love with our invites and so excited for everyone to see them!

We worked with Etsy (there it is again) seller The Extra Detail. She was fantastic to work with. She let us customize the entire project - the trifold color, the ribbon color, the invitation/rsvp/extra info card colors. She sent us samples of the colors that we requested, and let us choose EXACTLY what we wanted. Once we got that straightened out, she sent us multiple proofs and let us change the font as much as we wanted (which ended up being 4 different times). Once everything was absolutely perfect, we placed the order and a few weeks later, they arrived on our doorstep. Initially she sent us the wrong size outer envelopes, but she quickly corrected it, free of charge. Another great Etsy experience!

Sooo....are you ready to see them? Well, here they are, in all their gorgeousness...

We sent them out on Monday, and we've already gotten lots of feedback from people about them! I hope you like them as much as we do!

Slow Down!

My best friend got married a couple months ago, and though we were at his wedding, we barely had a chance to see him all night. So a couple weeks ago, we met up with him and his new wife for dinner and drinks. The first thing they said to us about their wedding day - "It goes by so quickly!" That's what we've been hearing from absolutely everyone. Liz told me that she basically remembers saying I do, messing up the end of her vows, waiting to come into the reception, and their first dance. Otherwise, the whole day is a total blur.

Seems to be a pretty common thing. Months and months of planning, thousands of dollars, and it's all over in the blink of an eye.

So I'm making a vow - right here, right now - to try to mentally (and photographically) document every single moment of the day.

I want to remember what I feel like while I'm sitting in the chair at the salon, getting my hair done, surrounded by the 6 most important women in my life (my mom and my bridal party).

I want to remember how I feel the first time I step into my dress, pick up my bouquet, and look in the mirror - finally, actually, really a bride.

I want to remember the emotion of standing in the back of the church with my dad, waiting to walk down the aisle and see Matt standing at the front, waiting to become husband and wife.

I want to remember seeing Matt for the first time, all handsome in his tux.

I want to hold on forever to the feeling of kissing my husband for the first time and being announced as Mr. and Mrs. Matthew Iacavone.

I want to never forget swaying on the dance floor to our song, "Chasing Cars," feeling like we're the only two people in the whole wide world.

I want to remember dancing with my father, knowing that even though I'm not his little girl anymore, I'll always be his daughter, and there is nothing more special than that in the world.

I want to savor the moment of dancing with my girls to our special song, reveling in the fact that these girls have been with me through the best and worse times of my life, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

I want to take a moment and look around at all the people there to celebrate with us and remember how loved we are.

Every single moment, every single smile, every single tear... I want to remember all of it. I have been looking forward to this day for months, if not years, and I refuse to let it just slip through my fingers. I will hold on to anything and everything, and I will lock it all away in a corner of my brain that I can run to when times get tough and I need a pick-me-up. Because what better pick-me-up could possibly exist than looking back at the happiest day of your life?

More Wedding Gifts

I promised that I'd tell you about the other part of the wedding gift I'm giving Matt. I was waiting until it was in motion, and now that it is, I'm happy to share!

I did a boudoir photo shoot! OMG, it was seriously the most fun ever. But let me back up a bit...

I had seen lots of boudoir shoots in the various wedding blogs, and I toyed with the idea of doing it. Then I found out that a friend of mine from high school, who is now a professional photographer, actually shoots boudoir, and the shots she had on her blog were great. So I got in touch with her and we worked out the details. I went shopping (had LOTS of fun at Victoria's Secret!) and wound up at her house this past Sunday. She had managed to find someone from Empire Beauty School to come and do my hair and makeup, at the cost of nothing more than a tip and the fake eyelashes she put on me. Brittany (the makeup artist) did a fantastic job - my hair looked styled but casual, and my makeup was amazing - she did a dark brown, slightly-toned-down, smokey eye (Megan kept calling it the Kim Kardashian) and added fake eyelashes. It looked awesome.

We spent about 2 hours taking photos. Megan made me feel really comfortable and relaxed (as relaxed as possible, being in my skivvies around 2 total strangers and 1 person who I hadn't seen in over 10 years!). She also managed to make feel completely HOT. I've never felt so sexy in my life, and I walked out of there with the highest self-confidence I've had in an awfully long time. It felt amazing.

I haven't seen the finished product yet, but the shots that I did get to see during the day were incredible. Megan somehow managed to make me look gorgeous. I remember at one point she showed me one and I actually said out loud, "Wow...I look quite pretty!" It was shocking to see myself like that! I don't think I'm going to post any pictures on my blog, but maybe... we'll have to see!

I would seriously recommend that every woman in the world should do a set of boudoir photos. If not for someone, do it for yourself - you will feel GREAT about yourself when you're done!

Idle Bridal Thoughts

From Me to We

I remember the first time I saw the first Sex and the City movie. I was having a girls' night in (Matt was visiting a friend in Maryland), and decided I should take advantage and watch a chick flick. I had seen all the hype about Sex and the City, and though I'd never been a regular watcher of the show (mostly because I didn't have HBO while it was running), I did always enjoy any episodes that I caught. So...I had a night in with the SATC girls. And I bawled the whole way through it. I mean it. I bawled. It was embarrassing. I mean, the whole thing with Big and Carrie - the moment she realized he wasn't showing up at the wedding, my heart broke for her. For this random tv character who I've (obviously) never met, and who I didn't really even "know" like the real fans of the show. And yet...well, let's just say, I was a mess.

One thing she said at some point after that really stuck with me. She told the girls that the wedding got away from her. I remember her saying, "Everything was 'me' and 'my wedding.'" She realized that she'd been spending so much time talking about the wedding and thinking about the wedding and planning the wedding, that she forgot about her relationship. Plus, she was so worried about making it the wedding of her dreams, that she forgot about the fact that it might not be the wedding of Big's dreams. And she thought that that was what scared Big away.

That really stuck with me. Not that I think that Matt wouldn't be happy to let me do pretty much whatever I want, but my dream wedding is one that we plan together. It's one that has aspects that reflect both of us. It's one that incorporates things that he wants and things that I want. I ask for and value his opinion on just about everything, but I also take the reigns on things that he expresses absolutely no interest in, like the flowers.

I've been really careful to talk about it as our wedding, not my wedding. Because that's what I want it to be - OUR big day, not mine. It makes me crazy when people say, "Oh but it's your day..." No! It's not! It's our day, and Matt's thoughts, feelings, and input are important to me. Making him feel included and a part of the day is important to me.

I also make sure that we do things completely un-wedding-related sometimes. A few weeks ago, we spent a weekend at a B&B in the middle of PA wine country. We called it our wedding-free weekend. We spent the whole weekend just enjoying each other's company (and yummy wine) and talking about our marriage and our relationship and our future...but not the wedding. And I have to say, that even though I've had a blast planning this wedding with him, it was a lovely break. We're also planning for the weekend before the wedding to spend the weekend in our own home (rather than going back to Hershey for planning and detailing and stuff) - we even got tickets to see Last Comic Standing at our local theater! When we saw it was coming, we said it would be a great, fun, mindless thing to do before the real wedding craziness sets in.

My whole life before Matt was about what I wanted. But I'm getting married, now, and my decisions affect someone other than me now. And, you know what, I like it that way!

We Interrupt Our Regularly Scheduled Planning...

This past week, I took a bit of a break from wedding planning to plan and execute a baby shower for one of my oldest (old meaning years known, not age) and dearest friends. And, I must say, it was a huge success!

This was the shower I thought I was throwing back in May, when I was ambushed by my MOH and BMs, who threw me a surprise bridal shower. So needless to say, the next time BM Abriel was coming home, we decided this was our chance to get all the girls together again and finally throw her a baby shower.

This is pretty much the same group of girls who are in my wedding party, plus another friend of ours and a friend of Abriel's.


We have all basically been friends since high school, and therefore all of our moms are friends, too.


My mom and I started planning, and decided that the menu would carry a Georgia theme (since Abriel and her husband now live there). We executed a super-yummy menu that included pork tenderloin, sweet Vidalia onion dip, peach salsa, salad with pears and candied pecans, cornbread, and crab gazpacho. Dessert included peach trifle and turtle cheesecake, and to drink we served sweet tea and peach sangria. Unfortunately, it seems that no one got pictures of the awesome spread, which is really sad, because it came together really well.

Everyone gathered at my mom's house and ate and drank and socialized, until finally we decided to rally the troops and play some games. I had put together two different "quizzes" for the guests to fill out. One was celebrity baby names, where I listed the baby names and the guests had to come up with the famous parent(s). This was a pretty successful game, and lots of fun to laugh at the weird names that some celebrities have come up with (Apple? Bronx Mowgli?). The second game was a baby animal game - I put a list of babies and a list of animals, and the guests had to match them. This one was kind of hard and people struggled a bit (like, did you know that a baby eel is called an elver?). But I think everyone enjoyed them and - what the heck - it's always good to learn something new, right?

After the games were done and the prizes were handed out, Abriel opened gifts. On the evite, I had reminded guests that she would be flying back to Atlanta, and asked people to bring small gifts or photos of bigger gifts. For the most part, people obliged, and I think she had a manageable amount of stuff to get back on the plane. They got some great gifts. I mean, how cute is this?

Born in 2010! The two little ones are our friend/BM Tina's little girls.

For the favors, I made Mason Jar Cupcakes - red velvet with cream cheese icing, and french vanilla with peach icing. I found the idea here and thought it was perfect. Dessert doesn't get much more Southern than red velvet cake, and they loooove their mason jars down there! I used box cake mix and a tub (or several) of Betty Crocker cream cheese icing. I made the peach icing from scratch with a recipe I found here (just the icing, not the cupcakes), but I substituted peach baby food for the fresh peach that I would've had to mash, puree, and beat to crap. Peach baby food just seemed easier, and in the end, I'm really glad I went that route. This was time-consuming and a bit complicated (it took me 4 evenings after work), but totally worth it. They were delicious. Again, it seems that no one got a photo of them, but trust me - they were adorable and really yummy. We displayed them on an antique high chair that my parents have, and encouraged each guest to take one on their way out.

All in all, a great day, and a nice break from the wedding planning. Especially since now that we're at the 3-month mark and our weekends are so full, I'm starting to feel like we're getting to crunch time. We need to schedule our final meetings with our vendors, and given all the other stuff we have going on this summer, plus my one-weekend-a-month serving on-call for work...we're having a hard time scheduling all the meetings! These next 12 weeks are going to absolutely fly by!

(all photos courtesy of BM Tina!)

OOTs!

That would be Out of Town (bags) for those of you who don't speak wedding. I just like to say OOT. It makes me giggle. Cuz I'm 4.

ANYWAY. Our out of town bags have been given significant consideration. And by that, I mean that I've been obsessing and Matt has been looking at me thinking, "Who are you and what have you done with my normal fiance?" Whatever. I want our guests to be wowed as soon as they check into the hotel. To know that they're in for a great weekend. To know that we appreciate that they've traveled, spent money, and taken time out of our lives to celebrate with us.

Apparently, I also want them....to get fat. Because here's what I've come up with. First up? To represent where we currently live, each bag will get 2 miniature pretzels from the Philly Pretzel Factory.

Say you: Pretzels?! Who cares about pretzels?
Say me: Hush, you. If you've never had one, you don't know. And hey - at least I'm not trying to stuff a cheesesteak in there (don't think it didn't cross my mind)! [Blogger tried to tell me that cheesesteak was 2 words. Silly Blogger]

Seriously, though. I used to be strictly an Auntie Anne's pretzel girl. No trip to the mall was complete without a stop at the Auntie Anne's shop. And then? I moved to Philly and had my first taste of the Philly Pretzel Factory pretzel. Umm...yeah...mind - blown. If there ever was a perfect food, this might be it. Ok, that might be an exaggeration, but...you get the point. These things are freaking awesome. Anyway, we tested it out at home to see how they held up in storage (a ziploc), and they did pretty well, but we're definitely going the unsalted route; the salt kind of liquefied and made the pretzels a bit gooey. So yeah, our guests will each get an unsalted Philly Pretzel Factory mini. I'm jealous of them already.

Next? I came across this little set on a another blog, and immediately had to have it.

(source)

ACK! How fabulous are these? Cookie cutters that you can customize with your own messages! Each guest will get a cookie, too. Homemade with a special message from me and Matt. I plan to start baking and freezing them soon, and then thaw and decorate a week or so before the wedding. Thank you, Williams Sonoma. I have always loved you.

And, of course, no wedding in Hershey would be complete without some Hersheys love. We haven't decided which product to use, though. I think we should go with the classic Hershey bar, but I could also be convinced to change it up a bit. We'll see once we get there and it's time to fill the bags.

We're also going to include a bottle of water for each guest because, well, who doesn't need one of those after a superfun wedding? I'm also going to put together a small little "emergency kit" with travel-sized packs of Tylenol, Advil, Tums, and band-aids. I haven't decided if I'm going to do something cute with the kits, or just throw things into a ziploc bag. Time will determine that, I think.

I hand-drew a couple maps of the area, including one that has a specified Wedding Day Route so that guests know exactly how to get from the hotel, to the ceremony, and back to the hotel/reception site. We'll throw in a thank-you from me and Matt, and some brochures about area fun stuff!

As for the bags themselves, I'll just pick some gift bags up at the Paper Factory or something. And then I downloaded a custom monogram from the WeddingChicks blog. They have tons of stuff, so if you're planning a wedding and want to go the DIY route but aren't creative enough to actually design something, definitely check them out! Bonus: they're all FREE!

So that's it! All the contents of our OOTs! I can't wait to get started on the baking, and hope that our guests will love them as much as I've loved planning them!

Wedding Gifts

Matt's a little clueless about some of this wedding stuff - it's so adorable. For example, he had absolutely no idea that traditionally, the bride and groom exchange gifts on the day of the wedding. We talked about it and initially just agreed to buy each other our wedding bands and be done with it. But I did tell him that we should at least give each other cards or letters the day-of, to be delivered by our BM/MOH.

Say you: Woah, control freak.
Say me: I know, but I just love those pictures of the bride and groom opening their gifts and seeing the special words written to them. I want those pictures.

Anyway, the more I thought about, though, the more I realized that I wanted to get something for Matt. I love to give gifts, especially to the people I love. And I absolutely love taking the time to come up with something special that that person would like. I have so much fun trying to be creative with gifts. Not to mention that my ring is going to cost significantly more than his is. Not that I'm all "we-have-to-spend-the-same-amount-on-each-other," but you know...

So, I thought long and hard about what to do or get for Matt. While perusing Etsy, I came across Venus Flytrap Jewels and her custom-made awesomeness. Custom-made cuff links! Brilliant!! Matt has never had any cuff links of his own - he always just uses the ones that come with the rented tuxes. And that was what he planned to do for our wedding. Umm...no. So I contacted Venus Flytrap and asked if they could make a set of cuff links with a picture that I sent her. She said she could, and 3 weeks later, they arrived at my doorstep. Wanna see?

Yay, Rocky!! Have I explained why Rocky is special to us? No? Allow me to elaborate, then! When Matt and I first met, I was told that the fact that I'd never seen Rocky is completely inexcusable. On my first visit to Philadelphia, we watched the first Rocky. Subsequent visits = subsequent Rockys. I've seen all but the 5th, including the 6th...at the theater...on the release day. So, we watched Rocky on our first "date." If you're a sentimental shmuck like me, then that makes it sort of special. But it gets better.

9 months into our relationship, I found out that the city of Philadelphia shows the original Rocky on the steps of the Art Museum. Every year. I was so excited. I put together a little game for Matt for the week leading up to the night of the screening. Each day I gave him a clue about what I was planning for him, but my clues were pretty vague, so he had absolutely no idea what he was in for. The night of the screening, I packed us a "picnic" dinner of Wawa hoagies, sodas, chips, and, of course, popcorn, and put Matt in the car and started driving. I parked around the back of the museum, and we started walking up the back steps, with all our gear in town. He still had no idea what was going on. As we came around the front of the museum, at the top of the steps, we were greeted with a scene of about 200 people lounging on the steps and a big truck parked at the bottom with a big movie screen on it. The opening credits started rolling as soon as we reached the top of the steps - I seriously could not have timed it better if I'd tried. Matt was totally surprised, and completely thrilled. He was like a little kid. It was so cute. Here's a picture I took that night:


How cool is that? The steps filled up as the movie played, and by about the middle of the movie, they were completely full. When they get to the scene where Rocky takes his (absolutely physically impossible) run through the city and up the steps of the Art Museum, the crowd erupts into cheers. It's a really cool experience, and if you're in or near the city of Philadelphia, I highly recommend you check it out. So anyway, that's now an annual tradition for us.

When we bought our house, I made a special Rocky corner in our living room. It includes Matt's poster from the original film and his replica Rocky statue, plus a couple pictures I've taken - the one I have above, one of us under the real Rocky statue, and one of us at the restaurant they used as Adrian's in the most recent movie, Rocky Balboa (the restaurant, in Philadelphia, is called Victor Cafe, and is really great).

So...yeah...we like Rocky.

I'm also doing something else as a wedding gift, but that'll be another post...