Wedding Update - Only ONE More Month Left!

What we have done:

• The venue - ceremony and reception are the same place
• My dress, veil and shoes (heels and flats)
• Bridesmaids (5)
• Bridesmaids dresses 
• Groomsmen (7)
• A flower girl (our niece, Addie)
• The guest list
• Engagement photos
• The photographer
• Officiant: My cousin Tom
• First dance song
• DJ: Booked
• Ceremony music: One of Jay’s close friends from college is doing our ceremony music for us. 
• Save-the-Dates:  I've designed them myself and we sent them out! Wahoo!
• Centerpieces: Lanterns and mason jars filled with baby's breath. Flowers for our centerpieces are being done by a close family friend who is a florist.
• A wedding website: It's up - all logistics and wedding RSVPs are on this site
• Hotel block and room for wedding night
• Reserve shuttle service between hotel and wedding site
• Hair & Makeup: Had my trial a few weeks ago and I LOVE the complete look. I can't wait to see it all come together on the big day.
• Videographer: Finally found one we liked in our price range! 
• Honeymoon: Booked! So excited. We've also booked our excursions 
• Location for rehearsal dinner: Booked
• Wedding bands: Purchased
• Chalkboard programs and menu: Purchased
• Suits for groom/ groomsmen: Jay has picked these out and has gotten measured
• Florist for all other flowers: Done
• Cake/cupcakes: Paid our deposit and just need to finalize our flavors
• Guestbook: We got it back a few weeks ago and love it!
• Flower girl dress: We found the most adorable dress. I can't wait to see her in it :)
• Bridesmaid gifts: Purchased their gifts. So excited to give these to them.
• Groomsmen gifts: Done
• Wedding registries: Completed :) 
• Menu and beverage options: Finalized our menu, bar package and late night food.
• Bridal gown alterations: Almost done! I went back to get my veil for my hair and makeup appointment and some of my alterations were done and I was able to try it on again. It looks amazing and I can't wait to see it completely done!
• Book  honeymoon dinners: Done! We have one left to book (they don't take reservations this early) but otherwise we're all set!
• Invitations: Sent! We just are waiting on a few final RSVPs and we're all set! So close! 
• Ceremony script

Things we’re currently working on:

• Decorations: Almost done! Just a few DIY things left and we're all set.
• Favors: We are ordering these from our venue and will pick them up at our last planning meeting on May 18.
• Playlist for the reception - Jay is working on this I believe the dinner and cocktail hour playlists are pretty set -- we still need about an hour of dance music.
• Venue map and table setup information for my day of coordinator. Can't wait to meet with her again soon to go over all of the last minute details!
• Marriage license - getting this TOMORROW!!! 
• Day-of timelines
• Must take shot list for the photographer

What we still need to do:

• Gifts for free vendors 

Holy crap. One month!!!! I can't believe how quick this has all gone. This is my last update until I recap the wedding. Can you believe it? Everyone kept telling me to really enjoy our long engagement and not rush through it becuase before we knew it, it would all be over. Man, they were totally right. I've really enjoyed all these memories, the good and the not so great. We've learned a lot about each other, our relationship and ourselves. I can honestly say that marriage will be one of the most challenging things I do in my life, but I couldn't be more ready for it. I love Jay and I know that we are both going to fight like hell to have a happy, healthy and awesome marriage. I can't wait to marry that man! My husband! The thought of that makes me weak in the knees :)

We have a lot of odds and ends to finish up before the wedding is finally here. I know I will be pretty wedding centric for the next month, but I'm going to enjoy it all, even the stressful times.  Luckily we've got some awesome friends and family that have been bending over backwards to help out. Bless them. We'd have WAY more to get done if they were not around!

xo

Recovering From my Bachelorette Party

My weekend was amazing. If you can't tell from the photo above -- I had an epic bachelorette party on Saturday night. My girlfriends are truly amazing and I had such a good time. I've got a million photos to share but considering I had only 3 hours of sleep Saturday night, I was a little more than tired/cranky yesterday and didn't post them yet. Full recap to come after I've had some sleep :)

I can't party like I used to -- but I still had one heck of a time :)

xo

Our Quick Trip to Arizona

I didn't really announce it too much before we left (mainly for safety reasons but also becuase we were flying standby and I wasn't 100% sure we'd get there) but we finally got to visit my mom and step-dad in Arizona a few weeks ago. It was a very short trip (we got there a 3 a.m. Thursday morning and left Saturday afternoon) but it was amazing. I got some quality time with my mom, some sun and it was WARM. I can't wait to go back and I will never again wait an entire year to get back there. It was way too long!

Victory!

For such a short trip we did manage to get a lot of stuff in. Thursday we relaxed in the morning by the pool and then went shopping at the BEST store ever -- Last Chance. It's where all the Nordstrom Rack items go for a "last chance" before they are gone. So basically, everything was insanely cheap. I'm talking $12.97 for a fancy dress cheap. I was in heaven. I walked out with four new dresses and Jay got a shirt for hawaii, two pairs of shoes and a new belt. Good thing there was room still in our luggage! We stopped by downtown Scottsdale for some dinner and window shopping before we headed home.

Friday we went for a 5 mile hike (rated as hard and man ... it kicked my butt), lounged by the pool again and then played a few games of pickleball. I played my mom the first game and beat her, Jay played me and beat me and so he assumed he would crush my mom. Big mistake! She defeated Jay (sorry babes ... I had to share :) we played some more games and Jay beat us both. They are officially tied 1-1 until next time! I can't wait to see who walks away the champion at the end.

The sun did me a lot of good. Although, I now have a lovely tan line from my tank top after our hike and considering I need to be in a wedding dress in 36 days ... it's not a good look. Crossing my fingers it fades soon! 

Until next time Arizona!

xo

Our Second Wedding Shower

I'm really really behind in sharing these photos from our second shower a few weeks ago. With work being nuts and our weekends being packed, there has been little time to blog unfortunately. I still wanted to share these with you all and hope that you enjoy them!

Jay's mom and sister-in-law hosted a second bridal shower for us a week after our first one. We're so grateful for the love and support and can't believe we have so many great family and friends in our lives that want to celebrate us. Us! How lucky are we? I had such a good time seeing everyone and meeting some of Jay's family friends for the first time. We're so lucky -- and I'm so grateful for all of these memories.

Dress: Shabby Apple, Shoes: Steve Madden, Necklace: Macy's

My girls :)

It really was a lovely shower and we can't thank our family and friends enough for all of their love and support. I can't believe how fast time has flown as we get closer to the wedding. 5 weeks left!

xo