UpDaTe!!**

Wow! What a year it has been! I haven't updated this blog for {{quite}} a while. Instead, of writing a ridiculously long blog to update on all of the wedding plans... here is a [short] list of aspects that have been let's say "taken care of"/started:

• chair covers and table linens
• 1st deposit on the hall
• wedding dress ordered (YaaaY!)
• engagement portraits taken, ordered, and delivered
• one cake tasting
• initial meeting with the pastor [Matt's- Rachel's fiance- father]
  

And that's all I can think of now. haha.

We have a cake tasting ((yuuummmy!!)) with another bakery in January. Then we have EVERYTHING else to do. Now that, I do not have a job, may be wedding planning can be put on the front burner! haha. Let's hope I don't procrastinate with wedding plans like I do with everything else.

That is it for now. Next blog will discuss our December happiness! Then back on track with wedding planning.

OH! I almost forgot! We got a puppy! I think most people know this by now. Her name is Mozie. She was named after Mozart Amadeus. Yes, I know-- NERDY! Ah well. But look
{{{ how cute she is}}}--not how much wedding weight I am not losing....

Stand By Me

I love LOVE this song. I want this song at our wedding some how. Chris found this rendition. It was on ABC this morning. The guy who created this video was their "person of the week".

Amazing.

Daddy & Daughter

So, since my dad's name is Rocky, I find it only fitting that we somehow incorporate the song, Eye Of The Tiger into the wedding. While searching for the song, I came across this. Almost peed my pants laughing during the first minute or so.

Apartment Goodies

Right now, we're looking at Urbane Apartments in Royal Oak. They're very neat! They have newer appliances, earth friendly attributes ( YaY! ), and just are in a good area for the both of us!

Now with the details......

We went to IKEA today and spent.. let's just say a good amount of money. haha. It was money well spent though!

Here is a little preview of what we bought (all images from IKEA.com):
Our coffee table



Imagine this horizontal.. and it's our TV stand!



A lamp very similar to this X 2


We also bought some cute wicker baskets for our TV stand, cutting boards (two kinds to boot!), cooking knives, light bulbs (need them for our lamps), and a picture frame for the bathroom.

Last weekend we bought some stuff for our bathroom at Home Goods. We bought a soap dish, soap dispenser [yes, both], garbage can, and cup all made from recycled bamboo. Which makes me VERY happy! :)

And last but not least, I long for the day where I find a spot to use this in our apartment:


But in yellow! {{IKEA doesn't have a picture of the yellow one!}}

Weekend Update

I saw this picture and thought, "Hey! I like long rectangular tables. How can I incorporate this into MY wedding?"

My answer...

Make these the reserved tables for the immediate family! I just saw this picture today, so the idea is still fresh. It may change.

On another note, we might have found a DJ. We were researching the other night. Found one with a good deal. Had the DVD sent to us. It's a VERY VERY economical cost. AND ((my favorite part)), we can have a classical guitarist to play during dinner. LOVE it!

Another thing..

I JOINED A GYM!!!

I am so into working out right now.{It's kind of scary, actually} haha. I joined Fitness 19, which is right across the street from my work. I've been going every day after work. It's only been a week. My plan is to continue going every day after work and do arm and leg exercises at home afterwards. Then on the days I don't work, I will do videos or the elliptical at home. I even count calories! I never EVER thought I'd say that! haha. My goal is to lose at least 40 pounds for the wedding [hoping for more!] We'll see what happens.

Chris and I ran some... errands... today and were talking of wedding ideas. I love when we are both excited about the details! I think I mentioned before that we are not doing the traditional table numbers. We are going to be naming the tables by street names. We decided to make the street signs the same shape/look as they would be in their "natural country." I don't know how to explain it. I guess you'll have to wait and see!!! :)

A few things we want to complete this month:

1. Initial meeting with florist (friend's sister-in-law)
2. Initial meeting with ceremony musician (cousin)
3. Finalize choice for DJ and place deposit
4. Organize wedding photos/ideas
5. Follow-up meeting with parents [to finalize guest lists]
6. Continue working my ass out to lose more weight!!
   

Bags, Crafts, and Other DIY projects

Not too bad for my first time embroidering eh?
AND it only cost me a $1 to make:)
My mom let me use her
yarn & embroidering hoop.
So I only had to buy the bag!

I asked my 8 year old niece if she would make the ring pillow for the wedding, and she said yes! YaY! My mom is going to help her. {{I love that she can create something for the wedding}} I can't wait to see it!!!

I have been on the search for lockets to put in my bouquet. I want to include portraits of our passed grandparents. Affordable lockets are kind of a hard find! Scratch that!! I found affordable ones, but they look cheap. Wasn't too happy until..... Chris' aunts came to the rescue! Picture frame ornaments that were never used came my way. They are PERFECT!! I am ecstatic! :) I'll post photos soon [or will I??].

I took out my DIY book that I bought the day after Chris & I got engaged. I found a few projects I want to complete. Some of these are crystal cake topper, flower girl bucket, and a different version of a guest book.

Also, finding what kind of invitations I want to make. Just have to make sure I buy the right supplies for the most economical price. Any suggestions? I really really REALLY need suggestions for printing.

Color Scheme Update # 15

Okay, well it's not really our 15th update to the color scheme. It's like our... fifth {or so}! But now.. thinking red, white, and gray. You like!?!?

I was inspired by this

I even love the look of the sweater vest! How cute would it be to have the ring bearer (who will be 3 1/2 years old), wear the sweater vest like that with a red newsboy cap!?!? I love that idea!! Then the flower girls with red dresses. With big white flowers in their hair!?

Oh! I am getting excited!!!

OH! To show off Chris' English heritage {and our love for England!}, we were thinking of having him wear a St. George's Cross [the English flag] on his boutonniere. Cool, eh?

I know, I know, I will probably change my mind again {for the umpteenth time!}. Right now, I like this idea and I'm running with it.

I like this color scheme too because there are A LOT of red and white flowers that I think are gorgeous! I found this very cool website that sorts flowers by color. The link is: Wedding Flowers By Heidi

Songs, Songs, and MORE Songs

The music we're thinking of using for our wedding day! Of course, this may change. We're both really into music and love to find new bands. However, we have some favorites. Like HOOTIE/Darius Rucker and Dashboard Confessional. haha

Ideas in the Making

((Daddy & Daughter Dance))
It Won't Be Like This For Long
or
Ready, Set, Don't Go

((Recessional Line))
Stolen

((Bridal Party Walk-In/Introduction))
Our Lives

We also like....
As Lovers Go by Dashboard Confessional. {It is our song afterall!}
Better With You by Five Times August {Not really a wedding song though}
You In A Song by Jason Reeves
Come On Get Higher by Matt Nathanson
AND SO MUCH MORE!! :)


While I'm on the music topic... I asked my cousin if he would play at the ceremony & he said yes! :) He has his own blues/classic rock band. He pretty much kicks butt on the guitar. {{Excited!!!}}

The Colors

So...
the colors...
WHY CAN'T I MAKE A FINAL DECISION!!?!?!?

Right now, I'm liking the navy blue and olive green. I liked the navy blue and yellow. It just feels too U of M for me. {Not that I have any problem with U of M!}

Also, I love love LOVE green. It's my favorite color. I need to have it in my wedding right!?

I was inspired to change the colors by this awesome (well, awesome to me) paper {I was thinking might be neat to use for envelope liners if I do my own invites)


Who cares if this is the third choice for the wedding colors. Right? Haha

Reception, Checked! Ceremony, Checked!

Final visits.

Final choices.

Final date.
July 17, 2010.

Security deposits placed.
We are booked!

Big Reception: X (ChEcKeD!)
---- Petruzello's in Troy

Outdoor Ceremony: X (ChEcKeD!)
---- Van Hoosen Farm in Rochester

I'm so excited!! I get to have my outdoor ceremony. That was something I really [[{really}]] wanted for the wedding.

Now, I have to tell the heart breaking story [at least, my heart broke into two!]...

When I called to make the appointment to have the "wedding tour" at Van Hoosen Farm, I excitedly exclaimed our potential wedding date when asked. Then the sad news and breaking heart. She told me the closest they had to our date was June 25th. AHH!! So, I decided we would still go see the farm... just in case. Which I am SO HAPPY we did! When we talked with the person giving us the tour,not only did the phone lady look at the wrong calendar (2009, not 2010).. our date was available!

I wanted to jump over the table and give her the biggest hug & kiss!!

{I refrained myself} After the tour, Chris and I had our hearts decided. We just had to talk to the parents. {{Then TODAY happened}}. Deposits were paid. Plans were set more in stone.

AHHH it feels good! :)

The Farmhouse at Van Hoosen Farm
(not sure where these are from- did a google image search!)

The Song

I can not sing/listen to this song without visualizing me with my wedding dress on and dancing with my husband to be.I tend to shed a tear {or two.. or three!}every time I sing my lungs out to this song! I think it's a sign that it must be our song we dance to at our wedding. So what, if it's not so traditional. I love it!!!

I'm Obsessed!

I do not know what has gotten inside me this weekend, I have been a wedding planning {{and blogging}} fiend!!

Chris and I went to JoAnn Fabrics today to be inspired. Well really for me to be inspired. Chris kind of just tagged along. Found some fabric I'd love to make into a table runner. Then some lovely navy blue ribbon to go with it. We decided today that navy blue and yellow will be our colors {{until next week!}}. I really liked green and yellow for the past month or so. I thought they'd be our wedding colors. When we went to the store to find fabric, we found that it's hard to find that perfect shade of green. It's a lot easier to find navy blue. So our decision was made. Navy blue and Yellow. They are both of our second favorite colors [[red and blue are our first-- too Christmas like!]] so they make us smile still.

Here is the fabric that I like a lot. They only had a small piece of it. I love the color, and adore the pattern. May be somewhere else has a similar pattern.

--The colors don't show as well on here though:(--



--Now for the close up! The yellow is almost exact! The ribbon is navy blue, not black ((like it shows)). --



They also had some very, very cute fabric I want to make a dog bed for Shadow and Jake! It was another small piece.. may be I can make bandannas!

Then, I found some inspiration for an art project. I bought these:


I want to paint these and put them onto a painted canvas. The canvas will be yellow and the letters will be blue. Or vice versa. OR the canvas will be the fabric we use for the table runners, and the letters will be the blue. We also like the idea of getting a BIG letter "B" to paint or something.. next to the canvas. I bought them and won't do anything until more things are finalized.


Moving onto centerpieces.... I like these lanterns from IKEA. Bonus-- They're only like $7!!! They have more at the store too.


I LOVE all of these ideas for using mason jars! My mom has about a million of these in our basement. So that will definitely cut that price down. She just can't make her sauce for about a month or so! haha.



--These are cute too! I could collect bottles from family members throughout the year.--

I'd have to remind them of APPROPRIATE bottles to give us. Budweiser bottles with the label will not make such classy wedding centerpieces.


++And last but not a least... an adorable picture [[or two]] of us.++

Eco-friendly Wedding

Instead of doing my student teaching unit (too much of a bore!), I've been indulging myself in wedding blogs!

I am finding SO MANY great ideas. I think I may have the reception still at Petruzello's or some other fancy place to appease my "likes gaudy things" Italian father and "likes nice things" mother-in-law. I am on the search for an earth friendly ceremony site though! Any suggestions? We are looking in the Troy/Rochester area.

Today, I am impressed with {{eco-friendly}} options for a wedding!

I like the idea of printing our own invitations. Not only will it probably save my money which will be nice for the budget, but if we use environmentally safe paper... it'll be eco-friendly too! I love this idea:


From: Green Field Paper Company

Invites that you can water and grow flowers! HOW AWESOME IS THAT!? Now, I just have to find a place that will print on them. OR see if we can use our own printers at home.

And... how awesome would it be to use recyclable wrapping paper to line the envelopes. I love this wrapping paper:


From: Green Field Paper Company
haha! May be not for the wedding, but I do love it!

OR


From: Green Field Paper Company
A little retro, but I think I like it!


I also like the idea of this! A quilt!

from fellow blogger: 2000 Dollar Budget Wedding

I found this on a fellow blogger's site. They asked for their guests to mail a piece of fabric. They sewed the pieces together to make a quilt. [[THIS IS THE BEST PART]] instead of doing a unity candle or that sand thing.. they were wrapped in this quilt. They even signed their wedding license while wrapped from the "love of family and friends". Absolutely LOVE it!


Also I like the idea of using sheets as tablecloths! You can probably find some very cute ones at resale stores or just on clearance, I love these...{They're from some retro website}






Okay, one last thing {for now}.


from fellow blogger: 2000 Dollar Budget Wedding

Vases for centerpieces made out of recycled wine bottles. LOVE IT. I even like the idea of using recycled wine bottle as water pitchers.


There's SO many ideas out there. I love them all! :)

Save the Dates

I have spent my whole night looking at fellow brides-to-be's wedding blogs {that and regretting eating school cafeteria nachos! haha}. I am more confused than ever! I feel SO far behind! I have fell in love with a lot of DIY projects. They are all saved onto my laptop. My parents keep stealing my laptop to look for cars online. :( So I'm stuck researching ALL over again to show Chris. With the whole summer of [[only]] going to work, I feel like I can squeeze some of the DIY projects in ((hopefully)).

My worry for the moment... save the date cards. Can you plan on making these when you don't have a date yet? {{{It may possibly be July 17, 2009}} When do you start making these? When do you send them out? When do you take engagement photos? I JUST DON'T KNOW ANYTHING! At least, that's what it seems like!

P.S. Good news! My graduation audit came in the mail!!! :) :) After my pre-school student teaching, I AM DONE!! WHooooooHHHHHOOOOOO! :)

Pictures from our adventures in Weddingland

Not much has changed from Sunday. We are leaning towards having the wedding at Petruzzello's. My dad likes it much more than the golf course. The true gaudy Italian in him is coming out! haha. He just heard chandeliers and he was sold!

Chris and I supposedly won something from Pink Apron . We have a "preview" we can go to this Friday to pick up a gift basket that includes a free vacation. I'm kind of worried it's a big huge scam. ESPECIALLY since the number I had to call was a 1-866 number. We're not sure if we are going or not. We'll see how we feel tomorrow when it's about time to leave. We will definitely keep you updated if we go.

Now, I thought you'd like to see some pics from our adventures! :)



Chris is SUPER excited to be at the bridal show at the San Marino Club!




I really like both of these bouquets! Even though they're kind of extremely different. But that's what I do. I contradict myself! I think I like the sunflowers more as a centerpiece arrangement.
Speaking of centerpieces... right now, I think I know what I want to do. Something simple and cheap! I'm liking the idea of doing big lanterns with pillar candles and mason jars filled with flowers. That could change! haha, just like every other idea I have for this wedding!


LOVE this cake!



Chris and Adrianna getting their caricature done. Very fun!


Absolutely in love with BOTH of these dresses. Can't wait to go dress shopping!


Well, that's all I really have for now. There won't be too many more updates for a little while since we don't have another bridal show till next month. I am hoping we making a decision on where we are having the reception site by the end of April. But for now, that's enough for today:)

Petruzzello's Bridal Show

So today we headed out to Petruzzello's in Troy for another bridal show. The Myth Golf and Banquet Center that was our top choice in our previous blog may have been ousted as a reception site. We both liked Petruzzello's very much. It is cleaner and a bit more elegant than Myth and, simply put, it feels like the kind of place that you should have a wedding reception. They have some cool lighting setups as well. We would need to find a separate ceremony site though, which left us both scratching our heads a bit, but other than that, we liked it very much.

The bridal show itself was a bit smaller than the previous shows but was enjoyable and a perfect size for the flower girl Adrianna who tagged along for this one. She and Chris had a caricature of themselves drawn by a guy that will do caricatures at weddings. We both agreed that the photobooth would still be cooler. Nina found a couple dresses that she liked from a shop in Berkeley. She may be heading out there to check them out eventually. There were also some delicious cakes at this show.....Chocolate Raspberry Mousse to name but one.

We are free of bridal shows and venue visits for at least a couple weeks now, so we can hopefully sit down and make some decisions. Unless the venue we decide on is booked on July 17, 2010; that will likely be the date of our wedding! We will keep you posted!

The Latest on the Wedding Front

So it has been a busy few weeks for us when it comes to wedding planning and still, after multiple wedding/bridal shows, several visits to ceremony and reception locations, and lots of cake taste-testing, we are still undecided on...well everything. But we are getting closer. So we will try to update you as best as possible...we know it's been awhile. BEWARE! THIS IS A VERY LONG BLOG!

Starting in February, bridal shows have started taking over our Sundays. For the first one, Nina went with the girls to Crystal Gardens. Nina's mom won a free Mary Kay skin care class from that show. The party was last Monday. It felt good to be pampered! Nina found some cool tree centerpieces there that she fell in love with. Trees are things that grow in the ground with leaves on them. These tree were made of metal, which is sort of unrealistic, but cool none the less.

March has seen our weekends filled with wedding stuff. Chris has been thrilled by this. The first Saturday in March we drove out to Saline to check out Weller's Carriage House. The ceremony site was beautiful and the reception location had a very nice historic air about it. Weller's was actually an 1840's era flour mill that was later purchased by Henry Ford to use for processing soybeans. Unfortunately, the decor was a bit against Nina's liking and there were some space limitations so we ruled it out. The drapes were a dusty maroon color and the other decor just did not seem to fit our preferences. In addition, the bar looked eerily similar to the crematorium ovens at the Dachau Concentration Camp (which Chris thought was kind of cool in a morbid way). However, if the decor was changeable, this would probably be one of our top choices.

Wellers Carriage House

That Sunday, we attended a wedding show at the Inn at St. John's in Plymouth. This place was incredible, but a bit out of out price range. The church looked like an Americanized version of a typical European church. We found a bakery at the show that had orange cake with passion fruit filling that we are passionate about. They may win the "Who wants to be a Chris and Nina Cake Person?" contest.

The Inn at St. John's

The following Saturday we drove out to Ann Arbor to check out Cobblestone Farm. This was our first choice for our venue so we were excited to see what it was all about. The farm is very nice and would make a great place for a venue! But....our 200+ guest list again became a concern. The barn can hold 200, but that is without a dance floor and with 70+ in a loft, which is kind of cozy but provides a limited view of the main floor and....us. We still like it but we would have to seriously cut down our list to make it work.

Cobblestone Farm

That Sunday involved another drive. This time out to the San Marino Club in Troy for a bridal show. There were a lot of people at this one. Nina did gain some ground in the ring department as one of the vendors gave her some good ideas on how to make a ring for cheap that would look nice with her engagement ring. We also had a second chance to check out a photo booth vendor that we saw at the Inn at St. Johns. Though it's $900, the idea of a photo booth seems fun and they also would give us an album at the end of the night of everyone's photos. This could be interesting :)

Last weekend we headed out to the Myth Golf and Banquet Center in Oakland Township. Nina fell in love with the place because it has a timbered lodge-type feel to it. The price is right and the food sounds delicious. They have meatballs! The lady has given us a special deal and we are very, very positive about this one. At this point this is the front-runner and we could have it booked within a couple weeks.

The Myth Golf and Banquet Center

While this is still up in there, we are looking at a possible date of July 17. What is the symbolism behind this you ask? This is the date Disneyland first opened (which, as my Mom would say, is the happiest place on Earth), two days after Nina's parents anniversary, the date John Bell Hood took command of the Army of Tennessee, and perhaps most importantly, the Saturday after the World Cup ends.

John Bell Hood

Tomorrow, we are headed out to Troy once again to check out a wedding show at Petruzello's. Nina's niece, Adrianna, the flower girl, is coming with us and is superbly excited. She has even packed extra outfits so she can look nice.

In the next blog, we will post some pics of the various places mentioned above for everyone to check out. Stay tuned!

Cobblestone Farms

So today we took the drive down I-94 to old Ann Arbor to check out Cobblestone Farms as a possible venue for the ceremony, reception, or both. Unfortunately, the farm is closed through March 2 for a construction project, so we strolled around in the snow a bit and studied it from the outside. It looks to have potential. We need to see it from the inside and actually speak with a representative before making any decisions, but Nina really likes it.

There is very little written in stone for the wedding at this point except for the fact that we are going to marry each other. We have a theme of Earthy Vintage (What is that, you say? Nina will explain later on). We have a tentative date for the wedding of sometime during May-July of 2010. Other possible venues include the Westin - Metro Airport, Crystal Gardens (Reception), the Toledo Zoo, and Ram's Horn (Grandpa would be so happy). Nina found some favors that she likes that are eco-friendly. We like the colors of green and neutral browns (like Earth from the space shuttle minus the oceans).

Welcome!

Welcome to our wedding blog!
We're going to post wedding planning updates,
our ideas, and random wedding thoughts on here.
Feel free to comment with suggestions or praise (haha). Enjoy!! :)