Ring in the News

My Hearts on Fire Transcend ring was featured in the latest issue of "Inside Weddings," which hits newsstands today! I can't wait to pick up an issue! Still so exciting for me.

Back from Holiday

My apologies for being MIA for the past week but the holidays and snow storm that hit the east coast got the best of me. I am surely not complaining because I cherished the extra time spent with family and friends and know that in 40 years I will not be looking back saying “Darn it! I should have made it to work that day after Christmas back in 2010 instead of spending it with loved ones.”

Groomzilla and I have been saying all along that after the New Year we will kick into high gear with the wedding plans and I intend to stick on that track.

I was able to cross a few wedding to do’s off my list this past week while I was home.

* Asked my brother to officiate the ceremony – I hope he was excited but he said YES!

* Asked my three nephews to be my ring bearers in which they graciously accepted.

* Asked my father to pick a song for the father daughter dance.

* Briefly mentioned to my mother that I may be interested in her making my wedding dress. I hope she was flattered and not burdened by the thought of having to make a wedding dress for me. I realized that a wedding dress hand crafted by my mother would be far more meaningful to me than anything I could ever purchase in a store and I could cherish it forever. I will just have to find the right pattern and hope that I can find something I like.

* Briefly discussed the guest list with my parents.

All in all I got the feeling that people were excited about our wedding in 2012. I know it still sounds so far off but I know it will be here before we know it!!

Non-Wedding Wednesday

I arrived home in Connecticut late on Tuesday night and was instantly greeted by the cold weather. I have to admit that it felt somewhat refreshing after being on a hot cramped flight for the past three hours. I love walking out of the terminal with that great feeling of anticipation of greeting my parents as they stand anxiously awaiting my arrival. I can only imagine it is a somewhat similar feeling as to what the troops and their families experience after they arrive home from their extended time away and long travels. I had the pleasure of witnessing first hand the reunion of troops with their loving families for the holidays and it brought both a smile and a tear at the same time.

So far my two days home have been cold but wonderful and relaxing. I instantly slip back into that comfortable child-like feeling as my parents dote on me and make me feel welcome back into my childhood home. Suddenly I morph back into "Little Tiffy" as my mother prepares my meals, loans me her slippers, and turns down my bed. I even enjoy being woken up by my father in the early morning when he comes into my bedroom for a chat before he heads off to work. Definitely not like the old days where I used to scream at him for how dare he wake me up before 11 am. As I have grown older I have learned to appreciate my parents and my limited time spent with them.

Being home I often find my mind wandering far off into the days of my childhood, the holiday parties, the innocent mischief we used to get into, our silly but loving family traditions. I wonder if this has changed because I no longer live so close anymore and I miss out on all of it, or if because we have all grown into adults with families of our own where our children will one day soon begin to yell at us for waking them up before 11 am? Young or old I can say that I am grateful to be a part of it at any age, even if for only a short while. The whirlwind of visits, the screaming laughter of my nephews, the overabundance of dogs and flying dog hair, and even the freezing cold nights make it all worth it.

I have yet to decide if once I return back to my quiet life in Florida will I enjoy the peace and quiet or long to return to mayhem? Right now I am completely in love with mayhem so that is where I will stay for a bit.

Wishing you and all of your loved ones a very safe and Merry Christmas. I hope all your Christmas wishes come true, I know mine already have.

Bridal Boot Camp

One day last week I was reading my SELF magazine and stumbled upon an article that was offering tips on how to motivate yourself with new ways to get in shape and tips on losing those last five pounds. Now I am not looking to lose any weight per say but more looking to just tone up and exercise because as they say, it is good for your heart and also for your health. The article was how to create your own self boot camp with 30 minutes of non-stop circuit training to include, cardio warm up for five minutes, jumping jacks, push ups, sit ups, bicep curls, mountain climbers, etc. All exercises that can be done in the comfort of your living room with a pair of light dumbbells. I thought what a perfect and fun way as I had been looking to join an organized boot camp as boot camps seem to be the new fitness craze, but if I can do one all on my own and at no deficit to my VISA card then I am all for giving it a go. I mentioned this to Groomzilla hoping he would be interested, I can't say that he immediately jumped into a mad fit of jumping jacks but he wasn't completely opposed to it. We decided we could bring a radio into the indoor racket ball court at our apartment complex and hold our self boot camp in there. I am excited to try this and get started. This is my first New Years Resolution! I hope this is one I will keep and also hope it will pay off by wedding time!

Band Crawl

Friday night we participated in a home grown pub crawl that one of our good friends organized in which we frequented bars near her home in which we wouldn't normally end up at. We ended up having the time of our lives. But besides that, at almost every bar we went to had live music playing. Of course our first order of business was the pub crawl but in the back of my mind I was wedding band shopping. One of the bands that we saw in which I really liked and everyone else did as well, I had already inquired with them a few months back based on a referral from a co-worker. When I had spoken to the band manager on the phone he was extremely helpful but had implied that their band size (individuals in the band) would be a bit overwhelming for our smaller sized wedding, also they were a bit out of our price range. That was a bit disappointing as I was really excited about hearing them play and then even more disappointing when we heard them play this weekend and they were amazing. I suppose it was not meant to be and Groomzilla says we will know who is meant to play at our wedding when we find them and it feels right. I hope he knows what he is talking about.

See a few pictures below from our amazing pub/band crawl this weekend. I posted all 108 (yes the camera had a very busy night) pictures on Facebook as well. Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

5 more shopping days!

A Young Lass for my Young Lads

Checking out some of the other bridal blogs and the beautiful flower girl dresses that are now available make me wish I knew a little girl that could wear one in my wedding. They are so adorable! The white one to the right can be found at J Crew and the more intricate one below can be found on Etsy. View more photos of the dress here on Etsy. Look at the details on these dresses, they are just gorgeous. I love how feminine and classy they are on the little girls in the photos. I especially LOVE the giant navy bow in the back.


While I am home in Connecticut next week for the holidays I plan to ask my three nephews if they will accompany me down the aisle. Stay tuned for another creative post on how I plan to ask them!! I hope they say yes!!

Adding a Twist to Unity

Here's another adorable idea that I saw on the knot. For the unity candle lighting or unity sand add a twist by using something a little nontraditional. Mixing together a little something of meaning to both of you. Pictured here to the right two spices concocted by two chefs. I also love the idea of incorporating a wine box where you can lock a bottle of wine and love letters to each other during the ceremony to be opened on your tenth anniversary. I think it would be so great to be able to read those letters from before you were married and reflect on the ten years behind you.


Reminds me of a project we did in my ninth grade English class where we were assigned to write letters to ourselves and in a year our teacher was supposed to mail them out to us. Come to think of this I don't think she ever mailed them out. BUT I took it one step further and wrote myself two letters, one to be opened in five years and one to be opened in ten years (when I was 24). I still have those two letters saved in the old jewelry box my father made me! Of course at that time I was only a freshman in high school so all I cared about were being popular and boys. I do recall being so tempted to open those letters before the anticipated time but I held out. I will have to dig them out again and read what I was up to back then!

Did you do a unity at your ceremony? Which did you chose and how did that work for you? Any suggestions?

Matching Earrings a Must

Just dropped a subtle hint on Groomzilla's Facebook with a link to the Hearts on Fire Transcend Single Halo Engagement ring matching earrings. Yes, the ones that match my ring! I'm not sure the earrings quite fit into the $150 budget we set for Christmas presents for eachother this year but possibly may fit into Groomzilla's wedding present budget for his soon to be wifey. Oh a girl can dream! Aren't they beautiful??

Bridezilla Moments

Last Thursday I blogged about how I dreamt I was a Bridezilla, luckily in the past week since then, those visions have not come back to haunt my dreams again. So all you past brides, future brides, friends of brides, maid of honors, bridesmaids, I want to hear YOUR tales of Bridezillas. I want to know what moments did you freak on your cake lady or florist for not matching the exact color of your vanilla butter cream frosting. When did you scream at your DJ for not having the correct version of the Cupid Shuffle? At what point did you realize you were being a complete and utter Bridezilla? MOH's what did you do to calm your brides down? Make sure to keep it anonymous as to not offend anyone.

To be honest, of the weddings I have been in, I can not remember any of my brides ever having any Bridezilla moments. Must say something about the wonderful company I keep

Thankfully, I have not had any Bridezilla moments as of yet, but don't let me speak too soon, I am sure there will be plenty closer to the wedding, it is still so early! Poor Groomzilla!

Non-Wedding Wednesday

I am completely in the Christmas spirit. I think this cold Florida weather is what really ramped up the holiday spirit in me. I know how crazy that sounds but it was in the 30s this morning and I had ice on my car in which Groomzilla so gracefully defrosted for me before I left for work. I have even been listening to Christmas songs on my computer at work out of my crummy headphones in which only play music out of one headphone. Tonight I am dragging Groomzilla to go Christmas shopping with me because he needs to get out of the house. This will be difficult since the majority of my shopping that I am doing tonight is for him so I will have to be stealthy.

So as you may have guessed, YES I will once again be hitting Hobby Lobby.

Wishing my parents much luck this weekend in the holiday house tour, I have bragged about them to everyone I know that their house was selected to be on the tour. I think its a wonderful honor and something for them to be proud of. I am sure my father is exhausted from the 5 Christmas trees he put up this year but I know it was worth it!

Hope you all are nearing the close of your holiday shopping, I know I am NOT!

Inspiration for Ring Pillow

I Saw this on another blog that I follow thebridalwishlist and couldn't stop thinking how gorgeous this ring pillow was. I figured I could make my own ring pillow with my handy dandy sewing machine for less than $40 as I realized that the ring pillow is really only used for such a short time. Besides the point, guests are more focused on the cute kids who are carrying the pillow rather than the actual pillow itself!

Visions of Sugar Plums..Not so Much

While some had sugar plums dancing in their heads, last night I dreamt that our wedding day was a complete disaster and I was a complete and total Bridezilla. With all do respect, I feel what happened at our wedding in my dream definitely called for some Bridezilla behavior.

To start, the ceremony was scheduled to start promptly at 5:00 PM and I hadn’t even showered or shaved yet and still had yet to get my hair and makeup done.

Then after the ceremony the wedding coordinator failed to put out the place cards so people just sat wherever they felt like. Then she said she could put them out now and I said “too late” we can’t ask people to get up and move around once they have already been seated!

The dinner napkins, which were supposed to be navy were a dirty white color and the table cloths were mismatched, some were orange and some had acorns and fall scenery on them. Maybe because we slept with the windows open last night prompted my subconscious to think thoughts of the fall season?!

Last but not least there was a soccer game going on next door to where our dance floor was set up and the ball kept getting kicked onto the dance floor while young men came to retrieve the ball in their soccer uniforms.

I remember going Bridezilla on Karen (the name of our real wedding coordinator at Falcon’s Fire) and chewing her out for all the mistakes that had taken place.

Oh I hope this is not truly how Falcon’s Fire runs their weddings!!

Did anyone else have pre-wedding nightmares of their wedding going completely downhill??

Non-Wedding Wednesday

The stockings are hung, the tree is up, the decorations are out, the spruce scented candles are burning; I love it all! I have made it my tradition that the day after Thanksgiving the Jessica Simpson Christmas CD goes on and the Christmas decorations go up. I love this day and it really puts me in the holiday spirit. I have even started my Christmas shopping early this year which is extremely unusual for me.

I did have the pleasure of going to the mall last night (after my Hobby Lobby visit of course) and I realized how much more I appreciate shopping online. When you are looking for something in particular and you go from store to store you tend to get a little discouraged, but by shopping online you have so many different stores right at your fingertips and can visit them all without ever even moving your bum from the couch (lazy? Well maybe just a little). Also, you avoid those kiosk people trying to sell you everything from a cell phone cover, to cheap sunglasses, to a whizzing flying helicopter that you just HAVE to have. I do have to say though; there is something about going out to the stores and listening to the buzz of holiday excitement and the sounds of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer emanating from the speakers overhead.

How about you, what types of new holiday traditions have you created? Have you put up your decorations or started your shopping yet??

Only 24 more shopping days to go!

A little snapshot of some of my favorite Christmas decorations that make our little apartment so nice and cozy during the holidays.

Hobby Lobby = My New Love

A Hobby Lobby just moved into town a few months ago and this is now my new favorite place! I actually just returned back from there about 15 minutes ago (2nd time this week). I had never heard or been to one before as I never saw one up north and can't believe what I had been missing out on all these years. Hobby Lobby is like a Joanne Fabrics/Michael's/AC Moore/Home Goods all in one store. I could roam the aisles for days.

I told Groomzilla that closer to the wedding I may be setting up a cot in the store because they have the answer to all of our wedding needs!

It pained me not to start buying things tonight as so much of what I have in mind for the wedding was on sale. What are your thoughts, should I start as soon as possible and start stocking up on wedding supplies?

Only problem is the space, our apartment may not be big enough to store all this stuff!

P.S. Hobby Lobby, like most craft stores, offers great coupon opportunities, I told Groomzilla to get prepared to "pretend" we don't know each other in line at Hobby Lobby so we can use two 40% off coupons per shopping trip.

Here's to happy Hobby's!

Breaking Traditions - How Far is Too Far?

I hope everyone has recovered nicely from their turkey and leftover comas. I know I have. I hate to say this but I was almost ready and anxious to get back to work. I know I always hear myself saying that when I win the lotto I can't wait to not have to work anymore but I think I would probably die of boredom. Any how I am back from my lazy holiday sabbatical and will be back to blogging full swing.

I thought this was an interesting topic to start the week off.

Brides all around are breaking century’s long traditional bridal gown protocol. Now I have seen brides add a splash of color to their bridal gown attire, maybe a pink or blue sash, a pair of pink or red designer shoes, a colorful flower or barrette in their hair, but never have I seen a bride go completely against tradition and opt for a wedding dress color other than white or ivory.

Dresses of color are absolutely gorgeous of course, as is this pale blue one pictured to the right but is there another time and a place for that? I am truly a firm believer in “it is your day and you can do what you want” so who am I to judge?

I know I am not the most traditional bride and some traditions are meant to be broken (in which some of course will be broken at my wedding) but wearing white on my wedding day is one tradition I will clearly be sticking to!

Non-Wedding Wednesday

Tomorrow is Turkey Day and I am so excited to stuff my belly silly with lots of wonderful food. There are so many things that I am thankful for this year that I could be here all day writing a list a mile long. I am especially thankful to have such wonderful friends and family in my life. I truly think that is all that is needed to achieve a happy and fulfilling lifetime.

Groomzilla and I will be spending the holiday with about 8 or 9 of our friends at our friends Mary and Gregg’s house who have so graciously invited us over the past couple of years. Mary and Gregg put out a wonderful spread and we laugh and enjoy each others company all day.

I do have to say that I feel a slight pang in my stomach at the thought of not going out of town this weekend and not being able to spend the holiday with my family up north. The last Thanksgiving I spent at home was 6 years ago which was before I moved to Florida. Holidays are always the hardest for me due to the fact that growing up we created so many wonderful traditions and now I know what it feels like to miss out on them. One day I hope to again live in the same state as my parents and siblings.

I wish you all a wonderful and safe holiday and I will be back up to posting this weekend. I have some new ideas to post and get some input on from all of you!

Gobble Gobble!!

P.S. Today marks 16 months till we say I Do!!!

I kinda LOVE this idea

I saw this on the knot and thought "what a cute idea!"

Getting creative with stationery and turning traditional programs into a Mad Lib or a crossword puzzle with clues about the couples relationship! I think it's absolutely adorable and fun! Who doesn't love Mad Libs and guests will appreciate having something to occupy themselves while they wait for the ceremony to start.

The tricky part would be thinking of enough clues about us as a couple to use. Feel free to comment with suggestions for clues that you could see us using..or would that be considered cheating?!?

Protect Your Jems!

Insurance policy on your ring, how important is this? Taking out a new renter's insurance policy was one of the first things we did when we got engaged. Of course this was not as easy as you would think! By living in Florida, the hurricane prone state, no one wanted to insure us. I must have called 10 places until one finally said yes. Believe it or not we have a renter’s insurance policy through GEICO. I suppose it’s better than nothing.

Click here for more information on insuring your ring. Do other brides find this policy necessary??

Non-Wedding Wednesday

I am completely bumming. I had ordered two pairs of jeans from 7forallmankind.com because I had received an offer with a 40% off coupon code. This was something I could not pass up since the jeans normally run well above the $100 mark.

Once I received them I ripped open the box like a child on Christmas (like I normally do when I receive something that I have ordered) and instantly tried both pairs on. The first pair was about 4 inches TOO long; possibly I could get them hemmed? That definite feeling of disappointment started to rise inside me but I still had one more pair to go. The second pair was of a color that I normally wouldn’t purchase for myself and because I am somewhat fashion challenged had asked some friends their opinion and they agreed they were “cool”. This pair fit much better but I didn’t have that love at first site feeling when I looked at my reflection staring back at me in the mirror.

I proceeded by putting the two pairs of jeans back in their box and hid them away in my closet. I suppose I had to sit on it for awhile, it was like I was almost forcing myself to fall in love with the jeans because I had gotten such a good deal on them. A week went by and I fished the box back out of my closet and retried the two pairs of jeans on. In the end I just couldn’t justify spending that much money on something that I did not completely love. The jeans are now en-route to California in hopes to find another owner who will love them better than I.

Did I do the right thing? I know my VISA card will appreciate it but in hindsight I really wanted a new pair of jeans!

Has anyone else ever tried to force yourself to LOVE a purchase when you knew deep down you didn’t?

Pre-Ceremony Photog Session

The one thing that Groomzilla and I have been adamant about is that the flow of our wedding actually “flows” and QUICKLY. Quickly being the key word. I have heard that some couples are choosing to do some of their pictures (with each other) before the actual ceremony. Now this is completely against years of tradition but you have the chance to get many of the pre-defined shots out of the way, you get married, a few more shots of you, groomzilla and family, bing bang boom you actually have plenty of time to celebrate and enjoy your reception with your friends and family.

Pictures are of course beautiful and are a documentation of one of the most wonderful days of your life but for some reason are not ranking very high on my importance list. To me, what is the most important is spending those few short hours which I know will fly by so fast by celebrating this happy day with those who I hold so very near and dear in my heart.

Groomzilla is 100% against doing any pictures with each other before the ceremony. He wants to see me for the first time as I am walking down the aisle..and me, I am impartial to the idea; however, a small part of me wants to see the look on Groomzilla’s face when he does see me for the first time.

Thoughts or suggestions on this?? Anyone ever had pre-ceremony photos done with your groom? Any regrets??

Just curious if I’ll ever really look back to the 18 photographs of me with my bouquet at my waist, at my chin, in my left hand only, on my shoulder, at my feet..well you get my cynical point.

Poll: Honeymoon Registry – Tacky or Classy?

Many couples these days opt to register for a honeymoon rather than for gifts. I suppose this makes sense for those older couples who have been married before and don’t need another blender or set of china to add to the collection. Once you register for a honeymoon and create a website it takes the place of your gift registry. Guests can contribute funds towards portions of your dream honeymoon and the funds can be used towards anything from plane tickets to romantic horseback rides to zip lining through the jungle.

Is this just a somewhat less tacky way of asking for money?

FYI – We are not planning on registering for a honeymoon, just thought it was a good blog topic.

So whether your enjoying the sunset in Hawaii..


Or horseback riding through Mexico..


Either way, you BETTER be enjoying yourself!!!

For more info on honeymoon registry's click here.

Emboss-amania

I ordered my embosser a couple of weeks ago and I just got the confirmation email that it has finally shipped. I am so excited to "emboss it up". I have a feeling I will be embossing everything right down to my underwear when testing it out! Now my only hurdle will be accepting my new monogrammed married initials. Was this difficult for anyone else? As in the words of myself..EMBRACE IT!!

My apologies for not posting a Non-Wedding Wednesday post last night but after a mentally draining day of work and then class I was literally too exhausted to type, not to mention this time change is completely messing with my internal clock! I will be back up next Wednesday.

Taking All Ideas!

When we met with our wedding coordinator she said that if we were going to use flowers at the ceremony site to make sure we choose something that could be brought into the reception room and used again. That way you would get two uses out of it. To be honest, I sort of like the gazebo as is. I think simple is sometimes better. I feel that sometimes people try to way overdo something and the final result turns out big and gaudy. I was thinking maybe do a very small and simple flower arrangement on either side of the gazebo entrance. Maybe some pink and yellow gerber daises in a glass vase or a classier style mason jar.

What types of flowers/decorations did you use for your ceremony site?? What type of flowers/decorations can you envision at my ceremony site? All pictures are of actual ceremony site.

Below picture shows something somewhat simple and the bottom couple went with just the bare gazebo. I truely think I am leaning more towards the bare gazebo.

All ideas are appreciated!!

The Garbarino Family Wedding Tree

Hopefully you all saw my post at the beginning of the week of “Where it all Started” in which I featured my parents in a tribute post. Click here if you missed it.

Today’s post will be featuring all the weddings in my immediate family as the title suggests “The Garbarino Family Wedding Tree”. This post took a bit of time to compile because I needed to get the pictures that it required. I thank all of you for taking the time out of your schedules in order to get these to me.

Each wedding was so beautiful yet so different in their own way.

Mary Ellen Cole and John Garbarino – Married July 13, 1974 at Christ the King Church. Mary Ellen and John have four children, Nicole, Payton, Tiffany, and Whitney, and two dogs Frank and Cooper.


Nicole Garbarino and David Costanzo – Married September 8, 2001 at Christ the King Church. Nicole and David had a beautiful reception in the fenced in property next to the house in which we all grew up in. We partied the night away and danced until we were sore. It was a beautiful day and one I’ll surely never forget. Nicole and David have two young sons, Benjamin and Cameron who are absolutely adorable. Benjamin started kindergarten this year and Cameron started preschool! Riley is their yellow lab that is often found jumping over their fence to eat lunch at the neighbor’s house.


Payton Garbarino and Kelly Wenzel – Married May 28, 2006 on a beautiful lake in New Jersey. Payton and Kelly got married at a perfect location (as you can see from the picture below) with so many of their friends and family present. A great time was had by all. Payton and Kelly have one adorable son Nicholas and another unknown gender on the way who we are all excited to meet! Oh and how could I forget their red haired golden retriever Bailey who is quite the little rascal!


Whitney Garbarino and Rob Parks – Married June 26, 2010 at the Florence Griswold Museum in Old Lyme, Connecticut. Whitney and Rob's wedding is the most recent so that is why it is so fresh in my mind. You have seen many pictures from their wedding in my past posts. Whitney and Rob’s wedding was one I’ll never forget and it was not only beautiful but more fun than I can remember having in a long time. Whitney and Rob live in the Boston area and have the most adorable yet mischievous golden retriever puppy named Oliver.


And Coming Soon…Tiffany Garbarino engaged to David Kalnas – set to marry on March 24, 2012. We are super excited to share this day with our friends and family and can’t wait for this day to come!!

Non-Wedding Wednesday

I am heading to St. Augustine this weekend for a camping trip with about 8 of our friends. I have never been camping before so this will be a new experience. I would say that I am slightly stressing a little over what I need to bring. I really have no clue as far as the resources that will be available, aka..running water for showers or to cook with?? As far as I have heard most who attend this campsite saddle up and plug in to their trailer/RV so that they have electricity, but our gang is going at it the old fashioned way and tenting it!

I wonder if my economy size blow drier and hair straighter will be appropriate to bring, or my make-up bag and make-up mirror? I am totally picturing myself like the princess from Space Balls when Barf and Lone Staff tell her to "only pack the essentials" and in the middle of the desert after lugging her 1,000 pound trunk around, out comes an oversized blow drier. For some reason that scene always made me laugh and reminded me of myself.

It is supposed to drop in temperature this weekend so it will be perfect camping weather. I am looking forward to sitting around the campfire with good friends all bundled up playing card games and sharing stories! I will hopefully have pictures to post after the trip!

Wish me luck!!

Where it all started

July 13, 1974, the day Mary Ellen Cole said “I do” to John Angelo Garbarino.

Pictured here are my parents on their wedding day. Look how innocent and young they are with their whole lives ahead of them. My mom was only 18 years old on this day and my dad probably not even 22 or 23. They probably had no idea that there would be good times and bad times ahead, that eventually they would have four mouths to feed and put through college, and that one day they would have a beautiful house to care for. This day was a beautiful start to a beautiful life for many.

I had a conversation one day with my mom way back in the very beginning of the planning stages when I was feeling slightly overwhelmed by it all and she reminded me of something I had forgotten. She reminded me that I didn’t need to have all the hoopla and that I could get married in a dive bar if that’s what I wanted. She reminded me that all that mattered for my wedding day was what I wanted and not what everyone else wanted. She reminded me that people love me and that no matter what they would be happy for me. And lastly, she reminded me that 36 years ago her and my father had had a simple wedding that didn’t require spending astronomical amounts of money and it was perfect.

My point is that my parents didn’t need buckets full of money to throw an extravagant wedding to prove to the world that they were in love. Their love has been proven to the world through the four wonderful (maybe a little biased) children that they have raised, the beautiful home in which they have created together, and a loving marriage of 35 plus years.

I hope my marriage will possess half of the strong qualities in a marriage that my parents have subjected me too since before I was even born into this world. As I have grown older I have realized that I have taken for granted my upbringing in a non-broken home and realized that for others it wasn’t always so easy. I am grateful that my parents continue to live by the “For Better or For Worse” vow that they made to each other on that perfect day of July 13, 1974.

Mary Ellen and John's four children - pictured here at youngest daughter Whitney's wedding in June 2010

Without Further Ado

I almost died laughing this morning when first thing I opened my work email there was a lovely message from my mother waiting to be opened. It surely made me smile and now I hope to make you smile.

This is a follow up post to my Non-wedding Wednesday post last Wednesday.

I present to you my first grade Halloween picture dressed as a bum. I was so little and cute. I hope people look back and think..wow you havn't changed a bit!

Thanks for scanning this in and sending to me mom!!

Enjoy!

Out of Control Grocery Lists

As in wedding grocery lists. I have about 10 different lists of all my ideas and they keep growing and growing. Once I started writing everything down in list format of items I needed to buy I was slightly overwhelmed. As in the words of Groomzilla “Every time you come up with a new idea for the wedding that means more money out of my pocket.” Well this is true. I really just feel that adding personal touches to your wedding says wonders about who you are as a couple and shows how much time and energy you put into creating your special day.

My youngest sister recently got married this past June and I couldn’t believe the creative and original personal touches that her and her groom incorporated into their wedding. Every detail was perfect and did not go unnoticed. I think her personal touches really spoke wonders and allowed their guests that much further into who they are as a couple. I added a few beautiful photos below from Whit and Rob's wedding by Jade at Uplift Photography (was not sure about photo rights). View Jade's blog for more pictures of gorgeous details.

I know I keep writing about all these ideas that I have burning a hole in my head and have not really shared exactly what they are, firstly because they are not set in stone yet but mostly because I want to leave some mystery of the mind to my guests!

Photos from Whit and Rob's special day - June 26, 2010

Gorgeous Fringed Tulips were a huge hit

My mother and Rob's mother made all the colored napkins and table accents. What a beautiful touch to bring in color!

Our neighbor was Whit's florist making it all that much personal since she knew Whit dating back to her youth

Mini Captain Morgan Bottles for their place cards - had to do with how they first met

Bridesmaid Dresses

I haven’t really looked much into dresses for my gals because I was waiting until we could all be together trying on different styles and get a feel for what they will look like on their body types. For some reason I am really drawn to the one shoulder dress. I love the navy AMSAL dress to the right. Even the pink one-shoulder dress featured below is fun and flirty but may be a bit young. I love rosettes but those may be a tad too much, especially for us bustier woman in which they will just add to the bustyness.

Thoughts from the MOHs or BM??