making progress

so much has happened! after a month of getting the run around from the events coordinator at our venue site we finally secured a date. and we got sept. 10! i may have had to pull out some bridezilla moves to get to this point but hey, whatever works!

so apparently brides are now supposed to send gifts of figure out creative ways on how to ask their bridesmaids to be in their wedding. i had no clue! i had already verbally asked my sister and cheryl to be a part of my day and then i find this out. so.... i had to think of something! here's what i did:





jana loves gummy's and cheryl loves wine. i think i did i pretty good!

we got our engagement pictures done by kyle about a week ago. she offered to do them to expand her portfolio which in turn helped us save on an engagement session! it was a fun time and i love her work. she's a great photographer and is going to make it huge one day. thanks again kyle!



we have also finally found a photographer that we like who isn't over $5,000. we contacted him yesterday and are starting to work out a contract. we've also decided which photo booth company we are going with! i found out about the company from kyle when she was taking our engagement pictures. they're fab! i'm excited to see what they are going to do for us. our first choice of officiant fell through because of a prior commitment but we have been in contact with another that we think will suit us just the same. i contacted a dj company yesterday and then got an interesting offer. a friend of mine from high school told me that if i flew him out here he would dj my wedding for free. i'm really considering this!
everything seems to be finally taking shape. we have contacted and have contracts for most of our "big" purchases. i'm really looking forward to the little details though- decorations, centerpieces, favors, invites, color scheme... i just hope i don't get too overwhelmed in the process. i have a great support system though. next up- save the date cards!

venue blues

about a month ago, mike and i chose our venue. on the water, in occoquan with a full club house for our reception. close enough to home where the dogs will still be taken care of, and a great price (as if anything wedding related can be a great price!). we signed up for september 17 even though we would have preferred the 10th. not just because the date is neat, but its a better time of the month. apparently another couple had verbally reserved that date but were still in negotiations about price. the events coordinator (donna) told us that we should know by the end of the week (around oct. 8) if the 10th was available or at the latest the end of the month. well here we are on november 3 and we still dont know our date! we cant do ANYTHING until we know this! i cant hire dj's, photogs, photo booths, etc. it's so annoying!
finally yesterday she told mike that she gave the other couple a 36 hour window where they had to put down a deposit or else she was giving the date to us. FINGERS CROSSED!!!!

venue shopping

after a weeks worth of heated discussions, it was decided that our wedding would be held locally. i'm not going to get into all of the ins and outs of what brought us to this decision, but that's what it is.
so... now we're venue shopping. what a hassle! there are so many places in this area to look at. even being able to knock off a ton due to price, no rain alternatives, locations, etc. we still have an entire word document of venues to look at.
our schedules have been so busy that since we got engaged (exactly one month ago!!!) we have only looked at 3 places. the first venue was actually in woodbridge of all places. and we liked it for the most part, but they work only with one caterer and we weren't entirely happy with the set menu. looking at the companies corporate menu though, i found a "mexican fiesta" themed menu that i would just love to have! we're going to see if they will allow us to do this.
there are many places in leesburg we have to visit and we've only made it to 2 of them so far. i liked the first and mike didn't because he said it looked too much like a conference center (which it technically is). the second place was very picturesque and had a fabulous rain alternative but i think it is out of our price range.
the search continues!

OMG I'M ENGAGED!!!

it happened! mike proposed! on sept. 1, 2010 i officially became engaged! i cant believe it happened!
when i got home from work on wednesday afternoon mike asked me to come upstairs. after being somewhat annoyed because i didn't feel like it, i trudged up the stairs and into our bedroom. on the bed was my suitcase, passport, and boarding passes. did mike really plan a trip for us?! he did!
he booked us a long weekend in st. maarten! as if that itself wasn't enough, he told me to open my suitcase because he bought me something to wear on the trip. in the back of my head i was thinking "this really might not be good." i opened my suitcase and saw a ring box sitting inside it! my heart started beating out of my chest for a second before i dismissed it because i didn't want to get my hopes up again. i picked up the box, handed it to him and asked "what is it?"
that's when mike opened the box and got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. i was SHOCKED! i don't think there is even a word to describe the emotions that i was feeling all at once! i couldn't stop shaking and i'm sure i was blushing as well.
mike did a great job with everything! he planned a trip and proposed and i had NO clue any of it was coming. i'm a happy happy girl. still not used to the fact that mike is no longer my boyfriend but my fiance, and the fact that I'M GETTING MARRIED! i did pick out a perfect cake topper today though!
time to go back to enjoying paradise! i hope i chronicle everything about this engagement and wedding!