california, here we come!

we are leaving tomorrow to head to sunny california to visit geoff's best man and his beautiful girlfriend. we are so excited! we are taking a loooong weekend and enjoying the 4th of july on a boat in the pacific ;)

this comes at a perfect time for us...and will give my head a mini-break from planning! :)

tootles!

image from here

bridesmaid gifts...

...are so hard to pick out!

i have tossed around SO many ideas, and i still can't decide. i want it to be something memorable, so when they look at/use it, they will remember our wedding. i've thought about makeup bags, jewelry boxes, watches, jewelry, silver revere bowls, etc., and i just can't find/decide on the right idea.

so. what are YOU doing/did you do for your beloved girls?

HELP!

santa claus?

so. i'm making a list. and you know...checking it twice.

it's the only way i can keep track of everything. throughout the last 13 months, i must have had 5,000 ideas about our wedding. it's time to narrow the list down to a reasonable, practical amount of tasks.

now i know how the OTHER big guy must feel.

image from here

our e-session is on the calendar!

i finally scheduled an e-session with our photographer, jen. i am so excited! we are booked for sunday, july 19th. we are taking them in east lansing, on the beloved MSU campus where we met so many years ago (7, to be exact!). we have so many memories there throughout the years and the thought of going back to shoot some pics of us is so exciting!

here are some places around campus that i think are must-have shots:
1) this is where we first met. good ol' holmes hall!
image from here
2) spartan stadium, where we were season ticket holders together during school and then for the past 2 years as well:
image from here
3) the main library, where we studied together:
image from here

then there's the botanical garden, beaumont tower, and red cedar bridge as well. i am so thrilled that we planned this. now, i just have to figure out what to wear.

sweet olivia

this post is dedicated to my cousin, olivia.

the other day i jokingly asked her if she wanted to be my DOC for our wedding. she said yes, seemed really thrilled about it, and i have since "hired" her.

i have a newfound feeling of calmness. i'll be going through everything with her (hour by hour) before the wedding so she is on the same page as me...and i have such relief knowing that someone else will know 100% of what is going on.

besides, who else was going to hang up our paper pew wreaths? (my grandma sure wants to know!)

here is a picture of olivia and her handsome fiance, dan:

how cute are they? image from peter pawinski

thanks olivia...i owe you big time!

fooooood

i'm always thinking about it. so why not blog about it?

i've always wanted to have some type of buffet or brunch brought into the hotel room for the morning of. it's going to be me, my mom, my 5 girls, 1 photog, 1 videog, 2 hair stylists, and 1 make-up artist. that's a lot of people! plus, i've been trying this try-not-to-eat-so-much-because-you're-a-bride-thing, and it's not working. i am going to want to eat (a lot) in the morning before our festivities begin.

so. what do you think is the bests type of food to serve? a small breakfast and small lunch? or a brunch brought in somewhere in the middle? these are definitely going to be on and in hand:

from here

what are you providing for yourself and your hungry loved ones?

POLL

are you doing...

1. the BP dance,
2. the garter toss, and/or
3. the bouquet toss?

i think they are super cliche. BUT i know everyone loves them and the rituals totally scream "WEDDING!" so...i want your advice! what are you doing?