Dress Fittings

I dreaded this day with almost every bone in my body. I mean, I'm always excited to try on my wedding dress, but I was also nervous that it would need some pretty major alterations in order to fit nicely. Well, apparently I blocked out all memory of losing 7 pounds because when I tried it on, it fit much, much better than when I bought it! My friend's mom is doing the alterations and even commented that it would require less work than we originally thought. I'm excited! Also, I'm moving into a new place in the next week or so which has a fitness room... so there's potential for an even nicer fit when the wedding day rolls around!

So the experience of wedding planning I was dreading the most, has turned out to be pretty uplifting! Not only that, but I can cross this off my list now too!

Favours!

I guess most people wouldn't post about favours before their wedding as they are sometimes seen as a gift to the guest. Therefore, it would ruin the suprise.

Well, first of all, I don't really like most wedding favours and almost never keep them, so I decided not to think of them as gifts to the guests. Second of all, I wanted a little something for our guests to nibble when they arrive, as we all wait for dinner. Third, I love chocolate. Fourth, did I mention I love chocolate?

So after a lengthy search for just the right little nests... and a trip to the bulk aisle to stock up on chocolate mini eggs. Success! Our favours are ready to go!

To-Do List Update Part II

I think posting about how I haven't posted about to-do lists temporarily scared me away from my own blog. I haven't gotten much done, but I think it's important to re-visit the to-do list regardless, so that I can hold myself accountable and remind myself to do the things on my list! 

So here's a revised list to motivate me to keep my butt in gear!

To do:

• Finish centerpieces (wash jars, buy bird seed, make candle holders--partially done)
• Invitations
• Decide on groomsmen gifts
• Dress and suit alterations
• Have the groom's shirt cleaned and pressed
• Decide on groomsmens attire
• Create seating chart--partially done
• Favours
• Book dog kennel/adventure camp and cat sitter/kennel
• Make playlists--partially done!
• Make photobooth backdrop
• Stock up on supplies for photobooth
• Make sign and paper for photobooth/guestbook
• Buy shoes and underwear for wedding day
• Hair and makeup
• Order a wedding band for me
• Marriage license and meet with officiant
• Liquor license
• Write ceremony script--partially done
• Make a floor plan/seating plan
• Make wedding photo list for photographers--partially done
• Wine (choose, order, pick up) 
• Walk through of the reception hall with our 'friend'ly decorator, Tia
• Invite wedding party to rehearsal and dinner
• Invite the groom's relatives to Sunday tea/lunch
• Figure out how to put up sign that points to the chapel, designate someone to do this
• Confirm details with caterers, bartenders, photographers, decoration rental, wholesale flower farmer, etc.
• Package groomsmen and bridesmaid gifts
• Purchase 'other' gifts and thank you cards

Falling Behind...

Well, I was going to post an update to my wedding to-do list. Then I looked at my last post of the list and realized I had really only done 2 more things on the list. So, instead of posting that update, I'm gonna spend all day Sunday working on wedding tasks. Expect an update sometime next week!

Name Change

While this title is rather fitting to a wedding blog, this post is not actually about whether or not I will change my last name after we get married (we can save that for later). Actually, I am considering changing the name of this blog. With our wedding only a couple months away, and my latest blog posts being more about life, gardening, etc, I feel as if a more general title would be more appropriate.

This is where I would wow you with a new title if I had yet to think of one. Instead, I leave you in anticipation while I go sit down and brainstorm ideas!

Introducing Robbie, the iRobot Roomba

Robbie is the newest member of our family. Out of all our pets, he is definitely my favourite. Not only does he not make a mess, but he willingly cleans the messes the other pets make. I'm in love!

My Bucket List

This post, as well as my new journal, are inspired by the movie 'The Bucket List' and also by that fun new MTV show The Buried Life. Basically, my new journal is a list of things I want to do before I die. Instead of being morbid, it's more of a challenge. A challenge to dream big and be willing to put those dreams down on paper and take steps to make them happen! I have this vision of a journal filled with things I want to do, and as I cross things off I will be inspired to dream even bigger than before and the momentum will help me achieve my biggest, greatest, most far-reaching dreams!

I think this general idea can be applied to weddings too. It definitely would have helped us in the planning process if we sat down on day one and asked ourselves what we want our wedding day to be like. Make a giant list of all the things we want to see or do on that day, and then take the steps to make them happen. I still think our wedding day will be wonderful, romantic and fun, but this would have made getting there a tad easier!

What do you want to do before you die?

Pictures, as Promised!

The view out of our kitchen window.

A deer in our yard.

I'm yet to get the camera out in time to get a good picture of one of our hummingbirds...

Wedding Planning Perks

Adam and I have discovered our absolute favourite part of wedding planning: taste testing wines and ciders! Actually, my cider taste test is making it a bit challenging to write this post (I'm writing this the evening before it will actually appear on the blog).

We were a bit stressed out about choosing wines to put on the tables for dinner. We knew we wanted some 'free drinks' but we're no experts when it comes to wine and had no idea how to choose. On top of that, we wanted wine that was either local to Vancouver Island, or at the very least, local to BC. Add in our budget and we had quite the challenge on our hands.

We did some research of local wineries and found that most were over our budget. We also don't drink the stuff so we wouldn't even know which type of white (or which type of red) to choose. This all led to a very exciting conversation about breaking the boundaries! Why have two bottles of wine on the table when I, especially, wouldn't drink either? After all, it's our wedding day, we should be able to provide drinks that we'll both enjoy. (There will also be a bar, so if guests don't like our choices, they can purchase anything they like from the bar!) So, we decided to go off the beaten path (well, more like one foot on and one foot off...) and provide a white wine and a cider. You see, I like cider. I like cider very much! Even better - we already knew of two local cider producers that we could taste test for the occassion. So, we checked into where we could buy them locally, trekked to the good ol liquor store and bought 1 bottle from each cidery.

And the winner is..... Merridale Estate Cidery (Cider House pictured above!). Their cider comes in a 1L bottle (about 1 glass more than the average wine bottle) and is right on track with our budget. And I love it! So I will happily fill my glass with cider instead of wine on my wedding day. Not groundbreaking by any means, but a decision we're quite proud!

The next dilemma is which white wine to choose. Adam is currently spending this evening taste testing a bottle of Calona Chardonney, but since we're not experts, he's not sure if it would be considered good or not by more knowledgeable winos! :)

If you have any tips of local to BC white wines that are around $15 for a 750mL bottle, drop us a line!

Giveaway: No Plastic!

There's a great giveaway happening over at Progressive Pioneer! If I were you, I'd check out these pictures of what you could win, then hurry over to enter your name for a chance to win! While you're there, check out the rest of the blog - definitely one of my new favourites!