Wedding Help Needed

I'm having a creative block. More specifically, a wedding block. For the life of me, I can't think of anything to do for our centerpieces. We're going to a town that has a Hobby Lobby and a Michael's tomorrow, so I would love to be able to think of something in time to get the supplies tomorrow. I don't want to do flowers because real ones are crazy expensive and fake ones can add up just as quickly.

In case you don't know/remember, we're having 12 round tables for our guests as well as a long head table for the wedding party. We're using these tablecloths:

(It's kind of hard to tell, but they're an emerald green)

I was thinking of doing a square of burlap on the round tables to distinguish where the centerpiece will be as well as a long burlap table runner for the head table. Similar to this:

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Would the two fabrics be too weird together?

I'm planning on making these:

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to go on the tables; probably three or four to a table since we have 60 LED candles to use. 

Besides that, I'm drawing a blank. We're trying the whole "sit with whoever you want" deal, so I can't spruce up the tables with table numbers. Like I said before, I don't want to do flowers, real or fake.

I feel like I need something with some weight to it to put in the middle and sprinkle the candles around but I can't think of anything.

I wanted to hang something from the rafters, but after looking at the space again, there's just so way. So I thought of mini-ones to put on the tables a la:

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This is interesting: 

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So is this (obviously not on rocks): 

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Opinions?

• As you can see, we're kinda looking for the outdoor, fall feel (even though our wedding is in August)
• If it helps, we're going to have our favors and our photo cards at each place setting.
• In a perfect world, the centerpieces would be DIY-able, mean something to us (another reason why flowers are out of the question) and on the cheaper side of things.
• Unfortunately I don't think we can do the candles-in-water thing because we have to use battery powered LED candles. Fire is not allowed and I don't think batteries mix with water well. 
• Keegan's mom has suggested mirrors, but I'm not a huge fan. I feel like they're kind of....ordinary? Like something you'd see in a large banquet hall wedding (not that that's a problem, they're just not for me.)

It's gotten to the point in the wedding where I'm getting stressed. We're down to the 4 month mark and I feel like I have so much to do. I'm still (generally) enjoying it, but the stress has increased lately.

Help?

The Night I Got Paid In Produce

So I work at an art gallery. I very poor non-profit art gallery. So poor in fact that I don't get paid for the 40+ hours of work I do, except for when I stay late on Tuesday and Wednesday nights and come in Sunday mornings which totals about 10 hours a week.

Anyways we had a gallery opening last night. The artist was Hillary Parker who does watercolor botanical work. One of her pieces is the Edible Spectrum, so naturally she bought a lot of produce to recreate this artwork as a centerpiece on the food table. When the opening was done, the produce was left. Since no one else wanted it, my boss let me have it. Essentially, she paid me in produce.

Not pictured are the two bananas that I already froze for smoothies and a nectarine and a plum I ate for breakfast. It's also hard to see the orange and red pepper in the back. The two tiny orange things are cumquats which I tried for the first time last night. They're super sour, but surprisingly good. I also might take a few fingerling potatoes tonight that were left over.

Woohoo now I don't have to buy produce for the next week!

Thursday Randoms

I lead such an exciting life that the things I do can't fill up an entire post by themselves....so I'm crunching them all into one so it looks like I actually do stuff.

• First thing's first. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY MOMMY! I've been a horrible daughter and her present hasn't been bought yet, but it's the thought that counts....right?

• I'm being mopey today because Keegan's traveling for work. Again. This time he's in Louisiana to visit a customer. I'm happy that he at least he skipped the trip to tiny-town Mexico, but it still sucks that he's gone. Due to both of us working until 8 last night, I only saw him for a total of 2 hours before we passed out. In those two hours we grabbed dinner, drove home in separate cars, he showered and then we went to bed. In reality I saw him for maybe an hour total. I know that this doesn't compare to people whose spouses are in the military or otherwise gone for months at a time, but when you see your fiancé for an hour a day when you live with him, it gets tired quick. I compare his job to a surgeon's. He's on call 24/7, works late nights and sometimes has to go in overnight/on the weekends when he wasn't scheduled. Don't get me wrong, I'm so thankful that he at least has a job that is allowing us to pay for a house and a wedding a year out of college, but I'd gladly give up some of that money to see him more.  
• In less woe-is-me news, we finally have our sod. The landscapers came yesterday while I was working out in the morning and started laying it pretty quickly. I had to leave before they really got started and came home last night after dark so this morning was the first time I'd seen our house with a full lawn of grass. 

 

The grass is browner than the dirt that we had before, but it'll turn green eventually....right?

•   My thighs are killing me today. Yesterday I did the P90X plyometrics workout for about 45 minutes total and oh.my.gosh. I can feel it today. I was a bit sore yesterday when I got home, but today I can barely walk. I feel like I'm waddling everywhere and stairs are a killer. I decided to let my body rest today, but I'll be up bright tomorrow morning with Tony getting my butt kicked.  
• This weekend we're going to Tuscaloosa to do some serious shopping. I need to order my shoes from David's Bridal (which I hate doing, because I feel like they're the WalMart of the bridal world, but I can't find shoes anywhere else.) We also need to figure out wedding bands, go to Hobby Lobby for stuff for the wedding and I'm trying to talk Keegan into buying a Kindle. I have found so many books I want to read, but buying each of them would be more than buying the Kindle itself. That was my argument when I brought it up to him yesterday so we'll see what happens on Saturday. 
• In other wedding news, I made a photo sharing site with Shutterfly so that our guests can upload pictures of the wedding. I made a card through Vista Print and got 250 of them for $10 including shipping. They were supposed to show up today, but I got home on Tuesday and they were waiting in my mailbox. Woohoo fast shipping!

Obviously I put the password on the actual card, but I don't want internet creepers looking at our pictures.

• In Operation Lookin' Sexy news....there's not much. Keegan and I both started out strong and were working out almost every night. Then Keegan started working longer hours. Then we both got sick. Basically when it comes down to it, I haven't lost more than a pound or two in a month. I got fed up with things and this week I decided to buck up and do better. I've started working out in the mornings so I can't think up an excuse by the end of the night. I've stopped drinking soda (except for the one with dinner last night) and I'm bringing a water bottle to work that I fill up at least twice. I've started buying more fruits and veggies. I'm eating a breakfast cookie and fruit for breakfast instead of sugar-coated oatmeal. I'm honestly trying. And I think I've lost a pound or two this week. It's hard to tell because my weight seems to fluctuate between 3 and 5 pounds a day. I'm thinking I should do a weekly weigh in so that I'm not discouraged when my weight fluctuates daily. At least I'm seriously trying again. I'm hoping to report more news in the next month. 

Anyone have any healthy meals they want to share? I'm up for trying pretty much anything besides sea food. 

Weekend Recap*

*I really need to come up with a more interesting title...



Looking back on this weekend, it was much more productive than I thought it was going to be.

• Friday, Keegan and I went to Sears, but all of their work out equipment had been sold except for a crappy looking bike and an elliptical that was still $1300. Boo. Guess I'm going to have to stick it out with P90X and Jillian Michaels. 
• The visit with our friends was amazing. They got into town about 4:30 a.m. on Saturday morning and left about 2 Sunday afternoon, but it was totally worth it. We got to meet Brendan's new girlfriend and just hang out with the boys. There was some drinking, some pizza eating, some movie watching and just general hanging out. Perfect. 
• Sunday after our friends left, Keegan and I got a hair cut. Unfortunately everything in this tiny town closes on Sundays so we were stuck with going to WalMart (who knew they had a hair salon?) We waited for over an hour and a half, but eventually we got it done. Surprisingly enough, they didn't do too bad of a job. I told the girl that I wanted my hair trimmed and layered which I normally do to thin out my thick hair. However, when I got home, I realized that I didn't need my hair thinned. The medications I was on made me lose so much of my hair that it's super thin now. Guess I'm going to have to work on getting it thick and healthy for the wedding. 
• I am thisclose to having our invitations ready to print and assemble. I did two mock-ups on Sunday and Monday and they turned out well. I realized late last night that I don't have our wedding website or any information about our registries in the invitation so I'll have to make a new card with that information on it. Besides that, they're ready to go. I'm going to print out all of the cards this week and then have to wait until we go to Tuscaloosa or Tupelo this weekend so I can get a fancy paper cutter. There's no way I'm going to cut all of that paper by hand. 
• I have started working out in the mornings. I realized that if I wait until I get home, wait for Keegan to get home and make dinner and then try to work out, I never do. Either I'm too tired, Keegan's too tired or we have too many errands to run after work. By doing it first thing when I get up, I have the most energy and can't come up with an excuse to get out of it. I was planning on doing my 30 Day Shred DVD this morning, but I couldn't get it to come up on our PS3. Instead, I did the P90X Ab Ripper segment. Not quite the workout I was hoping for, but it's something. I'll have to get Keegan to show me how to work his new-fangled fancy get up for the PS3 so I can get some quality time in with Jillian the rest of the week. 
• We finally got my passport pictures taken and the application sent off. We went last weekend to get the pictures done, but they were cut to the incorrect size. I have to get a Canadian passport and the pictures have to be 2"x 2 3/4" instead of 2"x 2" like the American passports. We went in yesterday and had to argue with the photo girls about the size. I finally got it through their heads that I needed a different size and asked them to print out two larger photos for me that I cut down. Now everything is on its way to my parents house for my mom to sign off on and then it's off to the officials in Canada. Here's hoping everything works out this time *crosses fingers*

So overall, a pretty productive weekend. How was your weekend?

Friday Funday

What better way to celebrate than a blog full of bullet points?

• Today I'm like a kid before Christmas. Why do you ask? Late tonight two of Keegan's best friends (and one of their girlfriends) will be descending onto our house for the weekend. We haven't seen Brendan (Keegan's bestest best friend and his best man) since August and it was December when we last saw Matt. I am more than excited to see these boys and show off my new house, even though I'm sure they won't care. They're going to be getting in late tonight (like 1 a.m. late) and have to leave on Sunday so it'll be a short visit, but it'll be awesome none the less. 

• Last night the tablecloths for the wedding were delivered. In case you don't remember, I got 19 tablecloths for $92.53! I was a little wary about them being shiny, but they turned out great.

See?

Now I just need to figure out what to put on them for centerpieces.

• Apparently today is my birthday/Christmas! I work in an art gallery and one of the artists who had a show in the gallery during March gave me one of her paintings totally free! I'd post a picture, but I don't want anyone to try and pass off her work as their own. I'm excited to find a place in my house for it. 
• On a slightly less enthusiastic note, I have a bone to pick with drivers that follow too closely to my car. I now live out in the county and the roads I drive on are narrow with no shoulders. Animals, especially deer, jump out in front of cars all the time and I'm so nervous a deer will jump out in front of my car when someone is following so close to my car that I can't see their front bumper. I just know that if I need to slam on my breaks for any reason that my car won't come out in one piece.
• The Sears in our tiny town is going out of business. In one way it stinks because it's one less store to shop at, but in another way it's great because we've been able to get a lot of things we've needed for the house (like a hose) for 20-40% off. They've been "closing" for months now, but apparently they're really for sure closing now so things are starting to be 50% and more off. Tonight Keegan and I are going to go and see if there's anything else we need. I'm really hoping talk him into getting a treadmill or an elliptical for the house. I've had this urge to pick up running for the last few months but I'm not coordinated enough to run on our cul-de-sac of gravel and there's no way that I'm going to run on the county back roads with no shoulder, so the next best thing is a treadmill. Last time we checked they were only 40% off so I'm hoping they'll be knocked down again. 
• I'm trying to be better about what we've been eating and drinking. Keegan and I don't keep soda in the house (unless we're having guests) but we have soda at work. Usually I have a can at lunch, but I'm trying to cut that out of my routine. I brought a water bottle to work today full of ice cold water that I've been sipping on all day. Hopefully if I have water near me, I won't feel the need to have a soda. 
• We still don't have internet. Eventually, (maybe once the whole internet saga is resolved) I'll post about the craziness we've gone through. 

Anyways, that's about it for me. Tonight we're going to Sears, maybe some quick grocery shopping to get drinks for the boys and then a bit of last minute cleaning. This weekend is going to be full of fun and shenanigans and I can't wait! 

Goin' Cold Turkey

In January, I decided to quit the numerous medications I was on cold turkey. That (so far) has been one of the best decisions of my life.

A bit of background story:

About two years ago now, I complained to my mom about the numerous headaches I had been getting. They were worse than any other headache I had ever had but I thought they were due to my stressful school and work schedule. My mom talked me into going to see my general doctor which started  my headache saga.

After putting me on 3 or 4 different headache and migraine medications, my general doctor finally sent me over to a neurologist in the University of Missouri hospital. After my first meeting with Dr. K I wasn't thrilled with the course of action we (read: she) decided to take. I was put on numerous medications for things ranging from general headaches to migraines to blood pressure to see if any of them worked. After months of trying out different medications and upping the dosage of what seemed to be Dr. K's favorites numerous times, Dr. K finally agreed to do some more serious testing.

The serious testing included many MRIs, CAT scans, more vials of blood drawn that I can count, and three (yes three) spinal taps plus an emergency spinal blood patch because I got a spinal headache after one of them. All the tests came back with basically the same conclusions: nothing was seriously wrong with me. The best they could find was that I could, maybe, possibly, suffer from Chiari disease where part of your brain hang below your skull and into your spinal canal. However, my brain wasn't hanging down enough from them to worry too much about it and do surgery.

After my third spinal tap, I was lying in the hospital bed when Dr. K came in and told me the numerous medications I would be on. It included (from what I can remember,) 50,000 units of vitamin B once a week for two months followed by a lesser dose every day, a dose of another vitamin every day, Propanol, and another medication (for the life of me, I can't remember what they all where now.) I was on that regiment of medications for about a year with the Propanol and the second drug being increased three or four times. I finally got to a dosage level that was so uncommon that I had to have my doctor write a note to my insurance company for them to decide to cover it.

Near the end of 2011, my headaches still weren't getting better; if anything they were increasing in frequency and strength. There were numerous days that I would come home from work and just want to pass out on the couch. I knew I wasn't having migraines; I wasn't sensitive to light, sound or food. I wasn't nauseous, and I could function even with the intense pain in my head. I also knew I wasn't having tension or stress headaches because after moving to Mississippi, my life was the least stressful it has ever been. No school, no stressful work; I was the calmest I had ever been.

In the middle of 2011, I had gone off my birth control due to the fact that my prescription had run out and I hadn't found a doctor in Mississippi yet. I went to a general doctor in my new town and asked her to refill my prescription as well as talk to her about my ever increasing headaches. She agreed to give me more BC and suggested that since my hormones weren't being regulated by my BC anymore, they could be causing my headaches to increase. She told me to come back in a few weeks if my BC didn't seem to be helping and she would refer me to a neurologist.

Over the last year, my medications had given my some nasty side effects. My hands, feet, and face would fall asleep randomly. I was constantly nauseous, food had some of the strangest tastes, and I wasn't sleeping. I kept forgetting words when I would talk and would have to think of synonymous or ask Keegan to come up with the words I was trying to think of. The medications I was on were proven to cause birth defects and I wanted them entirely out of my system before I even considered having children. Worst of all, my headaches weren't getting better.

I ended up being referred to a neurologist in Jackson, a two + hour drive from my tiny town. I went and saw him in September (I think,) and told him my headache history. I also told him that I was experiencing some horrible side effects from my medications and ultimately wanted to get off of them sooner or later. He agreed to take me off of them eventually, but he wanted to get my headaches under control before trying to take me of of my meds. I agreed and allowed him to give me an herbal powder that I was supposed to take right at the onset of a headache. The main problem with this is that my headaches would last for days at a time and would more often than not start while I was sleeping. How was I supposed to take this medication when I wasn't awake for the headache to start?

After a few months of trying out this herbal medication, I realized it wasn't working. I went back for my follow up appointment in January and had possibly the worst experience I've ever had at a doctor's. I had driven two + hours to Jackson in a thunderstorm and tornado watch/warning, waited for another hour for my appointment and saw my doctor all of 10 minutes. I told him the herbal medications wasn't work, stressed that I wanted to eventually get off all medications, and what did he do? He prescribed me three more medications to go along with my cocktail of drugs. He also wanted me to stay on my BC because if I did accidentally get pregnant, the medications I was on would cause potentially fatal birth defects. When I left my appointment, I was so annoyed, angry and frustrated that I got into my car and cried. I felt like I was never going to get to the bottom of why I was having these headaches and I was going to be on drugs the rest of my life.

I ended up calling/emailing my dad about my appointment and the drugs that I had been put on. My dad has some health issues of his own so he is very well versed in medications and what they do for someone who doesn't have a medical degree. He said that the trio of medications my new neurologist had prescribed was extremely potent, especially when mixed with what I was already on. He suggested I get a second opinion but I was done. I was done with doctors and hospitals and drugs and feeling completely helpless.

When we moved to our new house our a new city, I needed to have my prescriptions switched over to a new pharmacy in town (as well as Walgreen deciding not to take my insurance anymore.) As time when by, I kept coming up with excuses not to get my prescriptions switched over. The pharmacy isn't on the way home or to work. I don't have the money on me. I just plain don't have time. Finally I got real with myself and figured out that I just didn't want to be on medication any more. So I quit. Cold turkey. I stopped taking my 6 pills a day in mid January and haven't looked back. I have another follow up appointment with my crappy neurologist in May, but I'm not going.

Like I said, this has (so far) been the best decision of my life. I can eat food again and enjoy it. My limbs aren't falling asleep. I can actually sleep at night. I'm still having trouble recalling words some times, especially if I'm upset, but it's better than it was before. And surprisingly enough, my headaches haven't gotten worse. I still have them pretty much every day, but they're just an annoyance that I can deal with. Since January, I've only had two headaches that have knocked me on my butt for a period of time. I used to get those at least twice a week.

I say that it's so far the best decision I've ever made because I don't know what the future holds. Maybe this is just a "honeymoon" period of my body readjusting to not being pumped full of medications. Maybe this is how it'll be the rest of my life. Maybe my horrible butt-kicking headaches will come back and I'll need to go back to a doctor. I don't know. All I know is that since my headaches haven't gotten worse, I can say with confidence that the medications I was on weren't do anything to help me. I just wish I had figured this out months ago.

I guess now it's just a wait and see game. I don't know what the future holds. I've heard that pregnancy (which will be a few years down the road) have cured, but also increased a woman's migraines. Who knows what will happen to me if and when I get pregnant. For now, I'm just enjoying my slightly headache-less life and not having to wake up every morning and shove pills down my throat.

Life Tip #1

Don't buy a new house on a new street.

Really trust me on this one.

By all means, buy a newly built house! They're wonderful and have the perk of never having occupants before. But take my advice and don't buy a new house on a new street. It'll be the biggest frustration EVER.

Let's look at the house in question shall we?

Granted, this picture was taken last year before everything was (mostly) completed, but this is basically our house. 

Don't get me wrong, I love our house. It's perfect and everything we need in our first house. The fact that it's on a brand new street, however, has made living in our perfect new house a hassle.

When we officially purchased our house, it had some more work to be completed. In our contract, our builder agreed to put up a fence in the backyard, completely sod the front and side lawns, and put in landscaping around our front walkway (which wasn't completed when this picture was taken.) We also talked to him about putting in a shop for Keegan in the back and extending our driveway to the fence line. So far, the landscaping has been completed and 99% of our fence is up. No sod, no extension on the driveway, and no talk about the shop. Now all of the things that haven't completed have been delayed because we've had an unusually wet "spring" down here (I use "spring" as a loose term because it was in the 70s in early February. The South seems to skip right from winter to summer.) I understand that the ground can't be too wet to put in concrete or to lay sod. We're also currently waiting on our gates for our fence, but they can't be put up because the ground has been too wet. I understand.

However, I don't understand some of the things that we've had to deal with in the last month and a half. Such as not getting mail for the first 3 weeks. After we've started getting mail, a package I bought off of Ebay has been "delivered" to our house, but we never received it. And we still don't have internet. I won't even get into the internet saga here, but the root of us not having it yet is because it took the company 2 weeks to "find" our house and then it rained for 3 weeks.

A few days ago we found out why it took the mailman and the internet company so long to find our house. Since our house is on a new street, our builder had to contact the 911 operator and tell them that a new street had been built and people were living in one of the houses. He never did. As far as 911, USPS, and other government organizations were concerned, our street, let alone our house didn't exist. When I found this out, I was beyond frustrated. What if we had an emergency in the month before our house was "found?" 911 would have never made it because as far as they are concerned, we didn't exit. Ugh.

I guess I'll sum this up by saying buying a new house can be an amazing experience. Buying a new house on a new street is a pain in the butt. If you do decide to put yourself through that torture, at least make sure that your builder/relator calls 911 and tells them that you're living on that street.

If you don't you might die because 911 can't find your house.

I'm just lookin' out for you, that's all.

St. Pats 2012

So this weekend is going to be a tough one for me (and I'm sure Keegan as well.)

Before I met Keegan, I never really celebrated St. Pats. I wasn't one to go out to the bars and get drunk so I never really did much on this holiday. After meeting Keegan however, that all changed. Keegan went to an engineering school and Saint Patrick was the patron saint of engineering so St. Pats was a huge holiday for him and his classmates. The school gave them a 4 day weekend (mostly because numerous students would start drinking early on in the week and come to class hung over,) and the city really got into it.

Students, especially the fraternities and sororities go all out 

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(The redheaded girl is actually one of Keegan's friends)

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There's a huge puck in the middle of campus...

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The town and students paint the streets green...

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And the city puts on an awesome parade with help from the frats and sororities

Numerous drinks (both green and not) are consumed and even the professors get into things. 

Now it's not the drinking that I miss (I'm not a big drinker at all,) it's the friends and camaraderie that I miss the most. This was probably the biggest day of the year for the students and the school and our friends from numerous cities and even states would come in to celebrate. For as long as I've known Keegan, I always drove the hour and 30 minutes to come hang out with the boys for the weekend and take part of the shenanigans that occurred. Because of St. Pats, I became closer with his core group of friends and met many others that I might not have had the opportunity to. 

It just really sucks that we can't make it this year. Because we moved to Mississippi, the drive would be about 8 hours for us. Keegan can't take off work because we're trying to save all of his vacation days for the wedding and the honeymoon. We would have to leave around 6 tonight and not get in until about 2 a.m. tomorrow. That basically leave a few hours for sleep before the parade and a day of seeing as many people as we could before we had to leave again Sunday morning. I understand Keegan's reasoning, but part of me just want to say f*** it and leave tonight anyways. I miss our friends so much. So many alumni come in for St. Pats so we'd see people we haven't seen in a year. 

I guess I'm just really homesick and missing our friends like crazy right now. Not being up there for St. Pats is just hitting really hard right now. It's also hard because no one down here understands why I get excited about this holiday. 

At least we have a few friends coming down here next weekend for their spring break. It's not the same, but I'm super glad to see them. We might have to do a few shots "To St. Pats!" 

Wedding Shower Conudrum

I have a wedding shower question. Usually I would go to any of my bridesmaids for help, but this involves my 'maids.

I love all of my girls, but each one of them is in a different state (except my two sisters who still live at home with my parents.) All of my girls (and Keegan's boys) will be getting into town for the wedding the day before so we can do the rehearsal, rehearsal dinner and our bachelor/bachelorette parties. I don't want to add on a wedding shower during that time too; it would just be too crazy.

The current "plan" for the wedding shower would be to have it the next time we'll be in Missouri, the Sunday after my sister's graduation on May 19. My girls are coming far and wide for my wedding (including Arizona, Mississippi and Illinois) and because of that, I would fee guilty about asking them to come out in May for the shower. I don't really have any girlfriends left in Missouri, I was always one to hang out with boys over girls, so the shower would basically be my mom's friends. I don't mind this, a lot of her friends have known me since I was little, but it does kind of hurt that I won't have any of my friends there.

So my questions are:
1. Should I send my bridesmaids an invitation for the shower knowing they won't be able to come, or do I not send one out so they don't feel guilty about not being able to come?

2. Should I even have a shower? Honestly I kind of see it as just another way for people to give us gifts but I don't really see the purpose of it besides that.

My biggest worry about all this is I don't want my bridesmaids to feel bad about not being able to come. I'm just so happy that they're willing to come all that way for my wedding, I don't want to burden them with the idea of trying to come to the shower as well. On the other hand, I don't want them to feel left out if I don't send them an invitation. Am I over thinking this?

You Know You Look Sexy When...

...you have snot running down your face.

TMI? Sorry.

In case you couldn't tell, I'm sick. Keegan's sick. We're one big mess. A snot flowing, throat full of knives, ears popping, sneezing mess.

Apparently almost everyone at Keegan's work has this cold, including his office mate. And since no one at his job seems to ever be able to take a day off work, Keegan picked up the cold. And brought home to me. Isn't he sweet?

I felt a tickling in my throat on Monday but brushed it off. By the time I woke up Tuesday my head felt like it was going to pop off and I couldn't swallow anything. Unfortunately I also can't take time off work (especially this week) so I've suffered through. I haven't felt too bad besides the nose and throat thing, but today I feel like death warmed over. Lovely.

I'm just glad our friends from Missouri aren't coming until next weekend. I doubt we'd be very good hosts with how we're feeling.

Wedding Wednesday: TableCloths

I don't think I've ever been so excited about tablecloths before. I found Linen Tablecloth on another wedding blog and decided to take a look at their clearance section. Boy am I glad I did! We were originally going to rent plain white tablecloths but that was going to add up fast. The original place we were going to do our catering through was going provide linens, but they ended up hardly returning my emails so are in the process of negotiating with a different catering company who will provide linens for the buffet tables, but we'd have to rent other linens from a 3rd party. My dad suggested paper tablecloths, but I really didn't want my wedding to look like a picnic. I'm super happy and impressed because ones I found in the clearance section turned out to be less than renting them!

I just ordered 

17 of these bad boys in "Pine Green" for the tables our guests will be sitting at as well as the head tables

and 

Two of these for the present table and sign in table in "White." 

I got these 19 85" square tablecloths for $92.53. We got free shipping because our order was over $50!

We're not going to put the longer white tablecloths under the overlays because we're cheap and none of the longer tablecloths were on sale, but I don't think that our guests will notice. The corners of the ones we got will come up a few inches from the floor so I think they'll be long enough.

Woohoo one more thing checked off the list! 

DIY Wedding: Cake Picks

Woohoo, three posts in one day!

Anywhoo, after seeing Happily After All post about doing cake picks I decided I need some too since we're doing cupcakes. (Seriously I have gotten so many ideas from that girl, I just wish I knew if she was still posting somewhere.)

First I printed off our inner circles. One side has our wedding date and the other has our names.

Then I printed out the backing circles and cut them out. I also punched out some of the leaves/clovers out of the extra paper that we're going to use for our invitations. 

 

After lots and lots of glue on the back of the inner circle, 

 You have one side to your cake stick!

 Next I measured out 1 inch from the top

 Stuck double stick tape to the toothpick and stuck it to the back of one of the sides.

 I put double stick tape on the other side of the tooth pick as well as lots of glue on the sides

And stuck on the other side

 And there you go! One finished cake stick 

Now repeat until  you have as many as you need. I need about 150 so I have some work to do!

DIY Wedding: Mr. & Mrs. Signs

When I saw these adorable signs on Happily After All, I just knew I had to do something similar for my wedding. So I did.

I did have a few problems starting out on this project. I bought a crackle paint from Michaels but didn't realize that you had to have a specific primer to make it crack. After numerous tries, I finally convinced Keegan that we needed to buy a crackle gel from Walmart to make it work. 

First, start out with a scenic view to do your painting it. I chose my backyard (ignore the fact we still don't have grass yet or part of our fence)

 

Gather up your supplies: spray paint base coat (I used black,) crackle medium and spray paint top coat (I chose an off white)

 

Get a piece of wood or a pre-cut sign. I got mine from Walmart, but I forgot to get a picture of it before I painted it. 

Anyways, spray paint your sign with the bottom color. 

 

Wait until the bottom coat dries and then paint on your crackle medium (no picture for this.) 

Once the crackle medium dries, spray on your top color

While you're waiting for your top color to dry, print out and cut out your letters (*warning* this method does not give you perfect lines) Tape them onto the front of your sign

I used black acrylic paint and filled in the letters with a brush

 

After the letters dried, I carefully peeled off the lettering and voila! 

 Like I said above, this method doesn't give you perfect lines. As you can see on the "Mr." sign, the paint spread out in some areas. I'm not 100% sure if I'm going to touch these up or leave them. Keegan likes that they look handmade so I'll probably leave them as is.

Also, like I said above I had some problems starting this project. I ended up using the crackle paint for my top coat because I had it. However, you do not have to, the medium works will all paints. The blue below is an acrylic paint I painted on top of the crackle medium and it worked just as well. However, it cracked in a more liner patterns because I brushed it on. 

This is a green spray paint I attempted and it worked in spots, but not all the way through. I'm assuming its because I didn't do a think enough layer. 

 Overall this project was pretty simple (once I got the right materials,) just time consuming having to wait for each layer to dry. Now I just need to add ribbons so that we can hang the signs at the reception.

Weekend Recap

This weekend was pretty uneventful. Just a laid back, getting things done around the house/for the wedding kind of weekend.

Friday I convinced Keegan that we should grab Mexican at really the only good restaurant in this town. It was good, but nothing like my favorite Mexican restaurant back home.

Saturday morning was full of running errands and trying to convince Keegan I needed a German Shepard puppy (seriously it's not fair that cute boys that volunteer with the Humane Society bombard you with puppies right as you walk into Pet Smart.) Unfortunately I left the store without a puppy. However, Keegan got a ladder so that he could start and finish his latest home project:

 

Hanging the new speakers that go along with: 

This beast. This piece of machinery controls our T.V., PS3, radio, Ipods and more. I was a little warry about having all of this equipment in my living room, but Keegan did a good job of wiring them up in the attic. Believe me, the little bits of wire you can see from the ceiling to each speaker and to the main box is a whole lot better than having wire hanging from every corner and picture frame on your walls.  

While Keegan was creeping around our attic, I busied myself with getting a few DIY wedding projects out of the way. I was smart and took pictures so there will be a few tutorials coming soon! 

The Search for THE Shoes

I swear, finding green shoes is one of the hardest things I've ever done. I guess I've found plenty of green shoes, but not THE shoes ya know? I feel like my requirements are not that extreme. I want dark green shoes, either flats or with a tiny heel (I'm not coordinated enough to walk in a wedding dress and high heels.) After days of searching without finding THE shoes, I'm going to post my "best" finds.

*I don't mean to hurt anyone's feelings if you love the shoes I post, they're just not for me and my big day.*

Apparently wearing cabbage on your feet is in these days? Found here. 

I could do camo. I mean I do live in the South now-a-days, the capital of camo. (Sorry, I had to.) Found here.

I could do a Wicked Witch of the West impersonation with these found here

Or these (found here)

Now for the serious contenders: 

I just wish they were in a darker green and not $80 (found here)

I really like these. Perfect height. Just not the right green. I'm looking more for something like this: 

It looks like I'll be stopping in at David's Bridal to see if I like any of their dyeable shoes. At least they can dye them to the same color as my bridesmaid's dresses. I hate giving them money though; I feel like they're the Wal Mart of the bridal world. Anyone else have such a hard time finding THE shoes? Anyone have any idea/suggestions for me? 

Rain Rain Go Away

Today my drive to work looked like this: 

And like this: 

And like this: 

Except that I was driving down country back roads instead of a major highway. And it wasn't the Mississippi river flooding again, it was little creeks and streams. We've got waaaaayyy too much rain last night. Our backyard is currently a marsh.  

(to be clear, I took these pictures on our move from Missouri to Mississippi last May when the river had flooded. However, there are comparable to the amount of water currently sitting in the ditches next to the road I drive on.)

Wedding Wednesday: Food Wars

(Yes I know I'm posting this on Thursday, but I didn't have the info I needed to make this post until late last night.) 

Anyways, I'm using the interwebs to help me decide which vendor I'm going with for the food for my wedding and what to feed my guests because I can't seem to make this decision on my own.

A bit of background story: I asked around my already married friends and got a recommendation for Jack's Gourmet Restaurant in Columbia, Missouri. My friend said that they had a really great experience with Jack's and I remember the food to be pretty good. I emailed Jack's at the end of October / beginning of November and didn't get a response for weeks. I finally emailed them again and I was told they had been extremely busy preparing turkeys for Thanksgiving. They emailed me their catering menu and some prices. I responded the same day asking how much x, y and z are and didn't hear back from them for weeks again. I figured they were busy with Christmas so Keegan called them in January. I was told that the lady I have been working with thought that she had sent me an email and was waiting on me to respond. She gave me the run down of prices and we did the math. We had a few more questions so I emailed her back on February 18 and I still haven't heard back from her. The severe lack of communication from Jack's made me worry. How do I know that they can show up on my wedding date prepared if they can't sit down for 10 minutes and send me an email?

So with the bad taste from Jack's in my mouth, I started searching for another caterer. I was told by another friend that Hy-vee, a grocery store with multiple locations in Columbia had been her caterer and she recommended them. Since their hours are only 9-5, Monday-Friday and both Keegan and I work during that time, I had my parents run over and see what their catering was like. My dad went on a Sunday and left a note with the catering chef. We didn't hear from them until yesterday (a week and a half later) which made me nervous. I was hoping I wouldn't go through another Jack's experience. Hy-Vee has similar food options as Jack's but at a significantly lower price. I thought that my search was done, but Hy-Vee through a kink into my plans. Originally, we were going to do 4 or 5 appetizers with Jacks which we can also do with Hy-Vee; however, for the same price as 4 appetizers, we can also do a full sit down dinner. Honestly the only reason that we had gone with appetizers in the first place was the price of a sit down dinner, but now I don't know what to do.

So come with me while I basically think out loud on the internet and try to figure this out. Any comments/opinions are much appreciated.

Jack's will be in green
Hy-vee will be in pink.
We're also doing these calculations assuming 110 people will come, we don't have a head count though.

Food
Jack's appetizers: fruit tray ($1.75/person), silver dollar rolls ($2.20/person), cheese dip ($1.95/person), buffalo wings ($2.70/person) and a cheese tray ($1.50/person) x 110 people = $1111

Hy-vee's appetizers: boneless chicken wings, finger/cocktail sandwiches, crudités with dip, spinach dip with assorted breads (4 appetizers for $8/person) x 110 = $880

 or

Hy-vee's pasta bar: fettuccine & penne, Alfredo & marinara sauce, grilled chicken, caeser salad & breadstick for $8/person x 110 people = $880

or

Hy-vee's entree option: three cheese encrusted chicken, oven roasted red potatoes, catalina (mixed) veggies and a caeser salad for $8/person x 110 people = $880

Linens
Jack's: 12 round table linens ($3) x 12 tables = $36
           8" x 5' tables linens ($3) x 4 tables = $12
           30" x 5' tables linens ($3) x 7 tables = $21
           Total linen cost: $69

Hy-vee: 17 table linens x $15/linen = $225 

Plates/silverware
Jacks: dinner plates: $.30 x 220 = $66
          dessert plates: $.30 x 110 = $66
          Total: $132 

Hy-vee plates: Full service setup for $200 includes:
             - plates and silverware (nicer plastic)

            - linens for buffet tables
            - chafing dishes
            - color coordinating decorations for buffet table (not sure if we'd use these)
            - staff for buffet (2 hours max)
            Total: $200

Bar/drinks 
Jacks: Bartender (4 hours x $15/hour) = $60
          "Setups" (glasses and ice) $1 x 110 people = $110
           Keg: 1/2 barrel of Boulevard Wheat = $275
           Wine: 10 bottles x $20/bottle = $200
           Tea/lemonade: 7 gallons x $15/gallon = $105
           Total: $750

Hy-vee: Bartender: $0 (they said we could have someone serve non-alcoholic drinks, but I'm pretty sure people can pour their own tea/lemonade)
                 Tea/lemonade/water: $1/person (includes cups and ice) x 110 people = $110

             $150 refundable deposit for keg
             $160 for Keg (guesstamation) 
             $108 for wine (guesstamation) 
             Total: $528 ($150 of which will be refunded) 


Delivery Charge 
Jack's: $30
Hy-Vee: $0 (as long as we buy more than $100 worth of food which I can't see being a problem) 


Gratuity 
Jack's: 20%
Hy-Vee: $0 (they're actually not allowed to take a tip)


Quick Rundown: 
Food                     Jacks: $1111            Hy-vee: $880
Linens                  Jacks: $60                Hy-vee: $225 
Plates                   Jacks: $132              Hy-vee: $200
Bar & Drinks      Jacks: $750              Hy-vee: $528 ($150 of which is refundable) 
Delivery Fee       Jacks: $30                Hy-vee: $0
Running Total     Jacks: $2083             Hy-vee: $1683
Gratuity              Jacks 20% ($416.6)  Hy-vee: $0
Tax (7.35%)       Jacks $182.471        Hy-vee: $122.859


Grand Total:       Jacks: $2682.071      Hy-vee: $1805.859





 So obviously Hy-Vee wins right? I feel like they give us more (like people to actually serve the food) but I guess I just fee weird for having a grocery store provide the food for my wedding. They also responded quickly to our first questions, however, I haven't had any contact with them since. I'm afraid that they're going to be another Jack's experience.

Another thing, if we do decide to serve one of the site down dinners from Hy-Vee, I feel like we're going to have to push the start of the wedding back by at least an hour.

Right now the wedding starts at 6. I'm assuming the ceremony will take 30 minutes or less which means our guests will go to the reception around 6:30 while we take a few pictures. If we get into the reception around 7 and start the food, we have until 10 to eat, dance and all that jazz (we have to be entirely out of the reception hall by 11 so clean up will start at 10.) I felt like 3 hours was enough to eat and dance if we were doing appetizers. People could graze, talk and dance on their own.

However, if we do a sit down dinner, I feel like we need an extra hour for people to eat. We would start the ceremony at 5, finish by 5:30, finish pictures by 6, have the sit down dinner from 6-7, and then do cake, mingling and dancing from 7-10.

Does this make sense or am I just crazy? Will people take an hour to eat? Do people enjoy sit down dinners or would they rather have appetizers so they can mingle and talk? Should I push back the wedding by an hour no matter what we decide? (By the way, the start time of the wedding hasn't been made public except on our wedding website which I don't think people have really looked at. I feel like we could change the start time without confusing too many people.)

HELP! 
(really, any thoughts, concerns, input would be greatly appreciated.)

KONY 2012

Now this is one cause I can get behind:

If you want to support the arrest of Joseph Kony and stop child abduction, rape and killing, go here to pledge to give money monthly, buy a t-shirt, or poster to spread the word.

Weekend Re-cap

This weekend was the much needed mental rest that I needed for sure.

Friday after work, Keegan and I just hung out at the house, made dinner and watched some T.V.

Saturday we were up bright and early to drive to Tupelo which is about an hour and fifteen minutes from our house. I was more excited than Christmas morning to get going so I woke up around 8 a.m. After a quick breakfast, we were on our way! Our fist stop was Hobby Lobby (probably my favorite store) where we got a lot of items I needed for some wedding projects. Next we met up with our friends Becca and Lindsay (Lindsay is one of my bridesmaids) for some lunch at a local Chinese restaurant. All four of us went to Sam's and then we split up while the girls went shopping and Keegan and I went to look for barstools for the house. We went to 5 or 6 stores but came home empty handed. Barstools just don't seem to be very popular anymore (so if anyone has any ideas where to find quality barstools in the $100-$150 range, that would be awesome.) After our failed shopping trip, we headed over to Becca and Lindsay's house to hang out. We got to tour their new house and play with their dogs Shelby and Levi. We ended up going home around 9:30 completely exhausted after an awesome day. Just being with friends in a different city had such an effect on my mood. I came home so happy and mentally rested which is just what I needed.

Sunday, Keegan and I went to Lowe's and Wal*Mart to get a few things for the house including a new filing cabinet. We sorted out all of the random piles of paper that were covering our dining room and then decided that our dining room would become wedding central. I moved in all of the stuff we have for the wedding so far and then set out to work on a new project (which I may post about later.) We did some more general cleaning of the house and then found out that we could get internet from Keegan's Iphone if we put it in just the right spot in the window (I'll eventually write a post about our terrible time getting internet.)

Sunday night we decided to start doing P90X after two weeks of doing the 30 Day Shred. The Shred just wasn't doing much for me, so I decided to step up and try P90X. I was scared that it was going to be way too hard for me, but I ended up loving it. Granted we've only done the first night so my tune may change in a few weeks, but right now I feel like it's what I need to be doing for my Operation Lookin' Sexy. If we stick with it for the whole 90 days, we should be done with the program at the end of June which is when my dress should come in.

So that was my weekend! I feel so much better after seeing friends, just hanging out with Keegan, getting the house more put together and starting some more wedding projects.

How was your weekend?

Faces of Addiction

One of my drawing professors, Matt, just posted a photographer's Flickr account on Facebook. Since I usually love stuff that Matt finds, I decided to check it out. Let's just say I'm more than impressed. The photographer, Chris Arnade, has a lot of photography on is Fickr, but the set that really stood out to me was "Faces of Addiction." It seems that Chris has gone around NYC, the Bronx and other places and found these men and women who lives have been claimed by addiction. He includes a little bio about each person and some of the stories are absolutely heartbreaking.

The picture, "Mr. Bishop" is one that really touched my heart. Chris' words are:

"Chris Bishop was drinking in front of a liquor store when we met. A resident in the local homeless shelter he told me the following.
At the age of thirteen, Chris killed his father, stabbing him with a knife after a childhood of abuse. He spent the next eighteen years in correctional facilities. 'When he was drunk and mad he would hold me out the apartment window and threaten to drop me to the street, eight floors below. He beat me and my mother all the time. I have been drinking ever since. To forget.'
When I asked how he wanted to be described, his eyes teared up and he said "I am human, like everyone else."

So many of the people that Chris photographed have such heart breaking stories. There is a past English teacher who got into drugs and lost his job, family and home. Or the woman who was a child prostitute. 

Even though the stories are sad, I love photography like this. It amazes me the open-ness that people will have in front of a camera and with a set of ears to listen. I'm always impressed how a camera and photographer can capture someone's heartbreak. I would love to get Chris in the gallery that I work with, but unfortunately the city that I live in is extremely religious and *ahem* old fashioned so I don't think drug addiction and prostitutes would go over well. 

*All of the photos and the bio are property of Chris Arnade. I just really wanted to spread the work of an amazing photographer.*