Panic Attack!!!!!!

So last night, I was being a good wedding planner, and doing some research online to find our bridesmaid dresses. I was of course looking for the cheapest price, and trying to get a decision made since I was advised to order them by the end of January (yes, I realize that is SATURDAY!). Well, in doing this research I made a terrible discovery. The associates at Mia's Bridal LIED TO US!! (GASP) Can you believe it!?

If you don't recall, this is the dress that we picked out for the Bridesmaids...

And we planned to do the chocolate brown (as shown) with the 2 bands (shown in ivory) in Coral. NOT GONNA HAPPEN! After reading more about the dress on the designer's website, (which yes I probably should have done a long time ago) I discovered that these bands are only available in Ivory, or the color of the dress... WHAT?! So. Not. Cool. So now I am unsure of what to do. I've emailed the bridesmaids (hurry up and write me back girls!) and am polling the realies (they always have good advice) because Lord knows I cannot make this decision on my own!!!!!! Our options now are 1) order the dress in all Chocolate Brown; 2) order the dress in Brown with Ivory bands; or 3) go shopping again for a different dress. Gah! Decisions, Decisions! Hopefully we can get this one made asap, and get these puppies ordered! It's been on the to-do list for waaaay to long...........

Aruba...Jamaica...Ooooh I wanna take ya...

...to Bermuda...Bahama...Come on pretty mama...

So Matt and I finally got our butts into the travel agency on Saturday (it's only been on the to-do list for about a month now...). We visited Pathfinder Travel & Cruises in Olathe. They were very nice, and gave us LOTS of ideas about where we could go for our Honeymoon. I must say, seeing the prices of all of these trips almost makes me sick. But, looking further into all of the resorts, and what we'd get for our money, I'm realizing that every penny will be worth it. We cannot wait for the week of relaxation that will come after our wedding. It's going to be fantastic!! Now we just have to decide where we want to go... Mary at Pathfinder quoted us prices and gave us travel books for several places:

• Aruba (Matt's top pick - and the most expensive, go figure)
• Jamaica (my top pick)
• Mexico
• Cruises to the Carribbean (sounds great, but we decided we'll save a cruise for a vacation, not for our Honeymoon)

So we just have to find some spare time (HA!) to look at all of the different resorts in these great countries and pick where we want to go. No matter what we end up choosing, I am so looking forward to the trip...as long as I have a beach, a drink in my hand at all times, and my Hubby by my side, I will be happy. :)

aaahhhhh...paradise...

CAKE!!!

Well after meeting with 5 (yes, 5!) cake bakers - which I was told by Matt was the absolute limit - we finally decided on one. Go figure it was the last one we met with. She is wonderful, though, and her cake is absolutely DELICIOUS!!!!

Who did we choose, you ask? The amazing Annie O. You can check out her website here.

She was honestly one of the nicest, most genuine people I've ever met. And like I said, her cake is wonderful. She is very talented, which you will see from her website. Not only does she do beautiful wedding cakes, she does custom carved cakes like this one:Yes, that is a cake. How amazing!? I don't think we'll be doing anything that crazy for our wedding cake, but I am very comforted by the fact that she has such wonderful talent. :) For our cake, I am still inspired by the design I posted about a while ago (if you missed that post, you can check it out here) After talking with Annie, I'm thinking we may change that up a bit though. We are considering off-setting the layers, kind of like in this picture:I think with my brown, simplistic cake, the off-setting would be a nice touch. Plus, I am just picturing my Gerber Daisies cascading down, and sitting so nicely on those corners... But I'm getting ahead of myself here. We don't have to choose our design, or our flavors for a few months yet. When the time comes, it will be a hard decision, though...Annie has about a gazillion flavor combinations to choose from!! Some yummy sounding combinations include: Reese's Peanut Butter Fudge Cake, Raspberry Lemonade Cake, S'mores Cake...oh and the list goes on. You can see the full list of flavor options on her website, on this page. Luckily we have plenty of time to make this decision, because it's going to be a tough one...You'll just have to wait for the wedding to find out what we actually decide on!! :)

Oh, and thanks to my co-worker, Nicole, who recommended Annie to me. This is one of very few vendors that didn't come to me by Realie recommendation! :)

Save the Date!!

Guess what went in the mailbox this morning?

These bad boys!!!

Now it's really official...our wedding date has been sent to the masses!! I didn't want to ruin the surprise for all of you actually receiving one...so that's why you only get a picture of the envelopes ;)

I have to give a big THANK YOU to my awesome Maid-of-Honor, and best friend for life, Jess, who came over Saturday and helped me address, stamp, stuff, & lick each and every one. It would have been a much less entertaining experience with out her... :)

So check your mailboxes everyone...in just a couple of days you will have a shiny new magnet to put on your fridge, with our wedding date in nice big letters, so you have no excuse! Be there or be square! ;)


Oh, and have I mentioned how much I love VistaPrint before?? Because I do. I ordered these from them, at a great price, and even got FREE shipping! Woo hoo! I ordered the envelopes separately from another awesome website, Envelope Mall. Oh how I love the power of the internet...

MMMMmmmmmm...

Last week on Wednesday Mom, Dad & I went out to Evergreen for our tasting with the caterer (Molly's Table...Evergreen's exclusive caterer). Matt wasn't able to make it...he and his brother-in-law were installing an alarm system into our newly burglarized home. Yes, I said newly burglarized...but that's an entirely un-related story, which has nothing to do with wedding planning, so I won't bore you. :) ANYWAY...back to the FOOD. We went down and met Donna Nagle, the owner of Molly's table. She was FABULOUS!! She is so sweet, and was full of great ideas for our "heavy hoers De oeuvres" reception. Not to mention, we got to eat TONS of her AMAZING food...so it was a good night. :) She is an excellent cook, and now I'm really looking forward to the buffet at our wedding...I don't care what people say, I will be eating at my reception. Period.

Now...without further ado...here are our selections...

• Mini Cocktail Sandwiches (Ham, Turkey & Roast Beef)
• Fresh Cut Vegetables with Dill Dip
• Chicken Tenders with Buffalo Sauce & Ranch (for all the picky eaters ;)
• Artichoke Parmesan Dip with Baguette (this. was. so. good.)
• Mini Pulled Pork Sandwiches
• Spicy Spanish Meatballs
• Infused Oil with Bread Baskets - on tables

So for all of you out there who will be in attendance...this is what you have to look forward to!!!!

I am really happy we get to work with Donna, like I said she is just wonderful, and her food is TO DIE FOR. I'm getting hungry just typing this...

It's 2009!!

Holy cow...we're getting married THIS YEAR!!!!!

I can't believe it is already 9 days into 2009 (and I haven't posted a single entry this year!). I am kind of in the middle of several things right now, so that's why I haven't had much to post about. Just for fun...here's what's in the works right now:

~Cake tastings: 2 next week, and hopefully we can then make our decision
~Save the Date's: ordered, should arrive next week!
~Catering: tasting next week, we should have our menu planned after that!
~Guest list: almost finalized. Just need to gather some more addresses...
~Honeymoon: still working on getting into the travel agency so we can get this planned
~Bridesmaids dresses: still searching online, will be ordering by the end of the month (hopefully)
~Invitations: after an unsuccessful attempt to design them myself, I have enlisted the help of a Realie to design them for me...once they are done I will be ordering from VistaPrint


So basically what all that means is I need to get on the ball and get working on these things!!

But be on the lookout...several new posts *should* be coming soon!!

Happy 2009!