So far, we have 35 confirmed guests (obviously not including ourselves!) I've been leaving work for my break everyday around 1:00 because I know that the mail will have been delivered by then. We had one day so far with no RSVPs :( But that day we got a wedding gift (our blender!) and a wedding card, so it made it alright haha. This was another productive week! On Tuesday I had my second dress fitting. If you remember, my dress was HUGE during my first fitting. This time, it fit much nicer. I'm going to post some pictures for you, but please don't judge my eyebrows. Also, she had to take off the sides of the beading around the waist, all the beading around the hem, and some flowers on the side to take it in/up, but didn't want to replace that stuff until after I tried it on again and made sure it fit. So there are pieces hanging off and the edges look rough, but it's a work in progress!         I *also* had my hair and makeup trial on Thursday, which was awesome! I had a great time with my mum- we went to see our venue because she hadn't been there, and then we had lunch and headed over to the salon. Here's what I'll be doing with my hair. I am going to ask her for more volume in the front, and I think I'm going to wear my veil on top of my hair instead of under, but other than that, I LOVED it.            I also loved my makeup and absolutely adored the fake lashes. I wish I could wear them everyday! The only thing I am going to change about my makeup is having no white shadow (it'll be nude instead for the shimmer) and add a little more blush because I feel like it was great in person but not enough in photos. Also, for some reason I didn't smile in any of these photos? So try to imagine me smiling hahaha.      
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I had my first dress fitting today!
I didn't want to go to David's for alterations because I have heard absolutely terrible things about their alterations department. Yes, I know I heard terrible things about getting my dress from them too, but I wasn't going to take any chances with alterations. So I contacted one of my close friends, whose mom is a seamstress. I knew she did alterations from her house and that she actually made my friend's bolero from the extra fabric from her gown. I'm fairly sure she did her alterations, too. I went to her house today and I am beyond confident that she will do a beautiful job with my gown. She spoke about many other weddings that she has done/is doing and really knew the lingo about sewing (my mum sews a little too, but wedding gowns aren't her forte, so she knew she knew what she was talking about). She did some pinning and even tried out a preliminary three-point French bustle which I LOVED. I cannot wait to go back in a month and see my dress. There is SO much that needs to be done to it. It needs to be hemmed, but the detail along the hem line needs to be preserved (so she needs to take it off, do the hem, and reattach it). It needs to be taken in basically all along the bodice- down to my hips- which means all the little flowers and bead work need to be removed and then reattached. The crinny even needs to be hemmed. She's also hemming and taking in the bridesmaid's dress I'll be wearing in the wedding two weeks before ours. She is charging a beyond fair price and I get to go back in a month for my next fitting. She wants me to try on the dress before she reattaches all the little flowers to make sure it fits. I cannot wait! I also can't believe I'm close enough to the wedding to be starting my alterations! I remember when I was counting backwards from 500... Ahh!! We finally met with the restaurant that will potentially be catering at our wedding.
The food was delicious. We tasted the prime rib, stuffed chicken, grilled chicken breast with red pepper and spinach, and the cheese ravioli with lobster cream sauce. The sides we tried were sauteed veggies and tri-colour potatoes, as well as Caesar salad with their own homemade dressing. The food was delicious and if we go with them, we'll probably do the Caesar salad (as opposed to a garden salad). We really liked the prime rib and the cheese ravioli with lobster cream sauce for the entree choices, and the tri-colour potatoes for the side. We loved everything and the chef (owner) was super nice and very helpful. The only thing that makes me nervous is that the person in charge of catering is not very good at communicating and I have a hard time getting her to respond to emails and phone calls. I'm going to express my concern to her and hopefully we can resolve it so we can book them. The last thing I want is to be worried a week before my wedding because I'm not sure what's going on with our food. On another (very exciting) note, I tried on my wedding dress this morning. We were at my fiance's parent's house (where my dress currently lives) and I couldn't resist. It's too big! I can hold a solid fist full of fabric behind me! All my hard work is paying off- it's super fabulous and I feel fantastic! Everything is really coming together. The last big checks we have are catering, rentals, and tuxes. After that, it's basically just small stuff. A huuuuuge weight will be off my shoulders soon!! Good thing, too, because we're creeping ever closer to the Big Day (or Doomsday, as I lovingly refer to it sometimes haha)- only 146 days left! I can't believe that I was once counting I'm keeping my dress at my FIL's house until the wedding. We have NO closet space (like... literally... my dresses are hanging in the coat closet in the hall- we are cramped!) and my mum's closet situation is even worse than our is. So yes... FMIL was so nice and let me keep it in a closet in one of the spare rooms at their house. Well FI and I went over there this afternoon to let our dog (we have a husky) run around their fenced-in backyard with their dogs (they have a lab and a beagle). It was the first time since I dropped it off over there that I've been over and of course I went up to take some sneak peeks while FI chased the dogs around the yard. I got some detail shots of my dress and veil since the pics online do NO justice to either of them! These were taken with my iPhone, so please ignore the less than perfect quality...  Me at the store, the night I bought my dress (Oleg Cassini, CWG377, DB)  In the garment bag, this picture just shows you how many flowers are sprinkled all over this dress. They are on the back, too. So very stunning!  Chest detail  More chest detail  Flowers, beading, and stitching before the flare. So stunning.  More bottom detail  Still more detail...  This is a close-up of the beading under the chest.  A close-up of the hem. I love how it is similar to the detail under the chest. So sparkly too!  Me wearing my veil (DB, 689) with a Vera gown at the store  Close-up of the top tier of my veil  Close-up of the bottom tier of my veil I don't know how much I've posted here about my god-awful DJ search, but I believe it might finally have come to an end.
I have been contacting DJ's left and right. Making appointments, rescheduling, dealing with sketchy or unprofessional people who just don't work for me. It's been terrible and stressful. All I want to do is stinkin dance! So I'm browsing the South Jersey board on TK, basically reading every single thread about DJ recommendations. Contact a few and finally strike gold. This guy is solid. I mean it. He really knows what he's doing. Wanna know how I know? He sent me samples of his mixes/blends. He provided a voice demo so I could hear him announce a bridal party. He made me feel 100% confident about his skill/knowledge as a DJ on the phone tonight. Am I booking him? Probably. I can't make that decision without Fi, and he won't be home from work until around 9:00 tonight. But I can tell you that I feel SO much better to know that this guy exists, and that not all DJs are creeps! Also, on an unrelated note... My wedding dress & veil are in!! I can't wait to go pick them up and put them back on again!! Today my mum told me she and my step-dad were going to pay for everything I bought at David's the other night. That means they are covering not only my dress, but my slip, "long bra," veil, and dress preservation box/service. I am so beyond thrilled and over-the-top thankful. Now I just need to pay for alterations, and I am so happy to be saving the money.
This week I received my cake topper, garter, and garter charms. I also bought totes for my bridesmaids that were on clearance at Target for $4.24 (marked down from $16.99- sweet), as well as beach-themed potpourri for the bathrooms. I know, that's a kind of pointless purchase, but it'll be a nice touch I think. I am going absolutely crazy with DJ shopping. My top three priorities for our wedding are as follows: 1. It's at the beach (check!) 2. We have a fantastic photographer (check check!) 3. That we & our guests dance all night long That last one seems to be the one I'm having the most problem with. Every DJ I have contacted is either above our price range or leaves me feeling uncomfortable or with a bad taste in my mouth. I am feeling so- blah. I just want the major vendors to be booked so I can relax! This is making me crazy. My co-worker, Carrie, recommended her DJ from her wedding in April and I contacted him yesterday. He has been amazing so far and so communicative. He's from a town very close to mine, but his in-laws live in Stone Harbor so he said there would be no travel fee for him to do our wedding (yay!). I just hope we can stinkin' afford him. We were at Chris' mom's 50th birthday party last night and they had a DJ that everyone kept saying we should book. He wasn't that impressive though, and almost everyone at the party was 50 or over, and the music was definitely their style... NOT mine. So we nodded politely and said, "maybe..." but won't be looking into that one. However, it did get Chris and I talking about how we were willing to adjust the budget and do without some things so we can maybe spend some more money on our DJ. Ahhh! I just want this part over with so I can have fun with little details!! Oh- another interesting part of the party last night is that Lailah, Chris' cousin- was there. She is about 7 or 8 years old and was sending us major signs that she wants to be our flower girl. She kept asking about the wedding. She kept staring at me, pointing at her dress, and walking away. She wore a white dress. Her mother told me she wore a white dress because she knows that's what colour flower girls wear. How am I supposed to tell her/them that we aren't having kids at our wedding?? Now I feel bad, but I am NOT budging on that one... My mum and I went to David's Bridal tonight and I found "the one!" I cried and everything. Actually, she cried too... and so did my consultant! It is everything I wanted. Classic yet modern, fun and romantic. I love love love it. Here's a picture- it does NOT do it justice!! Please ignore my funny face!!  I ordered my veil, too, but for some reason Weebly won't let me upload any more pictures right now? So for now you just have to imagine its scalloped edges and beaded flower detailing. It's fingertip length and I just love the whole thing.
Last night I went dress shopping with my mum, future mother in law, bridesmaid, and my sister (who is also a bridesmaid). I was super nervous when I got there for some reason- and I felt so flustered. I was so hot and my face was so pink/red. It was crazy. I still can't believe I tried on wedding dresses! I'm not sure I've found "the one" yet, but I did learn that I do still probably want lace and that the mermaid silhouette looks fab on me. Just thought I'd share a few pictures!! Please don't mind my face or hair in them- I had just got off work (and I work at a preschool, so I play tag all day), I was hot, and I had NO idea when people were taking pictures.  This was the first dress I tried on. I love that it had sleeves and a keyhole back, but I don't like how the lace stopped and I HATE the sash. She put on a blingy sash instead and removed the bow and it was much better.  This was one of the dresses I had on my list of ones to try on. I LOVE how it fit, but it was too much of a "party dress" for our wedding. Still loved it though!!  I call this "The One That Got Away." When I went back and looked at the pictures today, I realized that I really love this dress. I failed to recognize that in the store last night, though, so I don't know that I'll be able to find it again. I love love love the ruching and side draping, the corset back is divine, and the chest detail is amazing. I wish I'd noticed it last night!!  The back of the dress above. I seriously think I need to try this one on again... Yesterday my mum came upstairs to do laundry. I was researching flowers when she came in, but wanted to show her this dress site I found that has designer dresses at a fraction of the price (goweddingdress.com, if you're interested). I was so excited when I found it because my dress budget is pretty low, but I haven't been able to find a lot in my price point. As we're looking at some of the gowns I have bookmarked (some that I've been eying for the past 7 months and am totally excited I can actually have now that they're so affordable), she mentions that she wants to pay for my gown. I was floored. She already said she's buying our cake. But the dress!? !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am beyond thrilled and there are no words for how thankful I am. She wants to go dress shopping to try some dresses on, and then order from that website. Her cousin does dress alterations, so that will be free/nearly free. Also, on the website is that shipping is free and returns are honoured if done so within 7 days. So basically, if I don't like the dress when it comes, I send it back and it's like the whole thing never happened. It's virtually risk-free, and I get the designer dress I've been dreaming about. Now.. if only they carried Maggie... Here are some of the dresses I'm considering. Obviously I'll try them on first (or at least ones that are similar):  Allure 8764 My front-runner :)  Demetrios 3140 I've had my eye on her for awhile. She's completely different than all the other dresses I like.  Allure 8755  Demetrios 1356 A stunning gown, but it needs straps. I think adding them might take away from it though. Believe it or not, I love lace gowns. I know that assortment doesn't really reflect that, but I was always taught to try things outside of what you were positive you wanted, because you can be surprised. So those are some dresses I want to try on to see what I might like.
The day's excitement doesn't end there. After talking with my mum, I had to get ready for dinner with Chris' parents. They invited us over to "talk about the wedding." I was SO nervous. Last time they wanted to talk about the wedding, I ended up crying for three hours because they told us they thought it was a bad idea for us to get married in Mexico. It turns out that I had no reason to be nervous. They wanted to go over our plans: ceremony on the beach, cocktail hour outside in the space between the beach & the reception building, reception inside, etc. We pulled up pictures, got excited, etc. Then they told us that they want to help pay for it. !!!!!!!!!!!!! We were NOT expecting that at all. I think the wedding gods were smiling on us yesterday. They want to contribute a good amount of money and also host the rehearsal dinner. A huge weight off my chest. I feel like we can actually do this now, without having to live with no electricity and keep ourselves warm under a blanket all winter. Other things we learned yesterday and weren't expecting at all:
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