Random Reflections of a Perfectionist: The wedding expo...

I can't help but love it when I have an extremely productive day. That can certainly be said about my adventures yesterday!

I had the rare opportunity to be off of work on Sunday, because I really needed to take the opportunity to do some wedding-related things. It just so happened that there was a wedding expo at the St. Pete Times Forum in downtown Tampa on Sunday, so mom and I got up in the morning and headed over!

Hmm, looks deserted???

We arrived a few minutes before they opened the doors to the event...as we walked up to the building, the two of us were wondering if anyone was actually showing up to this shindig; it looked pretty deserted out there! I shrugged and said "well, at least we'll get through the entire event at a decent time!" The clock struck noon, and we were allowed to enter...

Now, this was my first official wedding expo that I attended, and there are some tips that I would highly suggest you implement in order to streamline your visit!

1 - Bring address labels!!! Honestly, this is a complete and utter lifesaver! You are going to want to sign up for every single giveaway at every single booth, and your hand will pretty much fall off from filling out your address, phone, email, etc on each form unless you have these with you. I brought along a sheet of return address labels from home, and it cut down the time it took me to fill things out significantly! I almost didn't do this...but thanks to my Aunt, who kindly suggested this method, I was saved!!! Thank you Aunt S!

2 - Be methodical!!! Yes, it is exciting and a bit haphazard when you enter the event...you smell food from caterers, hear music and see lights from DJ's...there is a ton of stimulation going on...FOCUS! Being a perfectionist, I figured out a plan of attack before we began; starting from the back row of booths, and snaking our way up and down the aisles to make sure that we did not miss anything. I didn't even refer to the guide that they gave at the door (although if you are only looking for specific vendors, I'd suggest targeting only those!). I was eager to take in the entire event, however.

3 - Sign up to win...everything!!! Ok, so I know its already a given that you'd enter to win whatever each and every booth is giving out...but seriously, it could work out well for you in the end! Many of the vendors have some great prizes...and who knows, you could be a winner! As for me...I got the most delightful call this morning from Mostly Roses, one of the florists at the event; I won $500 worth of flowers for my wedding! My trip paid off!!!!

Signing up to win a lovely prize!

It took mom and I about an hour and a half to work our way through all of the vendors, which I thought wasn't too terrible! I was able to skip over the informational speech portions of many tables, as I already have my venue, dress, food, and photographer taken care of! And, I must add, I couldn't help but feel a bit puffed up after perusing the other photographer's displays...there was nothing with as much life as Chad's photos...hooray! No buyer's remorse for me (Not that I was expecting any of course; I just love the satisfaction that was involved)!

Attempting to push my way through the crowd; it certainly wasn't deserted inside the event!!!

From the expo, mom and I headed over to the new IKEA, and I managed to find myself a schnazzy new desk to use in my new apartment in Virginia...now I need to find the proper desk accessories to organize all of my things (is it sad that this thrills me this much???)! I also picked up a new pillow that I'm loving...its a memory foam pillow; you insert it into a cover (you can pick between a microfiber one and a real goose down cover; I picked the microfiber because its 1/2 the price, and I get allergies sometimes with real feathers)...it is glorious!!!!

Ahhh, a sigh of relief after a busy and productive day! We arrived back home and put our feet up for the rest of the evening, and I sorted through the plethora of material that was collected at the event: