You don't get a "do-over"

Hello there everyone! I know I've gone MIA in the past 3 months; waiting for your pro pics to arrive is definitely a study in patience.

However, in the days/weeks after our wedding, I've been going through an incredibly varied range of emotions. For the first couple of weeks after the event, all of our family and friends couldn't stop talking about the day. We reminisced about the fun we all had, and how smoothly everything ran. It was bliss.

Then a few more weeks passed. The online photo gallery became available to us, and the questions and nit-picking started to occur. I was officially depressed.

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This is the thing: it doesn't make a lick of sense. We had a wonderful day, overall. The weather was lovely, Justin and I were able to share our wedding day with our family and friends, and the party was a fabulous time. So, why the heck am I upset over it? Here, I'll make you a list of a few things:

• I'm sad that it is all over.
• I'm sad that we don't get to do this again, ever. The planning (and the party) is complete, and you don't get to have a "do-over."
• I wish I would have made a few decisions differently during my planning.
• I wish I would have had more time to enjoy our reception.
• I'm depressed that our first look was only one photo, especially because that was one of the aspects of the day that I was most looking forward to.
• I'm devastated that there aren't photos of my bouquet and the bridesmaids' bouquets: I was so incredibly in love with them, but they didn't get a moment to shine in our photos.
• Was I the most beautiful I've ever been on our wedding day? No. Justin even confirmed this with me: I always thought that he'd say something to our kids like, "on our wedding day, your mother was the most beautiful I've ever seen her." Eh, I guess not (for the record though, Justin said that the most beautiful I've ever been to him was the first day we met...when I had no makeup and dirty hair up in a ponytail. It is cute that he thinks it, but kind of depresses me that I put a lot of time, work, and money into how I looked on the wedding day, and I didn't really feel that it was my best in the end.).
• Even though we will [eventually] go on one, I'm sad that Justin and I still haven't had a honeymoon (actually, we have never been on any vacation together yet...not even a weekend getaway. Nothing).

I think that during the wedding planning process, it is easy to become enraptured with the ideal. You and your fiance will have a stunning wedding and reception, you will head off on an incredibly romantic honeymoon, and then return to newlywed bliss...for eternity. Now, I don't want to be a Debbie Downer, but if you haven't already guessed, the ideal is not what most people are going to experience. Don't get me wrong; I love Justin, and the life that we have together right now is very happy. VERY happy. However, we definitely feel like we've missed out on a few things.

The most common question I get asked nowadays is "how is married life? Are you loving it?" I never know what to say to them. Married life feels...the same. Justin and I have a similar schedule to before the wedding. Sure, we live together now, but the two of us already had a routine that we were comfortable with. I guess I figured that I would feel a little bit different. And...maybe we will...when we finally get to have a honeymoon in some shape or form (aka spend uninterrupted time together to really enjoy one another). Or, maybe that "newlywed bliss" feeling is just something I will never have. I guess I'll have to check back in with you in a few months to let you know about that...

So, before my recaps officially begin, I just wanted to put these thoughts out on the table. Many Bees before me have talked about post-wedding depression, and I hate to say it...but it is indeed real. You spend months planning a huge, life changing event, and when it is over you can kind of feel lost. During the planning process I KNEW that everything wouldn't turn out perfectly, but it was all hypothetical at that point. Facing the realities of inconvenient timing, missing photos, and other various elements of the day is sobering. It is very difficult to NOT focus on the aspects of your day that aren't how you planned for them.

Anyway, what I am trying to say in the end is: realistically, there is no way that your wedding is going to be perfect down to every single detail. SOMETHING, whether it is small or large, is not going to be the way you envisioned. And...you are going to have to live with it. Like I said before, you don't get to have a "do-over" on your wedding day. For now, I am going to work on focusing on the wonderful memories that Justin and I have of our wedding day, because there ARE many. And, I'm going to get pumped up to share my recaps with you...because like I said, there are many wonderful things about our day that I can't wait to divulge.

Did you experience post-wedding depression? How did you learn to put aside the feelings of resentment for aspects of your day that went awry?

Giveaway - Ring bearer pillow

Happy Monday everyone!

I just wanted to direct your attention to my new blog for an awesome giveaway: I have a ring bearer pillow AND a flower girl sash up for grabs -

ENTER HERE!

What I've been up to...

Ok, so you may have noticed that my blogging has been rather infrequent in the past weeks. Yes, that is partly due to the fact that I'm waiting (im)patiently for my professional wedding photos to arrive in my hot little hands.

But of course, that isn't the only thing. Changes are a-comin! If you follow me on Twitter, you might have noticed a mysterious name change over the weekend. I promised that it would all make sense eventually.

You see, I've been working on something else. Yep. A new site. My own domain. My little piece of the Internet that belongs to me. I'm pretty pumped. It is slightly light on content at the moment, but I'm working on it. However, it is ridiculously good looking, thanks to Lauren (aka Mrs. Scissors), who did an incredibly wonderful job with the design.

So everyone...I present to you: she likes ruffles, he likes truffles

I encourage you to stop by, say hello...and you know...become a follower? I'll be transitioning to the site permanently after my wedding recaps are completed, so get ahead of the game and subscribe now! You know you want to.

Enabling your online shopping...

I love shopping. A lot. When I have free time, it is likely that I turn to the world of online shopping. It makes me happy. And do you know what else makes me deliriously happy? Fabulous deals.

Enter: RueLaLa. The sales are short, but the deals can be awesome! Want an example?

I snagged these Betsey Johnson bad boys from RueLaLa for around $70. Original retail price? $169. They arrived in pristine condition and in a timely manner. They even include a pre-paid shipping label if you aren't happy with the product; returns are a cinch.

So...you know you want to have access to this site, right? Well, to do so, you're going to need an invitation. Annnnd guess what? Today is your lucky day, because I have them.

CLICK HERE! GET YOUR INVITE NOW! WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!?!

AND if you sign up with my invite before August 8, YOU get a $10 credit in your account! Free money...how can you NOT pass that up?

You...are...welcome.

The Bachelorette: A sunset bridal shower

Once our busy day of nail salons and flower previews seemed to be complete, the bridesmaids and I had one last activity! The girls had put together a small bridal shower for that evening - how fun! We were joined by sorority sister J, who had flown in that afternoon, as well as my mom, both my grandmothers, and my Aunt J!

The girls laid out quite a lovely spread of appetizers: hummus, pita chips, assorted veggies, homemade guacamole (YUM), baked brie, spinach dip, fruit salad, and some yummy desserts.

The big hit of the dessert spread was definitely MOH L's apple dip - it consisted of a whipped cream cheese layer, caramel apple dip, and heath bar crunch topping. My mom also discovered that it tasted ridiculously good when spread on top of a brownie. We are so healthy...

And of course, there were drinks...MOH L crafted some adorable drink tags for the guests.

Each came with a beautiful handmade wine charm from an Etsy artisan. I loved them: each featured a different combination of beads and bird charms...they matched our wedding theme wonderfully! We had a spread of assorted wines, champagne, and even some champagne punch that the ladies whipped up!

We made some quick work of that champagne punch though...

After we stuffed ourselves silly, it was time to play a few games. For one, MOH L had contacted Justin and put together a list of questions/answers about himself that I had to answer.

For the most part, I did well. However, we all had a good laugh when MOH L asked me who Justin's best friend is. Of course, I confidently said it was me (yep, I'm vain)! But...apparently Justin had answered that his friend/groomsman J was! Sheesh! Of course, with the most perfect of timing, my phone rang right after that question was answered. It was Justin...and you can clearly see that I had to give him the 3rd degree about it...just kidding...a little teasing WAS an order though.

During our "game time," the beach house had some visitors. BM K's fiance and sorority sister J's boyfriend had spent the afternoon down at the beach, and returned to the house to retrieve their belongings. My grandmothers and Aunt J were excited that the "entertainment" had arrived, and requested that they perform a little dance for all of the ladies. Needless to say, they weren't biting at that offer...but it didn't stop my relatives from trying to persuade them!

We all found it pretty amusing...

Finally, the sun was setting, and it was time for a champagne toast! We trekked down to the beach with our fancy schmancy plastic champagne glasses for some sunset photos! BM A apparently wanted two glasses...

MOH L gave a short and sweet toast to the upcoming wedding weekend...

And we all enjoyed the beautiful sunset the evening had in store for us. We couldn't have asked for a more gorgeous night!

Need to catch up on the wedding week festivities?

The bachelorette party commenced

We had a night out on the town

Relaxation, excitement, and slight panic

Something went awry with our rehearsal dinner

It wouldn't be a wedding without something going awry...

I already alluded to the fact that when BM L, A, and I drove past the rehearsal dinner location, I thought something looked strange. At that moment, I put it out of my mind, but nevertheless, it kept bugging me.

When we returned to the beach house, my cell phone rang. It was my mom, and she had some interesting news. Justin's mom had arranged with the rehearsal dinner restaurant to drop off the centerpieces on Friday morning so she wouldn't have to worry about them on Saturday. She had arrived at the restaurant that morning to discover the doors were closed, chained, and padlocked! She had spoken with the manager that Tuesday, only 3 days earlier...and there seemed to be nothing wrong at that time. However, at some point between Tuesday and Friday, the restaurant had closed. And, of course...they hadn't informed Justin's mother of this.

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So...there we were...without a rehearsal dinner location for the following evening. If it was a small dinner, I might not have been concerned. However, our rehearsal dinner was scheduled for 60 guests, and it was being held on a Saturday night....on a holiday weekend. As soon as my mom told me the news about our original restaurant closing, I could feel my heart (and stomach) drop down to my toes. This...was...not...good!

Now, I'm going to pause the story for a moment. During my planning process, I constantly was hearing how there really is no way to avoid at least one thing from going wrong in relation to your wedding day. I wholeheartedly agree with this statement. Something IS going to go wrong at SOME point during your wedding festivities. But, you know what? Things have a way of working themselves out. Breathe in...breathe out...

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At first, I thought that our rehearsal dinner was going to be a catastrophe. How in the world were we going to resolve this problem in less than 24 hours? I figured that we would have to order pizzas and eat them in our hotel lounge, or something to that accord. Well, luck happened to be on our side. Justin's mother had frantically searched around the area, and ended up visiting a restaurant where Justin's brother had held his rehearsal dinner a few years back. They were able to accommodate the size of our group, AND they were willing to recreate our menu to the best of their ability (our guests had already pre-selected their dinner choice for the evening). Problem solved! The only thing we had to do now was to inform our guests of the new location, and give them directions! Sigh of relief? Indeed. Crisis...averted!

Have you had a moment of panic during your wedding planning?

The Bachelorette Festivities: Relaxation, excitement, and slight panic sets in

After a day at the aquarium followed by a night on the town, the bridesmaids and I decided that the next day would be one of relaxation. Well, sort of! We slept in a little later than usual, then quickly dressed and ran out the door to get to the nail salon.

We picked up some sustenance in the form of Panera sandwiches and coffee, and proceeded to the nail salon for manicures and pedicures. It was definitely nice to sit in a comfy massage chair for an hour or so...with the hustle and bustle of pre-wedding excitement, it can sometimes be difficult to take a moment to relax and take everything in. However, I highly recommend taking some time to yourself before your wedding day if at all possible!

After the nail salon, the bridesmaids and I headed over to my parents' house. Some of my relatives had arrived the previous afternoon, and I was eager to say "hello!" Do you remember how I mentioned that I had committed my relatives to slave labor on my behalf? Well, my mom, both my grandmothers, my aunt, AND my grandfather had been hard at work on our favors into the wee hours of the night. They must love me...

They look happy enough, right?

The idea for our favor came up randomly one night. I was at dinner with my parents, and we were discussing some wedding details. My mom and I were commiserating about the situation. The original idea was to bag up some yummy key lime cookies from a local bakery. However, something about it was just not exciting us. Then, out of nowhere, my dad came up with a brilliant idea! If you recall, Justin and I met because of our pups. When I was a kid, my mom used to make a delicious snack called "puppy chow" all the time - a combo of Crispix cereal, peanut butter, chocolate, and powdered sugar. Why not bag up some "puppy chow" for our guests as a nod to the furry friends that brought us together? The decision was made on the spot. So, a few days before the wedding, my family members were wrangled into melting peanut butter and chocolate, shaking bags filled with powdered sugar, and portioning each treat into white coffee bags that I had affixed monogrammed stickers to.

Things were incredibly busy at our household when we arrived; bags had to be packed, supplies had to be delivered, and we still had an important appointment to go to that afternoon! Do you remember how I said my florist would give me a flower preview? It was time for mine! When we walked into my appointment, I was bracing myself...even though I knew that Debbie had a firm grasp on my vision, I was very anxious to see if it was realized!

Oh boy, was I ever excited! As soon as my eyes landed on our flowers, a huge grin spread across my face. They were perfect. No, more than perfect, if that is even possible! Ok, so I am going to go ahead and spoil my pro pics by showing you my flowers now...but I just can't help myself! Can you see why I was about ready to jump for joy?

Fun fact: I don't know that we ever discussed the size of my bouquet in our meetings. My bridal bouquet was LARGE and IN CHARGE! Seriously: look at it next to me!

However, it was perfect. Absolutely perfect. The peonies and cabbage roses looked stunning together, especially with the seeded eucalyptus.

Debbie even added sprigs of rosemary, as it is a calming herb (and what bride doesn't need a little bit of calm on her wedding day?). The bridesmaids' bouquets turned out beautifully as well; they were created with cabbage roses, creamy stock, lisianthus, white cymbidium orchids, and seeded eucalyptus.

Gorgeous. I pretty much did not want to leave my flowers at that point; I was infatuated. But alas, there were things to do and people to see, so BM L, A, and I headed back to Clearwater. Bye bye my lovelies...

On the way back to the beach house, I took BM L and A through some back roads near the water. It was a lovely scenic drive. I also wanted to point out to them where our rehearsal dinner was going to take place the following evening. When we drove through downtown Clearwater, I saw the restaurant up ahead. As we passed by, I made a comment that something looked strange...but I couldn't put my finger on it.

Little did I know what was to come...