And I Said Yes

We had decided to take a break from unpacking our new apartment.  It just seemed like we were barely making a dent in eliminating the sea of boxes stacked up everywhere.  So, instead of getting ourselves even more overwhelmed than we already were, we decided to make it a family movie night!  Thank goodness the public libraries here have a great movie collection because the cable people hadn't yet come out to hook everything up.

Anyways, we set Moo up to watch The Muppets in the living room (JJ was asleep) and then we watched Red Tails and Horrible Bosses in the second bedroom.  It's right off the living room and I could watch Moo to make sure she stayed on the couch.  The Mr and I don't get tons of time to be alone.  So, despite the mess around us, it was nice to snuggle and have a little romantic moment.

Anyways, we're watching Red Tails.  By the way if you haven't seen this movie definitely see it.  I give it two thumbs up.  It's about the Tuskegee airmen (African American pilots) who were finally given a chance to really serve our country in Italy during World War II.  Add this to your list of movies to watch during Black History Month.

We're watching the part of the movie where one of the characters, Lighting, proposes to his Italian girlfriend, Sofia.  It was a really sweet moment because of course he's kind of portrayed as being a ladies man.  So, I wasn't expecting him to really settle down, but hey love can change you.  I won't spoil the movie and tell you what she said, but here's the conversation the Mr and I had afterwards.

The Mr: "Would you marry me?"

Me:  "Umm.... I'm pretty sure I already did that."

The Mr:  "I know that. But would you marry me again?"

Me: "You don't want to get married again."  (Our first attempt at planning a wedding was a disaster.  He hated everything about the whole process except for the food tasting part.)

The Mr:  "No, I'm serious.  I want us to renew our vows."

I still thought he was kind of joking but he kept talking about and finally I realized he was serious.  

The Mr:  "So, do you want to marry me? Again?"

Me: "Yes!"

This mama is one happy bride-to-be again!  I've always dreamed of having an actual wedding and to finally have him want that to is exciting beyond belief.  We definitely won't be doing the wedding this year because our wedding anniversary is less than a month away, but I'm looking forward to possibly walking down the aisle the next year to exchange vows with the love of my life again.  This time around, I'm not trying to plan something huge.  I want it small, intimate but grand and elegant.  We've overcome a lot and I think renewing our vows is the perfect way to celebrate our victory.

I'll be sure to keep you all updated on everything as we go along!

Would you marry your spouse all over again?

My Weekend WrapUp

Well, I didn't get much wedding planning done this weekend like I'd hoped to. Instead, I spent Saturday riding back to my home town for a surprise 21st birthday party for my little brother.  I feel so old because it seems like it took forever for him to turn 21 and he's about to graduate from college with his bachelor degree.  Anyways, he really enjoyed his party and the rest of the family was totally surprised when we walked in.  They had no idea we were coming.

I'm really glad that I went because I was in seafood heaven.  I mean we had crab legs, fried shrimp, fried fish, corn on the cob and spuds.  There was no shortage of sugar either between the cheesecake, cupcakes and the Paula Dean Flaky Butter Cake that I had on the way down.  We just had a really lovely time celebrating such a wonderful event.

It felt good to be back home and hanging out with my family.  It's been almost a month since I've moved and about three weeks since I was last home to visit.  They really enjoyed seeing Moo and how much she's grown.  Yes, it's amazing how much people change in so little time.  My niece looked so much more grown up and she's reading on her now!!!  Shocker because she just started kindergarten only two weeks ago.

I'm glad that some of the tension between my mom and I has eased.  I still don't think that she's 100% ok with my choice to be back with Jay, but she's learning to accept that it is what it is.  This is my life and I'm living it the best way I know how to live it for me and my family.  I can't keep trying to please everybody else because I only end up not pleasing myself and I'm tired of putting myself last.

Sunday was just a very laid back day.  I still haven't located a church for us to attend up here.  I feel kind of bad because  I really enjoy going to church and I want to make sure that Moo is developing spiritually as well.  So, I will certainly be scouting out a few places.  I'm actually leaning towards joining the church across from the college I went to.  I really enjoyed the services when I was staying on campus. 

The congregation is very nice and the pastor seemed very friendly and knew all his members personally even though there's like 200 of them not including all the kids.  Now that's true dedication right there.  I'm sure that I know 200 people personally but imagine if all those 200 people had kids and some even have grandkids and great grandkids.  It's crazy, but goes to show that not all preachers are in it for the money.  It's nice to see that preachers are taking the time to connect with their flock.

I'm hoping that this church will be the right fit for us.  If it isn't then I guess we'll just keep trying until we find the right one.

Blog Hopping Saturday

Well, good people the weekend is officially here!!!!  Hooray, hooray, hooray!!  This weekend I will be busy wedding planning.  I have to sketch out a rough design for the invitations and finish up the programs.  I know it's a little early to be working on programs considering I still have ten months and some change to go before the big day but I want all the small stuff out of the way.

I've watched enough Bridezilla and other wedding shows to know that letting small stuff drag out until the end will catch up with you in the end.  And the sooner I get the small stuff taken care of the sooner I can move on to dealing with the big stuff like finding a dress maker and caterer.  So, here's to hoping that I will have a successful planning weekend.  And while I'm planning, I've decided to take a little time out for some blog hopping.

My first stop of the morning was Just Married with Coupons to join in her Saturday Stalk for Savings.  You can join us to by visiting her site and checking out all the rules for the blog hop.

My second stop was over at Between the Lines for their Spotlight Saturday Blog Hop.  Be sure to swing by there and link up your blog as well as another blog you would like to spotlight.

Eat, Drink, Shop & Win

Well, as you all know I'm newly engaged and have already started planning.  Last Saturday we decided to enjoy a nice outing at the mall to look at tuxes and all that jazz.  While at Belk, one of the sales associates informed us that they would be hosting an in-store engagement party of all the newly engaged couples in the area.  Talked about excited.  I'm just getting engaged and already going to my first party and I didn't even have to plan it.

Well, let me just say that Jay and I had a blast at the party tonight!!  It was amazing.  We had music by DJ Sir Charles, food and drinks by my old college and shopping and tons of door prizes by my former employer.  Yes, I was a Belk girl when I was in college.  I made a lot of friends and connections working at that store and started to come in contact with NBA player, famous designers, singers and all other kind of A-list celebs.  Awesome job minus the snobby customer every once in a while.

It felt good to be able to mix and mingle, scan things for the registry (Jay had a ball with the scanning gun) and enjoy some really upscale eats.  Most of all it was just great seeing how involved Jay wanted to be with this whole wedding planning process.  Going in I was expecting him to be a little bit stand offish because he really didn't want to attend this event at first.  However, once we got there and he had his first glass of red wine (only his 2nd drink since we've been together) he loosened up.

And to make things better we won a stainless steel hand blender by Cuisinart!!!  It blends drinks (I love smoothies), cake mixes, soups and more.  That is just one thing we can go back and take of our gift registry.  I also got free hair clips from Carolee and a free ring cleaning from Belk's fine jewelry department.  It was awesome.

My favorite part was the all you could eat candy bar.  I have a very bad sweet tooth. LOL.  The candy bar had everything from Skittles to M&Ms and Jolly Ranchers.  Oh it was heaven on earth.  Jay and I have agreed that we will be having a candy bar at our wedding as well.  Also, we're going to be meeting with the dj to see if he can work some of his magic at our reception.  I mean he was amazing the way he kept all the songs flowing without having to pause and go into the next one.

It doesn't hurt to admit that he was super cute too.  He looked really nice but still urban in his button down and black slacks.  Not all djs rock graphic tees and saggy jeans.  And Belk also gifted us with some free cloth grocery bags.  You all know that I'm all about going Green and being good to the environment.  We recycle about 80% of our trash in this household.  And we got a wedding planner worth $30, a copy of Carolina Brides and a $25 gift card.

I couldn't have planned a more perfect engagement party if I tried.


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My Weekend WrapUp

It's official, I'm getting married!!!!  Jay and I finally set a date (and a backup date) and have started wedding planning.  This year has been one of many changes for sure.  I've been a single mom, lost several loved ones, made new friends and more.  Life for me and Moo has been anything but dull.  And I'm looking forward to my happy ending.

So, the top picture looks better than the picture my phone would take but I absolutely love my ring.  It's by Helzberg Diamonds.  14k white gold with 2.50 carats of diamonds.  The center diamond is a princess cut surrounded by tampered baguettes and then there are two rows of round diamonds running along each side.  Doesn't it look like a present with a bow on top?

Anyways, Saturday we decided to jump start the wedding plans by heading out to look at bridesmaids dresses, tuxes and even a dress for me to wear at the reception.  Jay was a little sad that I wouldn't let him pick out my wedding dress. While I'm not all about tradition when it comes to weddings him not knowing exactly what my dress looks like is one of the traditions that I am going to keep.  Besides I've asked for his feedback as far what he likes and doesn't like and have sketched out my dream dress.  Now the hunt begins for a dress maker who can bring this vision to life.

I'm kind of worried about my sketch to too many people because I don't want anyone stealing my one of a kind idea.  I really want this design to just be worn by me.  However, as a fashion merchandising student I've learned that there really isn't any such thing as one of a kind anymore when it comes to fashion.  Designers recycle and try to put new spins on old ideas all the time.  So, I'm going to do my research and enlist the help of my fashion contacts to find a dress maker who won't duplicate my dress for another bride in the future.

Another concern that I had about my dresss was cost, but since Jay has agreed to foot the cost for the ceremony, reception and my dress I can relax a little bit.  I'll be in charge of decor, catering and entertainment.  And since I design stationary, I've already created our Save the Dates and wedding program.  Still waiting on some inspiration for the invitations.   The invitations have to be absolutely fab.  I want ribbon, bling, glitz and glamour.

Starting to sound like an episode of Platinum Weddings. I am just bursting with excitement that the big day is finally coming.  I've been waiting years for this and it's finally happening.  I've even gone ahead and started registering all the different stores.  But enough about the wedding.  There will be more details to come as the Big Day draws near.

Sunday was just a really relaxing day of sleeping in, watching a little Joel Olsteem and a taking a drive to Larinburg.  It felt good to have a lazy Sunday with my little family.  And Jay even cooked. My week has gotten off to a great start and I hope that you all as great of a weekend as I did.  Be blessed this week!

Adventures in Wedding Planning

Ok, so I have just officially planned my first wedding and I have to say that it went very well.  At first when my younger sister told me that she was getting married in less than a week, I was a little fearful.  One because she wanted to just go down to the courthouse and do some completely unoriginal ceremony conducted by a stranger.  And two, I wasn't even sure if she had a dress.  Even if you're just doing the courthouse thing, it is still important to have a dress specifically for that occasion.

Anyways, I  was kind of stoked when she asked me before she left to help her plan a small ceremony here at the family estate.  In the past, we have had our disagreements and weren't always as close as we should have been.  However, as we have matured and gone through our different trials and struggles, we have bonded in a new light and are discovering a very welcomed friendship of sorts.  So, I was very happy and more than willing to help plan the ceremony.

Wedding planning has been one of my many dreams and I was filled with ideas that I wanted to try.  After the initial excitement wore off, I started thinking about all the things that had to be done in such short time. Flowers, food, decoration and let's not forget about the CAKE!!  What wedding is complete without a wedding cake?  And I didn't want her to have some half assed cake either.

I started by first planning out the menu which consisted of Apple & Sage Pork Chops, Mashed Potatoes with Beef Gravy, French Cut Green Beans, Rolls, and an array of drinks and desserts.   Then I started shopping for wedding favors.  I thought it was important for the few guests who be at this ceremony to have something remember it by.  Then it hit me that the biggest part by far would be decorating the yard.

All the other stuff seemed so minor in comparison of trying to figure out how to fill such a huge space.   Not to mention there are like a million trees and the ground was covered in leaves.  Well, let me tell you all....it took three people and almost ten hours to tackle that task.  I mean I blisters for days.  I don't want to see another rake any time in the near future for sure.

But when the final day got here everything went off great.  My sister was happy and so was my brother in-law.  They had a great time.  And the smiles on their faces made my day.  So, now the question remains as to if I ever pursue this adventure again?  Maybe.....we'll see what happens.