1.30.2009

Don't Stop Believin...

Just a Small Town Girl, Livin in a Lonely World...

Just a City Boy, Born & Raised in South Detroit...

One of our first dates! Out & About in Lubbock, Texas!

I took CityBoy to meet one of my best friends (Bridesmaid SA) in San Antonio!


Our first Christmas as a couple, at my parents house with Mia (our furbaby!)

In Amarillo, I went to pick him up from an out of town job to go...somewhere, I can't remember where, but it was important...Bridesmaid SA's wedding maybe...Easter??

Easter at my Parents' house!

At Bridesmaid SA's rehearsal dinner! Doesn't he look thrilled?

On the Beach in Corpus Christi!

Celebrating my graduation from Texas Tech!!

I love this guy!! I always look at pictures of us together and remember some of the happiest times of my life and I honestly can't wait for all the happy times to come!!!!

1.29.2009

STW: The Venue

In my own small town, there are 2 standard venues for wedding receptions—the Sons of Hermann Hall or the American Legion Hall. Both spaces are relatively large, open spaces with the requisite dance floor in the middle. The Sons of Hermann Hall is a little larger, but both spaces generally offer the same features. A kitchen for the caterers of your choice, a “Bar” consisting of a couple spigots for a Keg or two or ten, a stage for the band or more common DJ, and a fantastically undecorated interior—Standard rectangular tables and metal folding chairs included.

Almost all weddings in our area are held in these halls. The same goes for the surrounding towns. My cousin B’s reception will be held in the KC Hall (Knights of Columbus) in her hometown of Schulenburg and two of my close friends (C & C) who were wed last summer held their reception at the SPJST Hall in nearby Dime Box.

This type of venue literally opens the door for creative decorating. At C & C’s wedding in Dime Box, they created a drape over the center of the dance floor centered around the venue’s gorgeous antique chandelier. Many years ago, when my cousin B’s sister, K, was married, they created a gazebo in the center of the dance floor using a PVC pipe structure covered in Tulle.

My cousin A got married this past summer as well and her now-husband’s mother, who is a caterer, brought in round tables, pretty chairs, and ice sculptures and wowed the local crowds who were used to the rectangular tables and folding chairs!!

We will be holding our reception at the Sons of Hermann Hall. I’d always dreamed of a reception somewhere fantastic, not just the Hall like everyone else, but after researching venues within a 50-mile radius, I determined that any space that was large enough to hold my large reception would A) break the bank or B) require my guests to drive 45 minutes. I decided the Sons of Hermann was something we could work with. My immediate family is the most crafty/handy/creative group of people I know.

The Sons of Hermann Hall does not let you hang anything from the ceiling or the walls, so this was my mom’s first decorating hurdle. She cleared it with ease by enlisting my dad & brother to design and create metal stands to anchor strings of lanterns strung across the room. (The stands are still in the design process…when my family takes on a project, they do it right. I’m talking exact measurements, levels & t-squares, and perfect craftsmanship. My brother especially, a few years ago, he built a trailer sprayer (farm thing) from scratch and won prizes all over Texas for his work….but enough about that, more to come later).

My mom may be the only person who notices, but against the back wall of the hall, there are very obvious air conditioning units (added after the hall was built, this place is old…my parents had their reception at the same place). Mom has taken on the challenge to hide them by enlisting Dad & Bro again to create a framework to hang vertical strands of clearance Christmas lights (we definitely hit up the Wal-Mart 75%-off Holiday Sale) to hang in front of the units. Always a thinker, Mom found a way to make the units less obvious while still allowing airflow to cool the hall in early September, way to go MOM!

Instead of using the traditional rectangular tables in the usual way, lined up in rows, we will be using the tables in pairs, pushed together into squares. We also plan on using several round tables, borrowed from a family friend.

1.28.2009

STW: The Church

After a few confused stares when I start describing my wedding (in particular, the BBQ Buffet, the Venues & a few Cultural things), I've decided to feature a series about STWs (Small Town Weddings)!

Part I: The Church

In small town Texas, the church is the foundation of the community. In the "town" (I use that word loosely) my parents live in there is a Post Office (that closes at lunch so the 1 employee can go home and have lunch with his wife), a Gas Station (/grocery store/beer joint/restaurant), and a Church.



This is the church where my parents were married and where I was baptized and confirmed. I grew up in this church, sitting in the 3rd pew. Although I moved away from home 5 1/2 years ago, I still know everyone in the congregation.

A third of them are family. My great-great grandfather is buried in the cemetery out in the pasture behind the church, my great-aunts and uncles and my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins all grace the pews on Sunday mornings. Another third of the congregation might as well be family.

I have always known I wanted to be married in my church. Its simple elegance has always been the backdrop to my fantasies. Although the church has changed since those first daydreams...the picturesque front porch with concrete that showed the wear of generations has been upgraded to include a ramp (neccessary, but still heartbreaking), the deep regal red carpets have been replaced by light blue, and perhaps most sad, the golden stained glass windows that made everything seem to glow have been replaced by cool-toned stained glass images. The church is still gorgeous, but its very different from the church where my parents were wed.

In the small town church, a community showed its respect to the Lord by dressing his house. In my own church, the soaring wooden ceilings & arched stone work reflect the craftsmanship of simple farmers who still pray for rain. Just down the road at the church where my cousin will be wed, the Czechs created one of the gorgeous Painted Churches of Texas, with elaborately painted ceilings and adornments from their Mother Land.


There is a feeling in a small town church I have never gotten in larger sanctuaries. I know that on my wedding day the pastor will give a message meant just for us (he's known me half my life!!) and there is nowhere I would rather speak my vows and promise to spend the rest of my life with CityBoy.



Baby its Cold outside!!!

Well, DFW has fallen prey to the elusive ice storm! A whie back, I PRAYED for an ice storm so I would get a free day to sit on the couch and now here it is and I'm on a client that I could probably walk to from my apartment...just my luck.

However, the client wasn't there this morning, so we're trying again at 10:00, but I'm secretly hoping they all just decided to stay home for the day so that I can too!! Expect some blogging if I do get to stay home!!!

All you DFW drivers out there, be safe!!

1.25.2009

ARTx52

Have I mentioned that my sister is AMAZING? Well, she is!

Her New Year's Resolution this year it so do something crafty every week (x52) and to keep herself honest since she's in Wisconsin and most of her "people" (namely me & Mom) are in Texas, she has created a blog to showcase her ingenuity.

You can check out her beauties at artx52.blogspot.com!!!

I'm sure more than a few will be related to my wedding since she's my Go-To-Gal on ePhotos, STDs, Invitations, Programs, etc etc etc!!

1.24.2009

DFW Weddingbee Meet Up

I'm a very obsessed Weddingbee reader. Today I met up with Mrs. Hydrangea & Mrs. Avocado to watch Bride Wars. After the movie, we got to know each other over lunch at The Mermaid Bar in Neiman Marcus. It was great to meet two fabulous women who planned gorgeous weddings!!!

1.23.2009

And I thought Happiness was Lubbock, Texas in my rearview mirror...

Yesterday, I got to hop on a puddlejumper (note to self, never let the Firm Recruiter book us on American Eagle again, I love Southwest) and head back to my alma mater, Texas Tech, in lovely Lubbock, Texas!!

Immediately after landing and heading into town (the airport is sort of out in a cotton field...), I knew I wasn't in Kansas anymore!! Lubbock has changed by leaps and bounds since the Fall of 2003 when I moved there. Any Lubbock-ites or former Techies out there are probably familiar with Overton Park, the former "Tech Ghetto", which was bulldozed and is being rebuilt. This neighborhood is directly across the street from Tech and the only remaining tenant in an entire ginormous chunk of city blocks is a Lubbock landmark, Spanky's.

I thought it was amazing how much they accomplished while I was there, but since I left in June and even since I was last there in August, SO MUCH HAD CHANGED!!! In my old 'hood, the aforementioned Overton Park area, there is a brand spankin' new high rise hotel in the works, a huge apartment complex nearly completed and NO LIE 25-30 new houses!!! It was so bizarre...

Back to the post...I spent about 3 hours schmoozin' with Tech Students at Tech's Accounting "Meet The Firms" event. I've definitely decided Accounting Recruiting was so much easier when I did it (not even that long ago), I saw their schedule for this year and basically they have Information Meetings, Social Events, and Interviews with firms 4-5 days a week from now until March or April!! YIKES! I met some great candidates, talked up our Audit Department, and chatted it up with some former coworkers.

Afterwards, I took the Rental Car & visited a few people and took a spin around the town where CityBoy & my love blossomed. I swung into the "new" Wal-Mart they built near my apartment 3 years ago and got a phone charger so I could talk CityBoy through my drive down Memory Lane (and Glenna Goodacre Boulevard).

Driving around and seeing the places we frequented when our relationship was new made me realize how easy it was at the beginning. I'm not sure if its the new city, our new careers, or US that has made things harder, but I long for the nights when CityBoy would come to my apartment after work and we'd take the furbaby (our chihuahua, Mia) on walks around campus or the drives we'd take to go visit every car dealership in Lubbock. We have so much more to do here in Dallas, but it seems like we're both so wiped from work that on weeknights we stay at home and don't do things like take Mia on walks or go get Ice Cream. On weekends, I feel like all we do is shop (not good for the budget), so I need some ideas on how to enjoy Dallas.

What are some good Dallas Date Ideas? Actually, any "City" date ideas are welcome!!!!

1.15.2009

Cello-ist...

I know, I know, its Cellist...

Anyway, just jotting down a quick thought. I love Cello.

I'm seriously considering a cellist for the ceremony, any ideas on arrangements that are gorgeous on cello for weddings?

I'm listening to Yo-Yo Ma's Cello Suites, amazing...

If you don't have something nice to say, come sit by me!!

Bonus points if you know what movie that quote is from ;-)

My sister's best friend/former college roommate is getting married here in Dallas this weekend, so C flew in last night and will be staying with me until Sunday!! I snagged her from the airport (relatively painfree although I was sure I'd be cursing traffic) and we went home, scarfed down some dinner and got straight to business!

C is hosting the bachelorette party/lingerie shower at my apartment tomorrow night, so we hit the ground running to pick up the large/heavy/perishable/otherwise-not-able-to-be-packed-from-Wisconsin items. First stop, Hobby Lobby.

My sister's trademark wedding gift is a framed photo collage thingy of the couple's last name. My sister is always on the look out for letters naturally (or man-made but unintentionally) occuring in the world around us, and she takes photos of these "letters" and uses them to spell out the names!! I have my first name spelled out and I'm sure I'll get my new last name as a wedding gift!!!


So, after getting the mat custom cut to C's specifications and picking up a 50% off Frame and some Hot Pink crepe paper streamers, we headed to the mall so I could pick out some snazzy lingerie for my other "big sis" at Victoria's Secret and some nifty bath goodies at Lush.

Anyway...long story short, C and I started talking about how we love going to weddings to see different ways of doing things!! Well, as C put it, "criticizing other weddings*" (hence the title).

So, plan on seeing a nice long bloggy about this weekend's event ;-) Hopefully there will be little to criticize and maybe we'll come away with some good ideas!!

((*Note, I'm not a super critical person, its more of a "I'd have done that this way..." etc.))

1.12.2009

tooBUSYforlove SEASON?

CityBoy and I are embarking on the 3 1/2 month period all accountants dread...BUSY SEASON! At my firm, we're required to work a minimum of 50 hours a week, but word on the street is I'm really looking at 55-60 hour weeks...that's an extra 20 hours a week I won't be at home with CityBoy!! I'm definitely not looking forward to it!!

I survived a busy season on my internship, but that firm was SO different from my current firm. Then, I was out of town Monday-Thursday, staying in some small town, working about 50 hours and racking up some serious Rapid Rewards points! But then, I was single and my coworkers were more like friends and our nights out of town were more fun that I probably would have had going back to my own place at night.

I survived a busy season with CityBoy (who worked for the firm I interned with) out of town Monday-Thursday for weeks on end, but we talked every night and when he came back into town, he was all mine! Plus, I was in my last semester of college, so I was living it up!

Now, we're both facing off with 60 hour weeks and loads of work and increased stress and all that stuff that leads to workplace depression or whatever...so what does that mean for our relationship?

I'm making a Busy Season Resolution to make our time together quality. Instead of doing what we do now when we're both at home...CityBoy in the office playing Xbox or tinkering with his RC Truck or surfing the net and me in the living room watching DVR'd TV or *gasp* reading wedding blogs or surfing facebook...we're going to do things together.

So, if I'm not around much between now and April 15th, I'll be with my baby! Consider yourself warned!!!

1.06.2009

What's a MOH to do?

Whooo...what an exhausting weekend!! I had the day off last Friday, so I slept late, leisurely packed some stuff up and drove to my parents' house for the weekend!!

Our weekend got kicked off with GIRLS NIGHT!! My dad and brother headed out to the deer lease for the weekend and I left CityBoy back in the city, so me, my mom and my sister had the house to ourselves! We headed into town (yes, I don't even live in my namesake small town, but 10 minutes outside of it) to pick up a couple Pizzas and movies. After ordering our pizzas, we decided to run to Wal-Mart and walked out with so many discount leftover Christmas lights, we could decorate our house Griswold style! YIKES! But, at 75% off, even if we don't use the lights at the wedding, they were a steal. So, after picking up the Pizzas and movie selections for the evening, Mamma Mia and The Dutchess, we headed back out to the farm.

My sister is a bridesmaid/unofficial MOH, for her old college roommate's wedding next weekend and will be hosting the Lingerie Shower/Bachelorette Party at my apartment a week from today! As part of the swag for the party, my sister bought wine glasses and glass paint and wanted to handpaint glasses for each lady. Mom and I somehow got recruited to be on the decorating committee, so we set up a table in the living room and painted glasses while enjoying Mamma Mia! The glasses turned out SUPER cute and I've already picked the one I'm gonna snag at the party.

The next day, we headed to Austin for a day filled with Bridesmaids Dress shopping with my Aunt, Cousin K, and her daughter, M!

First stop, Alfred Angelo. We tried on a few and FELL IN LOVE with this one. It looked good on us "busty" ladies and we loved the purple color:


However, the Bride, my BM, wasn't too keen on purple and insisted on brown! So, we ultimately ordered this dress, but not before we tried on every imaginable dress in Austin!!!




1.02.2009

Details, Details, Details!

First of all...ITS HERE!!!! My dress came in during my Christmas Vacation, so me and my mom went to pick it up! I'd been having some nightmares about it not fitting because I ordered the size I tried on in the store and the sample had been tried on so many times, it was 3 sizes larger than the tag (crazy, I know), but that was not the case, its PERFECT!!!



Also, my Christmas gift came in!! My mom ordered this beauty from Anthropologie and I told her since they're paying for a wedding in the next year, this could double as my Christmas gift!! Unfortunately, one of the glass balls was broken in transit, so we had to send it back, but I did get the opportunity to try the necklace on with my dress...GORGEOUS!!


The material featured above with the necklace and below is the material for the Bridesmaid dresses!!! Its called strawberry and its a deep pinky red and I love it!!

We debated on shoe color and finally decided on red and I sure am glad we did, it looks GREAT with the material!! These are the shoes my sister ordered from Zappos:


Finally, I mentioned in a previous post about my "something blue," and here she is!! My dad gave my mom this star sapphire & diamond ring and she's giving it to me!! It fits my pinky right now, but I plan on having it sized to wear on my right hand ring finger for the wedding and every day after!!

FINALLY: Here's a ring shot I took after being inspired by Wedding Bee's Reader Ring shots! CityBoy & I are both Accountants, so the calculator seemed like the best backdrop for a great shot of Miss Tiffany!!

A weekend filled with Weddingy stuff!!

I'm about to begin my exodus from Dallas just as all the other Red Raiders are converging on this great city to kick some Ole Miss booty!! The Cotton Bowl is today, but I can honestly say my vacation day today is going to be better spent by sleeping late, missing traffic, and hanging out with my sister!!

I'm headed to my parents' house today for a weekend of wedding planning!! Tomorrow, me, mom and my sister are going shopping with my aunt and my cousin for my other cousin's wedding...confusing...yes! B, who is one of my bridesmaids, is getting married in June and I'm her MaidOH along with her sister, K, who is her MatronOH!! We went dress shopping back in September or October and B and I both managed to purchase our wedding gowns, but we some snaggles with the BM dresses. B found her dress at David's Bridal and we found a BM dress that we absolutely loved, only to discover brown....ahem..."Truffle" was too popular a color and they couldn't order the dress we wanted!!!

So, the goal of tomorrow's shopping extravaganza is to nail down a BM dress!! K and I are both--how do you say...BUSTY! So dress shopping can be quite a pain, but do or die, we will find a dress tomorrow!!

B actually found this one on David's Bridal's website and we all love it, so FINGERS CROSSED, it fits!! Its from their new spring line, so we're hoping they have it in the stores!