nephew

I have a new nephew!

Cooper Thomas

5lbs 11oz.

18.5 inches

3-4-08

7:45

...I am on my way to meet him momentarily.

inspiration board

I mentioned a while ago that I was trouble narrowing in on a vision for my wedding. Since then a very kind soul and fellow bride-to-be, by the name of Jessica, offered to be a sounding board of ideas. We've exchanged a few emails and it's been super fun. Talking with people in my everyday life is all well and good, but I don't want to bore people or become that girl who only talks about her wedding. So when Jessica offered to give her advice, I happily took her up on her offer. As some may know, inspiration boards are pretty common on various wedding blogs. I never thought someone would take the time for make one for little ole me, but Jessica did!


I love the button as escort cards idea! Like Jessica said in her email, "Isn't it interesting that people don't do nametags at weddings, when clearly it would help people tremendously!" So true! Buttons might be kind of hard/expensive to make (how much does a button maker go for these days??), but I like the design concept of having a simple dot on a card. I am also loving the idea of having greenery as centerpieces. It could look very lush and would cost very little. And a single truffle as a favor. Love it!

So, everyone go run over to Jessica's blog, Weddings Start to Finish and check it out. Be sure and read the story of how she met her fiance while you are there. Someone should write a movie about it. It's so great!

more baby shower pics

Here are pics from the shower I said I wanted to post.

I downloaded that super cute baseball font at Urban Fonts. It is called Joe DiMaggio.

The photo of this baby pool sheet didn't turn out very well, so I am just posting the actual thing.

nightmares part 2

Last night I had another nightmare. I dreamt that after the ceremony, I realized that we never booked a honeymoon. So one of my bridesmaids and I went to my parent's house between the ceremony and reception to plan one. Then when we made it to the reception, none of the table settings/centerpieces were put out. Like the last one, I was upset, but not that upset. It is interesting that this is a recurring theme. Things that are just not done and I don't really care that much. I definitely notice them and am bummed, but I'm not throwing tantrums or anything.

The only thing I can deduce from this dream and past dreams is I need to get going. I don't want to be a frantic person trying to get things done the last week in July. The problem in this is that I am having a really hard time coming up with a definite vision for things. I have a ton of ideas, but I am having trouble narrowing in and focusing. Oh, woah is me.

valentine

love that!

A couple weeks ago, I was at a store in the mall and spotted a necklace that I thought could be contender to wear for the wedding. I still am not so sure what kind of jewelry I am going to wear though. I might not even wear a necklace. That along with the fact that it was still full price at $29.95, made me decide to pass on purchasing. Sure, $30 is not a lot, but: A. I hate buying things that are full price and B. I knew it would go on sale, so what would be the point in buying it now?

As the days and weeks went on, I kept thinking about that necklace. If I do decide to wear one, it really would be perfect...and what if they all are bought before they go on sale and there are none left for me?!? So yesterday, I decided to bite the bullet, go back to the mall and pay full price for it. I figured that the store will have a pretty good return policy and if I decide I don't want to wear it, I can take it back. I got one of the last 2 they had in the store and headed to the register. The cashier rang it up and told me my total: $4.48. Whaaa??! Apparently it was on clearance and hadn't been marked. Love that! Now, I'll keep it no matter what.

Gina's Shower

Saturday was the big baby shower that we had for Gina. The first baby of our fam is arriving in just over a month and we are all so excited! Of course I forgot my camera, (I am really forgetful as of late) so I have very few pics to document the day. Thanks to Eva, I have a few...and I took some with my mom's camera, but I have yet to get those.

Gina and Todd are doing a baseball theme room for the baby (it's obvi a boy), so we fittingly held the shower at Front Row Friday's at Miller Park. We had our own room, had yummy food and I think a good time was had by all. We had onesies and fabric markers at each table as a little activity during the shower along with a baby pool type questionnaire everyone filled out. The onesies turned out really cute! My cousins, Jenny and Kristy, did a great job on their brewer/packer onesie: Brewer jersey on the front, Packer on the back. Very impressive.

We also had peanut favors (since we were at the ballpark) that I will have to post a picture of at a later date to show off my DIY skills. Besides that, Gina got some great gifts and it seems like they are all set for the little guy!

registry #1

All I have to say is...top notch, Crate & Barrel. Top notch.

Sunday morning Jon and I woke up bright and early (for a Sunday) to go to Crate & Barrel to register. They have a brilliant idea...they open the store at 9am on select Sundays throughout the year specifically for people to register. We haven't registered anywhere else yet, but I am going to go out on a limb and assume having the store to yourself while doing this sort of thing is a huge plus. Not only was having the store to ourselves great, they also had mimosas, coffee and some breakfast treats for us when we got there. Then a salesperson gave us a short talk about the store, what people typically register for, etc. After that, we were off to scanning. C&B also do a great job pleasing their costumers while selling their products...they had salespeople making paninis with their panini maker. After sampling a panini, of course we put that baby on our registry...and somewhere the marketing execs at C&B patted themselved on the back. We also spotted another salesperson making waffles with their waffle makers, which we were not able to sample and also did not register for. If we did, we probably would have decided we needed to have it...because lets face it, we are an easy sell. They also had a knife expert on hand that helped us pick out some great knife sets. Jon was appointed scanner for this trip and he took advantage...scanning everything in sight...from a professional deep fryer to huge vases. Good times all around. Where will we put all this stuff once/if we get it...who knows? I wonder how we could put a house on our registry....

nightmares

I just read an entry on the Weddingbee about wedding nightmares and I had to share that I too have these nightmares, as I am sure every bride has. I know listening to other people's dreams isn't the most interesting thing, but I think I am going to start recording my dreams because I think they are funny and I know I will like looking back on them. So here it goes...

A while back I had one where the dj was playing horrible music and playing songs I specifically told them NOT to play. So I went up and yelled at them and angrily wrote down songs to play. Those songs were: Gold Digger...probably because I knew Gina would want to hear it...and Cry Me a River...because it's the best song ever probably.

Last night I had another nightmare where the reception was in this junky bowling alley type place with graffiti all over the walls. I was wearing a wedding dress, but it was very ill-fitting, so I put on some navy blue apron thing around my waist to cinch it so it would fit. I had also forgotten to prepare and set out everything I has worked really hard on: programs, table numbers, centerpieces, etc. and I was really upset. Not crying or anything, just kind of bummed. I remember I had a conversation with my mom and I was like, "I can't believe I forgot to bring all the programs and escort cards". At the end of the dream, I found Jon in the foyer of the "bowling alley" talking with someone that was supposed to be in our wedding and hadn't shown up until the very end of the night.

The End. See, I told you it wouldn't be interesting.

that's awesome

Snoop Dogg has a dog named Cindy.

honeymoon ideas

Well, we found a dj. I now feel like the big, necessary vendors have been chosen. We now need a form of transportation and...a honeymoon! This has been pretty fun for me so far because I love planning trips. Even when I have no trip on the horizon, I like to go to tripadvisor.com or frommers.com and check out places I'd want to go and plan fake trips. Its great. For real, it is. For our honeymoon, we initially thought going to an all inclusive resort was the obvious choice. Neither of us have ever been to one and the relaxation, beach, cocktails, having nothing to do aspect of them was very appealing. The problem here lies in the date of our wedding: August 9th, the beginning of hurricane season. Now, normally I don't think this would worry me or concern me much. However, we got stuck in Florida a couple years ago during a hurricane and my friend's honeymoon got all messed up last year because of hurricanes. So basically, I just don't want to take our chances with anything southern and/or carribean. **tears streaming down my face** This has led me to some creative thinking and I have come up with some alternate plans. Our only requirements is that it is a place neither of us has been and will offer relaxation and ideally an ocean. So I bring you our options:

1. Central California: Monterey, Carmel, Big Sur

I have wanted to go to Big Sur ever since I saw that episode of Six Feet Under when Brenda and Nate get married on a cliff there. SO beautiful! I've done some extensive research on this area. All three of these cities, along with Pacific Beach and Pebble Beach are very close to one another and are usually visited in one trip when people vacation there. The area is very quaint and rich with artists, has a couple state parks and reserves, beaches, cute little boardwalks, restaurants, shops and beautiful scenery. We would stay in Monterey or Carmel, spend a couple days probably just lounging on the beach and relaxing. We'd have a couple nice dinners and we would take one day to travel to Big Sur spend the day checking it out (it's about a half hour away I think). Aside from these pics, I have seen plenty of peeps chillin on the beach also, which is probably what we would spend most of our time doing.

Pros: beautiful area, no weather issues to worry about.

Cons: Might not be the relaxing trip we are looking for if we end up seeing a lot of the sights.

Cannery Row - In Monterey (The ocean is right in the distance)

Carmel-by-the-Sea - cute paths right on the beach

Look how cute these little shops are in Carmel...I can't stand it!

A view of coastal Big Sur

2. Palm Springs

I know, I know, it will be HOT there in August (Avg high = 107, Avg low = 76). But!! I feel like as I read about it, it is like Vegas without all the craziness and contant stimulation. There are huge resorts with tons of pools and restaurants, like Vegas, which I love. There are outlet malls, golf courses, casinos, spas, etc. It is loaded with Hollywood history (love that stuff) and every Thursday night they have this thing alled Village Fest where there are musicians, food, arts and crafts vendors, and a Farmers Market. It kind of sounds like the sunset celebration on Mallory Square in Key West. ..and we loved that. This also happens to be the home of the Viceroy...the hotel where the most out of control coordinated wedding took place that I saw on theknot.

Pros: It will be the off season, so the rates are great. It will be the ultimate in relaxation. The closest to what an all inclusive would offer I think...without the ocean and the unlimited food and booze.

Cons: The weather. Not near an ocean.

You can take a tram ride through Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Coachella Valley, Mt San Jacinto's Chino Canyon, etc. I will note that these tram/ski lift things are my least favorite things in the world. I feel as though at any minute, it will fall off the cable and I will fall to my death. I will however, force myself to do this if we did the honeymoon here.

This is the Marriott resort, which I guess is the most expansive of the resorts (and yes, I mean expansive, not expensive)

3. SoCal - The O.C (Laguna Beach, Newport Beach, Huntington Beach)

Not going to lie...MTV had a huge impact on this decison. Who is going to tell me that Laguna Beach and Newport Beach don't look adorable though?! Remember the views from LC's house?? Yes, it was awesome. Besides the slim chance I could run into a Laguna Beach High School alum, this area also has a lot of shops, restaurants, art galleries (not sure if I even really love art galleries though)and great beaches.

Pros: Great beaches. Quaint towns.

Cons: May involve a lot of driving, might not be very relaxing.

Laguna Beach

Newport Beach - another cute little beach town like Laguna, only Newport is part of the Balboa Penuinsula and close to Balboa Island and Catalina Island. Balboa Island is where the frozen banana stand was located on Arrested Development...and that is the only reason why I know of Balboa Island...and now I think I need to read more books. It is a hip and cool beach town with trendy cafes and surf shops. We could rent tandem bikes and take them for a spin. Oh! and good news! Summer is the best time to visit Newport Beach apparently. The beach crowd is relatively small because the peninsula is located somewhat off the beaten track. The car traffic is minimal also, which makes for great bike travel. Riding along the boardwalk is fun and a great way to check out some of the most expensive real estate in Southern California.

Catalina is described a quaint island escape in the Pacific, framed by crystal-clear waters, picturesque beaches and rolling foothills, boutiques, galleries, etc. The island can be toured by golf cart, which would also remind me of Key West.

Newport Beach

Balboa Island

Catalina Island

Huntington Beach is known as "surf city", it has a great beach with that famous Municipal pier that kind of reminds me of the Santa Monica pier. I am sure we would just spend the days here parked on the beach watching the surfers.

And another shot of the beach during a surfing competition...

So, what do you think? Been to any of these places? Recommend or not recommend any? Any suggestions I might not have thought of? I'd love some input.

love

Went to Chili's for dinner. Its kind of a Friday night tradition in our little 2 person family. Barney joined us tonight though. Chips and salsa, Chicken fajita pita, diet coke. love.

Saw Juno. LOVE!

Now, Jon is making me homemade popcorn. LOVE LOVE (him and the popcorn).

hate

This crunchy, cold, dry snow, is like nails on a chalkboard to me. When I drive through it and walk in it, I cringe at the noise it makes and the way it feels under my feet. Like I said...hate.

I would like it to warm up so that it melts, please. Thanks much.

kanye's new workout plan

Since we moved into our apartment, we have been pretty sporadic in our usage of the apartment complex fitness facilities. We go in spurts when we are pretty good about going...but nothing like we have been in the last two weeks! Jon outfitted himself with some new shoes last week and he is a new man. He wants to use them all the time and it's great! They are pretty sweet, I must say...and light as a feather! I tried on the same in the women's version, but didn't get them because mine still have some wear left to them. But I digress...we have gone to the gym 4 times this week! Each time really pushing it and feeling like we did a good job.

So what did we do today?

Well, after such a great week, we treated our sore bodies to a day of laying around, watching tv and eating steak and potatoes. whoops. oh well! As much as we really want to feel more fit (and to lose some weight for that wedding in August, let's be honest), I know we are going to have a hard time changing our eating habits. Baby steps....baby steps.

so beautious

I really want to wear a fun pair of shoes with my wedding dress...no white pumps for this lady. I found these today on a website that said they were available on Piperlime. So I figured if they were on that website, they must be affordable and I had to have them....

...and then I saw the price. I think I actually said "oh good lord." Since when does Piperlime sell shoes this expensive?! I thought this was a Gap company.

Needless to say, the search will continue.

O Christmas Tree

This Christmas had special meaning...with the engagement and all. We put up the Christmas tree together on the night we got engaged and last night we took it down. awwww.

We also sent out a Christmas Card for the first time together this year. I thought it was appropriate since we wanted to announce our engagement anyway. I had an idea to do a photo booth type greeting. I thought this was a unique idea, but then as I was looking at different wedding blogs, it turns out a lot of other people have done this also. Oh well. So way back in the beginning of December, I set up a photo shoot in our living room and we took a ton of pictures. This was the end result:

...and here are some of my favorite outtakes

a month in pictures

About a month ago I got a new camera. I researched cameras for quite some time and finally went with the Canon Powershot SD850 IS. I got it because I have taken an interest in photography and would like to become better at taking pictures, but I wasn't quite ready to take the plunge into getting a DSLR quite yet. This one suits me just fine so far. Its got a lot of fun bells and whistles I've been trying out. I'm not very good yet, but it takes some decent pictures. Check it...

Here is little Madison curled up next to the fire.

Have you ever heard about how when an orb appears in a picture, it is actually a ghost/spirit? I wonder if that's true. If so...creepy. (this is Gina & Todd's tree)

Gina...preggers with a baby boy

The girls surprising me at dinner with champagne in celebration of the engagement.

...the message written on my plate. (note: the dulce de leche cheesecake at the Cheesecake Factory is the best)

Jon was done with school back in August, but the graduation ceremony was in December.

facelift

I decided to give my dull blog a little facelift. It was looking like a sad, deprived child and now that I think I have a little more inspiration and reason to write, I wanted it to be somewhat interesting. I was trying to figure out how to do an all over background (that isn't just a color), but couldn't figure it out. If anyone knows how to do that, let me know!!

I also updated my blogroll because the last one was rather outdated.

The color scheme is what my world will revolve around for the next 8 months. We are going with black, white and green for our wedding colors. I love the starck contrast of the colors and hope to incorporate some patterns as well (maybe the damask as shown above...) There might be splashes of yellow also, but that is just an idea because there could be a fine line where it could look like a Packer wedding...which is obviously not what we would like.

Now that I know how to jazz this space up a little, I think I'll change it up often...just to keep everyone on their toes.

things are moving along

Wedding update.

The date is set for August 9, 2008. (08-09-08, I like the sound of it. Not as good at 08-08-08 would have been, but we didn't want to have a Friday wedding)

The church is reserved and we are meeting with the priest next month. We ended up going with St. Jude after getting rejected from a couple other places. I was sad for a second, but then decided that it will be sweet getting married at the place I grew up going to...and where Jon and I met! Yes, we met there at Gina and Todd's wedding rehearsal. It will be perfect.

We paid the deposit for the reception spot yesterday. I couldn't be happier with our location. Their prices are within our budget, the food is going to be delicious (Saz's, yum!), the location is great for both our Milwaukee and Madison guests and being on the golf course it is going to be beautiful.

I found a photographer. I think her pictures are stunning and she has great rates, which is great for our budget. I found her through this little blogosphere I lurk around in too!

Next on the agenda is a DJ...

the big news

It happens in the movies and you hear about it happening to other people all the time, but it actually happened to me! I am getting married!! On Saturday night, December 1st, as the snow was coming down and we were holed up in our apartment, Jon asked me to marry him! It has been a little over 4 years in the making, but was still a total surprise. Well, I guess it's wasn't a total surprise....we had both talked about getting married, we had discussed what kind of rings I would like and we live together for gosh sakes, but I had no idea when he would ask me. We are so flipping excited! So I guess it's time to get this show on the road...