The Planning So Far...

With 110 days left to go, here's what's happened in the past two weeks:

-Our parents met each other for the first time
-The rehearsal dinner has been booked & the menu selected
-We did a wedding cake tasting, and are *this* close to picking a flavor
-Completed the optional Theological portion of the Foundations of Christian Marriage Course held at the Immaculata Center
-We became betrothed during Mass at the Immaculata Chapel
-All four priests have responded and confirmed
-Readings have been selected
-Music selection has started
-Materials for building the cake stand have been purchased
-Ribbons and invitation embellishments have been prepared
-The guest list has been merged and finalized!
-Acquired (and repaired, thanks to Mike) a very nice laser printer at little cost 
-Purchased plane tickets to Orlando for our Disney World honeymoon
-Tried yet another recipe for an edible wedding favor
-Received our wedding bands:

Whew!  Looks like we had our hands full, but it was all actually pretty easy to go through.  There's still loads more to get done, but we're making great progress so far.  

This week's goals: 

• finish collecting ALL address needed for invitations
• finalize wording and formatting of invitation
• finalize wording and formatting of RSVP cards 

What challenges did you encounter in your wedding planning time line?

♥, Michael & Dorothy

120 Days and Counting...

That's right, folks: only 120 days left until the wedding!  We crossed the 4-month mark this week, and although everyone keeps telling me that January 15th will be here "in no time," I know the wait will be agonizing as we approach the Big Day. 


Mike's titanium band

We braved the heat and the hustle and bustle of the mall last weekend to look at and try on wedding bands once more. Though we had no intention of purchasing from the jeweler, we needed to double check band and finger sizes.  We ordered our rings online Monday night from e-weddingbands.com.  The selection and prices are great, and as an added bonus we get free FedEx shipping and free engraving inside the rings.  We're both fairly traditional when it comes to wedding bands, so we both selected plain polished domed bands (surprising, considering how much "tradition" we're trying to shy away from).  

My palladium band

Mike chose titanium for its lightweight durability (apparently he's a rough-and-tumble kind of guy), while I had to opt for palladium.  My first choice was 10K white gold, which I preferred to 14K white gold because it is both harder and whiter...and cheaper.  A win- win!  When it came time to decide on band widths, I caught a case of Baby Bear Syndrome. The 3mm band I tried on at the mall was too narrow, while the 4mm looked a bit thick.  No middle ground? (the sales lady told me 3.5mm doesn't exist.)  Well as it turns out, I could get a 3.5mm ring from e-WeddingBands.com--but only in palladium, 14K gold, 18K gold, and platinum.  We were really aiming for a band in a lower price point, but in the long run the palladium band wins out over the white gold because it will never need rhodium re-plating.

And now...we wait.  Rings should be arriving next week, and I'm eagerly looking forward to prancing around in my new wedding band!  I have a sneaking suspicion Mike will need to confiscate the ring from me pre-wedding so I don't end up wearing it every. single. day.

♥ Dorothy



Gettin' Bustled

In less than seven hours, Bridesmaid Shelly and I will be making our way to David's Bridal (yet again) for my appointment with the Alterations Lady. 

My concerns:

• The dress--which fit snugly to begin with--might be even tighter.  Yikes!
• The design of the dress might make bustling difficult and/or costly (though I was quoted $35-$50).
• I will have to say goodbye to my dress (which has been hanging in my laundry room since May) for X number of weeks while Alterations Lady does her magic.

That doesn't mean I'm not excited about the appointment, though. 

Actually, I wish I had made the call to David's Bridal sooner.  Why the delay?  Well...up until last week I had decided against having the dress bustled.  Since I will be changing into a shorter dress for the reception, I saw no need to bustle the short sweep train--it wouldn't get that dirty anyway, right?  That was my line of thinking...until I realized that the train is still long enough for people (or me!) to step on.  So, it's off to David's Bridal we go!

♥  Dorothy