Said yes to the dress- Quick update

Update! I said yes to the dress! After much deliberation I was able to see the vision of my wedding and pick the dress that made me feel beautiful and bride-like. I have also been able to secure a day of coordination wedding planner, a photographer and I have met with a potential entertainment provider. Everything is coming together, we have engagement photos scheduled for next month and I am getting extremely close to picking out a save the date. I really need to find someone to do hair and makeup so I can get a trial scheduled... I also can't wait for the dress to arrive so alterations can begin and my dream dress can be realized!

To Book or not To Book

With a venue deposit paid, I am starting to feel confident about this whole wedding planning endeavor. Fortunately my venue crossed several items off my list. Catering, linens, tableware, cake cutting, alcohol etc. There are still a few big items that I need to cross off my list; photographer, wedding coordinator, video, the dress, invitations and cake. 

To be completely transparent we actually already picked the cake people (just haven't signed or paid anything yet). Back when we had the other venue we decided to try their preferred cake person and while they were great we were still keeping our options open. So I went with my Matron of Honor to a wedding show and found another cake provider. My parents were visiting and we went to try the new cake place and after a few bites decided that they would be the cake for us. We are also not doing a grooms cake. Instead we are going to do groom cookies (I am very excited about these). So with cake crossed off the list I now had the other items to focus on. 

The dress has been an interesting adventure. From trying to figure out what was figure flattering to what was budget friendly. I have that narrowed to two options so again that decision is close to complete. After talking to several bride friends, i have decided that I would like to have a wedding coordinator. This is a perk that I have decided to make room for in my budget because I think it is well worth my betrothed's sanity. I met with several different planners and think that we have found one that fits our style, our budget, and has an eye for design. 

Photography has been its own unique challenge because it is just so expensive. Most have packages starting at around $1500-$2500. Depending on how many packages they offer the options vary off of hours, # of photographers, engagement session, bridal session, wedding session, print credit, and photos you get to print on your own. OH MAN. For someone who is slightly indecisive this is a nightmare. Not only do I have to figure out who's style and personality I like, but I now have to weigh all my different options to figure out what is "most important to me". UGH. Some packages don't offer enough hours and will cost more to add more. Do i really need 2 photographers? What sessions do I want?  Would I print them myself or get them printed? All these thoughts were constantly swimming through my mind. So what did I do, I made a spreadsheet and weighed all the options. Well we ended up liking all of the people we met with, so next came what they had to offer. We went with the guy that gave us the biggest bang for our buck. So my advice look at the offerings, then meet with the people. Next weigh how much you liked them vs. how much you have to pay to get what you want. Any way you slice it, its not fun.  

So by the end of the week we will have a contract signed for a photographer and a wedding coordinator. NEXT up invitations and the dress....

Let the Planning Begin

In my professional life I am a project manager. When I looked at what all went into a wedding I thought this is just like a project. I mean there is a timeline, a budget, a list of tasks, etc. For me this should have been an easy task, and with so many apps and websites that offer tools to help you plan your big day how could this be hard? Well there was one thing I forgot to take into consideration, I was the one who would have to provide the requirements and make all the decisions.... this just got really CHALLENGING.

First there is setting a date and finding a venue. I decided that I wanted a year long engagement and began to look for dates in the spring of next year. This presented its first set of challenges. I live in a state that has unpredictable bi-polar weather. This meant that my venue needed to provide a great indoor and outdoor option incase the weather was not in our favor come May. After visiting three locations the decision was made. A beautiful venue that had floor to ceiling windows gave the feel of the outdoors, but was beautifully and safely indoors. The biggest bonus was the venue offered a wedding package that covered 90% of the other items. They had the cake, catering, flowers, DJ, toasting glasses, tables, linens, basically everything you could need all wrapped up in a nice package. My parents paid the deposit and were asked which time we would like our wedding, noon or 7pm. WAIT WHAT?!

I had visited this location on a few separate occasions and never did anyone tell me that my 5:30- 6:00 time frame was not going to be acceptable. So now the brakes are applied and the planning comes to a halt. I begin the search once again to find the best venue. After another three venues we finally find another great venue! whew. I pay the deposit and sign the contract and now one of the largest items is crossed of my list! On top of a great ceremony and reception venue they provide linens, tableware, catering, and many of the other basics I can cross off my list. Next up the dress, photography, and invitations.

I am Engaged! Announcing it to the World

*This is a post i forgot to post

It has been a little over a week since the proposal and I am finding myself in the scenario where I am not sure if I should bring it up, or just wait for them to notice. I run into people I haven't seen for a while and I don't know how to act. I don't want it to be the first thing I bring up in a conversation, but if I wait till they notice it seems like I have offended them by not telling them. Does anyone else feel this is an issue?

In my feeble attempt to find a work around for this issue I have posted an announcement on Facebook and at work. For my Facebook announcement I did a "nod" to all of you whom have come before me and posted your engagements, I posted the top 5 most common things. In case you are not familiar with these they are as follows:

1.  I am marrying my BFF
2. He liked it so he put a ring on it (this one is one of the worst)
3.  I cannot wait to be Mrs. (so and so)
4.  I said Yes!
5. The sappy story of us....
(apologies to anyone who may be offended by this)

Since making my public announcement many people have commented on Facebook, or liked the status or pictures. At work we have these monitors around our floor that have announcements on them, and several people have congratulated me in the hall. Now that more people are "in the know" the new quirks of being engaged are my two new favorite questions.

1. How did it happen? and 2. Do you have a date? 

My proposal story was not viral video or post material (even if it was perfect). Because of this I am growing a bit tired of telling the story. People seem generally interested until they realize there is nothing really ground breaking happening in the story.

DO YOU HAVE A DATE? Belongs in the #1 spot of some 10 ten things you should not ask a newly engaged person. I know there is this notion that every girl has been planning her big day since she was a little girl, but that doesn't mean we all have it planned down to the time and date. I personally do not have any ties to any dates. I plan on finding the venue and then checking their availability. I also feel like the wedding industry has taken care of this issue by creating things like Save the Dates and Wedding/Engagement notices for you to inform everyone of details. Right now I would really like to just enjoy becoming a financée for a while.

The Proposal

Two days ago I said "Of course" and am now a fiancee. My guy proposed in the most perfect way. Just him and I in the hotel room after a wonderful weekend. He had planned this amazing weekend in OKC. He made reservations at some fantastic restaurants and had grand activities planned. I had a sneaky suspicion that he was going to propose that weekend, but as each planned activity passed my finger was still without a ring. After I said yes, I asked him why he chose to propose the way that he did and he explained that he hadn't found the right moment in any of the other places. He said that he had debated the grand gesture, but later decided that since it was just going to be him and I for the rest of our lives that that is how he wanted to start it.

So now that its been a few days I was wondering, how many people have "grand" proposals? With things like YouTube and Facebook you start to get a distorted view that everyone has over the top proposals. But I think that is because those are the ones that get the most hits. I actually feel bad for my fiance because that must have been a ton of pressure. He was already nervous, but to feel like you are competing with the world and the scrutiny of others... man I do not envy him.

I loved my proposal because of all the planning and thought that went into the whole weekend. I had a blast and my ring is stunning. Found out he has been holding on to this ring for almost a year. He was just waiting for his "right moment" and I am so thrilled it arrived.