love always, all ways

I woke up at 7:24am to another dreary day. It was overcast and though it didn't seem possible considering it had rained for three days straight, the sky looked as if it could fall out at any minute. My throat was still scratchy and when I said good morning to my mom I sounded more like her son than her daughter.

But I had not a care in the world. On this day, this very day, I was going to walk down an aisle and stand next to the man that makes my whole world light up; the man who makes me smile bigger, and more often, than I ever have in my life. The man who makes me laugh out loud on a daily basis and who thinks I'm beautiful whether I'm dolled up or hungover. The man who loves me despite my moodiness, my insecurities and my imperfections. This man, this beautiful, funny, intelligent and genuine man, would soon become my husband.

And the floating began...

I floated through breakfast. My sister and I ran up to the ceremony site where my mom along with 2 of her closest friends and my aunt were already hard at work transforming an ordinary brick pavilion overlooking a golf course. It was freezing. The wind whipped through our hair and chilled my bare toes. It was then I decided the fireplace might be a nice touch after all.

I floated home. I visited with an old friend and realized I hadn't finished packing for the honeymoon. Oh well. I was marrying Jason today.

I floated off to the hair salon where I drank wine with my bridesmaids and my mom and had straight magic worked on my big curly 'fro. I think I ate some chicken nuggets. I danced around with my flower girls and made the decision to move our cocktail hour from the patio to the reception hall. Virginia apparently decided to skip fall and go straight to winter. Oh well. I was marrying Jason today.

I floated on to my mom's and threw stuff into my suitcase. Mere and I laughed while she sat on top of it and I struggled to zip it shut. I would later find out it weighed 74lbs and would cost an extra $100 to check at the airport. Did I mention I was marrying Jason today? I had not a care in the world.

I finally arrived at the country club to get ready. I snuck upstairs to see the cake and the tables all set up. The 2 walls that were all windows overlooked the golf course and I caught something out of the corner of my left eye - the guys had started taking pictures with Stephanie. I was mesmerized. My heart spilled over at the sight of him. I even think I giggled. Out loud.

The reception hall looked great, the cake was unbelievable, and the bouquets belonged in a magazine, but they all paled in comparison to how beautiful my mom's smile was the first time she saw me slip into my dress.

I still was floating...and from this point on the smile never left my face.

My knockout bridesmaids posed and smiled for pictures then made their way down the aisle. My brother took my arm and asked me if I was ready - it was the easiest question to answer since J asked me to marry him.

As I approached the end of the aisle I saw Jason, teary-eyed and looking oh so fine in that black suit and purple stripped tie. I had been nervous that I would spend my whole wedding ceremony in tears - instead, I spent it smiling. Not just any ol' smile...the biggest, cheese grin my poor cheeks have ever experienced.

I heard every word of our handcrafted ceremony that J and I put together ourselves, and despite having read them at least 387 times before, the words meant so much more on that day at that moment.

I looked around the pavilion and tried to take it all in, but nothing was as beautiful as the smile on Jason's face. I couldn't look away. I tried to put his ring on the wrong finger and we both laughed along with our guests. I so desperately wanted to kiss him right then.

I had imagined this moment for the last 11.5 months, and finally, I heard the words I knew I had been waiting for since I fell head over heels for him not 3 weeks after we met:

"I now pronounce you husband and wife, you may kiss your bride."

I'm still floating...and I hope my feet never hit the ground.

I look forward to sharing more pictures, stories, and details about the wedding in future posts!

The picture is courtesy of my kick-ass photographer, Stephanie Mosher.

as he thinks in his heart, so he is.

Tomorrow my wedding date will make it into the 10-day weather forecast. Omigod. (yes, all in one word) I've been checking the foliage report daily despite the fact that it's only updated twice a week. J couldn't believe that they actually have foliage reports, but I assure you they exist. Currently, my part of the east coast is exhibiting little to no change...but alas, all hope is not lost. Those leaves could change into some wicked colors in a week and a half, right? Fingers crossed.

The ceremony programs are turning out well despite my inability to find plum colored ribbon. I'm not certain why JMU puple is everywhere but plum purple is no where it be found. It's such a trendy color for fall. For example, take these two pieces of wonderful that I'd love to get my hands on...

Bag: Maggie from Coach - $348
Shoes: Rampage Women's Gracee at Shoes.com - $49

I also bid on my first item on Ebay this morning. Yes, my first. It was a Polaroid camera with film. I bought it to have at the wedding reception - I'm too poor for a photobooth but am not digging the disposables on every table, but I think random pics taken by my closest friends will be priceless. Taza at The Rockstar Diaries has gotten me completely fixated on Polaroid pictures, too. They will be a fun addition to the professional pics as well as give me a new camera to play with on the honeymoon and beyond.

The reception seating chart is finalized! I was even able to cut an entire table thanks to several last minute RSVP changes. If planning a wedding taught me anything it's to always RSVP on time. Seriously, say yes, say no - just say something. I was so surprised by how many people we had to chase down via email, phone, etc. Some people just never got back to us. It floored me for all of 5 minutes that people could be so rude - but I got over it when I realized that J and I are truly blessed to have some amazingly supportive and all-around awesome people in our lives and that I don't have a minute of time to take away from appreciating all the good we have to waste on the bad. There are several special people that won't be able to make it that will definitely be missed - but we are a lucky, lucky couple and cannot wait to celebrate with all the people that mean so much to us!

At this point, I'm having to resist the temptation to call my bridesmaids every single day on my drive home from work to tell them how excited I am to have all of them together to hang out. Every single time I see my photographer on gchat I want to tell her how much I love what she's done for us so far and how anxious I am to see her work her magic for our wedding. I spare those fine ladies, for now...my Mom, not so much. I just can't get enough of her greetings when she knows it's me calling, "How's my beautiful bride-to-be?" Cheese!!! She gets several phone calls a day.

Am I excited? You bet. 11 more days!

these are the days of our lives

Helloooo clusterfuck of a life! Everyone told me you'd be creeping up on me around this time, but I actually believed there was a chance of me keeping you at bay. Giant fail. I haven't resorted to freaking out, in fact, based on the technical definition, I'm not even stressed. Yet. My to-do list is growing rapidly and I'm just...well, I'm laughing. And very, very happy.

Could you imagine a better event to have a to-do list for? And can you imagine me trying to keep still at work for 8+ hours a day if I wasn't swamped? I'd be like a 5 year old the day before a trip to Disney World, a college kid sitting through class on a Friday...you get the point. Really, really impatient.

J and I keep joking that we may not have friends once we're finally married for all of the invites to things we've had to turn down. As I write this I am thinking about the first 'Canes game of the season that we were supposed to attend with some friends on my softball team...instead, we're gluing, hole-punching and ribbon tying our way through 120 ceremony programs and hopefully getting some shagging practice in (the dance, sickos). Martha Stewart Weddings has been a godsend in the world of seating charts - you really can't beat their planning tools. Check 'em out if seating 175 guests seems like a daunting task...it makes it sort of fun!

With the wedding just 2 weeks away, I've found it much more difficult to keep up with the wedding blogs I have stalked for the last 11 months. The inspiration I am getting is impossible for me to execute with the amount of time I have left while maintaining my employment status and not driving my fiance completely insane. I still marvel at the creativity of some of the brides out there - and since I'm one of the first to go, I look forward to helping my close friends plan their weddings one day because I am a wealth of ideas that would be so fun to execute on someone else's budget! What are some things you did in the 11th hour to add some flair to your big day?

One blog that I haven't skipped a beat on is The Broke Ass Bride's Wedding in a Week Giveaway - invites, a wedding gown, flowers, customized card boxes... She's got sass and flair and a whole lot of goodies to give away - check it out!

The wedding photography hasn't gotten old whatsoever. Some eye candy for your Friday...

Image from Pat Dy Photography

Images by Jessica Johnston Photography

Hope everyone has a great weekend!