Projects I'm looking forward to in 2011

No real update here, but thought I'd give you an idea of what projects/ideas I'm getting ready to tackle in 2011!

1. Instead of using a typical guestbook, I'd like to create a wishing tree. I'm not the craftiest person, but I'm feeling like this is something I can do. Don't know what it is? Click here to find out more!

2. Ribbon Pomanders for the pews in the Church. They're fun & cute & inexpensive - I LOVE all of those things :) I want to do them in yellow & navy, but we'll have to see what ribbon I can find! Click here to find out more!

3. Ordering our invitations. They are absolutely beautiful & just reflect Fontana perfectly. From the lovely paper to the nautical graphics, I just died when I saw them. I cannot wait for you all to receive them!

4. Designing jewelry for my bridesmaids & myself with Chicago designer, Rach B. She's originally from Rockford (small world, I know!) & I've been lucky enough to work with her a number of times. She's absolutely darling & so is her jewelry. Click here to find out more!

5. Finding my shoes. Omg - I literally almost die everytime I even begin looking for the shoes. I love anything that is sparkly with a high heel. However, in the back of my mind I know I need to find something a little more practical. With my tendency to fall & the need to be able to walk on my honeymoon, I think I need to go with a smaller heel. I'll keep you updated!

I don't think I'll be updating a lot due to the upcoming holidays. Please have a lovely Christmas & safe New Year! I positively cannot wait for 2011!!

Moving onto bigger & better things!

So bridesmaid Megan, bridesmaid Elise & I went back to Lily's Bridal Store to try on dresses again. Megan was undecided & Elise was sick during the initial trip. We walked in & met Lily herself! She's was a nice woman & got things taken care of, but maaaan does she need to work on sales/people skills. I won't go into details, but some of her comments were a little ill received by my bridesmaids. Anyway, they decided on their dresses & guess what?! They're the same dress! The girls literally had the same measurements, so of course the dress that is most flattering would look great on both of them!

Here's bridesmaid Elise & bridesmaid Megan's dress -

Now my new favorite adventure in wedding planning is finding our invitations. Of course I thought I knew exactly what I wanted when I began planning well before I got engaged (whoops!), but am so over it now. I ordered a few samples from Etsy & am enjoying all of them. They are beautiful & different! Ryan picked out a few himself that he liked & I ordered a few that I like. Of course the one I LOVE is one that Ryan wasn't crazy about, but we'll see if I can work my charming ways into convincing him that my favorite invitation suite is something we just can't do without! Unfortunately my mom promised me to secrecy with the invite, so you won't be seeing it until you receive in your mailboxes come March. Maybe I'll give you a little preview one of these days.... ;-)

I feel pretty, oh so pretty!

First off, thank you to the ladies who dared to venture to the random part of Chicago (N.Pulaski & Belmont) to try on dresses this past Sunday. I know the store looked a bit sketch & there may have been 1 too many hot pink dresses with sparkles, but I appreciate your openness & ability to laugh at the oddity of the store. Secondly, bridesmaid E wasn't able to join us because of a terrible cold so I hope she's feeling better! Thirdly, my sweet jr. bridesmaid Megan & I had a special trip over Thanksgiving weekend to try on some dresses & figure out her size. I didn't take any pictures, but trust me - she's a babe.

Anyway, bridesmaid Melissa, bridesmaid (and future SIL) Megan, and Maid of Honor (and seester!) Catherine joined me early Sunday morning for some homemade quiche, coffee, and orange juice before heading out to Lily's Bridal & Gifts. When we walked in this was the 1st dress we saw & boy were we worried.

Yep, that's Cheetah print underneath.

Luckily we were pointed to the Alfred Angelo dress section & were quickly relieved. There were tons of options! The girls each grabbed about 10 dresses & off the dressing rooms they went. Each girl looked really pretty in every dress, but MOH Catherine & bridesmaid Melissa found their dresses. My jr. bridesmaid Megan found one online, so that's 3 down. Woohoo! I have some pretty funny shots of the girls trying on the dresses, but I'm not able to share them with the interweb (sorry!). However, here are the dresses the ladies picked! Keep in mind, they'll all be in navy blue carrying yellow rose bouquets. Swoon!

MOH Catherine -

Bridesmaid Melissa -

Jr. Bridesmaid Megan -

Stay tuned for Megan & Elise's picks!

Coming soon to a mailbox near you!

So, we did it. After all the hours of sweating, bending over, and lots of teamwork it's over with & I couldn't be happier. Get your mind out of the gutter -- I'm talking about our Save The Dates! They are addressed, stamped, and ready to go. Thank goodness!

I had no idea how much went into Save the Dates & trust me, I did them the easy way. I ordered a simple save the date on Shutterfly, ordered yellow envelopes (to go with our navy, yellow, and white color scheme), and bought an "all you need is love" stamp at Michaels. Not only was hand addressing them tedious, but getting people's addresses took much longer than I thought! Come on people, it's our wedding! It's a super special moment followed by a super, awesome party. You're invited - we just need your address! Anyway (pardon the rant!), we are still working on the last few stragglers but the majority of them should be arriving in your mailboxes within the next week or so. I can't wait to hear your thoughts!

Here's a picture of an envelope. Not sure why I chose this one. My handwriting looks horrendous! Sorry for the blurriness too - I didn't want to put her full name or address. Check out the cute little stamp the corner. That's my favorite part!

We're all good in God's eyes!

Just wanted to update y'all & let you know that Ryan & I are officially done with our Precana requirements to get MARRIED! It was an awesome experience & we learned so much. Old St. Pats did a wonderful job of incorporating major topics that need to be discussed without making it scary or awkward. In fact, I caught myself talking at my hair salon to a group of women about how awesome it was. Um...what? Yeah, I did that.

Anyway, here's the proof:

I hope you all are getting excited for Thanksgiving. I know I am! Ryan & I are taking his parents to Fontana, WI for the 1st time on the 27th & we're so damn excited to show them the sights. We're meeting with florists, stopping by the rehearsal dinner location, having our tasting at the reception venue, and will probably enjoy a few brews at Chucks! We'll also be sending out Save the Dates out soon, so keep an eye out for them after Thanksgiving ;-D

Precana -- is that even a real word?

I've always dreamed of getting married in a church. The tradition, the words, the blessing, and the sanctity of it all has always drawn me in. To repeat words in a sacred place that generations upon generations have celebrated their love seems so timeless to me. It's an extra special touch to our very special day.

While Ryan & I aren't the most "religious" people, we definitely are spiritual & believe there is something bigger than ourselves out there. We don't go to Church every Sunday or pray every night because we see God in our daily lives & in the people we meet, help, and share our lives with. It was relieving to know that Ryan was on board to have the Church be part of our wedding day.

St. Benedict's in Fontana said we could do precana in our home church. Thank goodness! We ended up signing up for the precana classes at Old St. Pat's here in Chicago. I absolutely love this church because they make it fun to go to church. Yes, I know. It's hard to believe, but it's true. The congregation is young, the priests are so friendly & really connect with whats going on in the world, and they accept & love everyone. Woohoo!

We had our 2nd session yesterday & are still absolutely loving it. It's much more focused on talking & communicating versus the religious aspect of marriage. They give a little talk on 2 major parts of marriage & then ask us to go & talk about them on our own. Ryan has been unbelievable about opening up & being honest. I do think it has made our relationship stronger & it's made me fall even more in love with him. I wish everyone who is getting married had to go through this program because it really does help us realize whats important & not to sweat the little things. I am so lucky to have someone so willing to give all that he can to our relationship (and he's lucky to have me too :)!

STD, say what??

No no, not that kind - Save the Dates! I am struggling with this whole save the date process. I want it to be fun & unique, but I just don't have it in me right now. We have these beautiful engagement pictures & I would love to incorporate them, but I want something unique. So many people use magnets, which I love but it just seems over used at this point. A simple postcard would be nice, but I'm afraid people may lose it. I got this really awesome idea from the blogs I read - a coaster!



It seems pretty simple & inexpensive, but do I really have the time to stamp close to 200 coasters? We'll see....I'll keep y'all updated!

Are they models?

I am not a picture person. I get nervous, make weird smiles, and generally my hair is out of place. The thought of engagement pictures made my stomach drop, but as my wise friend Rose told me "You're only this young & beautiful once". She is absolutely right! With that in mind, Ryan & I decided to take engagement pictures & boy are we glad we did! We met our photographer, Nick Norbert, at Anderson Gardens on a beautiful September day & while we felt weird at first, he helped us get over our engagement picture jitters & take some really beautiful shots!

I have no idea how he got us to sit still & actually smile for this one.



Just laying in the grass...you know, hanging out.


I love this picture. It's so us.



I love this one purely because my hair looks good, ha!


I absolutely love the lighting in this picture!

Thank you Nick Norbert for some of the most beautiful pictures I've ever seen! Please make sure to check him out if you're getting married in the Wisconsin/Northern Illinois area, http://www.nicholasnorbert.com/

Engagement Pictures!!

Ryan hasn't been able to see all of them, but he's said I could post one as a teaser.

Here's a sneak preview.....

Swoon!!

Thanks Nick!! http://www.nicholasnorbert.com/

My lovely, lovely ladies!

Let me introduce to some of my favorite women - my bridesmaids! They are such wonderful friends & family. They have given me support when I needed it, a whack on the head when I needed it, a drink or shot when I didn't necessarily needed it (besides my jr. bridesmaid!), but most of all they have loved me unconditionally since I've met them. Can't ask for much more in friends & family, right?

So lets begin with my favorite- my sister, Catherine aka C-girl, Cat, Cesare.

Catherine has been my lifelong partner in crime. From getting in trouble trying to call Macaulay Caulkin to helping me get back up on my feet after a hard breakup. We are total opposites in many ways, but her love for people, friends, and family is right in line with my own. She's a hot little lady who isn't afraid to speak her mind, which is something I will ALWAYS look up to her for. I couldn't be more excited & honored to have her as my Maid of Honor!!

Next up is my soon-to-be sister, Megan aka Meg or Meggers.

Even though I already consider Megan my sister, I have to wait until May 21st to officially call her my own. I am so excited to have another sister to laugh with, share secrets with, fight with, and eat too many treats with. She's hilarious & such a fun person to be around. I'm sure her wittiness & sense of humor will come in handy for my pre-wedding jitters.

Bridesmaid #3, my lovely cousin Melissa aka Melis.

Melissa is the cousin that I would (and still do!) immediately run to at family parties. We'd play throughout the entire family party & cry when it was time to leave. Even though we don't get to see each other that much we always pick up right where we left off & never skip a beat. She's so much fun to be around & her easy breezy & fun loving attitude is DEFINITELY going to be a necessity on the big day.

Bridesmaid #4, my sweet cousin Megan aka squirts (don't ask!).

Isn't she just beautiful? Megan is my cousin & the day she was born I had such a special relationship with her. I just fell so in love with her the day she was born & since then I look at her as another little sister. Watching her grow up has been so much fun & I couldn't be more proud of how strong, independent, smart, and darling she is. She is wise beyond her years & I could not imagine my wedding day without her.

Last, but not least (at all!) is Elise aka E-dawg, E, and the most fashionable person I know.

Elise & I met post college through work & the minute I was done working I texted Ryan saying "I think I just met a new friend!". Yes, I'm that lame. Thankfully Elise thought the same thing & we started hanging out. She's seriously one of the greatest friends I've ever had. She's honest, trustworthy, and a straight shooter. I like it. She's so much fun to be around & goofy like me. She makes me laugh so much, but also keeps me super calm & level headed when I need it. The day would not be complete without a little E-dawg & her awesome dance moves.

So there they are. The lovely ladies of the Gailey - Tuite Wedding!

Flowers in my hair

No, I'm not wearing flowers in my hair for the wedding but man do I have flowers on the brain. I feel like I have a good handle on the majority of the wedding, but for some reason the flowers/centerpieces/decoration are freaking me out! I love flowers & tend to have them in my place, but I like when other people arrange them & I just get to stick them in a vase.

For the guys I'm thinking something simple & masculine. I am in love with craspedia's & think these would be perfect. They're simple, but eye catching.

The house that I grew up at grew peonies outside of the house, so of course I have always envisioned my bouquet full of peonies. They smell delicious & just look so soft. Ryan thinks they look like little birds.
Soooo dreamy!

For my bridesmaids, I'm thinking yellow flowers but am totally at a loss. I really like dahlia's, but am not sure how accessible yellow dahlia's are. Any suggestions?

For the moms I'm thinking a pretty white corsage. I like something like this, but would like to modernize it a bit. I'm also not sure about how much green is going on & would like to incorporate some yellow to tie in the bridesmaids flowers.

How I found the one!

No, not Ryan! Most of you know that story anyway! I'm talking about the one...my precious, my lovely...my DRESS! Yes, she was shipped, picked up, and is currently laid out all pretty & nice in Rockford, IL on my parents couch. She's absolutely beautiful & I cannot wait to put the dress on that I'm sure will take my breath away. I'll finally be "a bride". So how'd I find her so easily & quickly? I have my mom & future mother-in-law to thank!

Update: Just found out my mom put a sheet over the dress (per the store's advice) with a sign that states "Do not sit or peek". I heard, however, that my brother took a peek!

While Ry's family was in town the girls decided it would be a perfect day to drive to Ottawa, IL to look at wedding dresses. Fully intending just to look, not buy. Boy, did I screw that up - ha! We drove to Bridal Elegance, which is the largest privately owned bridal store in the midwest so I was sure I would find at least something to help narrow down all the bridal dress options there are out there. I tried on a ton of a certain style of dress that I thought I wanted, but none of them were doing it for us. They were all so beautiful & delicate, but none screamed "PICK ME!". I was a little disappointed because not only did the style I thought I wanted turn out to be completely wrong for my body type, but I didn't get to try on any other styles since I was so determined to get this certain style.

Thankfully Ry's mom told the sales lady we were going to keep trying on dresses even though our appointment was over (gotta love New Yorkers!). The sales lady seemed hesitant, but decided to let me have an extra few minutes. Me, Catherine, Mom & Peg ran into all different directions picking out all types of dresses. My mom & Peg chose one dress that looked simple, elegant, and I was immediately drawn to it. I loved the simplicity of the dress along with the light beading, so I tried it on & (cue victorious music) I was "a bride". I felt it. I saw it. I knew she was the one. I looked over & everyone was silent. My sister began to cry (ahhh, I still get teary eyed thinking about this) & Mom & Peg were silent & smiling. I knew I wasn't the only one feeling the way I was. I couldn't have asked for a better group of ladies (besides you Meg!) to be a part of this lovely experience. I will never, ever forget it.

Here are some dresses that just didn't make the cut. Sorry!

Yes! This was a worn as wedding dress!

Sorry I've been away...

Wow, things do get crazy while planning a wedding. No one told me that I'd almost lose my toe though! Actually it had nothing to do with wedding planning, but I hurt my toe at work - stitches, no nail, the whole shebang - so I haven't been in much of a blogging mood. However, I'm going to suck it up & start writing again!

So here's what has happened since I've stopped writing:

1. My wedding dress arrived to the store. Yes, it's here. My precious is here. I cannot wait to try her on again & get her tailored. You don't know much about the dress because I want to it be a surprise, but I will get to the story of how I found "the one" soon. I promise!

2. Ryan & I are getting our engagement pictures done on Tuesday, September 28th. I am so excited! We originally were going to get them taken in Chicago, but without transportation it seemed like it was going to be a bit hectic. We've decided to get them taken in Rockford, IL. I would loooove to get them taken at Khlem Arboretum, but I have to find out if we're allowed to or not. Who knows - maybe we'll be rebels & just go ahead without asking!

3. I've picked out the fabric & color of the bridesmaid dresses. My sister, Catherine, is the Maid of Honor & will be wearing a yellow shangtung silk dress while the other bridesmaids will wear navy blue cotton dresses. We're going to order them from Aria Dresses & everyone gets to pick their own style. I'm so excited for them. I'm waiting for Ryan's sister, Megan, to get back from Ireland (lucky girl!) to order the dresses, but come December I'm having all the bridesmaids over for a little measuring, ordering, and mimosa party.

4. I've found the flowergirl dress on Etsy. So adorable & so wonderfully priced. I want a yellow ribbon instead of the blue one pictured below.

Precious, right?!

5. I've contacted the Gailey family's friend to see if he can possibly do our flowers for the wedding. I'm waiting to hear back from him, so I can't wait to see if he'll help make our day even more beautiful! I also can't wait to talk about centerpieces, boutiques, boutonnieres, etc. Ahhh, so fun!

Alright, I think we're up to speed now. Phew - a lot has happened, huh? Don't worry - each point will get their own entry further down the road :D

Now That We've Got That Outta the Way....

Woohoo! Now we can move onto the fun parts of the planning process. So I have a confession: I began planning our wedding way before he proposed. I honestly knew right away that he was it - he was my person.He made me laugh, he took me out for my favorite food - pizza!, took me for a cocktail on the top floor of the Hancock building, and I beat him in beer pong the first night we hung out (a game I am generally quite terrible at).

While researching colors for a wedding on a lake I began drooling over navy, yellow, and white. So refreshing, so crisp, so classy, so perfect!

Tell me what you think!

Where We're Gonna Get Down!!

After the big I Do & blessing of a new chapter in both of our lives, I know we'll want to have one hell of party to celebrate & that's exactly what we plan to do at Big Foot Country Club! Big Foot is a beautiful, private country club that has a gorgeous golf course (7 ponds on one course, what?!) & an even lovelier clubhouse. However, a main reason we decided on Big Foot is because we will be the 3rd generation in my family to get married in Fontana & host their reception at Big Foot. In fact, my uncle Jerry & aunt Susan got married in Fontana on the exact same day 23 years ago. We couldn't be more excited to share this special day!

We plan to have our cocktail hour outside on the patio (please hold out weather!) & am still trying to decide how I want to decorate it. I'm thinking some flowers, but possibly incorporating twinkle lights & some DIY garlands. I'll save that for another post. Here's just part of the view from the patio

A little fun fact for our wedding guests: We have enough time before & after the ceremony for pictures that we will be attending our cocktail hour! I'm very excited to be able to be with friends & family during this relaxed, fun part of the reception.

We will be eating in the main dining room that has floor to ceiling windows facing the course & dancing in a separate room. Don't worry, there are doors that open between the two rooms so guests will be able to see my Dad's sweet moves from the dining room & bar.

Where we'll say I Do!

For the ceremony we'll be getting married at St. Benedict's Church in Fontana. My grandparents attend regularly when they're in town & where Ryan & I went once (eep, sorry!) while visiting. It's a small Church with a beautiful stone wall behind the altar. Ryan, my mom, my grandma, and I stopped by one Saturday afternoon to see this (sorry for the not so nice phone pic)!

A wedding was about to take place! How exciting! I love the simplicity of the Church decorations with the stone wall. I will definitely keep the fabric hanging from the walls, but not so sure about the aisle runner. I don't like that it looks wrinkled. Any suggestions?! I really like the idea of pomanders on each end of the pews. I'm thinking something like the picture below, but with yellow flowers or alternating yellow & white flowers! I'm also thinking I'd like to DIY (do it yourself) this project. What do you think?

Why Fontana, you ask?

Ahhh, so relaxing!

As a kid, my family had a lakehouse in Fontana, WI & while it was always hard leaving friends for the summer - I wouldn't trade in those summers for anything. The memories of camp, the playground, the beach, playing Uno, sleeping in a room with my brother & sister, making my mom braid my extremely thick hair into very uneven braids (love you mom!), eating way too much blue moon ice cream and just being with my family in such a happy place are honestly some of my favorite childhood memories. In fact, they're the most vivid childhood memories I have & am so glad they are as happy as they are.

When Ryan & I first started talking about the wedding we thought maybe we'd have it in Rockford, IL since it's where I grew up. However, it just didn't feel right. While I love Rockford, it didn't have the venues or feeling I was going for. We toyed with Indianapolis since it's where he's from or maybe even somewhere beachy, but nothing felt like us. In comes Fontana, WI where we've always had a ton of fun visiting & have fallen even more in love with each other every time we're there. It has the beachy-ness of a destination wedding, but its close enough where most of guests won't have to fly to get there. After thinking/talking/and internet stalking Churches, venues, bars and restaurants we decided Fontana, WI is where we want to say "I Do".

267 Days to Go!

Hi! I am so excited to be starting this blog. I've been reading wedding blogs for quite some time & thought why not start one myself? I hope you enjoy reading & going on this adventure with me :)

Lets start at the beginning, shall we?

Ryan & I met on July 4, 2008 in a parade. We didn't have our first date until November because someone coughcoughRYANcoughcough had a significant other at the time. On November 20th, Ryan took me out on the most wonderful 1st date - drinks at the Hancock Tower, beer pong at Streeters, pizza at Pizano's, etc. His love for beer & pizza was almost on par with mine, which was quite a delightful surprise. Since then we've honestly been inseparable & on April 17, 2010 he asked me to marry him. Yay!

Now we are smack dab in the middle of planning our laid-back, yet upscale navy blue, yellow, and white wedding in the beautiful Fontana, Wisconsin!