kellylynndj's Blog

Happpiness is a white dress...

2008-06-26T16:34:00Z

I am SO excited today because I went to my dress fitting & it went really well. I worked with Ann and she was very nice and friendly - made me feel very comfortable and relaxed. I had to parade around in my dress to make sure it was hemmed to a good length for me, and I got to see the different options for my bustle. I went with the overbustle, which is the most popular choice.

I had been nervous that maybe my dress wouldn't fit right or something about it on me wouldn't look good. I was SO wrong. I have pretty much kept at the same weight, but my fear is that I will all of a sudden gain weight and no longer fit into my dress. I've been very active - playing tennis a TON, and trying to watch what I eat, and when last I went to the doctor I had lost weight - so yay! Ann told me that the dress was 100% perfect on me. Now, I just need to make sure I keep it that way.

In other wedding related news...We have begun to get reply cards back and as of 3:30pm, we were up to 24 guests. On the hair and make-up front, I just got off the phone with a woman at one of the local salons (just down the road from the hotel), and she told me she is available and what her pricing is. She has to check with her make-up girls, but if they are free and reasonable, I think I might just go with them. She was really nice and accomodating, and she even told me that my hair will be less expensive than normal because I really just want it blow-dried and then styled curly. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this one works out :-)

Just My Luck...

2008-06-23T18:26:00Z

I have yet to hear from the girl who had been suggested to do my hair and make-up. She said that she was interested & available, but has fallen off the face of the earth. This means (yet again), that I am back to square 1 on hair & make-up. Seriously!?! My luck has been pretty crappy in terms of getting people to commit to doing this stuff.

My hairstylist referred me to someone who will cost $150 per person for just hair, and an additional $45 per person for make-up. If I go this route, I'll be paying more money for hair and make-up than for flowers! At least flowers will last for a couple days - but my hair will be blown around, and my make-up will be smudged before the day is over.

Am I being too cheap?!? Usually I pay $130 for a cut and color, all that I need done is to have my hair styled and some make-up slapped on.

What gives?!?

One Big Step Out of the Way!!

2008-06-17T14:15:00Z

This is me ----

I am so excited because I just returned from the post office where I mailed our invitations. Now, we are 100% ON! I was SO lucky that it only took 1 stamp to mail them out, so they look really nice & non-cluttered.

It took about 5 or so hours for me to get them all done, but it was worth it. I did them by myself last night (Justin was away on a business trip). First I matched up the reply card with the correct inner & outer envelope, put a stamp on the reply card envelope, folded the invite and then stuffed the envelope and put a stamp on the outside. Later on - just to be sure - I went through each one to make sure everything matched up & then I sealed them all.

It feels so good to know they are on their way to our guests. They will have just about a month to get them back to us, as we are hoping for them by July 18th.

Of course I am partial to them, but I really like our invitations. I hope you all like them too :-)

Invitations

2008-05-20T11:44:00Z

I am happy to report that I have ordered my invitations. I was on the phone for almost 50 minutes - going through them line by line, having them spelled back and picking everything from color and style of into to envelope liner colors. It was a relief to finally finish.

I ordered with the on-line distributor Ann's Bridal Bargains - www.annsbridalbargains.com. I was very happy with my experience, and am just awaiting the arrival of my digital proof. I guess I can say for sure how happy I am after I get it. But I felt that their prices are very reasonable - especially when compared to other vendors. Justin and I even opted for having them custom address our envelopes - inner & outer, and it wasn't that expensive either.

Right now, if all goes well with the proof, they are scheduled to ship on June 4th, and we should have them right around the 9th. We are hoping to have our reply cards back on or before July 15th, so if we send them out asap, that will give our guests a month to reply. We figure that is a good date, so that we have a couple weeks to follow-up with people and ensure that our out of town guests have made arrangements before the block of rooms goes by the wayside. (Get it? We are getting married at the Wayside Inn)

Almost There...

2008-05-16T14:25:00Z

After all the excitment / fear from last week, this week has been very unproductive. We have finalized our menu and invitation wording, and I have a spreadsheet all set to go with guest information (written formally, of course) but we are waiting for two addresses before proceeding. A friend just moved and we are waiting to hear back about her address, and another is moving in a couple weeks, so we need to make sure we get her too.

I've decided to be good this week and really get myself active. I want to make sure that I look and feel good on my big day. Monday I went to the gym and did 40 minutes of cycling - I think I did 9.5 miles at level 7 and on varied terrain, so that was a very good work-out. Tuesday Justin and I went for a walk to the local farmstand - about a mile away. Wednesday I went for a 3.5 mile walk & then played tennis for 1.5 hours. Thursday I had to take it easy since my hamstring wasn't happy about the walking combined with the tennis. And today I am heading into the city for a concert so I will be walking around and standing all night long. In addition to seeking to be more active, I have been trying to watch what I eat. I've cut down on the amount of beer and wine I drink, and have been trying to opt for more fruits and veggies. We'll see if it works.

I also try to do little things at work like yesterday while I was on a conference call, I ran in place, stood instead of sat, and did some leg muscle exercises.

Wouldn't it be awesome to be in killer shape on my wedding day, for my honeymoon, and to use this to begin living a healthier lifestyle?

Stepping off the ledge...

2008-05-09T18:53:00Z

From reading my post yesterday, you probably could tell that I was a little upset. I know that whenever something unexpected happens people usually say - everything happens for a reason.

Even though in this instance I would have liked for everything to have worked. It really must have happened for a reason.

So yesterday after I typed my post, I went to my facebook webpage and wrote briefly about the bind I was currently in. Amazingly enough, a friend of mine from high school - Jennifer Mantia (now Spicer) - whom I haven't spoken to in a while actually saw what I wrote and emailed me. She told me to email her and tell her my wedding date, as should would pass along the information of the girl who did her mom & sisters hair and make-up for her wedding a couple weeks ago.

Well, she got back to me right away with a price list & followed it up with an email to the girl. I was so excited that she would do this for me. She even told me that if she were available that weekend, she would have done it herself, but alas, the big PGA event in Norton takes place that same weekend. She also tol me that if for some reason it doesn't work out for me with this girl, she had another idea...

I have to say that through the years even people that I haven't seen since high school still manage to come through for me. I am truly blessed to have an incredible network of friends.

Thank you Jenn for coming through when all I wanted to do was sit down and cry.

About What I Expected...Warning - this is a rant of a blog post that involves venting...

2008-05-08T13:02:00Z

So my fears were confirmed. It was what I expected. She's moving - not out of state, only to Waltham - but moving none the less. The girls who were going to help out aren't interested in running the show.

At least she was nice about it and gave me a suggestion. I decided to try calling and wasn't left with a lot of confidence...First, the girl wasn't very helpful and didn't even know if they would do it because they are closed on Sundays. Come on, like no bride in the country gets married on Sunday and has their hair and make-up done. Right!

I know it shouldn't be a big deal - it's just hair and make-up, and I've got several months to find someone new. It's not like she told me this 2 days prior to the wedding. But that's not the point. The point is, I was all set with that - it was taken care of, and I didn't have to worry about it. Now, it's something else that I have to stress about. I've looked on-line and seen that some places charge $200 for bridal hair, and $175 for bridal make-up for just the bride! I don't have an extra $375 sitting around just for me to get my hair and make-up done!! Add the bridesmaids on top of that at a minimum charge of $125 each and that's ridiculous. They just shelled out money for a dress and they have to pay that too - I can't afford to cover the cost of them too.

I'm starting to think it must be me. First, we found a minister who we loved, and the day I sent him all the paperwork he came back and said he couldn't do - something else had come up. Fine. I was crushed, but got over it. Then, I find another guy whom I like and who is available. Great. Too bad that after repeated attempts to contact him fail miserably, we are forced to look elsewhere. In the end we found a guy that we really like, and who actually gets back to us. In the end it worked out. But it still sucked to go through. Now this.

I'm sorry to over-react, but come on! Everyone needs to vent sometimes, and this is my venting.

I'm not a bridezilla! I'm not, so why are people backing out on me? Do I have a sign on my back that says get my hopes up and then crush them miserably?

Again, I am sorry...

YIKES!!

2008-05-07T18:35:00Z

As has been the case since day one of wedding planning -- for every step forward that I take, I take 2 steps back.

My hair and make-up person just called Justin to say that she is moving & can't obviously do the hair & make-up for my wedding party. YIKES! I wasn't even worried about that stuff since before we even set a date, I had someone to do hair & make-up, and now I've got to find someone new..Wait, I can't say that until I actually speak with her. Here's hoping that she is just going to pass me off to another girl, but something tells me that I'll need to find another company. In a panic, I just checked out a few companies in the area, and oh my frickin goodness - they charge a LOT. I was very pleased with the costs I was given and can't believe that people charge so much. For just hair alone at one place it was $200 and for make-up it was $175 and up -- That's $375 just for hair and make-up for one person!! Ouch!

Well, once I get the whole story, I will update you all. Who knows, maybe I am freaking out and the other girls plan on stepping up to the plate.