Thank You!!!!!!

I don't even know where to begin... THANK YOU to EVERYONE, from near and far, who attended our wedding yesterday. I can't yet put into words the feelings of the day, but consider the fact that I'M speechless a sign of my awe. Your involvement in our day (and our lives) is cherished. We are so blessed to have each other, and all of you in our lives.

For those who couldn't join us, you missed one heck of a night. :) We hope to see you all soon!

We're on our way to our "Mini-Moon", and no, he still hasn't told me where! ;)

Eek!

Alright, um, SINGLE digits!!!

Remember about 90 days ago when I wrote about double digits with much excitement? Ok, then you can imagine how I feel with just NINE days to go!!!  Holy GaMoly!

It's hard (at least for me) not to be a little emotional about everything going on. How rare is it to really find THE one and be genuinely HAPPY?

About a year ago, I was at a wedding with Mike, when the Bride (who I had just met 30 seconds before...) looked around in awe and said to me "These are all my people!".  Seems like such an obvious thing observe (being her wedding, and all), but I've thought about that statement a lot over the last few months.  All "my people" will be in one place, to celebrate us. How does it get any better than that?

We'll miss those who won't be with us next week, and I truly wish they could've joined us. But I was ALSO told when we got engaged, not to be offended by those who decide not to come.  This was easier said than done, as I battled with some hurt feelings for awhile, but the words are true.  I'm over-joyed to celebrate with those who are attending... and feeling humbled by those who are making the trip.  We have our MD peeps... and those traveling from DC, PA, VA, TX and CA! Way to make a girl feel loved. ;)

So, NINE DAYS, people... until the "first day of the rest of my life"!

PS: I know better not to trust it, but I was also able to check out the 10 day forecast today! Taking with a grain of salt, yes, but if it can stay at 64 and Sunny, I'll take it! :)

October?! How?

Well, it's official. I'm getting MARRIED this month!

I absolutely, positively don't know where the months went.  I am over-the-moon excited for this wedding. But better yet, for this marriage.

It's no secret that the last few months have been a littttttle stressful. Getting all the little details organized, all my DIY projects. But the last week or so things have really calmed down and I've actually been able to sleep (most) nights! :)

So, as much as I look forward to, which is sure to be the most wonderful day of my life, I can't help but be excited about the day after.... and the next 60-70 years.

Butterflies...

It's taken two days, but I think I'm almost recovered from the emotions and excitement of the weekend!

First of all - THANK YOU to all of the family and friends who came out to celebrate at my shower on Saturday.  I hope you had a great time. :)  More on this later...

I got into town late Thursday, but some things don't change.  Dad greeted me on the porch with a beer.  After that one - I went inside with mom to bake til' the wee hours.

Friday... oh Friday.  Mom and I picked up Auntie Lisa after 10 and we were off to Sandra's for my dress fitting.  I haven't see the dress in "real life" (only the pics) for 6 months, so I was honestly a little freaked out when I walked into the room and it wasn't my dress.  Thankfully, they just hadn't moved the previous dress OUT of there yet.  Phew!  Any morsel of stress vanished when I put on MY very own wedding dress. Ya know that feeling when you're about to cry? That was me for the 45 minutes in the dress.  Since mom had already seen it, Aunt Lisa was going to be the best judge, and probably paid the best compliment when she said it was "so me".  That's all one can ask for on the most important day of her life. We go back in 10 days for my second fitting! Can't believe how fast everything is happening now!

As you know from the last post, Mom was pretty excited to be surprising me with lunch after the fitting.  I'm kinda surprised she kept it a secret for so long. I couldn't have every guessed what she had in store!  She took us to "High Tea" at Jessica's Tea Room.  How completely "me", eh?! Each course (of the 5) was better than the next... how pretty was my tea kettle? It was a fantastic afternoon with even more fantastic company.

Friday evening, Kyle came over with Denver. And if you can't tell from Facebook, I am one doting Aunt.  We had some darn attractive dogs growing up, but that Denver has the prettiest face. (Just don't lean over her head when she's playing... my jaw STILL hurts!)

Later Friday, we visited Aunt Lisa's where the VA Beach had (finally) made it safely to PA. Was a nice visit with the Kubik/Notareschi's (I spelled that right without even looking, FYI!), Wargo/Clark's and Recker/Rapp's.

Saturday... Shower Day! I didn't think I'd be so emotional leading up to it, but I was.  For those who know me well, I'm not all too comfortable with being the center of attention. (I know, I better get over that before October!). But once I was there and greeted by Amanda and the family there setting up, I felt much better.  It's a strange thing... between my family and friends I've been to countless showers - but nothing compares to your own. I can't thank my Mom and Amanda enough for doing the shower planning.  There really wasn't a detail they didn't think of. From centerpieces to cheesy potatoes(!), they did it all. To Aunt Lisa, Jenna, Aunt Terri, Devon, Amy & Bailey and my in-laws to be... what beautiful, creative baskets! We all know I'm not a "game girl" when it comes to bridal showers... I loved the idea of the basket raffles at my cousin Jenna's shower. Aunt Lisa was such a big help in organizing this.  Yes, all the gifts were amazing and thoughtful, but in addition to that, it really meant the world to see everyone in one place.  Thank you just doesn't seem like enough to say to everyone who came out to celebrate.   I hope you had just as much fun as I did (ok, ok. Maybe not QUITE as much), and we can't wait to see you all at the wedding!  About the gifts... I'm still a little freaked out that both my MOM and my future MIL got me the same "Something Old" (BOTH Mike and my "home from the hospital" bonnets)... Whoa!

Girls. Night. Out. <3
We were possibly the quietest "bachelorette party" ever, but it was a great evening with bridal party and friends.  I honestly can't imagine my life without each and every one of you. Thank you so much for traveling from far and wide to celebrate with me.

------ * ------ * ------ * ------ * ------ * ------ * ------ * ------ * ------ * ------ * ------

I honestly had forgotten about my long-loved favorite quote until I was reminded by Kiera this weekend.

“Some people are settling down, some people are settling and some people refuse to settle for anything less than butterflies.” 

As Kiera pointed out... and happy to say, I found my butterfly. Happy and proud of myself that I didn't settle for anything less, because this love is definitely worth the wait.

Just. Got. Real.

All the planning, all the lists and still, sometimes this all feels like going thru the motions for someone else.  But last week, when Mike brought home our Marriage License from the court house... I couldn't help but get a little emotional.  OUR names are on it! :)  And last night, we went ring shopping. Mine is done... Mike is between two options and couldn't decide right away... he'll get that order in soon though.  And I think that takes care of all of the "must haves"!

So, I have "TimeHop" on my phone...which grabs anything I posted on social media that day in the past.  A couple weeks ago, I read one from last year and it's funny how things have changed both so much and so little in the past year.

"With all the craziness (& stress) of the move, it's easy to lose some perspective. But the honest to God truth is, I simply cannot stop smiling... So excited for this new chapter to begin. :)"

Replace "move" with "wedding", and same can be said.
I'm a little on edge, that's no secret.  But I am SO excited for this wedding. So excited to see all of these fun details come to life.  So excited to see everyone we love in one place!

It can't go unsaid, I have some of the best support in the world.  My mom... OMG, I don't know what I'd do without her.  She has talked me off the ledge too many times to count.  And sometimes just lets me yell at her for no apparent reason.

Of course we're excited, it's our wedding.  And of course our immediate families are excited - they've waited awhile for this day too.  But for those outside of those circles who have paid particular interest, I can not express how good that makes us feel. I LOVE to hear about people's excitement and support.  Hearing how people react to a wedding and all of its details is a is certainly an eye-opening experience.

This Friday/Saturday contains some events I've been waiting my entire life to have...

Friday - Mom, Aunt Lisa and I are heading to Sandra's for my first dress fitting. I can hardly wait to put that dress on again.  And with those two, I'm certain we'll share some (happy) tears.  Mom is taking us to lunch afterward... and she won't say where.  So, I'm a little intrigued. ;)

Saturday - My shower!  I know about it, yes.  But I can't wait to see what Amanda and Co. have cooked up. :)  So happy that all my bridesmaids are going to make it in for the festivities. From PA, VA, CA... will be nice to see everyone together (and meet!)

Saturday NIGHT - Girls Night Out! Bridesmaids and friends out for dinner, dessert and drinks.  Happy to say Kiera, Colleen and Andrea will all make it to the shower AND the night out.  So happy they're making the trip... will be great to celebrate with my favorite girls!

Invitations are all written out and assembled.  Can't wait to get them in the mail next week! :)

Double Digits!

I know... I am WAY overdue on an entry here.  So much has gone on in the last few months, both wonderful and stressful, I was in a much-needed power through mode! ;)

It's hard to believe that we're now into the "double digit" portion of the countdown.  I mean, WHERE did the time go?

Two weeks ago we had our (highly anticipated ;) planning session with Lauren at Morningside. It's so gratifying to hear her ask a question and us almost always have an answer. On the other hand, there is still SO much to do and put together in the next 94 days.

My dress fitting, bridal shower and bachelorette party are all next month (and the same weekend none-the-less). So excited for all of it.  Amanda did a fantastic job on the shower/bach party invites. And I FINALLY ordered my bridal jewelry to have in time to wear at the fitting!

SO much else is going on, it's hard to keep track at this point.  Our guest room is officially "wedding storage" for all the DIY items. And slowly (to me) but surely, all the pieces are fitting nicely together.

Three more weekends until those wedding events, and it's time to use weekend time wisely. ;) These next two should be uber-productive.

Weekend #3 is saved for Mike's Birthday weekend, which I believe will include our annual trip to the MC Fair. We're such kids, but the fair holds such special meaning.  We were on the Tilt-a-Whirl two years ago when I knew I loved this man (insert Awwwww's here). I love this tradition.

Couldn't Be Happier...

Of course, that's pretty obvious, I'm getting married.
But planning and getting everything together can be stressful.  Especially for someone like me who loves to plan things, and does so at times, for a living.  I know it doesn't have to be, but I want everything to be as perfect as it can be.  Let's face it... this is the biggest party I'm ever going to host.  I want to have a good time and make sure my guests do too!

Speaking of guests... I LOVE to hear from everyone about getting the Save the Dates in the mail.  VistaPrint definitely exceeded my expectations with the send-time. It was super fun to add our OWN Save the Date to our fridge, as we have with so many others. :)

Got the call (email) from Morningside yesterday to announce our wedding planner who got assigned.  LAUREN!!!  Not that we don't love everyone at Morningside, but I hit it off with Lauren from the second we started our tour.  She's been my main contact thus far, and I'm over the moon that I'll get to continue to work with her.  Our planning session is scheduled for July 7th, when we'll go over every little detail to make this day PERFECT.  Crazy to think that after that, the next time we'll be there is for our rehearsal.

Time has certainly gone by fast since getting engaged. And now that there's so many details to wrap up... I'm certain these remaining 5 months will fly by even faster.

And hey, YOU... have you seen our AppyCouple website? ;)
You can find us here: http://www.appycouple.com/wedding/danaandmichael
Best part about AppyCouple is we also get our very own wedding app for your smartphone.  Check out the website and your Save the Date for downloading instructions.  :)

In other NON-wedding news, the next few months have some GREAT weekend plans.  Can't wait to kick this summer off with my traditional trip to VA Beach for Memorial Day, followed by a Kings Dominion trip with my love.  Come on Friday...

Productive Week!

Officially no turning back now! ;) LOL.
Save the Date's are created & ordered. Watch your mail, they should arrive just before Memorial Day weekend. :)

Piece of Mind

So, our Engagement pictures come back and, biasly said, they look great!  I love that we had a chance to get to know how our photographer works and get a little more comfortable in front of the camera.  Wedding Day pictures should be a snap (pun intended).

Click Above to View our Album!

This week has been pretty productive.  I've uploaded all our pictures, got a start on the Save the Dates AND... Mike has picked out (and purchased - to lock in the $DEAL$) all the suits his guys will be wearing! I'm marrying a smarty-pants... the guys will get to KEEP their suits, all at the cost of a tux rental.

It's officially MAY... bring on the spring/summer and the weather that goes along with it! :)

OH... and PS: we received our first gift from our registry yesterday.  I was a little confused at why there was an Amazon box, but I figured it out. ;) Along with the fruit bowl I wanted, we also got the cake topper we'll use at the wedding.  Yay! :)

Waiting is the worst...

Our photographer assures me that I should get the link to our Engagement Photos today.  Patience is a virtue I do not have lately. ;)  Once I get them, I can work on the Save the Dates this weekend and get 'em in the mail. WooHoo!

On another note...
6 Month from Today!

And.... BREATHE....

I think I'm at the point that I couldn't wait to get to... the big things are kinda done. Decisions to be made and details to be put into action, but really, the "planning" itself is complete!  Not that there isn't still a lot to do, mind you... but now it's on MY schedule not trying to book other people's time.

Our families were in town last weekend, and it was a fantastic time! We managed to cram "all things wedding" into Saturday afternoon.

Friday night, I surprised Mom (couldn't hold it in anymore!) that the next day at noon we had an appointment to taste our wedding cake.  For those of you who know my mother... this thrilled her beyond belief.  I think she may deem the cake might to be the most important part of this wedding, LOL.

So, Saturday, we started at Piece of Cake bakery with my parents and Mike's dad, where we tasted to our hearts' content.  Tasty... and Jessica makes everything so easy.  The rest of Mike's family (mom, Kristen, Al, Sarah, Leah...) met us AT the bakery before we headed out on our tour.

Next stop, we visited the two hotels were we have rooms blocked - just to show them the location is reference to our next stop...

Morningside!  I was particularly excited to show everyone where we would get married (and party into the night!).  Before seeing it, Mom kept asking "what was wrong" with some of the other places we had visited and I really didn't have an answer for her.  It was more about what Morningside DID have....  that VIEW!!  We really had to place to ourselves, so we were able to show them the entire place and really get into that "what, when, where" for the day of the wedding.  Everyone seemed to love our pick.... especially the little ones who spend some quality time rolling down those hills!  :)

Next, we were off to get rid of some of the hunger pains at Brewer's Alley (where our rehearsal dinner is going to be!). Lucky for us, the event coordinator was in and we were able to take our families up to the banquet facilities.  Also, our lunch was AMAZING.

With bellies full, we headed to our last stop and took them to the winery where we got engaged.  It was so nice to share "our" place with them, and of course they all did a sampling.  Between all of us, we walked out buying a case of wine. No wonder why they love us over there! LOL.

Truly, an awesome weekend. Also, truly exhausting... we're still recovering a bit! :)

This coming Sunday we have our engagement shoot... which means I can create and send our "Save the Dates" not too long after that!  Soooo thankful that the weather looks like it's going to cooperate.  73 degrees and somewhat sunny? I'll take it!

7 Months!

Wow... it's March 25th already (and I should note that it's SNOWING).  I'm hoping this crazy, uber-cold, and very WHITE winter means that come October 25th we'll be wed in sunny and 70 degree weather.  Right?  Riiiiiight? ;)

Little by little, things are getting crossed off the list. And in a little over two weeks our families will finally meet!

How is it March Already?

February, as always, FLEW by.  Before we know it - we'll be only SEVEN months out.  Craziness.

For those who have offered to help and I haven't given you anything to do, please don't be offended. I've been planning this wedding in my head for months and I'm really just making it up as I go along.  Besides, this  beginning stuff has been fun to do with Mike, while his schedule still allows.  Don't worry - you'll be contacted when the DIY stuff needs to be done (probably over the summer) and Mike's schedule simply won't allow him to help me put centerpieces together.  ;)

As of yesterday, 2 out of my 3 (adult) bridesmaids have tried on the dress and LOVE it.  Which is a huge relief to hear that they're happy too.  After Saturday, I'm hoping we're 3 for 3 and those will be ordered!  At that point, all dresses - Bridesmaid, Jr. Bridesmaid, Flower Girl, MOB, MOG... will be DONE.

After some thought (and change of plans on my part), Mike and I decided to have a joint Bachelor/Bachelorette weekend to include a day at Kings Dominion!  I had initially thought that the girls and I could just go out the night of my shower in August.  But the more I thought about it and talked to Mike about this new idea, a weekend based around one of our favorite places was so much more "us" than anything else we could come up with. And what a perfect way for everyone to get to know each other before all the other wedding events!  We've received some great feedback from our invite so far, and we can't wait to spend the weekend with some of our favorite people.

My current list includes the ongoing task of getting all addresses together, designing the invitation, and of course - researching everything under the sun. Whatever am I going to do with my time come October 26th?!

Wedding Party COMPLETE! :)

And now... everyone who is IN the wedding, knows they're in the wedding! We were waiting to ask the VA Beach kids in person, and our visit last weekend allowed us to do that!  They are really excited and that in itself is exciting. We even took my Jr. Bridesmaid, Bailey, for her dress appointment and it's now ordered! And flower girl dresses are actually IN already!

This last week, we also reserved our spot for the Rehearsal Dinner. Hotel Blocks and Wedding Party Transportation is in process and we should be check that off the list soon!  I like checking things off the "to do" list, can you tell? ;)

Other plans seem to be rolling along nicely.  Looking forward to the first weekend in April when our parents will (finally) meet!  We have a full Saturday planned for them to see the wedding and rehearsal dinner venues.  Should be a great weekend.

This week: getting our engagement shoot scheduled for April! Can't wait!

Said YES to the Dress!

Wedding Gown.... CHECK!

Saturday's shopping trip was quite the success story.

Mom and I started the day at Bridal's by Sandra for our 11:30am appointment.  My consultant, Alicia, took us back into our room to get a feel of me, our wedding and what I was looking for in my dress.  And yes, I totally felt like I was on my newest NetFlix obsession, "Say Yes to the Dress".  She disappeared for a while and came back with several dresses to try on.

The first dress was amazing, and had everything that I mentioned to her. Different than anything I had previously visualized, but that is the benefit of the fresh eyes and ears of the consultant!  I tried on about 6 other dresses.  The last one was gorgeous... "if".  We made a few modifications to it, and I thought this could be it.  I didn't feel comfortable in that decision enough to cancel my second appointment elsewhere, later in the day, but I asked to put on #1 again.  Mom gasped when seeing it again and I could feel tears starting to form.  This was the one, I just knew it.  After the typical sales lines "Ooooo.... that could be tough to get for October" and then the "Great News! It'll be in August 1st... if you order it today", I knew deep down I was going to be ordering this dress and cancelling that second appointment.  And I did just that. :)  ONLY "bad" thing is, I don't think the shoes I originally picked out (and bought) will work.  Oh the horror, Dana needs to go shoe shopping again!  LOL.

On the way home, we still stopped at David's, since mom wanted to try on a dress I found for her online.  We waited just a few minutes for our walk-in appointment (time spent browsing the Mother of the Bride section anyway...). Then we got to switch places and SHE tried on a few dresses (including my original pick).  Success there too! We walked outta there less than an hour later and her MOB dress ordered.

While visiting with multiple family members this weekend, I was pleasantly aware of how many answers I had to their questions about the planning progress. Either got to say "already booked" or had some sort of idea or link saved to what I was going to do.  I guess I really am on top of things!

All in all, quite the productive weekend!

Hard Rock, Rivera Maya

On another (exciting!) note, Mike called and booked our honeymoon on Friday!  With many many thanks to my future in-laws for letting us use some of their timeshare points towards our room, we're headed to Heaven at the Hard Rock Hotel Rivera Maya for 7 days of All-Inclusive bliss.

This weekend coming up, in additional to Valentine's Day on Friday, we have a tasting/vendor event at our reception venue!  Since we'll be in the area, scouting rehearsal dinner venues and booking a block of rooms at a couple hotels is also on the itinerary.

Moving right along...

Last night, we met with and hired our photographer!  WooHoo!
We especially excited because she has done several weddings at Morningside already, so her team already knows the best places for the best shots. Such great piece of mind.

I have to admit, although I know I was overwhelmed in my "research" phase with all of the information I was gathering, it has really helped me when meeting with vendors.  I don't feel like they're just telling me things I want to hear and I feel like I'm actually PART of the conversation, rather than just a lot of "uh-huhs" for what they'll do.

This weekend is my dress shopping weekend in PA with my mom... and I am SO very excited.  Of course they're calling for snow. Come on Mother Nature, work with me here! :)  I have a good amount of specific dresses that I want to try on, but I'm actually looking forward to letting them pick something for me to try on!  Hoping traveling is a breeze and to come back home to MD having a dress ordered!

Mike's work schedule will get crazy in the matter of a few short months, so we are trying to get as many things checked off the list before April. After that, I'll be turning into a DIY Queen!

Until then, we have some pretty fabulous weekends ahead...

Tonight... honeymoon discussion!

Ahead of the Game... I Think.

After the whirlwind of the proposal, Mike and I decided early on we'd only start the planning process "after the holidays".  We had Thanksgiving, a trip to Punta Cana, Christmas and New Years to get through.  We mostly stuck to that, although it's impossible to stop the wedding conversation from occurring at least a few (dozen) times.

I "researched" a little (a lot) before that - but as a planner at heart, it was hard not to dive right in.  And let's face it, I've really been planning my wedding for quite some time (ahem, secret Pintrest board).  Just now, we needed to start planning OUR wedding.

We started to look at places online the January 2nd, and in my head, I already feel like we're behind since we've come to the idea of October 4th.  Over the next two weekends, we visited 4 locations, but when we walked into #3 - I just knew I was going to be getting a different wedding date.

Ya see, I had been talking to Lauren at Morningside Inn for a couple weeks and she had already told me that the 4th and 18th were only available if we could take the morning (11am-3:30pm) time slot.  For a brief second, I thought about it, but as my mother said "It's WAY more fun to dancing into the wee hours of the night, than the wee hour of mid-afternoon".  October 25th was the only October Saturday NIGHT left.

After touring the venue and talking to Lauren for the next hour, we got in the car and Mike asked "So, what do you think?"  The only thing I could think was "I think we're getting married October 25th".

It's not fair really, but we saw one more location after that.  A perfectly beautiful country club not too far away, that HAD October 4th available.

That night, we applied Mike's scientific elimination process.  Seriously, there was graph paper, a category list (weighted by importance), average of our ratings...  Let's just say, there was math.  Lots of math, which I left to him.  Despite the change of date it was more the obvious we had our place so I contacted Lauren that night.  By the next morning, we were confirmed and able to check that (very important) item off our checklist. :)

Since then, we've met with the priest and a DJ, both of whom we've booked.  The ladies' dress choice is all but final, Mike's pretty sure about the guys' attire, and MY dress shopping day is coming up soon.  It's hard to believe that we've truly only started this process 20 days ago... I honestly feel like it's taken forever.  All in all, I believe we're on our way!

Next up - meeting with a few photographers next week!