Wedding Wants

The wedding blog world is crazy.

Scratch that. The blog world is crazy.

I've been a blogger for a few years now, and the blog world is definitely a different place. People are super friendly, even though they've never met you. You read about someone else's life for so long that you feel like you've known them for years.

But one of the craziest things about the blog world is how much pull bloggers have in our related industry. For example, in the triathlon blogging community, bloggers are offered free gifts from triathlon companies in exchange for a review on their blog... or even a giveaway (who doesn't love free stuff?!). Bloggers help get the word out about cool companies or new products.

In the wedding blog world, it's all about trends. You see the same trends over and over again on blog after blog. They seep into your brain until you just must have that at your own wedding.

So I present you now with my "wants". They aren't things that are crucial to our wedding day... just things I think are adorable.

Personalized Cake Topper ($45): These are super cute. And unlike the classic bride and groom cake toppers, this is something you might actually want to display for years to come. I'm wondering if I could make a set of these myself...

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Photo Booth Props: My mom would absolutely die. To be clear, I would steer very clear of the leis, hats, boas, etc, that tend to add a touch of cheesy. Instead, chalkboard speech bubbles and mustaches on sticks add a some whimsical fun...

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Personalized Hanger ($25): You can get ones that say "Kelly (heart) Ryan" too. Perfect for wedding day photos of the dress before it has been put on. After that? Probably useless. But still totally adorable...

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Bunting: Any kind, really...

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All of these things are totally overdone in the blogging world. But I have a feeling if I had any of them at our wedding, there would still be a vast majority who had never seen any of them before.

That's what's great about the wedding blog world. There is so much inspiration, and so many ways to make it your own.

The Distance Catches Up With Us

Being a long-distance bride is tough.

Granted, it could be worse. Ryan and I are only 3 hours away from our wedding locale.

But we are busy people. We sat down last weekend and looked at our calendars. We only have 4 free weekends the rest of the year. Oh... my... goodness.

Due to the constraints on our availability, we are planning one super grand extra productive mega wedding-overload-weekend... also known as the WOW.

The WOW will be in mid-October and will include:

• Food tasting
• Cake tasting
• Ceremony music consultation
• Registering at Crate and Barrel
  
• Looking at rehearsal dinner venues
  

That's a lot of stuff to cram into 36 hours.

One exciting part of this weekend is that Ryan's mom will be joining us. We invited her along, assuming she would probably say no because it's so far away, but she said yes.

It's good because it will give her a chance to be involved in the wedding planning a little bit more (it's hard because she lives on the east coast and the wedding is in Chicago). She will get to see our reception venue for the first time, and check out my hometown.

My parents on the left. Ryan's parents on the right.

To say my mom is excited would be a gross understatement. She practically squealed on the phone when I told her the news. How adorable.

Save the Date Rejects

The Post Office might be dumb.

We've gotten three return-to-sender Save the Dates.

They all said the addresses were incorrect.

But when we double checked the addresses, they all seemed to be correct.

So what gives?


We resent two of the rejected cards, and one of them made it (as far as we know), but one of them was rejected again.

Sigh.

So what do we do? Give up. We're tired of wasting postage.

Yo, guests! Just save the freaking date!

Floral Consultation

Let me start by saying that I'm much more excited about our flowers now that I've had an actual discussion with a florist.

We haven't officially signed the contract yet, but I'm sure we will. I knew I liked this company before I spoke with them. But talking to the owner on the phone last night just solidified what I already felt.

So here is what she came up with (complete with photos of similar arrangements)...

Bridal Bouquet: Mostly pink flowers with white accents. Dinner plate size. Handle wrapped in navy satin with pearl detail. Ranunculus, peonies, roses and spray roses, and silver foliage accents around the rim.



Groom's Boutonniere: Double pink ranunculus with silver wire accent.

Alterpieces: Tall, showy rectangular vase with hydrangeas, peonies, silvery culry willow branches, dark blud delphinium, pink stock, pink snapdragons, and roses with minimal silver foliage accents. Navy band of ribbon around the rim.

(This was the closest thing I could find.)

Centerpiece #1: Square vase with mostly pink flowers and some white. Silver foliage accents with navy ribbon around the vase. Flowers include roses, spray roses, peonies, ranunculus, asiatic/oriental lilies, stock hydrangea, and silver sage/dusy miller.


Centerpiece #2: Trio of rectangular vases. Mostly pink flowers with navy ribbon around the vases. Flowers to include hydrangea, lilies, roses, possibly peonies, and stock.


Ryan's thoughts on flowers? Meh.

I said, "Are you okay with a pink ranunculus boutonniere?"

He said, "I don't know what that is."

Well, I guess that answers that. But I'm perfectly happy dealing with the flowers myself. As long as he doesn't think they're ugly, we'll be fine.

The estimated total of all that (plus more) comes out to $2,200. So pretty, but sooo expensive!

Ryan's Non-Musical Band

Happy short week! Yes, even us news people get a day off occasionally (rarely).

Among the labor day weekend lounging, hanging with friends, comedy club going, art gallery viewing, dog walking, and cleaning... Ryan and I managed to find some time to go pick up his wedding band.

It was ready weeks before they said it would be (thank you, Rogers & Hollands).

Ryan went with a silver tungsten carbide ring with a brushed band in the center.

Without further ado, I present you with Ryan's ring (and, of course... more shots of my gorgeous ring also!)...


They're the perfect pair... just like us.

::Awwwww::

Meet the Groomsmen

It took Ryan 2 1/2 months longer than me to decide on his groomsmen. And obviously, since he's a boy, he didn't do any adorable cards or ring pops to ask them.

So here is an introduction to the boys...

Ryan, S, D, and G

Was it a lucky coincidence that I found a photo of all four of them together? No.

Back in the day (less than 2 years ago), Ryan was in a band with these 3 guys. They played some pretty awesome live concerts in the Philadelphia area. But S and D both joined other bands, and G moved to China (yes, seriously). So the four of them haven't been all together in a long time.

Ryan struggled with who to have by his side, but it always seemed to come back to this group. They have spent a lot of time together, been through a lot, plus they have the added luxury of already being friends... which minimizes any awkwardness.

Now that our wedding party is complete, I'm super excited to share our day with these 6 people. I will be relying on them to keep our heads on straight, keep us grounded, and bring the fun.