Day 73: It's Revived!

Only 73 days until our moment... until our day... until the beginning of the rest of our lives! So awesome and yet unbelieveable. We've gone from 257 to 73.............. HOLY COW!
Time has flown by, and I know these last 73 days will too.
As I've been thinking about what marriage will look like, and what it means, I realize more and more than things I'm NOT going to miss about being a single woman. Like, I'm not going to miss going to bed alone. And, I won't miss having to drive to see the one my heart loves (or him having to drive!) I won't miss coming home from work to a dark, quiet house. And I won't miss having to decide whose house to cook dinner at :o) We'll cook it at OUR house, in OUR kitchen, with OUR dishes, and eat at OUR table... How awesome!

I've been talking to Jeramy about this some lately, and I'm sure I just sound silly to him. But the thought of having our own dishes, and our own groceries, and our own towels... just everything, it's so cool, weird, exciting, and just blows my mind when I start thinking about it too much ;o) It'll be fun to make "OUR life". It'll be a HUGE adjustment, especially for me coming out of a house with my whole family AND our two dogs.... I'm not sure how long I'll be able to go without a puppy.... just sayin' ;o) LOL!

The wedding plans are coming along. It's not as stressful as women seem to talk it up as. Especially those shows that make it look like the most miserable thing a woman will EVER have to do! Hahahahahaha... I just laugh. I LOVE wedding planning! Aside from the financial burdens and how gosh darn expensive even the CHEAP stuff is, I still love it in so many ways. It's fun, especially when my mom and I start talking through ideas and brainstorming.
Here are some things I've accomplished since returning from China in late July:

> Aisle runner- ordered and arrived. It's beautiful! :o)

> Sparklers- 300 of them to be exact. Hehe, so fun. They're sitting in my foyer ;o)

> Tulle, Tulle, and more Tulle! Just got the new big box in this week.

> I've decided on the centerpieces...finally.... now to order the special pearls ;o)

> Found out even more of my extended family members are coming in town- HOW AWESOME!!!

> Received the proposal and official agreement for the catering :o) Yummy!

> Picked a song for Communion/Unity Candle time.... will be sung by one of the sweetest voices! (I'll keep that a surprise... for those who go to CRC, you'll love love love it!!!)

> Found INCREDIBLE deals on tables and linens. Gotta call and book them. Great prices!

> Ordered engraved napkins (my mother's idea...!) LOL. They were quite cheap though.

> Discovered (thanks to JENN!) that Mac store does free makeovers for these type of events. Definitely headed to the Town Center on the morning of, for some makeovers! WAHOO!!!!

> Purchased my shoes.... shhh.... it's a secret! They're AMAZINGGGGGG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

> My dress has arrived! AND, I tried it on! Now just for alterations..... oh oh oh, and it's STUNNING. I want to cry every single time I put it on. It's so me!

> All of the bridesmaids dresses are ordered & on their way :o) Yippee! Good job, ladies!

> More paper lanterns are headed this way! (one of my favorite parts of the whole reception)

> Found the flower girl dress.... it is so NOT typical, which is exactly what I wanted! It's beautiful, flowy, sparkly, and SO Logan Venn :o) Can't wait to see her in it!!! Trying it on her this week.

> Chose the Junior Bridesmaids dresses... and found them for $29!!! Yes, seriously, $29. :o)


Sigh.... so, as you see, I've been a busy bee in my spare time, and am excited as boxes continue to arrive at our door! The coolest part will be seeing it ALL come together on that day into one big, beautiful scene of love, laughter, and unity with each other, and with our dear friends and family.

THIS MONTH'S MAJOR TASK:
The GUEST LIST..... dun dun dun...... and invitations. Yuck! The one thing I'm NOT looking forward to working on! LOL! Gonna be a long, tough task. But fun afterwards :o)


I pray you've all had a wonderful, sweet summer- full of adventure and amazing moments with Jesus!

Love,
Kat

Day 109: 148.

Dang, I can't believe how long it's been since I last wrote. Makes me sad. I'm determined to change it, especially as the wedding gets closer...... speaking of closer..... wow! We've been engaged for 148 days!!! Amazing. I can't believe it's only 109 more days until I walk down that aisle in our church. Whew, talk about a tear-filled day. :-)

Tomorrow night (Tuesday) at 3:00am, Jeramy and I, alongside my parents and two other team members, will be on our merry way to China- to impact the nation! This trip didn't come easy.... lots of prayer, decision-making, fundraising, and prep. I'm actually amazed it's really happening. TOMORROW. This is Jeramy's first mission trip, and just a couple weeks ago he received his first passport in the mail- such a fun thing! I love that we're doing this together. It's going to be an incredible experience for him, and for me as well. Every single mission trip is different. No matter how many I've been on, I KNOW God has new things in store for me to experience, new things to reveal, new challenges to walk me through, and new souls to reach! I can't explain to you how much I've anticipated this moment- to go on a mission trip with the love of my life. God has such cool plans!

The day we return marks the THREE MONTH MARK til the wedding day! AHHH!!! We return on July 22nd. Once we return, I'll definitely be posting more updates.... so stay tuned ;-)

Last week, after much research and conversation, we finally booked our honeymoon (after changing the location at least 10 times.... thanks to my indecisive-ness) We're going to Ocho Rios, Jamaica! Ah, the pictures are so breath-taking. I'm ready and excited for 10 days in paradise with my babe ;-) We'll be pretty busy!!!!! hehehehehe. (that's to gross my sister out when she reads this.)

Although I'm not sure if I REALLY am, I feel like I'm making progress in the wedding-planning. I nailed down the DJ and paid the deposit this week, and now I need to nail down the table rentals. I've decided I really want ROUND tables for the reception, and our church only has 6 of those (I need like 30 or more). I have some different companies I'm looking at. Pricing really isn't too bad.

Ok ok, so I'll end this. I probably won't have time to write again until we're in China, but for the first week where we are staying does have internet, so if we get time, I'll updated you all :-)

Thanks for being part of the journey! We appreciate any prayers you can give while we're on this trip.

Love you all,
Kathleen

Day 134: Summer is here in full gear.

Well my friends, 134 days to go 'til our huge celebration!!! When I think how long it's been, I get super excited, because we have less than that to go! But, when I think how long til it's here, I'm like "SERIOUSLY?! Come on already!" ;-)

Today my grandmas, my aunt Karen, and my cool friend Danni came to Michael's to see me in my dress. Actually, it wasn't MY dress... mine hasn't arrived in yet. But, it was the sample and still stunned them.... hehe. There's nothing like when people see you in it for the first time. It's like, you wanna be embarrassed cuz they're looking at you and crying, but then you don't wanna be because you have no reason to be!! I just can't even imagine that moment when the doors open and I get to see my man, and he sees me, and we meet at the altar..... It'll be beautiful, emotional, spiritual, incredible, and so much more... I just can't imagine........

In the wedding planning process, I'm currently working on establishing a rental company to get my round tables from (actually, still trying to talk myself OUT of wanting round tables) and my dear friend Christine is going to try to help me get a good deal on linens. Oh, and still lookin' for those trees for the stage.... we have a couple options, just no time to pursue them. Ick!

I love this part of it though- deciding how to decorate and what "look" I'm going for. It's crazy to get to decide, and do whatever, WHATEVER, we want!!! I never realized how many options there are- centerpieces, photos, candles, linens, trees, pillars, flowers, sparklers, bubbles, place cards, so so so much to pick and choose.... it's AWESOME!!!! I LOVE IT!

Thanks for joining in the journey. Oh oh, one more thing... I know the blog posts may not be quite too interesting yet.... I was just thinking today of August and September, as it starts getting REALLY close.... I'm going to be blogging LOTS! Guaranteed! I wanna look back and have these fun things to read and remember :-)

I really should get back to working now...... this was just a breath of fresh air as I sit at my desk! Hehe :-D Love you all!!!

Day 144: double-digit numbers, where are you?!

Today I feel mushy, gushy... Actually, most days I find myself so. Just to know I've been found and won over by the man God planned for me before I was even born. Ha, wow. I love this love. It's so deep, so much fun, so real. It's beautiful!
<3

I'm so ready, anxious, and looking forward to the double-digit numbers. That's when the countdown will be kicked into high gear! Only 44 days 'til we're out of the hundreds. Ahhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Come on, October!

Jeramy and I are doing great! Many people ask, so I decided to share with the world the answer. Our relationships grows more every single day- no joke. Blows my mind how much we learn about each other every time we get together. And the laughing... oh the laughing... it's constant!!! Lately, we've been talking about the future a lot more often. Don't get me wrong, it has never been an uncommon topic of conversation for us, but it's been very exciting to think and dream together of what things will look like in 5 years.... 10 years.... and such! It's gonna be awesome... I hope you can stick around for the journey ahead, too!

That's the update. Short and sweet. Soon, my handsome fiance will walk in my door to join my parents and I for a cookout. I'm so ready for an evening together! <3

Love,
Kathleen

Day 153: f.i.v.e.m.o.n.t.h.s!

I woke up this morning to find an awesome reminder on my facebook wall from my mom.
"5 months from today!!!!!!!!!!"

This is a great morning. What a great reality.
5 months until....
... we don't have to choose whose house to hang out at tonight....
... we don't have to buy two separate tubes of toothpaste...
... we don't have to have a curfew...
... we don't have to call the other in the morning to say good morning...
... we don't have to buy separate groceries at publix...
... we don't have to say goodbye after a romantic dinner date...
... and oh so many more!

All the wedding hoopla and planning is fun and great! I LOVE it! But, I am sooooo looking forward to the marriage a million times more than the wedding itself. To think I'll be bonded in heart and spirit (and law!) with my best friend, my partner-in-crime, my stable support, my personal comedian, my pool buddy, my workout partner, my dinner date, my everything. Ah, such an incredible thing.... 5 months!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now, at this memorable 5-month mark, I should give you a brief rundown of what big things have been nailed down and accomplished in the wedding planning process. After all, it's important to know if I'm making progress or not.... and in MY opinion, I sure as heck am! A LOT of it!

COMPLETED:

- Venue- ceremony and reception

- officiant

- bridal party

- ceremony outline 

- colors

- the dress!

- tuxedos

- bridesmaids dresses

- DJ for reception

- rehearsal dinner

- photographer

- florist

- music selections for the ceremony and dances

- decor

- invitations

- hotel rooms reserved for guests

- wedding night reservation- The Lodge & Club!

- honeymoon destination

- bridal showers on the schedule

- guest list (just a few more to add!)

- caterer for reception

Again, this isn't it all. Just a small list of what we've gotten done so far. Still lots to do, but most of the "major tasks" are completed, or at least decided. Whew!

Here's to 5 more months of planning and preparation for the greatest day of our lives... the beginning of an incredible journey TOGETHER!!!

Day 158: A day of odds and ends

Before mom and I hit the wet Jacksonville roads with a mission to knock out more wedding to-do's, I decided to let you all know what the day will hold.... since, after all, you ARE part of the journey! :-)

Today, we'll be scouting out places to rent TREES from.... yep, that's right, trees! I came up with an idea for decorating while I was on the plane flying back from my cousin's wedding in Kansas two weeks ago. In order to accomplish it, I need about 15 palms to rent. ;-) It's gonna be AWESOME! I'm not going to spoil it too much though....... just wait and see!

We'll also be reserving a handful of rooms for the many out-of-town relatives that will be joining us for the big day! I'm so excited and floored that so many of my relatives are coming in town.... I definitely wouldn't want to get married without them here though, so it works out perfect. I'm very blessed to know they'll be here!

I need to nail down the flowers too. Maybe that'll be today..... maybe not. I'm not looking forward to that- though I AM looking forward to nailing it down and being done with that big decision.

This morning I worked on the invitation wording... every time I look at it, or the vows, I get all mushy inside and even more excited, but ridiculously emotional to be totally honest! Hehe. I'm such a girl! It didn't help that as I straightened my hair this morning I put the song that I'll be walking down the aisle to on repeat...
Oh, yeah, that's right, I haven't told you all yet... I will not be walking down to the traditional wedding march. Props to everyone who did, but it's definitely not my taste ;-) To anyone this might offend that will be there, this should give you plenty of time to prepare yourself!!!! haha.

Well, that's all I've got for now. Here's to an afternoon of spending money, accomplishing tasks, and driving..... yippee!! ;-)

Day 170: An hour of progress.

Yesterday (Monday) before our church's "Women Alive" meeting, I had an extra hour, so I decided I should knock out some wedding stuff. Also, on the plane ride back from Kansas on Sunday, I spent an hour drawing out the sketches for the sanctuary stage, entrance, and the Epicenter (reception hall). I feel like I've finally accomplished something!!!!! WAHOO!!!


Yesterday, here's what I accomplished:

I began by ordering one bag of some bulk, super inexpensive rose petals that I found. I will need many more bags (probably 15) to pull off what I want to achieve with these. But, I started with one bag, just to make sure they are good quality and the right color.

Next, I found a great price on pillar candles, which I want for my tables..... LOTS of candles. Candles are my favorite, for every reason. I'm excited to see how many I can decorate with!

I've had this idea (in my mind) of what I see when I walk into my reception. Because of budget, I didn't think I could pull it off..... BUT, LOW AND BEHOLD! I found a way to :-) I'll be using these paper lanterns, and placing inside of each one a little light (found for WAY cheap). I ordered a couple lanterns, and two of the lights, to test and make sure they last, and work well! These will be hung all over the Epicenter (reception hall)!!!

I also FINALLY decided on my bridesmaids dresses, and set the deadlines for the ladies. They are all going to look SO beautiful!! They are very flattering dresses, and will be black. By the way, my colors are black, red, and ivory. Red is the main accent color. (roses!)














Well, that's what I've got for now...... Hoping to finish more SOON! 
Thanks for joining for the journey- 170 days 'til I marry my best friend, and give him my heart forever! I am so full of joy knowing it's coming soon!!!!


Love,
Kathleen