Blast from the Past: Our photographer

I was thinking about some bills that I needed to pay this morning when I was in the shower (I always seem to think my clearest there) and our photographer is one of them. Then I got to thinking about how beautiful our pictures are going to come out and I had to go and visit his site again.

Tony Spinelli will be the man of the hour when it comes to our photos and I couldn't be happier that he is going to be capturing all of our wonderful memories.

His photojournalistic style is exactly what I was looking for in a photographer. Below is a little taste of his work (and some of the photos that made me fall in love with his work):

If you have the chance, be sure to check out his website at www.tonyspinelliphotography.com. His blog is pretty awesome too!

Save the Date: Part 2

I wrote in a previous post about my Save the Date experience and I thought that I would follow up with a little look at the final product.

Thanks to Emily for the great photography! So many people have asked so I thought that I would mention that this was taken at Griff's parent's house in one of their fields. In the spot where Emily is standing taking this picture is where we were engaged on Thanksgiving weekend 2009.

It seemed easy for me to decide that this was the picture that we should use. It encompasses so much of who we are and pays homage to our Montana life.

And designing this was so unbelievably easy..and affordable! I saved an ton of money on these by using Vistaprint. I was nervous about the quality of them (I paid a few cents extra to upgrade the type of paper that they were printed on) but I couldn't have been happier about how they came out. The back is printed with the information for the hotel and travel accomodations.

More DIY projects to come!

Plan, Plan, Plan

People often tell me that my organizational skills are exceptional. Sometimes I stop myself while doing something and realize exactly how anal I am being. I am the type of person that organizes her closet by color and then goes one step further by organizing them by sleeve length.

Lately I feel like I am totally the opposite of my norm. I feel like my organization skills are going out the window...at the time when I need them the most.

It is always been my dream to be a wedding planner. Right now, my wedding is the guinea pig. Can I really do this as a profession? Can I be successful at helping people around the country planning the biggest day of their lives? I am trying my hardest to look at everything that I do and say, "How would I be approaching this part of the wedding if this was my client's big day?"

But I'm not sure if that's really something that I can do with my own wedding day. As I sit here with my mass of wedding magazines (my future husband can attest to the amount of magazines that I have acquired), my various lists, and the hundreds of pages that I have printed out, ripped out, and copied, I realize that I am allowed to have a little disarray. But I also realized that I must have a plan to help me sort through all this disorganization.

So armed with a plain sheet of paper and a pen, I got to working on my plan. Now I already have my checklist which I have mentioned before but that list helps me to stay focused on the big picture of the event. My new plan is getting down to the nitty gritty. It's writing out the way that my dessert table will look and listing the decorations that will adorn my venue. It's making suggestions to myself for my "Welcome Bags" and seriously thinking about a favor that can tie into our barn theme.

I went from being scattered brained to focusing in on specifics..and it makes me feel better; it almost pacifies me. I'm sure that these plans will change as time goes on but at least I haven't lost all confidence in my organizational skills.

That's What Friends Are For

I had a long conversation with a great friend tonight, updating her on the past couple of months; wedding planning, life in Montana, etc. We both marveled at the fact that we spent almost everyday with each other for a year and have gone months without talking.

Sad, yes...but a phone call like that is something that always amazes me. No matter how long it has been, there are people in your life that you can go long periods of time without talking to and yet, the conversation almost seems to pick up where you left off last.

And those are the types of people that we want involved in our special day.

Of course we have our bridal party who are all special to us in so many ways but we want the whole day to be a joint effort with the people that we all care for and respect the most.

Along the way, I have tried to continuously remember that as I choose the different elements of the wedding - the reception site, the ceremony, even the decorations - this is not only going to be a day to celebrate our marriage but to celebrate it alongside the people who have been there along the way.

So I was honored when my friend agreed to make the array of cupcakes that will take the place of a tradtional cake at the wedding. And what made it even more special was that she was honored as well. In time that I had known her, she was always making a themed cake for this party or for this shower and I couldn't think of anything more delectable to have at our wedding than some of her homemade confections.

Not only do I know the baker personally but she knows me pretty well too. I won't have to worry that something isn't going to look the way that I want and I definetely don't have to worry that something won't taste good (I have eaten a lot of her baked goods in the past and they are definetely tasty). And to just know that someone that is close to me has helped to make our day all that much better means so much to me.

So as we pull ideas and talk about flavors and toppings and all that good stuff, I will always be reminded that my special day wouldn't be complete without the help of so many others...after all, that's what friends (and family) are for!

7 Months/30 weeks/214 days

Today is the 7 month mark..or the 30 week mark (thanks Emily!)...or the 214 more days mark. However you look at it, time is flying.

As I sit here with my checklist happily checking off the tasks I have already completed, I seriously get to thinking about how long 7 months really is. Our engagement happened about 5 months ago and that feels like yesterday. I have lived in Montana now for 6 months and that feels like yesterday. Griff and I started dating almost a year and a half ago and that feels like yesterday.

Will 7 months fly by? Of course it will but I'm ok with that. At this point in time, I feel that my planning has come to stand still. I have a date, a venue, a church, a photographer, and a dress...but my favorite part of the planning is yet to come. The site visits (in June!) and the meetings with the vendors. Picking out the invites and getting serious (not too serious) about my centerpieces and decorations.

I have seven months to write my vows (knowing me, I'll be frantically trying to write them the week before). I have seven months to perfect my first dance skills and to come up with the perfect presents for my bridesmaids. I'm getting excited just thinking about all of the things that I still have left to do : )

Oh and I almost forgot...I have seven months to practice signing my new signature. Yes, that's going to take some getting used to so I might as well start now!