How I almost lost my mind... but met my MOH

I design food factories...

I get paid to figure out the process that is processed-food...

And while it is probably the coolest job ever invented... I would never have imagined that 7 years ago when I chose Chemical Engineering this is where it would lead...

When I was in high school I was awesome at math... it was great... and {please don't be sick} even fun at times... Having strong math skills made Chem class a lot easier... I thought I was good at Chemistry, when really it was just the math skills floating me along... so when it came time to pick a degree it was obvious...

Chemistry+Math= Chemical Engineer

duh...

Well, not really... Chemical Engineering is really something else altogether...

Good thing I didn't figure that out until my junior year in college... you know, after the point of no-return credit wise... me and 40 other classmates were locked in for the long haul...

At least the company was good... Cuz when you specialize you end up spending LOADS of time with the same people... better make friends! Which is pretty much what I did...

I met the beautiful misses MOH Hawt Pellet and didn't let her out of my clutches! Just kidding... but we did become friends... It is pretty easy to bond over the difficulty that was your life choice... Misery loves company... especially cute company....

Personally I felt tricked into Chemical Engineering... why didn't anyone tell me that high school chemistry is basically just fancy math... unit conversions... not too tough if you're good at math....

What? Self pity isn't attractive? meh...

I do love my degree... but I really did almost lose my mind getting it....

Thank goodness for free on campus health care... {and childrens movies - hence the obvious obsession}

Took that for granted is all I am going to say...


But I made it... finished the degree, on time... got a great job... and had to move away from the lady that really helped me through it...

I have read a lot of 'wedding related regrets'... lists of what not to do... and it seems that picking your wedding party the moment you get engaged is a bad idea.... Really? MOH Hawt Pellet was the first person the popped into my mind... and I have been convinced ever since then that she is the gal I need standing next to me on my big day...

I know that if she made it through the Chemical Engineering degree that there is pretty much no level of stress and chaos that she can't handle... there will be no cracking under the pressure of wedding planning for me... not with her by my side.

{All photos are personal - my apologies to those who have most certainly figured out that they have been cropped out of a few of these photos... no offense intended!! - and yes, I love fish lips and that is my face crudely pasted on a squirrel body, you'd have to be there to understand}

What the Tux??

Over Labor Day weekend FI and I decided we need to get back out to Cali and nail down some wedding details... We picked the cake.... checked out some flower options... did another walk through on our venue.... and decided to get our day-of outfits taken care of...

I still hadn't picked a dress - so while I was there I made an apointment to try a local salon that sold Maggie Sottero dresses, but also carried the fairytale line from Alfred Angelo... I was hopeing to try on a few other designers and maybe even something that was actually in budget! I took off with his Mama, little sis (BM Lil Sis) and older sis (BM Big Sis)... and sent him and his best man off to find a GRAY tux....

Yea, I decided to compromise with him on the tux issue.... he wanted a tux, I wanted gray... win win... oh, and I say issue like it was a big deal... it totally wasn't...

Their first stop... Mens Warehouse of course... My favorite thing about MW is that they have locations everywhere... If we were all in Cali I would just pick a local vendor, but really I need my Dad in Alaska, my Best Man in New York, and my Grandfather in Utah to have easy access too.

So while I was in the middle of that scene from Titanic:Image via AbigaleSateliers
{I know I am not the only one who felt that way in a size too small Maggie}

FI called to tell me that Mens Warehouse doesn't have any gray tuxedos.... and "what did I want to do"

What do you mean they don't have a single gray tux option? I know I've seen them... Stay put, I will be right over!!


Hey... whatdaya know? It's a gray tux... at Mens Warehouse...

{Personal Photo} @ Mens Warehouse

Oh yes... they had them... the sales lady just neglected to ask FI what our wedding date was... apparently they were not available until AFTER October... so infact it will not be an issue for our MAY wedding... it's okay... I didn't cut out of my dress shopping experiance early or anything...

Cost wise, renting is a little more expensive than I had hoped... and only having one gray tux means that we don't have options from which we could select a lower cost option... it's all or nothing here...

Our base price quote was $180 per rental... with a $7 fee and tax.... it is a huge pet peeve of mine that they tack on a non-negotiable fee for cleaning or what have you when they could have just told me the price was $187 since it's not like I can choose to pay the fee, and it's not refundable...

Whoa, excuse me, getting off the soap box...before we get carried away...

Davids Bridal gave me a coupon for $40 off each rental in our party {in a Grooms magazine they had in their shop}, which is more than the current offer at MW for $30 off... so yay for saving an extra $10!

Plus they give you 1 free rental when you get 5 in your party... they try to sell it to you as a 'free' tux for the groom, but we will share the savings...

If, after tax, the rental is $200 - less the $40 coupon is $160.... if we have 6 rentals then the price per rental is about $135 each... and that includes a tie, vest, shoes, cuff links and the tux of course.... I am sure we could probably get everyone to buy new suits for less than $200 per person, but co-ordinating everyone getting the SAME one would be tough, and to be honest only 1 or 2 of our guys would ever need a suit again... so for us --> why bother?

We made sure to do our due diligence and stopped by the local Tuxedo Den - which I had never heard of and assumed was a local shop... apparently it has a fairly strong parent company "Savvi Formalwear"... again, never heard of them...

well, they had a gray tux as well...

{Personal Photo} @ Tuxedo Den

Does it look black to you? It's a very dark gray.... not really what I was going for...

And the price? Ohmeegosh it was like listening to the same sales pitch, down to the penny same prices... and fees...

So really, all they have going for them was a darker color that I really didn't care for... so Mens Warehouse it is!

And plenty of Bees have also chosen this route...

{Mr. Lion}

{Mr. Lox}

{Mr. Macaroon} - well I am pretty sure thats the same tux

What is that they say about great minds?

Took My Own Advice

And found a Photographer!!

I of course found her through my Google Blog Search Technique.

Which lead me to about 15 local photographers... I emailed each one whose work I liked and asked politely for a quote to shoot our wedding.

At that point I was completely blown away with the responses that indicated thousandS of dollars per day - or really half day for some.

After running it by FI, I started to accept the fact that we simply were not having a photographer for less than $1500 - even though our $10,000 goal budget said we should be spending less than half that amount! HALF!

O.M.G

I really was displeased with going over budget, but I couldn't find anyone we could afford! So while I had accepted my fate I decided to continue to look at photos from local photographers... and I happened to stumble upon Larissa K Photography

I hadn't been to her site before, and she only had 1 wedding posted when I visited, but I loved what I saw.

She also happened to be one of my favorite types of photographers... ones that list their prices!!! When I first read her price sheet I assumed her per wedding fee was a per hour fee... haha!

She has since posted 2 additional weddings on her site... I assume that her prices are reasonable because her true bread and butter is Senior Portraits and Children shoots... but I love what she's done on the weddings I have seen posted... here are a few of my favorites from Mohana & Tony's Wedding...

I absolutely love the COLOR... so vibrant!

{All photos by Larissa K Photography}

Great photos of the Bride - Which bodes well for me!

{All Photos by Larissa K Photography}

And some great shots of the groom...

I feel really lucky to have Larissa on board for our big day... all of it!

Hopefully we will have tons of pretty things for her to capture!

How did you pick your photographer? Any tips?

Maybe It's Just My Family.... {part 1}

....but I don't think many people have heard of the new 'mis-matched bridesmaids' trend... I like to think of it as a trend, I mean it is definitely coming back into popularity right now, with brides CHOOSING to intentionally not have their girls match...

Sometimes I forget that I am the only bride-to-be our families have had in at least 2+ years... and maybe no one is 'current' on the trends...

Because, Mis-Matched was my choice!

Image Via 36th Street Events

After seeing tons and tons of weddings where this has been pulled off amazingly I decided it was what I wanted for the following reasons:

1. Because I wanted it! {and really isn't that the only reason that matters? No? okay well...}

2. None of my girls live close enough that we could ALL go shopping together.

3. Some girls might want a dress that flatters their body, not just whatever I think looks cute.

4. Some girls might not be able to afford the standard $150 for a bridal shop dress - and with travel costs for some I am trying to not be picky here!

But... apparently Mis-Matched is a hard concept to grasp... Everyone wanted me to pick a color, or just pick a dress, or even just pick a pattern! PICKKKKKKK!

Image via Mike & Mariya

Seriously... what is so hard about "get a dress that *you* like"...

"Please do not show up to my wedding naked... remember that we will be in a Catholic Church for the ceremony and shoot for something 98% yellow... any shade will do..."

Is what I should have said... Instead the whole mess of trying to please everyone (whether they asked to be pleased or not) was driving me to tears... tears!!

Can't we just elope - then there would be no drama...

So yea... instead of laying down the law, I buried my head in the sand and pretending the issue did not exist...

Until I got a text from BM Little Sis who had run into a cute yellow dress on a shopping trip and wanted to know if she could buy it...

I was caught off guard.

And it only made things worse.

Stick around to find out if the girls end up naked at the wedding or if we can find a happy medium.

Barefoot Bride

To start... I love reading all the other bee's shoe posts.

Heels are S.E.X.Y.

I mean, look....

Nina - Evelixa - $89 - Via Nordstrom

Wow... I would love to snatch those up... and to be honest they were almost an impulse buy... yep.. last Friday they were $89 + free shipping away from being mine... but then I thought, Hey! This would be the perfect excuse to make a trip to the only Nordstroms within a 20mile radius - which happens to be in the Mall that also has a Sephora, MAC location, and Godiva... don't judge! That is some tasty chocolate!

Anywho, while I waited I decided to see if maybe there was more out there than just the one pair I had found online... so off to Zappos.com I went... I what did I find??

Top Left - Top Right
Botton Left - Bottom Right

More Ninas from Zappos !!! Seriously... who is the Nina chick and why does she love me so much? Clearly she must... look at all the yellow! When I filtered all the shoes Zappos had to only see the yellow ones, pretty much anything with a heel was a Nina!! Geeze!

Being paranoid as always I did head to Nordstroms the store to track down any Nina shoe, if not the one I picked, to make sure I could get the right size... not that returns at Nordy or Zappos costs anything, I just wanted to get it right the first time...

And if I was going to try on heels, I should probably start practicing having them on more often huh? So I dug out some CUTE 4" black heels that I got for my grandfathers funeral {oh, shopping = therapy in case you were out of the loop} and did laps around that mall... in tears...

Okay, exaggerate much... but I had to tell FI to slow down about a thousand times because I.just.couldn't.make.it.much.longer.... And Nordstroms? Had NO Nina's of any kind.

So.

Heels.

Off the list?

Where is my Super Suit?!?

Image via Motifake

Hands down the best line in the film... and it's the first thing I think of when it comes to dressing the Groom & his men...

Originally I thought the guys would wear tan suits a la:

Image Via Heather Neckers Photography

Or possibly some wranglers and a vest like....

Image via TheKnot

But, to my surprise, this was an issue HE had an opinion on...

What?!?!

He hasn't had an opinion on pretty much anything up until now.... and well, don't you think he should have some say on what he gets to wear on *OUR* Big Day? He wants a Tuxedo. Really?

Ohhhhh kay fine...

So I got to help him find a Tux... and some for the whole party...

Stick around so see what we picked...

Did any of you end up with something MORE formal than you originally pictured??

They're In!!!

We got our 'engagement photos' back ...

Wanna see??



Oh wait.... that's just me....



Oh... Me again! {King Julian Style}

Okay, okay... for real this time...

Our photo shoot was fantastic... it was quick and fun... and now we have some pro photos incase we don't get around to an actual 'engagement' session {at the local amusement park perhaps??}

Anyone else have a pre-"engagement photo shoot" session? Is it okay to have multiple Engagement shoots??

Engagement Photos??

Want in on a secret??

We haven't had any engagement photos taken....shhhhhhhhhhhh! don't tell anyone!

Mostly it's because I feel fat... hows that for honesty? When I don't feel pretty the last thing I want is to have my picture taken... yea, I need to get over it...

A local coupon-blogger I follow posted a deal with a photographer here in Utah offering half off his studio sessions, so I decided to suck it up and get some pictures taken...

While we wait for the photos to be finished I thought I'd share my dream engagement shoot with you.... because who doesn't like a little engagement-shoot-porn?

Happy Friday!! Enjoy!!

Image Via Studio 1147

Photo Via Jill Myers Photography

Photo Via L Hewitt Photograpy


Photo Via Joe Elario Photography

Look at those C.O.L.O.R.S!!!

One of my co-workers is trying to break into the photography business... so I offered him a free ticket to our local amusement park in hopes that I can fulfill the ^above^ fantasy...

Cross your fingers for me??

Oh my God, like, there goes another lemming!

Image via Sipsey Street

Urban Dictionary defines "Lemmings" as : "A derogatory term used to reference a person who seemingly does not possess any form of individual thought, and instead, mindlessly follows the behaviors and actions of the masses."

When it comes to the name-change game I can honestly say that I never put that much thought into to it.

The girl changes her name.

That's just how it goes.

Right?

Well... I just figured that was what was supposed to happen, and to be honest I can't wait!

I am excited to be joining my new family...

It might seem silly, but sharing the same last name as my husband has this unifying feeling... like joining a team where everyone wearing matching uniforms...

I'm not a Doctor or a Teacher or anyone who has spent a lot of time imagining being "Ms. My Last Name" so I don't really feel like I am losing anything... in fact I have a pretty frustrating last name.... a change will be fun... an exciting step into the next part of my life...

I don't have any better reasons... and I am excited to make the 'leap'...

If that makes me a lemming, I'm okay with that.

If everyone jumped off a bridge would you???

PWC

Some one get the SCISSORS!!!

Okay... let's think this through... I have had LONG hair:

Me - Circa 2004

And I have had super short hair:

Me - Circa 2009

My hair - like my weight - changes like a swinging pendulum... when it gets too long....

*chop chop*

And right now.... well...

I wanna cut my hair so freaking bad I can't hardly see straight!!! {Read: It's so fluffy I'm gunna die!!!}

Image Via June Bug

I am seriously considering a PWC...

PRE - wedding -chop

Someone save me! Tell me what has kept you from reaching for the scissors?

I'm Carrying Your Love with Me

West Virginia down to Tennesseeeeeeeeee...... oh, umm, oops... moving on...



Love is not the only thing a bride carries on her wedding day... umm of course I am talking about my wedding Bouquet!!!

I haven't spent any money yet, but there has been tons of thought put into what bouquet I want.... wanna see some picts??



You know you do... I know you do...

Image Via Wedding Planning 101

Image Via Hend Cyber




Image via Wedding Come True



Image via W-Wedding Flowers

I think a pretty yellow rose bouquet will look stunning against my white dress... I was torn for a while between yellow or white/ivory... but I decided to go overboard!!

I will carry Yellow and the girls will carry White! YAY!!

Now to decide, natural or fake??

Shedding for the Wedding - What's in Your Gym Bag

Of course I plan on trying to lose a little weight before the wedding.... Seriously who isn't??

Everyone wants to look their best on their big day - I am no exception!

I get to the gym almost everyday during lunch with a group of guys from the office... This is great for me because I get the extra support of the group - They never let me get off easy for missing a workout with them... Also, it gets me out of the office for an hour or so to clear my mind - work out {mentally} any problems in my life and I return energized and ready to get through the rest of the day...

None of that 2:30 feeling here!

So I thought it would be fun to let you take a peek into my gym bag...

Personal Photo

1 - Pink Gym tote and lock - seriously people, lock up your stuff!!
2 - New Balance Running shoes - Probably let best shoes on the planet!
3 - Anti-Stink Supplies - Aussie's 3-minute miracle, Dove Clinical Strength, Travel Size Clinique etc
4 - Zensah Compression Socks - my essential workout item, I get the WORST shin splints
5 - Extra Sandals - I NEVER shower barefoot and my sneakers do not go outside
6 - Swim Goggles & Nose Plug - I don't swim @ lunch, but sometimes after work I'll go
7 - Basic Make-up / Survival kit - Better to be prepared with q-tips, your fave mascara, lip balm
8 - A plastic bag - I start with my gym clothes in the bag, and then when I am done showering all the dirty clothes & towel go in it to protect my bag until I get home
9 - Extra clothes - never know when you'll have a spill or forget your socks etc
10 - Not pictured but, I would pack a pair of shorts, shirt, sports bra, undies and a towel which would go in the plastic bag.

So there you have it... all the great gear that keep my butt movin' at the gym. Being organized takes away my excuses not to go... and really, getting to the gym is 90% of the battle!

What are your essential workout items???

Went to the Post Office Today

Not to send off any pretty paper products, but rather to get something I have been putting off for SO LONG!!

My Passport!!!!

Image Via Soda Head

Yesterday my boss called and asked if I had a valid passport... we have a new project in Canada and guess what?

I can't go!

I should have gotten one a long time ago - and it hasn't ever prevented me from doing my job until now...

This incident coupled with our international honeymoon {YAY!!!} has forced me to kick myself in the butt and check this off my to-do list already!!

Some tips for those of you who still need to get your (first) passport:

• 
  
  Fill out the application online {here} and print it out


• 
  
  Find an Agency or Acceptance Facility


• 
  
  Get your picture taken according to {these} guidelines OR expect to pay a fee to have it done at an your acceptance facility (note: they don't all offer this service)


• 
  
  Make a copy of your Drivers License, front & back


• 
  
  Obtain an original copy of your Birth Certificate - they send the original with your application so make sure you can part with it until they return it.

Currently the expected wait time is 4 to 6 weeks.... I paid a $60 expediting fee and an additional $15 for overnight mail service so I could get my passport ASAP... I was told to expect 2 to 3 weeks and given some tracking information so I can see how far my application has made it through 'the system'

I also had to modify my application when I was turning it in because my mom had her Maiden Name on my birth certificate and that apparently is what I should have put on my application even though my mom DID change her name before I was born...

No biggie - and the guy taking my appilcation was really nice about everything...

Oh, and they gave me a copy of my passport photo to keep...

Enjoy:

Personal Photo

Have you checked anything off your to-do list lately?

Cone of Shame - A Tutorial

Image Via Daily Classic Disney

SQUIRREL!!!

Pardon me while I laugh for a bit... You know you loved UP too so whatevs...

Anyways... As promised, I figured out how to DIY the Pew Cones...

To start out I bough a few yards of Burlap at Joann's.... My store had a few different shades available... and was priced at $4/ yard (less if you use a coupon!!)

*Point of clarification - I am NOT an expert sew-er... one day I decided that I wanted to make some yellow bunting {which I never did} and went out and bought a $150 Singer sewing machine... I followed the instruction guide to get it threaded and ready to go - it was a lot easier that I thought it would be... I have made 2 and a half swim robes via this pattern, but that it pretty much the extent of my sewing expertise... 99% of the time I am just winging it!

Anywho...

My Pew Cone Tutorial

#1. I cut the burlap into ~1ft by 1ft squares... the burlap I bought was 24" wide so I got 6 squares per yard - which is $.66 per cone if you paid full price for the burlap.

#2. - I ironed 2 pieces of the burlap flat as best I could - note this will get a little messy - RESIST the urge to clean as you go! Just wait until you finish for the day and then you can clean... P.s. Burlap STINKS... in case you were unaware....


#3. - I used a Dixie paper plate {we get ours from Costco} to trace a circular pattern on the burlap... again -I just wing it... it's not life or death, it's a pew decoration!



#4. - I made sure that I had at least 1/2" between my drawn circle and the edge of the burlap. Oh, and the green kinda shows through, so maybe yellow or orange, or something else all together for tracing....

#5. - I got my sew on... I set the machine to do a zig-zag stitch (a very basic stitch that almost every machine will have) and I set the stitch to be slightly closer together in the length of the stitch... Burlap is an interesting fabric with it's loose weave, so the tighter zig-zag stitch should help it hold together better. Oh, and make sure you are doing your reverse stitching when you start and when you finish to keep everything from unraveling.


#6. - After sewing, I trim the excess burlap off - turning it from a square to a circle. I try to leave no more than 1/2" of excess fabric on the edges so that it will lay flat when it turn it right side out via a hole I left un-sewen. If you forget to leave the hole, just cut one close to the circle you sewed - you can patch the hole afterwards or toss the square and start over... I may have done both of those things...


#7. - Once right side out I will iron the cone again to help the edges lay flat. At this point the cone resembles somewhat of a whoopee-cushion...haha

#8. - Pin the hole closed as best you can to make a circle - you can see that mine has a bit of a wonky corner going on... oh well! It's a handmade pew decoration - no one is judging you!!!

#9. - Sew the hole closed - I try to keep the edge of the cone as close to the edge of the sewing foot as possible.

#10. At this point you can sew around the entire cone, keeping the edge close to the edge of the sewing foot, or you can choose to stop after the hole is closed. I really could not tell much of a difference with or without the extra stitching... I thought it would make the whole cone more uniform, but again - I didn't notice the difference really.... try it once and decide for yourself!

#11. - I rolled the burlap circle into a cone shape and pinned it... to be honest this is where I've stopped.... I haven't decided how I want to secure the cone together yet. I think I will probably do a few quick stitches by hand since it would be difficult to use the machine at this point.

So for now I have snagged a few Sunflowers that I bought at Michaels - The Ashland florals have been on sale for half off during September so I got this $6.99 bunch of 10 for only $3.50 OR $.35 each... and they all have 6-8" stems so its a pretty good deal for me. I originally thought that I would like baby's breath or fresh flowers, but these sunflowers really don't look overly fake at all... and to add color to our isle they will be just perfect!

I put 3 in a cone to see if I liked it.... and since my house is fresh out of pews, standing the cone up on my bar stool will have to suffice for now....

And here is a picture of a group of cones...



Overall I am completely in love! I need to sew them together... and add a ribbon bow to the front.... and then add a wide ribbon to the backs so that I can place them on the pews, but really I think half the battle is over!!



And for $1.75-$2.00 each that is well within our budget!




Have any of your DIY projects turned out better than you imagined?