Let's get caught up....

So I haven't blogged in a while. Saying that A LOT has happened would be the understatement of the century. I am actually currently bored to death in class....so we will see how this goes! :)

In August, Michael and I were finally, finally able to go and have our engagement pictures made! It was really exciting for us! Although the day was very humid and my hair was crazy curly and Michael was sweaty, it was really fun and we are BEYOND pleased with our pictures. We LOVE Alyson and the work she does! She was close to 8 months pregnant and she did not let that stop her! You can see a slide show of our pictures on her blog. For family, you can order pictures here. You can see a preview of one of our pictures below!

In the last few months, we have had the opportunity to take care of quite a few wedding things. We met with our reception lady, Barbara, and have decided on lots of things! We know what we are doing for food, decorations, flowers, etc. I have also decided on bridesmaids dresses and colors-for sure...finally!! We have also taken care of the layout of our reception and some other details with that. Michael finally decided on his groomsmen as well. It is very exciting to know that is out of our way now!

Our wedding website is FINALLY finished! You can view it at this link http://www.weddingwire.com/AnneMarieandMichael. Go check it out, meet our wedding party, check our registries, and sign the guestbook! We would love to hear from ya'll!

October was, by far, the craziest month we have had! We had the opportunity to re-take HESI's that we missed due to the tornadoes, in addition to taking our regularly scheduled tests and HESI for OB. Talk about a stressful few weeks! On top of that, our sweet, sweet puppy Tucker was hit by a car. We have had a really hard few days without him and we are hoping for things to get better soon. Please be thinking of us while we are missing our sweet baby!

This semester we have had the opportunity to go to Auburn and Knoxville and that has been great because we really needed to get away from school for a while. We were really glad to see friends and family, and of course, watch some football!

Another exciting bit that I want to talk about is one of my new purchases! Mom and I were in Hartselle taking care of some wedding dress things and we were able to stop by some antique shops and browse around. Thanks to my awesome Mom and Nana, who have taught me well about antiques, I was able to make my first antique purchase---a secretary! I am so beyond excited to add this to our future home and I am blessed that I had great guidance in buying this awesome piece of furniture. Pictures are forthcoming-we will be picking it up to bring home in the next 2 weeks!

This week Mom and I were able to go and choose my veil and headpiece for my wedding day. Very exciting and very surreal. It is all getting closer and more real...I can hardly wait! I am very pleased with my decisions and thankful for the guidance of my mother during this time. She rocks!

There are just a few more things I want to blog about. In the next few weeks we are supposed to be beginning our pre-marital counseling. We are really excited to take this next step in strengthening our relationship and preparing for our marriage and not just the wedding...because after all, the marriage is what really matters! I have also recently started a new job doing research with a nursing professor on campus. This has been an awesome blessing and I am so very excited to have this opportunity!

The final thing I would like to blog about is our future! There are so many uncertainties right now with what we will be doing next semester and when we graduate. Today we have the opportunity to decide where we would like to precept next semester. That is crazy that we are so close to being done! We are also trying to figure out what to do when we are done with school. This could include finding jobs, going to grad school, or taking a nurse residency position. Please pray for us right now as individuals and as a couple as we make some big, and tough, decisions.

I am desperately going to try to blog more frequently...but I can't make any promises! Hopefully it will be sooner rather than later, but we will see!

P is for Procrastination

Tuesday we have a test, and I should be studying. But, today I have been the master of procrastination....and it continues with this blog post! :)

There are a few things that I want to blog about....mainly work, school, and more wedding things! Very excited about some things that are happening right now!

Work has literally taken over my life in the last week. I usually work one shift a week (12hrs), but this week I worked 3! Seriously, it was an incredible shock to my sleep schedule and my body. It was definitely a great glimpse of what I can anticipate once I graduate and have to work all the time. Of course it may not be as bad then because I won't be in school and planning for a marriage and a wedding, but who knows. Life seems like it runs 9087536 mile an hour all the time.....so I am learning to enjoy every second of what is going on in my life right now-whether good or bad-because I won't ever be in the situations I'm in right now.

School? What is there to say about school? Two words: Burned. Out. That's all. The end. Those 2 words are probably the reason that I am not studying right now!! Definitely ready for a few days of "summer" so I can relax and do "nothing." <----Is there such a thing?!

A few new things have happened with our wedding plans. Things are slowly starting to become more real, and for a few different reasons. I think the biggest reason is the fact that we have so many friends that are engaged and many more that will be married in the next few months. This almost makes me think "WHOA! We are old enough for THAT?!" Today my little sister Becca (she's 11) said "Why are all these people that you getting married? It's really weird!" And she is totally right! It's weird to think that we aren't little kids in elementary school like her anymore...but that we are adults that are about to commit the rest of our lives to each other. What an awesome (and scary) thing!

So wedding plans....

-I ordered one of the gifts for my bridesmaids this past week and got them already! They turned out great and I am really excited about them!!

-Last Friday, Mom and I drove out to Hartselle to visit Something Blue. I was having some cold feet about something about my dress. I know that comment was really vague, but I don't want to give away too many details! Anyway, we went by and everything is fine and that was a HUGE load off of my mind! Funny how we (and by that I mean "I") sweat the little things.

-Last Saturday M and I went to a wedding reception to see some work that Barbara, our caterer/baker/decorator was doing. She is just a fabulous in person as her pictures have been from previous weddings. We were able to get some great ideas from seeing her work in person. It was really great for M and me to connect over this reception stuff, too. He sometimes doesn't enjoy wedding things so it was fun for me to have some good input from him. I am really pleased that we are going to use her!

-I think Michael is going to ask his groomsmen to be his groomsmen soon. This is basically the biggest development ever because that means I will be able to complete and debut our wedding website. Awesome!

-I have ordered some sample wedding invitations. This is probably one of the biggest decisions I will make outside of my dress. I absolutely love stationary/personalized things and this invitation is no exception to that love and obsession. I am really excited to see and touch those samples and think about the fact that that invite has our names for our wedding on it. Another thought that makes everything seem more real and a little bit closer to happening!

Ok, so I have successfully wasted about 45 minutes on this post so I think I should at least try to get back to studying. Hopefully my next post this week will be about a few more wedding things and our house! I am still trying to get some pictures together so we can show it off!

Tears, Tulle, and Temptation

As some of you already know, I said "yes" to the dress this past Saturday. It was a stressful but fun and rewarding day. My blog title today? It just about perfectly sums up the events of my morning appointment at The Something Blue Shoppe in Hartselle, Alabama.

Let's face it....we all knew there would be tears because, quite frankly, my mother and I were both involved in the process and we are cry babies. Tulle....it is the only hint that I will be giving about my dress until the day that is unveiled at our wedding. Maybe it is made of tulle.....or maybe not? :) Temptation describes the instance when I tried on a dress that was one I have been stalking for quite some time. I loved it to death.....but it just was not what I was looking for. Tempting? Quite so.

Saturday morning was hectic and I was already a nervous wreck. I stayed at my parent's home in Madison so that Mom and I could swing by and pick up Nina and then head to Hartselle. Laura Beth was driving in from Auburn that morning to meet us at Something Blue. I went to my house in Huntsville on Friday night to pick up clothes, etc. but after a Starbuck's date with some lovely friends...I realized I packed everything but a shirt to wear. Since it was midnight 30 when I discovered this, I decided to drive back to Huntsville in the morning. BAD IDEA! We all know I hate to run late and I was the one running late! Frustrating.

We got to Hartselle, parked, and then had to help Laura Beth parallel park.....and then we went in. I was nervous and unsure of what to expect but I was thoroughly glad to have three of the most important people in my life with me.

We walked in and I met my literal fairy god mother, Robin. She was absolutely FABULOUS. She asked me a few questions and asked if I brought any pictures. I showed her the first picture and she already pulled two gowns, then she pulled the exact gowns in the pictures, etc. She was great!!! We looked through the racks, pulled a few more dresses, and then we decided that it would be time to try some on. This is the part where I walk in the room and see like 15+ wedding dresses hanging. At this point I was just excited so I took off my shoes and got ready to change while Robin brought me some fabulous peep toed pumps with rhinestones and a four inch heel. We were well on our way to trying on some lovely dresses!

The first dress I tried on was beyond incredible. I walked out and stood on the pedestal, held the mirror, had a veil put on me....it was truly a real bridal experience. This dress was so fabulous that it was in the running until the very end-and it became the dress that nearly every other dress was compared to for the entire day. I tried on 2 or 3 more dresses that I liked but not as much as the first. Then I tried on this fabulous Justin Alexander dress that I had been stalking in a magazine and online. It was an incredible dress and we all agreed that it was to be set aside and put into the running with the first dress.

It was when we were walking back to the dressing room that I saw THE dress I had been creeping on. We decided not to try it on because it was a ridiculous price....so we went on our merry way with a few more dresses. I liked some more, but not in comparison to the other two. There were only 2 or so dresses left in my room when Mom decided that I should try on the dress I'd been creeping on. I basically love my mom did you know that?

So I put on this Justin Alexander dress and I was immediately overwhelmed and beyond confused. It was a lovely dress and I was in love with it...it even gave me the butterflies and flushed feeling. Laura Beth, Nina, and Mom all loved it. Tempting. But something just was not right! It was not as flattering as some of the other dresses and it was certainly a lot more poofy. We decided to hang it on the rack with the other two dresses that were to be revisited.

Then I put back on the first dress that I tried on all day. It was lovely and flattering and everyone loved it-but something was still missing for me. I had in my head this picture of what I always thought I would wear on my wedding day and how I would feel...and this dress was not saying those things to me. Standing on the pedestal at that moment in front of the mirror might have been one of the scariest moments for me, as stupid as that sounds. The dress I had on was awesome and the next dress I needed to revisit was equally as awesome....but they were exact opposites of each other. The third dress was mostly out the window because of price and that weird feeling. Two dresses, complete opposites, doubly confused bride-to-be.

As I was standing there, an associate brought out this dress and suggested I try it on. I was not opposed since I was already confused as all get out, so I figured that another dress couldn't hurt the situation any more. Mom and I went back to the dressing room where I just sat and took a break. I really thought I was about to bawl my eyes out due to frustration and confusion. Fairy god mother brought me some water, Mom gave me a pep talk, and I was ready to try on one last dress.

I think that before I even walked out of the dressing room I knew this was my dress. Something was different. I felt different, beautiful, and like a bride. I walked out and stood on the pedestal, feeling less overwhelmed and more confident. Mom was looking weepy, I felt weepy, and Nina and Laura Beth were already crying!

Can I please just interject here and say that Nina and Laura Beth don't cry?! This was HUGE!

Of course since they cried, you know I did too! We all knew it was the dress and before I could even say "yes" LB and Nina had their cameras out snapping pictures-which was a big deal because you have to purchase before you can photograph. They knew just as well as I did that this was the dress. We all hugged and cried happy tears, called Daddy, and took pictures.

Overall my experience was wonderful. I loved the dresses, and although I became slightly confused about my decision during the process, I know that I ended up with the perfect dress. Robin was truly amazing and if anyone goes to Something Blue looking for a dress, I would highly recommend her. I truly believe that this dress was made for me to wear it. I can't wait for everyone to see it-especially Michael! I know he is trying to be sneaky but he is just going to have to wait another 431 days to see it! :)

Keep looking for more updates this month! I am trying to finish up our wedding website and we are scheduled to go back to look at our ceremony location next week. I also have a potential update on bridesmaids dresses as well as colors!

I promised myself not to....

But promises are made to be broken sometimes, right?


During the weekend, Laura Beth (my sister and one of my MOH's) and I found a bridesmaid dress that we liked. We looked to see where the brand was carried. Luckily enough, Madison Town and Country carries the line. We decided to go with Mom to look at the dress and maybe get some more ideas of things we liked.


The understanding in the three of us going to the bridal store was that I WAS NOT trying on ANY wedding dresses. I didn't even want to look at them! I made a deal with myself months ago to lose a certain amount of pounds before I would try one on. Not an outrageous amount, but a certain amount nonetheless.


Of course we got there and they didn't have that particular bridesmaid dress in stock. We perused the other racks of dresses for the 'maids, wrote down a few we liked, and talked. We were done looking and ready to go when Mom said, "Don't you just want to look at the dresses for a minute before we leave?" I was positively against the idea and said no, while Laura Beth insisted that she knew I wanted to look. After some more persuasion, we were in the bridal room looking at dresses. And I was beyond overwhelmed.


Amber, a sales associate, directed us to different designers, dress styles, etc. We looked through the racks of one designer in particular because there was a dress that I saw online that I thought I would like. They didn't have that one, so we looked for another. One dress that Mom loved they did have. Amber pulled it out of the bag and hung it up for us to look. It was beautiful. We continued to look...until I found this one dress. It was elegant and gorgeous. I pulled it out from the rack...but not off the rack. My mom took it off the rack and hung it separately by itself....and this is where our trouble starts.


Next thing I know, Amber is telling me that she's starting me a dressing room, Laura Beth is saying "I told you so" and Mom is asking if there are any others I want to try on! I don't know what happened in that few minutes....but my stomach was in knots and my hands were clammy and I was a nervous wreck!


While we're at it, let's get something straight. I have NEVER been shy about shopping or trying on clothes. Never ever. This was a very shocking feeling for me, and I think for my mom and sister too.


The first dress I put on. I don't think words can describe how I was feeling...but I will try anyway. My heart was pounding. Not only because I was nervous, but because it was the most beautiful thing I think I have ever tried on....way better than any prom or homecoming dress. For the first time since Michael and I got engaged, I think I really realized that I am going to be a bride. For me, putting on that first dress made those little girl dreams of being a Princess and having a Prince Charming come true. It was an amazing feeling!


But the first dress was nothing short of magnificent. If there was ever a dress to scream my name at me, this is it. The second dress wasn't me at all, and that's ok. I know that in the future there will be more dresses to try on....but I know that dress number one will be terribly, incredibly hard to top. There is a possibility that it may be the dress.


Earlier today I posted on Facebook that I tried on my first dress. A former teacher of of ours left a comment giving me a wonderful piece of advice. She encouraged me to document, as much as I can, everything about wedding planning and our time of engagement. I am so glad that she suggested that. I hope that this blog will be an awesome way to help us remember everything that is going on in our lives, and not just that one day when we get married.


I guess to finish, last night Michael and I went to get coffee together. Usually coffee means loads of great conversation...and I am thankful for that. So many times we are so busy with school and work and other things that we don't always have time to talk about things. Last night was wonderful because it just added another reason to the list of millions of reasons of why I am so thankful to have Michael in my life and how blessed I am that we will be able to spend the rest of our lives together.


I am so excited about the things to come! More later.