Newly Wed & Loving It

So, um. Yeah. I adore him. He humors me when I ramble about obscure Xmen storylines.  He knows that sometimes the best time to dance is when dinner is cooking, kid’s toys are scattered across the living room and it’s been a long day. 

You never know when you are going to meet the love of your life and it’s hard to believe that all those years ago when our paths first crossed it would someday turn into the deep connection we have now. (Hey, I just got married so excuse me if I milk this newly wed bliss!) It’s important to find someone who makes you laugh, and challenges you to think. Some might say your perfect partner is the one that “completes you” but for me it was a matter of finding the one who made me want to be a better person. Stephen is the mirror to show me the best of myself and accept all the imperfections. ♥ ♥ ♥

The Mermaid & The Sailor Wedding

We are officially married! Stephen and I had our wedding this past weekend and it was so incredibly magical. I am still floating on air, and barely find the words for how deliriously happy I am to finally be able to call him my husband. We had originally planned for a Spring wedding sometime next year but realized that with a PCS move coming up, we have no idea where we will be by then. So calls were made, plans were set in motion and friends and family rallied to help make this day possible. Truth be told, I lucked out in so many ways with bringing this day to life: my dress and bridesmaid dresses fit perfectly and needed no alterations, the venue of my dreams was open the day we wanted, and so many people were able to make it even if it was short notice. 

                

The day started early and everyone was buzzing with excitement but I was calm like a hindu cow as Palahniuk would said. However, as the afternoon waned and sun began it's slow descent in the sky, it hit me. I was about to marry the man of my dreams. Sitting in a cotton robe, I applied another layer of lipstick. I give Nikki Carta, the hairdresser, props for her work...my thick long hair is no easy task for an undo! 

Then the girls helped me get into my dress and Rosie was brought in for a quick hug. I held her tight, her hazel eyes wide like saucers. 

"Mama and Papa are getting married today, Rosie. Isn't that cool?" I asked her and she giggled, gave me a slobbery kiss and was taken away to get ready. 

The cottage suite was a flutter of false lashes, flying underwear and strappy shoes before everyone else left to take their place. And then suddenly it was silence. I peeked outside and saw my handsome man standing in the gazebo, our loved ones sitting in eager anticipation. The music started and after some coaxing (okay, a pretzel) Rosie walked down the path with Stephen's mom followed by his dad and Jeremiah. They were so adorable, it made my heart swell with pride!

When it came time for me to walk, my stepdad Papa Joe was by my side. He had driven all the way from Michigan, his second time ever leaving the state, just for this special moment. I felt so blessed to have him there, whispering your mom would be so proud. As tribute to her we played Let it Be by the Beatles and a single rose was laid in an empty chair. I know she was with us in spirit that day but I will be honest, it still panged me that she couldn't be sitting there nonetheless. 

 I forewent the traditional processional music and walked  down the aisle to the instrumental version of Bless the Broken Road by the Rascal Flatts. At the end of the aisle, Stephen waited and we exchanged our handwritten vows. He had been so anxious about them but he did so well! I wrote mine on the back of envelope, scratching out the part about our mutual love for b-rated movies and ron perlman. Instead, I shared a few verses from one of my favorite poems by Walt Whitman.

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"Afoot and lighthearted, take to the open road,

Healthy, free, the world before you,

The long brown path before you,

leading wherever you choose.

Say only to one another:

Camerado, I give you my hand!

I give you my love, more precious than money,

I give you myself before preaching or law:

Will you give me yourself?

Will you come travel with me?

Shall we stick by each other as long as we live?"

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I recommend checking out the poem in its entirety, truly a beautiful piece of writing and it sums up life as a military couple quite well. We don't know where fate will take us, whether it be to a new state or maybe even a new country. 

He was adorable, earnest and I couldn't take my eyes off him for a second. Stephen truly is my sun and stars. That day, before friends, family and God we became husband and wife.

The song played for our first dance was "Living of Love" by the Avett Brothers. We knew pretty much from the beginning that this was going to be it. The melody, the lyrics...this song is an ode to lasting love.

A sparkler send off followed by fireworks! Heck yes! It was truly the greatest night of my life. I can't wait to see the rest of the photos our amazing photographer Ginger took, she captured the joy of our special day so well.  I wanted everything to feel timeless and it all came together so well. 

However cheesy it might sound I feel our adventure is only just beginning. & Lucky me, I couldn't think of a better person to travel down life's uncertain road with. 

Eco-Friendly Invitations

As promised, I wanted to share bits and pieces of the wedding planning process. With the big day only weeks away I am incredibly excited but very busy taking care of last minute details. I owe my girls so much for all their help and enthusiasm, y’all help me keep my wits about me in this whole process.

Today I want to share our invitation design details. We got ours from Minted and I seriously cannot recommend this website enough whether you are looking for wedding, baby shower or birthday invitations this site has everything. They have hundreds of uniquely customizable designs created by independent graphic artists. Before your items go to print they are proofed by the staff to make sure everything looks perfect and a digital copy is sent to you for confirmation. 

When I first set out in search of invitations I struggled with which route would be the most environmentally friendly. I came across some really neat ideas and debated with going digital like I did with Rosie’s first birthday party. Although it would have saved us a lot of money, a great chunk of our guests didn’t have FB or didn’t check it regularly. Admittedly, I longed for the aesthetics of a physical invitation too.

The great thing about Minted is that they offer the option of having your invites printed on recycled stock, which is what we did:

On the back there is a small note for our guests to RSVP by phone, text, or email as well as the link to our wedding site. Having all the information down in one spot saved us from sending out RSVP cards which let’s face it, most folks don’t even send back anyways. 

Some of my other favorite items from Minted include...

These thank-you cards.

 This adorable art print.

Also, we used these stamps and I think they are so darn cute I might just get a second book for my personal stationary. They can be found here. Aren't they divine?

I am a little bleary eyed from the endless assignments and papers so writing for pleasure feels like it has had to be put on hiatus lately. Finals are wrapping up this next week so hopefully that means I will have bit more of creative energy (at least until my other classes start back up in June). I just keep reminding myself that even if it’s tough it is one step closer to having that degree. I can do this!

What little spare time that I do have has lately been consumed by wedding planning. It really is a lot of fun. But there’s also so many details to consider and every bit of it carries the weight of some emotional investment because it has to do with “The Big Day”.  In short, I’m trying not to obsess. Trying, but um, failing.

That really isn’t such a bad thing I suppose (Stephen may beg to differ if I say the words “guest list” one more time) unless you find me on some TLC show like Bridezilla. In which case, someone please feel free to delete my pinterest boards, take away my planner and stage an immediate intervention. 

My first week of the wedding planning process has ended with the following two conclusions: a.) these things are way more expensive then they should be and secondly, b.) DIYing projects are probably going to dominate my free time from now until the wedding date (it is lame how excited I am for this <3). Pinterest has become my new best friend in this process and I seriously cannot recommend it enough to fellow brides. It’s so much fun too!

As I said before, I am striving to keep this wedding as eco-friendly as I can while maintaining my own personal aesthetic. Obviously, the greenest thing to do is simply not have a wedding. No event, no waste after all. And I have thought a lot about this point but it left me feeling conflicted with my desire to be surrounded by friends and family as Stephen and I kick off our marriage together. I like to celebrate things! Remember Rosie’s birthday? Having a party, of any size really, doesn’t mean you can’t keep it green and there doesn’t need to be a sacrifice in style either.

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Here are some of my go-to inspirations lately for green (& budget-friendly) wedding ideas

1.) Green Wedding Shoes. This site needs to be on    you bookmark bar, if for nothing else the pure eye candy! There are tons of DIY tutorials, real wedding photos and best of all, they make it easy to pin ideas back to your Pinterest board. 

2.) Etsy. Oh where do I begin with how much I love this site?! You can find ready-made products, shop vintage collections and find artists to make you the perfect customized décor for your wedding. I’ll share some of my favorites later.

3.) Wed4less. A lovely site even if it hasn’t been updated in awhile.  It’s a great place to look at other weddings that have been done with a modest budget.

4.) Offbeat Bride, a nice alternative to the mainstream wedding sites out there. Game of Throne toasting mugs, how awesome is that?!