Update!!! With pictures!

[flgatormom29]

Hey there.

Sorry if these pictures turn out big, i tried to resize them the best i could....

 

So i haven't been here much lately, things have been so hectic and while i don't post too much anymore, i still am here reading things! My dad is really sick and dying from cancer, so i've been really busy with that, and wedding planning has been in the back of my mind. But because it's so close (6 weeks from yesterday), i'm still trying to get everything done! *sigh* Then my oldest started 2nd grade yesterday, so we have been getting ready for that. She came home yesterday with HOMEWORK! On the first day! GRRR. And she already has a spelling test on friday! I was hoping to ease back into that... welcome back to school!

 

Anyways, I thought i would give everyone an update on my planning.

Like i said, i'm less than 6 weeks away. We leave for Ft Lauderdale 5 weeks from saturday and we board the Freedom that sunday and get married on monday. So much going on and getting so much done, but still so much to do!

 

I have finished almost all of my cruise clothes shopping. Got some cute sundresses and shirts to wear on the boat.

 

Josh and his groomsmen went thursday and got measured, so tomorrow i'll fax in the papers to order their tuxes (we are renting them through carnival).

My flower payment is due on the 31st, i went with Carnival as A Wedding For You was very reasonable. $110 for upgrading my bouquet, 2 bridesmaid bouquet and 3 boutineers. So i will call them on the 31st or Sept 1st for that.

My final guest list is due Sept 14th. I have it all typed up but waiting to send it just in case there are any last minute changes.

 

For my flower girl gifts (my daughters) I am having a funship freddy doll sent to the room for each of them, i also bought them really cute lil backpacks and towels (with 2 grandmas and a great grandma going on the cruise, i knew they would need something to carry all their loot in!)

For my MOH, i knew that finances were an issue, so i called and paid for her tips and then got her $50 funship dollars.

For my 2nd bridesmaid (now, i spent a lil more on her, because she has done SOOO much more, and paid for my shower which was AMAZING!!!!) I got her a giftcard for Hand & Stone. It's for a one hour massage and one hour facial. Then i ordered her favorite bottle of wine and a fruit basket to be delivered to her room.

Our groomsmen, we are paying for their tuxes as their gift.

 

My favors are all done as well.

They are lil black boxes wrapped in fushia ribbon (our colors) and has a tag on them. Inside are 2 chocolate hugs, 2 chocolate kisses and 2 promises.

Here is a picture of them....

And a close up of the label thingy

 

Here is the finished OOT bags... you can't really see it because it's behind the hand sanitizer, but there is a keychain hanging on the handle as well.

I wanted the bags to have the date of the cruise and not the wedding, so they would (hopefully) enjoy them longer.

 

Here is all the stuff inside of the bags.

(water bottle with crystal light X2 in each bag, sports bottle, shout wipes, lint roller, lanyard for each person in cabin, tissues, sunscreen and aloe, a highlighter and a lil baggy with first aid kit, chapstick, tylonol and pepto bismol).

 

Then, we also had shirts made, but i will not be giving the OOT bags out until sunday when we are on the ship and I want everyone to wear their shirts that day (since we aren't getting married that day). After the wedding, i figured we wouldn't see much of everyone and i really want a group picture in our shirts. Here is what the shirts look like.

I am getting "bride" and "groom" embroidered on the back of mine and Josh's :-)

 

And i put them in lil boxes which i will hand out at the hotel.

.

 

Those are the big things.

[flgatormom29]

Since i can only put 6 pictures...

 

Here is the vase i found for our rose/vase ceremony. Took me forever to find one i liked, since it's for a single rose i didn't want one that would swallow the rose.

 

And here is my garter. I ordered it off mygarter.com. LOVE IT!!!!

 

Also, Josh and I are not exchanging gifts, this cruise is gift enough, plus an alone cruise in december....BUT i am not good at not buying him things, so i thought he would love this idea.

That's HIS team... he is so into football and LOVES the vikings, so i'm going to wear them under my dress

 

And one last picture is the finished look of my door hangers for the guest rooms

Turned out really cute and got the idea from here!

 

So all-in-all i'm doing really good! Left on my to-do list is

-To make a list of "must have" pictures for the photographer

-Finish my welcome letters (which i can't print until i have final time and place anyways-plus still deciding on excursions)

-Get my shoes dyed (they are at the shop now being done-so nervous how they will look!)

-fax final guest list

-get marriage license

-get rings cleaned

-and fix the flowergirl/bridesmaid sashes. (Alfred Angelo sashes SUCK. The way they sew them, there is a big seam right in the middle! So we bought a 2XL and will cut and sew it ourselves so the seam is in the back and not in the front)

 

And that's my update!!! I know i'm forgetting stuff and I know my to-do list is not all of what i need to do, i just can't think of it all! Too much on my mind! Everyday i add something else to my to-do list!

 

Oh, thought of more stuff to share!!! I also had my shower a few weeks ago, got some amazing things and it was the most beautiful shower i had ever been to. It was at a very upscale restaurant and it was a sitdown lunch with 3 courses. We had this huge room with windows overlooking the water. SOOO pretty.

Here is a picture of our view! So So pretty and peaceful.

 

And we played a game of toilet paper bride...so funny! Here is one of the brides...her team was going for a Madonna look.

 

More on the next post....

[flgatormom29]

If you haven't noticed yet...i LOVE pictures..... i go no where without my camera :-)

 

So continued...

 

 

 

Also had my first fitting! Here is my MOH in her bridesmaid dress. Her and my best friend picked them out themselves, surprisingly i have been very laid back about a lot of the decisions. Everyone thought i would be a bridezilla, but i've been very calm!

Now it's all pinned, but you get the jist. And those are her shoes, but imagine them pink (same color as the sash)

 

Now, I am so in love with my dress! Here is a picture of it (pinned and all)

(sorry about the goofy face, they were taking my picture a million times, so i just started to have fun with it!)

 

And for good measure, just to show how we are... this is my favorite picture ever. Hate that i cant share it on facebook and show Josh!

 

 

 

We had our "joint bachelorette/bachelor party". Neither of us are party people, but my friend insisted we did one. Josh is HUGE into bowling, so we went to the bowling alley and it was all our couple friends, so the husbands bowled and the girls socialized and drank :-)

Candy, my best friend, decided to do it a bit earlier than usual, with my dad being so sick and all the stresses of life, she thought it would be better to do it earlier so it wouldn't just slip by us!

Here is me and my hunny. (you can see his shirt i made from zazzle. Has our date on it and if you know xbox you will get the picture. It says "achievement unlocked" with a bride and groom-total xbox thing-which he is addicted to!)

 

One of me and my best friend ever-Candy.

 

And one more (since i can have 6 :-) )

My brother and I. Now this is a bad picture of him, he looks goofy and his eyes look crazy, but the other one of us, I look bad and we can't have that!! haha. He is only 16, but He's my buddy.. love that kid! We were cracking up in this picture too! And i look kinda bad...this was at the end of the night and I was pretty drunk. I don't EVER drink...so it didn't take much, but i drank a LOT!

 

And that's it.... I'm sure that's TOO much and no one will even read it, but i had fun typing it all up and looking through all my pictures and progress :-)

[lovepea]

I'm so sorry that you are dealing with so much with your dad right now. I hope that you have the chance to spend many happy days with him.

 

You really have gotten a lot done! I love all your pics!

[Bride2Be0911]

I am so sorry to hear about your dad! My uncle/God father just passed away at the beginning of the month and his Celebration of Life is this weekend. I pray that your dad makes it past the wedding and that you are able to spend that special time with him! Load him down with ladybugs. They are the universal sign for Cancer patients (my uncle's oncologist told me that) and if you are like me it will mean a lot to you later. I even went on Etsy and purchased ladybugs to go in my bouquet so my uncle would be with my on my special day.

I love the pictures and it looks like you have everything planned out! It really does look great.

Congrats and I can’t wait to hear about your big day!!

[Lipz]

OMG!!! I am getting so excited for you.

It's exciting to see all your planning and ideas come to light in your pictures. I'm a visual learner and I love pictures so this post is great :D.

It's hard to deal with the ailing health of someone you love dearly but even harder when your trying to plan a happy occasion. My thoughts and prayers are with you and yours.

Thanks for taking time to share even with all that is happening right now.

6 more weeks!!!

[mrsgomez2011]

Kimmie!

 

You're almost there love!!! I'm so excited for you! Love how everything came out!!! And I loveeee the colors of your wedding.

 

Things have been insane since I started my own company but text me!

[JulieRose]

Load him down with ladybugs. They are the universal sign for Cancer patients (my uncle's oncologist told me that) and if you are like me it will mean a lot to you later.

 

I didn't know that. My grandmother loved ladybugs. She had a ladybug tattoo and I got one in her memory on what would have been her 65th birthday if she hadn't died of lung cancer.