1 MONTH!

i get butterflies just typing that...one month! life is good. life is really, really good lately.  and i can't wait to marry my best friend in just ONE MONTH!

friday things

well, we are back after a 6 day get-away where i feel like all we did was relax, read, eat, and repeat! it was so wonderful to spend time with family & have no time restraints and no schedule.  it was the best kind of vacation.  while away, shawn & i celebrated one year of being engaged.  it was a special day starting out with a little breakfast date, and ending up pool side with a cold drink in hand :)

here's a few photos i snapped via instagram:

it's always so hard coming home, back to reality after an amazing time away. but all in all, it is good to be home- to sleep in my own bed! and it just makes me thankful to have such fabulous people in my life!

lots to look forward to! (more to come on that!) happy weekend, friends!

xo,

5 MONTHS!

seriously, time is flying by! this month we :

• booked the honeymoon
• purchased my wedding day jewels
• booked the rehearsal dinner venue
• purchased some wedding party gifts

 xo,

7 MONTHS!

not only was yesterday valentine's day, but it was also the 7 month mark in the countdown to our WEDDING DAY! eeeeeeeks!! i've mentioned before that we usually do not make a big fuss over valentine's day. just a special meal and some good wine, linger a little longer in the hug, snuggle a little closer...you know, the little things. but this year is slightly different.  this is our first and last valentine's day as a an engaged couple. and to me (to us) this made valentine's day 2012 slightly more special :)

so it was quite a lovely surprise when i arrived home verrrry late from work to see a beautiful vase of red & raspberry tulips along with a little love note.  something that i was not expecting. something that was so beautifully written.  i will keep that letter forever.  and probably feel butterflies every time i read it.

it's the little things like this that make me realize & appreciate the meaning of love.  i will always remember what our priest told us at our pre-cana class back in october - it is no coincidence that you are sitting next to the person you are next to. what is happening, is meant to be happening. this is something so much bigger than you can ever imagine. you are your partner's life project, his/her key to heaven.  it is your life's job to get your partner into heaven.

this sentiment has stayed with me in my heart and in my mind. i love feeling like this once in a lifetime love, best friend, soul mate, forever kind of love is so much bigger than us.

when something special happens to us, we turn to each other and say, "always remember." ...
i will always remember...
...the second i knew shawn was about to get down on one knee & ask me to be his wife.
...our giggles & happiness during our engagement photo session.
...the closeness we felt after our pre-cana class.
...picking out our wedding bands & the feeling i got when i saw a wedding band on his hand for the 1st time! ....

i will always remember the giddiness of coming home to beautiful flowers & the loveliest of love letters... and knowing i'll always have a valentine...

xo,

beautiful invitations

when the wedding planning process commenced (after a month of engagement enjoying/non wedding talk/pre-planning) i was super excited to start coming up with ideas for the invites. i love the idea that an invitation sets the tone for how your wedding will be perceived by your guests.  it was important to me that our wedding invitations allowed our personalities to show through, as well as our style, wedding colors, and a few personal touches.

we met with our invitation creator, robyn, back in november & immediately knew that she got it. she knew what we were trying to accomplish.  she came up with three drafts of invitation suites complete with complimenting save the dates.  after a few tweaks, we were all settled on what our invites were going to look like!

here are a few of the images we showed as our inspiration invitations!

i think robyn was able to blend all of these beautiful inspirations into our perfect wedding invitation!
i can't wait to send them out in about 5 months!! til then, i would love to share our save the date...

all inspiration invitations via pinterest.
if you are interested in using robyn for invitations, you can find more info here.

xo,

gray & yellow

it sounds funny coming out, but have you ever been able to feel a color? like actually be able to put an emotion to what you feel when you see certain colors? ever since i was 16, i've been able to feel yellow. i can't quite explain that. but it's just an emotion that strikes me when i see that color...

so when it came time to choose colors for our wedding, there was no question that yellow would be in there somewhere. then gray came along, and it was like, well don't you two look amazing together!

and i give you some of my inspiration:

via

via

via

via

via

for more of my "pinspirations" click here

xo,

2012 {my year}

there is something to be said for the feeling of starting fresh, starting a new year.  2011 was incredible in many ways of joy, excitement, sadness, happiness, and so much more.  but with a great new year's eve party to bring in 2012, i am ready to embrace all that will take place in the next 12 months. 

with a wedding proposal & engagement this past spring, nothing could be more exciting for me then THE YEAR I GET MARRIED! .. and all of the fun events that lead up to & follow it! i'm anxiously awaiting the draft of our save-the-dates - should be here within a week or so.  i've also begun collecting & saving addresses.  i came up with our guest list months ago, but more recently have been going back to add or delete as necessary.

i'm excited for registering for gifts & deciding on what items we want.  i get so giddy daydreaming about us in our home one day, a home filled with items from our wedding, from people who mean so much to us!

i'm looking forward to meeting with the priest to discuss the details of our ceremony. ie - our flower arrangements and decorations for the pews, as well as readings & song choice.

speaking of floral arrangemets - i can't wait to choose those as well! as of right now, i'm picturing all white and green ...

i'm excited to find "my wedding shoes" and the jewels i will wear when i walk down the aisle...definitely have images in my mind of what i would like....

i can't wait to shop for a bridal shower dress & honeymoon outfits & the perfect dress for a bachelorette!

i can't wait to go shopping with my girls and choose what they each will be wearing... as well as my mom & future mother-in-law!

this year holds so much meaning, and hope, and excitement for me.  i am so excited that 2012 is here!

xo!

9 MONTHS!

that's 275 days til we say, "i do!"

this week, my mind has been concerned with registry items, among other things! do i want fine china? new bedding? crystal ware? yes, yes, & yes!! :)

also on my mind:
rehearsal dinner attire: here are some images i've pinned..

ahh loving the last two the most<3

now, where to find these beauties?!

xo,

{wedding} more engagement photos

what a treat it was to arrive home from work on tuesday evening to find a disc in my mailbox from my photographer with our engagement proofs! i was able to view some of the photos through his website but the disc contains so much more...eeeks! i love every single photo & choosing a favorite is absolutely impossible. here are a few that i just adore... be warned..slight overload :)

xo,