New webiste to check out!

One of the things on my to do list is to create photo cards for the reception. Instead of having disposable cameras on all of the tables, we are choosing to have people take their own pictures with their own cameras and upload them to a shared website. I kind of thought that so many people have digital cameras these days, and so many people have told me that the pictures they got off of their disposable cameras were crap.

So we are going to give this a whirl. I am going to have photo cards printed and they will be placed at everyone's plate. This way people will know right away to take pictures and plan on sharing them with us after the wedding. The card will also have uploading instructions.

The website is up and running: http://thedeckerschillingwedding.shutterfly.com/
I have pictures from my recent bridal shower and will be adding pictures from the bachelorette party when we get back. Keep the website in mind at the wedding and take pictures and check back to see what others have uploaded!

To do list

This weekend I sat down and tried to think of everything that I need to do before the wedding. As you can see from the counter on the side, I am down to 46 days until the wedding. Time to get my poop in a group!

A few things on the to do list:
place cards
programs
rehearsal dinner invitations
newspaper announcement
ceremony details - readings, music, etc.
suits/ties
decorate candles for reception
decide on other reception decorations
finalize details with the Days Inn
gifts for our attendants
get a marriage license
rings
music for the reception

and on, and on, and on.

I quickly have realized that there are more things that I have to get done than I thought. Or I am realizing that I have less time to get everything done than I thought. It doesn't seem like that long ago this wedding was 6 months away, or even 4 months away, but we are down to 6 weeks. The excitement is building but so is the stress. Each day I am trying to get a few more things done, but I also seem to add a few more things to the list. Right now as a type I am thinking...hmm are we going to have a unity candle...probably. I guess I can add buy a unity candle to my list.

Bridesmaid dresses in

Received a call late Friday afternoon...bridesmaid dresses are in. The timing is perfect. I am planning on heading to Sioux Falls Saturday to meet with our videographer, start working on programs and run a couple other errands. I can swing by the French Door and pick up the dresses for my bridesmaids that live to far away to have the French Door do their alterations and then get their dresses to them next weekend at the bachelorette party.


Not only did the dresses come in, but my veil and head piece are in too. Now I just need to find some jewelry before my next fitting and we will see how everything comes together.

Happy 4th!!!

Happy Independence Day Everyone!!!!

Last night we headed from Bookings up to Lake Poinsett. Hit up a live band at one of the bars on lake shore and didn't make it home until 3.

Today the weather is perfect...no wind and no rain. Lets get the boat on the water!! We will be heading to Chester, SD to spend some time with my family.

Have a save and fun day!

RSVPs

Randy waited for me to get home from the gym, as he had a hunch that there might be something fun and exciting waiting for us in the mailbox. He was right! Our very first RSVP had arrived!! The honor goes to…Grandma Ingalls & Kenny. One of my co-workers handed me his at our usual Tuesday morning meeting, but I put it in the mailbox and sent it to myself at home. Dumb...yes, maybe, but I figured I paid for the stamps, might as well have the post office earn their $.28!

Today when we checked the mail at lunch I waited with excitement as Randy opened the mailbox. Tucked away between the bills, weekly newspaper, and other junk were 11 bright green posts cards. I don’t know that I have ever been so excited to get the mail! As I fingered thru each post card I read the name out loud and proudly announced that each person checked YES they would be coming to our wedding.

So, adding these 11 RSVPs to our 2 guests from yesterday, and the grand total for wedding guests is 28. I think that is a pretty good start for only having the invitations out for 3 days!

Keep em coming people!

Invitations are out!

We finished them up this morning and they are officially in the mail. We are probably waiting on 10 addresses or so from friends that we have lost contact with in the past few years. But the majority of them are out. I think we sent out just under 200 so we should have a good turnout for the wedding.

Not too often do I hit a goal that I set for myself, but I wanted these out no later than this weekend and they are out. I am so relieved to have that done. Now or never. People are invited, this party is happening!!

All the invites headed to the post office!

Invitation addressing

Wednesday night we started addressing invitations. We had to make a few calls to get addresses for a few of you that have recently moved. But we had most of them ready to go. We numbered the RSVP cards so we can match up the number on the card with the name on our excel sheet, just in case someone forgets to put their name on the RSVP card we will know who is coming.

Randy thought this looked like so much fun, he wanted to help too. Actually he probably would have been fine not helping, but I made him!

First Dress Fitting

Tuesday night I had my first dress fitting. As I put the dress on I kept my fingers crossed that I would be able to get by not have to getting it hemmed, having the dress taken out or taken in. I knew that I would be paying to have a bustle put in and bra cups but I was hoping that would be it and I could save some money on alterations.

The dress fit perfect. I will not have to have it altered much at all. The hem line is absolutely perfect too. My shoes are the exact height they need to be to pull the dress just up off of the floor. Next dress fitting…July 27th. Bustle should be done, my veil should be in and I will be able to see how everything looks together.

Here is how the bustle will look

Here is the veil I ordered

Invitation Assembly

Saturday before the shower, I picked up our wedding invitations…all 230 of them. After my cousin’s daughter was baptized on Sunday, we got busy. My aunt Dawn, cousin’s wife Lyndsay, and mom all pitched in. We only ran out of double stick tape once and had to make a trip to Sioux Falls. And we only put about 10 of them together wrong right away. We fixed those up and kept going. After 5 hours they were completed. All the ribbon was attached and they were ready to be addressed.

Dawn, Lyndsay and Mom – THANKS AGAIN FOR ALL YOUR HELP!!

Here we are working hard and the invitaions ready to go!

Bridal Shower

My first bridal shower was a HUGE SUCCESS! I had a great turnout and a wonderful time. It was great seeing friends and relatives that we usually only see a couple times a year. My family came, my aunt and cousin from Atlanta came, and Randy’s mom and sisters all came. It was great.

It was a Mexican fiesta so everyone was offered a margarita when they arrived. We sat around and visited for awhile then played a game. How well does everyone know Randy and Mary? My hostesses had contacted Randy to get some little details about himself that everyone may not know. Who likes ketchup on their ketchup? Randy. Who has road rage? Mary. Who pushed their sibling into a coffee table causing stitches? Mary. Whose mom was sick during pregnancy? Randy. But found out that she wasn’t really that sick, just sicker than she was with the other pregnancies.

We all enjoyed a taco bar then it was time to open gifts. I got so many nice things, I just cant believe it. I was little worried as so many people I talked to warned me that people buy what they want, not really what is on your registry. Not true for my guests. Everyone stuck to the registry and I have a whole lot of new stuff to break in.

They day really was perfect. At the end I tried to get up and tell everyone how grateful I was that everyone was able to come. I know how busy summer gets with activities and running here and there and it meant a lot to me that everyone took time out of their day for me. I have been invited to a lot of showers and it was a totally different feeling having all those people there for me. The presents the recipes…all for me. I was very touched and felt very fortunate to have the friends and family that I have. I love you guys!

A day like that doesn’t just happen however. I had some great hostesses that put a lot of time and effort into making the day what it was. Dawn, Jane, Donna, and Katie – thank you, thank you, thank you! You gave me the perfect non bridal shower…shower!!!