"Sweet like candy to my soul.... sweet you rock, and sweet you roll..."

So, we're having a candy buffet! What is that, you might ask? Most people (the totally unoriginal, LOL) leave their guests with a small parting gift to thank them for coming to their wedding. We aren't most people! I can't fathom spending money on something that probably 90% of the crowd will end up tossing in the trash or, even worse, feel too bad to trash it and store away somewhere to collect dust. Nope, I won't let that happen. So, instead, Tony and I decided to do a candy buffet. Basically, our parting gift is candy. Lots and lots of candy!

Supposedly most people eat 3-5 ounces of candy. So, you would assume that I would need about 50lbs for a 150 guests wedding. Turns out, I need double that. Aesthetically speaking, the candy buffet would end up looking rather blah and uneventful with only 50lbs of candy. Thus, I ordered 100lbs!

Thank God there are places on the internet that sell bulk candy on the(decently) cheap. I'm going for an all white buffet as pink and white reminded me of Valentine's day and the only black candy available was all licorice and I (as well as most people) can't stand licorice. Once it all ties in with the damask table cloth and pink flowers spread throughout the table, it should look awesome. I ordered coconut Jelly Belly jelly beans, white M&M's, white chocolate covered pretzels, white gumballs, white (not the clear, yellowly color) gummi bears, white rock candy, white jordan almonds, white pillow mints, and white, mini marshmallows. That's a lot of candy, huh?!?!?

I have 12 glass apothecary jars that I got at Hobby Lobby and Michael's (during their half-off specials, of course!) that I'll use to put each candy in. If I find the time, I'm going to make ribbons to go around each jar that will have a little tag on them to inform guests what each candy is. I've also ordered chinese take-out boxes that the guests will use to put their candy in to take with them. Of course, they'll have our monogram on them! So glad it's finally all coming together!

People actually read this thing?

Wow, has it really been over a month since I updated the blog? Where has the time gone?!?!?! Even though I haven't blogged, I've been a busy bee with the wedding planning stuff. We went to McAllen on July 1st and spent an entire week there getting wedding things done. Let me just tell you how much of a pain in arse it is getting married 500 miles away from where you live! Just thinking of how we are getting everything and everyone down there for the big day is a logistical nightmare. Not to mention bringing everything else back up, including gifts! I have lots of info, but I'll spread it out into a few different postings.

So, where to begin... while we were in McAllen we were able to get our reception dinner menu finalized. I originally wanted an Italian meal, salad, chicken parmigiana or lasagna, pasta, and some sort of veggie. But, in the end, that idea got booted. Tony and I were scheduled for a sit down tasting of the Italian meal I wanted. I knew that I wasn't going to eat anything except the pasta, so I asked my Dad to come along, as well as Tony's parents. Unfortunately for me, or fortunately for the others, the chef also made some other chicken and veggie choices for us to try. While the Italian meal (chicken parm. and fettucini alfredo) were supposedly delicious, the other options the chef made were better. So I was told. Now, I'm waiting for the fancy schmancy description of our menu so that I can have it printed. But, until then, here's the basics: Salad with Italian vinegarette, Chicken Martini (some sort of crusted chicken with sun dried tomatoes and capers on top, not anything like what I've found online...go figure), steamed asparagus with a light hollandaise sauce, and garlic mashed potatoes. I, of course, will be eating a bowl of plain pasta. :)

While we were in McAllen, we also had our engagement pictures taken, met with the florists to do our flowers and linens, and did a couple of other things.

Stay tuned!

The dresses are ordered!

What a day it's been! Kelli, Ashley, and I went to the bridal store today to order my dress and all of the bridesmaids dresses. By some grace of God, my dress just so happened to have already been made in my size. It's made in Australian and then shipped to Utah which means that since it was ordered today, it will be shipped on June 15th and get here no later than a week after that. WOW!! Every single time I went dress shopping, everyone was sure to tell me that they just ordered a dress today and it's taking 3-4 months to get here. I only have 4 months left! So, somehow, the wedding gods were with me today and I won't have to worry about the dress anymore! Sorry, though, folks, Tony has not and will not see the dress until I walk down the aisle in it. You all will just have to wait, too. But, I'd be willing to send an email with the link if you ask nicely! :)

We had gone in to the store planning on purchasing a longer, strapless dress for the girls. But, it turned out that this place carried the Watters and Watters line of bridesmaids dresses. I LOVE their dresses and wanted Kelli and Ashley to try some on. Well, of course, I changed my mind from the original dress and went with a Watters. It's a v-neck with a strap, which I'm more happy about, and I think they're WAY more flattering than the other one. The picture below shows it in a dark green with a light green hem, but mine will be black with a white hem.
We also found the cutest flower girl dress that matches the bridesmaids dresses almost perfectly. It will also be a black dress with a white sash and hem

After spending 2, I repeat, 2 hours at the bridal store Kelli and I went to look for shoes for all of the girls. Again, someone was watching over me because we found THE shoe that will go perfectly with the bridesmaids dresses. Now I just need to get everyone's shoe size and go get them. I also managed to find necklaces for all of the girls, too.

Things worked out soooo well today....

Save the Date!

We have officially mailed off our save-the-date cards! Unfortunately, it seems to have taken forever and a day for people to get them. Supposedly, because of our awesome, unique, gorgeous labels, all of the std's (yes, that's what people are calling them nowadays!) had to be hand processed because the machines aren't able to read the return address because it's sideways. That's definitely a "note to self" for the invitations. I am ashamed to admit that we forgot to make a label for Tony's parents, so it may be possible that someone got left out. The joys of planning....it's so crazy sometimes! I think this is one of those reasons why kids are supposed to come after the wedding!!! Planning is hectic enough without one! :)

Anyway, these babies were a labor of love. They were handmade (can't you tell?) and such a pain! I printed them on my sister's printer but that screwed them up because we could only feed a few sheets of the cardstock in at a time. So, when it came time to have Kinko's cut them, it wouldn't work because only a few pages all lined up. We ended up having to cut each and every one ourselves and eventually stopped being picky when they were slightly crooked! Oh well. Our next pain was the ribbon. I went through at least 4 different pairs of scissors trying to find one that would cut through the ribbon without fraying it. Finally found one, although nothing is ever perfect. Making all of those little cuts was excruciating, but they turned out cute. For the labels, I got smart and took them to Kinko's to be printed and cut at the same time. Thank God I did that, it saved us soooo much time and the money was definitely worth it! I folded all of the labels with a bone folder which made it easier to keep the labels straight when we put them on. Again, some came out crooked but we just gave up! Oh, and don't get me started on the stamps! As luck would have it, postage would go up when we're ready to send them. Of course, the only stamp they have for weddings is a pair of gold wedding bands. Blah! I can't stand gold jewelry (no offense, just personal opinion) much less 2 plain ol' bands on a stamp. So, I chose the king and queen of hearts over The Simpson's LOL. It'll do, but I hope they having something better for the invites

Now, about those invites. I found the perfect design and am waiting for a price quote. Of course, though, they'll be kept a secret until they get mailed out! Here are some pics of the std's. No, not those kind LOL!

"Like Birds of a Feather...We...Stick Together"

I'm sure most people have never seen feathers at a wedding. So, with me being the "trendsetter" that I am, (LOL) decided to use them at our wedding. We're planning on having 20 tables at the reception for all of our guests. With that in mind, we're going to do 10 tables with a feather centerpiece and the other 10 tables with a flower centerpiece. We will also have 6 cocktail tables flanking the dance floor that will have different centerpieces, maybe with candles. My only dilemma is that since feathers are so new, most florists haven't done them before. I'm worried that they'll turn out horrible and no where near what I wanted. I'm thinking about doing the centerpieces myself and letting the florist handle just the flowers. We'll see how that pans out. I'm going for a vintage, romantic, modern theme for the wedding. Hopefully I can pull it off. Originally, these were the feather centerpiece that I liked. I still like them, but then came across another feather centerpiece that I absolutely LOVE.

It's kind of hard to see it, but to me it's like a pink feather lamp shade with crystals hanging down. It's so funky and romantic at the same time. It also goes perfectly with the black and white damask! How I'd make it, not really sure; but I'll figure it out.

Here are some other pics of flower centerpieces I'm thinking about.

"The Things We Do For Love..."

Let me begin with a little background information. My mother made all of us daughters wait to pierce our ears until junior high. When 6th grade came around, she took me to the Dr. thinking he would do it the cleanest. Yea, well, not so much. They were always infected and never really turned out right so I let the holes close up. Then, in 2002, I pierced them again at the mall. Same story, always infected. I could never wear the cheap, pretty earrings that I loved without my ears getting red, swollen, and having bumps behind them. So, yet again, I let the holes close up.

So, here we are today. I know what kind of earrings I want to wear for the wedding, but most earrings look horrible as clip-ons. I decided a few months ago that I must re-pierce my ears...I just never actually went and did it. So, while I was out to dinner with some friends, we decided it would be an oppurtune time to get it done. I had my cartilage pierced a while back and had no problems wearing cheap earrings. I figured that it had something to do with the fact that I had it pierced at a tattoo parlor, which is usually more hygienic than the mall. Which brings me to this past weekend. At around 10pm, 3 girlfriends of mine (all moms from Dylan's school) and myself strolled into a lovely tattoo parlor. Everyone there was covered in tattoos and piercings, and I think was wondering what the heck we were doing there! I explain the situation and sign my ear health away on the dotted line. I headed behind the counter to a back room that was well lit, but seemed a bit shady, and sat on the table. The guy was pretty composed at first, and rambled a few things here and there and then got me ready. I was surprised by how little the pain was. I remember almost crying when I had it done at the mall, but this was by far less painful. He then gets ready to do the next ear and I notice his hand shaking pretty badly. I was nervous, and asked why he was shaking. I don't remember if I got an answer or not....but tried to remain calm and hope that he knew what he was doing. He eventually calmed down and pierced the other ear just fine. To top off the situation, after it was all said and done, he asked if he could take a picture of me for his portfolio because he had never pierced ear lobes before!!!! Yea, good times. No wonder he was shaking!

Anyway, here are some pics of earrings, and other jewelry that I like for the wedding.

"You Kinda Look Like a Shiny Mermaid"

OK, so hopefully my bridesmaids won't feel like shiny mermaids in their dresses. If so, I do apologize in advance! :)

Anyway, I've gone back and forth on the whole bridesmaid look. I originally wanted them to wear tea-length gowns, but with more consideration I'm thinking knee-length. It's a little more church appropriate and somewhat more fancy. I do know for a fact, however, that the dresses will be black. We found one at Alfred Angelo that looked good on, but I'm not feeling the fabric. I prefer the look of taffeta or dupioni silk as opposed to satin. Again, it looks better. Now for the tie-breaker, I like both strapless and sleveless looks. I'm waiting for Ashley and Kelli to be done with finals (hint hint) so that we can go try on dresses and see which looks better. I only have a little more than 5 months left before the wedding and have got to get going on this!

Here are some ideas:

"Could you wanna take my picture....'cause I won't remember...."

We booked our engagement photo session, yay!!! Our photographers are in McAllen and they're a husband and wife team. We booked them a while back, but just now picked the date for engagement pics. We'll be going down to the valley for the 4th of July, and will do the pics on the 6th. Besides the reception, the photography is the most expensive thing of the wedding! We actually ended up with a great package, though. Not only is my bridal portrait shoot included, but our photographers will also be with us for the ENTIRE day of the wedding. From us getting ready, to saying or vows, to after it's official, to us partying the night away, and finally to us leaving. I'm so excited!

Here are a couple of engagement photos from our photographer's website (http://www.gerardogarmendia.com/) Enjoy!

Will you be my Bridesmaid?

Matron of Honor - Lisa Chakery

Lisa is my older sister by 5 years, but we might as well be twins. We constantly wear the same things (without planning,) we always call each other on the phone at the exact same time, and have numerously asked "does (insert body part here) hurt?" because we usually have sympathy pains for each other. Not to mention the fact that we almost look identical!

Maid of Honor - Kelli Anthony

Kelli is a friend of mine who I went to UT Arlington with. She's my "chinese friend" because we'd always go eat at this little hole-in-the-wall Chinese restaurant together during lunch. Thank God it was cheap, because we went about 2 times a week! She's one of a kind, and is such a great friend!

Bridesmaid - Jamie Tabak

Jamie and I go waaaay back. We've known each other since elementary school and have been friends ever since! She probably knows the most about me out of everyone I know (let's keep some secrets, shall we?) She's my connection to all things "Valley" because she's still in McAllen, but we keep in touch pretty often. She's been there for some of the most important times of my life and will be there for one of the next.

Bridesmaid - Ashley Zapata

Ashley is Tony's sister. She moved up to Dallas shortly after I did and lived with me and Tony for a couple of years. We see her at Mass every week, (yes, that's Tony sister....not some other woman, LOL) and at a lot of Dylan's soccer or basketball games. Sometimes we road trip it up when we go down to McAllen to visit our families, too.

Bridesmaid - Crissy Guerra

Crissy is Tony's cousin. She's also the only one in the wedding party that's under 21 (sorry Crissy!) We only get to see her on holidays since she won't come up to Dallas to see us, but we keep in touch on Facebook. I think we need to get her up here, who's with me?!?!

"PINK, It's my new obsession..."

As most of you know, my wedding colors are black, white, and magenta. I used to say pink, but that could mean so many things. Pastel pink just isn't me, and hot pink reminds me of a hooker. Much less, I think Barbie had some hot pink heels in her wardrobe at some point in her life! So, magenta came to be. It has all the loveliness of a good, strong pink; but also has the more elegant purple side to it. I think there might be some apple green splashed around here and there, too. It makes for a nice contrast. I'm also trying to bring in different textures and patterns by using black and white damask prints, stripes, and possibly some polka dots. I don't want to get too crazy, though!

Here are a few inspiration boards with my colors:

Something old, something new, something borrowed, something PINK!

I'm new to this whole blogosphere craze, but I thought it'd be a great way to share some of the details of our wedding. We do have a wedding website that we're "advertising" on our save-the-date cards and invites, but I didn't want to post all of the planning stuff on there, too. My sister and brother in-law are avid bloggers, so hopefully they'll be able to help me along (Make sure to check out their links!)



So, without further ado, welcome to Something Pink!!!