If you're a bird, I'm a bird

I've been waiting a long time for this blog and I'm super pumped to finally blog about the wedding I personally helped plan. I've mentioned my cousin Stef's wedding numerous times before, but I was really excited to officially blog about her day!

It's crazy to think how much we have both evolved from our sleepover, Barbie playing days. She was literally my best friend as a child, and I couldn't have been more happy to help her plan and to see her walk down the aisle.

 (sorry the pictures are a little out of order)

 

 

The proposal

We decided to celebrate our 7 year anniversary early this year (2012) and Jeremy wanted to plan something special before starting his last year of medical school. I had no idea as to what he was planning. I just knew I needed to pack an overnight bag for the long weekend. We got on the road soon after Jeremy finished his family medicine shelf exam. After missing several normal exits, I finally knew we were actually headed to Wine Country! Our first stop once we hit Fredericksburg was Beaker Vineyards. We did the wine tasting and enjoyed our favorite glass on the patio overlooking hill country. It was beautiful! Afterwards Jeremy took us to our Bed and Breakfast at Settlers Crossing. The log cabin we stayed in was built in the 1850’s and still has the original stone floors and wooden beams! There was champagne chilling, red roses, and a box of truffles waiting as we stepped inside. Jeremy insisted that I hop in the shower. Little did I know what he was up to. After freshen up we went outside to relax in rocking chairs on the porch and to enjoy the champagne. After the toast, Jeremy asked if I wanted a truffle. I wasn’t really interested at the time because we were about to go have dinner. But he kept insisting that we have one. I couldn’t figure out why he wanted us to have one so bad since I know he is only a fan of desserts after dinner. However, I finally gave in and said I would split one with him and asked him which one he wanted (since he was the one that wanted it so dang bad!). He said the white chocolate one, the one in the middle. I laughed and asked why that one because again I know him too well and I know he hates white chocolate, but he said because he knew that was my favorite. I finally surrendered and picked up the white chocolate truffle and to my surprise found the most beautiful ring stuck to the bottom! Jeremy got down on one knee and proposed! 

Wedding and Reception

Both our ceremony and reception were held at Alden Hotel Downtown Houston on March 8^th, 2013

Dress, Veil, Shoes

My dress and sash were from Vera Wang’s White collection. My shoes were Calvin Klein and so comfortable!  

Wedding Party Attire

 The bridesmaid’s dresses were Mori Lee and came from the Wedding Shoppe in St. Paul.

The tuxes were Calvin Klein and came from Men’s Warehouse.

Cupcakes/Cake

 Our cupcakes and cake were designed by Jessie from Edible Designs in Houston. 

Photographer

 Both our photographer (Revi) and videographer (Van) were contracted with George Street Photography.

What is one thing you absolutely had to have at your wedding?

Our puppy Bella! This was something both our moms frowned upon…. But, Jeremy and I got our way and we had her walk down the aisle before me. Bella’s great behavior really surprised everyone. 

What items did you create yourself? Invites? Centerpieces?

I had amazing help from my mom, cousin, and friend making our save the dates and wedding invites. I also had amazing help from Jeremy creating a DIY photo booth and a candy buffet. I also created 7 centerpieces with a framed photo, candle and vase, and long stem rose placed on a square mirror.  

What is one thing you wont forget about your day?

All of our friends and family who traveled across country to support us! We had people travel from Minnesota, Indiana, North Carolina, Colorado, Tennessee, Nevada, and Dallas…. Talk about a lot of love! Everyone’s love and support is for sure one thing we will never forget.

Who helped you most with planning?

I give all the credit to my cousin Amanda! I couldn’t have done it without her! Aside from doing a lot of the research for venues, floweriest, DJs, ect, she also sent me weekly reminder emails with different tasks to complete that week. PLUS, I also have to give a lot of credit to Jeremy! He helped with all the decision-making, from big to small. And he also helped with the DIY projects, such as our photo booth. The planning would not have been the same without these two! 

What is one thing you would have changed about your day?

I wish I would have planned and had more time for pre-ceremony photos with my bridesmaids. I did get one or two photos of me with each of them; however, I wish there were more! Other then that, I honestly can’t think of anything I would have done differently.

What advice do you have for other brides planning a wedding?

Enjoy the planning process and get your “hubby to be” involved. Although stressful at times, its really easy to miss the planning when it's all said and done (can’t believe I’m admitting that). 

Did you have a vision or a theme for your wedding? What was it?

We didn't really have a theme. But since Jeremy is obsessed with birds, we tried to incorporate lovebirds here and there. We had birdcages for guests to place cards and advice notes in. Also, on the invites we made, we stamped them with little lovebirds. 

Is there anything you did or paid for that you could have lived without? To cut costs?

We tried to cut costs throughout the whole planning process. For example, we made our own photo booth and used an iPad app instead of paying for a company to provide one for a couple hours. This way, people had time to actually use the photo booth. We also made our invites, escort cards, centerpieces, and candy buffet. All these things cut costs tremendously.

 

I've been waiting a long time for this blog and I'm super pumped to finally blog about the wedding I personally helped plan. I've mentioned my cousin Stef's wedding numerous times before, but I was really excited to officially blog about her day!

It's crazy to think how much we have both evolved from our sleepover, Barbie playing days. She was literally my best friend as a child, and I couldn't have been more happy to help her plan and to see her walk down the aisle.

 (sorry the pictures are a little out of order)

 

 

The proposal

We decided to celebrate our 7 year anniversary early this year (2012) and Jeremy wanted to plan something special before starting his last year of medical school. I had no idea as to what he was planning. I just knew I needed to pack an overnight bag for the long weekend. We got on the road soon after Jeremy finished his family medicine shelf exam. After missing several normal exits, I finally knew we were actually headed to Wine Country! Our first stop once we hit Fredericksburg was Beaker Vineyards. We did the wine tasting and enjoyed our favorite glass on the patio overlooking hill country. It was beautiful! Afterwards Jeremy took us to our Bed and Breakfast at Settlers Crossing. The log cabin we stayed in was built in the 1850’s and still has the original stone floors and wooden beams! There was champagne chilling, red roses, and a box of truffles waiting as we stepped inside. Jeremy insisted that I hop in the shower. Little did I know what he was up to. After freshen up we went outside to relax in rocking chairs on the porch and to enjoy the champagne. After the toast, Jeremy asked if I wanted a truffle. I wasn’t really interested at the time because we were about to go have dinner. But he kept insisting that we have one. I couldn’t figure out why he wanted us to have one so bad since I know he is only a fan of desserts after dinner. However, I finally gave in and said I would split one with him and asked him which one he wanted (since he was the one that wanted it so dang bad!). He said the white chocolate one, the one in the middle. I laughed and asked why that one because again I know him too well and I know he hates white chocolate, but he said because he knew that was my favorite. I finally surrendered and picked up the white chocolate truffle and to my surprise found the most beautiful ring stuck to the bottom! Jeremy got down on one knee and proposed! 

Wedding and Reception

Both our ceremony and reception were held at Alden Hotel Downtown Houston on March 8^th, 2013

Dress, Veil, Shoes

My dress and sash were from Vera Wang’s White collection. My shoes were Calvin Klein and so comfortable!  

Wedding Party Attire

 The bridesmaid’s dresses were Mori Lee and came from the Wedding Shoppe in St. Paul.

The tuxes were Calvin Klein and came from Men’s Warehouse.

Cupcakes/Cake

 Our cupcakes and cake were designed by Jessie from Edible Designs in Houston. 

Photographer

 Both our photographer (Revi) and videographer (Van) were contracted with George Street Photography.

What is one thing you absolutely had to have at your wedding?

Our puppy Bella! This was something both our moms frowned upon…. But, Jeremy and I got our way and we had her walk down the aisle before me. Bella’s great behavior really surprised everyone. 

What items did you create yourself? Invites? Centerpieces?

I had amazing help from my mom, cousin, and friend making our save the dates and wedding invites. I also had amazing help from Jeremy creating a DIY photo booth and a candy buffet. I also created 7 centerpieces with a framed photo, candle and vase, and long stem rose placed on a square mirror.  

What is one thing you wont forget about your day?

All of our friends and family who traveled across country to support us! We had people travel from Minnesota, Indiana, North Carolina, Colorado, Tennessee, Nevada, and Dallas…. Talk about a lot of love! Everyone’s love and support is for sure one thing we will never forget.

Who helped you most with planning?

I give all the credit to my cousin Amanda! I couldn’t have done it without her! Aside from doing a lot of the research for venues, floweriest, DJs, ect, she also sent me weekly reminder emails with different tasks to complete that week. PLUS, I also have to give a lot of credit to Jeremy! He helped with all the decision-making, from big to small. And he also helped with the DIY projects, such as our photo booth. The planning would not have been the same without these two! 

What is one thing you would have changed about your day?

I wish I would have planned and had more time for pre-ceremony photos with my bridesmaids. I did get one or two photos of me with each of them; however, I wish there were more! Other then that, I honestly can’t think of anything I would have done differently.

What advice do you have for other brides planning a wedding?

Enjoy the planning process and get your “hubby to be” involved. Although stressful at times, its really easy to miss the planning when it's all said and done (can’t believe I’m admitting that). 

Did you have a vision or a theme for your wedding? What was it?

We didn't really have a theme. But since Jeremy is obsessed with birds, we tried to incorporate lovebirds here and there. We had birdcages for guests to place cards and advice notes in. Also, on the invites we made, we stamped them with little lovebirds. 

Is there anything you did or paid for that you could have lived without? To cut costs?

We tried to cut costs throughout the whole planning process. For example, we made our own photo booth and used an iPad app instead of paying for a company to provide one for a couple hours. This way, people had time to actually use the photo booth. We also made our invites, escort cards, centerpieces, and candy buffet. All these things cut costs tremendously.