time.... is not on my side!

Hello! I wish I had more time to post - and I have so much to post about - but I don't! Macy's is keeping me busy, busy, busy (in the form of 50 hours a week, plus 7 hours of commuuting) and no where near my dear blog and huge audience (hehe). Fortunately, last week was "slow" at work, so I was able to get a bunch of things done for the wedding.

Derek and I packed up the car with mason jars, dog food, and Mr. Jake and drove back to good old Freeburg on Friday morning, as we both had off work due to the snow storm (yes - we drove home during the blizzard... yes - it was crazy but we got home safe... yay!). We had three appointments and a big day of invitation addressing planned for Saturday, so it was nice to get a head start on the weekend. Since we arrived home so early, we made a quick stop at Dagles to see if we could find Derek something that he'd like to wear on his left ring finger for the rest of his life. Sort of a daunting task for a man.


We looked around at the mall two weekend prior but left frustrated after getting a lot of conflicting information. Having one jeweler tell you 'yes you can cut tungsten off your finger if it gets smashed' and another telling us the opposite, we decided we should consult with real professionals on the safety of my man's hands. Because he works in "construction" (a vague term for what he actually does), he needs to wear something that can easily be cut off (God forbid) if his hand were ever to be smooshed. Poor guy. But... success! We found one at Dagles, and it was actually a very special moment. It brought me back to the day we secretly put a down payment on my engagement ring in March of 2009. Gave me butterflies! The style of ring he chose was one I had pinpointed as my absolute favorite before ever telling him. We're just that good. :)

First thing Saturday morning, Derek and I met with Mayor (and DJ) Fred Moyer to go over music selections for the reception. I am so, so excited about the music for the reception and think Fred is going to reflect our love of great music along with favorites of our friends and family. Having a DJ who knows almost all of the guests will help, and I'm sure his lovely personality will play a huge part in the awesome-ness of the entire night. Can't WAIT!!

Then I met up with Court and.... off to my hair run-through appointment with Tina at Expressions. Let me tell you what, that woman knows how to do hair. She turns my thin, lifeless hair into something worthy of a wedding in no time at all. Within 45 minutes she had done, redone, and REdone my hair (count 'em - three up-do's!), and I'm still not entirely sure how I will end up looking because they all looked so lovely. She's a miracle worker. :)

Then... off to the florist in Richfield. Evelyn at Evelyn's Designs is amazing. She knew I wanted peonies but said that they might not be in season. Fine with me. She suggested garden roses instead, and mums in the place of dhalias (also a later-in-the-summer flower - according to her). I think it's all going to look gorgeous. I think she really gets the vibe we're going for. Can't wait to see the whole reception tent when it's all said and done. Here is some of the inspiration I've gathered along the way that I showed her:

Then, it was off to put together and address 120 or so invitations. We won't be sending them for another couple of days, but they are totally and completely finished. Such a relief! Somewhere between the DJ and the florist, Derek called from the post office asking if it was alright to put a dolphin stamp on the invites. He was trying to do me a big favor by picking them up, but Court and I quickly discussed and decided we weren't too keen on the dolphin - as we are going for a "rustic, vintage farm" feel, not a "rustic, vintage... ocean" look, but he wasn't too happy about that (one of my pickier moments of the last year of planning - I am ashamed to admit). It just cracks me up that the biggest wedding planning controversy to date has been over this:

After a unanimous vote (among the below-mentioned ladies), we did not end up using the dolphin stamp. :) Thank you Dave (future father-in-law) and Mrs. Doak for your help at the post office!

Such an amazing team effort on the invitations. Helping were: My sister (Court, a.k.a. Maid of Honor), my future sister-in-law (Kelsey, a.k.a. beautiful bridesmaid), my future mother-in-law (Lovely Lisa Neff), Derek's Aunt Rose Ann, Mimi (a very close family friend/second mother), Shawnee (Mimi's daughter-in-law), and Derek even stepped in to help stuff envelopes at the end. Oh, and Dave (future father-in-law) made us dinner. Couldn't have done it without him. And it only took 2 1/2 hours.**

Pictures from this day coming soon.

This wedding is really coming together, and I have loved planning every moment. Can't wait to see what the next two months holds in store. Love, love, love... Emmer.

**You may be wondering where MY parents were during this crazy day. Let's just say I don't feel bad that they missed out, as they were on a beach in Puerto Rico most likely with a coconut drink in hand. Miss you guys so much!!