They're here!! Invitations! (the pieces at least)

My anxiously awaited invites have arrived!!

If you don't remember, we sent designs to Sean's cousins who own Wagner Graphics about a month ago to print off our invites. They printed them at cost, which was perfect for us seeing as we I wanted to make the invites myself. We got them once, but the cut was really uneven, so we had to get them printed again. But I couldn't be happier with the final product!

Here's a glimpse of what our guests will get to see when they open up gorgeous envelopes (which I'm still waiting for - and dreading addressing) - you'll have to wait for the real deal though:

 The whole suite

 Our main invite panel

My tester RSVP 

We're using postcards, and I wanted to make sure it'll get to my parents okay - I sent it out today :)

I hate that I had to blur our names, but I'd rather be safe than sorry in today's internet world. I LOVE how my invites are coming together. They look so absolutely gorgeous in their little pocketfold (which I was afraid they wouldn't), and I can't wait to get my hands on the envelopes (though I have envelope liners and "calligraphy" to do on those...). Really, I'll just fantastically excited when these are sent lol. 

Want to see another wedding invite piece?

 

It's a little dark, but these are the "belly bands" that will go around our pocketfolds to keep them closed. The ribbon is a lighter green, since the pockets are black.  They've been a beast too.

I'll be so excited to get these babies out. My due date for myself is the Friday before Thanksgiving, which is roughly 7 weeks before the wedding. It'll give people about a month to respond RSVP style, and then give me an additional week to hunt down everyone that didn't RSVP. I have to have an exact count two weeks before - I don't get a fudge it option. We'll see how that goes...

Coming Home - Tiger Style!

Homecoming - it really is coming home.

Homecoming at Mizzou is a big deal. We did, after all, have the very first one in 1911. It was the 99th this year (and who's excited for next year?!), we beat the #1 team in the nation (Oklahoma, who we haven't beaten since 1998), and had a fantabulous time.

Sean and I got in on Friday night, with enough time to go to Rally Night all dressed up and playing fight songs. We stumbled home mostly sober (either my drinking tolerance has increased, or I'm just not into being beligerant anymore - I think it's the latter) around 2 am. We were up at 6 for Game Day. Then, at noon, homecoming started for reals.

We registered with Marching Mizzou Alumni Band, which guaranteed us tickets to a sold out game, as well as a spot on the field to march pregame.

And how I missed marching.

I didn't realize it. I was so glad to be done last year. But, I've realized I was glad to be done with the drama, and I will always miss the marching. As soon as the fight song started, I got goosebumps and started tearing up. The field is where I belong. With a flag in my hands. I love it so much. The pride I have for my band, the love for my school - all of it came rushing back. Yelling at the top of my lungs for the team I followed for 4 years. The elation and shock of beating OU, a home win that hasn't been seen since 1983. The energy of 71,004 people.

Pictures of the amazingness:

 

 Marching Mizzou practicing

 

 Alumni Band marching down to the field 

 

This is AFTER the first touchdown (which, btw, was the kickoff return)

Marching Mizzou at half time!

We won! Rushing the field

You can't stop 71,004 people!

The sea of gold, celebrating a glorious victory

Tiger love!

One thing is for sure though:

I can't wait for next year!

Tagged. (I feel loved!!)

I don't generally do surveys. I got past that LiveJournal craze a while ago (minus a very bored semester in undergrad sophomore year), but I figured I was tagged in this one so I might as well. :) Lynsie, if you start my addiction up again, the world will not be happy. Jk. I think.


Here it goes!!

{1}: If you could be in any tv show when you were a kid what would it be?

You know, I'm gonna pick the same answer as Lynsie, 7th Heaven. However, it's for totally different reasons. I was an only child until I was 5, and then it was just me and my brother until I was 14. My brother and I are very different, and he had a lot of colic and other social issues when he was a kid (as a baby, my grandmothers and one uncle were the only people besides my parents who could hold him - he bit the priest at his baptism!!). I spent a lot of time with books, dreaming I had tons of siblings. In middle school, I baby-sat for a family with 9 kids, and I loved it there. I loved 7th Heaven because it was all family - they didn't always get along, but they were always there for each other.

{2}: What has been your favorite Christmas gift as a child?

I really don't know what my favorite Christmas gift was...I think it was probably my Easy Bake Oven. I wasn't allowed to use the stove until I was 16 (kid you not folks), and the Easy Bake let cook! And the mixes were actually pretty darn good. The thing is still running too - my sister still uses it (though, she's not nearly as "domestic" as I was as a kid).

{3}: What actress would you want to play you if your life was a movie?

Sandra Bullock. She's snarky, pretty, and sweet all at the same time. I absolutely love every movie she's in. She's everything I would act like if I had the guts to also - I think she'd totally get my inner thoughts portrayed perfectly.

{4}: What decade fad do you wish would come back?

Fads are fads for a reason - they're not supposed to come back!! Though, I wouldn't mind if Jackie-O type dresses stuck around. And I really like bangles and power beads too..or maybe that's my inner 13 year old talking...

{5}:What song describes your life?

Which part of my life? I think there's two that pretty much define me right now: Beer on the Table and Never Wanted Nothing More. I love how both of them talk about how easy it is to live without thousands of dollars and with simple things. I'm so incredibly poor right now, but I'm also so incredibly happy. I'm trying to live my life by these songs - there's no point to worrying about money and things - you can't take them with you in the end.

{6}: What was your favorite subject in school?

Math. I've always loved math. I love how it's finite and definitive, and how there is always a solution. I love playing with numbers. I love that I can solve problems by looking at them - even if I don't always understand it. All of these are the reasons I didn't make math my living. I could have done accounting, but I got really burnt out in a finance class once. I didn't want my major to ruin my love of numbers.

{7}: If you could have a dream job for a day what would it be?

I would love to work for a non-profit like Habitat for Humanity. I love seeing the faces of people whose lives have been changed forever. Maybe one day Sean will make enough money that I can work a job that doesn't pay hardly anything - I'd do it right now if it would pay the bills.

{8}: If you could be any animal, what would you be and why?

Yikes. Honestly, I've never wanted to be an animal. I think I was a Dalmatian once for Halloween? Maybe I'd be a tiger, or an elephant. Or maybe a bird. A bird would probably be my most likely choice though.

Noooow I get to tag people!!!

1. Lyndsey at My Life in CMYK

2. Caryn at Allens Gone Wild

3. Jessica at I am a Broken Masterpiece

4. Meredith at La Buena Vida

Play along folks!!

College Game Day

Today is the day.

It is Mizzou's College Game Day. We're on ESPN, with photos of Jesse Hall and Columns, and on national television.

While it's not even 10 am, we've been at the Game Day show taping and are prepping again. We're excited for Alumni band, for marching in pregame, and for the game itself.

But for now, here's some photos so far:

 

We welcomed sunrise on the Quad

Marching Mizzou (they were split in groups - this is just one of them)

 

Black & Gold!! And crazy signs

We made our own signs

Together again!!

 

Photo from the top of Jesse, by Joel Kowsky 

All I can say right now though is - 

GO MIZZOU TIGERS!!

impatient.

I have so much to blog about, but I can't find my camera cord :\

Maybe tonight I'll blog with cell pics...sorry!

I am waaay to excited about this...

Look at it! Look at it!!

It's our return address stamp for our wedding invites!

How adorable is that?! I made an Alchemy request on Etsy on Sunday night for a custom return address stamp. I figured if I designed it on my own, it would be much cheaper (after all, all I was paying for was the stamp itself!). A few hours after I made it, I had six bids, ranging from $5 - $18. I picked a nice midrange field with someone who had stamps already listed (so I could see their quality), and emailed SandShooters back for my stamp. Tonight, it's Tuesday - and it's already been shipped. The total cost, for a stamp that we'll use 200+ times? $14.25. Completely customized, and wonderful. I can't wait til I receive it in the mail!!

This isn't the first etsy purchase I've made, but it is the first one I'll receive. I fill you in on the rest when I receive them ;)

Crafting Our Ceremony - The Readings

I've talked a lot about the details of our wedding, but I haven't said much about the ceremony - the meat and bones of our wedding. I haven't said much about it simply because we hadn't finished it - but now we have! The ceremony is by far, the most important part to me. It's the root of our marriage, and who we will be in the future. I know I'm going to cry through most of it, but I'm excited nonetheless.

For the Catholics out there - there isn't much customization available in the ceremony. We were given a book to choose readings from, a list of songs to choose from, and other than that, it pretty much all fits into a normal Sunday mass. To me though, this is the best part. Sean and I had to go through each and every reading, discussing them, and narrowing them down to what fits us best - what means the most to us, and what describes our relationship. We knew that we wanted readings that portrayed an equality between the male and female, and that centered on community life rather than something that can only exist in the church. Our religion means a lot to us, but most of that is helping others - not secluding ourselves in prayer. We "pray" through service.

That being said, we had to choose 3 Biblical readings. In the Catholic mass, the first reading is from the Old Testament, the second is from the New Testament, and the third is a Gospel. Here are the readings we chose, and why:

The First Reading:  Jeremiah 31:31-32A, 33-34A

Second Reading: 1 John 4:7-12 

Gospel Reading: John 2:1-11

All of these readings are about love: the meaning of love, how love doesn't just affect us, and how God is important in love and Catholic marriage. I think they're all wonderful. The gospel reading is the traditional wedding at Cana, which to me, resonates with how people need to be prepared for a wedding and not just assume that "everything will fall into place".

Our next step? Music!!

Laser Hair Removal

Back in August, I purchased a Groupon. Groupons are city-based (I'm signed up for both KC and STL ones) coupons that get you anywhere from 50-90% off a good or service in your area. They only go into effect if so many people purchase them, but it usually happens. Also, because you pay for them at the time, you can give them as gifts or save them for yourself.

Well, back in August, I had just gotten my new job, and was kind of excited about money - so I rewarded myself. This Groupon was for $675 of laser hair removal treatments - for $99. That was it. Um, yes please!! I clicked purchase, I went on my merry way.

It was really difficult at first to schedule my appointment with Hudson Med Spa, but at the same time, they did sell over 1300 Groupons (not to mention their regular customers). This place is so great though. It the kind of place I like - in and out, no fuss.

I went for my first treatment (that I had easily rescheduled from last Friday), and it was so easy. It was a warm little zap, but way less painful than what I was expecting. It was like someone was flicking me? In any case, I have 5 more treatments, and I'm not worried at all. Since it's laser, there aren't any results yet - it's a slow process apparently. By the way - I'm having my underarms treated.

The thing about it is that it only treats dark hair - lasers can't get peachfuzz or blond hair. Plus, since it only treats actively growing hair, 6 sessions are needed. There's not guarantee that I'll be hair-free, only that it'll be a great reduction (which I'm okay with). The great part is that I can still shave and everything in between appointments - no hair growth needed. It was only like a 15 minute process too.

I'm really excited to see how everything turns out!!

OMG Shoes

These shoes were not $300 (but have you seen this video? It's hilarious)

Wedding shoes. I have to have them, because I can't get alterations done until I have a heel height. You heard right - I'll be wearing heels for my likely 16 hour wedding day. Early on in my wedding planning, I feel in love with pictures like this one:

 

(source)

Gorgeous, right? The pop of color under the pure white dress, the shiny brooches on the front...swoon. I think it's a completely awesome photo. So I started looking around. I quickly found that my beloved holly green is a nearly impossible color find - seriously. My choices narrowed to David's Bridal dyeable shoes, which can be made to match any color imaginable. I've had shoes dyed there before, and I've had pretty good luck. 

So looking around the site, I fell in love with these shoes:

Which, of course, do not come as a dyeable option. /facedesk.

I finally settled on a gorgeous set of shoes, that I love dearly nonetheless. They do not have the 4 inch heels the shoes above have, but still have an adorable detail that I adore. Unfortunately, they're not nearly as green as I was hoping. I'm having pretty sucky luck with the KC David's, which I'm sad about, especially considering how awesome the StP one is. Nonetheless, they still look great. And considering they'll be under a white dress, I'm sure they'll pop just fine :D Without futher ado, my wedding shoes!

 

Hmm...maybe a little plain (though can you see that adorable scalloped edge?)? Let's add some bling:

I got these buttons from an Ebay seller for about $5 a piece, and then I superglued some scrapbooking "pearls" to them to make them less...snowflaky. The result?

A gorgeous set of green heels, with some funky accents. Sorry about the awful photos - my camera has been misplaced in the move. These are all cell phone pics.