things to do

1) I decided now would be a good time to stop ignoring all the things I should be doing.

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2) Bwah.  I can't find my things-to-buy/to-do list.  :(  But I think I've managed to remember most of the things on it, and rewrite it down.

3) I. NEED. TO. PACK. MY. LIFE. INTO. BOXES.  And not too many of them.  Moving across town sure is easier than moving across country.

4) I need to plan out all decoration-set up stuff and make diagrams and stuff so I can convey my ideas to my lovely friends/set-up coordinators.

5) T H I S:

ENDS TOMORROW  :-D  (Source)

                      

marriage license appt, coffee, & God

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We have an appointment to get a marriage license! I have no idea if scheduling an appointment is like trying to get into a popular class at school... but I don't have "another semester" to find out or get to "take another class" when time comes so I just did it last night. Tim better get here on time! :-P

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I was looking at this picture thinking... oh this is how I like my coffee! With milk and sugar. But then I look again and it's like... why is the liquid being poured into the coffee already brown?! That's not milk. And then when I went to save the picture... it says it was Baileys. haha. I suppose that's good in coffee too. Maybe just not in the mornings. :-P (Source)

You know... I really enjoy my coffee in the morning. I'm not really sure why. I do get mild headaches when I don't get enough caffeine (though I can ween myself off it in a few days). But I always look forward to it. So... I only get fresh coffee when my dad's home. :-P I could make fresh coffee when he isn't home, but I think it doesn't make just one cup as well. Or I'm just lazy. Or both. So I revert to Starbuck's VIA instant stuff -- which is not bad for instant I must say, but it's not the same as fresh beeeeans. I'm hoping the coffee maker we registered for (or that we will buy) will be able to make one cup. :] Though we did register for this other 3-in-1 thing that makes "one cup" but I'm always worried those 3-in-1 things can't do any of those one things right. :oP (Though I suppose the making hot water part can't be too hard for tea. Hmm... I wonder what the third thing is. haha.)

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Psalm 18: 30-36

As for God, his way is perfect;
the word of the LORD is flawless.
He is a shield
for all who take refuge in him.

For who is God besides the LORD ?
And who is the Rock except our God?

It is God who arms me with strength
and makes my way perfect.

He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;
he enables me to stand on the heights.
He trains my hands for battle;
my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

You give me your shield of victory,
and your right hand sustains me;
you stoop down to make me great.
You broaden the path beneath me,
so that my ankles do not turn.

I especially love v32, "It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." Far too often we think we can do things on our own, cross our fingers, or just putter through life hoping for the best, but it is God who works in and through us, and His plan that is "perfect" even though we may not always think so - before the fact, during or after it. I says "life happens" fairly often. There are just some things in life that inevitable. Sometimes that means hard times, broken hearts, or trying times. But maybe I should be saying "God happens." God "works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:28). And that means trusting in God when "life happens."


Why do we say "Happy Good Friday"?  Is it a day to be celebrated?  Or rather, commemorated and revered?  Are we happy cause we know Easter is coming?
                                                     

just for kicks

A Threadless t-shirt design called "A is for Jerks" : I just thought this was funny.  :oP  Especially how the cat has its hand to its mouth.  (Source)

So this weekend, Tim's brother James was in town.  He stayed at my house and we went around the city a bit on Saturday.  And then he met up with a guy whom I've named Ferrari man.  And the name is very appropriate because he owns this beauty:

That is a Ferrari F50 (that is valued at $900,000 for the non car peeps) and it was parked in front of my house!

Did you know between 1995 and July 1997, only 349 were made -- one fewer than Ferrari estimated they could sell?  haha.  Yeah, I learned a lot about fancy cars, my future brother in law, and Ferraris this weekend.  :]

However, while I have a deep appreciation for the finer things in life, I do not find them necessary to appreciate life.  But the F50 suuuure is pretty!  ;]

Psalm 13: 5-6

But I trust in your unfailing love;

my heart rejoices in your salvation.

I will sing to the LORD,

for he has been good to me.

                                         


Should I buy a white Easter basket for the flowergirl now, 40% off at Michaels, or wait until after Easter to pick one up?
                    

showered with love!

So.  When I had homework or tests... I had a tendency to wait until the last minute to do/study for them.  I think this has become more than just a "study habit."  It is my life.  {hangs head in shame}  I've tried to change, but I pretty much self-diagnosed my procrastination problem when I was 12.

It seems for.eve.r until I get to see Tim in mid-May, but if we back it up here (big picture), it's really like 2.5 months until the wedding and that's like peanuts!  I think the three month mark was kinda the... move from figuring out big things to working on the details.  And while I sometimes like details, there are A LOT of them.  Like sanity nerving a lot of them, where the list keeps growing!  I had once thought oh I have plenty of time and not much else to do so I can do ALL my projects beforehand and be the chillest bride known to mankind before her wedding.  Hah.  In theory, I can STILL accomplish this but... it will require like a lifestyle change and breaking my lifelong habit of procrastinating tasks I'm suppose to accomplish that require thinking or hardwork.  (I know, I know... how did I get two degrees.  It's a mystery to me.)

Perhaps instead of blogging about procrastinating, I should've gone and done something productive.  :-P

I will quickly mention some fun things that have happened in the last few lazy blog-less days!

NUMBA WUN
So remember how I won an engagement session with Herman Au?  YAH.  So we were thinking of doing the shoot in March, but then Tim decided not to venture out west for spring break, so we will be doing it in May!  We'll be flying Herman up to NorCal, and his ticket has been purchased, so it's like... for reals!  I already bought a dress.  haha.  :-P

NUMBA TOO
I had my bridal shower this past weekend!!  :]  It was small but fun.  Lots of delicious good food, and LOTS of laughs.  haha.

Y.U.M.

Yay!!!  We had laughs you will never know.  :oP

The favors.  CAKE SPONGES.  So you can be happy when you wash your dishes.  HAHA.  From Daiso!  ;]

Ok.  Lets try to make today a productive one.  That may perhaps hopefully include a run.  O_O  Maybe saying it aloud will help?  :-P

What did you do this weekend?
                                             

dream hobby #1

So there are four hobby-jobs that I think I would enjoy doing.  :]

Though who knows, maybe if I actually did them, I might not enjoy them.  I don't know if I'd like to do these as a full time job, but like I said, hobby-jobs.  (However, I wouldn't complain about getting any of them as a job!)

I didn't realize I'd get so wordy about 'em, so I've decided to split them into four segments!

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Dream hobby #1: Wedding Planner

I like to think of myself as having a type A personality but with a type B approach.  :oP  So I pay attention to details, but I try not to be too rigid about it.  (And I think this will be put to the test with marriage.  :oP)  But I love planning parties and events and gatherings!  Just ask my friends.  I've never done like a well organized big party, but I itch to try!  Also, if I'm planning an event with another person, I have a tendency to try not to take over (that's a good thing right?) but then the vision or plan ends up being trying to accomodate everyone's ideas.

Some days I get so frusted with all the planning, and Tim's like, " I guess you don't want to be a wedding planner anymore," but I think it's different with your own wedding!  I think it's cause I'm working with OUR money and trying to get the best deals and stuff.  AND it was my first time dabbling in the wedding industry.  I think it'd somehow be easier if someone says, "I want this and this" and I go do it.

One of my biggest concerns now is executing set up and basically, the day of coordination for our wedding.  I would LOVE to go take pictures, change out of my gown, help do all the set up, then change back and go get married.  :oP  Instead of trying to convey that vision to someone else, who will try their hardest, but things just may not end up looking like the way I planned.  But I promised myself that will most likely happen and I will [try to] go with the flow!  I definitely don't want to be one of those brides who regret their wedding (it's about the marriage ladies!) and only remember the things that went wrong.

Maybe my credentials will increase exponentially after I get married.  And I can try my skills at some friend's wedding.  :-P 

*I'm organized, attentive to details (before and during the wedding), and will try my best to accomplish YOUR vision!*  :oP
                                          
Do you have any dream hobbies/jobs?
                                 

chuggachuggachuggachugga toot toot!

Another fantastic centerpiece idea from Steven Curtis Chapman's assistant Grace's blog! (The other idea was the butterflies.)

If we were having a December wedding, I'd totally use these as our centerpieces! Charlie Brown trees! How simple (aka mostly easy and cheap to make) and cute is that. :) (Source)

Sooooo. More progress has been made! We sort of decided on the invitation design! I made all the drafts and sometimes I feel like I don't love the one we chose, but then I did make it, so it's like... ok. hahah. I will have to whip up some RSVP/info/map/accessory cards to go with the invitations, and then get some price quotes on printing, which is the next big hill cause that sounds like an annoying task. You'll have to wait until I send them out to see them though!

My dad will also be gifting us with air travel (no, not freebie tickets,* but NOT stand by! Yay! haha) and select accommodations becauseeeeee after chillaxing in Kauai... we might be hanging out in Hawaii a little longer. ;) More details on that when it all actually is booked, cause I'd hate to give incorrect information. :-P But hallelujah! God is so gracious. It wasn't too big of a deal, but it is a relief to not stare at my Excel sheet wondering where we could gonna squeeze money out for the honeymoon.

It's super early but I'm already trying to work through the ceremony program, so I can figure out how many songs I need so I can pick songs, because my brother's been buggin' me for the set list!  Already.  I suppose I could pick songs now and figure out the program later but... stuff's gotta match, right? :) There have been a few wedding songs I've collected over the years (aka have heard and decided I must have that at my wedding!), but... most if not all have words to them! And I'm looking more for 90% instrumental and maybe one song that Alvin might sing.  So I guess we will see.


* All my life I've had to combat the assumption that I can fly everywhere for free! We don't. Or it's "free" with a price of... possibly not getting on. And the assumption that a geography major must know where every country is and is good with maps. :oP  Silly assumptions!


Find any seasonal inspiration you wish you could use in your wedding?
    

rings. ordered.

[I'm pretty sure I have the lamest post titles ever.  I used to like my post titles, esp in the LiveJournal days.  But I suppose those were the days when the title didn't have to have anything to do with the post.  :-P]

Anyway, after debating over whether we wanted 14k wedding bands or palladium, we made a decision!  We are going with the palladium!  Tim was good with both, and I wanted my band to mostly somewhat match my engagement ring, so palladium it was!  And, I found out that you can engrave palladium, it's just that iweddingband.com doesn't offer that service.  So, if we really really want engraving, we can get it done elsewhere.  :]  They say they'll ship in a week (whyyy so looong) and estimated delivery is Dec 24th!  Eeks!  I hope they make it here in time for Tim to try his ring on.  If not, it'll be a pain in the butt to send it to him and have him send it back (which will be difficult for him to get around to doing because of his impending doom, I mean conference paper deadline).  So.  Yes Lord, please get it here on time.  Or earlier.

Palladium half round comfort fit 3mm (top or left), and 4mm (bottom or right).

Whoooot.  Another thing done.  Wow, we're just really checking things off here, aren't we?  :-P  Now if only I can decide on bridesmaids dresses and get the invtations finished off, we're basically ready to get married, yeah?  :)

An interesting post the other day from Miss Guinea Pig about a surprise wedding where this couple turned their engagement party into their actual wedding!  Since we're checking off all these big items, I think it's easy to get a little anxious.  Like we're reeeeeady, common' common', is it time yet?  Prettttty much a grown up, "ARE WE THERE YET?"  We only had a year long engagement which seems not too short or too long, though sometimes it seems longer than necessary!  I used to make fun of um.... the white folks (I'm marrying a white guy, I can say that right?) and how they have short engagements!  But now I realize... the white folks got it right!  I'm sure I could have gotten everything done in 6 months, and maybe it would've been good cause then you don't worry about stupid, unimportant things like the details (haha).  I have taken my time with some things, since I could.  We seriously considered the idea of moving the wedding to February but we decided it would be easier to keep it as it is... for logistical reasons... academic reasons... and really, I'm not all that excited to be moving back to Ithaca IN FEBRUARY.  :-P  (Which is like one of the coldest months there.)  It was more of a "we want to and we could..." but we don't have to.  And besides... our green and orange color scheme might be a little weird in February.  :]

Do you ever feel like you are just ready to go, even though it's months before your wedding?  Do you think short or long engagements are better?  Has being engaged or married changed your perspective on how long you thought engagements should be?
     

things to do

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Crap. Despite those Knot checklist things-to-do reminders... I have not ordered a dress yet. :o\ I'm sure 6.5 months is not as long of time as I think it is. Esp if I need alternations and such. But THANKFULLY... one of my "back up" ideas... could theoretically be ordered and shipped to my house overnight for a fee. :oP So I'll have SOMETHING to wear. hehe. I hopefully will not be cutting it that close, but it's kind of a nice to know there is a plan CDEFG.

And invitations. I need to crank something out I'm satisfied with (I have drafts!) pronto and order the kind of paper I want it printed on, so I can make a prototype and send it off to Hong Kong to get printed. At least in theory this is how it is going to work. :) I just realized if I want to get them in my posession February and sent out in March, and I want to have at least two months time for communicating/editing/printing between ordering and receiving, that means I need to have the prototype done end of November. See, another good reason I fired off most of the Save the Dates early, so I can concentrate on this (and everything else that needs to be done by November). ;)

I should schedule a meeting or something with Pastor J sometime... No rush I suppose, but to get something on the calendar before I may be preoccupied with other things.

As well as browse online and in stores for materials to make a prototype of the non-floral boutinnieres (which I'm kiiiiinda excited about that. Maybe after I get over the I-don't-know-what-I'm-doing part) I decided we would have so we can chop on the floral budget.  :)  So that we can shift money over to photography, which we still need to sign.  Seriously.  o_O {taps watch} On Monday I'll have to call to verify if the chair/linen rental people received my deposit and that my order is indeed secured. After that, I think I'll have to check with Tim on funds for some venue bills due early December. What fun. :oT

Whew. Guess it's time to step into medium-high gear. {grins} I figured I've save the actual "high gear" for like the week before the wedding when all the things you didn't realize needed to be done will need to be done. :]




And for funs... here's a color chart that correlates your color palette choices to your personality (PaperSource calls it a Colorscope, and I found it on Things Festive). :-P

I think I'm a poppy | leaf :)  (Click HERE to see PDF version)

     

on top of things?

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There are wedding planning checklists galore online.
Here's one from Real Simple: Weddings.
Here's one from The Knot.

The Knot even has a month to month checklist to keep you on task and I've been doing okay on it I think! We have a venue (*yay!), we've got a caterer (*yay!), a cute little flower girl to throw petals (**whoo!), and we've got an officiant (**whoo!) What more do you need?! :-P I suppose a photographer to capture the day, some guests to help celebrate, and chairs for them to sit on would be good, yah?

Photog business. {gulp} Too complicated to explain right now... or ever. Hah. Well... lets just say photography is the second most important thing to me for our wedding after the gettin' married part. For MONTHS I have stalked many photographer's blogs, emailed countless of them to ask about their pricing packages cause many don't seem to like to post that online, and have used my stalker skills to refine my likes and dislikes for wedding photography. My taste for good photos exceeds our budget. By like... a bajillion dollars. There was this one I really like... like pretty much magazine quali(ty) {...drool....} but his starting prices are $7,500 which is basically our entire wedding budget. Ok, not really. Just close.

I guess the biggest things are the venue and food... and we've gotten those taken care of. But the photog business is starting to slightly concern me cause photographers are getting booked up! Especially for May next year! But! I needn't worry... just have faith that God will provide us with a photog. :) (And there is a back up).

Bridesmaid Dresses. Well, I've got the bridesmaids.  That's a start right.  Now... to clothe them!  I've been struggling to find bridesmaid dresses! That are affordable! And by that I mean like $50 or under. I was really hoping it'd be a dress the girls can wear again... but if it's "cheap" enough, I'd feel less bad if it's a one time deal. I want a spring green/sage like color and it's fall which means... dark puple, teal, brown, and black. But there is always David's Bridal if all else fails. And I think the color I want comes in a few styles that are ~$70 (instead of the usual $135+). But I guess there is still some time. I think January is still sort of enough time right? And hopefully some spring colors will emerge then.

Wedding Dress. Hmmm. I went to try on some with my cousin when she was here in August and found two I really liked. They were however a bit more than I anticipated to spend on a dress I will wear for about 8 hours. So I've basically put that on hold until I have to think about that again or find a better solution. :]

Music. My brother. Guitar. Done! :-D

Flowers. I've asked a friend from church to do flowers! Yay! But she isn't sure if she'll be in the country next year. Which is totally fine cause I've been thinking and researching and I think I'll just do my own flowers if she isn't around. This may seem like a bad idea that'll add stress to a really already busy time but... I think it's doable! With some help and some preparation, something will come together and some floral things will make an appearance at the wedding. :]


I think those are the big ticket items yeah? Oh, and making sure there's enough moola to pay for these big ticket items! There are many, many other little details to think about... some I've already taken care of... some I already know what's gonna happen... and some will be taken care of as they come. I think most importantly... is to remember that it's really about the MARRIAGE and that it's just one day. A big party for one day, and it doesn't really deserve so much money, stress, or effort. But it's gonna happen anyway. :-P




*The journey to each decision went through a lot of research and deliberation, so it really was a relief to send in deposits and sign contracts. So each (yay!) represents a triumph in securing necessary components to our wedding!

** Asking our officiant and flower girl were the easiest and smoothest tasks yet. :oP  Why isn't everything like this?  :)