One Hot MOB

We have family in the Carolina's, so during a visit back in June, MOB and my Aunt travelled to Bridal Mart in Burlington, North Carolina. MOB was on the hunt for her Mother of the Bride dress.  I was sad that I couldn't be there to shop with her, but I knew she couldn't pass up going to this huge Bridal Mart while she was in the area.

I made my mom and aunt promise that they would text me pictures as mom tried dresses on.  They kept their promise!

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How Charming!

Like many bees before me, I too wanted to honor my Weddingbee moniker on our wedding day.  Mrs. Snow Cone's charm is what really cemented the decision that I just had to have a little sunhat charm of my very own.  And I still can't get over Miss Funnel Cake's amazing talent.  I would have never thought to try and make my own!

I followed in some very smart footsteps and checked out Etsy.  A search for 'Sunhat Charm' resulted in this:

Image via MixnMatchSupplies Etsy Shop

100 Days and Counting . . .

Yep.  It's official.  We are 100 days out from the wedding.  Holy crapola. 

This is the perfect time to take inventory - what is done, what is in process, and what is left to do?  I've been keeping you pretty updated on what is done so I'll share some of the projects still in process.

First up:  Invitations

The Great Escape

We are quickly approaching the 100 day countdown to the Sunhat / Ball Cap wedding.  I'm trying not to freak out about going into double digits.

The last couple of months have been quite hectic and stressful for us.

• We lost my grandma in early August
• My other grandmother's Alzheimer's has gotten severely worse in the past month and she is still in the hospital
• September 15th was a busy tax deadline for me
• Mr. BC has been on a new job hunt for quite some time
• I'm on a diet (that's a story for a whole other post!)
• My car's alternator decided to go out on me (but at 148,000 miles, things are bound to happen)
• The wedding list isn't getting any shorter

Marriage Preparation - Back to School

On Saturday, September 10th, Mr. Ball Cap and I attended our Special PreCana marriage preparation class.  The Archdiocese of Chicago requires a marriage preparation course in order to receive the sacrament of Matrimony.  We were able to choose from two courses:  PreCana or Special PreCana.

Family Ministries.org describes the classes as follows:

PreCana is designed for engaged couples in their twenties with no special concerns. They are designed to cover topics that will help you in your married life.

Special PreCana is recommended for couples if one or both are at least 30 years of age or older; or for those who were previously married, or for couples who are living together, or are civilly married for less than six months. This class utilizes the dynamics of regular PreCana, but more emphasis is placed on the areas of married life to which the more experienced couple can relate. 

Through short talks, sharing of the facilitator's own experiences, group exercises and personal reflection, engaged couples are guided through topics useful for a successful future marriage. Some of the topics presented are: the changing nature of marriage, personal growth, and couple adjustment, mutual decision-making, the elements of effective communication, conflict management, intimacy and sexual expression, financial planning, sacramentality, goal setting, the extended family, where to find help and counseling for marriage, and interfaith marriage.

A Homemade Shower

Earlier this week, I received this in the mail:

Lighting the Way

This weekend was very busy and productive in wedding planning land.  Mr. Ball Cap and I attended our Pre-Cana class and my MOH, MOB, Bridesmaid K and I spent most of Sunday working on the invitations.  I will share the details of all of these soon, but one other item we were able to fit in was the table numbers. 

I've mentioned many times that Etsy provided a lot of wedding inspiration for me.  During one of my early searches on the site, I came across luminary table numbers.  Mrs. Jaguar fell in love with these as well - she sure does have great taste!

Image via Poppy Seed Station Etsy Shop

A Toast to You

During our registration process at Macy's, I felt that we had to add a set of toasting flutes to our registry.  Of course I wanted to have a special set that we'd use on our wedding day, but all the formal stemware we came across didn't really feel like us.  We did find one set that we both liked and went ahead and scanned it.

Nambe Champagne Flutes via Amazon.com

Maids in Navy

Several weeks after the first bridesmaid dress excursion, MOB, MOH and Bridesmaid S met up in South Bend, IN at a bridal salon to try on more styles.  I wasn't able to make the trip out there as it was during tax season and I was slightly busy. :)

The ladies did an amazing job at taking lots and lots of pictures and calling me with questions and opinions on what they liked best.  I wanted my girls to be comfortable and like what they would be wearing so I was happy for the feedback. 

Warning:  Picture heavy post ahead!  Because I wasn't there, I don't have style numbers for many of the gowns and I apologize for that.

Dressin' My Maids

When it was time to look at bridesmaid dresses, my MOH, Bridesmaid S and Bridesmaid K joined me and MOB at a shop near my house.  We had an appointment, but when we walked in the door, there was no one around!  We waited a few minutes and hollered out a hello or two but still no one.  We finally had to walk to the back of the store to find the associate.  This rough start made me a little nervous but I was determined to have a good experience and have fun! 

I told the associate we were looking for floor length dresses for a winter wedding and were looking for options in silver, pewter or charcoal colors.  She directed us to the right area of the shop and let us look at our leisure. 

The girls knew I really liked dresses that had a brooch or beading embellishment - something to make them stand out and have a wintery feel.  Other than that, I was pretty open to styles and suggestions.