Baby's Suit

Last night N had a fitting. We asked that the dress maker make a waist coat as well so we had to fit that. I definitely think the waist coat is too big, it makes her look chubby which she's not. I love her in just the pants, belt and shirt - so sexy!

Here's her fittings so far:

More projects

I've been busy with some smallish projects again, namely the petal cones and groomsmen / best men's survival kits.

The petal cones are very basic. I could've made them more interesting and decorative but I don't see the point if they're going to be used and thrown away shortly after. I attached a tag so that the guests wouldn't think they were just part of the decor, since they're going to be inserted into the back of the chair sash.




The groomsmen / best men survival kits came out so nicely. I got the boxes from a party shop and they're the perfect size for what I want to put in them. I love these types of boxes and only found out today that they're called gable boxes. I want to try find more, maybe harder and bigger ones for some extra goodies for another project.





I really really need to start shaping up. My weight is increasing at a rapid rate which is very scary! Winter hasn't even fully set in yet and I'm eating like there's no tomorrow. I need to get myself sorted out and fast otherwise I'll need a wider aisle to walk down.
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We're coming along quite nicely as far as all our wedding payments are concerned. We've paid the cake and DJ in full, as well paying the two honeymoon places in full as well. Plus we paid the minister his deposit. There's not that much left now besides for mine & my girls dresses, N's suit, the other two honeymoon places and my rings, oh and I almost forgot the decor.

122 days and counting

We decided that setting up a registry was after all a good idea as most of our friends and family wouldn't have a clue what to get us so this would make it far easier for them. We set up a registry at @Home with items that would suit big & small budgets. I read somewhere that you should always add a few splurge items, things that you wouldn't buy for yourselves but would love to have, things that a few friends or family members could all contribute towards.

J, my maid of honour, had her second fitting last night. The dress fits her like a glove and suits her so well. I would have preferred the skirt section to be a fuller A-line but it still looks gorgeous on her.

My dress should be finished by Friday and once again I've got mixed feelings about it. Maybe if I stop eating so much it will fit a little better and I'll like it more.

Last night as I was leaving my mom's place she asked about the wedding, I was so shocked that I almost tripped and fell over! She asked a lot of questions about everything and expressed her feelings about not believing that its the right thing to do. Luckily I had had a glass or two of wine so I told her things that I would have ordinarily have been too shy to. All in all it felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders.

And so the list is shortened...

As the title reads, our list of To Do's is getting shorter and shorter!

On Saturday we met up with the groomsmen / best men to find a suit to hire. It was such a success! The very first place we stepped into had the most gorgeous tuxes at the lowest prices. I was more interested in hiring suits than a formal tux, but once they tried them on I knew a tux was the right choice. We chose a three button tux. They will not be wearing a tuxedo shirt though, they'll be wearing an ordinary white shirt with the ties that we got them and a black waist coat - a crisp and classic look. We hired them just in time too, the shop assistant said that with all the matric farewell's in the area being at the end of September they would soon only have a small selection available.


I went for yet another fitting on Saturday with my girls. Their dresses still have a long way to go, at the moment they're just the very basic outline. My dress on the other hand is almost done! Yay! All that's left is the back zip, the hem and attaching the little rhinestones. I decided to go with a french bustle.


After we went to hire the tuxes we all went to lunch and a good few topics came up. Although we had already hired a MC, one of N's best men offered the service of his boyfriend. They've been together for quite some time and we all know each other well, plus he has spoken at large events and is very comfortable with public speaking. Its so much nicer to have someone that knows us do it and we save a few hundred rand as well.

Another subject that came up was gifts. I never considered setting up registries but after looking at what a few places have to offer I'm a little keen. We're already in our own home and we have everything that we need, so the things that we would choose would only be extras and not purely essential. I would honestly prefer the money if it were up to me but I don't know how to pass that sort of message on to the guests (I will most definitely not put it in a silly little poem form with the invitations).

In the beginning when we had just set a date, I did not want a wedding with all the silly unnecessary frills, actually I didn't want a wedding at all, I wanted N & I to go away alone and get married - clearly I didn't win that one. A lot of the things I ended up having was purely because I enjoyed making them (programs, unity candle, etc), one of those things was petal cones. I didn't want any sort of confetti but after seeing some gorgeous pictures of petals thrown into the air over the bride and groom I changed my mind. I've now decided to do plain and simple black petal cones with white petals, which will be inserted into the back of the chair sash. Finally I found a way to get more black into the chapel.

What stress??

The last couple of days have been so up and down. I haven't had a full nights sleep all week. I'm happy, sad, anxious, irritable, tired ...... the list goes on! Don't worry this isn't going to be a pity post, the moaning is all done - for now anyway.

Lets start shall we:

Last night I went for a dress fitting and it didn't go well. The dress fitted strangely for some reason, the top felt too tight and the back too high, and so I left feeling uneasy. This morning my dress maker called and asked if I couldn't come in quickly as she was also worried about it. It turns out last night when I fitted it on I had held the bust area a little too high while she attached the straps so the whole thing fitted differently. I hope now its sorted but I'm still very worried. Once the dress is finished hopefully I'll be a bit more relaxed.

We still have no news on my rings. Our jeweller is supposed to be getting in rings for me to try but nothing. Not having the rings doesn't bother that much for now, its not knowing exactly how much they're going to be. Our budget is looking sad so we need to know.

There's an ongoing dispute between us and a vendor. Our previous decor person is having trouble in giving our deposit back. We've emailed each other back and forth but with no real conclusion on the matter. I tried to be nice and we've given her enough time but still nothing. After her last email I didn't bother responding.

When we went to our lawyer yesterday to sign the ante nuptial contracts we discussed the matter with him and said we could pursue the case legally but in the end it would cost a substantial amount of money and that it probably wouldn't be worth it in the end. So no luck there.

I'm busy with my bridal shower invitations at the moment. J (my maid of honour and best friend) is trying to get me to ease up on my control issue's and let her do the shower but I like to have an input, so we agreed that I'll do certain things and she'll do the rest.

This afternoon N has a suit fitting and then tomorrow J and Y are going for fittings for their dresses. We're also going to look at hiring suits for the best men, hopefully this will be a much easier than looking for suits for N.

More DIY?

I'm itching to do some sort of wedding DIY but I'm not sure what. I came across this little project that I thought was perfect (found at 100 Layer Cake). The only thing is I'm not too sure what all I'd put in them. I'm already making little hangover kits for the bridal party purely because I have a few small organza bags that I bought ages ago and now have no use for and don't want to waste. But these are too cute not to make so I'll think of something I'm sure. The site also provides a template for the survival kits.











I think I might be driving my dress maker crazy. I went to her last night to give her some items that she asked for and at the same time thought it would be as good a time as any to ask her to make some changes before the next fitting. Lets just say that she was less than impressed with me. I can't help it that I'm a slight perfectionist and that things that are not precisely equal bug the crap out of me. I'm sure with all the detailed instructions that I gave her beforehand that she would've known what she was getting herself into.

130 Days and counting...

Time is going by so fast lately! We've been planning this wedding for so long that it still feels like its decades away but its a mere four months and a bit away. That's just around the corner! We've gotten quite a bit accomplished over the last few days. I went for a dress fitting and N had her first fitting for her suit. Both of our outfits still have a long way to go but they're looking better and better every time. The dressmaker missed quite a few instructions for N's suit so there's a lot of changing that she has to do but I'm hoping the next time it will be more to our liking. My dress also has a few changes before she can carry on. The way it is now it makes my bum look big but its partly because the zip is not in and its still baggy on certain areas. Here's the latest pic:

I finished the ladies favours this weekend as well. We went back and forth with what we wanted to give and our last decision was to give chocolate but I was at the store on Friday and saw that the Sally Williams nougat was on sale so I bought a kg. They're individually wrapped so will stay fresh till 2010 for for added protection and freshness I put each tables favours in a Ziploc bag. We're giving two per person plus the keyring.

Not much else on the wedding front besides for our ante nuptial contracts being ready. The lawyer called me this morning to advise that all is in order and that we need to come in and sign.

Cheeky Cocktails

Even though some sort of cocktails will be served during the time period between the ceremony and reception I most definitely want cocktails to be available during the reception. We'll be having four different cocktails available to order. The guests will need to be notified of this so I've been trying to think of a creative way to do little cocktail menus for the tables, but can't seem to come up with something other than a menu that resembles the standard rectangular meal menu. There's also the option of the tent type menu but I don't want the table to look cluttered or too full. I'm sure something will come up, but in the mean time here's the cocktails that I've come up with so far and that we love.

Something Old

Pina Colada
(I'm not a fan of this but it is old and my dad used to love them)

Ingredients:
Bacardi
Coconut Liqueur / Coconut Cream
Pineapple Juice
Crushed Ice

OR


Champagne Cocktail
(Definitely old and a classic)

Ingredients:
Champagne / Sparkling Wine
Splash Of Brandy
Sugar Cube
Maraschino Cherry

Something New

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Strawberry Martini
(my absolute favourite)

Ingredients:
Gin
Dry Vermouth
Strawberry Liqueur / Grenadine
...

Something Borrowed

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Mojito
(We both love the mint)

Ingredients:
Bacardi
Fresh Lime Juice
Soda Water
Sugar
Mint Leaves

Something Blue

Deep Blue
(Haven't tried this but it sounds tasty)

Ingredients:

Vodka

Blue Curacao

Champagne / Sparkling Wine

Maraschino Cherries

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I also love this Rose Mojito but I'm not sure of how it would taste. I also think the venue will put the price quite high due to it having 8 - 12 rose petals per cocktail.

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Another prick?

Not much has been going on lately. We're both busy with normal day to day things. I'm starting to get a bit more comfortable with injecting my mom. Last night was her third injection. So far I've done it in her stomach, leg and arm. She says the arm is sore but not the other places.

Each Betaferon injection comes in a kit, which is then assembled, prepared, inserted into the BetaJect and administered.

This whole thing has got me a bit concerned for when we're away on honeymoon. I don't know who will administer the injections. My mom says that she doesn't mind injecting herself but its quite a process to prepare the injection and neither of us are comfortable with her doing that part herself. I'm hoping she'll be able to got to the doctor's rooms up the road to get it done but they'll probably charge an arm and a leg. We'll see closer to the time.

Another busy weekend that flew by

Friday afternoon started with the three hour meeting with Lily from Betaferon (not Interferon as previously mentioned). She shoved as much information as she possibly could into my tired brain. At the end of the session I injected my mom in the stomach. It was scary but not as bad as last night when I had to do it on my own without Lily. I'll get used to it as I go on but for now I'm still worried that I hurt my mom, even though she reassures me each time that I'm doing fine and that she doesn't feel a thing.

After that I went for a Revitalizing Facial which included a chocolate mask and a should massage. It was just what I needed!

Saturday was spent shopping. We shopped for hours and were exhausted when we returned home. I still managed to put a load of washing on and make a delicious dinner despite the exhaustion. We have a new maid for a month (our usual maid is off sick for a full month but will come back in June) and she seems to be a bit slow for my liking so I helped her out a bit by getting some washing started.

On Sunday we celebrated Mothers Day with a champagne brunch. I was up early baking up a storm. The menu consisted of:

• Quiche Lorraine
• Crustless Ham & Egg Tartlets
• Mocha Muffins
• Blood Orange Quarters
• Champagne & Orange Juice

The quiche was really good, filled with eggs, cheese, bacon, onion and cream - I couldn't have increased the calorie content even if I tried . The muffins were ok, I wouldn't make them again but if I had to I would definitely add more sugar. They lacked something else but I can't put my finger on it. The ham and egg tartlets couldn't have been any simpler. I lined each muffin tray cup with two thin slices of ham, broke an egg into it, added a bit of grated cheese, a splash of cream and baked them for 15 minutes. All in all it was a really good time spent with our little family.

In the afternoon I got some wedding DIY stuff done - I finished the border for the seating plan and made more tissue paper flowers for the initials. And that's about it.

My second dress fitting

Last night I went alone to my dress maker. A lot more had been done, obviously no where near finished but I could imagine it as a finished product more easily than the day before.

Before even mentioning anything to her (the dress maker) about it being too plain she said we should maybe add some sort of beading to the back straps. I agreed but insisted that it be minimal, I hope that she doesn't go overboard as I'm really not a beading & frill's person.

All in all it went quite well. She took a couple of pictures but the quality isn't good at all, so I'm not going to post them.

One thing I realised from the photo's is that I really need to tone up. I think I'm looking a bit chunky, which doesn't surprise me at all since we haven't been exercising for over two months now. Luckily N is able to walk much better now so from Monday we'll start walking after work again.

My first dress fitting

Last night my bridesmaid and friend Y went with me for my first fitting. Before I put the dress on the dress maker warned me that it was a very basic outline of the dress. Fearing the worst I put it on and was a little taken back by what I saw in the mirror. It looked good, better than I had expected. Again I was reminded that there was still a lot of work to be done. She marked the width of the straps, the width of the top area, the lower back piece and she pinned the hip & stomach area that was too big.

I had a sleepless night worrying that it was too plain, not my style, too shinny, didn't suit my body etc. But this morning I was reassured by my very best friend J that it will look lovely once its finished. I really really hope that it will otherwise I don't know what I'll do.

My dress will be ready by the end of May, then comes N's suit then each of the bridesmaids dresses.

Just another day?

My day has been ok so far. N forgot that it was my birthday this morning so it started off a bit miserable, but everyone at work has been so nice and I even got a gift from my manager and our assistant. N got me a gorgeous DKNY watch with a leather strap which I've been wanting for so long now and I got a big bunch of flowers delivered to my office (which I thought was an apology for forgetting but she ordered them yesterday, so I was quite surprised).

I gave my dress maker a call to see when my other bridesmaid could come for her fitting, and surprise surprise my dress is ready for the first fitting. I was so excited but now I'm flat out worried. How could she be so quick? I'm so worried that she didn't go through all the notes and pictures that I gave her with all the specifics on. I'm worried that she had a totally different idea to what I did, even though I tried my best to explain what I wanted. I'm so nervous about going tomorrow.

Anyway on a different note I came across two really cute DIY projects that I'd like to try but again I'm not sure where I'll use them.

These Organza Flowers are from Tresa over at Reese Dixon.com, they have a certain charm about them. I'm going to make a couple to see how the turn out and maybe think about using them somewhere.

These Paper Fortune Cookies from For The Love Of Paper seem to be another nifty DIY project. Maybe I could use them for little Thank-You notes for my bridal shower lunch, I don't know what else I could use them for. Carol over at Prima donna Bride featured the Soap Fortune Cookies which is also such a cute idea, but I doubt I'd be able to make those as they look a little complicated.

Fun in the cold

My party was everything I'd hoped for and more. The weather was a bit miserable and chilly but it didn't rain which was the one thing that would've ruined it. We had just over 20 people at our little place but it was outside so it worked out perfectly. I got an array of gifts and even got a sneak peak at my gift from N (will post pic's tomorrow). All in all it was well worth all the effort that was put in.

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We did get to go to a few more places to get prices and suggestions on my rings. At the same time we gave my engagement ring in to get the diamond secured as it was a little lose in its setting. I can't wait to get it back, I don't feel right without it.

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I found such a nice brooch that I'm hoping to use for my hair. Somehow we'll find a way to make it stay in, not sure how yet.

Our guest list seems to be growing and growing. We've now decided to invite certain people without partners in order to stick to our limit of 60 guests. These people aren't in relationships and we've spoken to most of them and made sure that they're ok with it. All of them will be seated with their friends in any case.

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I received the amended decor quote this morning. I almost fell off my chair as I stared in silence at the total figure. Its quite a bit over our budget. This doesn't surprise me though as we added the pew stands, black aisle runner, extra overlays, an extra arrangement, rose petals for the fire place and rose petals for the aisle runner plus all the set-up charges. So we're going without arrangements in the chapel (which will save about R1000 - about $100) and a few other smaller things.

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In the chapel they have these two large ceramic urns on pillars, which is where the expensive arrangements would have gone into. I like them very much and would still like to use them in the chapel, so we're thinking of using only baby's breath to make simple arrangements ourselves to put in each of them.

The Urn

The Stand