the little things

i did do something!

it took less than an hour! rock on! :)

feeling all "lovey" tonight. i think it's because Nate & I had the whole evening together last night, thanks to a "relief night" at work from working so much!  He made me dinner [a new recipe: chicken breasts, wrapped up with think sliced ham & bacon, topped with sour cream & some sort of cream of___ soup! they were sooo delicious! complete with angel hair pasta & a salad!] oh, how I love that man! :)

We also went to Target & used the GC we got for the shower..we purchased a Fire Safe Box to hold all of our important documents.  Then, we headed to Bed, Bed & Beyond to use another GC we had..we were terrible & bought our $100 bedsheets we've been wanting! They're brown & ohhh sooo comfy! Like sleeping on butter! hehe.

I loved every single second with him.  I miss him in the evenings.  But, thank goodness for this upcoming weekend! THREE DAYS OFF for the BOTH us!! yeyyy!!  So very much needed!  We have a cookout at my parents house Saturday night & then, church Sunday & that's it for our plans!  We'll probably end up popping in a DVD & cleaning the apartment & then work on wedding schtuff!  I can't believe we only have 45 days left!!  I am beyond excited!  So excited, I started bawling as we went to bed last night thinking about where I was a little over a year ago..without Nate. alone. WHO I was. HOW iIwas.  and then how far WE'VE come as a couple.  And what our future holds together. as husband & wife. ohhh! it just gives me goosebumps to think about! I am going to be a WIFE, ya'll!! eeeep! and then, one day..a MOM!  [no time soon, so no worries! *lol*]

a special shoutout to my girl, Melanie whose husband is set to get back to the US anyday after serving in Iraq the last almost year!!!  I love ya girl & wish you all the best in Kentucky! I can't wait to see updated photos of your new home! I showed you mine, now you show me yours!! ;) bwahahaha!

anywhoo...think I am going to go get Thank You notes in order...not to write tonight, sillies!  Gonna take 'em to work tomorrow & work on them at lunch!! haha. ;)

write it down.

it's been days. weeks. close to a month since i've done it.

can you guess what it is?!

it involves the following:

paper.

photos.

adhesive.

color.

:)

time will tell if it happens tonight. lets hope i get someTHING done!

lately.

it's been such a busy past few days..or week!  the wedding is sooo like 47 days away!! ahhh.

i have been cooking up a storm! can you believe that?!  i've made cheesy potatoes, mini stromboli's, chicken pasta, chicken casserole, etc!  i just wish i only had more counterspace, because i seriously think i'd do it more!

Saturday was my 2nd bridal shower at home.  actually, it was at my church!  i wanted a few people there just because my mom worked SO hard planning everything.  she was up late hours all last week trying to make things just right.  my sisters weren't much of a help to her, which made me a little angry! 

the setup was perfect! so fun! my mom did such a great job! nate & i gave each of our moms a card & bouquet of flowers for all their work with our showers.  they enjoyed that! [i forgot to get photos..argh!]

mom had orange & green table cloths, cups,plates,napkins,even bags! the favors were sooo cute! starbursts,lifesavers & tea light candles in organza bags! we munched on yummy sandwiches, chips,pretzels,& mom's infamous turtle pretzels that were gone in like 2 seconds!  the cake was also a hit, gone supa fast!  we had about 50 people there or so! i couldn't believe it & was so blessed to have such great family & friends celebrate with us.  Nate had to leave early to go to work, which stunk, but ya gotta do what ya gotta do!

all of my bridesmaid's made it except for one, due to work.  it was nice!  my cousin, Steph started the lunch with a devotional & was so emotional she couldn't even finish it!  it was really touching.

i had such a great time!  people were really creative with their gifts.  such as framing our invitation! loved that!  we got TONS of Pyrex & I mean TONS! 6 different boxes, none the same! i love me some Pyrex! also, a blender, toaster, towels, a microwave,baskets, cookbooks,bowls,plastic containers,candles,cookie sheets, a George Foreman grill, an indoor grill for the stovetop! all sorts of good things!  it took me forever to opene everything! *lol*

after the shower & clean up, it was past 6 hours, which meant i had been there 5 hours!  i took Nate's mom, Sandy to the Hilton where she was staying...in my packed Civic & all! and I mean packed.  So much so, Sandy's seat didn't even lock driving down the road! haha. I ended up hanging out with her, we had a lot of fun playing with all her Mary Kay!  She's got me hooked in a MAJOR way!  She hooked me up!  I got 3 makeup bags, foundation,eyeshadow lip gloss, eyeliner,mascara, face wash & moisturizer, plus the micro dermabrasion set!! I am in Heaven with that stuff!! She refused to let me pay her for it..argh!  Then, we went to dinner at the hotel restaurant.it was yummy.  But, more importantly than all that...we had GREAT conversation.  We laughed & caught up. Shared stories & info.  Things are SO much better between her & I now.  I am actually looking forward to being her daughter in-law & am finally starting to feel important to her.  I am so blessed.  God has definitely helped with that situation & I am so grateful for that.

I ended up not getting home until almost 11, due to stopping at my parents to pick up MORE stuff.  The photos are only of what I brought home!  there's more at mom's! where we're going put all this in our itty bitty apartment, is beyond me!  Nate & I did go shopping last night! We purchased a cart for the kitchen. It holds our new microwave perfect, along with the coffee pot & bread! haha.  underneath, it holds all that Pyrex, plus cookie sheets, the toaster, blender & bowls! SCORE! and ithas a drawer for al our dish cloths!  I love it!

we have decided to not spend any unnecessary money until after the wedding. aside from bills, gas & groceries, no money will be spent [aside from our ONE YEAR anniversary next week!!!] until we make sure we pay off everything for the wedding! Talk about stress!!

anywhoo...it is SUPER hot in this corner, so i must go chill on the couch!  forgive the disorganization of the photos. i could NOT get them to line up at all! hope everyone is well!!

 

lonely.

sitting here. on a sunday night. alone. <sigh> i scrapped the other day, so might as well share here!  i feel soo behind. the wedding is fast approaching & i am EXCITED! so much so, i slipped my wedding ring on today..just for kicks, really..and cuz i missed nate. ;) and since i haven't shown the rings here, here ya go! [mine's a white gold wrap with 8 teeny tiny diamonds-no gawdi-ness for this bride! haha-, nate's is a white gold engraved band..i love it on him!]a wedding share AND a scrappy share! happy week, everyone..i can't believe tomorrow is mondee. wow.

[ps. sorry for the silly/wonky/weird photos..it's late. i'm tired. and i want a digi rebel so i can take good ones! ha. OH! but check my awedome circle comforter/quilt!! LOVE!]

8.14.06

today is the 14th of august. which means one thing...

we're getting married 2 MONTHS FROM TODAY!!!!

so much to do!

we mailed the invitations out saturday...i hustled friday night, only to find we were short about 25 invitations!! bad math skills? possibly. names snuck in by future mother inlaw? that's more like it! ;) haha.

so, we sent about 90 or so Saturday..rushed to Archiver's to get more supplies, then I made more invites while Nate was at work..so, we now have about 45 more to mail since I had a pile for Nate to check directions for.

those will be going out tomorrow or wednesday, since i won;t be home until late tonight, as i meet with the new cake lady! wish me luck on this one! ;)

happy monday!

time is FLYING!!

I am stressed. Tired. Busy. Have had a headache since Monday. The craziness!

The weekend was good. Nate ended up having Saturday off, so after getting groceries, running errands, sending my 1^st batch of Thank You's out, etc.  We had dinner at a new italian restaurant. It was blah.  I wasn't impressed. Then, caught the 7:30 showing for Talladega Nights and LOVED it!! Nate & I love NASCAR & Will Ferrell, so it was a perfect combo!  I can't wait to buy it on DVD!

Sunday, we went to church & then to mom & Phil's for my birthday thing.  Had a great time with family & mom made my favorite, Red Velvet Cake..mmmm!!

Nate had to work at 3, so I stayed with the family.  We had a great time.  Megan's friends & new boyfriend came over for a couple of hours, then mom & I rented a movie & I didn't head out until after 9! I missed them.

I had my birthday off on Monday & have to say it was a pretty cruddy one.  Probably one of the cruddiest yet.  Nate had class, making him gone over 2 hrs, so I worked on wedding stuff, returned phone calls, did laundry, cleaned...alone. nate came home and we made pizza and headed to the BMV for the new tags for my car.

He went to work. I was at home alone for a bit again, my dad stopped by and gave me money!!! [that's always good! Ha], as he was leaving Megan & her friend, Eric arrived to hang out & then we went to Ruby Tuesdays for dinner.  They stayed until after 9..so it was great being with people & just relaxing. And thank you to all those who scraplifted pages for me for my birthday, that was so sweet!! Thanks again!

With the wedding fast approaching, I am finding more & more things to do.  It sucks. Haha. Phone calls. Money. Schedules. People. LOTS of phone calls!

I told the old cake lady off the other night. She refuses to give us the $50 deposit back. makes me so mad, b/c she didn't do one, single service to us. That money doesn't belong to her.  I made sure to tell her that whatever she wanted to do, she had to live with spending someone else's money.  I was mean & angry & I didn't care! Haha. that was my first real 'bridezilla' moment! *lol*

Time is just going so fast! So much left to do!

M&M's for the favors.

Mini Thank You cards to put in the favor boxes.

RSVP's. Directions. Assembling. Buy the stamps.[yes, invitation stuff STILL left to do & they go out this Saturday!!]-turns out I made the RSVP cards way too small for the envelope they are returned in and the directions needed printed out on cardstock. Ugh! I worked on all that stuff & called my dad for his choice on which song he wanted the 2 of us to dance to [can't wait for this one!!], and talked to nate's mom 3 different times about the wedding, ALL while making seafood lasagna!!! Wooot! Yep, you read right, I COOKED!!! J haha.

Anyways, back to the list of to-do's:

Get the bridal party gifts together.

Book the hotel for our wedding night.

Cancel the other hotel reservation we had.

Get photos copied for gift for someone & the signature mat.

Finish the guest/scrapbook.

Buy gifts for parents & grandparents.

Meet with the new cake lady.

Figure out what flowers we're doing for the cake.

2^nd bridal shower the end of the month.

Make rehearsal invites.

Send in the finalized music sheet for the DJ.

And sooooo much more I can't even think of right now cuz my brain is fried!

Anywhoo...that's about all for now.

Hope everyone is well!

nervous.

Nervous.

Oh boy, I have it. I've hit that point.  That point of any little mention of the wedding I get to feeling anxious, excited, antsy, nervous!

It's hit me today. On lunch. I'm getting married in just a little over 2 months!!!

so much to do.

Ahhhhh!!

The invites are all done. Counted. And about to be packaged.

The RSVP's are rounded & smaller than I had realized. Too late now!

Thank you's from my shower..well, I have about 7 done...about 20 more to go! *lol*

I still need to call the DJ. & the recepetion hall.

And then there's the drama with the cake lady that I forgot to mention in my post last night.

Yeah. Drama. Cake lady.

Ergh!

I changed my mind on the type of design I wanted to the frosting.  I originally said I wanted polka dots. Well, I now want swirls. Not hard. Not even a big deal.

I emailed my cake lady over 3 months ago letting her know of the change. Never heard back from her & forgot about it. literally. My brain can't remember anything unless it's wrote down! haha.

Called the cake lady [who has been in this business 30+ years, mind you AND even did my mom's first wedding cake 24 yrs ago!] on Friday..at about 1 in the afternoon. She answers & this is how it went after the hellos of course:

Me: hi amy, this is nichole winstead, you are making my wedding cake for october 14^th of this year.

Her: uh huh.

Me: well, I just wanted to let you know I've decided to change the design on my cake...from dots to swirls.

Her: [very rudely] <<sighhhhh> welll, do we HAVE to do this now???

Me: [completely taken back!] if we could, yes.it's just simple, really.

Her:[very impatiently]well, what kind of swirls do you want? A brush..?..a thin...Oh nevermind, you have no idea what I'm even talking about!

By this point I'm kind of in shock, but still not losing my cool.  I'm trying to explain the simple design I wanted...

Her: can you just send me in a sketch or picture or something of what you're talking about that you want??

Me: uhhh I guess?  I'll see what I can find!

 

It just put me in a rotten mood about the whole thing. That night I told my mom all this because she's paying for it & we dec ided to go with someone else. The new lady is on vacation this week, so we'll know for certain if she can do it. *pray she can!* and here's the cake ideas...4 tier,stacked,flowers that will run down the right side only & flowers on the top, no actual cake topper...so, kind of a mix of these 2 is what i'm looking for!

 

Oh yeah, still nervous!! Butterflies!!

 

As for a honeymoon: we aren't taking one.

POUT.

I know. We just didn't want to have such an expense right off the bat, as our dream honeymoon would be to

hawaii

! Maybe one day! J

We are, however..each taking a whole week off work. We plan on doing some local things, such as the pro Football Hall of Fame [for nate! hehe], and

Cleveland

, maybe for even a couple of days, rather than just a day trip.  I'm really excited! 

 

Anyways. I'm nervous. Is this normal?! ;)

oh! & i've found yet MORE hairstyles...help this girl decide if ya have a minute! pleeease! ;) just a tidbit of info: i am wearing a veil underneath the actual updo...so, i think most of these could be altered that way if they're not already?? 

 

 

pink & orange.

and lots of it!

finally getting the chance to update this thing! my bridal shower in Findlay Saturday was awesome! Nate's mom & cousins did a beyond great job putting everything together! I really enjoyed myself & more than 5 people showed up! *lol*
I was so surprised when we walked in to see pink & orange cups,mints,flowers,cake,tulle,ribbon,etc! The original plan was to have it outside, under tents,but this wonderfuil,thousand degree-Ohio weather we've been having lately changed that, bringing it inside! So, we took the slip-covered chairs  into the living room & made do. It was really nice having my mom,sisters & grandma there too. sooo nice! and Nate too. I had never heard of having the groom at the shower until last year at my friend, Heather's when she had her now husband at hers..it was clever! and it seems that every one I've attended since, with the exception of one has had their man at theirs too! I loved it!! Such a fun idea & it's great because they're his gifts too..so he got a chance to have some fun right along with me!
The food was so yummy too! Nate's uncle can COOK!! He made little ham salad & chicken salad sandwiches,tart cheesecake things either strawberry,blueberry,peach or chocolate YUM! Loved the choclate fountain too...had strawberries,bananas & pretzels to dip with. Can ya say YUM?!!  the cake was big & so good too! Those are bells with  our names in them..you kind of have to look at it different, as I thought they were wonky hearts for most of the shower! haha. I'm not much of a cake eater, but since it was for me, i thought i better! ;)
It was so great being with people who will soon be my family too. Nate's mom was so good.  We are getting along so much better now. LOVE THAT! Opening gifts was a chore.  With it being so hot outside & having so many people inside, the central air just couldn't keep up! Even tho Nate & I opened gifts in big, comfy recliners, i was roasting! And Nate, well, he was like a kid on Christmas morning! It was like he couldn't open the gifts fast enough, where as I wanted to look, enjoy, FOCUS & THANK each gift & giver! *sigh* it was all good tho & so much fun!!  I have to say...I almost cried when I opened the gift from my mom & grandma...remember that quilt/comforter I mentioned a couple months ago??  We had found it at Bed bath & Beyond & I almost bought it myself??!! Ummm...yeah!! They totally GOT IT FOR US!!!! J <insert big, cheesy grin here!> complete with our 2 pillow shams...it's just gorgeous & I was totally surprised!

We also got the coffee maker that Nate really wanted..and a wonderful KitchenAid knife set, KitchenAid measuring cups & utensils.. [we LOVE KitchenAid!],a beautiful, soft turquoise throw & candle holder..shelves,bath & dish towels,tupperware,rubbermaid,cooling racks,candles,beach stuff, Target gift card, a baking stone,luggage...a few other misc. things and oh yeah...our KitchenAid Mixer!!!! ;)

We had a great time unpacking it all yesterday and finding spaces in our tiny apartment for everything to go [sarcasm.]...what a chore!  But, everything now has a home & we're excited!!  Nate hung up shelves & frames for me..it's all coming together, slowly but surely! 

We were also able to go to church Sunday morning.  It had been 5 weeks since our last time! Ahhh!  I missed it!  had lunch at mom & phil's & headed home. 

Had a yummy dinner & did some shopping, came home & made scotch-a-roos...mmmmm!! And lounged while we watch The Breakfast Club...love that movie! Great weekend. This week, thankfully is flying by! Invites go out next Saturday, we get married in 72 days!!!  ahhh! on a side note, i scrapped last night. here's the photo of my necklace Nate got me for my birthday [please excuse the crappy photo] & aslan say hello...kinda, he hates the flash!! *lol*