Spending $$$: The Easiest and Scariest Part of Planning a Wedding!

If you know me, you know I like to spend money. I should rephrase by saying I like to spend it on things I like and don't exactly need (which I know is true for a lot of us). Just an hour ago, I spent a pretty penny to have my brakes fixed. Fun? No. Needed? Yes.

Here are some fun things WE (mom, too) have purchased lately:

 I just COULDN'T live without this birdcage for the guest book table. Hopefully I can find some use for it in our new home (we may be living out of our car) once we're married. 

But, really, isn't it cute?

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Also, I'm fairly certain that we bought out the collection of square glass votives. Sorry to any one who needed some from Garden Ridge. Any takers once the wedding is over? Unlike the birdcage, I don't think I can make use of 60 votives, especially if we're living out of a car. 

Doesn't look like 60. You should have pushed the cart. 

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Now, here's what is perhaps my favorite find so far. No judgment please. Cody and I want to do some picnic-themed pics, minus the picnic, during our engagement shoot, so we (I) set out to look for quilts. Quilts aren't cheap. I found this one at Savers for $4.99! It's definitely bold, but I think it will turn out great in photos. 

 To our first child: get ready! This will have to be on your bed until you outgrow twin-size. In other words, it's going with you to and through college!

There's more, but just writing this post about spending money has become stressful. I'll post more later after some bills have been paid!

With wedding bells and bills~

Meredith

Cake Confection and Confusion

Tomorrow will mark the one month anniversary of mine and Cody's engagement. We have about eight and a half months until the big day. EEK!

Friday we met with a caterer in Hot Springs and tasted cake. Cody was able to get off work early and join me and my mom, which was just lovely!  Of course, mom and I did most of the talking. All of the cakes were delicious and happily living in our bellies within minutes. 

I decided on the ever-so-scrumptious Italian Cream, and Cody decided on chocolate (even though he's always been partial to strawberry, thanks to his NaNaw's strawberry cakes).

I'm still undecided on the "look" of my cake, which I will admit is almost as important to me as the taste. I thought I originally wanted butter cream, but if my cake is going to survive the June heat outdoors, I think fondant will be best (though not best for our budget). 

Here are the looks I'm going for (shout out to Pinterest):

 

I love flowers and pearls, and I LOVE them all for different reasons. I'm thinking the prices of each will make my decision for me because I love them all. This budget bride has to remember that she is just that, a BUDGET bride. 


Here's to cake and to dreaming about it until the big day! I'm severing my relationship with sweets so that I can fit into my dress by June hopefully! ;)


~Mere

It's Official!

Fine. I'll admit it. I'm "one of those girls." You know, the kind who plans her wedding before she's even engaged. I like to think of it as "pre-ring planning" (I'm coining the phrase in case I ever write a book) just to be prepared for the real planning ahead. 

And guess what? I am already learning that a bride-to-be can never be too prepared. YES. I am finally a BRIDE-TO-BE, marrying the best man in the whole world (I know we all say that, but he really is): Cody Stanton.

Whew! Now that my confession is out in the open, I'll fill you in. For years before becoming engaged, I looked at rings, dresses, venues, created guest lists and numerous accounts on wedding-related websites, entered free drawings, and overall, created several different perfect visions for my perfect day. Yep, one of those girls.

So, has being one of those girls paid off?

Drumroll please. 

We have a date: June 16th! Yes, the sweatiest woman alive is getting married in the summer, in the most popular wedding month, and on father's-day weekend. Us brides have to do what us brides HAVE to do. 

We have a venue: The Fordyce-Ricks Estate in Hot Springs, AR. LOVE IT. 

We have a photographer: Erin Moulden Photography in Little Rock. I hear (and have seen) that her and her husband are fabulous. Let's hope they can make me look less sweaty on my big day. 

I have a dress. THE dress. That's all I can say about it for now. 

As I continue the journey from Miss to Mrs. (Meredith Renee Stanton), my blog will also transform because I can never make up my mind about backgrounds, fonts, etc. Let's hope I can develop better decision-making skills before deciding on the nitty gritty details. 

With wedding bells on~

Meredith