Wedding Flashback: Part 2

....O.K., so he had actually done it.  He had gone and proposed when I told him not to.  I could tell he was nervous, and while he looked slightly relieved when I said yes, he still looked like he might throw-up.  We called family, and went out to eat to celebrate.  It all felt like an out-of-body experience.  So many things ran through my head...Ohmygosh, I'm ENGAGED!  Ohmygosh, I'm scared!  Ohmygosh, can I do this?


All of the excitement (and shock) from our family and friends helped me calm down a little bit, but those old thoughts of "I'm not a marrying type of girl" came flooding back.  I just had so much fear.  Fear stemming from my parents multiple failed marriages, not having a strong relationship model in my life, not wanting to conform to what people thought I should do.  This really started to take a toll on not just me, but Hubby too.  He could tell I wasn't at ease with the whole thing.  I kept saying things like, "Well, I'm NOT changing my name,"  or "Maybe we should just be engaged for a couple, few years."  


Finally, one night it all came to a head.  He sat me down and asked why I was acting this way.  Why I had said yes, if I didn't really want to.  Why was I so scared of getting married?  I just burst into tears.  I didn't know.  All I knew was that I was scared terrified of getting married, of it failing, or losing him.  He looked me in the eyes and told me that the reason he wanted to marry me was not to "tie me down."  The reason he wanted to marry me was to make me his family.  ME?  Bratty, unappreciative, nonconforming me.  Well, shoot.  More tears.  He said all he wanted out of life was for us to be a family; to have kids that shared a name with both of us, and to always be partners no matter what.  More tears.


At this moment, I knew.  I knew that getting married didn't mean I was losing myself, or my independence.  It didn't mean I was throwing in the towel and conforming.  It meant that I was signing up for a life together with someone I already knew I wanted to spend it with, and all that "stupid piece of paper" meant was that legally we were a "family" even when we already knew we were.  So, I threw myself wholly into the rest of the wedding planning, and when I got to that day, I knew it completely, utterly, fully reflected what I wanted it to. That what I cared about was having a party to celebrate with our family and friends, to be soft and romantic without being gag-inducing, and to just be....perfect.  So, here are some pictures as I unload my wedding flashback on you.  And to Hubby, Thank you for sticking with me, whipping me into shape, and making me realize that marrying you was everything I never knew I wanted.

Wedding Flashback: Part 1

As I have been thinking about our "Style Overhaul," I keep thinking about our wedding (July 17, 2010), and how I am truly happy with how it turned out.  I have to begin by saying I was a reluctant bride.  For many reasons, I just did not see myself getting married.  I wasn't one of those girls who plans their wedding in their head from the time they are a little girl, or fantasized about THE dress.  But, not long after I met HUBBY I knew that I wanted to be in it with him for the long haul. However, I still did not think I could pull the marriage trigger.  It freaked me out to put it mildly.  As I have mentioned, Hubby and I lived together, and I was perfectly content taking that step. (Livin' In Sin, as my grandmother would say)  When it came to getting engaged and taking the plunge, however, I just got hives, the shakes, downright crazy!  My family knew the way that I felt, but when things started getting serious with Hubby and I, they started asking questions.  Like, "So do you think you'll change your mind about getting married?"  "Come on, deep down you really want to get married don't you?"  All this did was freak me out more.  I could feel "the moment" nearing, and no matter how many times I made it known to Hubby (then Boy Toy) that I DID NOT want him to propose, he just kept saying, "Things will work out the way they're supposed to."

Anywho, one day I was on my way home from softball practice (I coach high school softball), and I called Hubby as always to let him know I was on my way.  He asked what I wanted for dinner, and I said it didn't matter.  He said he would check the cupboards and call me back with options.  He called back a couple minutes later and said we didn't have a whole lot on hand, and asked if I wanted to go out to eat instead.  I of course agreed.  He told me to think of 2 places I wanted to go, and he would think of 2, then we could narrow it down when I got home.

I walked in the door 30 minutes later and went straight to the bedroom to get out of my practice clothes.  I had just reached the bedroom when Boy Toy called me back out to decide where we should eat.  I groaned something about, "Can't I at least change my clothes!"  But, I followed him to the kitchen.  He said he had made a little game for me to choose where we were going to eat.  He had Scrabble tiles out on the counter...Now some would say, "You should have known something was up!"  But, believe it or not, we play games like this all the time, so I thought nothing of it.  He had two piles of letters for me to figure out. I knew immediately the first pile spelled out "Twisted Fork," one of our favorite restaurants.  Then I went to the second pile.  I took one look at it and went into shock.  Before I could say that I knew what the letters spelled, Hubby said from behind me, "Do you need some help?"  I turned around and he was on his knee with a ring.  I said yes (obviously, or he wouldn't be "Hubby" now), but the story doesn't end there.....

Grandpa's Desk

Just a quick Before & After post.  This was Hubby's grandfather's desk.  He got it after his grandmother passed away a few years ago.  

When we were doing our office redo buying a new desk wasn't in the budget, but we also didn't particularly want to get rid of his grandfather's desk, so we updated it with a paint job and shiny new handles.  You can see we also did the filing cabinet that sits next to it.  A quick update to a sentimental piece of furniture.

We also did the filing cabinet you see sitting next to the desk.  

Sorry for 1.) The weird camera angle.  Hubby already had the desk in the office before I could take an After picture, and I was backed up against a wall.  

2.)I cleaned my lens twice, so I'm not sure what all of the spots are.

Office Before and After

Since I didn't know I'd be a blogger back when I started some of these projects, I only have a couple of before shots of the office.  And doozies, they are.  I think I briefly explained that this was the catch-all, wedding dumping grounds for a few months leading up to the wedding, and after too.  The closet was full of shower gifts that we weren't yet using, and the main space just had the desk and things piled everywhere. 

Before 

And, here is the after.  Much better in my opinion.  Some style to be seen.

After

 A close-up of the shelves.  Still a work in progress, and disregard Hubby's horns on top of the left shelf.  Those are remnants from the bachelor office.  The picture frame in the middle is going to hang in the space between the shelves.

To see the tutorial on the curtains, or the Before and After of the desk click on these links.

Christmas Card 2010

Cornflower Blue Snowflake Christmas

Shop Shutterfly for elegant custom Christmas photo cards.

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Stenciled Curtains

As I mentioned in my first post, I couldn't find curtains I LOVED when we were redoing our office.  I considered many things:
a.) Giving up
b.) Sewing my own (Yikes)
c.) Settling

Finally, like the heavens parting, I came across Rachel's blog First Home Makeover and her stenciled curtains tutorial.  I knew instantly that I would be stenciling curtains for the office.  Now, what kind of stencil? How big should it be?  What color?  Can I even do this?  After Hubby assuring me that we could handle it, I came across this stencil at Hobby Lobby.  It was $4.99.  I also settled on some black fabric paint for $4.99 a bottle.  I bought 2 bottles, but only used 1, and I had sponge brushes on hand.

I ironed the curtains to get all of the creases out, and then had hubby help me lay them flat and measure.  We didn't mark anything once we'd measured, just layed the stencil down, taped the edges in place and started painting.  The stencil has a guide at the bottom that you can line up with the previous stencil so you know where your next one should go.  

(It's hard to see the stencil in this picture, but it's pink and taped at the top)

I would caution against laying it on top though because you'll get paint on the back of your stencil and drag it onto the curtain. (Not that I know about this from experience)  I would continue to measure from your sides so you make sure your stenciled art is straight.  

We continued to the bottom and opted to stop when we got to the last full stencil we could fit on the curtain.  Here they are all hung up.

The Breakdown:
Curtains $14.99 (Target)
Stencil $4.99 (Hobby Lobby)  http://shop.hobbylobby.com/store/item.aspx?ItemId=144798
Fabric Paint $4.99 (Hobby Lobby)
Brushes $FREE (already had on hand)
Tape $FREE (already had on hand)
TOTAL: $24.97

A Girl Needs Her Coffee

I have been seeing these coffee filter wreaths all over Blogland lately.  Some white, some brown, but all awesome.  I had a pack of coffee filters lying around that someone gave us with a wedding gift.  I picked up the floral wreath and white ribbon for $1 each at Dollar Tree.  I got out my trusty glue gun and started by gluing the end of the ribbon down, then wrapping it around the wreath form. 

 It just so happened to work out that when I got to the end I had just enough to make a loop for hanging.  I didn't want a large loop because I like the "floating" on the wall look.  

After wrapping the form with ribbon, I started folding some coffee filters.  Quite by accident I grabbed 2 at a time my first couple of times.  Then I realized that I could pull the layers apart for a fuller, not-so-perfect look.  I just kept filling in with 2-3 filters folded at a time until I had the fullness I wanted.  

Here it is floating hanging on the wall.  Not bad for a 30 minute project.