HaselBride

The Secret Is Out

From our wedding recaps, some of you might have noticed my dirty little secret: I had nine bridesmaids. When we first got engaged, I thought six sounded like a good number, but after doing the math (two sisters–Nick's and mine + two "baby" cousins + one sorority sister + oldest friend + bff since middle school + bff since high school + bff since spring break 03) the number ended up being nine.

Yes, nine. I avoided mentioning it here on the blog because, well, people judge and most of the time in real life the response was "NINE! NINE!? Geesh, that's a lot." Honestly I was sick of hearing about how that might be a few too many. Who decides these rules? Looking back I wish I'd have stood up for myself a bit more. If there is one thing I do not regret it is asking those nine amazing women to stand up with me while I spoke my vows to Nick. Was it a little hectic gathering up nine women and eight men? Well, yes, but it was worth every minute! I'm the kind of person who makes only a few good friends in her life, but hangs onto them for life, so it was fitting to have all of them participate in our big day. I still speak at least monthly to my best friend since the third grade.

Luckily, Nick's group of guy friends from Purdue/ROTC is huge and really close so he didn't have trouble rounding up guys to be on his side (although we ended up a few short a due to deployment and/or relocation). Since we weren't including any of the Air Force traditions (sword arch, etc.) it made sense to have them all be groomsmen and not leave any of the guys out. The groomsmen doubled as ushers on the day of.

The point of this post is to say: have as big or as small of a wedding party as you want. Your wedding is a reflection of you and your partner, so if having a huge group of friends surrounding is your couple style go for it. If you are more of the intimate type, having one person for each might work.

How many bridesmaids or groomsmen (or bridesmen/groomswomen) did or do you have?

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Oh, hi, yes, I am back! Trying to post every day in November so I will actually finish up our wedding recaps before our first anniversary. The clock is ticking!

Our Fabulous Winter Wedding: Rehearsal Dinner

After the rehearsal, we were off to the dinner hosted by Nick's parents and step-parents. Just an FYI, most of the photos from the rehearsal dinner are posed, family ones, but I wanted to include them for my own memory.

Once everyone settled into their seats, Nick's mother welcomed everyone and led the group in prayer. We went table by table to eat, Nick and I leading at his mother's insistence. I was starving after the day's whirlwind of activities, but I was also nervous so I barely ate anything on my plate. After dinner wrapped up, Nick and I introduced the members of our wedding party. I could barely hold back tears introducing my bridesmaids, my absolutely nearest and dearest gal pals some of whom I hadn't seen for months.

All of the guests were invited to say a few words about Nick and myself or both of us since only the best man and matron of honor would be speaking at the reception.

Nick's dad took the time to make a few funny, and heartfelt remarks. Nick's sister had a speech prepared and used it as an opportunity to tease me about an inside joke that happened just a few months prior. My step-sister stood up to say a few things about Nick and me, including that she was so glad I had found someone who could put up with me. I wish I could remember more of what she said, but it was all hearfelt and in good fun. I do remember that she told Nick he could start paying her child support for "my kids." Everyone laughed because they all know I refer to my niece and nephews as my babies, confusing people who don't know me well!

Shortly after everyone was done speaking, Nick's mom and sister surprised us with a little game. I was to say the least, a bit shocked, but played along. The next thing I know, Nick and I are back to back holding one of our shoes in one hand and one of each others' shoes in the other hand. The questions were easy and we had pretty much the same answers down to both of us raising both shoes for "Who cooks dinner?" (I prep and cook the sides, etc. He runs the grills most nights.) The only one we disagreed on was  "Who is the better dancer?" Which, duh, is me, but of course he didn't agree!

After the game was over, we took some group photos and pretty soon it was getting late so things broke up. Before everyone headed out, Nick and I handed out our gifts to our wedding party. {Detailed post coming on this later.} I had really wanted Nick and I to exchange our gifts to each other that night, but it was already midnight and I had to go home to wrap up a few things and head to bed for my six a.m. wake up call!

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LOOKING BACK

• I wish Nick and I would have taken the time to write up a little speech thanking all of our friends and family, especially our parents for being there for us for not only our entire lives, but throughout the crazy wedding planning [and pilot training] experience. We thanked people, but I wish we'd have thanked them a bit more formally.

• I should have discussed a small timeline of events for the evening with our in-laws to include handing out gifts, etc. The gifts were handed out hurriedly as different groups of bridesmaids headed out. There were so many bridesmaids that by the time I had given my sister her tote bag she'd seen all the goodies eight other times. Planning a time into the "schedule to hand them out all at once would have been better.

• Because the rehearsal ran late, the dinner ran late, and therefore I was up way too late. If you are having a Catholic ceremony with a mass and have a large bridal party and/or the bridal party is inexperienced with weddings, specifically Catholic ones, plan for your rehearsal to last at least an hour. Ours began at 5:30 and lasted until 7. We had anticipated it would last an hour. By the time we reached dinner it was almost 8 p.m.

• I really, really, really wanted a moment alone with Nick in his hotel room after the rehearsal dinner to exchange gifts and be excited about the next day. However, I didn't communicate this to anyone and because of time constraints and the late evening, it didn't happen.

Viva Las Vegas, continued

We have arrived! Nick and I made it safely after a three-day cross country drive. {Yes! Three! Ah! It. Was. So. Long.} We're currently shacked up at a hotel and up until a week ago or so, were house-hunting daily. Those of you who follow me on Twitter already know most of this: we are thisclose to being homeowners. Something I thought we wouldn't do for a long long time because of Nick's commitment to the Air Force. I will keep you all updated on our house buying journey. I am so ready to be living in a house, not a hotel.

The trip was insane. I personally love driving long-distances, but after the journey from Mississippi to Nevada, I've had my fill. The first day {February 12} we drove from Mississippi through Arkansas to Oklahoma. One of the couples we've know since college, is now living in Oklahoma City, so we stopped there to stay the night. The next morning {February 13} we met them for an early lunch at Panera. Then we headed off and drove through Texas into New Mexico, where our other friends from college have been living since after their wedding last year. Then on Saturday, aka Valentine's Day, we headed off through Arizona, which was by far the most exhausting day. The drive absolutely exhausted me, the mountains were beautiful, but oh the curves and the inclines. I was a ball of nerves by the time we arrived in Las Vegas late that night. Long story short, there was some confusion about our accommodations that night and the city was packed with people in for the holiday weekend AND Valentine's, so we ended up staying at not-so-fab motel and moving into a nicer hotel the next day.

That day, our first in Las Vegas, we met up with Nate from Turtle Pond Photography to pick up our dvd of hi-res images and proof book. He was here for the event of the year it seems: WPPI. Every one and their sister/brother was here, twittering away about my new city, including That Wife and some of the ladies from Southern Weddings Magazine. I would have loved to have bumped into them, but Nick and I were only on the "strip" for a few hours Sunday so I could take a peek around. {I had never actually been to Vegas before we moved here.}

I'm hoping to start recaps soon, but I'm honestly not sure where to begin! I feel like I have a whole lot more to share with you, but at the same time I am quickly moving on from our wedding and onto setting up our home. I still want to blog about weddings, but I am a little bit over ours. :)

What are your suggestions for handling recaps? How do you like recaps? What else would you like to know about our wedding? I am definitely looking forward to starting a second lifestyle {design, home, fashion, etc.} blog. As far as lifestyle/home blogs go, do you prefer those with one voice or two {ala the SCOOP}?

{Also, I owe a few readers emails. I promise to get to those soon.}

Viva Las Vegas

First off, I apologize for not posting lately. I am definitely in that post-wedding slump exacerbated by an impending cross-country move and Nick's month-long TDY (temporary duty assignment). Oh, how I love the Air Force. What's with the cross-country move you ask? You might have caught wind of it before now, as I mentioned it in passing a handful of times, but here's the official announcement: we're moving to Las Vegas next week.

Yep, Sin City is our new home. It was an unwelcome shock at first because this particular plane and assignment had not really been on our radar, but as we began to examine the pros, oh how they outweigh the cons! Nevada will probably be our homebase for the next three and a half years or so, and then hopefully Nick will officially enter the fighter world. I am delighted we will be stationed at another warm weather location and thrilled that the location is an actual city! So many Air Force bases are located in the middle of nowhere or in not so big towns. I am absolutely thrilled to be living in a place that has almost anything I can think of and flights to and from my home state are not through the roof.

As excited as I am for the five Targets, it is bittersweet to me to leave our wonderful home here. Although it was a rental, it was our first house together and is the style I would eventually like to own. We have built-in bookcases, white trim, etc. I'm sure we'll find another great home in Las Vegas, but I'm going to miss the place where Nick proposed, where we hosted our first party together, where we returned after our honeymoon, etc. etc. We have so many memories in these walls.

Anyhow, so what does this mean for the blog? I had hoped to have some recaps or posts up and scheduled before we begin our three-day road trip next week, but I've been working 12 hour days catching up on work and then at night I prepare our house for the move. I'm still hopeful I'll be able to get a few posts finished up and posted in my absence, but if I don't please peruse the archives and fill me in on what else you'd like to see on HaselBride. Advice? More real weddings? DIY projects from my wedding? What do you want to see?

After the recaps, I'm planning to keep HaselBride up and running as a resource for fellow winter brides as long as I remain interested in weddings {which will probably be a long time}, but I'm thinking about starting up a lifestyle {design, fashion, home, food} blog to share my adventures outside of the wedding. I mentioned something to one of my best friends/bridesmaid about blogging together, but we haven't yet decided what we want to do. What would you like to see as the next installment of Hasel?

As usual, follow along with my adventures in the sidebar or directly on Twitter.

Images © The Knot.

{Sneak Peek} Wedding Photos

I don't even know where to begin. 2008 was a worldwind, especially the last few months: from Nick's pilot training graduation {and the earning of his wings} to the passing of two family members to the wedding and honeymoon. It has been a crazy, emotional, fabulous year. 2009 is promising to be no less exciting with our big cross-country move happening in a little over a month. {Oh yeah, I think I might have mentioned that in passing: we're moving to Las Vegas. Courtesy of the Air Force, of course. More on that later.}

I'm hoping to do a little year in review later this week once Nick is out of town and I have more time to devote to blogging. For now, though, I present you with a small sneak peek at our wedding photos. Amanda and Nate from Turtle Pond Photography posted some of the wonderful photos late Sunday night and when I woke up yesterday morning I was delighted to find them there.

We were able to see an edited slideshow on their laptop at the reception and let me just say, I cried when I watched it. I didn't cry as much as I thought I would, so that means something. The photos are beautiful. Nate and Amanda were awesome; more on that later. Our guests could not get over how awesome those photos were. We are still hearing from guests that they loved the photos. I can't wait to see them all.

My dress hanging up at my aunt's house, where I had hair and make-up done by my stylist from Indianapolis. A few of my bridesmaids came to get ready with me.

 

 

Trying not to cry while three of my bridesmaids scramble to attach my grandmothers' photographs on my bouquet. {I learned that if you tilt your head up it helps; had never heard of that trick before.}

 

Something blue: my grandmother's rosary.

This photo might be my favorite. It is so dramatic. {That's not a bridesmaid holding my gown up. It's Nate from Turtle Pond! Those stairs are pretty treacherous in heels and he was very helpful. :) }

Love the guys group shot!

 

 

 

My babies...aka my sister's children...were so cute on the day of. My oldest nephew is the light of my life; he is honestly my favorite person on earth. I started crying when I first saw him that day! I am so glad they were able to be a party of our day and I know they are very excited to have Uncle Nick in their life.

 

 

 

Love love love the symmetry of this photo!

Trying to figure out which hands to hold. Ha. I was so nervous.

Instead of bubbles, wands, etc., we had bells for people to ring. Detailed instructions coming soon.

 

Freezing our butts off in the cold, I love this though.

Off to the library, which was down the street from my church and elementary school. I grew up a total bookwarm {and still am}, my cousins used to harass me and say I should have my senior portraits taken at the library in front of the card catalog and well, I didn't do that, but I think the third one will do it for them. :)

 

 

 

 

In the gymnasium at my elementary school.

 

In the auditorium of my elementary school. These were the last few before Nate and Nick dragged Amanda and I kicking and screaming out of the school {okay, we weren't that dramatic}. There were just so many great places to take photos and honestly, we were only in a small part of the school.

 

 

 

Nick covering his eyes during the best best man speech ever. It was awesome. I loved it so much, I asked him if he had a copy. Apparently, he just had it all in his mind, but he is supposed to try to get it all down on paper for me. I will say more about that later.

This is my youngest nephew checking out some photos on my sister's camera.

Once "Don't Stop Believin'" came on shortly after dinner was through, our Purdue friends, my high school friends and some of my family pretty much didn't leave the dance floor until 2 a.m. It was awesome. The list we spent hours putting together wasn't utilized by the dj as much as I'd have liked, but luckily between  our friends and us, we were able to request a lot of the songs we wanted played.

The look on my face is horrendous, BUT I had to post this as my sorority sister/bridesmaid is arms wide open to catch the bouquet and she did. Her boyfriend is still mad at me. I love this because no one else is remotely interested.

A Purdue tradition for Nick's group of friends is to sing "Piano Man" in a circle. The dj started to play it really early in the evening, and one of the groomsmen ran over and had him stop and play it later.

When I look at the photos, I am reminded of how much fun we had at the wedding. I am so so glad all of our friends and family from across the country were able to make it. In the week before the wedding, an ice storm threatened to put our day off course, but luckily the weather relaxed for most of Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We just had an incredible time, even with a few minor hiccups. I have to say a HUGE thanks to Stephanie for keeping things moving, me sane, etc. etc. {More on that later as well.}

As soon as I get the cd with all of the photos, I will begin working on the detailed recaps. However if you can't wait until then, there are still a few more photos from the preview on Turtle Pond's blog. Also, you can check out Stephanie's take on the day on her blog Gossip. Style. Wed. here.

Photos © Turtle Pond Photography.
Please do not repost without providing credit and a link back to Turtle Pond and HaselBride. Thanks!

A word to the wise...

If you are a perfectionist, procrastinator and/or graphic designer with a lot going on in your life aside from your fabulous wedding... please for the love of all things paper, don't try to make your invitations all by yourself. Come up with a design, but then spring for letterpress, have them offset print, do anything but Gocco each and every invitation, rsvp card and accommodation/direction card by hand with multiple colors. You will end up crying, twice. It will be bad.

So, that's my little bit of advice, don't try to do it all yourself. Hire someone to print your fabulous design for you. Why oh why did you tell your mom you'd do it yourself to save some money? You did not save your sanity...

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I am ALMOST done with them. Honestly, I wanted to have them out the door at the eight week mark, but after my grandmother's passing and the timing of all of these important nights in Nick's career I gave up that dream. I am now glad to have them out at a little under six weeks. Once they are in the mail, I promise to share photographs of my serious labor of love.

Back in the Saddle... and Tagged.

I'm here, I promise. Sorry for the delay in my return. This past week has been filled with catching up on work, finishing loads of projects for the wedding {with my visiting mom and aunt}, and a big night for Nick's Air Force career. It has been a busy and important week all around. I have much to fill you in on about our future and the wedding.

The week before that of course, I was back in Indiana celebrating my grandmother's long, wonderful life. Thank you all for you kind comments and sharing your stories, I appreciated them so much and read each and every single one more than once. It has been a rough year as far as loss goes, but of course I'm so thankful to have awesome friends {in real life and through my blog} and family to support me and give me strength.

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Figured I'd start back off with something fun... I was tagged by Stephanie from Gossip. Style. Wed. to share six quirky things about myself, six things I value and six things I do not. I should take this time to mention that Stephanie has graciously agreed to be my day of coordinator. I am thrilled to have someone the day of to take the lead with the hotel and at the church. Just from our first conversation, I already feel very confident with some things in her hands. She has also offered to help me sketch out a timeline, which is so helpful and has already taken a few things off my plate.

Anyhow, on to the facts:

Six quirky things about me:

1. I only like cheese with certain things. I will eat pizza, grilled cheese, nachos with melted shredded cheese, plain slices of colby cheese BUT I will not touch a sandwich of any sort with cheese on it. I am very picky when it comes to cheese.
2. I claim to be organized, but I am honestly an organized mess. I can't work in chaos, so I keep most of it in our bedroom. My friends can attest to all of the piles of clothing and magazines. They are neat piles, but piles nonetheless.
3. My daily uniform is a black t-shirt and jeans. Not really that quirky. I try to wear color because I love it, but I always end up slipping into my comfort zone: black.
4. I almost got a tattoo a few years back with my two best friends. I am so glad we never got around to that! I am just not a needles or tattoo person...probably comes from having a dad covered in them!
5. Freshman year of high school I wanted to be a meteorologist or a pharmacist. Then I got into Journalism classes and out the window that went in favor of graphic design! My dad was so disappointed. :)
6. I love tomatoes and bacon. If you put tomatoes and bacon on something I don't like there is a good chance I would probably eat it with little complaint.

Six things I value:

1. My family. Not just my mom, step-dad, dad, step-sister and niece and nephews, but my cousins, aunts and uncles {included my step-dad's family}. They are my world and mean so much to me! I have said it before and I'll say it again, I am so so lucky to have an extended family that is close and so wonderful. Don't get me wrong, we have our spats and differences, but at the end of the day we all love each other!
2. My friends! They are like another extention of my family. I am so fortunate to have really good friends from different times in my life who I still keep in touch with. I have known my matron of honor C since kindergarten and my bridesmaid T and I have been inseparable since middle school.
3. An education. I feel so fortunate to be some of the first generation in my family to have a college education, especially since my degree allows me to do what I love.
4. My home state, Indiana. Oh, how I picked on you in my youth. You aren't so bad. I miss you more than ever now! The cornfields, the Midwestern atmosphere, Indianapolis with the shopping I know like the back of my hand, I could go on and on. I will always call you home.
5. A fiance who loves me even though I'm a little crazy sometimes. He would never admit it, but I think he enjoys me that way. He and I come from just slightly different backgrounds, but one thing that is so similar is how close his extended family is. It makes it much easier for him to understand why I want to be at home {Indiana} sometimes.
6. Having pets. Oh man, oh man, I want a dog so badly right now it is a bit ridiculous. Hopefully after our next move, I will be a proud dog mom.

Six things I do NOT value:

1. Inconsiderate people.
2. Coffee. Don't drink it. Never have, probably never will. Wish I could because it is far better for you than my caffeinated addiction Diet Coke.
3. Traffic in an unfamiliar place. It doesn't stress me out if I know where I'm going, but if I don't, well it's over! Meltdown ahead!
4. Not having my own space {it's an only child thing}.
5. Bugs. I hate them. If I find one and kill it, I leave it's dead body on the floor until Nick gets home. What am I going to do when he is deployed?
6. The time change. Indiana just started changing time two or so years ago. I am still trying to figure this whole thing out. Everyone makes so much fun of me, but it is confusing for a person who never grew up with it!

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I will hopefully be back later today to continue the Invitation Only posts. My invitations are only a little behind schedule, but will be sent out at the six week mark versus eight. When did you send your invites out?

On the Road Again...

I couldn't resist...I'm traveling again, so posting will be light until next Tuesday. This time I'm going to Nick's hometown for his step-sister's wedding and my bridal shower. Should be a lot of fun. Can't wait to come back and update you all on the planning that has been going on and all the lovely gifts I've received from the showers.

Because I love "borrowing" ideas from Erin {Blue-Eyed Bride}, while I'm gone I'm going to open up the floor for questions... So go ahead, ask me whatever you want regarding the blog, my life, our wedding, etc! I will respond asap with the answers. Can't wait to hear what you are curious about!

{Tag I'm It} Five Embarassing Songs

I was tagged by Kate from Kate's Wedding Blog aka Miss Pomegranate from Weddingbee.

Here are the New Rules:

1. Link to the person who tagged you and post the rules on your blog.
2. Share 5 songs you are embarrassed to admit to others that you like and tell why.
3. Tag 7 random people at the end of post and include links to their blogs.
4. Let each person know they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Truth be told, I am not embarrassed that I like a single one of these songs. I love most any kind of music {rock, pop, oldies of any sort-disco and funk particularly, country, rap, hip-hop, folk}, but I really love awesomely bad, sing along in your car music. Yes, I am that crazy woman you see belting it out on the interstate. So in no particular order, songs I should be embarrassed to admit I love:

1. "We Are Family" by Sister Sledge*
To some it is corny, but to me it is fabulous. I heart dancing and singing along to disco/funk music.

2. "Faded" by SoulDecision
I love this song because it is perfect for dancing AND singing along. It is the very definition of awesomely bad; a 90s one hit wonder pop song.

3. "Everytime" by Britney Spears
Um, I really don't know what to say about this one. So bad it is good maybe?

4. "Jenny From the Block" by Jennifer Lopez
I went through a huge {original} Bennifer phase freshman year of college. I have always liked Ben Affleck, so I couldn't help but love the two of them together in this video. So bad...

5. "I'm Too Sexy" by Right Said Fred*
Need I say more?

I'm so behind, I'm pretty sure everyone has already gotten this BUT if you haven't done this and want to: leave a comment so I can see your songs!

*Will hopefully be played at our wedding.

Catching Up

I'm back and have a lot to catch you up on {and to get caught up myself...I am so behind! Yay for procrastination!}.

First things first, our friends' beautiful wedding went off without a hitch, although the weather and the Air Force tried to put a kink in things. Some of the guests missed connecting flights and had to drive the rest of the way because of the rain; and because of a spur-of-the-moment Air Force related trip to Texas, Nick {the best man} nearly missed the whole thing. Luckily his flight arrived just in time for the luncheon/groomsmen hangout on Saturday morning, and I filled in as planned on at the rehearsal Friday night.

J and K at the altar with the back of Nick's head to the left; Nick and I after the ceremony.

I'm hoping to be able to share some of the details from the wedding with you, but the bride and groom {after a 24 hour drive to their new home out West} are about to embark on their honeymoon so it will have to wait until they return. We had a wonderful time, chatting and dancing with all of our college friends. I looked at Nick at one point and said, "I can't wait until December!" It WILL be great, but first I have to get caught up AND make some big decisions!

I've got some great posts coming very soon; hopefully I'll be able to get some of those up later this week. I'm in a bit of a transition right now {more on that later} and super busy after work and freelance clients {and life in general}! Haha.