Wedding Tip #12

Here's a tip for brides who've finally finished their seating arrangements and want a quick and easy way of transferring the arrangement from paper to placecard.

Nancy had thought her RSVPs were no longer important once the final list was compiled but I had other ideas. Her responses were already somewhat organized by last name but we started by putting them in alphabetical order.

Then, we first marked the table number in the top right hand corner of each card. We also confirmed the names indicated on the RSVP. We figured most guests responded to the wedding the same way they'd want to be addressed on their escort cards.

When it came time to make the placecards (we printed them ourselves), all we had to do was type in the names and table number already marked on the card. They were already in alphabetical order so once they were printed, they were ready to go to the hall!

here come the brides!

I am older than my only sibling, Lyndsey, by 3 years. It's actually 2 years and 50 weeks, but who's counting? And while I am entirely grateful for having a sister now that I am an adult, I didn't feel as lucky as a kid.

Having a little sister then meant sharing toys and attention - two things that had been soley mine in the years before her birth. If you've ever been honored with the chance to watch my home videos, you would see how the footage drastically shifts from Nicole (their firstborn!!!) to Lyndsey (the BABY). In the background, you would see my desperate attempt to hold onto their focus, but to no avail.

But as we got older and developed our own personalities and friends and interests, we began to appreciate each other instead of envy. Somehow, my annoying sister became my closest confidant.

Now Lyndsey and I are planning our weddings together and we'll be getting married about two months apart from each other. People ask if I'm upset my sister is getting married before I and I truthfully tell them no. Lyndsey and Eric have been together for 8 years so I had already gotten used to the fact that my baby sister would be married first. I am thrilled about their engagement and so honored to be part of the planning process. I suppose it's the short 7 weeks between our two weddings that concerns me the most. How are we ever going to manage being both the bride AND the Maid of Honor?

As Nancy's wedding is approaching, I've been helping her out with all the last minute details. I just want to make sure that my own wedding plans won't interfere with my ability to be my sister's go-to girl when her time comes. On the other hand, I also don't want my sister's Maid of Honor duties to make her even more stressed as she gets closer to her big day.

So what do all of you think? Has anyone else out there been in the same/similar situation? How can we balance the two weddings without going nuts?!

another website to love!

Found this cute and affordable website while I was helping my sister's future sister-in-law with favors for her son's upcoming Christening. Thought I would share it to all my readers. It's called LMK Gifts and they offer edible favors at a really reasonable price. They also have some invitations that are even cheaper than my favorite site, Tickled Pink Design!

Definitely check them out!

wedding dress - CHECK!

I know I promised to write about my experience dress shopping and then I got lazy. Damn Sims 3! But here it is:

I went to get my bridesmaid dress fitted at Park Avenue Bridals the other night for Nancy's wedding and decided to try on a couple of wedding gowns myself. With the wedding still a little over a year away, I really didn't want to make such a big purchase so far in advance but I figured it wouldn't hurt to try some on.

About five dresses in, I put on this beautiful gown. It had a beaded bodice and a beautiful train. Momzilla loved it, MoH loved it, even Grandma loved it. I loved it. But when MZ asked if I wanted to buy it that night, I hesitated. I claimed that while I loved it, I just wasn't ready to decide just yet. As I stepped out of the dress, the consultant gave me this piece of advice:

"Buying a wedding dress is like finding Mr. Right. When it's the right one, you'll just know."

As she said this, I nodded my head but didn't really believe her words. I mean, I tried on some gorgeous dresses at Enzo but still wasn't ready to commit. Why was this time going to be any different? And yes, I was sure about Gianfranco the minute I met him, but I was pretty indecisive about all the relationships before him. I just didn't think I'd be able to make this decision as easily as the consultant hoped.

So now I'm down to the last two dresses. Momzilla is yelling outside of the dressing room that the shop is closing soon so I make a quick decision to try on just ONE of the dresses.

Let me tell you, I fell in love the second I put it on. I walked out to the mirror and just loved how I looked and how I felt. I thought of the church doors opening and my walking down the aisle in this dress. I thought of how Gianfranco would look when he saw me in it. And as the tears started swelling up in my eyes, I knew that it was the dress for me.

Note: While I love sharing the excitement of finding my dress, I will NOT share the photos until after the wedding day! Gotta leave some surprise for my guests!

So we bought it! And as luck would have it, Lyndsey, my sister, ALSO found her wedding dress! It was a gorgeous gown displayed in the window that was actually made by the same designer as my dress!

The wedding dresses are done for me and Lyndsey and while I am so happy we both found dresses we love, trying on dresses together wasn't the best idea and I'll be discussing the pros and cons of sharing the wedding planning process in my next entry.

Stay tuned!