Great news and a life update

So last post was when I decided that nursing school was not my cup of tea. Well, I feel amazing about my decision and don't regret it in the least. But amazingly enough I was offered a full-time position at work. Two guys are quitting (one for another job and one going back to school) and I asked about it and was given it right away. Just makes me think that things all happen for a reason and maybe they don't make sense at the time but they will in the future.

On a WEDDING note!
     We bought the boy's wedding band this weekend and were happy to find out that it was on sale so of course we jumped on it before we go back on day and they don't make it anymore. We also (almost) finalized our wedding menu! We only have to decide on beef and wine (both things he will be picking because I don't eat or drink either of those things).

At this rate we will be done in record time and will be able to sit back and relax until final payments are due. All we have left are little things, along with flowers, transportation and an officiant. Hopefully we can get these things done before the holidays and then it will just be those little knick knack things are all realize we have about 3 months before the wedding.


Almost down to 1 year!

That's all for now!

Happy planning!
-A

BIG CHANGES...

So this blog started as an outlet for my wedding planning and going to nursing school. I've been doing lots of thinking about a lot of things lately and have come to the sad conclusion that nursing is just not for me. I was talking to a few women at work who told me that I either knew or I didn't and it wasn't something I should be in the middle about. I took that to heart. I know that if my heart isn't fully in it then I can't fully help my patients when they need me. I currently work in a pharmacy and the thought of staying there doesn't sound horrible, maybe moving to a larger company or a hospital but I may stay. My wonder FI didn't take the news well. We don't live together and see each other once a week so this was something I was kind of dealing with alone. He didn't say much but I think it's shock and I think he's a little hurt that I didn't talk to him about it. I am hoping that with time he will realize that this is a good decision for us and the less money we have in debts the better. I can't give my family 40,000 in even more debt when I don't think that's what I want.

The ladies on the knot have been wonderful in helping me realize that this may be the best decision and I'm feeling okay about it. Once FI starts talking to me again I'm sure I will feel better about it.


On a wedding note! We found our caterer. They are wonderful and my future in-laws will be paying for the bar and the food which is great. We hope that everyone enjoys it. They were great enough to even not have us give them the deposit until we do our tasting because they want to make sure we are happy with them. They are a Cincinnati institution so I'm excited to have them helping with our wedding.

That's all for now.

Happy Planning!
-A

Slight changes and good news!

Been a while since my last post. Good news! I passed my second A&P exam (after failing the first one) and feel a little bit better about making it through. With a government background this class is just really kicking my butt on a daily basis.

A couple weekends ago one of my BM came into town and always likes to talk wedding stuff,(yay) so we talked dresses. These are their dresses. We are currently deciding between pink and gray.

**In case you're wondering "wow, they aren't getting married for a year, she needs to relax" a little background. We were already SUPPOSED to be married, this past June. We called it off because of money and the fact that those helping us were throwing in their opinions and our wedding wasn't feeling like our wedding. That being said, the girls always ask about everything and were the ones asking. We all just want to get it over with (not to sound like a negative bride) but my FI and I are ready to start our lives together after dating for so long.

We also picked some songs. I had NO idea that there were so many lol. It's still a work in process but we're getting there.

Here is our list so far:
Grow old with you: first dance
processional: vitamin string quartet hallelujah
Intro song: Imperial March from Star Wars
Parents dance: Little Wonders Rob Thomas

We also have our catering meeting on Tuesday (FI wanted to get it done) so maybe we will find someone. Our venue will only allow 4 different places so our options are pretty limited, lol.

It's getting there and we are about 3 weeks from our year countdown. Maybe we'll have it all done by January and just get to hang out for 9 months lol. One can dream

That's all for now!

Happy Planning!
-A

First planning meeting!

So we had our first planning meeting with our venue. She does the wedding planning for us, which is great because we don't want to spend the money on hiring someone. She likes to start planning early because there is a lot that she covers and she wants to get some of it out of the way. Every time we meet with her I get a little overwhelmed with how much stuff there is. I definitely got lucky because my FI is extremely involved in everything that we are doing and it makes this so much easier. I think the biggest thing I didn't realize was how many song we had to pick out, haha. Calling the caterer today to set up an appointment and possibly book and then all we will have left is flowers and transportation!

Work vs. Nursing school

So. Not really wedding related, but this whole blog isn't about that.

     So I am about halfway through my first quarter in nursing school, and though it's hard, I love it. I'm already thinking about getting my CNP, which is even more schooling after already having my B.A. and this will by my A.S.N. which would follow with the bridge to the CNP masters. Lots of school.
     With that, I am not lucky enough to have my wonderful FI work a job well enough that I don't have to have a job while in school. We both out ourselves through our B.A. programs and have loan repayments coming soon. His more than mine. This makes it hard because no matter how busy I am with school, I HAVE to work. Don't get me wrong, I actually enjoy working, and like having money to spend (when I have a little left over after bills) but not having to work during school sounds like a dream come true. I decided this week that my hours needed to be cut. I don't think my boss was too excited, we had 2 women quit, and another took a family leave of absence so we are very short staffed. I feel bad, but then again I don't. I'm an adult and I am putting myself through this program as well. I know that work is important but I realize that school is my future and is more important. It's just hard to get over the fact that I know people are upset that I'm not working as much as I should be but I know they aren't paying my bills or taking my tests and that I have to be selfish or the next 2 years, and that's just not me

Sorry for the late night rant, it may not even make sense because I'm tired.lol

That's all for now

Happy Planning!
-A

Oh the Irony

So last time I spoke about my story being entered into the Brides Magazine Monster-in-Law section. Cool right? Well...it was...so what's changed? My FFIL decided that they would be paying for our rehearsal dinner, our wedding food (with at least $20.00 a plate) and an open bar. Don't worry, I wasn't the only one that was shocked, my FH, FMIL, MOB, all about died of shock. It was definitely not what we were expecting but completely amazing. The stress that has come off our shoulders is huge and they don't really seem to care what we get they just want the general idea of what we are going for. Too good to be true with this family, lol. I had to share my excitement with other. haha.

More good news! We turned our contract in yesterday! We now have our wedding date secured at the Weidemann Hill Mansion in Newport, KY. The lovely couple that own this house supply so much stuff it's NUTS. Non-alcoholic drinks including coffee, flat ware, cutlery, music, MC, centerpieces, chairs, people to set up and tear down everything. The only things we have to do are food, alcohol, transportation, and flowers. That's it. The price is amazing. We already have our first planning meeting on the 16th of this month to fill out 8-PAGES of info for our wedding. I don't even think I know 8 pages of things about our wedding lol. I'm definitely excited though!

It's starting to really feel real!

Happy Planning
-A

Booking our Venue!

So we decided that we needed to drastically change our wedding guest list because of money and we cut our wedding down to 55 people. This also includes us and our wedding party. We also changed our venue to the Wiedemann Hill Mansion in Newport, KY. Though I'm sad we won't be getting married at our school, the cost of food was just not going to cut it and the venues would have been too much for the small amount of people that we have narrowed it down to.
      If you live in the Cincinnati area and are looking at having a small wedding, I highly recommend this house. It was built over 100 years ago, and almost everything is original. They include so many things I almost didn't believe it. My FI actually didn't believe it and made sure that we went to visit it. Totally good enough to believe. All we have to book is flower, food, and alchohol. They even do your music!
     Yes I'm sad that we won't be at our school anymore, this place is completely amazing and even gives a ridiculously awesome view of the city. This was the biggest selling point to me. I love this city, born and breed here and as of now, we have no intentions of leaving. Though school is a complete pain, I don't have time to study because my job has me working way too many hours so that is making it hard, but things starting to come together for the wedding make it worth it. I'm on my 9th day of work, and I get that lovely closing shift, and the one day I get off my poor pup has to go to the vet. AWESOME!
     On a lighter note, I submitted a story to Brides Magazine about my future mother-in-law and how hard she is being on us and....IT GOT ACCEPTED! How hilariously fantastic. Though I can't be too excited because if my future sis-in-law finds out so will my FMIL. The crazy thing is that now, my FFIL is paying for our rehearsal dinner(!!!!!) which we most definitely didn't think they would be doing. Maybe things are looking up!

That's all I have for now.

Happy Planning
-A

Back in my routine

I've been told a hundred times that I'm clearly stuck in the body of a 65 year old. I go to bed early, eat dinner early, and don't like going out. I always laugh because it completely true. But after spending the last 10 days at my grandparents house I am FINALLY home. I am SOOOOOO glad to be getting back into my routine and not driving an hour to get to school.
     On the other hand, my FI and I have 8 days to pick a wedding venue...8...no pressure right? Why 8 days? Because on the 1st we have to decide if we are having our wedding at our school or somewhere else because that is the day we have to book it. We both just want to get it over with. We know that sounds crazy but we've been together so long we don't really see it as a huge deal and it's definitely more work for us. Hopefully it will work out though.

Happy Planning
-A

Lets recap...Get me out of here!

I haven't posted since the 8th. Why? A few simple reasons really. My lovely FI and I have been dog sitting for my grandparents while they take my little sister to Florida for the first time. I have a dog, love dogs, love dog sitting. This, however, is not just dog sitting. It's like Noah's Ark, only not as fun.
     My grandparents don't just have a dog, they have 3, one of which is a puppy, (aw so cute) but a beagle puppy. Which means that he howls, and barks, and is just all around loud. His high energy level is ridiculous, but not nearly as ridiculous as his need to pee everywhere, all the time. Seriously, we take this dog out ALL the time, and I'm sure you are all suffereing from this heat as much as we are which means he is in and out all the time with lots of water. He's cute, true, super cute, but he has that constant puppy smell of pee and general stink.
     The other two dogs are great, we had a small issue of attack but all is well. We are hoping to finally be able to go home on Sunday. We have been there since the 14. It's felt like a month. I love my grandparents, and love helping them, but this is just painful. I'm ready to go home. Tears have been shed and it's time to move on.
     To make things even better, I started my first quarter of nursing school the day they left. Which means that I am not only chasing my whippet and a beagle around, but also trying to study, read, cook dinner, all that general stuff completely out of my little element and comfort zone of home. Plus they live almost an hour from school which I get to drive daily.
    The FI and I have been hit with some financial issues and are trying to decide if we should be moving our wedding ceremony to another location and cutting the guest list and just having a large party for the rest of our friends. We love our friends and want as many of them there as we can but our wallets and bank account don't love them as much. The goal is to have a plan decided by this weekend because we have to book our venues on the 1st of August. We will see how things go!!

Happy Planning!
-A

P.S: Borders has started their liquidation sales, excluding on-line. Definitely a good way to get wedding books, or nursing guides! I'll be heading there after class.

Making a big decision

So I've made a huge decision. I've decided that since I only planning on this big day happening once I am going to purchase my dream shoe of a pair of Christian Louboutins. The FI gave me the go ahead and his blessing because he knows how much I love them lol. The savings starts now and I'm very excited to put that order in. A huge expense? Um, DUH. But it's a once in a lifetime day and this is a once in a lifetime purchase!

Nursing School

I am starting nursing school next week to get my RN. I already have a B.A. in Political Science but the lovely government hiring freeze left my dreams of working in an immigration office in the dust until a time when our economy recovers. This left me scrambling, along with many of my friends, looking for our plan b. Mine was nursing school. After much consideration I enrolled. My ultimate goal when I'm done is to go into hematology/oncology and work with cancer patients, mainly breast cancer because it's hit a few women in my family. There is a passion, and it's what I'll be striving for.

The one thing I'll always hate about school, is buying the books. I worked in the bookstore in college along side my FI but the shock of books just never ceases to amaze me. Now that I'm buying science books it's even more money. Got to love it. I pay for school on my own, which now means paying for nursing school, all my other bills, and our wedding. It will be an interesting period until the big day is over!

Best wishes and happy planning!
-A

Wedding Background

The wedding background is simple and easy. My FI and I are planning on paying for 99% of the wedding. We chose this because we wanted to have all the say in our wedding and not feel like we need the approval of others for our big day. That being said, we are working hard to keep our budget at $10,000 with a guest list of roughly 140 people. Not that we don't love our families, we certainly do, they just don't happen to have the same vision we do.

This is our second time planning the wedding. We had first planned to get married this year, this past June in fact, and it ended up being more than he, and eventually I was willing to deal with. We called it off and it took us months to pick another date. After 5 years together, a 2 1/2 year engagement will be the least of our waiting. By the time our wedding rolls around we will have been together over 6 years, crazy, but all the seems to make our relationship into a marriage is a simple signature on paper.

Back to the budget. With the amount that we want to spend I have become Super Shopper. All our vases have come from Goodwill, Homegoods, St. Vincent de Paul. Nothing has been over $2.00 and a couple vases in the .20-.25 cent range. My aunt is making our invites as a wedding gift to us (AMAZING). We have purchased silver etched plates form the Dollar Tree (if you can tell they are a dollar, I'll pay for your wedding, lol). Our goal is to cut down the flower budget to MAYBE $200, hopefully not that high. We will also be having a half open/half cash bar. We love our friends, but can't possibly afford their drinking habits. My other tip? COUPONS COUPONS COUPONS! Michaels, Hobby Lobby, Jo-Ann Fabric, anything you can get your hands on. They have been a life saver. If you have a store around you call CHARMING CHARLIE, GO THERE! RIGHT NOW! GO! It's like accessory heaven. My girls will be carrying clutches instead of flowers, they were a whopping $6.00 a piece on mark down. Went to Jo-Ann Fabric got some vintage pearl buttons (with my COUPON) and for 5 it cost me $3.00.


Message from my post: Coupons! Duh.

Best Wishes and Happy Planning!
-A

Who is this girl?

This girl is a nursing student who has been with her wonderful FI for over 5 years. In that time there have been many ups and downs and we are now happily planning our much awaited wedding.

I hope that in this blog I can help other with how I am personally planning my wedding and throw out some things that will hopefully bring my wedding into the vision that I am hoping for.

Our wedding is Sept. 15, 2012 in Oxford, OH. Home to the Miami Redhawks (LOVE AND HONOR). We are what our school calls "Miami Mergers" which is two students that went to Miami and are getting married or have gotten married. Our schools boasts the highest marriage rate of any university in the country and it's something we all take very seriously at our wonderful school. That being said, there will be many Miami aspects of our wedding because it is a school that is so dear to us.

Please feel free to leave any comments, nothing negative, constructive criticism is appreciated.

THANKS!!!!

-A