I do not count down the days until he comes home, because the dates are so uncertain. Instead, I count up! 12 months is such a long time...

****EDIT****

After 11 months, 12 days and a few hours- FI came home! At 2:45 am Nov 17, 2009, FI arrived back in the States. I feel so blessed that he made it safely through another deployment.

We met while students at Spring Hill College in Mobile, AL. We were friends for several years before we started dating. He graduated several months after we finally started dating, and we have been dating long distance ever since.

After my fiance graduated, he went in the Army and has been moving around ever since. He is currently deployed to Iraq, for the second time. Although we are bummed that he is gone for another year, we have a lot to look forward to when he comes home (hopefully in time for the wedding!!)!

I graduated from undergrad a year after my fiance. After graduation, I moved from Mobile to go to law school. I graduate in May 2009. After the wedding, I will also be going in the Army.

After his first 15 month deployment, we were finally able to spend some time together over my winter break. We spent a wonderful weekend with my family in St. Augustine for a friend's wedding. While there, unbeknownst to me, he asked my parents for their blessing. Then, on New Year's Eve 2007, he proposed! I said, "Of course!"

We went to Disney afterwards to celebrate:

We knew that the engagement would be a long one, as we knew that he would be deploying again and we wanted to wait until I graduated from law school. The good part about the long engagement is that we were able to just enjoy being engaged for all of 2008! Now that it is 2009, the planning begins!

FI picked out my ring all by himself- and he did such a great job! I love my ring, it is exactly what I have always wanted!

(sorry, not the best pic- and why are my hands so darn wrinkled?? I am only 25!)

Several months ago, my sister's friend offered to take engagement pictures for us (for free!). We, of course, jumped at the opportunity. We had so much fun with her, she just kind of followed us around a state park and took pictures of us- it was a blast and we love the pictures. She took hundreds of pictures, but these are some of our favorites.

Thanks to a lot of PW inspiration, I designed my own zazzle post cards.

I created the image in PowerPoint, saved it as a jpeg, then uploaded it to zazzle, and voila!

(front)

(back)

I sent them out later than I had hoped- about 5 months before the wedding. But my guests loved them! I highly recommend postcards- they are really easy and a lot less expensive to mail out.

Believe it or not, life continues while planning a wedding (who knew??). We have a lot coming up between now and the wedding...

• Fiance's R&R (two week leave during 12 month deployment) Done! We had a blast!
• Law school graduation
• Best friend's wedding
• Bar exam (yikes!)
• Move out of apartment and back home
• Homecoming! (after 12 long months, he comes home!!!)
• First Christmas together

At least I have a lot to keep me busy between now and the wedding!**

**EDIT**

FI made it home for R&R to make it to my graduation! Thank goodness! We had such a blast, and it was so hard to see him go again. Good news is that when he comes home, we will be getting married!!!

Bestie is married and her wedding was beautiful! I am so happy for her and my new best-friend-in-law!

**EDIT**

I PASSED THE BAR!!!! YAY!

*EDIT*

HE IS HOME!!!!

**EDIT**

We spent our first holiday together!!! Next up- our wedding :)

FI and I with our "fake" tree, after our real tree fell several times and had to be trashed.

Preliminary stuff

• E-pics
• Bridesmaids
• Send "will you be my bridesmaid cards"
• Groomsmen
• Flowergirls
• Cards for flowergirls
• Sword bearers
• Set date
• Guest list
• Website
• Addresses

Vendors and such

• Book reception
• Book Chapel- finalize officiant first!
• Choose officiant
• Meet with officiant- pray he says yes!!! 
• Re-register at home parish
• Talk to home parish priest
• Pre-marital counseling
• Wedding cake
• DJ/band
• Ceremony musician
• Caterer
• Meet with caterer
• Finalize menu
• Photographer
• Meet with site coordinator about set up
• Pre-wedding room- talk to AA
• Florist
• Order flowers
• Book hotel for wedding night
• Book honeymoon??
• Rehearsal dinner
• Block hotel rooms
• hair and makeup appointment

Attire

• Dress
• Veil
• Tiara
• Crinoline
• Boustiere
• Blue underwear
• Earrings
• Have dress mailed to FL
• Alterations
• Shoes
• Reception shoes
• Wedding bands
• Bridesmaid dresses
• MOB dress
• Flower girl dresses
• Bows or headbands for FGs
• Monogram FG dresses
• FG slips
• Choose tux for FOB and 1 GM
• Order medals for FI's uniform
• Polish FI shoes and press uniform
• Clean sword
• Order pocket squares
• Monogram pocket squares

Ceremony

• Choose readers
• Find Eucharistic Ministers
• Find Altar Server
• Select readings and responsorial psalm
• Select songs for Mass
• Select music for prelude, etc
• Write programs
• Make programs
• Basket for programs
• Tears of Joy packets
• Something for flower girls to carry
• Pick out flower arrangements for altar
• Flowers for Mary
• Horse and carriage

Reception

• Card box/basket
• Guest book
• Seating arrangment
• Escort cards
• Table runners
• Table numbers
• Centerpiece container
• Make centerpieces
• Candles
• Votives
• Menus
• Select first dance song
• Select father daughter dance song
• Toasting flutes
• Silver frames for pics
• Wedding pics of family
• Talk to FMIL about pictures
• Pics of FI as a kid
• Pics of me as a kid
• Cake topper
• Something for send off
• Order favors- pralines
• Buy bags and ribbons for favors
• Design and print stickers for favors
• Monogram canvas
• Decorate monogram letters for table
• Buy vases for head table

Details, details, details

• Website
• Design and make Save the dates
• Send out save the dates
• Order stamps
• Order invitations
• Address envelopes
• Send out invitations
• RD invites
• Must play list
• Do not play list
• Picutre list for photographer
• OOT bags

We are pretty traditional people, and our wedding is going to reflect that. We are having a full Catholic mass at the chapel on our undergrad campus. After the ceremony, the reception will be held in the old library on campus that has been converted into a multi-purpose banquet-type hall. I am super excited that we will be using my two favorite buildings on campus!

Originally, the wedding was planned for March, but the Army had a different idea :) We had to change the wedding to January, so we are going to have to change a few things to make the wedding less "springy." Of course, the planning is just starting, but I have been playing around with ideas for the last year!

Our color scheme is pretty preppy- navy blue, keely green and pink. I love ribbon and bows, and I am hoping to incorporate a lot of grosgrain into the details of the wedding. I am going to try to do a lot of the details myself, with the help of my wonderfully crafty mother and sister/maid of honor.

The chapel:

The windows are amber stained glass, and it gives the Chapel a beautiful glow:

The reception location:

When we first were engaged, I knew that my dress search would be tough. My dress needed to not be strapless and not expose any cleavage. I knew I wouldn't feel comfortable unless I was covered up in church. Unfortunately, most dresses are either a) strapless of b) low cut.

A couple months after we were engaged, I was visiting my mom in New Bern, NC. We thought it would be fun to go looking at dresses, just to see what was out there. What I thought would be like finding a needle in a haystack was the simplest thing- the perfect dress was there waiting for me! It is bright white, not strapless and beautiful!

However, I want to keep the dress a surprise. The only people that have seen the dress are my mom and my bridesmaids. I want my big entrance to be a big surprise!

The dress is by Jasmine, and I highly recommend that anyone looking for a non-strapless dress check it out. They offer a "temple ready" service which allows you to customize your neckline. It is great for anyone who wants to make their dress special and unique.

I highly recommend The Intimate Bridal in New Bern, NC, the bridal shop where I bought my dress. They have a lot of affordable dresses, and they couldn't be any nicer. They were so helpful and allowed me to look without any pressure. http://www.theintimatebridal.com/

My hair is really long and extremely straight, so I definitely want my hair in an up-do. I love Audrey Hepburn, and I want an Audrey-ish hairstyle. Then I found a pic of Giuliana Rancic's hair, and I fell in love!

I also found this picture on a fabulous hairstyle blog  (http://hairbyjuliet.blogspot.com/)

So this is basically what I am going to do, but I want it to be more of a bun and a bit smaller. I will also have a veil and tiara :)

We are having a military wedding, so FI will be wearing his dress blues. Also, two groomsmen and my brother are military. Plus, we are hoping to do a sword arch with 6 more guys. We are also hoping that our military guests will wear their uniforms. Our wedding should be full of uniforms- be prepared to swoon!

Basically, FI will be wearing this: 

 Except that he will not wear the belt/sword. And he will have a different rank- he was just promoted!!! Plus, I am hoping he will make a nicer face for our wedding pics...

I have three bridesmaids and a junior bridesmaid. My sister, two cousins and my niece will be my lovely attendants, and I am so happy that they will be there for me.

My poor sister, who I will be living with in between graduation in May and the wedding in January, will be helping me with all of my DIY projects. I am going to owe her big time!

My niece is a professional wedding attendant- she has been a flower girl at least twice and she is a junior bridesmaid in two or three weddings in the next several months!

The dress situation was a bit of a fiasco. I fell in love with dresses online at Ann Taylor celebrations. My cousin lives near a store that carries the celebration line, and she went to check out the dress. She saw the dress in a different color and another dress in the pink color I had selected. I loved it! We decided to order the dresses because of the limited stock. The dresses arrived, and they were purple! Purple! Not slightly purple-ish pink, but purple! I returned them, but I was still in love with the dress- so we changed it to midnight blue. All the girls have their dresses, so we are one step closer to the wedding!

Ok, I was having trouble posting this picture...but here is the bridesmaid dress. The ladies are going to wear silver heels. My 10 year old niece is campaigning to he allowed to wear high heels, we'll have to see how that turns out!

I have three adorable flower girls- my three youngest cousins. Their mom (my dad's sister) was the flower girl in my parent's wedding, and I think that it is really sweet that they will be part of my wedding! Their dresses are from Strasburg Children. We are going to add their monograms and a bright colored sash. I think I will have them wear a big bow in their hair (I LOVE bows!) They can't drop flowers at the church, so I am trying to figure out what they will carry down the aisle.

Bridesmaid cards

I made cards for each of my girls asking them to be my bridesmaids.

I made them with a 12x12 pink scrapbook paper, light pink vellum, and some ribbon. The cards are tri-fold with a poem in three parts- on the outside, inner page, and center fold. I also included a pic of  each BM and me from when we were younger and a recent pic. They were big hits!

cover:

inside:

center:

 (MOH)

 (bm)

 (bm)

 (Jr bm)

The poem reads

As of yet,

No date is set.

When it will be,

We shall wait and see.

It’ll be at least a year,

But can’t be sure ‘til time draws near.

For now we’re just waiting

and dreaming.

With smiles and happiness,

we are beaming.

Chris and I are to marry!

Music and cuisine may vary,

So might time, place and color scheme.

But we promise this- no crazy theme.

Winter, spring, summer, or fall,

We have no idea, none at all.

With this uncertainty, I’m okay.

But there’s one thing I want

on our big day.

It’ll be exciting, on that I can depend.

I want to be surrounded

by family and friend,

So when I take that walk

down the aisle

 At the altar, I want to see your smile.

Of this I am certain,

when I say “I do”

I want to be standing next to you.

[name], will you be my

[bridesmaid, maid of honor, junior bridesmaid]?

Flower girl card 

My flower girls are three sisters- and they are as cute as can be. Their mom (my aunt) was the flower girl at my parent's wedding, so it seemed appropriate to have them in mine! I made the card with a tiffany blue 12x12 scrapbook paper, a piece of pink cardstock and jolee boutique flower stickers. I also included an engagement pic of FI and I.

The poem on the outside reads

I am going to be a bride,

With friends and family by my side.

The bridesmaids and groomsmen are set,

But our party is not ready, not quite yet.

We need special girls to prepare the way

As the bride enters the church on her special day.

From the church to the reception hall,

The flower girls are there for it all.

After the ceremony, they will dance away,

With cake and music, it will be a really fun day.

I know just who I need to be with me,

Not just one little girl, but three!

When Uncle Tim and Aunt Ellen were wed

The bridal party had your Mom at the head.

She was the special little girl who led the way

For my Mom on her most important day.

Now it is my turn to wear white and say “I do”

And for my flower girls, I want you!

We are having a full Catholic Mass. I am exciting to celebrate mass with all our friends and family on our special day. For me, the Mass is such a powerful expression of love, so we will have the full ceremony, not the shorter version. Our priest was open to us choosing 'non-traditional' readings (as in, we could choose any readings we wanted, and we were not to simply select from the list of pre-approved readings.) After much deliberation and thought, we selected the following for our ceremony.

All readings are from the New American Bible.

First Reading

Ruth 1:16-18 

But Ruth said, “Do not ask me to abandon or forsake you! For wherever you go, I will go, wherever you lodge, I will lodge, your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Wherever you die I will die, and there be buried. May the LORD do so and so to me, and more besides, if aught but death separates me from you!

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7

Response: I will bless the Lord at all times.

I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall be ever in my mouth. Let my soul glory in the Lord; the lowly will hear me and be glad.

Response: I will bless the Lord at all times.

Glorify the Lord with me, let us together extol his name. I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears.

Response: I will bless the Lord at all times.

Look to him that you may be radiant with joy, and your faces may not blush with shame. When the afflicted man called out, the Lord heard, and from all his distress he saved him.

Response: I will bless the Lord at all times.

The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. Taste and see how good the Lord is; happy the man who takes refuge in him.

Response: I will bless the Lord at all times. 

Second reading

Philipians 4:4-9

Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice! Your kindness should be known to all. The Lord is near. Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me. Then the God of peace will be with you.

Gospel

John 15:12-17 

This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you. This I command you: love one another.

I want to try to incorporate some Irish blessings into the wedding somehow- maybe the first in the mass and the second in the program. I'm not really sure.

The Irish Wedding Blessing

May the road rise to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
The rains fall soft upon the fields.

May the light of friendship guide your paths together.
May the laughter of children grace the halls of your home.
May the joy of living for one another trip a smile from your lips, a twinkle from your eye.
And when eternity beckons,
at the end of a life heaped high with love,
May the good Lord embrace you
with the arms that have nurtured you
the whole length of your joy-filled days. 

Celtic Blessing

We swear by peace
and love to stand
heart to heart
and hand to hand
Mark O Spirit
and hear us now
confirming this
our sacred vow.

Another one I like (it incorporates the Celtic blessing) that I want may parents to say with me before the wedding:

Happy is the bride that rain falls on
May your mornings bring joy and your evenings bring peace.
May your troubles grow few as your blessings increase.
May the saddest day of your future
Be no worse than the happiest day of your past.
May your hands be forever clasped in friendship
And your hearts joined forever in love.
Your lives are very special,
God has touched you in many ways.
May his blessings rest upon you
And fill all your coming days.
We swear by peace and love to stand,
Heart to heart and hand to hand.
Hark, O Spirit, and hear us now,
Confirming this our Sacred Vow.

I met with the sweeteset cake lady ever- I am seriously in love with her :)

My cake is by Cakes by Judi, and it will be the yummiest cake ever! It is a butter cake with white buttercream frosting. The bottom layer will have cream cheese filling and the top two layers will have strawberry filling.

Inspiration

Other cakes I love

source: the knot

I have always wanted a bride and groom cake topper, and I found the perfect one at http://www.miscaketops.com/

We have a customized military groom and bride! I love them!

More inspiration

My aunt and cousins gave us beautiful Waterford toasting flutes for our engagement.

For cutting the cake, we are using FI's sword! (I am really excited about this!)

I made a monogram for us in PowerPoint. We love the symbolism of the trinity knot and wanted to include it in our monogram- I used the simple one I found in microsoft's basic clip art.

We are using this on our menus, programs, escort cards, and many other things. It took a while to figure it out, but we are really pleased with the way it turned out!

I made a monogram canvas to use on one of my tables at the reception. It was a really easy DIY.

You need

• canvas
• print out of your monogram (sized to the canvas)
• tracing paper
• tape (I used the blue painter tape- the kind you use to keep paint off of your woodwork)
• pencil
• eraser
• paint pens (or paint and brushes)

How to:

•  begin by printing a large (to the size of your canvas) image of your monogram
• trace the monogram onto tracing paper (since my image was large, I had to tape several pieces of paper together to get it done)
• scratch the back of the tracing paper around the lines on the front side
• tape the tracing paper onto the canvas (if you use regular tape, becareful not to push o hard you can't get it off, but make sure it is stuck enough to be secure)
• carefully (and lightly) trace over the image
• slowly remove tracing paper
• if there are any odd marks from the tracing paper, erase carefully
• I had to lightly erase in some areas because my tracing marks were too heavy- you want the pencil marks to be light so they don't show through the paint
• color in with paint pens or paint (I prefer paint pens because it is more difficult to mess up!)

I found my rehearsal dinner dress on sale at White House Black Market. I am going to wear it with the straps, and I may have to wear a sweater with it, as the wedding is in January. Now I just need shoes!

I was really not too interested in doing a trash the dress, but my Sis/MOH had this great idea. I grew up riding horses and I am extremely close to the woman who now owns my horse (that I had to sell before I moved for college). My horse, Chance, has always been really special to me and a HUGE part of my life, so why not do a photo shoot with him in my dress after the wedding? Sounds brilliant to me! I just hope it won't mess up the dress- I am planning to sell or donate it after the wedding!

My inspiration for table numbers is from PW's 38chi-  I love the bows!

We are going to use pics of us from when we were kids.

I made our card box from a hat box at hobby lobby. It was super easy!

I used the large hat box, and I purchased it with a coupon- so it was super cheap!

I cut a hole in the top- about 1 1/2 in wide and 7 in long (I wanted to make sure it was wide enough for those oversized wedding cards). I then coated it with several layers of navy blue paint and a layer of varnish/clear coat to make it smooth.

Finally, I hot glued ribbon around the box and added our monogram backed with green cardstock to the front.

I took my inspiration from Kohler44's beautiful invites

With my wonderful FI's help, I created our invites. They are 5x7 on green cardstock with navy and white polka dot ribbon. It took about an hour to print and make all of them. Our guests loveed them!

This is what they say

Practice makes perfect, it’s true what they say.

Please come for a run-through, before our big day.

Meet at St. Jospeh Chapel at 6:00 pm on the dot,

Where Maura and Christopher will soon tie the knot.

After we rehearse, when it is all said and done,

Please join us at The Pillars, for food, drinks and fun!