Sunny With a Chance of SHOWERS!!!!!

This weekend I'm up in Virginia for my bridal shower! I couldn't be more humbled by the outpouring of love and support during our engagement- and this shower is just another way I've been reminded. My two aunts have planned the shower, and it'll be hosted at my parents' home (the house I grew up in). We've already received several gifts, and I can't wait to post pictures of the crazy decor.

But for now, please see the beautiful invitation made by Amanda from Customized Stationary. Amanda has been amazing during our planning process, and has provided paper products for our save the date, engagement party, and now my shower. Her prices are amazing, and she loves doing custom work. Head over to her Etsy site to take a look at some of her designs.

Welcome Home

{picture from her Etsy shop}


Mr. SE and I are starting to settle into our new home, and it's slowly hitting me that we actually own the place! The first couple weeks felt like we were staying at a friends' place, or at a hotel. Every morning I wake up in our spa-like bedroom and it feels like a dream. I can't hardly believe how much we've accomplished since I moved here a year ago (May 26th to be exact!).

As the inside of our home is taking shape quite quickly, the outside has been a little slower to come around. Mr. SE has taken to the lawn mowing and weeding, while I've focused on the pretty accents. One of my first purchases was a pretty wreath, because a home looks so inviting with a wreath on the door. Some of my more recent purchases have been through my love, Etsy.
My mom is a huge fan of Uppercase Living/Wonderful Graffiti, and I knew I wanted some for my house. Mr. SE and I initially wanted one of those metal house number plates, but the price tag quickly turned me away. Enter Etsy seller PiccadillyPeddler. I purchased this super cute house number decal from her shop for only $10. It was super easy to apply, and I just love the way it looks.


Our door is cream, and the decal is black. Go over to Etsy and get one for yourself- this is a price you can stomach for an adorable welcome to your home! What do you prefer- working on the inside or outside of your home? Let me know your favorite little project that made a big difference!

Hello Yellow!

{picture from here}

We've seen a lot of yellow lately. Mostly from our new Bachelorette, Ali, but here's another show stopper. SJP looks amazing in this yellow vintage Valentino (of course). I know her style is a little wacky at times, but what girl has never wished to be Carrie Bradshaw?

How many of you are going to see SATC2 this weekend? I know I am! I'll be up in Virginia for my bridal shower, and MOH Dani and I have already decided to make a date of it. And here's a question for you girls (or guys) that are planning to catch the sequel this weekend- did you buy your tickets in advance? We're seeing a matinee, so I'm not sure whether or not we need to get them early.


*Ps- Visit the Possessionista daily (or several times a day like me) for all your Bachelorette fashion scoop*

Daily Affirmations

Oprah is a big fan of positive affirmations, and always encourages her viewers to use them. Personally, I believe anything Oprah tells me to do. Here's a little video to encourage you on your Monday morning. If we could all have the spunk of this little girl! Leave a comment with the top 5 things you "like".

Badgley Mischka Randee

I bought them. These babies have been on wedding blogs all over the country, and what's not to love? The color is beautiful, and the frills are so girly and fun. I decided to try a nude-peach"ish" heel with the rehearsal dinner dress from the below post. We'll see if they live up to the hype.

*On a site note- I think Zappos should start compensating me for all the endorsements I provide*

Rehearsal Dinner Dress: Shoe Edition

This is the dress I'm 95% wearing to our rehearsal dinner. I always knew I wanted to wear white, and the dress needed to reflect the formality of the event. I ordered 6 dresses from Nordstrom.com and this one was my favorite (and the least expensive!). But here's my problem- I don't know what kind of shoes to wear!

As you can see, the dress is all white except for a silver zipper in the back. The silver shoes that I own are more of a metallic silver, and don't go with the metal look of the zipper. I initially wanted to wear gold shoes, but the gold/silver issue troubles me. I need your advice! What shoes would you wear- and if they're online please send me a link.

Houston: We Have A Honeymoon Part II

Thanks to all the sweet readers that guessed about our honeymoon location! Only two of you guessed correctly- Mrs. Bear and Katie. We are going to Mexico!!!! After tons of research over the past 8 months of our engagement, we decided Mexico would be a great place for us to spend our first trip as husband and wife. Fun fact- Mr. SE is nearly fluent in Spanish!

The specific area we're going to is called Playa Mujeres, and it's nestled between Cancun and Playa del Carmen. We've heard lots of rave reviews for this area of Mexico, and we're looking forward to doing lots of fun things while there. The best part? Most of them are included! There's 8 restaurants and 11 bars. Our resort is an all-inclusive, and even includes a Greg Norman golf course. Clearly I will be at the spa while Mr. SE hits the greens. 6 nights of adults only bliss. We decided it was worth booking at the Excellence Club level. This means we'll have fresh fruit daily, an upgraded room service menu, and (most importantly) our room is ocean front. And when I say ocean front, I mean your bed is set facing directly out at the ocean.

My sweet fiance has never left the country, other than Thunder Bay Canada to play baseball, so I wanted this to be a great experience for him. We figure if you're going to go all the way there, why face the pool?

So now I present- Excellence Playa Mujeres. Here's more pictures of our resort. Weddingbee reader? This resort might look familiar to you. Mrs. Penguin traveled here for her honeymoon in 2008!

Houston, We Have A Honeymoon!

Actually, we're connecting through Atlanta- but Houston was another option. Mr. SE and I finally decided on a honeymoon. It was somewhat difficult, because we will be traveling during hurricane season. Our criteria was under $3,000, tropical, and easy flight times.

Here's what our friends at The Knot had to say about good honeymoon locations in August: Bermuda, Brazil, Britain, Central & South Africa, Czech Republic, Fiji, France, French Polynesia, Ireland, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Seychelles, Thailand, USA (Alaska & Northeast). Are you seeing a trend? Very. far. away.

So we decided to chance it, if rains the whole week, at least we'll have a nice room to stay in! Some places we checked out were St. Lucia, Bahamas, Mexico, Jamaica, and St. John. After researching some locations, I realized that it was important to me that we stayed at an all inclusive. Why? After a year of making decisions for our wedding and our new home, I don't want to make a single decision on our honeymoon. I want to relax in the sun with my new husband and not worry about where we're going to eat, budgeting money, etc.

Where did we choose? I'll save that for tomorrow. Feel free to leave a guess below. Until then- here's some of the resorts that struck our fancy (but we didn't book) during the research process...

{the new secrets wild orchid in jamaica}
{couples swept away in Jamaica}


Both are fantastic, and I've heard great reviews from people who have vacationed there. We ultimately found a fantastic deal at a 5 star resort, though, and weren't able to pass it up. Leave your guesses below! Who knows- if you guess correctly you might win a prize. Also- where did you go on your honeymoon? Did the time of year play a part in the location you chose?


**No voting if you are a real-life friend and already know the answer** That's called cheating.

DWTS: And There Were Four

We're one week away from Dancing With The Stars final episode, and my heart is beating faster than a week long dose of super mega green tea fat burners. Don't judge. I know who my pick is (and has been from the beginning, thankyouverymuch). Do you have a favorite? And better yet- have you voted? Last year MOH Kate and I voted for Gilles, I'll admit it.

Here's my predictions...

Winner: Evan

Voted off tonight: Erin

And these are my reasons...

• Erin- not interested. Her super long limbs flailing around the dance floor freak me out. Tighten up those movements, lady.
• Chad- He's given it 100% and put his heart into this competition, but he's not better than the others. One of the main things keeping him afloat is Cheryl doing all the big movements and distracting from him (I think this is always true with male celebs vs. female celebs)
• Evan- Holy amazingness. He's so graceful and just glides across the floor. I can't get enough! His skating has definitely given him the advantage in terms of performing for a crowd, but he's surely progressed in his dance ability.
• Nicole- Yes, she's fab. I get it. Mr. SE loves her smokin bod (how do I get one of those?), and she's a joy to watch. But here's why- IT'S HER JOB! She's the lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls, so it's no surprise that she's a great dancer. Boring. I'm looking for performance and improvement!

There you have it. The official DWTS predictions from Miss SE herself. Write your vote for the winner in a comment below. Or leave a comment saying who you think is getting the boot tonight. I'll weigh in on the final next week....

So Long, Farewell

{by the incomparable Michael Howard}

I'm really onto movie songs right now. If you're friends with me personally- you know that my ALL TIME FAVORITE TV/movie experience is when everyone breaks into song and dance. Case in point- Glee is one of the best things to happen to me. Besides the movie Hairspray and Mr. SE.

That being said- our exit from War Memorial has been one that perplexed me. The steps are lovely, and quite grand, and we needed something that held up to the grandeur of those marble beauties. I love the idea of ribbon wands (please don't smirk at me Mr. SE), they just won't work in the dark. So yes, I had to submit. I didn't want to do it- and I certainly kicked my heels. We will be using sparklers. Do they look great in photos? Of course. Am I terrified of our intoxicated friends torching my dress? Heck yes.

But alas, they make beautiful photos. And isn't that what it's all about? Here's some photographic proof...

{matron of honor Kate and her romantic exit!}

{not quite sparklers, but this is War Memorial and it's SO pretty. Also MH}

And will we be exiting to a Lamborghini? Sorry Mr SE. A horse drawn carriage? Sweet but stinky. Classy vintage sedan? Not this time. My handsome husband and I will be spending our first night as Mr. and Mrs. at The Hermitage Hotel. It's only 1/2 block from War Memorial, so we'll be walking there! I think it'll be so cute for us to make the little walk together. All the while saving several hundred on a limo!

What do you think of the sparkler exit? Did you do something special to exit your reception venue? Ooh- and if you did use sparklers, where did you get them? I'm looking for a bargain, friends!

Welcome Back

{my thinkpad isn't lonely now that the internet is back}

Oh, hello there friends! The SE's are now back in the 21st century. Luckily I had a half day at work, and I was able to meet my knight in shining armor between 3-5pm. Who's that, you ask? The Comcast internet installer of course. We've been living in the dark ages for almost a month now, and I'm sure I came incredible close to losing it several times.

Recently I realized that we're a hash over 90 (92 to be exact) days from the wedding, and I'm beginning to panic. There was so much time spent enjoying our "fiance" glow, and relishing in all that is wedding idea gathering (or researching as I like to call it). But guess what? It's time to buckle down and make some decisions. Ahem- Mr. SE if you're reading this...that means you marching your fanny down to Men's Wearhouse and picking out some tuxes!

Luckily Mama SE is making another trip to Nashville this weekend, sans my dad, and we'll be doing a lot of lists, charts, and timelines. My favorite! Mom and I are going to make a game-plan of how to get different diy projects done, and delegate tasks for everyone to handle. If you are close to me- look out- I might have a task for you too!

So that was a random word vomit of what's been on my mind the past couple days. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some laundry to put in the dryer and a dog that needs to go out.

Tami and Brent

Please go to Phindy's Blog and see the pictures from my amazing friend's wedding. Tami is such a beautiful person, and her wedding reflected her so well! Phindy did a fantastic job shooting this special day- so glad we were there to celebrate and dance the night away!

Picture by Phindy

Be Our Guest, Be Our Guest...

...Put our service to the test. Tie your napkin round your neck, cheri, and we'll provide the rest!

Okay too much Disney fun for Miss SE. When we first hit the ground running with planning, I was an incredibly ambitious bride to be. Pomanders? I'll make 100 to line the aisles of the Cathedral. Guest Book? I'll print all the hanging cards with cute sayings and tie the ribbons myself. Now there's 94 days until the wedding and this bride to be is feeling somewhat overwhelmed!

Today I'm looking for guest book inspiration. My wonderful florist Hillary, from Brocade Designs, will be setting up a gold manzanita tree on a bed of ivory hydrangea. We'll have cards with ribbon laying around the tree, and encourage guests to write well wishes and hang them. Martha had a cute article awhile ago about having prompts on the cards, such as"love is..." or "always remember...", in case some guests have writer's block. I love this idea- and we'll definitely be doing it! Now if I could just find that article...

Here's some alternative guest book options. How are you planning to do your guest book? I'd love to hear your ideas.

**Update** I found the article from Martha!

Mother's Day

I was so excited about my gift for mom, and have wanted to post it for several days. But since she reads my blog I couldn't ruin the surprise. Dad and I got her an iPod Nano! When she was visiting Mr. SE and I last month, she let me know that she'd like one for her birthday in September. I decided to not make her wait! We had the back engraved to say "Donna. Mother's Day 2010"

She called yesterday and was so super excited about her new toy. The new iPods are beyond amazing- pedometer, radio stations, and a video camera! Not to mention the music that my ghetto fab 2003 Nano has. What did you do for your mom to make her day extra special?

Cold Feet

{from SMP}

Mr. SE loves his socks. Work socks, play socks. Any kind of sock to keep his feet warm and toasty. Which is ironic, I suppose, seeing as he's always complaining about being hot. I digress.

I love seeing grooms and groomsmen with fun socks, it's a great way to bring fun style into a formal event. Our groomsmen (and my handsome groom) will be sporting black tuxedos, so this way we can pull some of our wedding colors into their ensemble.

I found this cute image at Style Me Pretty.

This company will make the label for you (Cold Feet)- what a fun play on words!

{Nashville's own Michael Howard via SMP}

{Evin Photography via Budget Savvy Bride}

{Jessica Claire via Polka Dot Bride}

What do you think of the funky-socks-for-groomsmen trend? I'm not normally one for trends, but this seems like such a fun idea. If you know a good place for these socks, leave a comment and let me know!

Cinco de Mayo Cupcakes

Since cupcakes are all the rage right now, I thought it fitting to post a cinco de mayo inspired recipe!

Happy Birthday to Me

Today I'm celebrating two special occasions: my 23rd birthday, and my 4th anniversary with Mr. SE. How special that they're on the same day!

We don't have any fancy birthday plans. I find it a little hard to celebrate with all the sadness in our city right now. But the rain clouds are gone and the sun is out- so there's the good news!

This is Where We Live: Nashville Floods

Please pray for Nashville homes and businesses. These are current pictures of Grand old Opry, downtown Nashville and Opryland Hotel.

All from Twitter