An Etsy Giveaway!!!

Our wedding is getting closer and closer (46 days- but who's counting?) and I'm getting more excited by the minute. There's some exciting things coming down the pipeline for the SE's and I can't wait to share with you. But because I'm in a super happy mood, I've decided to host a giveaway! Crissy at Gypsy's Closet on Etsy has graciously allowed me to give away a pair of her earrings. I stumbled across her shop last week and haven't look back since! All of the earrings are too cute and I want them all- they're perfect for summer.


To enter- head over to Crissy's shop to pick your favorite item, and leave me a comment letting me know which one it is. 1 extra entry if you tweet about the giveaway and 2 extra entries if you blog about it. Contest will end at 11pm (CST), June 30th. If you tweet or blog about the giveaway, please leave a comment letting me know. Here's the pair I'll be giving away:

Spring Fever Bobble Earrings

Pretty

I love this room.

Dressing the Men of the Wedding

So much time is spent deciding the bridal gown, shoes, and accessories. And if you've ever been a bride, or involved in a wedding, you know the bridesmaid dress selection isn't a walk in the park either. So why make a quick decision and overlook the men who will play a role on your big day? Mr. SE looks guh-or-gus in a tux- like double take levels of handsomeness.

{in case you wanted to see proof of the hottness}

He knew from the start that he wanted the guys to wear a tux, and I left the rest up to him. Trust and let go, trust and let go. I have to keep repeating it to myself so I don't freak sometimes! What did my handsome almost-husband pick? A winning combination in my book!

If you recall, the bridesmaids are wearing cobalt blue cocktail length dresses. Mr. SE decided that he didn't want his guys in a color, and would instead let the bridesmaids shine (what a gentleman). Here's what he picked. The base is a Calvin Klein tux for all: black vest and tie for groomsmen, white vest and tie for Mr. Groom, and navy vest/tie for our dads. I love it! So classic and beautiful. The men will have boutonnieres of white orchids tied with gold ribbon (from Hillary @ Brocade, in case you forgot). Here's how they'll look together...

Our rentals are from Men's Wearhouse in Mt. Juliet (I reazlied last year its WEAR not WARE. How cute is that!?!?). Their staff is fantastic and couldn't be more helpful. We love how the guys can visit their local MW to get fitted, and pick them up at the store in Mt. Juliet for the wedding.

Rehearsal Dinner Shoes: Part II

The search for my rehearsal dinner shoes continues (read part I here). Thank you for all of the advice regarding the shoes and what style to choose! I ordered several hot pink pairs from Zappos, and they weren't the coral-ish color I was looking for. I loved the shoes, but they didn't have the same style as the dress. So here I am again, checking out from Zappos.com (again- feel free to sponsor my posts please).

If you forgot what my dress looks like, here it is again. And below are the next round of shoes that I've purchased. On the advice of Bridesmaid Nicole (a former pageant queen), I've decided to try the nudes.

Weekend Recap

This weekend I made a little surprise trip up to VA for father's day. My dad was surprised to say the least, and I'll never forget how he looked when I rang the doorbell at 10pm on Friday! We enjoyed a weekend with just the three of us, and it was relaxing. While I was up in Virginia, Mr. SE's dad came up to stay at our house here in Nashville. Mr. SE and his dad did lots of yard work, played golf, and toured around Nashville.

I've been bugging Mr. SE for awhile about getting a ceiling fan. Our home is only 5 years old and the HVAC works great, but at night the air gets a little stale in our room. My sweet, smart fiance installed a ceiling fan in our bedroom for me! The catch? It wasn't even wired for a fan- AND he added an extension pole! He's fantastic! The fan has a remote that controls the three speeds, and a dimmer for the light.

What was your Father's Day weekend like? Did you do something special with family?

Summer Shoes on A Budget

Every year I'm on the hunt for the perfect summer sandals. This summer my quest was for a pair of gold flats and some hot wedges. I can't remember the last time I shopped at Rack Room, but they totally delivered. I picked up these Sahara thongs for $14.99 and the Dillon wedges for $19.99. They are currently running a BOGO sale, so my total ended up being $30! Have you found any great buys on summer staples?

Wedding Wednesday: Do Us A Favor

Mr. SE and I couldn't find a favor that made us jump with joy. Food is clearly a plus, but not something you can keep, and I can promise you nobody wants a paperweight/frame/spoon rest/anything with your name and wedding date on it. I promise. We liked the idea of a charitable donation, but had differing ideas about where it should go. American Cancer Society (maternal grandparents) and Alzheimer's (paternal grandfather) were the first things to pop into my mind, but Mr. SE had different causes he wanted to support in relation to his family. After the first weekend in May, there was no doubt where our donation should go: Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee. This organization has been out there, boots on the ground, helping to get our city back on it's feet.

Each of our guests will receive a card with the following statement:

"In your honor we have made a donation to the Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee, to help with flood relief"

We think our guests will be honored, and glad that they were part of helping our city get back where it was before. What did you choose to do for favors? Did anybody else do a charitable donation?

Big Night Out For the SE's

Mr. SE and I cashed in a Groupon on Saturday night. In order to avoid the very classy tourists in town for music fest (insert rolling eyes), we ventured to the West End side of downtown for dinner. Our dinner was at Acorn, which the lovely Mrs. Smith posted about before. Mr. SE and I enjoyed a nice meal outside. While we enjoyed our dinner together, and the food was good, I don't think it was worth the pricetag without out Groupon. I had the scallops and he had the halibut.




But the exciting part of our evening happened on the way out. I decided to stop by the restroom, so Mr. SE stood by the bar area in the very quiet upstairs part of the restaurant. Upon locking arms with my handsome fiance and walking towards the stairs, I noticed a very full U-shaped booth to the left of us.




Who's that girl with the gorgeous blonde hair? And who's that familiar guy next to her? There's rumors flying around that these two are dating. So if Perez comes knocking at my door for a comment (w/cash obviously) I'm ready!
Since some readers were confused (ahem- Mrs. Smith), I guess I need to say who these VERY famous people are. Ryan Seacrest (American Idol, heard of it?) is on the top, and Julianne Hough (2007 winner of Dancing With the Stars) is the blonde. She is my hair idol #2, next to Reese Witherspoon, and above Carrie Underwood in 3rd place. So now all I need is to spot Carrie at Publix and I can have an in-person trifecta of hair goodness.

Weekend Plans

Friends, I'm afraid I don't have many exciting weekend plans to share with you. But Mr. SE and I are definitely in need of a relaxing weekend- and the next two weekends I'll be out of town back to back. In case you were curious, there's 9 weekends until our big day! Needless to say, we're trying to cram in little projects here and there and tie up some loose ends.

So this weekend I plan on doing this...

and this...

and a little bit of this...

CMT Awards 2010

Love this dress. Did anybody else have a favorite?

Uh-Oh, It's Serious Sarah Time

Life isn't always fun and games over here in SE land. I remember one time in 10th grade we had to introduce ourselves using some form of alliteration before our first name. Example "Happy Hannah". I think you get it. Well, my first inclination was to introduce myself as "Cynical Sarah" (not the same letter, but the same sound). Sad as it may be- I'm affraid this is how I live most of the time.

I'm very quick to judge, rarely get over a grudge, and always find the worst in situations. Can you say Oscar the Grouch? I think so. Converseley, Mr. SE is the exact opposite. He's sunny side up, glass half full, smiling through life. Sometimes his unrelenting optimism is a source of annoyance for me- but lately I've had a change of heart. It's not fun to be grumpy.

Some things have happened during our engagement that have been less than enjoyable, and have caused me lots of undue stress at a time when my life should be all rainbows and unicorns. Maybe I'll be able to talk about this sometime in the future, but for now I'll withold. That being said, I let some of these small things dictate my overall mood in life, and I feel like the past 9 months of my engagement have been shrouded in an unpleasant cloud.

The best part of this situation is that there's 2 months left until our wedding. Two months left that I can change my outlook, to benefit the long marriage that Mr. SE and I have ahead of us. We had a speaker come into work on Monday and he said some really insightful things. His topic of discussion: Stinkin' Thinkin'. His main point was that we all talk to ourselves on a conscious or unconscious basis throughout the day, and whether we engage in positive self-talk or negative self-talk will have a huge impact on how we go through life. From now on, I've decided to try incredibly hard to engage myself in positive self-talk. Is it going to happen overnight? No. But for the sake of my personal health, and relationships, it's something that I need to commit myself to.

Have you ever had an ah-ha moment like this? I'd love to get some inspiration from readers who have made a conscious choice like this? I need all the help I can get!

Meet the Deacon

Tonight we have our first meeting with our Deacon at the Cathedral. We're super excited to start our sessions with Deacon Faulkner, and they'll continue until August. Mr. SE and I decided early on that the ceremony was the most important part of the whole wedding experience. It should be the most important part- but oftentimes it gets overlooked in the craziness of wedding planning. We can't wait to begin this journey of the planning process. 68 days- it's really happening, friends!!

Shall We Dance?

Mr. SE and I started our dance classes last night, and while we're no Richard Gere and Jennifer Lopez- we had a blast! Our instructor was fabulous and I recommend her if you're in the Nashville area. The studio we're using is Dance World, and they're located right on our way home. We signed up for the introductory special- which I think was a steal! It was $65 for the couple, and it's 2 private lessons, 1 group dance class, and 1 social dance night.

We gave the instructor our song and got right to work. Curious about the song? It's none other than crooner Michael Buble. Oh, how I love his music! Give me a Swiffer/vacuum and MB and I will have such a fun Friday night. Okay TMI- I know my love of cleaning is weird.

Did you take dance classes before your wedding? Or have you ever taken ballroom classes for any reason? We have a long way to go until we're like Evan and Anna, or Nicole and Derek, but we're having fun getting there!

Sunny With a Chance of Showers: The Recap

{sweet bridesmaids, and cousin, playing the dress the bride game}

Warning- picture heavy post ahead! Mr. SE and I were so truly blessed with our shower last weekend. We made the 11 hour drive up to the DC area on Friday, and were met with some wonderful surprises already.

We played several fun games, and there were lots of prizes to go around. I was shocked my how many people came and how we were literally showered with gifts.Entrance table with gifts- 2 days before the shower! Love the flower arrangements that were made by my neighbor.Gorgeous cherry chest of Reed & Barton silver pieces from my two auntsSuper cute gift basket of towels...and an ice cream scoop?Everyone that attended the shower. So blessed!My adorable Duffie in her "flower girl" tshirt/dress Bride and groom made of household items by my mom and dad. Can you believe this? They're so creative!

My two hosts (left and far right), and my mom (middle)

A Special Shower Gift

Mr. SE and I received a fantastic shower gift from my maid of honor. She surprised us with custom note cards and a note pad from Ashley Brooke Designs. I heart ABDesigns like no other and have often dreamed about getting something of hers for myself. I literally screamed when I opened the gift bag!

My groom looks dashingly handsome, and Duffie is adorable as usual! What do you think? What's the most memorable/creative shower gift you received? I'll be back to post more shower updates later.

It's All Greek To Me

Hello- please allow me to introduce the most amazing nail polish ever. OPI It's All Greek To Me. This color would be flattering on any skin tone, and I love how it has a subtle sheen. Perfect for summer!

Do you have a favorite polish that kicks off your summer? I have a rule that I only get mani/pedis with colors that I own, this way I can touch up mini chips. My other summer standby is Cajun Shrimp. Loves it!