Goodbye winter...HELLO SPRING!!!

I just had to post this today....it's going to be in the upper 60s today and then in the 70s tomorrow!!! YAY!!


This was about as much snow as Knoxville saw this year ...which is more than I can say about the past few years. Too it only last for about 2 hours before it was all melted awayI love snow and unfortunately I don't get to see it often living in Knoxville.
(i think this was back in February)



BUT.....the cold weather is leaving us and now we can pull out the capris and flip flops....SPRING IS FINALLY HERE!!!




AND WE ARE ONLY 1 week away from the 4 month mark for our wedding!

Look what the Easter Bunny brought us!

We spent Easter weekend in Chattanooga with Michael's parents. We got to meet with the wedding planner and go to the linen rental company too. It was also so great to spend time with my FFIL and my FMIL! (for those who don't know the wedding terminology--my future father-in-law and my future mother-in-law) We went shopping, relaxed, and did some wedding stuff too. Sunday morning, the Easter bunny brought me some Vera Bradley pajama shorts and some gummi bears!

After church that day, we came back to Michael's parents' house and the Easter bunny left something else. This was for both Michael and me. It was wrapped so pretty.

We were so excited to see what it was!!! Here is a play-by-play:




HOORAY! It was our first dinner plates from our everyday JULISKA china collection!!! How exciting!!! (and I promise Michael was really excited even though his smile looks forced in the pictures!) :)

Random Questions

What accessories do you wear everyday?
My engagement ring :) (thats my most favorite accessory), earrings, but i change them up depending on the outfit.

What is your beauty routine?
I have mild adult acne (i think it is from resting my chin on hands when I am at work, hormone changes, and stress) that i am trying to remedy so I try to switch it up every now and then. I love L'oreal PURE ZONE products (which I am pretty sure they removed from the shelves for some reason but I stocked up so much at one point that I am still using it. I also occasionally use YONKA products--which I love! I moisturize only in the morning before applying makeup.

What was the last item of clothing you bought?
2 dresses and 1 pair of shoes from Ann Taylor LOFT! (i love that place)

Do you use a dresser, closet, or both?
Dresser, Chest of drawers, a few rubbermaids under the bed, and 2 closets. YIKES!

What type of earrings are in your ears right now?
Pearl studs


What type of figure do you have?
I am 5'5...definitely pear shaped (i get that from Mom).

Do you wear glasses? only when I am at work staring at the computer all day

What type of handbag do you carry? I switch it up a lot.....but usually they are always BIG bags....i call them work bags. I have so much JUNK in them though

What is your ideal style?
In a nut shell, ANN TAYLOR!!! I love that stuff!!!

What jewelry are you wearing right now?
pearl studs and my engagement ring :)

Do you wear knee-hi stockings?
nope

Do you have to wear matching lingerie?
My bra and panties ALWAYS had to match when I first started wearing bras....now, not so much. I would love it if they did though.

Do you wear makeup?
Absolutely...otherwise it is a very scary sight

Do you wear nightgowns?
yes. I don't like wearing pants to bed because they get bunchy and twisted and its all very uncomfortable

What outerwear do you put on when going out on a typical winter's day?
I love my northface. But when I dress up, I have a long black coat.

What is your favorite perfume?
Classic--Banana Republic
Michael--Michael Kors
Light Blue--Dolce&Gabbana

Is your motto "quality over quantity"?
it depends what it is. For basic/classic items that I will use again and again - I prefer quality. For items that I think I might only use for a season, I will go to Target or TJMaxx

Do you wear rain boots?
sometimes. I have these really cute wellies that are black and white polka dotted :)

Do you wear socks or slippers when your feet get cold?
usually both...my feet are always really cold

Do you have a set of travel luggage?
Not really. I have a few pieces from a set I used to have, but the airport guys banged it all up and broke the wheels off of some of the pieces. My mom and dad bought me 1 piece of a new set, but we never finished off the set. We registered for some though to go with that set!!!

What is your daily uniform?
To work? There isn't one. I can wear jeans and a tee shirt if i wanted.

If you are married, did you wear a veil with your wedding dress?
engaged - yes I am wearing a veil

Do you wear a watch?
no--i use my cell phone as my watch

What item of clothing always makes you feel extremely beautiful?
I love my wedding dress!

What is your favorite type of yarn?
??? I don't knit

Do you prefer zippers or buttons? zippers are definitely easier but I like the look of buttons better

More cute dress finds :)

I found a few more bridal shower dress options...what do you think?


This is a cute dress from GAP!


Here are 4 dresses from Banana Republic that I like as well:

The great search for bridal shower dresses...

I have been looking for cute new dresses to wear to my showers and have come up a bit empty-handed. Usually, I have no problem finding about a dozen dresses at Ann Taylor but this year nothing has really struck me. I want to go with some bright fun colors (--so dresses from the black and white store won't work). I went shopping with my friend, Julie, and we found my rehearsal dinner dress (see picture above). I tried on a JCrew dress that Julie has and I liked it--so it is definitely a contender. (see below)


I saw this dress featured on TODAY yesterday morning and I might look into getting this one....what do you think? Can anyone recommend anywhere to get some fun dresses for showers?


This dress is on mega sale and I LOVE it! It's from this website CK Bradley. I hadn't ever heard of it, but they have some cute stuff....if you get it on sale, the price tag isn't too horrible. What do you think? The only drawback is the color since it so closely resembles my rehearsal dinner dress.

The Church

Michael and I are getting married at Brainerd United Methodist Church in Chattanooga, TN. It just so happens that his parents were married there too! It is a really beautiful church!! Here are some pictures I have of the church!!!

On My Way To Toned Arms!

I have to let you all in on a little secret...its my new arm workout (in hopes of slimming down my flabby arms). My co-worker, Lauren, showed it to me and let me tell you...WOW! I think I can already tell it is going to work. She calls it 3 sets of TWENTY-ONES. This is what you do:
Take some small hand weights (I am starting at 3 lbs and working my way to 5 lbs--I may go for 7 if I feel the need) --another hint, bring them to work with you if you have a desk job. THEY ARE GREAT WHENEVER I TAKE MY EYE BREAK FROM STARING AT THE SCREEN
Do your basic bicep curls--except only bring them half way up (to a 90 degree angle) and back down. Do this 7x
Then, start out at the half way point (arms at a 90 degree angle) and bring them up for the "rest" of the bicep curl. Do this 7x (start at 90 and bring them up to the full curl).
Then do a full bicep curl 7x.
That completes your first SET of TWENTY-ONES. Do this 3 times... TRUST ME, you will feel the burn. Lauren tells me I will start to see the difference in a matter of a few weeks! I am so excited.

This area was the one area that I decided to focus on prepping for the wedding :) I think I am on my way.
I did 3 sets of TWENTY-ONES twice today to make up for missing yesterday.

Check out our wedding photographer's blog!

Michael and I are on our wedding photographer's blog from our engagement session. Check it out!!!

Waldorf Photographic Art

Wedding Jewelry

You have all heard the SOMETHING OLD SOMETHING NEW SOMETHING BORROWED SOMETHING BLUE AND A SIX PENCE (or penny) FOR HER SHOE.

Something old: I have that one covered. I am using my grandmothers (now my mom has it) brooch and attaching it to my bouquet on the stems.

Something new: I suppose my dress, shoes, my earrings, and my new bracelet that I am having made. I saw a blog post on STYLE ME PRETTY with a beautiful bracelet.

This particular wedding that they were highlighting was in the middle of the winter so the bride's bracelet had a snowflake brooch. Obviously with an August wedding, that wouldn't exactly work, but I liked the idea of a rhinestone brooch and a multi-strand pearl bracelet--so I did some digging. As it turns out, this bride had the bracelet custom made. I found out that it was custom designed & made by the amazingly talented Christa Baker (starliftrc141@aol.com). I have since contacted Christa and she will be making my bracelet. We are both in search of the perfect brooch to use!!!
I saw these other MEGA expensive bracelets (they were almost $300 and the pearls nor the diamonds were real). They weren't exactly in my price range but they provide a nice inspiration.


Snowflake bracelet picture: Rachel Trigueiro
Other bracelets: Haute Bride

Something borrowed: My mother's pearl necklace.

Something blue: I am working on that one still. I think I might wear my sapphire ring and also go to the embroidery shop and get a piece of fabric embroidered with (blue thread) Michael and Meredith Crawford (or our monogram) and our wedding date (August 2, 2008) and have it sewn in my dress on the underside of the skirt.

and A SIX PENCE FOR HER SHOE: My aunt Wendy went to London for Christmas this past year and brought me back a British penny for my wedding day to bring me luck. This will be perfect! Its really shiny too!

Bridesmaid dresses are in :)

My mom was planning on going and getting them today--since she has time. I will see my mom the first weekend of April and I will get the dresses then from her to give to Lesli, Jennie, Christie, and Rachel. (I can also have my mom mail the dress to you if you would like)

Emily, you can either get the dress from my mom since you live sort of near there now or you can wait and get it from me later. Her phone number is 703-304-7658. Her email address is kkmiec@cox.net

Lindsey, you can get the dress from my mom since you live so close.

Melissa, Lara, and Marsha, you can get the dress from (my) mom next time you are in VA or we can mail it to you. Let us know which would be better for you.

If you ONLY paid a deposit on your dress, PLEASE CALL AND HAVE THEM RUN YOUR CREDIT CARD for the balance. (please try to do this today if possible)

ALTERATIONS:
Those of you who live in and around the Northern VA area are more than welcome to go to Rosalin's for alterations. I have the name of someone who will do alterations in Knoxville if you are interested. (just a reminder: you should wait to get alterations until you have your shoes to try on with it)

I think that's it! I am so excited they came in early!!!!!

is this thing working?

i have been having technical issues with blogspot......

The "to-do" list

Some of you (for whatever reason) think everything is almost done for the wedding....but unfortunately, I have 6 pages of a to-do list......I worked on it last night--combining items recommended by theknot.com, my friend Julie (and fellow bride-to-be), and from my wedding planner file/book. YIKES!!! I have 8 items to complete for this weekend. Wish me luck!!!