We have chosen a photographer! Thanks to an amazing referral from Sarah Elizabeth, I’m happy to announce that Daniel Meigs will be capturing all the amazing moments of our June wedding. Here’s a sneak peak at some of his incredible work:

To see more of Daniel’s lovely photos, go to http://danielmeigsweddings.com/

Or check out his blog – Wetsuit Waffle – at http://danielmeigs.blogspot.com/

Yayyy! Check photography off the list! So excited to work with Daniel. Thanks again Sarah!

When I was in New Orleans a few weekends ago, I got to see so many neat things!

As my parents and I walked through the French Quarter, I kept seeing neat little window advertisements for this place called Fleur de Paris. I HAD to check it out.

Once we found it, I walked into the boutique and realized I could be there for hours trying on all the pretties on display. Chic hats, intricately beaded purses, gowns to die for and a multitude of amazing accessories. (I’m sure it was probably a nightmare for my Dad. Hehe.)

Again, if I were a New Orleans bride, I would TOTALLY shop there for me and/or my (soon-to-be notified and announced) bridesmaids.

I walked in with my camera, but walked out without taking a single photo. Ugh. I always do this. Sorry folks!

Philip and I enjoyed tonight’s Bridal Gala in Mt. Juliet. Austin of Last Minute Planners rounded up all kinds of local vendors and really put together a great show.

Upon walking into the Gala, we were greeted by THE Ashley of AshleysBrideGuide. (I’ve previously professed my love for Ashley and her AMAZING blog!) Thanks to her, we really got the VIP treatment. A week or so ago she asked me to submit my wedding colors to her so they could create a signature drink for us based on our chosen colors.

As for now, the colors are royal purple and a baby mint green – which inspired them to create a tasty pomengranate citrus concoction.

After enjoying my signature drink “The Krista”, we had a delightful conversation with Liza of Maiden to Married (my bridal coach – more on Liza coming soon!) and Marie of Nashville Marriage Studio. Not only are these ladies fun, they both offer services that are extremely helpful to today’s engaged couples/newlyweds. Check out their websites to learn more about what they offer.

We also ran into The Future Mrs. Smith and Louise aka The Thirty-Something Bride.

I really enjoyed the first annual Elegance Bridal Gala and am looking forward to going through all of the great info I received from it.

Oh, one more thing. Thanks to Liza, I was involved with the news clip our local Channel 5 aired for the gala. Click here to head over to Liza’s site and watch the full clip. Here’s a screen shot. I know. It’s the back of my head, but that’s the best I could get at this time of night.

I have a special announcement! I’m getting married in my mother’s wedding gown!

My parents' wedding - August 1974

In August of 1974, she married my father in a very stylish gown she hand stitched herself. Since that day, it has been sealed in an airtight storage box that had remained unopened for the last 35 years – until this week. When we took it out of the box on Monday afternoon, it was just as beautiful and perfect as I imagined it was on her the day she walked down the aisle.

As gorgeous as the dress is, it is dated. With the help of my local fashion designer/seamstress friend Sarah, however, we’re going to bring it from 1974 to 2010 in no time. After discussing my vision of how we could update the dress, we brainstormed for a bit and she put together a lovely little sketch that illustrated the updated style and elegance I’m looking for. More on this later! YAY!

Our wedding date and location are confirmed!

Philip and I will exchange vows on June 12, 2010 at our church home, Journey Church (aka Building 8) at The Factory in Franklin, TN.

Journey is the perfect venue for the unique, warm atmosphere we’re looking for for our wedding day. Here’s a little peek of a few other weddings that have taken place at Journey. (Just to give you a glimpse of the space.)

Before:

After:

I love the wrought iron candle decor. They use these each Sunday at church, so I’m pretty sure we’ll get to use these too.

I’m thinking deep royal purple and baby mint green for my colors. I think these colors will look beautiful in this space. Thoughts?

Seriously Ashley. Where have you been my whole life?

When I was in junior high, I’m pretty sure I could’ve used an Ashley’s Style Guide. When I started dating, I totally could’ve used an Ashley’s Guy Guide.

All I can say is…I’m sooo thankful I’ve found you and your Bride Guide to help me prepare and plan for our wedding.

Ladies, whether you’re located in the Nashville area or not, you can learn a thing or two (or three or four or more!) from Ashley’s Bride Guide.

Throughout this process I’ll be posting more ideas and inspiration I’ve found from ABG. Her site is going to be my saving grace for helping us find reputable, fabulous, affordable vendors for our big day. More on Ashley and her blog soon!

Liza, a Nashville bridal coach and top blogger over at the Official Maiden To Married Blog, just shared this video of an incredibly unique bridal party entrance. I love it!

I’ll admit. This video put a gigantic, teary-eyed smile on my face. I’m definitely showing this to Philip to see what inspiration we can draw from it.

I just finished packing up for our first trip as an engaged couple. (!)

This evening we’re flying up to Chicago to visit one of my best gal pals, Stephanie, who is also newly engaged. Her fiance proposed on July 4 on Chicago’s Navy Pier. Stephanie and I have known each other since we were competitors on rival speech teams in high school. (Speech competition is seriously intense. Not even kidding.) After we graduated, both of us were offered scholarships to be on our community college’s speech team – The SIC Forensic Falcons. (That’s me on the far left in the pink sweater.) Ever since those days back in high school, we’ve remained very close – though there are many  miles between us. I can’t wait to meet her fiance and see her gorgeous face and that beautiful ring in person.

I’m really excited about visiting bridal shops in Chicago. Philip told me that tomorrow is the “Running of the Brides” at the Filene’s Basement in Chicago. You ever heard of this? I’ve seen it before on The Today Show at the Filene’s in New York. I’m sure this event is a lot of fun and many brides probably find AMAZING deals on their wedding gowns, but I just don’t think I could do this. (I definitely won’t be participating tomorrow.)

I want my search for the perfect wedding gown to be calm, relaxing and with my mother and close lady friends – NOT with thousands of other women who are ravaging through clothing racks and swapping gowns back and forth. Seems like a neat event…but not for me.

We’re going to Wrigley Field for a Cubs game tomorrow and we’re also planning to see Blue Man Group at some point. Other than that, we plan to just do a little sightseeing and some major catching up with Stephanie and her fiance.

Stay tuned for more updates and details about our visit to Chicago! TTFN!

The Proposal

On Saturday, July 18, 2009 at approximately 5:00 p.m., my best friend asked me to be his wife. (I said yes.)

Philip and I had been talking about marriage for quite some time – particularly after my Dad started dropping some hints to me about it earlier this year. After several trips with Philip to the jewelry store, we finally found “the” setting. I chose a Verragio design and mentioned that I would like a cushion cut diamond.

Fast forward to July 10, 2009. Philip tells me to not make any plans for July 18.

“Why?” I asked.

“Because you tend to plan things a week in advance and I need you to keep that afternoon open,” he said.

The following Wednesday, he told me we were having some pictures taken on Saturday at The Factory in Franklin and that I had to be ready by 3 p.m. for him to retrieve me for our photography session. Needless to say, I was somewhat suspicious and suspecting this could be “the day”.

At 3 p.m. on said Saturday, Philip picked me up and drove us to The Factory. I asked him who was taking our pictures, but he wouldn’t tell.

Shortly after we arrived, a black Mini sped past us. Sure enough. I knew it. Our friend (and co-worker) Tony Matula was Philip’s partner in crime and the photographer responsible for our photo shoot.

After taking a bunch of funny, sweet, silly and romantic photos, Philip said there was one more photo he would like to take. (Here’s where Philip gets down on his knee and you see me making the face in the above photo.)

Down on one knee with my hand in his, the man of my dreams looked in my eyes (which were welling up with tears at this point), told me he loved me and asked me to make him the happiest man in the world by becoming his wife.

We lunged into each other’s arms and I remember telling myself to remember every little detail of this moment. Fortunately, with Tony there capturing each moment, that was taken care of.

After wiping away the tears of happiness, I touched up my makeup and we took photos with the ring. Philip was definitely thinking ahead when he planned this. These are now our engagement photos!

I’m very excited to be starting this journey “down the aisle” and look forward to sharing all of our experiences here leading up to and beyond the big day.

Thank you in advance for reading and for sharing your tips, ideas, suggestions and stories.