Small Wedding Updates

Got my nails done for the wedding. No fakes for me, these are my reals nails! :)

My goregeous, handsome boy chose his outfit for the wedding. Isn't he dashingly good looking? ;)

My tummy hurts from stress and I'm really tired. Like, all the time. Hopefully once the wedding happens it will all go away. 

My mom and grandma went with me to pick up my wedding dress. It fits and looks nice, but I'm not in love with it anymore. I haven't been for quite some time. However, there's nothing I can do about it. I paid for the dress upfront instead of putting down $100 to hold it while I looked at other stores/dresses. Bad decision on my part. As usuall. This is how my life goes. 

We were going to do bridals and  first look pictures tomorrow, but things didn't work out as planned. So now we'll just have to get bridals done with the wedding pictures. I guess it's good we're not doing bridals tomorrow because I still have no idea how I'm going to wear my hair :/

Bachelorette Party

So Monday night I received a text from my roommate Sarah (blonde) asking if I was going to stay at the apartment that night. I asked if my roommates wanted me to stay with them and she said "Ya :)" so I told her I'd be over by curfew. Around curfew I received a called from her asking what time I would be there. I could hear my roommates in the background and she was relaying to them everything I was saying. I was really confused because they seemed pretty impatient to have me get there.

When I arrived, this was what our front door looked like:

(I took this picture the next morning before I went to work.)

When I opened the door, they popped a bunch of those party popper things at me. As soon as I could look around this room, this is what I saw:

Yep, they hung bras an underwear everywhere. What I don't have a picture of is the whipped cream and condoms on the table with pizza and soda, haha.

It was so much fun and I'm super happy to have had them as roommates this semester. It's been great and I'm going to miss them a lot. They got me a lace bra & panties and some latex-free condoms since I'm allergic to latex.

Seriously, they crack me up! :)

Bridal Shower

A few weeks ago, on March 15th, Jill (my maid of honor and best friend) and Michelle (Ethan's momma) threw me a bridal shower. Three of my roommates came: Sarah (blonde), Megan, and Jacklyn. My friends Jennifer and her twin, Amber, Emily, and TatiAnna came. Julie, Pamela (Ethan's aunt), Brienna (Ethan's sister), and Tammie (Ethan's aunt) and Sandra (her exchange student from Norway) came too. It was a lot of fun! And Landon, Jill's little boy, pretty much was a hoot. He got everyone to play with him and snagged some cookie from each girl. Haha, what a cutie! We played some funny games and had some good snacks. They did such a great job :) These aren't all the pictures, just a few. Emily took some really great ones!

During one of the games.

Cookies that I believe Michelle made.

Cupcakes and Strawberries... two of my favorites!

This amazing banner that Jill made!
Which we have hanging in our bedroom now :)

Landon being a cutie with Amber.

Opening a gift.

With 10 Days Left Until the Wedding...

Whew! It's been a while since I've posted anything. Things have been so busy and stressful... and I think I've cried on Ethan's shoulder more than twice this week already. However, we have some updates to share!

1) Our Apartment

We signed a contract at University Courtyard quite some time ago. (Sometime in January.) We paid the deposit and were all set to go. Our planned move in date was April 18, just one day shy of a week from our wedding. This meant we'd have to stay in a hotel or somewhere else for 6 days and that we were going to have to spend a lot of money on something that wasn't even going to be our actual honeymoon. We were bummed, but what can you do? Not much to change the situation, that's for sure. Well, last week while I was in my interview with the Stake Presidency for my full temple recommend, Ethan received a phone call from the UCoutyard manager. An apartment had opened up early. We could move our stuff in as early as April 2nd (today), but we'd be on the 3rd floor instead of the 2nd that Ethan had requested. As soon as my interview was over, he told me. I begged him to call her back as soon as possible to say, "Yes! We'd take it!" It took a few days to get the details settled, but we now have a 3rd floor apartment that we will be moving into on Friday, the 4th. *I will start living there as soon as the bed gets set up and Ethan will be moving his stuff in, but not living there until the 12th.*

2) Our Furniture

Until last week the only furniture we had for our apartment was a bookcase and a table. We now have a couch and a bed! The bed: I was telling a married friend of mine that we were going to go bed shopping after my endowment that Saturday because we found out we could move in the next week. (She and her husband are moving and have been selling things that they don't need. And by chance, they happened to be selling their guest bed.) She told me that if we wanted, they were selling a full size bed with the frame, box springs, two sheet sets, and a comforter for $180. Ethan practically jumped out of his skin about the price and told me to tell her, "We'll buy it!" So, now we have a bed and all the furnishings for it. The couch: Now that we had a bed squared away, we needed something to sit on. Every time we went to DI we always checked the couches but never really took it seriously because we had no way to transport one. But now that we had a bed, we decided that it was time to look seriously. We asked Ethan's parents to bring the truck when they came to my endowment so that if we found a couch, we could transport it to storage.  Low and behold, we found a really decent couch at DI for $55. It even reclines on both ends! So, now we have a couch. We plan pick up two folding chairs for our table once we're all moved in.

3) Other Marriage Details

This past Saturday, I went through the temple. It was an amazing experience. Every time someone asks, my response to "How was it?" is variations of: amazing, awesome, and "Everything just made sense!" My maid of honor and best friend, Jill was my escort. Ethan, his parents, Aunt Pamela, Grandpa Stewart, and my friend Linda all came too. I'm so grateful that they all could be there with me. It made everything that much better :) The day before I went through the temple, Ethan and I signed for our marriage license. We have it and it's 100% ready to go. We've been super excited since!

4) Wedding Dress
My dress has had some issues. Every sine they took in the shoulders, the dress needed three people in order to get it zipped up. It was okay at first, but then I started thinking about how in the world I was going to sit down in it and be comfortable. They kept telling me that they'd let it out as much as they could but I would just have to deal with it. I no longer liked my dress and I hated how I looked in it. Seriously, I looked stuffed and it was just gross to see. Ethan's mom came with me to see what she could have them do with it to make it better. She had them order a panel to make it a corset back instead of a zipper. Apparently there were some gaps in the back that I couldn't see and she wasn't too happy with it. (And well, neither am I, but like I said, I couldn't see them... no eyes behind me haha.) I received a call this morning that the panel and corset back have been put in. I try it on again tomorrow at 1:30 pm. Hopefully it fits well and I'm happy with it.

Also... my mom and grandma will be here in 6 days!!!

Cake Topper

Today our cake topper arrived in the mail!

Here it is:

We might be adding a wire 'Stewart' to the front, if it fits and if our adhesive for it works.

First Week of March Update

I had my third fitting today to mark the hem and double check the side seams and sleeve alterations. Ethan's vest came in last week and he wore it to the temple last Saturday. He looks pretty dashing in it.

Ethan has been sealing and I have been addressing invitations like crazy the past few days. We will have them all out this week--Monday and Tuesday. Ethan is still trying to gather a couple more addresses, I think.

I found a temple dress at DI today. It's gorgeous! It's a silky fabric with a kind of paisley, but not, print and a lace front piece. For $6, I couldn't pass up such a pretty dress. It will need to be hemmed a few inches though... darn my short legs!

Jill (the maid of honor) ordered her maternity dress today. She's pretty darn excited about it and I am too! And speaking of things being ordered, Ethan ordered our cake topper last weekend. It hasn't come yet, but we're anxiously checking the mail every day for it. Also, I ordered some beads to make the bridesmaids a necklace and/or bracelet (it depends on how big the beads end up being and such). I also ordered rose earrings for each girl, they are peach and coral (there were two sets on one card, so two girls will have coral and two girls will have peach). It's okay because the colors the stores have are mostly only peach or pink so our colors have become navy, coral, and peach basically.

Ethan's family have been working on putting all our flowers together. She posted some pictures on her Facebook page. I'm super happy with them so far!

One of my best friends from home told me that she isn't going to be able to make it for the wedding, so I was down a bridesmaid. However, this evening I was talking with a good friend I made up here at school (she graduated Fall 2012) about wedding plans and she said: So if I fly in on Friday I'll be there on time? I wasn't sure if she was joking or being serious, so I just said yes. Turns out she was serious! She booked her flight tonight! I had commented to her earlier in February that I wish she was going to be here because she would have been a bridesmaid, but she lives in Nebraska.  So when I found out she was coming, I decided to ask her. She accepted, of course! So now I'm back to four bridesmaids :) Ethan's "groomsmaids" are his 3 brothers and Austin, who will be the best man.

I'm meeting with a friend that sells Mary Kay on Thursday for a wedding makeover so I can figure out how I want to do my make up. Still not sure on the hair though... I know I want it mostly down and curled. I really like the bow idea, but I'm not sure I have enough hair to do that. (Sometimes thin hair can be a pain!)

Oh. I registered for Spring semester this past Thursday and Ethan registers this coming Wednesday. It's crazy to think that it will be our first semester married!

My Spring 2014 Schedule

I think that's all the little updates we have for now. I'll be sure to post more next week.

Florida Reception

Received a phone call this morning annnnnddd...

We got it! We've got the building for the whole day!

So our Florida reception is going to be:

July 31st, 2014 5:00 to 7:00 pm in the St. Augustine/Shores Ward Building

Wedding Plans

Wedding invitations are about 85% completed. We need to seal them, put them in envelopes, and address them. (And of course put them in the mail, duh!) we will find out between now and Sunday at the latest if we can have the St. Augustine building for July 31st, so we can't seal anything until then. It's open but there's something that needs to be double checked with Bishop first. 

I have some family that wants to know what vital things we need for our apartment so here's a list:

-mattress

-bed frame

-chairs for our table

-nightstand

-end table

-love seat

-curtains

-vacuum

Things that would be nice but not necessary:

-2 end tables 

-2 nightstands

-recliner or rocking chair

-couch (only if no love seat)

We do not need:

-dresser (apt doesn't have space, tons of closet shelves)

-table

-entertainment center (again, no space)

-microwave

We're registered at Target & Wal-Mart, so there's some stuff we'd appreciate too. 

We got our personalized napkins for the reception in the mail this weekend. We also purchased the cake pans for our cake last week. (Yum!) Ethan's mom and aunt got flowers and some reception decorations over Presidents' Day weekend. (I think I mentioned that in the last post...) I have a dress fitting on Friday to determine the hem length and if the sleeve alterations fit properly. (Hope I lost weight and didn't gain any!!!!!) Ethan's vest came in. We haven't seen it yet though. He got a coral tie last Friday for $12 and seems to really like it.

I'm planning to make the bridesmaids necklaces when I get my next paycheck. Something simple yet classy. I told Ethan to get the boys candy bars hahaha. I haven't heard about groomsmen gifts so I don't know if he will, but it sounded fun. 

I'm torn about hair styles. I asked Michelle to do the cool bow thing but I also accidentally discovered a really pretty style today when I did my hair at work during a slow period. I guess I'll play with it and decide later. Hopefully soon. I need a hair cut... My split ends have split ends. Awkward! 

There's probably all sort of other wedding stuff I could list, but it's all kind of useless info for most the readers at the moment. I'll just leave it at this for now. 

Valentine's Day

Actually celebrating Valentine's Day was kind of a first for us. We've never actually "had" someone to share it with. I had told him that if we went out to dinner anywhere, we either had to go to Idaho Falls or do something the next day because I didn't want to deal with all the crowds. (With Rexburg being so small and LOTS of couples on campus, I figured it'd be ridiculous.) As it turned out, Valentine's was on a three day weekend, so we decided to go home to Dubois instead.

Original plans were to eat dinner at the cafe there because I hadn't been and it sounded kinda romantic (at least to me anyways, I don't know what he thought of it), but mostly because that's really all there is besides the gas station and home. Our plans changed when we found out that Aunt Pamela and his mom were going to be in IF and wanted to do a little wedding shopping (reception stuff.) So we met up with them at Wal-Mart, went to Michael's and Zurcher's. (We got several flowers to start working with and our guest book thing {it's not a traditional book} and later ordered some decorations.)

On our way to the Wal-Mart near I-15, we passed Buffalo Wild Wings. Ethan decided that's where we should go for dinner, which I was absolutely okay with! So Aunt Pamela, his mom, and little sister headed back to Dubois and we went off to dinner. It was yummy and definitely not expensive! (About $16 total for the two of us... which means we are going there more often.) After that, we stopped at Sonic for dessert--a chocolate malt for me (of course!) and a cream slush for him. Then we left for Dubois.

This is the present I put together for Ethan:

When we went to WinCo last weekend, I told him I was doing a candy poster for my roommates and made him help pick out the candy... little did he know it was all for him! I'm so sneaky ;) I also got him a little pocket knife thingy. It's not high quality, but I saw it on sale and remembered him mentioning that he'd like one.

He gave me marshmallow crispy Oreos, a whiteboard calendar, a game (it's called The 5 Second Rule--so fun!), and a love letter. Mm, I love his letters! SO MUCH.

All in all, it was a pretty good day. Definitely tiring though after so much wedding planning!

The Proposal

The day before Thanksgiving one of Ethan's good friends, Dax, got married to a lovely girl named Kylie. Their wedding reception was later that night and we'd planned to go to it together, then head out to Wyoming to meet up with his family at his aunt's house the next day. But during the day, he would come to Rexburg and we'd spend all of Wednesday together since there were no classes.
A few days beforehand he texted me saying that his sister, Brienna, was going to be coming with him because she wanted to go to Dax & Kylie's reception too. I figured that would be okay because then I'd get to know her a bit before I met the rest of their family. That way I wouldn't feel so out of place or something.

Little did I know that that wasn't the main reason Brienna was coming with him.
Little did I know that the ring Ethan had ordered had come in that Monday.

The night before the day before Thanksgiving, I had put on my roommate's fake engagement ring to tease Ethan and to see what it felt like to have a ring on my finger all the time. I joked with him about wearing it to the reception.

Little did I know he was trying with almost all his might to keep his lips sealed about the real thing.

When he arrived Wednesday afternoon, I answered the door brushing my teeth. Goodness, if I'd know what was in store later, I would have maybe been wearing make up and a cuter outfit. But, brushing my teeth seems like an okay thing to do while answering the door, right? Ha. Anyways, he kept fidgeting with his pocket and at first I was a bit confused because it was weird, but then I wrote it off as twisted garments or being OCD about making sure he had his car keys or something, anything not engagement ring related. After about 20 minutes, he pulls out a brand new deck of cards, saying his parents said he could bring them to play with Brienna and me while we were here. I remember sassing him because I had a deck of cards. A cool deck of cards with Disney Cruise ships on them. He just shrugged and told me, "Oh well. I forgot."

He asked me THREE different times to play cards, but I turned him down every time. Meanwhile, Brienna was just sitting on the other couch playing on her iPod. I thought that was a bit weird, but I wrote it off as her feeling awkward or like a third wheel.

Little did I know she was prepping to take pictures.

Finally, I gave in and played cards with him. He suggested War, but then decided against it because it "would take too long." I had half a mind to remind him that we had hours before the reception, but somehow I kept my sass to myself.

Little did I know that he was just worried a special card would be played face down instead of face up.

He settled on Slap Jack because he had previously been "scarred" from playing Egyptian Rat Screw with my friend, Alyssa, at her birthday gathering.

Here is where I remind you that the deck was brand new, as in never been opened before and sealed in shrink wrap.

He unwrapped the cards and dealt them. We played for a bit and I kept losing because I wasn't paying attention. (I really wasn't in the mood for playing Slap Jack...) Then all of a sudden this Queen showed up. It had writing on it, which confused me because I watched him unwrap the deck of cards. I feel like I took forever to try and figure out how it had writing on it, but it was probably only a millisecond or two. Once I got over the fact that it was a new deck, I tried to read the message. Still in a confused "how in the world is there writing on a new card?!" daze, I read: You are the queen of my heart. Will you marry me?

I'm pretty sure I sat there forever, just staring at the card, trying to figure out what was going on. The idea that he was teasing me because we both knew he was going to propose to me and that the ring was on its way, passed through my mind. After a few more years, okay, probably milliseconds again, it hit me. I was being proposed to! This was it. It was happening right then. Right here in my apartment living room.

 I looked over at him as he got up, got down on one knee and verbally asked me to marry him. Again, I was still in a daze, this time it was a "but the ring isn't even here yet!!!" daze, so when he pulled the little white gold treasure out of his pocket, I immediately reached for it. I mean, actually tried to take it out of his hand to look at it. I guess, to make sure it was really there, really real, and that I wasn't going crazy? Thankfully, he held that baby with a tight grip. He looked at me and that's when I realized I was supposed to say something. Then it really hit me. The word, "Yes!" flew out of my mouth... apparently so fast that I actually don't remember even saying ANYTHING AT ALL. But he tells me every time I ask, that I did say "yes." Phew! Haha.

Then he put the ring on my finger and suggested we go celebrate with Jamba Juice.
And... Arby's. He was hungry.