they say the first anniversary gift is paper

amy and ian had coffee, fell in love, and got married.  and they lived happily ever after.

...that my dad always knew the value of a good map.  because my directional sense is...challenged... and occasionally i get lost in my own neighborhood , back in the day i relied on these really cool laminated fold out maps of orange county to get me where i needed to be.  they stayed in the back of my car, unloved, until last month when i used them for an anniversary project.  thanks to these tutorials, i got my craft on and am pretty pleased with how it turned out.  i should have used darker ink, but each map shows the exact location of significant relationship events. 

my inner mushmellow smiles each time i see it.  i'll love it even more after it's hung up on the wall.  my current MO is making cute stuff and then delaying deciding exactly where to put it.  i'd like to blame our strict rental rules, but i can't.  it's just me.

one year later

...for our one year wedding anniversary.  once my photographer's booty {thanks, mom} was cropped out of this picture, it became one of my favorites from our first look session.  totally owning my cliche-ness, it's hard to believe that we've been married for an entire year.  a whole year.  it seems like both a long time and no time at all.  i wish i hadn't let myself get so stressed out over our wedding, because in the end it's one day of your marriage story.  being married isn't all puppies and rainbows, but it's work in the best meaning of the word.  i'm lucky and grateful today.

{funny side note: i was reeeeeeeaaaaaalllyy looking forward to establishing an anniversary tradition of sunday brunch at our venue, since gross wedding food is a huge pet peeve of mine.  when i called to make a reservation, i learned that the foxfire grill is now a nightclub.  sad trombone.  husband decided that our marriage broke their mold and they had to shut down.}   

"a" great monogram

...for homemade monogrammed stationary.  i was on such a craft high after making valentine's for my lovelies that i decided to make one for myself, too.  what i love about this photo is that the card is made of wedding leftovers, and it's sitting atop our wedding cupcake stands.  what a diy full circle. 

blow me up

...for continuing to clothe our naked walls.  staples does these awesome inexpensive blueprint photo enlargements, so you and your loved ones can fondly remember special moments by plastering them atop your fireplace.  actually, the husband wouldn't let me hang this one above the fireplace... something about it being pretentious to have a giant photo of yourselves on display or whatnot.  we relocated it to our room instead and put a whole family picture in the living room.  i love the way this photo came out sort of old timey looking with the black and white grainy effect.  currently it's hanging out in a poster frame, but eventually i'd like to make a fun custom frame.  too bad that me trying to use a jigsaw would probably mean the loss of at least one finger. 

picture of happiness

...ummm, is it wrong that i want to spend the next 863 blog posts being thankful for our wedding photos that we are finally getting back after seven months? 

{don't answer that.  i'll just be thankful in private.  and on facebook.}

i now pronounce you not so stressed out

...that the husband and i clean up well.  back from ny last night after a looooong day (hello, 5 am) of traveling and so happy to sleep in my own bed.  seeing ron and cayley get married was beautiful, and it's been far too long (or never) since we've danced all night.  but the best part of the wedding was knowing that we never have to plan our own ceremony and reception again.  whew.   

d i yeah.

...for my first post wedding diy.  thanks to pinterest and this awesome tutorial, our engagement/ shower/ wedding cards will not be spending eternity in a shoebox in the office.  now all that mushiness is organized and ready to be relived each anniversary <3.

i take you, amy



source

...for life changing moments and wedding guests with photo skills.

my lobster

source

...for my new last name.  even though it felt like a billion little things went wrong and i turned into super bitch bride to be the last week or so (um.. sorry heather, cory, mom, bethany, dj, and justin), everything came together and we got married.  and then, we partied like it's 1999 and i finished the wedding cake for dinner.  i can't wait to look through these photos on our 50th wedding anniversary.     

rainy days and mondays

source

...that, if it has to rain on our wedding day, our photographer might be able to salvage some cute shots out of the deal.  i don't know who these people are, but they look too in love to worry about soggy shoes and wet dress hems.  i hope to channel that inner zen this weekend.   

baby, you're a star

...that i loved big sunglasses way back when.  after talking with (finally!) my wedding photographer this afternoon, i'm not convinced that his vision involves my grown up big sunglasses.  i guess that's what candids are for.  between the sunglasses and pink cardigan i'm planning for our maybe-rain wedding morning, i'm happy that my mom doesn't read the blog.  we'll save those fun surprises for the reception. 

here comes the bride



self tanner, self tanner, self tanner.  my goodness.

...for great friends and bachelorette parties which were really not bachelorette-y at all.  midnight is the latest i've stayed out in a loooooong time.  in related news, my aarp membership card should be arriving any day now. 

dessert success



i would have taken a pic of the cupake, but cameras don't belong in tummies.

...for bakeries that get it.  i've been searching for months for a bakery that could make a dairy free cupcake/ cake topper tier for my wedding, with no luck.  if you have any kind of food allergy, run, don't walk, to sensitive sweets in fountain valley.  they may not taste quite like sprinkles cupcakes, but being able to enjoy a frosted baked good without getting really sick more than compensates.  and to the lady at work who said, "just don't have dessert at the wedding," you fail.  it's my party and i'll eat if i want to.  

chapel of love

... to finally start feeling bride-y.  i wasn't originally planning on wearing a veil.  but once my mom finished it, i sort of want to wear it all around the house while singing, "going to the chapel."  please don't judge. 

it's a good thing

...to wear my somewhat dishelved diy hat once again.  i've been looking at cupcake stands online and have found some cute ones, but they were all really expensive. i found a martha stewart one @ joanne's that i liked, but it was small. and made of cardboard :(. so i made two three-tiered stands that hold 17ish cupcakes each, and a one tier stand that can hold a small top tier cake and/or extra cupcakes if needbe. i'm hoping to use them after the wedding to hold stuff; e.g. jewelry, keys, snacks.  whatever.

my pal, mickey

...for celebrity wedding well wishers.  i feel like if mickey and minnie mouse are still happily together and so obviously in love, there's hope for the rest of us.  i'm also thankful for the timeliness of their invitation response... if only my family would have rsvp'd as quickly.

a mail of a tale

...for addressed wedding invitations ready to mail out to family and friends.  and, you know, president and mrs. obama, governor and mrs. brown, and mickey and minnie mouse.  we're keeping our invite list small and intimate.

because it's rude to save seats

...for crossing off a wedding diy project.  table numbers may not be the most glamourous of matrimonial elements, but i was really happy with how these turned out.  bonus points to me for using extra wedding invites for this task.  darn you, vistaprint, for your 100 postcard minimum order.  good thing you make up for it with awesome sales.

passport to love

...for wedding related errands, especially those which bring me closer to the honeymoon and using my new soon to be last name.

a previous mugshot passport photo.  excited to travel, clearly.

wedding loveliness

...for my first wedding diy.  this relatively painless to-do makes me feel more optimistic about everything else in my wedding craftiness folder.  maybe i won't have to export those other projects to mom, after all.