Another year...

And boy did it go by in a flash. Yesterday was my birthday. It was a great day and a fun filled weekend. I took the day off work on Friday to await the arrival of our new couch (pictures to come) and spoiled myself with a trip to the spa for a facial and much needed massage. The masseuse told me I should be coming in more often- my back was so stiff! I think it knew it was turning a year older- haha.

My sister and mom traveled up the turnpike to visit for the day on Saturday. We had some lunch at one of my favorite local pizza joints, Danny Boys. After stuffing ourselves silly we braved the beach and spent some time at Huntington Beach on Lake Erie. It was SO HOT that day and very crowded, but still lots of fun.

I started off the day yesterday (my actual birthday) as I do every year- an 8:00 AM "Celebration of Me" dance party. This year's playlist featured "What Would You Say" by DMB, Captain Zoom's Birthday song, and "In Da Club." Go shorty, it's your birthday, we gon' party like it's your birthday... The dance party woke up my husband who was trying his hardest to sleep in (despite me jumping on the bed). He resisted for a little while, but I finally got up in time to treat me to breakfast at my favorite little creperie. We ran some boring adult-like errands, sat around for awhile, and later went to see "The Time Traveler's Wife." Figured I better get him to go on my b-day when he couldn't say no to me-ha! We finished off the day with dinner at Salmon Dave's and came home to relax. He also got me some great gifts- a new rug for the family room, some cute clothes that I picked out the day before, and a gorgeous new watch (I lost my old one). I felt spoiled- and I loved every bit of it. The celebration continues at dinner tonight with the in-laws. Then I will officially be eating salad for a month to recover from this weekend- ha!

I woke up today when the alarm sounded, and realized that I can no longer live in denial that I'm in my thirties. Really, it's not so bad. Here's to another year!

A new way to spend my Sundays...

On my new couch! I am beyond excited to report that J and I went out and bought a real grown up couch yesterday! "What's the big deal? It's just a couch" you may be asking yourself? Well, to give you a bit of background, I moved in w/ J while we were engaged. He lived in the bottom floor unit of a home built in the 1920s. The place has lots of charm- built in bookcases, hardwood floors, etc. but was lacking the decor department. Because we were busy saving for and planning our wedding, I quickly moved everything from my apartment into his bachelor bad and we ended up with a mismatch mess of coffee tables, side tables, random chairs and couches, old art, etc. Worst of all was the GIGANTIC black pleather sectional circa 1985 that my dear husband got for free when he started law school. The monster (as I affectionately call it) is complete with awkward angles, sinking cushions and cracked scratchy material on two of the five cushions. HATE. IT. and refuse to sit on it. Ick.

Anyway, our initial plan was to buy a house after we got married and figured we'd hold off on buying furniture until we saved enough for a new home. Enter sucky economy. Lack of job security due to layoffs at both of our companies left us in our rental for awhile longer. We just don't want to take the leap and become homeowners until we're certain that we're going to stay put for awhile. We're somewhat okay about this decision, but we were itching to make our rental more homelike in the meantime.

So, fast forward to yesterday when we took a trip to the Arhaus clearance center and walked out 30 minutes later with a receipt for this bad boy in our hands.

Image from Arhaus

It is the Filmore Mushroom collection fitted sofa (we got it in a misty light gray/taupe color), and we scored an awesome deal on it. Because it's a clearance center, you have to act fast. This baby was in mint condition, was so comfy and I loved the neutral color that I can punch up with some colorful pillows, accent furniture, etc. Love it!

I, of course, was so excited about the new addition to our home that I scoured etsy.com for hours in search of some cute pillows.

Image source (clockwise from top): 1. Etsy seller eleen 2. Etsy seller milkandcookiesCanada 3. Etsy seller pipdesigns 4. Etsy seller milkandcookiesCanada

Four pillows later and we're on our way to some prettified family room decor! Some are just slipcovers, but you get the idea. Aren't they cute?!

Eventually we'll get a new coffee table, accent chair, etc. We're scheduled for delivery on Thursday or Friday. Can't wait! I'll post some befores and afters so you get the full effect.

For all of you married readers, what was the first big purchase that you made together?

Evan or Moxon?

I am a big fan of "So You Think You Can Dance" and was so excited to see Jeanine take the crown this year! At some point over the past few weeks, I was looking at Evan and an image of James Van Der Beek from "Varsity Blues" popped into my head. For the finale, Wade choreographed a piece for the final 4 to Lady Gaga's "Boys, Boys, Boys" and did a little football/cheerleading theme. Cute, but not really finale material IMO. The highlight though? Further confirmation that = Jonny Moxon. See for yourself... Anyone else see it?

Oh, and I couldn't let the season pass without posting this piece by Mia Michaels. Loved it!



Video from YouTube.

Can't wait for Season 6 in a few weeks!

Laudacious Wedding Recaps: The Reception- Part 1

I'm back with some more Laudacious Wedding Recaps! Seeing as how I've been away from the blog for a few weeks, and I know you're all waiting on the edge of your seats for the real fun to begin, I'm just going to skip over those fun family formal shots from the church and skip to the par-tay, okay? Here we go.

After the priest kicked us out of the church- that's right- kicked us out, we made a dash for the trolley. Folks were arriving at 5:30 for a 6 o'clock mass, and we weren't allowed to stay a minute longer to get pictures at the altar. So my groom and I got one post-ceremony shot at church and there are ZERO pictures of me by myself. But I'm not bitter with the priest or anything... Anyway, here we are running to the trolley. My bridesmaids were so cute in their Nimli wraps* helping me run in the rain.

* Some advice if you plan on ordering these. I had a really hard time getting the right color and had to exchange three times. Their color samples online are pretty off, but they will help you select the right shade if you mail in a swatch.



We made it to the reception and made another quick dash into Twelve Oaks. My wedding coordinator got me an umbrella as a gift and it definitely came in handy. Oh, if only I'd dyed my crinoline for this photo opp.



We spent a few minutes in a private room while I got fussed over as every bride should on their wedding day, right?! MOH touched up my makeup, and all the BMs helped look for those tiny little bustle loops. My gown had two layers that had to be bustled individually so all hands were on deck for that task.




In the meantime, the men relaxed with some Miller Lites in the other corner. Don't they have it easy?!



It was finally time to line up for our grand entrance. "Two Step" by Dave Matthew Band cued up and we made our way through the crowd to our head table.



After a few photos, we started off the toasts. Our best man, Tony, gave a great toast about his friendship w/ J and made us all laugh.



Then my sister gave a very memorable and touching toast that got the tears flowing. I, being the big sister that I am, was more worried about her nerves than crying so I made it through without having to touch up the eye makeup- narrow escape. haha.






My dad was up next. I am glad that we had a videographer there that day to record these toasts. Everything goes by so quickly, and I want to remember my dad's words for a long time to come...



Some final laughs...

A kiss...

and cheers to us!

Next up: Cutting the cake and our first dance.

Related Posts:
G-L-A-M-O-R-OUS
Glam - Part 2
Dress Me Up!Pre-ceremony pics
Moments before the ceremony

Saying "I Do"