Weekend Recap

Happy April, all! April is one of my favorite months and I'm so glad we're here. 

This weekend was a big one...I said yes to my wedding dress. :) Crazy day because I wasn't totally expecting to say yes to it (I knew I would be trying it on—more on that later) but I think I also kind of knew I would. Let's recap, shall we?

FRIDAY

Friday night I came home and made a quick dinner for Sammy. I was feeling a bowl of cereal (so I would have room for snacks later) so I had that after he had come and gone. I have a feeling I did a few things around the house but I'm thinking I actually did not but also I can't remember because I'm 100 so let's say I did so I can sound productive.

After all that productivity, I sat down with my current favorite snack (Triscuits and pepper jack cheese) and watched Pretty Woman until I felt like calling it a night and heading upstairs.

Henry and I cleaned up ;) which is always a production since I blow dry his hair like the Queen he is. After he was mostly dry, we were both tired out so we went right to sleep.

SATURDAY

A family friend who lives in CL stopped by Saturday morning because she had seen Sammy on the front page of the local paper and saved it because she wanted us to have a copy. She stayed for about an hour, we had some coffee and I gave her a tour of the house. She brought two toys for Henry and white roses for me which was so thoughtful of her.

After she left, I got ready (a.k.a. I threw on my Le Bride shirt) and waited for Chelsie to pick me up for my wedding dress shopping appointment. 

It was a super fun appointment. The store was full when we got there but cleared out pretty quickly after and my consultant (who I'm now friends with on Instagram because I'm a creep) didn't have another appointment until 4:30, so we had a longer appointment than they normally schedule for which was awesome.

The last time I was at this store (Simply Luxe in Algonquin if you're local), my consultant told me they had the dress I tried on and LOVED at Kleinfeld in-store at their other location. She pulled that dress and a few others to bring to their Algonquin location so I'd be able to try it on and compare with the dress that was the top runner from my last appointment.

I tried on the Kleinfeld dress over and over again because I kept wanting to compare it to other dresses they were putting me in or ones I liked. And, turns out... it just doesn't compare. Which is why I said yes to the dress. 

It's such an odd experience actually and I think I had a hard time saying "yes" not because of the dress itself but because it's an odd thing to be done with! It's weird to think about your dress you whole life and suddenly that process is over. It's amazing but also surreal. Plus I loved trying on dresses so I'm disappointed that's done haha. But I keep reminding myself I have a bunch of other wedding-related events to buy outfits for ;)

Not going to post the actual dress here but here's a wild card my consultant pulled just for fun :) my mom and I both said it's weird I'm not drawn to dresses like this for my wedding look because this is exactlyyyy what I would have picked as a kid. I loved dresses like this. I said I wanted to take this home and wear it around the house ;) and my future MIL started crying as soon as I stepped out in this haha. She was like, "I know this isn't what you want...but it's so beautiful!" hahaha.

It was a really fun day and I'm so glad I got to have my entourage with me (just missing my sister!). At the last minute, my SIL decided to bring our niece and it was fun to have her there too. She kept walking under my veil and looking at herself in the mirror which was so sweet.

I didn't cry which I'm not surprised by. I'm incredibly emotional (like, really, I sob during car commercials) but I reserve it for when I'm alone. I'm not a big heart on my sleeve in public kind of gal. And then everyone clapped when I said "yes" and I was like OKAY time to wrap it up haha. 

I was with Chelsie when she said yes to her wedding dress and I could cry (see, told you!) thinking about how happy I am she was with me when I said yes to mine.

I have individual pictures with my mom and grandma (I wish I had taken them with my MIL and SIL but there's so much going on when you're standing around in a dress and the consultants want to measure you and fill out paperwork and all that and I totally forgot) but I'm wearing the dress so I don't want to post it here. But they're so special to me and I'm glad my MIL offered to take them because I would have forgotten haha. My grandma lost her mind over being able to be with me for this experience and I'm so glad she enjoyed it and was here with me for such an important bridal moment.

The store has a "family tree" where you write your names on a tag and hang it on there if you buy your dress from them. It's really pretty to see when you first walk in and a fun aspect to the buying process.

My mom, grandma, and I went to the Thai place around the corner that we love to grab something to eat and when I was in the bathroom, I saw a dime on the toilet paper holder which means nothing without any context haha. Without going into the entire story, my family believes when you see a dime somewhere, it's a sign from someone who has passed away that they're with you. So I took it as a sign that my papa was with me during this process. He loved watching SYTTD with me when I was younger, so I know he would have loved going shopping with me haha. He's the only man I would have taken with. I definitely wish he could have physically been there but I loved getting this sign that he was there, in his own way.

I got my beloved Thai chicken fried rice and wonton soup and had fun sitting at the table with my mom and grandma talking about the whole experience. I sent pictures to my brother, dad, cousins, other bridesmaids, Sammy's aunts, my uncles, etc., like a NUT but I was excited to share my pick with people :) It was so fun to read everyone's responses to my mom and grandma.

Perhaps my favorite reaction from Sammy's cousin. She's only a few years older than me but I truly look up to her in every way so this meant a lot to me. 

My mom and I ran into Old Navy after our early dinner so I could return something and check out the sale they had going on. Didn't find anything which was kind of disappointing but happy I didn't spend any money haha. 

Before heading home, they came to my house to see Henry and so my mom could see my engagement photo dress because I wanted to ask her about how we can tack the front of it (it seems to be an even lower V neck than I thought it would be). It's a wrap dress, so it can't be stitched prior to putting it on but I wasn't sure it was something we could alter the day-of, so I needed her opinion. I really like the dress so I'm glad we found a solution.

After they left, I parked it on the couch for the rest of the night. My legs were killing me from standing in the same position all day long, especially since the dresses were tight and didn't fit me. Totally killed my circulation. Sammy and I watched some TV together when he came home and then we hightailed it upstairs to bed. I always think I'm going to stay up SO late on the weekends since I don't have to be up early the next morning, but that's never the case haha. 

SUNDAY

I initially had the entire day on Sunday full of plans but they all got canceled and rescheduled for various reasons and I can't say I was disappointed (definitely wanted to see people but always happy to have a day to relax at home). 

I cleaned the entire first floor and then Sammy vacuumed the second floor and both staircases. And then I turned the HP movie marathon on TV while looking through a pile of wedding magazines. The bridal store gave me a big one and I wanted to go through it quickly otherwise it'll just sit collecting dust. My mom recently got me a subscription to Brides and I LOVE this magazine. Every time I Google something wedding-related, I always end up clicking on and/or referencing a Brides article. So I love that I'll be receiving it throughout the next year.

I made us an early dinner of chili and cornbread muffins. I usually make it with pasta but in an attempt to curb some carbs (since I insist on having them in every meal anyway), I thought I'd have mine with mashed cauliflower as a makeshift, wannabe carb. NOT the same. Never the same. Chili was good though ;) And Sammy acts like me making cornbread muffins from scratch is the most amazing thing I've ever done so I always enjoy making those if they're going to get that kind of reaction.

I lounged around the rest of the night, not doing much other than channel flipping and Instagram dark-holing. Henry was a bit of a nut, so we went upstairs a little earlier than usual cause I interpreted it as him being tired and just acting out.

He insisted on bringing the dishtowel he steals all day long from the kitchen on his nightly trip to the bathroom *eye roll* (we did not bring this with us, btw)

And then I painted my nails in bed (and was quickly reminded why I rarely do my own nails anymore—truly not one of my talents) while watching Monster-in-Law on Netflix before calling it a night.

It was a GOOD weekend. Another perfect mix of being productive and relaxed which was a nice way to end the month as almost every weekend day in April is filled on our calendar. Will definitely have to work some relaxation time in there anyway.

Hope everyone had a fun weekend! Hope the temps are climbing wherever you are. xo