12 days to go!

I cannot believe it's Monday. Where did the weekend go?!
Thank goodness it was a productive weekend. Otherwise, we'd be in much worse shape.

The week was full of DIY projects that I'm desperately trying to finish up. From mustaches for the photo booth to cupcake trials, the week was crazy. To top it off, Friday night we went to get our marriage license, so we are now officially licensed to marry! I giggled at the questions they had to ask us privately before issuing our license (no, we are not cousins, thank you very much) and then we spent an hour or so scouring stores for supplies for the baskets we're putting in the bathrooms at the wedding. At the end of that day, we were both ready for a break.

Which, we got. Thank goodness. Mr. FP and his boys gathered at our place for his bachelor party and a night of gaming. Yep, that's right. No shots, no strippers, just gaming. A whole, whole lot of gaming. That's the way Mr. FP likes it, oddly enough. He's wanted to have a huge gaming party for his bachelor party since we started talking about the idea months ago.

On Saturday, one of my beautiful bridesmaids hosted a bachelorette party for me at her apartment. She arranged for a Passion Party consultant to show up and give us a sweet presentation which involved everything from body lotion to $100+ vibrators. My favorite was the one with the pharaoh's face on it. It was so weird that I couldn't help but love it. That was followed by a game of "pin the penis on the photo of Michelangelo's David". In the end, that poor statue was left with penises on everything from his stomach to his legs. Apparently, we suck at that game.

And after our late night of debauchery, we woke up early on Sunday to drive 2 hours to meet our officiants. Since they're friends of my grandparents, we already knew a lot about them and we were really excited to meet them and to discuss our ceremony. Although they're a married couple and both are legally ordained, they decided that it would be best if just one of them officiated and we did a quick run through of the ceremony.

Even though I'd worked on the ceremony myself by compiling bits and pieces of ceremonies I found online, hearing it read out loud was an entirely different experience and I had the hardest time not crying as we sat in their dining room. This is a pretty definite indication that I am 100% screwed when it comes to the actual ceremony, haha. The idea of being able to maintain my composure and fight off the tears has been flushed down the toilet at this point. But I'm okay with that because it sounded so great coming from her.

Finally, the weekend ended with a nice drive and a trip to the cottage where things are really starting to come together. Honestly, between the yard work and the renovations on the actual structure, the cottage has never looked better. And on Wednesday, we'll be heading back up there to pick up our wedding tents from one of our neighbors who have agreed to let us rent 3 tents for $150. Compare that to the $1,000 price tag to rent one from the only local company that has wedding tents. We're extremely lucky to have such a sweet connection there.

More info on the DIY projects coming up and keep an eye out for an upcoming giveaway!

productivity

As we get closer and closer to the wedding, each weekend seems less and less like a weekend. With Mr. FP working full time, it's hard to get stuff done through the week. Especially considering the fact that he doesn't have a 9 to 5 job.

I had a small panic attack when he recently told me that his shift at work had been changed for the month of June and that he would be working 12:30 - 8:30 pm. Um, how the heck are we supposed to get anything done? was the first thing to run through my head. That was followed shortly by a mind heart attack as the concept really sank in. Thankfully, the whole ordeal ended well as he was able to find someone to switch with. I'm glad the wedding card works so well with his co-workers, otherwise I might have called his boss myself. Considering all the travel and transportation of things that needs to happen between here and the cottage before June 26th, him working until 8:30 just wasn't going to work.

So we may have avoided complete disaster, but the wedding still seems like a full time job. And when there's stuff that requires both of us, the weekends are pretty much our only option. Thankfully, we were able to make this weekend a productive one. Well, at least half of it was. Productivity wasn't really on my mind on Sunday as my mom's co-worker/family of the family threw me a bridal shower at her house. That day was full of good food, awesome people and amazing presents. We got 3 sets of dishes which we've desperately been needing since we've been using the ones my parents didn't need after they replaced their own set. They're blue and green and so, so, pretty. But not too pretty, Mr. FP reminds me. Gender neutral is key, apparently. And these are perfect. And with matching placemats, napkins, centerpiece and wine glasses, we're going to have to throw a dinner party or two sometime soon.

While I was "busy" at the shower, the boy was left to his own devices. Remember that list Mr. FP started? Well, he crossed off nearly half of the items on Sunday. Albeit, things get added every day, but it was still a big accomplishment. He was able to pick up his suit, hire a musician for the ceremony, confirm delivery for the rentals and visit with his "best lady".

But the best news of all from this weekend is that we got to see our venue! After months of being closed, the cottage was opened for the season last month. And with the amazing weather we've been having lately, things are progressing much faster as far as nature goes this year. Flowers are in full bloom and the grass is perfectly green which often doesn't happen until mid-June. We were nervous about seeing the property because, after all the rain last summer, the ground had been turned basically to mush and mud. Obviously, that wouldn't make such great conditions for a wedding ceremony, so I spent the winter praying that the ground would be solid enough for the wedding to work. Thank goodness it worked out and the ground is as solid as it should be, so we have our choice of locations for the ceremony.




{click images to enlarge}

Right now, we're debating whether or not we want to keep it closer to the cottage or right next to the beach. The beach would provide an awesome backdrop for photos, but if it's particularly sunny that day, our guests will have no shade. On the other hand, I'm worried that the area closer to the cottage won't provide enough lighting for good photos at 3 in the afternoon when the ceremony is scheduled. Clearly, that's a question for our pretty photographer, so we'll see.

For the moment though, we're just content in knowing that we won't have to sport rubber boots along with our wedding attire!