Decisions are coming to a head…final details are being pulled together.

I got my custom “slippers” in the mail. I bought them off an Etsy vendor, Hydra Heart. I think that they turned out super cute…they are terribly comfortable, and its a good thing that I went with the flats, because after picking up my dress, I realized that heels aren’t really an option. The length is perfect for flats.

I think, though am not certain, that I have my hair in check as well. I got my hair trial on Sunday, and though it was not “neat” and ready to go…we definitely got the idea, and I’m excited. And while I have a birdcage veil, all ready to go…I’m not sure I’ll be wearing one. I will definitely however be wearing the flower below  from Etsy Vendor Twigs & Honey.

I have also purchased some fresh water pearl jewelry, a bracelet and some earrings…but haven’t decided if I want to wear a necklace. I think I should, but seeing as thats a focal point on me, it’s going to have to be something special. Where do you like to buy jewelry?

I HAD to share this!! Denise Yezbak Moore is giving away ALL of these beads!!! You can go and enter on her blog HERE! Head on over there and enter now!! I’d even say spread the word, though the more people enter the less chance I have to win! What are you waiting for? Why are you still here reading? ENTER!

A 7 day cruise to Mexico.

After much deliberation, threads on Facebook with many good words of wisdom, back and forths about All-inclusive resorts in Costa Rica, doing it on our own in Belize, even a 45 minute call with a booking agent today trying to sort out a trip to Hawaii…we finally made up our collective minds, and booked a cruise to Mexico.

The reasons are the following:

a) I love cruises, and Mick has never been on one

b) I love the idea of already having most of the trip payed for…with the exception of excursions and booze.

c) The cost was the deciding factor. With the debt that will no doubt follow the wedding…the last thing I want to do is drop a bunch of money we dont have on a trip that wasn’t our first choice. I believe I mentioned it before, but our original plan, Thailand, was thwarted by civil unrest in the country. Now we can save for THAT trip…maybe for our 1 year anniversary.

d) C’mon…it’s Mexico!!

We will be porting in Cabo, Mazatlan and Puerta Vallarta, and I can’t wait!

As Mick said…we have our whole life to vacation, and hit up the other locations that we had considered…this choice just makes sense now.

Soooo..Hooray for honeymoon cruises!!

(added bonus, we will also be on the cruise for my birthday. Thats twice the celebration!)

Wedding transportation has been on my mind, seeing as though I’m 1.5 months away from needing to figure out how to get from one place to another.

Let me break it down for you and maybe you can help.

1)We are getting married at Venue.

2)We are getting ready at, and staying at Hotel.

3) Hotel and Venue are 0.7 miles away from each other. Its a 4 minute drive.

Soooo…how do we get from Hotel to Venue? How do we transport the bridal party and the dudes? Do we let the guests fend for themselves? It is a hotel after all, I’m guessing that cabs are a plenty.

This is what I’m thinking, and I want an opinion as to what you see being the best option.

I can likely find a limo rental to take us from the Hotel to Venue. They can pick up the dudes or ladies (depending on who needs more time taking photos AT the Venue), drop them off, and go back to the hotel to do round 2.

But…a limo is fun, we can drink champagne, etc…but for 4 minutes? Then the 2nd round has a dirty limo? Is it even worth it? Do we just get a friend or family member to caravan us over and save the money? I’m afraid that I wont find a limo company that will rent for 1 hour, and we will likely end up paying the 2-3 hour minimum.

Do I go limo? Old-timey car that only fits a few of us? Shuttle bus that can take all the people from the hotel?

I also need to think ahead to the way back from Venue to Hotel. I think that a cab pick up is the best idea there, though i lose that cool photo of us getting into a vehicle, and waving goodbye. These are the things I’m thinking about. What would YOU do?

No real pedicabs in downtown Oakland

Maybe we hot-air balloon up out of there? (image via bridezilla)

Big red truck anyone? (image via ruffled blog)

We are getting married in Lake Merritt. Maybe we kayak it? (image by Aubin Ahrens Photography)

Too bad Oakland doesn't have a subway system (image via green-weddings.net)

Or we could just take a van...

This past weekend I went to LA to have my first bridal shower. It was thrown by 7 of my mom’s friends and 2 of my So Cal bridesmaids. It was way more fun that I could ever imagine! The shower itself was lovely. They put a lot of time and effort into it and I got to see a lot of people that I hadn’t seen in quite some time. You can check out more photos here. I didn’t have a flash going for a lot of the photos, so the background is a bit washed out…sorry.

We played games, ate some great food, and drank some champagne punch. Don’t forget the presents!! That part was pretty awesome too.

The real surprise though was after the party, when my So Cal friends, some from LA, some from my college years in SD, told Mick and I to meet them at a hotel for the remainder of our night.  We showed up to this seedy hotel on Wilshire (the not so savory part of the street), where I got some more gifts, we played dirty Pictionary, and then they revealed the events for the evening. They had rented out a karaoke room in Korea Town, just a few blocks from the hotel. Now I know that its a bit odd for a groom to be at a bridal shower. My mom’s friends wanted to meet him before the wedding. So it worked out that when MY friends took us out, they chose an activitiy that is totally up his alley.

I had never done private karaoke, and to be honest…I don’t think I want to do it any other way from here on out. It was absolutely ridiculous. My friends brought a costume bag, we picked the best/worst songs to sing, ordered some bottle service, and just sang our lil hearts out. You can see the whole set of photos here. I like to sing Careless Whisper by Wham everytime I do karaoke…Whats your jam?

Singing one of Mick's jams...Almost Paradise.

Everyone gave themselves mustaches....not as permanent as ours.

At least I felt like I was there only a minute. Last week I went on my first “business” trip. I use the word business lightly, because while it was for work, and for a client, I got to fly to New York to hang out with a Bridal Blogger, and do a media tour discussing how to do a wedding on a budget.

We went on behalf of  RetailMeNot.com, and she got to speak with 27 different stations talking about her tips for saving money on your wedding day, one of them of course being to look for online coupons. And after talking about everything that I’ve been obsessing about anyway (my wedding planning), I got to meet a good friend for lunch.  I did all of this in 2 days. I flew out of SFO Wednesday morning, and flew back Thursday night. I was exhausted, but it was super fun, and if my office ever needs to fly me out for work again…I’m game.

You should definitely check out The Budget Savvy Bride. Jessica knows her stuff, and she is super sweet and cute to boot. You can check out one of the newscasts she got to do on her blog here. You can also check out the live in-person one she got to do as well in Nashville here.

A repeat customer comes to me for Robots. I think her husband is in the robot industry…but I don’t ask questions. I just make the Wunzees, and hope the kiddos like them. These are the latest 3.

Father’s Day is steadily approaching, and I have been in the market for a gift for mine. I figured something handmade might be nice, and since I make Wunzees for infants, my handmade expertise isn’t for the right generation. I found some great handmade dad-like stuff on Etsy today, and thought I’d share my searches with you. I didn’t search a particular tag…just found stuff I thought dads would like. You can click on the image to get you to the store.

Happy Father's Day!

Personalized Grillin' Apron

Scrabble Tile Cufflinks

Star Wars Golf Club Covers

Beer gadget holder

steampunk watch

shaving kit

You all see it? Can you see the changes? Its my new blog thanks to Splendid Sparrow. Have a look around. Let me know what you think!! I still have to adjust the widget placements, and tweak some stuff…but I love it!