Better Late Than Never

I haven't posted since before Christmas, but it's with good reason- the last few weeks have been such a whirlwind! The holidays are always a super busy time, but when you throw a ring in the mix it seems like things get even more hectic. Miles and I had a wonderful Christmas and got to spend time with both his family in Texas and my family in Arkansas. We even managed to make the five hour drive from Arkansas to Oklahoma to see one of my best friends, who is the proud owner of a new adorable puppy that I just had to go see! We had a wonderful time and I wanted to show you what my favorite gift was:

Miles gave me these cute cosmetic bags with my new monogram- I love them! Interestingly enough, my initals will go from spelling "JEW" to "JEM." Upon learning this fact, I've had people inquire if I am jewish for my entire life. I think I will welcome the switch from that question to "where are the Holograms" or something of that ilk.

We've also set a date for the wedding- mark your calendars for June 18, 2010. We've knocked out a lot of items on my "To-Do before I Do" list:

• Our reception will take place in the ballroom at the Woman's City Club in Little Rock, Arkansas (http://www.jllr.org/?nd=jllr_headquarters). I'm so excited- I literally couldn't imagine getting married anywhere else but Little Rock!
• We booked an amazing violinist to play for guests before and during the ceremony. This was one of the most fun parts of planning so far. During the time Miles and I were home for Christmas, we actually had an impromptu "audition" at my grandparents house. I'd like to think the mid-afternoon concert helped spice up their afternoon as well!
• We also booked a DJ, but being the control freak that I am I couldn't sign the contract until I emailed ALL of his references and was fully assured that I could hand-pick all of the music for the reception.
• I booked an AMAZING photographer- http://lancejohnston.com/. This was high on my wedding priority list and I'm so excited we got Lance on relatively short notice!
• We also did some scouting for potential rehearsal dinner sites and have narrowed it down to several good options.

We also started a registery, which I thought would be great fun but that scanning gun actually stressed me out. It just all felt so final....Miles ended up taking control of the gun and that helped move the process along! All in all, I'm feeling good about the progress we've made so far. I've done research into a lot of the other "big" items we need to get booked (florist, caterer, etc.) so I think those things will come together fairly quickly. Stay tuned!