Clouds of Doom and No Worries

It’s been over a month now that Adam and I have been home from the honeymoon. The wedding planning is over but the gray wedding cloud of doom is still hovering. I’m still working on thank you notes (my apologies everyone) and now I'm having wedding re-do nightmares. Don’t get me wrong I loved our wedding and had such a great time, but I would hate to go through that all over again. I’m married, happy, and ready to face different challenges. So please nightmares go away!

I’m willing to share some wedding day secrets that might give some cause for my nightmares. The day of I woke up with no voice. I’m wasn't squeaky or a little hoarse I was mute. I whispered our vows. I broke out in hives that all of my bridesmaids noticed but ignored until my brother walked in and freaked out, thus making me aware of my rosy complexion. Thank you for the fix dear allergy meds.

The wedding cake: My dad’s friend knew a woman who was supposedly great with cakes. I saw pictures of her work and was thrilled though I knew the situation was risky. Months before the wedding I sent her a “mock up” of a cake and she agreed to the job. A few days before the wedding she called to hash out some details, which made me a little nervous. Needless to say, we never heard from her again. My angel of an aunt got on the phone and called around and found that Publix was capable of making a cake just in time for our big day. It wasn’t a Knot.com winner, but it did the job and was delicious.

My hair was white until my God send of a groomsmen’s-wife-and-personal-friend –Erin ran in and literally scraped out the serious layers of “freeze” hairspray that the hairdresser recklessly applied. Not to mention the terrible do’s my bridesmaids got that Erin also remarkably fixed. Daytona’s award winning hair salon full of honey selling hippies was a bust though their honey did help my voice.

But the worst part of our day was the non-existent paid wedding coordinator. I mean, he was there to tell us when to walk for the ceremony after not coming to our rehearsal to tell us how it worked and not making sure that he used the rehearsal dinner decorations we put together and delivered, nor was he there to tell us where our “big exit” should be. Oh Hilton on Daytona Beach do I have words for you. No worries though, my complaints will be on every brides website within the month.

While this post is full of serious negativity none of these problems sunk in that day for me. I never cared that I didn’t have a voice. I didn’t care that my hair was white and big deal if I had an allergic reaction. No cake, well then change the saying to “Let them eat store bought ice cream!” I didn’t care because all that mattered was that I married my best friend that day. Unfortunately for the Hilton, I care now buddies.

Kate Spade and Snuggies

Is it just me or is registering for a wedding one of the most awkward and stressful activities on a wedding to-do list? There’s nothing like making a list of a thousand different things that you both need and love at any price range and at your favorite stores. It’s so awkward expecting people to go to these said stores (mine are Target and Macy’s by the way) and expecting your guests to get you what you’ve asked for.

There are so many wedding registry “taboos” too you have to watch out for. I mean, you don’t want to be like your second cousins goofy fiancé who put ten thousand video games on the list, but you do what your guests to buy things that you and your husband can enjoy together. You also don’t want to put on an ironing board, hangers, or rubber-maids on the list but they are items that you need. You do however want to make sure that your guests can tell that you let your fiancé have some fun with this project and you aren't a control freak. So, you allow your fiancé to add “snuggies” to the list and 30 giant dodge balls, but you spend the next few months praying no one actually buys them.

It’s such a stressful process! Especially if you drag your fiancé into Target and spend half a day picking out items that you need and come in two months later to find out that your list has been deleted!! That’s when I called my mom. I went to Florida and my mom and I went down every aisle at Macy’s (I had to fix Target’s by myself) and picked out even the obnoxious stuff because my mom is so supportive. She even convinced me that it’s okay to add a set of china even though I wasn't planning on it because I absolutely loved it. (I did, see above)

Most of the “awkwardness” from the project stems from the fact that you cannot wait to get the blue pillows (Target registry) for your living room and the fluffy white towels (Macy’s) or the plastic dishes for patio parties (Macy’s). I can’t pretend to think that I’ll get everything on my list from my luggage (it’s beautiful-Macy’s) to the steamer I added for Adam’s suits. I just hope that no one judges me for what I’ve asked for or hates my style.

In the end I have to remember if I didn’t have this registry most of my guests would feel more awkward buying me presents they weren’t sure I would like than I felt awkward by telling them what to get me.

Public notice: Our registry for Target is different online than it is in the store. One more frustration added to the process... At least my complaint with this is legitimate.

Lights and Dishes

Adam and I are having a “Creating Good Habits” week. You can tell I’m a teacher in the making when I theme my weeks for myself and even my fiancé. As most of you know, Adam is already living in the house we will be living in when we’re married and I spend the majority of my time there too. With this, we have already started to see how easy it is for us to make big messes in one night that I have to spend the whole next day cleaning.

After several hours of cleaning up dinner, the popcorn bowls, the cups in the living room, the homework books, paper, pens, game controllers, vacuuming the ants that got into the popcorn we left out, etc. I decided we needed a change before I’m living here too. So I went through the house room by room making a list of the little bad things we always do that need to end.

Some of the new ‘habits’ or chores were easy. I simply asked Adam to make sure to put his dirty laundry in the basket or to actually put the new toilet paper on the hanger, not just on the counter. Some of it was a little obsessive, like asking Adam to put all of his empty hangers to the right of the closet so it doesn’t take me two extra minutes to find empty hangers when I do his laundry. But the majority of the list was necessity; leaving lights on in rooms we aren’t in, leaving cabinet doors open (Yes Mom, I still do that), keeping an eye on how many dishes we use each day, and the list goes on.

It might be obnoxious that I’m thinking if we can learn how to fix these little bad habits now, our life together will be easier later when we have bigger things to worry about. I don’t think I’m crazy at all for it though. Next year we will both be in school full time and working full time. I won’t have the opportunity to thoroughly clean up our house like I have the time to clean his house now.

In Adam’s defense I have come over this week and his bed has been made and the house looks pretty good. Now I’m forced to face homework and wedding obligations because I don’t have cleaning as an excuse to avoid them. So here goes a week of building good habits. Wish us luck!

Next week “Good Money Habits”... Or maybe I’ll put that one on hold for a while?