The one where Kels tries to find a dress for the wedding (or alternate title: Kels completing her second marathon!)

Javs and I were concerned about getting out to VA that morning when we woke up. It was St Patty's Day in DC and the marathon runners were happily (okay maybe not totally happily) running around DC (blocking any reasonable escape into VA)! Little did we know, that would not be the only marathon encountered that day. . .

The Staples family + one Kelsey Bottoms set out towards Tysons to do some shopping. Mom's dress (previous post) was the priority since she was up in DC for a limited time, but we also had plans to look for Kels' dress for the wedding as well.

(If you don't remember, I have each of my maids picking their own dresses in the cream - brown spectrum for the wedding. Once they all have their dresses, I'll let you know how this works out!)

Mom ended up confirming her dress less than an hour in, at the second store we went to! (Great news!) Which marked our shift in focus to Kels' dress and queued the gun shot that announced the beginning of our marathon. . .

(despite kels' face I know this is early in the run because we're still taking pictures of both the front and back of dresses....)
We did finally find some good options at Macy's.
Look at all the pretty neutral toned dresses :)
I think this was about the time someone said how glad they were that the boys (Javs and Scottee) had decided not to join us.
Kels is a trooper, huh?


did I mention this was a marathon?

I know what you're thinking. . .and no we didn't take a picture of every dress, these were just the ones we thought were good enough to consider. (don't you love the random orange dress thrown in there - that was during my 'brown is too hard a color to find so we should switch the dresses to orange' panic)

I will be the first to admit that this was not my best day (if we're ranking days based on my level of bridezilla-ness). I was not a bridezilla in the reality TV show, demanding Kels try on certain dresses and crying when everyone isn't staring at me even though its my bridesmaid that's trying on the dress kind of way. . .more of a giving no real directions, but getting super frustrated that we weren't finding what I had decided I wanted in my head kind of way.

I really do want each of my girls to pick out their own dresses. Those of you who know me (which is everyone actually reading this blog) know that I have never been a fashionista. It was more than enough pressure picking out my own dress, no way I want to choose 3 others. And I think it would be ideal if the girls could wear their dresses again. (I know every bride says that, but I'm hoping since we're buying off the rack that it actually may be true in this case....we'll just see)

But this trip did help me realize that I do have a bit of a vision (for lack of a better word) as far as the style of dress I want the girls to wear. Seeing Kels try on all these dresses and even buy some (that's right, she bought more than one of them so we could show 'the boys' and we think she might end up keeping none of them. . .) made me realize that I probably need to provide more direction for my maids than a cream - brown dress, period. The truth is, I keep using the word 'romantic' when I try to describe the dresses I want them to wear. I want them to be pretty. We're getting married outside at a historic plantation and I want their dresses to 'go' with that (if that's even possible?) And while I really hope they can wear the dresses again, I think I'm realizing I want them to find a dress that fits the wedding (that maybe they could wear to NYE next year) not a perfect NYE dress that they could maybe make work for my wedding. Does that make sense?

Sooooooo we're still on the hunt (for Jess & Isabel too) so if you see a cream/beige/khaki/brown dress that seems pretty and maybe even romantic - please send it my way! Oh! and congratulate Kelsey on completely the less advertised, but maybe equally painful BM dress shopping marathon!

Counting Down

Let me start by saying that I am not a big 'count down' person. I am not one of those girls that starts a count down 363 days away from my bday. I never had a big count down for spring break or even graduation in college. (I do think that part of the reason for this is that I'm not terribly good with dates and probably didn't remember our graduation date until it was upon me. Even now I couldn't tell you the date that Javs and I got engaged unless I pulled up a calendar....and yesterday when talking about the wedding I said 'October 12th' - that is not our wedding day...) But this wedding count down is everywhere!

Its on our wedding website, all our registries, even my calendar at work! (alright I'm the one who added it to my calendar at work....but still!) and today marks 200. Only 200 days left until October 13th! (see I know the date)

only 200 days left....

So what have we accomplished since the day that was only 250 days until the wedding? In that post I mentioned music, florist, save the dates and my dress.

- Music - Borderline Crazy check
- Dress - gorgeous Romona Keveza check
- Florist - hmmmmmm
- Save the Date - hmmmmmm

Other things we've accomplished:

- Registries (well partially done) @ Macy's, William Sonoma & Crate & Barrel check
- Received our Engagement pics and shared them with you check
- Engagement Party check (thanks again ladies & gents!)
- UVA football schedule confirmed check (it wasn't the news we wanted, but at least now we know!)
- First (and probably only) Bridal Expo attended check
- Pie made on pie day check (it was a buttermilk pie and delicious)
- MOB dress bought check
- all but confirmed a location for Out of Town Sunday Brunch/(more catchy Name for this event to include in the out of town bags) (I wrote this really small cause its really not confirmed, but I'm feeling good about it and wanted to grow our 'accomplished' list)

Stuff that replaces the joy and excitement I feel when I see only 200 days left! with apprehension and worry:

- Confirming all addresses for Save the Dates and getting the envelopes addressed
- engagement announcement for the paper (I am doing this tonight! Mostly for our moms and Nana. Nana has reminded me that getting your engagement announcement in the paper is the best way to let people know you're engaged. . .)
- Save the Dates - We have built them and they will come (to your home, shortly...)
- Dresses for Kels, Isabel & Jess - I am not officially worried or stressed about this yet. yet.
- Any semblance of an idea for what the boys participating in the wedding will wear
- Rehearsal Dinner Locale
- Glancing at any industry provided timeline/checklist (the knot, real simple, etc - I haven't looked at one since December and I'm nervous to see what I should have accomplished by 6 months out....)
- creating a comprehensive list of stuff we have to do between now and 200 days from now and setting some reasonable deadlines

As far as the advice I provided: No, Javier and I still do not have 'wedding' devoted nights. Not even every other week. But we are trying to get better at holding each other accountable and refusing to lounge on the sofa watching Modern Family without at least putting the laptop in front of us so that it seems like we're researching our next wedding conquest. Oh well, we're getting it done slowly but surely (and sometimes more slowly).

As far as savoring the moments, I'm certainly trying to! While I am a little sad that I don't get to relive the events and decisions that have already taken place, I still have lots to look forward to! I think we're in a good stage of planning where some fun details still get to be nailed out and accomplished; center pieces, name cards, guest book, etc. Javs is still right there beside me making decisions and providing support. We both enjoyed reading some of an etiquette book that his mom gave us this past rainy Saturday. It was great to learn some tips and, while I joke that we don't spend enough time working on the wedding, we really do enjoy talking about it and getting excited at the thought of our big day. Yeah, I'd say we're savoring the moments!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rd5TJemW_iE

I've got one hot momma. And of course want her to look like one on our big day. (after all the Kolache baking she's doing for the wedding she more than deserves to look and feel good in her dress!) Since I've got my dress squared away - we felt comfortable starting the search for some other important ladies in the wedding. I was lucky enough to get to go do some shopping with my mom for her dress while down in Williamsburg and over St. Patty's day weekend while she was up in DC!

First - I should introduce you to the dress she wore for Kelsey's wedding. It. was. awesome. So much so, that The Office used it for Pam's mom in the Niagra episode (Jim & Pam's wedding).

It was great! The style was super flattering and we all loved it! (Apparently many MOBs since have loved it too b/c we found it in just about every store we went shopping in!) So we set off to find something equally as fun, but also comfortable and flattering. Mom was looking for a dress with some kind of sleeve, reasonably long and an appropriate fall color (this was the one criteria that Mom and I had trouble communicating about - I'm still not sure what a 'fall color' is but Mom identified what was not a fall color when I suggested some dresses)

We started at Binn's in Williamsburg and found a couple to try on for Javs and Dad (they were good sports and came along for our quick trip). We ended up liking two here - including this one to the left. This was actually a halter-top dress that came with this adorbable little blazer. It had sleeves, was a good length and was very flattering. Even though its pictured here in black - the sales ladies assured us that it came in some other colors as well! We also thought we'd probably remove the brooch on the neckline and Mom would do a fun necklace or something like that. YAY! Success already and still a trip to DC to come.

Spring forward (literally) and a week later we're in Tysons continuing our MOB shopping! We started in Saks and found a few dresses to try on.

We all really liked this one (right)- the color was awesome and it had a flattering fit, but mom reminded us that it didn't have sleeves. That meant she would have to wear something over it and we all agreed that would really take away from the pretty neckline and design. In the end - a no go. Kels, Dad and I also liked this one (left). It was a pretty navy color and had a fun design down the front (hard to see here but kind of layered material), but Mom once again pointed out that it was missing a substantial sleeve. So again - out. (Sorry Mom, you're making a kind of funny face in this pic, but I wanted to give the readers.....all 5 of them....a real feel for our shopping trip so I kept it in.)

I (and the sales lady) really wanted Mom to try on this next one. She said it felt like a prom dress and did a little dance to prove it. Alright, fine. It did have some tulle underneath to give it a little poof and it only came in black anyways so I guess it is also - out.

Now you remember that I mentioned we liked two dresses at our original store, Binn's. I really preferred one of them and hoped it would be the dress. Mom and I wanted Kelsey to get a chance to see it too though - so we were all SO EXCITED when we found it in Neiman Marcus at Tysons! Mom tried it on again and it became clear....

This was the one!!

Its (again) hard to see here, but the dress is a perfect navy blue color. Mom said it was comfortable and we all agreed it was fun. It has just enough ruffle to make it feminine and unique. The belt gives the whole thing a nice shape and for some reason I just love the bottom of the skirt. To boot, it met the sleeves and length qualification we were looking for! Winner all around :)

**Advice Alert** Once you find it, stop looking.

My mother and I share a lot of characteristics; we both like to cook/host, struggle with patience, care deeply about the people we love which often leads to unnecessary worrying. She, however, does a much better job with the advice I provided above. (Although she had done some shopping with my dad prior to our outings) we looked at 3 stores - she found her dress and was completely satisfied. We continued shopping that day (for another 3-4 hours are so....don't worry that post is coming) and she never seemed tempted to peruse even one more rack.

While I haven't done it with dresses (I'm still super pumped about mine!!) I've done it with other wedding stuff....venues, currently with save the dates (another post thats coming) and its certainly not helpful and probably not healthy. I haven't felt the need to continue my search for a guy once I picked him out for the wedding ;) and since he's the most important part, I can probably stop doing it for other stuff too. Once you've decided stick too it and be happy about it :) Don't waste time looking at other options - you could probably use that time to do one of the other 1238768716432 things on your wedding 'to do' list!

Its PIE day! March 14th = 3.1415926535....

Happy pie day everyone :P The wedding blogosphere is celebrating with news on folks incorporating pie into their big days. If you were to ask me, I would suggest celebrating by 1) making a delicious pie and 2) watching Waitress. (If you're not inspired to bake a pie - watch Waitress first and then, trust me, you'll want to bake a pie!)

I'm celebrating by sharing some wedding dessert news with all of you. If you haven't guessed it by now...I'm not sure what to do with you...but yes! Javs and I plan to serve up some delish pies at the wedding!

I love pie.
http://youtu.be/qXG3l4FdviU
I often walk around the house singing this song (okay just the 'pie, pie, me oh my - I love pie' part) whenever pie is mentioned. (and sometimes when its not)

Neither of us were big cake eaters as children. My bday cake has always been my favorite = chocolate pound cake. And Javs' favorite was always his Mom's poppy seed cake (now one of my favorites as well!). Neither cake had that typical cake ingredient = frosting/icing - which is where I think I find my true discomfort with cake. We're still debating if one (or both) of these cakes (or similar bundt-type cakes) may make an appearance at the wedding in addition to the pies- something to cut for our 'cake cutting,' but we know there will be pie.


Pie has it all; the sweet, always gooey filling with a salty, flaky crust. There are also savory pies: chicken pot (pictured right -Paula Deen's recipe -one of our favs!), shepherd's, minced meat, etc. When Javs and I were in Sydney (with Sandy and Ando!) we ate the most amazing meat pies from a famous pie place outside of Sydney. The Clinton's stopped to eat there on their visit (I forget the name?). And, I think the first contribution to a Cabezas dinner that I ever made was a strawberry rhubarb pie. Actually - it may be the first thing that Javs and I ever tried to cook together. It was a complete disaster. Mr Cabezas called it strawberry rhubarb soup - and that's a far more accurate name for what it was. But we ate it anyway! Pie makes me think of Thanksgiving: being wrapped up in a sweater and slightly too full, but the happiest I can be.

Its become more acceptable to serve a dessert other than cake at the reception. And if it means warm gooey, pecan goodness - then this is a trend I'm happy to jump on board with! Enjoy some pie today everyone - and we look forward to enjoying pie with you on October 13th!

Ocean - you're the winner!

Javs and I had a great weekend down in Williamsburg. In addition to celebrating the MOB's bday - we also slipped in a quick trip to Williams Sonoma for another round with Javs' new favorite toy, the scanner. (Javs resisted scanning me this time, but pointed out that it was my determination to wear stripes - that apparently mimic a bar code - when we register that tempt his people scanning habits.)

I thought we did a fairly good job on our first run and can't help but pat us on the back after this second trip (we kept it fun and avoided stressing over any of it). We're missing a lot of big things - pots and pans - that I want to register for, but its because we want to do some research before we sign up for the pots and pans that I'm sure I'll be one day cooking our 3 year old's scrambled eggs on. But there were other items that we knew we wanted from the get go; an immersion blender, waffle maker, etc. And atop that list (for me at least) was a Le Creuset Dutch Oven.

Javs and I had browsed some Le Creuset merchandise in another store while back and quickly learned that we were going to have an issue....the color. At the Le Creuset store in Bethesda we had walked around playing a mini game of 'pick your favorite' and never really matched up. I wanted the green (shocker) but it was being discontinued (we think), Javs liked the set his mom had growing up. So as we approached the display I voiced out loud, 'Uh oh, are we ever going to agree on a color?' I just couldn't let my dream of the Dutch Oven be squashed over a silly thing like color! But could I deliver my well prepared dinner with a smile if it was carried in a dish I didn't like?
Perhaps it was the scores of decisions that Javs and I have made together since that first trip to Le Creuset last summer; maybe planning the wedding has made us more open to options or in tune with each others desires; (maybe it was that there seemed to be less color options in Williams Sonoma than at the Le Creuset store...) but we walked up to the display and each picked our favorite silently and then pointed.....to the same color! OCEAN it is! And with a color finally picked we had no trouble scanning away some amazing cookware; a dutch oven, casserole dishes, ramekins, etc :)

Registering proved once again to be a ton of fun. We were relaxed about it - scanned items we decided we might end up deleting later and avoided stuff we still didn't feel comfortable putting on the list (i.e. wine glasses - haven't found ones we're happy with yet) It was also super fun having my Mom and Dad there for the walk around the store. Mom pointed out some good stuff that we missed and provided some feedback on a few items she had in her own kitchen. Dad found some amazing cook books and read out recipes that got us all excited for dinner. He and Javs also had some fun playing with the Easter decor set up as displays around the store. Here Dad is suggesting we add this bunny glassware to the registry....silly Daddy.

An Event Every Man Should Experience

Just over a month ago, I was able to attend something that I never really thought in my life I’d say I’d gone to: a bridal expo.

Now, off the bat, let me tell you that I don’t think that I ever would have paid for a ticket to a bridal show. And I’m not really sure that Audrey would have either. She was fortunate enough to have a coworker whose mother was exhibiting at the show, so they gave us 4 free tickets. Well, with two bridesmaids in town (whoop whoop, Isabel and Kelsey), the natural 4th person was me. Let’s be frank from the get-go: it’s fairly embarrassing as a man to say that you’re attending a bridal expo. There’s no hiding that, because as Aud has peppered in her posts, the wedding world is just geared toward the bride.
But I’m a guy who’s open to most experiences in life – I think I’d equally look forward to a ballet performance or a classical opera as much as a monster truck show (reader interaction: I’ve been to 2 of the above 3: leave a comment with your guess about which one I haven’t been to!) - so I was up for the no-dollar-cost experience of the bridal expo at the GMU Patriot Center.

The four of us all decided to ride together (how eco-friendly are we!), and as we were getting there decided to take guesses as to how many men we would see other than me. The first number thrown out was 10. We saw 10 before we left the parking lot. There were actually TONS of guys there. In fact, I ran into a guy I used to work with at the expo while the ladies didn’t run into anybody they knew. There was definitely the sense of insecurity at check-in, but most guys give a knowing nod and then wander through the maze of tables and exhibits to see if you can find any vendor that you might be interested in. And this is where we got totally overwhelmed.

For me personally, I felt bad for some vendors. A lot of vendors had throngs of people at their booth (note: these were largely caterers who were giving away tastes of food, or bakers with trays of cake samples), and some had none (mostly photographers and suit rental places, as far as I could tell). So I got suckered into going to talk to the lonely vendors. This is a mistake. You see, at every table, there is some kind of “10% off” or a little giveaway or add-on if you fill out a form and buy within a month, or something like that. I just wanted to talk to a poor soul and make time pass a bit. Plus I figured I’d learn about suit rental options, if that’s what we end up doing for the guys in the wedding party. So by the end of the expo I must have filled out roughly 10 forms for places like Men’s Warehouse and Jos. A Banks (but don’t worry, I think I have only gotten one call from each, so very respectable of space).

In addition to these more boring options, there were many fun exhibitors, like vacation planners for honeymoons, smoothie stations for tropics-themed weddings, and a few stationery vendors too. But best of all, Audrey, Kelsey, Isabel and I all got to try out a few photobooths! They were equipped with lots of fun accessories, as you can see here, and we were able to get a strip printed real-time. It’s certainly something that Audrey and I have on the “want” list, but might not make it through to the final cut. It’d be a lot of fun for guests, and equally fun for us to see who took photos after, but like everything else, there’s a price tag attached to it. And unfortunately we didn’t win a raffle from somebody for a free one.

All in all we didn’t end up getting anything (not even a vendor) from the expo, but the four of us did have fun getting to see all the different options and all of the excitement of engaged couples trying to wade through planning their own celebrations as well. And for all other guys who might one day be asked if they want to go along to the expo: do it! If nothing else, enjoy the free food and cake.