Location, Location, Location

As fate would have it, Lance and I finally found a venue that we both loved but the owners have a cap of 30 for wedding guests. Bummer. Now I'm back on the prowl. The sad truth, however, is that there aren't many houses that either have enough room or have enough parking or have enough privacy/yard area. I've found a couple more houses that we can look at and I'm sure that we will find something that we both love and can't live without. We will just have to keep our eyes and ears peeled for new rentals.

I do have to give a shout out to my mom, the Queen of Rentals. Throughout my youth, my mom's side of the family has taken annual beach trips. This is no easy feat when you consider my mom is one of eight siblings. When you add in spouses and/or children the number of beds significantly increases. My mom and her sisters are the searchers and coordinators for the beach house rental. Some of the houses they have found were phenomenal. Thankfully, my mom has been helping me house hunt for the wedding. Even more surprising is her enthusiasm in the search. I'm hoping her house-hunting powers will help us find the perfect place but I'm exceptionally grateful for all of the help she's given me so far.

The Dress

Honestly, I have not really imagined my wedding dress. Growing up I was more interested in picking out cake flavors than necklines. We've imagined that our wedding will be Asheville-themed which means choosing a wedding dress is more of a hassle than it probably needs to be. I want the dress to be Asheville-esque but I also want the dress to be recognizable as a wedding dress. Since we are going the charity route with our registry, I thought it would be a great idea to do the same with the dress.

Brides Against Breast Cancer is an event that allows brides to try on, and hopefully buy, thousands of dresses with all of the proceeds going towards Making Memories. Making Memories is similar to Make A Wish but for men and women losing their battle with breast cancer. The dresses are donated by designers, stores and individuals. There is an event in Raleigh in the middle of August that my mom and I are going to attend. I also invited my friend Jenna. She will be my Asheville inspiration. Hopefully, we can find the dress of my dreams while giving to a great cause.

Has anyone else gone to a BABC event? How did everything turn out? Does anybody have any other ideas for charity dress buying?

*Edit to add: If you click the header "The Dress" it will direct you to the Brides Against Breast Cancer website*

Charitable Giving

Okay, two posts in one day is a little excessive. It won't be like this all the time.

In lieu of a gift registry, Lance and I want to have a charity registry. I've spent a lot of time today looking for an online charity registry website and I haven't been able to find too much information. If anyone can point me in the right direction that would be awesome. Part of me wants to just link to the charity's website and have the guest directly donate but then we might have a hard time writing thank you notes.

Has anyone else heard of other couples doing this? Let me know what you all think.

Thanks!

It's Official!

Lance and I are official engaged! We have set a date....

October 6, 2012

It's going to be AWESOME. So far we've discussed having an Asheville/local theme and I can't be more excited. 

As of right now, our colors are going to be a combination of orange and red (I promise it's going to look awesome). 

I'm working on our wedding website where you can keep updated on the official news. This blog will feature more of the legwork behind the scenes and the hardcore decision making. 

One of our concerns is that the wedding date is during my fall break. We are trying to get as much planning done as we can prior to my return to school. 

Right now we are looking for a venue within 45 minutes of Asheville. Ultimately we would love to rent a large house with an open yard for the wedding and reception. If anyone has any suggestions please let us know!