Getting Sealed...

Since I joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints back in August of last year, I will be coming up on my one year anniversary as a member...

Which means in about a month and a half, South County Boy and I will have the opportunity to go to the Newport Beach Temple and be sealed for all time an eternity.


For those of you who aren't familiar with the Mormon faith and our beliefs, we believe that marriage doesn't have to end at death do you part. We believe that you can be sealed for time and all eternity in the temple.

It's kind of a big to-do and as the date gets closer, i'm getting more and more excited about it. Essentially its like getting re-married all over-- without any of the drama hopefully.

SCB and I have started our preparation and scripture study classes to help prepare us for the big day and we have family coming in to town to be there for us, as well as some friends coming from church. Earlier this year we set aside $500 to help take care of some of the expense we knew would come, but now that South County Boy has a job, we have decided to contribute a few more dollars that we will cash flow out of our now happier budget (more on that on Monday).

Since SCB and I already did our formal ceremony and reception, we aren't making a big to-do, but we will be spending some money to help us make it a memorable day.

A friend of ours from church has offered to take professional photos after our sealing for $200.00 (She has photography business and is really good and is giving us a great deal). I also ordered a new white dress on-line to wear for after the ceremony for the photo shoot. The site I ordered it from does custom "made to fit" orders for all their dresses so this dress will be designed to fit me and it should arrive about 2 weeks before our sealing for only $95! (They only had a stock photo of the dress in blue on the site, but mine will be white and it will be something I can actually wear again too which is awesome.)

We will also need to purchase clothes and items for the ceremony itself. South County Boy's parents will be purchasing his attire (white slacks, shirt, shoes, tie, etc as a sealing gift since they have done that for all their sons when they have been able to go to the temple, so we will be picking up my items later in August. Were not sure how much this will cost so we will just say around $200 to be on the safe side.

After the ceremony and photos we are going to be treating our family and a few friends to lunch at stone fire grill (where we did our rehearsal dinner) because the food is amazing and designed for large groups of people so its not too pricey.

All in all I think it will cost us maybe around $800.00. Essentially the dress and the photos are our perk that we are adding now that we can afford to do so with SCB's job!

Wedding Location Update:

This post has been included in this weeks edition of The Totally Money Blog Carnival hosted by Retire by 40!  Go over and check out the great articles. As always, we are thrilled to be included!

If you haven't been following our journey, my fiance and I need to find a new wedding and reception site (See this post for why). Our main concern at this point is our budget since we originally planned on a park type wedding and reception.

So we drove down to Laguna Beach and met the wedding planner at the reception location she was talking about..Once we started talking numbers and comparing our old package to what we needed, we decided to make a huge decision...

If we got married in the park, we'd have to pay $250.00 for the 2 hour permit for just the ceremony... and then pay for the reception location as well. We asked about doing the reception in the park and paying for an additional permit, but we aren't allowed to--- ceremony only. Considering we only have our photographer for 2 hours, this would mean getting photos of just our wedding with no reception highlights.

So, instead of getting married at the park, we decided to have our ceremony on the front patio of the club house so we would only have one location fee. We still can get married outside (which was our priority) and the patio can hold all of our guests (70 people invited), seated as planned. Added bonus, no one's heels will sink in the grass. I can also get ready in the sitting room and remain hidden from my hubby to be's view until i walk down the isle. Since the ceremony was included in our original package, this won't cost us any more money since we'd need to book the facility for the reception anyway. Here's what our ceremony includes: Cost: $2,275.00

• Decorated Arch with silk and fresh flowers
• 70 white wood padded chairs, chair covers, and sashes
• Gerber daisy's tied to chairs near the isle
• Fresh rose petals to work as isle runner
• Sand Ceremony tables, and colored sands (we bring the personalized jar)
• Wedding coordination and reception
• Delivery, Set up, and Tear down.

Here's what our original package included for the reception: $3,200 includes:

• Our 3 tired cake decorated with Gerber daisies
• Photographer for 2 hours plus his res photos on CD: ($450.00)
• Plates for cake and 2 servers on site to help cut and serve cake, and pour drinks, refill containers, etc
• Apple Cider toast for all guests
• Ice tea & lemonade for beverages, including cups, ice, ext. 
• All the linens we need for all of our tables, INCLUDING additional tables not supplied at the location.
• Decorations and fresh flower arrangements for the reception (including Gerber daisy center pieces)
• Easel for photo signing (were having people sign a matted frame instead of a guestbook we will never look at)
• set up, tear down
• my bridal bouquet, 4 bridesmaid bouquets, 2 mom corsages, 1 corsage for my sister, & Father, Groom and 4 groomsmen's boutonnieres.
• Wedding reception outline/timeline
• taxes, delivery fees & gratuity

Our old package also included a decorated tent for the food and a decorated EZ up to cover and shade the "bride and groom table"... The wedding planner wasn't originally charging us for the tents in our first package, just the decorations since she owns the EZ ups and the Gazebo type tent. So, to make things more comparable she is going to upgrade our floral center pieces (they were originally very simple with just 3 Gerber daisy's in a glass vase) and add more floral decorations around the room and venue instead. We will be paying an additional $108.75 for centerpieces mirrors, candles, tea lites, cylinder glass vases, & bathroom toiletry's for the ladies room.

We will also need to cover the stage area with a little bit of draping so our photos won't be ugly (this will serve as the back drop for our couples table). We talked her into doing a smaller design that was simpler for $100 including the pipe draping.

Thankfully this venue also includes tables and chairs so we won't need to rent those (Phew!). The chairs aren't that pretty though... and since we have to pay for the chairs for the wedding ceremony, we are going to move them inside once the ceremony is over so we can use the pretty wood padded chairs with covers and sashes as the reception chairs (this will also free up the patio if people want to spend time outside). Win Win.  (There will also be staff from the wedding planners company to move them so guests won't be hauling their own chairs either.) The linens, centerpieces, and the rest of the decorations are included in our original package and can be modified to our new venue so we are good there...

We were able to discontinue the DJ we had originally booked at no fee to us. While we would like to have the DJ, the added location costs just aren't worth it, and the wedding planner voluntarily suggested we cut the DJ and go the Ipod route like we originally planned in the park before she got us a deal on the DJ. Now our music will cost us nothing, and saves us $200 that we already committed to spending.

Normally, the building requires a dance floor be rented, but the building owner told us that since we were using an ipod and having a DRY wedding (my family drinks too much and SCB's family doesn't drink at all), so the building owner was okay waving the required dance floor fee since we wouldn't be getting crazy with everything. $250.00 saved!

The location Fee is an additional  $1,100.00 and we'd have a cleaning fee of $150.00 and insurance comes to $120.00. The wedding planner's company is going to paying for the deposit on the building ($500)

So, our added package costs are: $1,578.75 (not considering the $200 we saved canceling the DJ). For needed a new location with less than 2 months till "I Do," I think we did an awesome job!

We are hiring a taco cart for $425 for our food (my sister had him at her engagement party and he's awesome) and having chips and salsa out too since our wedding starts at 1:30 and will be finished by 5:30 ish.

My Wedding Ring

With today being my birthday, we decided to pick out and get my wedding band today. We needed to go to Zales to get my engagement ring checked out and cleaned for the warranty, so we headed over there and looked around... and found something that almost matched my engagement ring exactly within a minuet!!!!

This is a miracle in and of itself because before when we went looking around Christmas they didn't have anything that matched or came close and we worried we'd have to pay at least $500 for something custom... or worst case scenario, a plain band for my wedding finger and i'd have to wear my engagement finger on my right hand.  

So, to continue the happy story, we found a beautiful ring that was marked $399.00... and once we saw it with my engagement ring on my finger, we knew we wanted to buy it. We were the only ones in the store at the time, so I decided to ask the guy if there was anything he could do for us price wise since we bought my engagement ring from Zales as well... 

He asked his manager since he was new and came back and said he could give us 25% off the ring, then an additional 10% off that because it was mothers day (I'm assuming a slow sales day because people have already made their jewelry purchases for the holiday...) 

So we got the ring for $269.32, bought the protection policy for $59.99 and paid $28.82 in taxes. We got the ring resized for free since it was way to big for my finger. The total came to $358.12.

and here she is with my engagement ring.
(It will fit closer together when we have the ring re-sized)

The moral of the story, It never hurts to ask for a discount! We put it on our 2% off CC too, so even more savings there.

Wedding Update...

With 74 days left until I get to say "I Do," I was very glad to get a package in the mail from my future mother in law.

South County Boy's mom did me a wonderful favor... Besides embroidering each girl's name onto the tote bags in the wedding colors... she also made handmade lace bookmarks for all the girls in the bridal party (my friends are pretty big readers, so this was a nice way to personalize the bags with something special they will get to use after the wedding besides taking the bags to the beach.)

When I went out to Utah to move my fiance "home" we left the bags with my fiance's mom and she was going to try and get them embroidered... and then she offered to also make the bookmarks in the same blue as the wedding... I didn't think i'd get to see them until they came out here for the wedding, but here's what the final product looks like:

So far, inside each of the bags I'm going to put the necklace and earrings set I got everyone to wear the day of the wedding. (Any other ideas if we have extra money in the budget?)

Updated Wedding Budget

South County Boy's family has offered to pay for lunch for everyone (Ie family and Bridal/Grooms men parties) the morning of the wedding, so I don't have to worry about getting everyone lunch.... yummy subway!

We also were able to pick up all the groomen's ties, the grooms tie, one for South County Boy's dad, and one little one for our Ring Bearer while we were in Utah! (yup. Southcounty boys nephew whos 2 and 1/2 right now will be our cute little ring bearer. We arn't having a flower girl as of now). We are giving the ties as part of the groomen gifts since we aren't requiring them to rent suits (black slacks, black jacket, white shirt) & our tie. I think everyone already has these except for my "bro" and South County Boy has a suite that should fit for the wedding.

My future mother and law is mailing out the invitations and reply cards for Keith's side of the family to save on postage costs for Keith and I (she's also sending out some of the invitations to family memebers as "announcement" type things (i'm glad i ordered extras.) I think we will meet with the Stake Pres and the Bishop this week, and then i'll mail my california invites out.

My Utah bridesmaid and I picked out her dress last week (its the cutest out of all of them) and my future mother in law found a cute skirt/jacket combo for cheap in a really pretty blue that will go with the color skeme. I also tried on my dress for her to see while we were there, and all they had was a size 10, and it fit (was way tight tho), so i'm not worried about getting into my dress next week!!!!!!!


here's the updated break down:


David's Bridal

• Dress $299.99
• Bag for Dress $10.00
• Blusher (to use a simple veil) $20.00
• slip $50.15
• shoes $53.10
• Earrings and Necklace for me $20.00
• 4 earring/necklace sets for bridal party $83.96
• take up shoulders $40.00
• hem $120.00
• bustle $35.00
• cups $20.00
• tax $72.37

Utah

• Keith's Ring $160.28

Tie One on

• 7 Neck Ties in matching Blue $105.70

Walmart

• Picture Frames $14.37
• Picture Frames $9.97

Deposit with Wedding Planner

• OCBW (Deposit) $1,000.00

Target

• Body Slimmer $21.75

Amazon.com

• 4 tote bags with shipping $23.99

Vista Print

• Wedding Invites (50) $23.44
• Thank You cards (50) $18.05
• Reception Reply Cards (50) $14.88
• Return Address Stickers $4.06
• Shipping $12.74

TOTAL
$2,233.80

Our goal is to have the entire thing cost $8,500.00 with my mom giving us $5,000.00 to help cover the majority of the costs.

"Tenative Costs"
wedding and reception (including cake) $4,475.00
finger foods, snacks, etc from costco $300.00
stamps $70.00
pictures for frames $45.00
programs $60.00
water bottle stickers $6.00
hair and make up- Free
eyebrows $12.00
mani pedi $50.00
flutes $13.00
sand ceremony $25.00
wedding advice/guest book $30.00
court fee $60.00
sound equipment $100.00
bridal shower $200.00
batchelorette party $100.00
cake cutter $25.00
Flowers for my hair $100.00
Rehersal Dinner $300.00
Toasting glasses $70.00
DJ $200.00

$ 6,241.00 + $2,233.80 (Spent) = $8,474.80

Tote Bag Update + Steal on Picture Frames

I got the following reply about my tote bags:

Sorry about that, we will reship out on Monday. Sorry about the
mistake.----Sacks and Such

Not the most professional reply, but as long as I get my bags this week everything will be fine. They didn't mention anything about returning the wrong ones though... I hope they put a bag with postage in there for me to ship the wrong ones back... but then again, shipping costs more than the product did....

---------

I was walking through Walmart yesterday cause I was depressed and I was trying to find a water bottle with a handle/ish thing for less than 16.00 (which was what my friend paid for hers at the sporting goods store and i need a different one for the marathon)...

Well I found something similar for $3.88... it didn't have a pocket for a granola bar, but my shirt has one built in so i figured i'd give it a whirl...

In the process, i found the SAME SET of 10 PICTURE FRAMES I bought on black friday on clearance for $3.00.... and next to them they had 6 picture frame sets with 2 8x10's in them for $3.00, so I picked up 2 of the 6 piece sets and the last package of 1 frames all for $9.79. Now we will definently have enough frames for all the park tables. For the table center pieces we are doing small simple flower arrangements and pictures of Keith and me. So SCORE!!!!

I also have a coupon for 25 free prints at walmart that i'll hopefully use for the regular sized frames.

tote bags for the wedding came!

I got the tote bags for the wedding today... but unfortunately they sent me the wrong ones... I got Red instead of Blue... (other than that they are cute!) I checked the forms and everything and they list Blue right on the packaging sheet...

Guess I'll need to contact customer service through Amazon (it was a store thru amazon but not amazon)...

But the bad thing is i need them ASAP so Keith's mom can get them to embroider them. She'll be here in less than 2 weeks and I need her to be able to take them home to her in Utah while she's down here.

I Will pay off my wedding dress!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I logged into my bank account this morning because its "pay day friday" and with the MLK holiday and that extra shift I picked up, i'll be able to pay off my dress in its entirety and have some extra cash leftover at the end of the month!!!!!

$129.31 leftover =)

I need to order the tote bags so they can get here in time to give to Keith's mom to add the embrodery, so I'll use some of that for the bags, but it looks like i'll still have $100 to allocate!

Now last year (2010) I saved up my car insurance bill for this year (2011), so I have the money to write the check for the bill that's on my counter right now... (and a few extra dollars since its a little cheaper this year). So I think i'll deposit the $100 to go towards next years registration so I won't have to worry about it for a while... or we may need to use it to pay for Keith's registration on his car, or towards the fee to SMOG his car next month. So with way, i'll earmark this for auto something or another.

And, I got my California rebate today too. So I immediately opened an ING savings account and marked it "Wedding" so the $728 won't be spent yet. When the account gets $1000.00 in it (ie when i get my federal return) i'll transfer the $1,000.00 to my ef to replenish it.

Bridesmaid & MOH... what to get them....?

I've been pondering for a while about what to get my three bridesmaids and my maid of honor as thank you gifts for being apart and helping me with everything wedding and married related.

First and Foremost, I like my friends. I wanted to be nice to my bridesmaids/MOH. I wanted them to be comfortable, get something flattering, and within their budget. I want them to feel pretty! So I took a very laid back approach.

When we went to the store to look at dresses, I had them get the same color, but i let them pick their own style. The lady in the store recommended cotton dresses (they breathe and you can wash them in the regular washing machine) since it was an outside summer wedding and she recommended knee length to in case we hit some high outdoor temperatures. As a perk, they had pockets for stashing last min things which would be great the day of. (one of my bridesmaids already has three other events she can wear the dress to post wedding so she was way excited with them). We also went with Black shoes and accessories so two of them wouldn't have to spend $50+ buying new shoes if they didn't want to.

But I know dresses and alterations can be pricey. I told one of my bridesmaids that she didn't need to get a dress at that store, but could go else where since she is having travel expenses too. I think she wants to go to David's Bridal as well, but I wanted her to have the option.

But on to the subject of the post. I wanted to get the girls something they could use during the ceremony (the necklace and earrings set), but I also wanted to get them something they could use after the wedding that would be practical... but not something that's so wedding centered that they can't really find a use for it without it being out of place. So veto-ing the mono-graphed "bridesmaid t-shirts" or or beaded handbags that say "bridesmaid" on them... I was coming up dry for ideas.

Them I found these on Amazon:


Keith's mom has an embroidery machine... so she could put the girls initials or their names on each of the bags... Its pretty close to the wedding color so they could put the necessities they would need for the day in them.... and then after the wedding they could have a cute beach tote with their name on it or something.

And, I found them for an amazing price. I can get 4 for under $25.00 with shipping! I checked the comments from the people who had bought them and a few people have had them embroidered and given as gifts too and people seem to think the quality is really great for the price.

Now its participation time folks...
If you were a bridesmaid/MOH, what would you like to get as a gift? What have other people given you in the past that you liked, didn't like? What did you give out at your wedding?

Wedding Swap

So i went into David's Bridal to pick up something that came in that I ordered... My beaded sash.

and I decided to take it back... (I like the dress the way it is and we mainly picked it up to have enough "credit" when we did the dress swap. I also decided to take the 4 pairs of earrings we purchased the last time we were there back because we couldn't find anything to match the earrings, except the ones at David's Bridal... which were not my favorite.

Instead, by pure luck, we found 4 "sets" with a matching necklace and earrings that were actually on Sale!

I also picked up a "blusher" to use as an actual Veil. I wanted something really simple and one of my Bridesmaid is going to "dress it up" a bit. I figured i'm only going to get the opportunity to wear a veil once. I paid a bit out of pocket, but it was only $27 more, and I was able to get the "Veil" and 4 necklaces.... & my jewelry!! yup, I got a cute necklace and earrings set for $20.00


David's Bridal
Dress $299.99
Bag for Dress $10.00
blusher $20.00
slip $50.15
shoes $53.10
Earrings and Necklace for me $20.00
4 pairs of earrings, 4 necklaces $83.96
take up shoulders $40.00
hem $120.00
bustle $35.00
cups $20.00
tax $72.37

Utah Jewelry Store
Keith's Ring $160.28

Walmart
Picture Frames $14.37

Deposit with Wedding Planner
OCBW $1,000.00

Target
Body Slimmer $21.75

Vista Print
Wedding Invites (50) $23.44
Thank You cards (50) $18.05
Reception Reply Cards (50) $14.88
Return Address Stickers $4.06
Shipping $12.74

TOTAL $2,094.14

Wedding Planner

I had to have a chat with the wedding planner because she desperately needs to get an assistant because she's leaving her brides out in the cold because she's uber busy and still recovering from a bad injury. basically I'd email her to send me something (the cake picture design she had in mind to match the center pieces) and she would completely forget to do it... so after a week I called her and thankfully we are all back on track.

She even got us a great deal on a DJ and we are actually getting our apple cider toast at no additional cost (even though she cut over $400 off the wedding package price--- I was under the impression that the toast got nixed in the price drop.)...

But nope its in :) and since it is, its nice to be able to have the DJ to MmCee the whole thing. I was originally going to ask my "church grandma" to help run the reception, but my "church grandpa's" health hasn't been so bueno and this would really be a burden on her. So for $200 we got an awesome DJ and someone to help us stay on time with everything. =)

Oh!! and I got my cake picture. Its basically this, but with Pink Gerber Daisys on it.

What we have spent on the wedding thus far...

David's Bridal
Dress $299.99
Bag for Dress $10.00
beaded sash $59.00
slip $50.15
shoes $53.10
4 pairs of earrings $40.00
take up shoulders $40.00
hem $120.00
bustle $35.00
cups $20.00
tax $70.00

Utah Jewelry Store
Keith's Ring $160.28

Walmart
Picture Frames $14.37

Deposit with Wedding Planner
OCBW $1,000.00

Target
Body Slimmer $21.75

Vista Print
Wedding Invites (50) $23.44
Thank You cards (50) $18.05
Reception Reply Cards (50) $14.88
Return Address Stickers $4.06
Shipping $12.74

TOTAL $2,066.81

Rest of the wedding budget:

wedding and reception $4,475.00
food $300.00
stamps $70.00
pictures for frames $45.00
programs $60.00
water bottle stickers $6.00
hair and make up FREE (someone offered as a wedding gift)
eyebrows $12.00
mani pedi $50.00
flutes $13.00
sand ceremony $25.00
wedding advice/guest book $30.00
court fee $60.00
sound equipment $100.00
lunch day of $100.00
bridesmaid gifts $100.00
bridal shower $200.00
batchelorette party $100.00
cake cutter $25.00
jewelry?
Rehearsal Dinner???

$5,771.00
grand total $7,837.81

I designed my own wedding invitations today

My friend took a bunch of engagement shots of Keith and I while we were at Disneyland over Christmas.

We were supposed to have my "brother" take the shots, but the first day we planned to do them it rained... and it rained on our back up day... so we improvised.

Thankfully we got some great photos and I was able to use my Photo-Shop skills to put together some very modern and awesome looking invites that fit Keith and my style.

We didn't budget much for Invitations, Reply cards, Thank You cards, Envelopes, or Return Address lables... So I hunted around and found the best deals on Vista Print... I paired it with a $40 off $100 coupon I got off Coupon Cabin... and because of how I uploaded my images, I only had to pay for the printing rights of 2 pictures!

The current guest list has us at 80 people (Bridal parties included), but only about 40 families/individuals. To be on the safe side I ordered 50 invitations + envelopes, 50 reply cards + envelopes, 50 thank you cards + envelopes& 140 Address Stickers. I also got another 140 Address stickers for Free so I made those up with what will be my new last name so I can use those ones after the wedding for other bills that come. =)

So how much did I spend?
$23.44 Wedding invites + Envelopes (50)
$18.05 Thank You Cards + Envelopes (50)
$14.88 Reception Reply Cards + Envelopes (50)
$4.06 Return Address Stickers (140)
$12.74 Shipping

=$73.17 (SAVING $72.49, because the original amount would have been $145.66)

I get them in about 3 weeks. We decided not to do Save the Dates to save on postage and money because we are keeping a small wedding so everyone knows word of mouth already and we will be mailing the invites out in February so people will have plenty of notice.

Wedding Invite (The address has been blocked out for Privacy Reasons)



Thank You Cards



Reply Cards



Maybe I should start a side business???

What I'm getting from OCBW

I've mentioned the all inclusive wedding package deal i'm getting from Orange County Beach Weddings... for $5475

The location is Free since we are using Keith's old church. They have a wonderful outside grass area that we are having the ceremony... and they have an outdoor covered awning with tables and chairs we can use for the reception.

So what does the Wedding package include?

The CEREMONY
Decorated arch with white organza and silk fabrics with silk and fresh flowers.

Sheppard's hooks down the isle with flowers (Gerber Daisy's and Roses, with matching fabric sashes that match the rest of the decorations)

70 wood padded wedding chairs, with white taffeta chair covers, & Sashes
Fresh Rose petals to serve as the runner
Sand Ceremony, colored sands, and table with linen (We provide the containers)
Sound system for ceremony.
Wedding Coordinator for Processional and Recessional
Set Up and Tear Down & Delivery.

The RECEPTION
Beverages:
• Three tiered serving platter for fruit and cookies (bride to provide fruits and cookies)
• Ice Tea, Lemonade and required Ice for up to 70 guests
Wedding Cake:
• Three tier cake with fresh Gerbera daisy's
• Your selected style and filling
• Cake cutting service
• Cake tasting available
Wedding Floras:
• Table centerpieces for the reception area with fresh Gerbera daisy's
• Groom's boutonniere & Bridal hand tied bouquet (Roses, gerbera daisy's and greenery)
• Up to #4 Brides Maid's simple hand-tied bouquet (Gerbera daisy's with a whiter ribbon)
• Up to #4 Groom's Men rose boutonnieres
• #1 Father rose boutonniere
• Up to #2 Mothers rose corsage
• #1 Grandmother rose corsage
Linens, Equipments & Decorations:
• Silk fabrics for picnic area posts through out reception area
• Buffet, cake and B&G sweet heart tables
• Floor length table drapes for buffet, gift, cake and guest tables
• EZ up tent for catered food
• Decorations for buffet banquet tables
• B&G Gazebo draped in beautiful white silk fabrics accompanied by a variety of colored Gerbera daisy’s
• Money cage for your gift envelopes
• Easel for your signing picture frame
• Paper napkins, crystal plastic cake plates, forks and cups for beverages for up to 70 guests
• 3-gallon gourmet beverage dispenser with chrome spigot for Ice Tea and Lemonade
• Serving Platters for appetizers (B&G to provide all food and plastic plates, napkins, forks and or spoons)
Personnel Staff:
• #2 servers included for a total of 3-4 hours
• Clean-up of the entire event (ocbw to provide large lawn bags)
• Delivery, set-up and tear-down
Photographer:
• High Resolution 2 hour photography to capture ceremony and reception high-lights
• Includes romantic pictures of B&G after ceremony delivered in a personalized CD
(Photographer will capture the highlights of the reception only (toast, first dance, cake cutting and bouquet garter and throw. This would
have to be met within the 2 hours. Photographer will guide you throughout the process. There will be no time for anything UNLESS you
follow her specific schedule)
Wedding Planner:
• Initial strategy meeting with the couple to determine type of wedding desired
• Location viewing
• Assist in creating a style or theme
• Unlimited e-mails throughout the entire planning process
• Vendor selection and negotiation vendor contracts
• Review vendor contracts
• Confirm itinerary with vendors
• Disperse final payments to all vendors
• Time-Line included for your designated coordinator, grandma or DJ
• No day of coordination...set-up decorations only
Service Fee:
Ceremony/Reception Package Fee: $5,475.00
Tax: 000.00
Sub Total: $5,475.00
Deposit Required: 1,000.00
Total Due: $ 4,475.00 (Due and payable 90 days prior to event)

Wedding Dress + Deposit for planner etc

So I thought I'd found the perfect wedding dress a little while ago...The only thing I needed to do was get some pretty cap sleeves put on it and I was all set. I didn't need the poofy under skirt, or the "I can't breath bra"... & I found a dress that fit well and I was really happy with it...

Until I brought it back to the store to get the sleeves on it. The alterations lady didn't have a fabric material that would match for the sleeves, and said i'd have to go to Jo-anns and find it myself and then they would do them... They didn't have the original option I was show before that looked really nice with the dress... and the lady was being a pill.

My best friend saw the look on my face and knew that "the dress" was no longer my dress.

I told the lady at the front that I was going to find a new one and return it since I bought it off the rack and we didn't change anything on it yet. So instead I pointed to the catelogue and went with the dress i'd ranked #2 when I went hunting for fun with my mom.

So I got it altered on the spot and should get it back in 6 weeks. We also picked out bridesmaid dresses for my ladies who live in California. =)

The only problem was that this dress was cheaper than the first one... and I had to use up all the credit I had on the account at once.... and the credit I had from the dress couldn't go towards the alterations at all.

With some clever flair, we made it happen.
Original Dress: $549.00 (Returned)
Dress Bag: $10.00 (Kept Dress Bag for new Dress)
Tax: $48.84 (Returned)

New Dress- $299.99
White Beaded Bridal Sash $59.00
2 tired slip $50.15
Shoes $53.10
4 pairs of earrings for my bridesmaids $40.00
Bridesmaid Shoes 45.00--
Bridesmaid shrug 30.00--
Tax 2.34

= $28.68 that I paid

Total: $636.60

Bridesmaid Shoes 45.00-- Paid Back Already
Bridesmaid shrug 30.00-- Paid Back Already

New Total: $561.60

Alterations: (another 233.82)
Take up the shoulders on both sides $40
Hem $120
Bustle train $35
Add cups $20.00
Tax 18.82

New Total $795.42

The old total would have been 607.92, plus 53.10 Shoes, plus $50.00 for sleeve alterations, and 40.00 for earrings for the girls... plus i'd need to still bustle the train which would have been more $$$ because it was longer on the first one so i'd estimate that around $50.00... bringing that too 801.02. So the new dress was a little bit cheaper & I'm happier with it! I can't wait to get it back in 6 weeks!!!

We also met up with the wedding planner, signed contracts, paid our deposit ($1,000.00), and met the Bishop who's performing the ceremony.

Today we have a cake tasting with our wedding planner... we will finalize the guest list... and start talking ceremony lay out!

Wedding Budget update

We got back an estimate from the wedding planning company... and it was higher than we expected... but had everything we wanted...

So Keith and I (via Skype) went through and made a list of everything we needed to pay for, everything we wanted to include, and added up the total. Before the honeymoon we were rocking around $8,500.00

Which is more than we want to spend. We are trying to do the entire thing for $7500 sans the Honeymoon.

So we started making cuts. First we looked at the package the planner had made for us, an all enclusive deal for the most part... and a really great price to start out with.

For almost $5,957 the planner had designed a beatiful wedding ceremony, outside behind Keith's old Church in California. They have a very nice and well kept grass area behind the church, and adjacent to it there is a structure with tables and chairs under that's all shadded. So we planned on having the wedding on the lawn, and the reception under the structure so everyones in the shade.

The package included 70 wood padded white Chairs, white Covers, blue sashes, fresh rose petal isle, small bunches of Gerber Daisys hanging from black hooks down the isle, a decorated black arch with fabric and flowers, a table for our sand ceremony, all the set up and tear down, sound equipment to play the "wedding march" and other music during the ceremony... AND all our bridal flowers. My Bouquet, +4 bridesmaids, Keith's Boutineer + 4 Groomsmen, 3 corsages and a boutineer for his dad. Plus Design, Theme, and Wedding planner/coordinator for the reception.

2 hours of professional photography, and digital rights to our photos.

For the Reception, It included all the table linens, gerber daisy centerpieces, Our wedding Cake (3 Tiers), Apple cider toasts for everyone, ice tea, lemonaid, bottle water on ice, 2 tents (One decorated with linens and flowers for our "Couples table"... the other for the food and refreshments... and it included an outline and time table of the reception... and all the clean up... and 3 servers to help cut cake, pour cider, and help with the beverages and removing plates and incidentals. etc....

Basically, Keith and I needed to supply the receptions snacks, toasting glasses for our guests... but essentially that was it (besides things like cake cutters, etc..)

We sat for a while and thought about what we would and wouldn't miss for the reception... and I came up with an idea. If we sans the apple cider toast, we wouldn't need 2 of the servers... nor the toasting glasses, or the cider....

So i sent the planner an email saying we needed to make a few cuts and suggested removing 2 servers, the bottled water (my friend got married recently and could loan us 2 nice beverage dispencers that we could fill with water instead), and the cider toast... eliminating the need for toasting glasses and the cider costs.

She had originally quoted us as lower price for everything, but didn't include the tax for the package...

She replied back and said she would take out the toast (we'll still do one, but the guests can toast with what they are drinking at the time), well eliminate the bottled water, just remove one server-- That way someone can pass out cake while its simultaneously being cut... and would cut out ALL the TAX from the inital price she sent us... Saving us $479.00.

Essentally removing the cider toast, but still having a toast is saving us $479.00!!!!!!! and we don't feel like we are cutting anything out from the package at all!!!!

We are having a dry wedding because i won't let my family get near alcohol on my day... plus we can use the LDS church for our reasoning since they don't do alcohol.

We also decided that we would Ipod our reception music, instead of Ipod and an hour of live music, saving us $200.00 (we have an old friend who should be getting his record deal any day now... he was also one of Keith's really good friends from when he lived in California.)

I made realistic estimates for what we will need to spend on things for the wedding... like food for the bridal shower, getting pretty the day of, invitations, reception food (we are saying "cake and punch" but we will also have fruit and sandwitch trays and cookies from costco)...

Since I work in a city area, I mingle a lot with residents, one of them offered to do my hair and make-up free of charge if I go to her salon... that's going to save us a few hundread easily (I have long thick hair!!!!)

WITH MY DRESS and all the things on the list, we are looking at: $7,770.57

!!!!!!!!!!

Keith will be covering his tux rental, my wedding band, gifts for his groomsmen, and our honeymoon.

We are hoping his folks will cover a rehersal dinner... or just a family meet and greet kind of thing.

But so far, not so bad!

Crazy Holidays + Wedding planning.

I can't wait till Keith is out here for the holidays.... Just a little over a week to go. I'm almost 100% done with Christmas shopping... Just My "Brother" and "Best Friend" left to go... and something for the work party...

=)

So far the budget is still intact.... The blanket idea won't work for the bro... He just got one (lame!) but i got a few ideas from his new girlfriend so its back out to the stores I go.

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we have already had one HUGE family drama over everything... i'm praying one won't happen while Keith is here...

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I'm trying to budget and plan for a wedding and its STRESSING ME OUT... Since we have to have a lot of the decisions made before January is here since Keith will only be in California for so long before he's back in Utah...

Not knowing the tax brackets for next year is KILLING ME. I have no idea what my January paycheck will look like... and most of the money we have for the wedding is that extra money I have in the budget... but if the tax rates go up... i'm screwed cause that $200 we can set aside each month will shrink... and that's the honeymoon money... and my early spring visit to see him (Plus whatever Keith can come up with after he's done paying back his folks) and my tax refund will only go so far...

I'm also waiting on a proposal from a wedding planning company i've been working with... they do simple beach and park weddings. We've had a few email chats and we met up at the possible location to pitch ideas and run numbers.

Once we get all the stuff in there and the final price in writting we can then line item a few things out to insure that it fits in the budget. I think we'll need to cut it down around $500 to make it realistically work.

We are hoping to keep the wedding and reception to $5,500 MAX so we can use the $5,000 grand from my mom and the 1300 tax return i should be getting to cover everything. (Sans my dress-- I found it... its gorgeous!!! and I think I should have it paid for by the end of January with the holiday overtime, leftovers from the extra paycheck this month, and the $200 or so dollars i tucked away in Oct & Nov).

We have a layout for everything... and with all of our wants... and then we start cutting back to make sure its still affordable. We have at least set a cap to the number of guests,--- a possible guest list, and what we'd like to do... now its just figuring out if it will work for everything and what we are going to have to compromise on.

At least the location is free...