newlyWed Wednesday

Hello everybody! And happy Hump day to all!! I can't believe that Christmas is less than a week away! Can you say not prepared at all??
Anyway, today for newlyWed Wednesday, I'm linking up with Mary over at A Happy Wife in New Orleans

I'm going to talk about an awesome gift my grandma gave us about 2 weeks before the wedding.
Dan and I decided that we were just going to get a photographer. That's all we could really afford plus she was going to be bringing with her 3 other shooters, so we thought that no matter what we'd get everything through them. About 8 months before the wedding, I really started wanting a videographer. We were still going to bridal expos and we'd always stop and check out prices. Even with the deals they were giving, it was still way over our budget. As we got closer to the wedding, I was getting super bummed about not having a videographer. One wedding Wednesday (my whole family, women, would get together on Wednesday to complete wedding things) we were basically all done with everything. Dan was at his second job, so I decided that I'd go home and get dinner ready. My grams wasn't havin it! She deployed every tactic possible and then I started noticing something was off. My sister asked for my opinion on her new curling iron. Yeah, something was not right. I started yelling, 'I don't know what's going on, but I'm leaving.' As I was walking down the stairs, I see Dan at the front door and then I started getting super confused. I was so anxious I couldn't move. We all went in to the kitchen and grams told us that she got me and Kay something from her trip to NYC. It was a cute magnet, but I felt something on the back.

I didn't read it out loud,

but I gasped and started crying my eyes out.

I couldn't believe my grandma got me a videographer!

I was so excited and so was Dan.

And boy are we ever glad for this gift.

I've watched our wedding DVD about 100 times!

I took some clips from my phone to share with friends,

so here are some fun moments from our wedding:

My mom, sister, and I

Cake time!

 Our DVD cover

In the bridal suite gettin ready!!

Dan and his mom before the ceremony.

Silence to Support

Rest in Peace.

To Grieve or To {seem} Not to Grieve

As most of you might have read,

I am from the town in which the tragic massacre at the elementary school occurred.

And if you didn’t,

You do now.

What happened in our town was horrible,

Disgusting,

Tragic,

And many other horrible words.

Saturday was harder than Friday because of

All the confirmed reports that came out

And everything was made official.

But I want to rewind back to Friday…

<< l

I got out early from work,

And when I got home I felt so exhausted I crashed.

I don’t know what it was from:

The news of what happened,

Or constantly trying to figure out what was going on.

Some of our branches are able to get news channels,

We are not one of them.

We were relying on friends and family to call or text us what was happening.

And we were all hearing something different.

Anyway,

Friday night,

Dan and I had plans to meet up with Karla (who is also from Newtown) and Scott

At Lake Compounce to see their Holiday Lights.

During the day,

Karla and I decided that we would still meet up and go.

Why?

There are many reasons:

1.)   Karla and I grew up together in Newtown

2.)   Dan and I don’t have cable so we had no idea what was going on

3.)   Instead of sitting and staring at the wall, we thought it be better to get together with people we love and talk about things- both related and unrelated to what had occurred

4.)   We had these plans for over a month and unfortunately live far away from each other and because of the holidays, were unable to reschedule

5.)   Being with friends and family is how I grieve and I believe Dan as well.

Unfortunately,

The four of us were yelled at, called disrespectful, talked about, and much more about how we could possibly be out after such a thing happened.

Karla and I took pictures,

One I posted on instagram and linked it to my FaceBook page.

I was told I was ‘too happy for a time like this.’

But do they know how I really felt?

How much we talked about what was happening?

How I grieve??

How instead of sitting looking at the wall doing nothing, I was living in the present and for the now because if what happened proved nothing, it certainly proved that we don’t know what each minute holds?

We were all hurt by what was being said about us.

The worst part:

Nobody cared to ask why,

They just assumed we were cold hearted people.

I know I don’t need to explain myself,

But honestly,

I feel like I should…

And I’m going to.

I am an overly optimistic,

Happy almost all the time,

Smile constantly,

Try to see the good in everybody,

Fun person.

I also grieve very different from most people.

I don’t cry in public,

I barely cry at all as a matter of fact.

I’ve been to a few funerals,

I did not cry.

Not because I wasn’t sad/upset/mourning,

But because I physically couldn’t.

When in a time of mourning,

I find it better to be with friends and family-

Whether that’s out doing something

Or home relaxing.

I am not a stay-at-home-and-do-nothing type of person.

I’m a go getter-

Try to make things better-

Do whatever I can to help

Type of person.

When I was told I was being disrespectful,

I was crushed.

They obviously don’t know me as well as they thought,

And for that I’m sorry.

And in my mind,

I did not do anything wrong on Friday night.

EVERYBODY GRIEVES DIFFERENTLY!!

Everybody has their own ways of getting through things,

Just because mine is different than yours,

Does not by any means that either is the right way.

The fact that I have to explain myself and my actions aggravates me.

During this time,

We should be coming together…

NOT judging anybody for their actions, name calling, or saying hurtful things.

Remember to:

Live in the present,

Don’t live in the past,

Strive to be better.

Each day is a blessing,

Dance like no ones watching.

Tomorrow I will not be blogging.

I am participating in the bloggers day of silence and I hope you all do as well.

Hopefully I will see you all Wednesday.

#PrayforNewtown

As some of you may or may not know, I was born and raised in Newtown, Connecticut. I attended Sandy Hook elementary school for 2 years. Friends and family attended that school for many years. My uncle and Karla's dad work at the school currently. Today, a monster opened fire in our little town, at this school, killing innocent adults and children. I work right up the road from the school. We all heard tons of sirens for a while that progressed deep into the day. We finally got word of what was happening. How an individual of 20 years old can go about killing innocent victims is beyond me. I canNOT begin to imagine how those families are going to handle the steps in front of them,  or the children who witnessed such a crime! My heart goes out to each and every person affected by this massacre. Our little town will never be the same... it'll be stronger.
Here is a perfect reason why I love the blog world and all those in it: Two bloggers, Neely and Michelle, have put together the following... and I will definitely be joining them on Tuesday.
To the Blog World and Anyone Else who Wants to Help,

Yesterday, tragedy struck so many of us in ways we did not foresee. An elementary school and small town in Connecticut was shattered by a mass shooting. We knew we wanted to help and we came up with this:

On Tuesday, December 18th, there will be a blogger day of silence.
We will post the button and that's it. Please try to not post anything else that day if possible.

We are also raising money that will go to an organization in the memory of this tragedy. The organization is called The Newtown Family Youth and Family Services. Here is the official description of the support service we are donating to:

"Newtown Youth and Family Services, Inc. is a licensed, non-profit, mental health clinic and youth services bureau dedicated to helping children and families achieve their highest potential. NYFS provides programs, services, activities, counseling, support groups and education throughout the Greater Newtown area.

ANY DONATIONS MADE TO NEWTOWN YOUTH AND FAMILY SERVICES WILL BE DONATED DIRECTLY TO THOSE EFFECTED BY THE SANDY HOOK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL SHOOTING."

Please visit THIS PAGE to make your donation.

We can't imagine how they must be feeling, especially this close to the holidays. We would love for you to spread the word on your own blog, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Let's make a difference and use blogging in a positive way. Thank you in advance for participating.
#prayfornewtown

Fridays Letters {WAHOO FRIDAY}

TGIFF!!! {thank goodness its freakin Friday}

I have no idea why,

But this week has dragged on like William Hungs celebrity status.

Monday flew by.

Tuesday don’t even know where that went.

Wednesday was busy as Charlie Sheen on a high running errands.

Thursday is always the longest no matter what because the next day is Friday.

And today is Friday… and I get out of work at 3pm… go from there my friends.

Happy hour starts at 3:30pm woot woot!!!

Oh hello my fine wine {yeah rhyming win}.

Friday also means one of my favorite linkups of the week cause I spend a long time thinking about my letters.

Long like how long I have to wait until the next payday kind of long

{it’s another week if you wanna know or are just curious}

So here goes another rendition of Fridays Letters with Allie from Adventures of Newlyweds

Dear December: I understand that I push the weeks to go by fast just so that I don’t have to work, however… I would really like you to stop progressing into the holidays so rapidly. I have not really started Christmas shopping (except for my sissy and friend) and even though I have everything organized and figured out, I have yet to put everything together. And to put everything together I guess I need some way to pay for it all… so I will wait until the supposed end of the world to go get everything done. Dear Supposed End of the World: I’m not Mayan, I run out of paper all the time, and if it is the beginning of the zombie apocalypse- I am more excited than scared. People really should stop selling all their crap- just like in May and October when theworld was suppose to end; it’ll be bad when you wake up with nothing on Saturday morning. Dear School I Hope to go to in February: I am really excited and am hoping our appointment on Saturday is to start this awesome process and everything works out. Dear Hubs: I loved our pow-wow and a movie last night. It was just what we both needed after a long, stressful week {one day I’ll explain what our pow-wows are}. Dear Groop Dealz: Thanks for being the place that I am now obsessing over. The place that I also bought this awesome bracelet that I can’t wait to receive and wear all the time. You are my new and current obsession!Dear Customers at Work: It is the holiday season, I know you are tight on money {I can see your accounts after all} but gosh! Can you please be a little nicer and realize that the world does not revolve around you?!  Dear new followers and potential blogmates: I hope you all stick around… things can get a tad bit crazy around here but I promise to always try to be funny and keep things bubbly {like me}!! If you really want to see what Dan and I are like, check out this video from last weeks Fridays Letters… it’s sure to make your day even better. Dear all my wonderful followers: Thank you for hangin with me on this awesome blog journey. Every day I enjoy reading all of your thoughts, adventures, seeing your pics, and your ideas. I am hoping that my little bloggy blog here will grow in to something wonderful! I already have big plans and goals for the New Year so stick around… I promise you won’t be disappointed J

Ta ta for now <3

Blog Makeover and It's Ok Thursday

If you haven't noticed, things look a little different around these good ol' parts. And it is all thanks to the fabulous Kay over at Life After... With barely any information, she knew exactly what I wanted and went to work. And she tweaked it to just how I wanted it. I am forever grateful for that Kay, thank you for my awesome holiday gift to myself :)
Also, to any new followers or potential followers, I hope you stick around especially after my little makeover. If you want to get to know me a little better, check this video out. It is the perfect way to show exactly who Dan and I are, as a couple and how I am as an individual. I hope you enjoy it.
Now onto It's Ok Thursday  with Amber and Neely 

It's ok...
...to hope that more people linkup this Monday for instagramazing weekend...
...to have a little gossip sesh at training...
...to really really want an Erin Condren planner...
...to have a fun time at my work holiday dinner...
...that I love Riesling and I think it loves me back...
...that I found the german shepard and golden retriever of my dreams...
...that said puppies are too expensive for us right now...
...that I am obsessed with Groop Dealz...
...that this is the last 12/12/12 or sequential date I will ever see...
...to have the best guy as my husband...
...to still have that horrible fake ombre hairstyle going on at least until January...
...to not want to go out at night during the week and just relax through the holidays...
...to be absolutely in love with my new blog makeover...
...to hope that being an official looking blog will help people find me a real blogger...
...to not have new years resolutions,but goals that I hope to accomplish over the next year...
And that is all for now my blogmates. Hope you have a great Thursday. Let me know what you think of my new blog look.
Ta ta for now <3

NewlyWedded Bliss Wednesday

Hello there!

Today is a crazy day for dear ol' me!

Not only do I have training down at corporate,

but I have to work after it,

annnddd it's our holiday dinner party after that! 

Phew that's a lot packed in to one hump day.

Today I'm going to jump right in to wedding land...

First lets start off with Allie over at Table For More

What is a holiday tradition that you and your husband do or plan to do each year? If you don't have any, what is an idea you could try out this year?!

Every year Senor Dan and I take an adventure down to NYC to take pictures in front of the ginormously beautiful tree and then head to Serendipity (which started because we called our relationship serendipitous) and enjoy a wonderful meal and the most amazing frozen hot chocolate EVER!!!

Now on to my topic for newlyWed Wednesday:

The Bridesmaid Bonanza!!!

A little less than a year before the wedding and right around my birthday,

I planned an event for ALL of my 7 bridesmaids to get together and head to the salon to pick out the perfect dress that looked great on all of them.

All but one was able to join us :)

We all met at my apartment first because I had a little somethin up my sleeve for all my girls.

*Rewind a month before... Dan and I joined my family on our annual vacation down in Wildwood NJ. There- I had the amazing idea to get my bridal party their 'bridesmaid, MOH...' shirts AIRBRUSHED!'

Every shirt had either bridesmaid, Maid of Honor, or Flower Girl on the front,

and the back stated their name and our wedding date...

All in our wedding colors!

I got my mom a special shirt. 

On the front it said: i'm the M.O.B.

On the back: Mother of the Bride and the wedding date

Once we got to the bridal salon (where I got my dress)

things got a little hectic.

I knew I wanted them to wear long evening dresses because we were having a formal night wedding.

I had each bridesmaid pick out their favorite dress or two

and then they all filed into one of the huge dressing rooms.

Each bridesmaid would try on a dress and I'd pick which ones

made it to the next round 

and which was were an absolute NO!

This was a super hard decision because all the girls looked beautiful in everything,

but some more than others.

After each 'elimination round,'

the girls would go back and either swap dresses or try on new ones.

Eventually they twindled down to only two.

Once we got to the final two dresses,

everybody thought it'd be a good idea for me to try on my gown to see what each one would look like next to the gown and seemed more fitting.

They all gave me their honest opinion as to which one they liked the best,

and I finally came to the conclusion.

Since we had a summer wedding,

the choice then became obvious that the more flowy and light one was the winner.

And I couldn't have picked a better choice...

I mean look at how beautiful they all look in the dresses!

Because my sister was my Maid of Honor,

I wanted her dress to be different,

special.

Her dress was vveeerrryy similar to the bridesmaids, 

but still different and I loved hers as well.

So there ya have it...

my bridesmaid bonanza!

Ta ta for now <3