Last Day of November

Today marks 298 days until my wedding.  This is the last November I will have as a single woman.  It is pretty exciting to think of it like that.  I cannot wait for 298 more days to say "I do." 

So for Christmas I gave Steve a list of jewelry I would like to wear for the wedding.  He wanted to buy me jewelry, which he does every year, so I provided him with pictures of what I like the best.  I picked out pearl jewelry.  I really want to wear pearls on my wedding day as it is my birth stone.  I would love to have a nice necklace, either a strand or a pendant, and pearl earrings.  I think that would look beautiful with my dress.

I cannot wait for Christmas.  I love spending the time with my family.  We will spend Christmas day here in Sturbridge and then spend the next 3-4 days on the Vineyard with my family!

300 Days!

Today marks 300 days from our wedding.  Tomorrow we will enter the 200's!  It is all so exciting and time is going by so fast.  I cannot believe how times is whizzing by!

Sheila was over last night for the Buffone family Thanksgiving, and she brought her dress again!  She had brought it over last week but I had not gone out to the car to see it.  So it was nice to see it yesterday, and since Nancy was there, another bridesmaid, she was able to see it too!  I am really really happy with the dress and the color!!

I HAVE MY WEDDING BAND!!!

So I picked up my wedding band tonight and I am so happy! My only complaint is that I have to get my engagement ring re-sized.  I had to do that this summer, and now I will have to do it next fall.  The reason being that the engagement ring sits on top of the wedding band making the bands uneven.  It makes sense, just a pain in the butt!  I will have to be without my engagement ring for 2-3 weeks while it is getting re-sized and I won't be able to wear it until the day I get married.

I am in love!

Wedding Band is Done!!

So I got a call from the jeweler today and my wedding band is done!  I am so excited to pick it up.  I am hoping to swing by and get it during my break tomorrow, as I want it before the holiday.

My engagement ring is my maternal great-grandmother's from 1910-1914.  My mother gave it to me for my 25th birthday.  I then gave it to Steve and told him that whenever he was ready to propose I wanted him to give me this ring.  To know that this was worn by a happily married woman and has been saved in our family and passed on to me is incredibly special.  This is a ring that I will give to my eldest child when they get engaged.  It is awesome to know that I can continue to pass this down to my children.

So my wedding band is custom made.  It is a double band; one that goes in the front and back of my engagement ring and is connected on the bottom.  The bands will be in yellow gold and there will be tiny diamonds surrounding my diamond that will be set in white gold; just like my engagement ring.  I had an eternity band from my other maternal great-grandmother.  I had some diamonds removed from that band and put into my wedding band.

So when I get married my something old, something new, and something borrowed will be in my engagement ring and wedding band!  My engagement ring is 1/4 original (the diamond and a bit of the band) and 3/4 new (had to have it replaced when it was sized due to the frailty of the original band).  Now my Maid of Honor, Diana, is in charge of getting me something blue, and my mom has a silver sixpence, from the same great-grandmother the engagement ring belonged to, for my shoe.

Flower Girl Gift

So, Luna's gift came in yesterday.  It is absolutely precious.  I am so excited about it.  Steve even liked it!  I know if he likes it, it must be good!

Things are all coming together.  We only have the transportation left to book and then all of the big things are done.  We will only have the details left to tweek.  I sent a check to the ceremony musicians more than two weeks ago and they have not cashed it.  Not sure what happened.  Hopefully they got it and decided that I paid too much and they won't accept it!  Wishful thinking, eh?  Music Martha's Vineyard is who we are trying to book for the wedding ceremony musicians.  Mike Tinus is a good friend of my uncle's; he told uncle Mark he would cut us a good deal.  That is why I am thinking that they won't accept my check.  Who knows?!

Bridesmaid Dresses

So one of my bridesmaids, Sheila, went and picked up her dress today.  She said she loves it (and her mom loves it too!).  I am so excited that it came out well.  I cannot wait to see it in person.  I will have to ask her to bring it over next week so I can look at it.  While she was picking up her dress she saw the junior bridesmaid dresses and said that they are really cute too.  I am really happy to hear this. 

I had originally picked out completely different dresses for my bridesmaids but when they tried them on I hated them.  I did not like the fit, the fabric, or the way it looked with my dress.  We ended up agreeing on a different dress.  So I know what it is like to see something online and fall in love only to see it in person and swear that they are not the same. 

So it is good to know that the junior bridesmaid dresses look good in person as well as on the computer. Happy day!

Jr. Bridesmaid Gifts

So part two of the gift came today.  I am soooooo excited about how they turned out.  I could not be happier about it!  I know Emma and Chesca will love their gifts.  Emma will be 8 at the time of our wedding and Chesca will be 9.  I can't wait for them to stand up there with me.

I realized that I have not introduced the wedding party yet, so I am copying and pasting the page from my wedding website.

Our wedding party consists of family and friends that we could not get married without! 

My best friend, Diana Woods, is my Maid of Honor.  I have known her since she was 3 years old, and she is truly another sibling to me.

My sister, Jennifer Campos, will be one of my bridesmaids.  I love her so much, and am so happy to have her stand with me as I marry Steve.

My friend, Gabrielle Leon-Guerrero, is another one of my bridesmaids.  In high school we became closer and our friendship only grew from there.

My future sister-in-law, Sheila Buffone, is the 3rd bridesmaid.  She accepted me into the family the very first day that I met her.  She knows how to handle the Buffones, and that certainly came in handy with Steve!

My other future sister-in-law, Nancy Buffone, is the 4th bridesmaid.  She has been amazing with me over the last 4 years.  She offers such great advice and I would be stupid not to take it!

My cousin, Jennifer Oliver, is my 5th bridesmaid.  Over the last couple of years, we have all gotten closer.  It has been great getting to know my family better and spending time with cousins that I had lost touch with.  Thank you, Jen, for bringing us all back together!

Chesca Quinlan-Potter is one of my two junior bridesmaids.  She is the daughter of William "Bells" Potter and Kerry Quinlan-Potter. I have been her nanny/babysitter since she was 4 years old and I could not imagine getting married without her as part of my bridal party. 

My second junior bridesmaid is Emma Buffone.  She is the daughter of Vincent and Sheila Buffone. She is one tough cookie as she is the only girl out of 5 grandchildren. She is an awesome girl and she is an important part of my bridal party.

Luna Natusch is my flower girl.  She is the daughter of Fred Natusch and Jennifer Oliver.  Luna has grown up knowing Steve and we could not think of a girl who would be a better flower girl than Luna!

Best Man - Joseph Ciesla

Groomsman - Vincent Buffone

Groomsman - Mark Buffone

Groomsman - Matthew Buffone

Groomsman - Daniel Buffone

Groomsman - Brian Buffone

Ring Bearer - Zachary Buffone

Jr. Bridesmaid Gifts

So part one of their gifts came in the mail today.  I have to say that I am pleasantly surprised at how beautiful and simple the gifts are.  I know my girls will love them!  Also, last night I decided on their dresses.  I contacted the families and they are excited too!  They will purchase the dresses in the late spring, so that the girls do not grow out of the dresses before the wedding!  I am excited that they like them as much as I do!! 

Is it September yet?!!

Off Topic - Job Hunting

You know I thought I would have a full-time job by now.  I really thought that I was someone employers would want to hire for their companies, and that I would be employed with benefits and what not at this point in time.  It stinks that I am still a part-time worker.  I like my part-time job, I really do, but it does nothing to help me with the wedding.  I get just above minimum wage.  I barely have enough to pay my bills each month, never mind start saving up for a house and/or wedding expenses.

It drives me nuts that I am not contributing financially to this wedding.  True I am planning absolutely everything.  But I feel like I could be doing more.  A full-time job would help me to do more.  I have applied to any and every job that sounds like something I could do and nothing.  I had those interviews at UNUM and then they left me a voicemail saying that the managers had decided to move forward with other candidates (awesome voicemail).  It just stinks because I have put a lot of time and effort into contacting places, emailing or mailing my resumes.  I have contacted people for letters of recommendation and no one has come through.  Many jobs need me to send in 3 letters of recommendation with my resume and information, and I cannot apply for those jobs until I have copies of recommendation letters.  I have emailed my past employers multiple times for letters, and no luck so far.  I don't want to be pestering them for it, but I need it.  I really cannot get employed until I have recommendations..... ARG!

So for now I continue my job search and sending out my resumes to every job that looks appealing.  I know that I will get one.  I just wish I knew when.

Beautiful Dress

I think I have found the perfect dress for my mom to wear to my wedding.  I have been lokking online for months for a dress for her, and I stumbled across one, on sale mind you, on David;s Bridal's website.  I sent her the link, and she will check it out tomorrow.  I hope she likes it!  It is a royal blue (ink) color.  Since my bridesmaids are in blue hues, I thought this would compliment the group very well.

http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Iridescent-Taffeta-Sleeveless-Dress-F23755_Buy-Online-Bridal-Party-Mothers-Special-Guests

I think she would look amazing.  I am happy that it is a reasonable price, and I also found a coupon online that would send it with free shipping.  That would save almost $13 for her!

Fingers crossed that she likes it and gets it!!

Woohoo!

So I just bought my flower girl and junior bridesmaid gifts.  I was having a hard time thinking about what to get them, but I figured it out!  The junior bridesmaids will get 2 small gifts where the flower girl will get one.  My junior bridesmaids will be 9 and 8 at the time of the wedding while the flower girl will be 3.  I figure they have a more "important" job as they are older, so they can have more gifts!

Now we have to figure out what the Best Man and Groomsmen will get, along with the ring bearer (who will be 5 at the time of the wedding).

It is tough trying to buy gifts for people!  I have a hard enough time at their birthdays and at Christmas time, nevermind as a thank you... I know it will all work out in the end though!

So my Bridesmaids and MOH are all getting the same things, just slightly different.  I am also going to pay a portion of their hair getting done as it is $75 to do.  I am hoping to pay $50 for each bridesmaid, my MOH, my junior bridesmaids, and the flower girl.  I will probably not have to have the flower girl get her hair done as she wears it down and it is a beautiful blonde.  I think I will have her leave it that way.  Not sure what I want the bridesmaids hair to look like.  Not sure if I want it up, down, or 1/2 up - 1/2 down; probably the latter.  Who knew that hairstyles would be something that I would have to think about and plan?  It is amazing what details cannot get overlooked when planning your own wedding.

Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining about it, but there is a lot of stuff to do, think about, plan, and pay for.  I love planning it though.  In truth, this is something I could totally do as a career, but how does one get started?  I guess I would have to go back to school and get my degree in event planning/management, or whatever types of courses they have.  Then I would have to find an event planner who needs an assistant and go from there.  The local community college has an associate's degree program and UMASS Amherst has a Bachelor's program.  I am not sure I want to get into this field, but I do love planning my wedding so far.  Maybe after the wedding is over, and I really see how well my planning skills are, I will think more about that field as an option.  As for now, I am just go to sit back and enjoy planning this event for myself and my fiance.

Seriously??

I am a member of Wedding buzz, formerly Wedding Book, on Facebook.  Now there are some great ladies on there that are just bubbling over with wonderful ideas for everything related to weddings. There are some people that are clearly off their rocker.  One lady posted:

I have been having small fights with my FH on superstitions. I am a firm believer that you don't see each other the day of the wedding and that I can't stay that the house because of this. Well, according to him I was to stay here and I was just being silly.So after telling him I wouldn't marry him and withdrawing from him for 2 days, I won.
I was soooo shocked as I'm pagan with a large belief in karma and he laughs at it.

She was proud that she acted like a three year old.  Throwing tantrums and threatening to leave your Future Husband (FH) is immature and absolutely ridiculous. Who does that?  What grown woman would leave for 2 days and not speak to their fiance because of a "small fight"?  UGH!  Really??  "I won."???  You clearly lost your mind and your maturity when you pulled this stupid stunt.  Any man who stays with a woman who threatens to call of the wedding really needs some professional help.  A relationship, a healthy one at least, should not work that way. There is compromise.  There  are arguments.  There are all out fights.  There should never be threats to end the relationship and call off the wedding because of small fights.

I am so happy that I have a happy, healthy relationship.  I could not ask for a better relationship than the one that I have.  He is the most amazing person for me.  Some people may not think he is perfect, but he is perfect FOR ME.  I love him so much.  We have certainly have our ups and downs, as anyone has, but we are always strong and we don't let it damage our relationship.

Only 318 Days To Go!!

I am so excited that we are nearing the 300 day mark.  Time has flown by.  I remember the day we got engaged, and that was nearly 5 months ago.  It is amazing how fast time goes by.  As we are nearing the 300 day mark, I can only think that soon it will be 200 days, then 100 days, and the next thing I know I will be getting ready the morning of my wedding.  Don't get me wrong, I am so excited to get married and I wish it was September already, but I can certainly wait!  There are so many more things that we have to get done before our big day will be perfect.

Just the other day I received an email from a motel on the Vineyard.  They are will to waive the 2 night minimum stay if my guests reserve a room by the end of this year.  I am so excited!  Most of my guests were talking about how they would leave at 9pm and return to Falmouth that night.  I was bummed thinking that a good portion of my guests would be leaving so early.  I am so happy that there is an alternative for them to stay on the island.  I have to make sure that this information gets out ASAP so that they can make their reservations by the end of this year.  I want as many people to stay as possible!  I want to party and it won't be a party if half the guests leave.