The Bridal Suite

Since our wedding photos finally arrived on DVD, I can share a few of them with you all. I really enjoyed looking through all the pictures that we received because it reminded me of the all the fun moments that just went by so quickly! It is so true what they say...it's a blur and you will hardly remember a thing! So I am going to blog about the events I do remember.

I figured the pictures of my girls and I getting ready in the bridal suite was a good place to start the wedding recaps.

My dress! I purchased it from The House of the Bride in Augusta, GA. My consultant, Beth was amazing. So patient and sweet...I never felt rushed or pressured. And while we did look at another store, the best dress (and the best price) was found at House of the Bride.

My bridesmaid and sister-in-law, Sandy, made me a beautiful hanger cover with my new monogram! Doesn't it look amazing? I think she needs to go into business with these.

Kelly (a.k.a. Kmont) helping me with my veil just before I got dressed. Then it was time to slip into the dress.


I remember being cool and calm the entire morning, but as soon as the dress was on, I immediately got nervous! It made the whole thing real.

Mom shows the girls how to bustle the dress.


Then it's time to put on our heels. I needed a little help with mine!

I wanted to say a quick thanks to my mom and my bridesmaids for helping me get ready and keeping me calm throughout the day. Ya'll were awesome, and I couldn't have asked for more!

My new truck

I've been looking at getting a new truck for several months and after carpooling our first few weeks for work, we realized it was about time. I spoke (and negotiated) with 3 different dealerships and found it to be an enjoyable experience. After leaving the second dealership at which I played some serious hard ball, I commented to Kelly "that was fun." She replied "I hated that! I was sweating the entire time." Needless to say, Kelly did not attend the final negotiating session.



When looking at buying the truck, price was the primary negotiating factor. Most dealerships had multiple colors of the same package I was looking at, so for me, it wasn't about who could wow me but who could give me the best deal. And to top it off, Clark Howard recently talked about many new vehicles being cheaper than their used counterparts, which I found to be the case with mine after looking at used models from 2007-09. I decided on a 2010 Toyota Tacoma Double Cab Prerunner.

Finally!

Our wedding photos finally arrived! I wanted to quickly put up a post of some of the shots from our professional photographer. They are kind of random...I just chose a bunch and uploaded them. I'll be sure to write some cohesive posts with lots more pictures soon!

Much more to follow!

Updated Website

Sorry we haven't posted a new blog post in several days. We have been busy with our new jobs, looking at new vehicles, changing names and setting up joint bank accounts. I am anxiously waiting on our photographer's pictures from the wedding, at which point this blog will probably become over run with wedding posts. Just forewarning you!
In the meantime, check out our updated website. It has received a little face lift. If you have any topic suggestions as to what to do with the domain now that the wedding is over, please let us know.

Hilton Head Island, SC

We spent a few days relaxing in the sun at the Mariott Resort on Hilton Head Island. It was an enjoyable way to celebrate passing the boards and officially becoming physical therapists! Guess all of the studying paid off.

Cary found some sand dollars

Part of the sand sculpture in the lobby of our hotel.

The Doctors West, PT, DPT

Kelly and I have taken our boards and are now licensed PTs! We decided to take a short celebration beach trip to Hilton Head Island. Even though passing our licensure exam almost assures us a future income, and we both have jobs, I don't plan on changing my frugal ways. I used Priceline and was able to bid on and book the Hilton Head Mariott Resort and Spa for about 1/3 of the normal price! Our trip will be a restful and rewarding way for us to enjoy our last vacation for awhile.

Kelly starts work on Monday (July 12) and I start the following Monday (July 19). Time sure has flown since we started PT school over 3 years ago.

We'll post some pictures from the trip once we return, but here is a picture of the resort. Also, our professional wedding photos are finally in! Please let us know if you did not receive an email giving you access (a.k.a. a password) to them. You can purchase them through the photographer's website, too. Any size, any quantity. We were very pleased with them and will post about them soon.

At the Salon

On the day of the wedding, Sandy (one of my bridesmaids) and I headed to the Salon at Cumming Station to get our hair done for the wedding. I had previously done a trial run at the salon with Jenny and loved what she did. So I was very relaxed and confident for the day of the wedding. She even commented on how calm I seemed while sitting in the chair (at this point, I was just ready to get married, and I was glad the day was finally here).


I had my updo trial about a month before the wedding, a highlight early the week of the wedding (by Kelle), and finally, the actual updo on the day of the wedding. Everyone was professional and very nice at all three of my appointments. The color was great, the curls lasted all evening, and I couldn't have been happier.

Adding the veil, which was a wrist length, single layer veil.
The finished product!
(and me with no make up, sorry)

Heading to the church...

So overall, I highly recommend doing a trial-run of your hair for your wedding. It better assures that you and the stylist are on the same page. And, most importantly, it is one less thing to stress about.

**Thanks to Sandy for taking all of the photos!**