Pinterest, you make it look so easy.

So, remember this post when I talked about incorporating our dogs into our save the dates? (ps - I keep wanted to abbreviate that phrase, but it's totally inappropriate. and awkward). Well, now that we actually have a date and it's um, tomorrow 6 short months away, we had to jump on save the dates pretty quickly. So I consulted my good friend Pinterest, found some ideas, and thought 'no problem, this looks easy'.

Wrong.

First, I'm quite possibly the least crafty person ever. I wandered around Joann Fabric looking like a lost puppy. And then I spent probably twice as much money as I needed to because I had no idea what to buy. The plan was grab some wooden numbers, some glue & some twine. 

Do you know how many types of glue they sell? A lot. I mean, a whole lot. Tacky glue, Krazy glue, Super glue, Wood glue... I could go on. 

I finally bought Tacky glue and Krazy glue, 500 yards of twine that I'll never need again, and some wooden numbers. I glued the numbers on crooked and not evenly spaced and I didn't even paint them so I'm pretty sure they barely showed up in the pictures. 

My final brilliant idea? Have a friend who does some pet photography swing by literally 10 minutes after we get home from work (and right after Winnie has been in her crate for 8 hours) and attempt to get both dogs to sit for pictures.

I'm sure you can imagine how that went. Well, it probably went worse than you imagined. For the first half at least. Once Winnie figured out that this was the most boring game ever where you sit still for 5 minutes and then your toy gets thrown once, she was okay. Annabelle never cooperated but we expected that. 

Oh, and also, I wore black jeans and of course ended up with the black dog sitting by me. So I'm sure Winnie & I just look like one black blob in most of the pictures.

Soon I should have some pretty interesting pictures to show you. I'm sure there's at least half a dog missing in most of them. And some pretty stellar pissed off faces from Annabelle, the moodiest dog in the world. I'm also certain that Winnie's tongue is hanging out of her mouth in every. single. picture. 

So thanks, Pinterest, for making something that's nearly impossible look super easy... again.

Remember the Thigh Master?!?

I ventured to the gym a second time this weekend. We went on Sunday afternoon - there was a body pump class & a yoga class. Due to the amount of pain every muscle of my body was still in as a result of the oh so appropriately named Body Attack class last week, we chose yoga. Well, actually, my friend chose yoga and I let out an enormous sigh of relief upon hearing her decision.

I've never done yoga before. I did 'teach' it once, though. When I was a camp counselor I somehow ended up subbing for someone's yoga class. I'm pretty sure I put in a VHS of Suzanne Somers pre-thigh master days and then 'supervised' the kids. They probably learned a lot in that class. 

Despite my lack of experience, I survived yoga this weekend and especially enjoyed the last few minutes we spent laying on the mat with our eyes closed working on our breathing. Or, if you're me, trying not to fall asleep. That was for sure my favorite part. I also kept thinking of Suzanne Somers and the thigh master. All because of that one time I 'taught' yoga. See? Camp really does give you memories that last a lifetime.

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 I also love that the source for that picture is AARP. 

Best news of all? We have a date, venue & dress for the wedding. Now that we have a date and a place it's starting to feel a bit more real! I also cannot believe I found a dress in the first store. While I love clothes & shopping, I'm also a terrible shopper. I'm incredibly picky and tend to get very frustrated when clothes aren't just the way I want them. Somehow, about 2.5 seconds before a total meltdown I wanted to leave the store, we decided to try on this one last dress. And you know how they say you feel like a bride once you put that dress on? Well I did. And it was perfect. And 100 sizes too big for me. I go back in 2 weeks to try it again with some friends and then, if I still like it, get measured and get it ordered! 

And now, since our date is a grand total of SIX MONTHS AWAY (wth was I thinking?!?) I need to stop blogging and get planning. 

Friday, You're Back!

Oh, man. I feel like I've been in some alternate universe for the past couple of weeks. But, it's Friday and I survived all of it so that's good, right?  I'm nearly recovered from our big trip out west, but I don't have one single thing unpacked yet. Totally unacceptable. I'll get right on that this weekend... hopefully. 

Here's my top 5 from the last couple of weeks. 

1. Portland. Amazing city. I loved it! It felt unlike any city I've visited before. It was almost as if no one was going anywhere, ever. And quiet. It was a bit strange at first, but I loved it. And the food.... oh, the food. I may have gained 10lbs, but that's what vacations are for. 

2. Nephew time. Okay, this really should have been #1. Spending time with this little cutie was possibly my favorite part of the whole trip. Not possibly. It was. He is adorable and so, so, SO good. Just a laid back, sweet boy. And so funny! I couldn't believe how funny a 2 year old can be! I miss him terribly now... can't wait to see him in December.

He's got some mad selfie taking skills

3. Colorado. We made it to CO just in time for all that flooding for my college roommate's wedding. After being stuck in Denver Thursday night we finally made it up to Golden Friday morning and despite being gray & rainy at first the weather actually ended up being beautiful most of the weekend. Minus a horribly rainy drive back down to Denver to fly out on Sunday. That part was pretty miserable. 

4. College Reunion. Oh how I love weddings - we all get back together again and pick up right where we left off. Am I the only one who misses college so bad it hurts sometimes? I loved my college experience, so it's so nice when we all get to be together again. Next reunion will be at MY wedding! Eek!!

5. Speaking of weddings... we need to get planning. We are still hoping for April. Only we don't have one thing planned yet. We're going to check out a couple of reception sites this weekend so hopefully we like one, pick one, set a date and get this whole thing going! And a dress... I should probably do that soon.

I'm going to throw in bonus #6 because this is technically covering 2 weeks.

6.  Body Attack. So, if you've ever checked out my about me page you know I love food & naps. Exercising is never mentioned... mainly because I hate it and never do it. Well last night I somehow decided to go along with some girlfriends to a gym where they've been taking Les Mills classes. Last night's class was body attack. Let's just say it was appropriately named. Somehow, while hating it with every fiber of my being, I also had a lot of fun. And then I joined said gym. I fear the world may end soon, so be safe out there!

Peace Out, East Coast

Yesterday, I was awake for nearly 24 hours and spent my Saturday night playing 'tent' on the floor with a 2 year old and it was the best day I've had in a very long time!

I'm in Portland right now visiting my brother, SIL and nephew. Thursday we leave for Colorado for my college roommate's wedding!

I'll be back after this week, but until then you can follow along on Twitter and Instagram.

Things I Just Don't Understand...

1. trader joes cookie butter. I just don't get the concept. What is it? How do you eat it? Do you put it on something? Everyone says it's delicious, but I haven't tried it because I just can't wrap my head around it. I love cookies, and I love butter. But cookies in butter form? I don't get it.

2. morning people. james is a morning person. It kind of makes me want to stab him in the eye. And then there's those people who don't like sleep. Period. That whole 'you can sleep when you're dead' thing? Yeah, I don't care. I can also sleep while I'm alive and am able to enjoy every blissful, sleep filled moment. And naps? They're the best. Any time/day of the week. Especially those hard core naps where you wake up and can't quite figure out what time and/or day it is for a second. Oh man, those are amazing and totally worth that post nap groggy feeling you always get.

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3. people who have pets and no pet hair in their house. or on their clothes. or in their food. or everywhere that seems to always be covered in pet hair. I don't get it. Are they human? I don't think so. I always check myself before I leave the house and I'll think "hey, a couple dog hairs maybe, but not bad" and then I get where I'm going, look down, and realize I'm completely covered in dog hair. Wtf?!? I give up.

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4. people who don't like pets. while we're on the subject of pets, I don't understand people who don't like pets. I totally understand people who don't have pets... and even people who don't WANT pets. I mean, come on, my house would be cleaner and I'd be a lot richer without them. But people who just don't like them in general? I don't get it. 

So there ya have it, just a few things I cannot seem to understand. Maybe everyone else gets it and I'm just totally missing something. If that were the case I wouldn't be surprised one bit. 

And also, I finally got a blog design! Thanks so much to Erin at Two Thirds Hazel!

My Dogs Are Not Invited to my Wedding

So, if you know just one thing about me, it's that I'm pretty much obsessed with my dogs. You also know that I think Winnie is damn near perfect and Annabelle's soul purpose in life is to cause trouble wherever she goes.  Needless to say the first comments we got after announcing our engagement was whether or not the dogs were going to be in the wedding. Specifically we were asked if Annabelle would be the flower girl and if Winnie would be the ring bearer. 

No. Just, no. (Although I must admit they both look pretty awesome in clothes)

Reason #1? Annabelle would eat the cake. And probably run away. 

Reason #2? Winnie would put her tennis ball in everyone's lap. Gross. 

I should probably be honest here and say that if I wasn't going to be wearing a white dress and if I really had my way, Winnie would totally be invited. But I'll be wearing white. She's not compatible with white clothing. Black hair + tennis ball dirt + slobber = Disaster.

We have decided that instead of having our dogs ruin be involved in our wedding, we will try to incorporate them into our Save the Date cards. You know, once we actually have a date and all. I hear that's pretty important to establish first. 

Anyway, I had some ideas about how I wanted to have them involved... mainly that I want the card to be a picture of them rather than of us. I don't want my face on someone else's fridge. No way. So obviously I consulted Dr. Google to see what others have done. 

Here's some examples of ones I like:

This one is my absolute fave. Only we would have to have either one dog on each side, or both in the middle. How we'll get them to sit there I have no idea. Someone will just have to hold a ball in front of Winnie. She'll sit like a statue for days. Annabelle? Gah, I have no idea. Cooperating isn't really on her agenda so we'll see...

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This one might be easier to accomplish. Only, I don't want the boots there. Just a cute sign in between them. 

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This one is also super cute and potentially doable. The signs are from etsy - I love them. 

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So, there ya have it. My dogs are mostly terrible creatures who will absolutely not be invited to my wedding but I'm still totally obsessed with them and will involve them in some way. I mean, to be honest, so much of our time is spent yelling at playing with them that it seems only fair they get to play a role ;)

Head on over to the Tall Tails link up to see other people who are obsessed with their pets!

I'm Alive... And Engaged!!

Oh, hey. Apparently I dropped off the planet for a bit. My bad. Between GETTING ENGAGED... and then getting sick immediately after, blogging has taken a back seat. But I'm back, and semi regularly scheduled posts will resume ;) James wants to get married this spring so it looks like I'll spend most of my time planning. Spring seems fast to me, but that's probably because I do NOTHING fast and planning isn't exactly my strong suit. And by that I mean I'm terrible at it. And so far I've made ZERO progress except try very hard to get my mom to plan the whole thing for me. That hasn't worked... yet. Anyway, onto this week's High Five For Friday!

1. Obviously #1 is the ring. This was my grandmother's ring and I am in love. With him, and the ring ;) 

2. Dessert. Celebrations always call for dessert. Always. Also, this was the first time someone called me soon-to-be Mrs. W. It felt strange, but nice.

3. Who wants another dog?!? This sweet girl is at the farm where I farmsit and is looking for her forever home. They are fostering her and if we didn't have Annabelle we would probably already have her in our house. Her and Winnie would be the best of friends.

4. Ebeneezer. This horse cracks me up. Such a clown. It makes doing barn chores a little easier when this guy is following you around. Okay, maybe not easier but definitely more entertaining!

5. Hey, look at us, we're engaged!! And also, we are quite possibly two of the least photogenic people ever. It's true. Now, who wants to do some wedding planning fo' free? Pretty please?