An excellent find... if you ask me

I'm very excited about something I found at a shop at the beach! I got something that I think is super-awesome for the bridesmaids. Since at least a few of them read the blog, I don't think I'll divulge... at least not yet anyway.

Bridesmaids' Dress

The search for the perfect bridesmaid dress has begun. I would like to have the ladies in matching dresses. We started looking at the shop where I got my dress. Julia and Veronica have each tried on a bunch of dresses. Julia tried on dresses after the last episode of wedding dress shopping. Veronica was lucky that she didn't try on dresses until after I ordered the dress because she didn't have nearly as many to try on! They were both relatively good sports about trying on dresses that they didn't actually like... although Veronica made some priceless faces!

We're looking at dresses that either come in tea-length or can be shortened to tea-length. Some of the dresses come both in a brown and a blue color that I like. Some of the other dresses come in a nice brown color but the blue isn't quite what I had in mind. However, as an accent color the blue would be fine. One of the questions still up for debate is can the ladies and the men all be in brown with blue accents? Cindy mentioned that this would contribute to symmetry in the pictures... something I hadn't even thought about.

We shall have to give this more thought now that I have finished finding my dress.

The Dress!!!

The Dress has officially been ordered from All Things Bridal!!!!

Dress Shopping... take 5... The Dress

This weekend was a marathon dress shopping trip. We added one to the peanut gallery... Dad came along! I was down to the top 5. Since he has helped pick my dresses for most other dressy occasions, I wanted his opinion on the top 6. After seeing the first two at Shop 2, I was able to eliminate one and keep one on the maybes list. After seeing the next three at Shop 3, I had narrowed it down to two. Dad told me his opinions and his favorite was one of the top two. I'm pretty sure I've decided on a dress, but I figured I'd give myself a few days to sleep on it. Drumroll of suspense...

weeeeeeeeeeeeeell, you'll just have to wait until May 28th to find out which one I picked! :-)

While we were at the shops, we also looked through the racks of bridesmaid dresses. We saw a few nice ones at Shop 2... most of which we also saw at Shop 3. We also saw a number of others at Shop 3. V had to go home, but Julia, JB's Mom, and I stayed and looked at a few more of the dresses. Julia tried on all of the dresses that we had pulled out. It was fun to look at the different styles and see how they looked on a person rather than on a hanger. Much like the wedding dresses, they were very different on the hanger than on a person. Anyway, that was just a bonus preview as we had not planned to look for bridesmaid dresses on that trip.

Dress Shopping... take 4

Today we went to Classic Weddings in Lititz. This shop caught my interest because they advertise modest wedding gowns. Woo Hoo... something with straps... or maybe even with sleeves. Indeed they do have some gowns that have sleeves. Unfortunately, (or fortunately for my decision making process) these weren't really what I was looking for once I had them on. The sleeves were very movement restrictive.

This trip was a little different than the others. Since this one was much further away, I had less scheduling flexibility and wasn't able to accommodate everyone's needs. So, the peanut gallery this time included Mom, Veronica, Julia, and Dad. Yes, not only did Dad come along, he even looked at dresses! I ended up writing down 4 "finalists" at this shop. However, of the four, I have since eliminated one and the others are all by a designer that I can get at the shop in Quakertown. The people seemed nice. I learned some interesting info about dress lengths. All in all, I'm glad I went but it probably won't be the final choice as it is quite a drive.

Funny side story from this trip: One of the dresses I picked to try on was vastly too small. I don't think the lady intended to insult me but she told me not to worry about that style because the shape would accentuate my hips and thighs and you don't want to highlight large thighs. Thanks. Me and my large thighs will find another dress.

While we were out in the area, it was impossible to pass up a trip to Shady Maple! We had a great lunch following our shopping expedition.

Incognito Letter People

I have asked each of the people who have been featured here for their permission to put them on the blog. You will notice though that some names throughout my posts are abbreviated with letters. These "letter people" are people who I haven't actually acquired permission to reveal their identity on the blog. I know this is a sensitive issue for some people. If you are one of the "letter people" or if you suspect that you are one, I'd be glad to use your name with your permission... just leave me a comment or send me an email.

Bridesmaid - Chrystina

Again, I can't exactly put my finger on when we first met. However, Chrystina and I met through choirs of all sorts... Drexel Chorus and St. AJ's church choir. I can't even begin to imagine how many gallons of bubble tea we have consumed together!!! Should I ever need an "ice breaker activity," I know just who to call... or if I need someone to make a card, or arrange an a capella song, or to eat cuppycakes, or someone who totally understands what it means to be over-involved in life...

Why a monkey? Chrystina is sweet, silly, crazy, hyper, and happy just like her monkey... who has since been named Lily :-)