Kutschbach Christmas

I wanted to take a minute to wish all my bloggers a very Merry Christmas! I hope the reason for the season was within your hearts :-)

I have to admit, I’m a bit nostalgic this holiday season! I seem to be seeing things in a whole new light this year. Naturally it’s very evident in my mind that this is my “last” Christmas as Maggie Kutschbach with just my family and traditions. Next year I’ll have a husband and another whole family with new traditions to incorporate into the mix. I look forward to it but at the same time I feel a little sad too! My mom kept saying, “You better be here next year!” – when in reality I have NO idea where I’ll be! Patrick and I have never discussed what we will do about holidays but I guess like every other couple we will take turns splitting them each year.  So this year I tried to take it all in and enjoy it as much as possible!

As you can probably guess, Patrick and I did not get to spend the holiday together. He had practice Christmas morning then boarded a plane to Kansas City. Football players don’t get Christmas off! I am going to head down to see him for New Years though. I’ll be on a plane home all New Years day but it will be worth it to get to see him and ring in 2011 with him! He’ll also be on a plane New Years day, only heading to Indianapolis instead of Pittsburgh.

Every Christmas Eve since I can remember we have gone to my Godmother, Lois’ house. It’s an open house and anyone and everyone shows up! After food, drinks and plenty of laughs we always head to the late night mass. Growing up it was at Midnight but as of recently it has been changed to 10:00pm. I always enjoy this mass because it starts off in candlelight and it is so beautiful! After mass I always open one Christmas gift.

Yesterday, I opened one of my favorite gifts, a Shannon Crystal 4-way cake plate! I have to laugh, a few short years ago I would have HATED something like this ha-ha! Now, it was wonderful :-) My mom and I found it last week while Christmas shopping and I fell in love with it!! It can be a classic cake plate, a cookie tray, a punch/salad bowl or a veggie and dip stand all with the turn of the pieces! It’s beautiful!

On Christmas morning I woke up and went to my parent’s house to open the rest of my presents. As a child I woke up SO early all by myself. These days I have to admit, I need the alarm clock to get me out of bed ha-ha! I actually got my favorite gift this year (besides the iPad of course!!) twice! My sister Katie bought it for me as well as my mom. Both of them knew I wanted it so badly!

That’s right, I got my bridal robe from Victoria’s Secret!! I love it! I will take the second back and perhaps get the rest of my wedding night garb?! ;-)

After opening my gifts we headed up to the Sweeney house for the annual breakfast! Since Katie and Ted added so many family members to the family we now go to them each Christmas morning. It is so special seeing the kids so excited about Santa and Christmas in general! They are what it’s all about! I’m the baby of the family so it is amazing to see what Christmas is like through the eyes of a child :-) After playing with all the new toys and a delicious breakfast I actually fit in a little Christmas nap-a-roo! When I awoke I got ready and headed to my parents house for our grab-bag and dinner.

My family started the grab-bag tradition this year. Because of the wedding, everyone thought it would be best to just buy for the kids. So to stay festive all adults drew names and bought one present (minus Mom and Dad…they are always very generous!) I had my sister Kristy and I bought her a perfume set. My mom had me and bought me a gorgeous Wilton Armentale serving tray! Wilton is my new obsession since registering for the wedding! I love this serve ware! Not only is it beautiful, but you can also put it in the oven on a grill or in the freezer! I didn’t register for this piece but I absolutely love it!

Dinner was great. We had turkey and it was really good. We were kinda expecting ham which brought up the discussion of what do others eat on Christmas? Feel free to post what you ate below! My mom ALWAYS adds a scratch-off ticket at each place setting of the table. I was this year’s big winner! $10 – yeah!!! A new holiday tradition, Mom added in some wine this year…hilarious! She asked my sister Katie what kind she should get and Katie said Pinot Grigio. Katie laughed and said our mom would probably never remember what it was called, and that she might as well have called it “Penis Grape” lol! We quizzed mom at dinner and she called it “Pina Grina” – hilarious!!  

After dinner and some dancing and laughs my nostalgic self drove downtown to keep with my holiday tradition of seeing the Macy’s windows. I’m a bit sentimental over them! 2 years ago I actually took Patrick to see them and after we shared our first kiss!! It was sad not having him there this year but I took pictures to share with him – so I may as well share with you as well! Usually the windows are very extravagant but this year they were toned down a bit. Neat note about them, each one was made out of just paper!!! It was based on the “Yes Virginia, There is a Santa Claus” story…

I went on to explore the rest of downtown Pittsburgh and it's beautiful Christmas spirit :-) I loved seeing my city all light up! If I'm not here next year I will miss it SO much!!

Sunday morning, the day after Christmas, I woke up early and went ornament shopping with my parents. I've done this with my parents since I was a little, little girl! My parents are big collectors of Hallmark ornaments and it looks as though their addiction has stemmed down to me...Check out my first collection!

From left to right we have the Grizwald's house all lit up (LOVE Christmas Vacation!), The 2010 Snowflake, Our Christmas (for Patrick and I to journal about this holiday season), Merry Christ-Moose (I loved her little red high heel shoes!!), Airplane (for my newly licensed pilot!!), a mixer, cupcakes, and a single cupcake (all for my kitchen tree!) and Patrick's old teammate Troy Polamolu. I'm happy with them and I hope Patrick likes them as well!!

Well, I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! Please be festive and safe as you ring in 2011 next weekend!

Talk to you again next year :-)

Bridal Binge...

I've come the the realization that I, Maggie Kutschbach (soon-to-be Bailey!) am partaking in a "Bridal Binge"...As I mentioned in the last blog, I have been a huge slack-ass when it comes to dieting and exercise, well my streak has continued and you know what? I don't like it. Not a single bit!

Every weekend I'm guilty of doing the same thing...I tell myself, this is my final weekend of freedom eating! I'm kinda embarrassed to admit this, but I'm totally guilty of binge eating to prepare for my diet to start on "Monday". (I know I'm not the only one out there who has done this!!!) Gosh, I eat all of my favorite things, just over-indulge in them, anything my heart desires! Then comes Monday...Sometimes I have a strong Monday which leads to a good week, but often times I have a bad Monday and then the whole week is a goner...I need to leave this frame of mind!!! It's terrible! I'm so guilty of making excuses and being just plain lazy.

Why am I telling you this? Well, because in a way it's the ultimate wake up call to myself. I'm 90 days away from my wedding!! 3 months exactly from the day I've dreamed about since I knew what a wedding was! I'm marrying the man of my dreams who is in tip-top shape. I need to get myself in the same spot because he deserves that! We will look back on these wedding pictures forever and I don't want to regret a thing.

So as I sit here eating the last of my Black Forest Gummy Bears (they are now gone and they were good! lol) - I'm making a vow to myself that I am getting serious!!! There is no more, "I'll start on Monday" or "I'll do it after the New Year" - I'm going to start now! At 8:00 pm on a Sunday night!

Now I want to let ya'll know, I'm not fishing for compliments here, I don't need ya'll to say "but you look fine the way you are". I know I look fine, but I don't want to look just "fine" on my wedding day. I want to look stellar, wonderful, fit, amazing and beautiful all rolled into one! Basically I want to look the best I've ever looked! I know I'm fine the way I am and I know my fiance loves me just the way I am. I'm not getting serious about this for anyone other then me. I want to be able to look the mirror and know my hard work has paid off. So it begins now.

Tonight I vow (and I take all my vows seriously!!) to try to do all of the following...

• Drink no more pop...I've been so bad drinking Coke and Mountain Dew...unnecessary calories that are doing nothing for me!
• Not eat after 8:00 pm...eating after that is doing me no favors at all.
• Incorporate more natural foods into my diet like fruits and veggies instead of processed foods.
• Stop making excuses and do some sort of exercise every day - whether it's crunches on my bedroom floor or a full-blown sweat-fest at the gym...no excuses!
• Start cooking for myself again...eating out isn't what's best for me. When I cook it I know what goes into it and I need to get back to this.
• Fight the temptations for cravings of certain foods. I need to get strict and start telling myself "No!"

This post has pumped me up!!! I'm refreshed and excited and ready to get healthy! Not tomorrow on Monday, not on January, 1st, 2011, but now, on December 19th, 2010! So I'm going to hit my bedroom floor with some crunches and squat kicks, I owe it to myself after my weekend of Chips and Guac, Cheesecake, Cheddar and Sour Cream Chips, Gummy Bears, Coke, Mountain Dew...Ugh! It's not easy admitting all of that! From now on I'm going to think to myself, would I eat this in front of someone I was trying to impress? Would I chow down like this if I had others watching me do so? I know its not going to be easy, and I'm sure I'll stumble at times, but tonight I'm vowing to try my hardest to make these crucial changes to better myself :-)

So to wrap, here are some videos I used as an inspiration to myself...maybe they can help you as well! Enjoy and I'll be in touch again soon!

< 100 Days To Go!

With 96 days left until the wedding I found it fitting to give an update on how all the plans are going :-) I've finally found myself in a calm spot after getting caught in what felt like a downward spiral. They say when it rains it pours and so is the case with wedding planning! I swear not just one thing can go wrong at a time - it has to be a long and drawn out chain of events. Finally all feels right again (thankfully!) and that could be because I got a surprise last-minute visit from my fiance!

Patrick was in town this past weekend and it was SO wonderful to get to see him and spend some quality time with him. It is SO hard to be away from him and I think at times it takes a toll on both of us and almost turns us against each other. We're your average couple and we fight like your average couple. We don't have a relationship that is always sunshine and roses...but then again who does?! I must say when disagreements arise, fighting from a distance is the absolute worst. Patrick and I have always been the type that hugs it out after a blowout (I'll never forget - one of our first big fights...he showed up on my doorstep after we reconsiled, just for a hug!) and obviously we no longer get to do that, which isn't easy. We now have to settle for the swap of a funny youtube video - hey, whatever works right?!

But anyhow, no more negative talking! We had an amazing weekend I plan to dish all about it :-)

So Patrick got in late Friday night. He had requested that I "have food" so I decided to go old-school and take him to my favorite college pizza place "Hometown Pizza" in Moon Township. After some nostalgic pizza for me, and just sub-par for him, we headed home to get some rest.

Saturday morning I awoke to a present being placed in front of me. As I unwrapped the purple wrapping paper I found Patrick's #57 Titans jersey before my eyes! (Excuse the all-natural look, I told you I was woken up to the present! lol)

Something hard was wrapped inside of the jersey and I placed it on the floor and gave my fiance a big hug and kiss! I had been waiting for this jersey for about 2 months now! All of the wives, fiances and girlfriends in Teneessee wear their mans jersey and I always felt so left out because I haven't had one! I knew it was coming because Patrick told me he ordered it Week 5 of the season...I just didn't know when it was coming! I was thrilled that it was finally here though! After hugs and kisses Patrick said "So what else did you get?" I looked at the floor where I placed the other gift and said "a book", and picked up the leather book as Patrick asked "What kind of book?" I about had a cow when I realized that in my hands was my very own iPad! Haha!

It was so cute, as I fired it up I found a special message...

Patrick took it upon himself to download all of his songs and games and some cool new apps to my iPad so it was all ready to go for me! So sweet!! :-)

After playing around with it for a little while we got ready for our first appointment of the weekend. Part of the stress I had been under was the fact that the invitations I had bought had no inside envelopes. Unfortunately there was no fixing this problem and I had to start from scratch and pick new ones. Because Patrick was coming in this weekend we decided to choose together. We selected a beautiful classic set that I am very excited about! I have to say I love that Patrick and I agree on a lot of the design elements of our wedding. I'm really into classic beauty and fortunately he is too which makes for easy decision-making! :-) I also love that he is actually into helping me pick stuff out and has an opinion!

After selecting the invitations we went back to the house and watched "License To Wed" - haha! If you haven't seen it, you definitely should! After the movie we got ready and went to The Capital Grille for some dinner with my sister Katie and her husband Ted. It was delicious as always!!! Mmmm!

Saturday night all of my closest friends from high school were getting together for a girls night and I had to make an appearece! After dinner Patrick and I stopped to say hello :-) He was a trooper as he was the only guy there for awhile - haha! The girls had fun taking pictures and designed what they say should be our first Christmas card - haha!

Sunday was an exciting day! A jeweler that Patrick heard about from some former teammates came by the house to show us some wedding rings :-D I tell you what, I felt like I was on the Bachelor/Bachelorette having diamonds brought to my house! The jeweler came in with a bulletproof case and set them out on the table for us...it was a pretty cool experience! We think we found the rings we want which is pretty cool and it also takes a lot of pressure off the to-do list!

We spent the rest of the day cuddling up in front of the TV watching football. It was a little bittersweet watching the Steelers together on TV...something we've never done before. I'm glad Pittsburgh is doing so well though and am excited they are in the playoffs!! Unfortunately, it doesn't look as though the Titans are going to be joining them there. Between their overextended losing streak and the success of the other teams in their division they are pretty-much out of the runnings. It stinks because they were doing so well the first half of the season! On the positive side though, this means Patrick will be back sooner than we previously expected which is so exciting for me!

Sunday night we met Patrick's Pittsburgh family, Dave, Ella and Carissa at Patron's for some dinner. Patron's is our spot! It's our favorite resturant to go to together in Pittsburgh. They have the best Mexican food in Pittsburgh, hands down! Patrick says it's the closest to Texas as he can get in Pittsburgh - haha! While there we asked if they could accomodate us for our rehersal dinner. They told us they would shut down the restaurant for us which was exciting news! When Patrick first requested Patron's for our rehersal dinner I was a little hesitant because there isn't a private room for parties. Now knowing that we can have the entire restaurant - that put me more at ease. I sampled a fish dish - which we will have to have as our rehersal dinner falls on a Friday night in Lent (I'm Catholic and must have fish on Friday's during Lent) and it was yummy! Words can't express how excited I am to know the rehersal dinner is out of the way...it's been more stressful then the actual wedding!!!

Other big developments...We sent out our save-the-dates and released our wedding website. If you didn't have a chance to check it out you can do so now... http://www.mywedding.com/kutschbachbailey/.

Our flower girls also have their dresses selected. I went to Alfred Angelo with my sister and her three girls and they fell in love with the most princess-like dress they had! Our fourth flowergirl, Patrick's cousin, Caila, went this weekend to try it on. She called me from the shop and brought a tear to my eye when she said "I feel like the Bride!" - that comment stole my heart away! All four girls are going to look like they walked out of a fairytail! They are going to be the show-stoppers!

Some of the small details of the wedding are also falling into place. I feel like I am right on track which is an awesome thing! Now I just need to worry about taking care of ME! I've not been as vigilant on the workouts as I need to be, but all this is going to change! January 3rd this bride-to-be joins boot-camp!!! Monday through Friday at 6 AM myself and my bridesmaid Jordy will be pushing ourselves to the max!! Start praying for me now - as I KNOW I'm going to need all the prayers I can get haha! To further maximize my workouts my fiance told me he is joining my gym and we will go nightly. This is just what the bride-to-be ordered! I need someone to crack the whip and keep my rear in gear!! I'm already warning ya'll - it's not going to be pretty! I will probably be a huge crabby-pants so expect the rants lol!

Well that is all the news I have for now! Thanks for stopping by :-)

XOXO

So Thankful For...

*Written on Thanksgiving...site wasn't working for me to post*

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my followers J I hope you all had a blessed day with your family and friends! I must say I really love Thanksgiving, it’s such a nice holiday. It’s not only my favorite meal of the year (yes, bride-to-be went way overboard and indulged BIG TIME!!) but it’s a time to reflect on all the blessings in life. I know we should all be thankful for the gifts in our lives every day of the year – and I like to think to some extent I am, but this one day out of the year really puts it into perspective and opens my eyes even more. It truly is the most humbling holiday.

I absolutely loved seeing all of the status’ on Facebook stating what my friends were thankful for. It’s nice to see that sort of thing so I thought I’d blog about mine.

I’m sad to say my family didn’t say grace before our meal to thank the Lord for all the blessings in our lives. With six adults and five children to feed my mother now sets up a buffet in our dinette so everyone makes a plate and eats at different times. It’s not an excuse, because to me there is no excuse for this – especially on a day like Thanksgiving! It just sadly got overlooked so I’m going to state here what I would have liked to have heard there, or said for myself there at the dinner table because my family truly received so much this past year.

My oldest sister Kristy started her own business this year and thankfully things are still going strong there. She owns a nail salon, “Salon Chic”. It’s located on the bottom floor of her home, so another thing she has to be thankful for is being a new home owner! Naturally there was a bit of uncertainty that her success would remain once the winter months came around. Fortunately all is going well on that front! What a blessing for her to be in business for herself!

Her son Blayze is 8 years old now and he has been blessed the ability to play football. His team, the North Hills Tomahawks, just won the championship two weekends ago! The Tomahawks finished the season undefeated – which is big news in the life of an 8 year old!

My other sister Katie and her husband Ted have been blessed tremendously this past year.  They purchased their home, but now are in the process of building a brand new one. Exciting! Aside from this, Katie, Ted, and their three daughters Caroline, Lulu and Addie welcomed a new family member – Baby Teddy!  He’s been a wonderful addition to our family J He was baptized two weeks ago so I thought it would be fitting to add a picture from that exciting milestone in his life.

 Ya’ll know I have a lot to be thankful for this year! Gosh, it’s been exciting! This year my business really took off and flourished – definitely something to be thankful for! Because of this I was able to buy my first home which was something I never thought would have happened this year! It’s definitely hard work being a home-owner but it’s worth it and I’m so thankful God placed that opportunity in my path. As if these blessings weren’t enough God continued to be so good to me when I got engaged! I’ve dreamed of this time in my life for years now and although I can take it for granted at times, I’m so happy to be in these moments!  My fiancé is wonderful, we are both healthy and our love is stronger than ever…so much to be thankful for!

Patrick and I were separated this year for Thanksgiving. It wasn’t easy to be apart, but fortunately I did get to see him just last week when I traveled to Nashville for his 25^th Birthday.

We had a great time and got a little bit of wedding stuff done in the mix. Patrick and I selected the tuxes he and his groomsmen will wear in less than four months now!  It was pretty funny, I was trying to help him decide between pleated and flat front pants and suggested he just try both on…well, I got a big shock when I learned that the guys don’t get to try on their tux until a few days before the wedding!!!  I couldn’t even imagine just getting to try on my dress a few days before the wedding…crazy!  I think we picked out some good stuff though. I’m sure all of the men will look very handsome J  The only thing we are trying to decide on is the shoes…I’m not a big fan of the patent leather on guys, and Patrick told me how uncomfortable the rented shoes can be, so the guys may just wear their own black shoes. We haven’t decided 100%; I believe Patrick is letting the decision be up to his groomsmen, which is probably the best thing to do! Speaking of the groomsmen, Patrick’s groomsmen gifts came in the mail this past week! I think he did a really good job! It’s a very unique gift idea that I’m sure not one guy is expecting! He put so much time and thought into selecting their gifts…I really hope all of them like what they get!

The Titans fell to 5-5 this past weekend which currently has them out of the playoff picture. Fortunately they still have 5 division games to play and are currently 1-0 in the AFC South. Get this, their next four straight games are all divisional games…so it’s a pretty crucial time for the team! They’ve lost their past three games so hopefully that is all the fuel they need to fire them up! This past weekend they lost in overtime, so they are at least in the game and playing solid football. Week 14 the Titans play on Thursday night so Patrick is planning to come into Pittsburgh for that weekend if they are given the weekend off…fingers crossed they are! If they aren’t I most likely won’t be seeing my fiancé until New Years Eve. The Titans play in Kansas City the day after Christmas so the team will be traveling for most of Christmas day…big bummer!!!

We make do though. I know our situation isn’t ideal but it’s also much better than others. I have a friend who is pregnant with her first child and her boyfriend is currently deployed…gosh, my heart goes out to her and all the other women out there who have to deal with that sort of situation in life. My fiancé is away but I can jump on a plane or get in a car (if I have a spare 9 hours – haha!) and get to him! Our time zone difference is only one hour, his phone always works and if I miss his phone call I can just call him back. Women involved with a military man don’t have these luxuries. So I know how lucky I am and I hope that other women (and men for that matter!) who have their fiancés near them at all times never take for granted one second of that precious time together!

Well this entry is getting much more lengthy then I had anticipated so I will call it a night here! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!

 

PS – To all my friends and family members who defended my blog last entry, thank you! I won’t lie, what “Anonymous” said got to me a bit. Naturally when someone says something negative about what you do you start to second-guess why you are doing what you are doing in the first place. When you’re passionate about something you expect others to be just as passionate about it and that’s where I end up getting hurt.  I know I can provide TMI (Too Much Information) at times, and I apologize if I offend anyone by doing so. That isn’t my mission at all! I’m just a girl who has a love for her life and is excited to be planning her wedding! I’m a rookie at this and I hope other ladies out there planning their special day can look at this blog and relate to the feelings I’m experiencing – good, bad or ugly (that’s why I include them all!) So I will officially end by saying if you don’t like what I have to say on my blog please don’t drink Hateraid on it – just simply go to the top right hand corner, click the “x” and be on your merry way! I didn’t ask you to read, you chose to read! Again, thanks to my supportive family and friends…I needed you and you were there!  XOXO!!

A Man's Perspective

The Titans "Bye" week finally came and with it I got my fiance in Pittsburgh for the weekend! Coach Fisher was very gracious to his players and let them leave after practice on Thursday and didn't make them arrive at the facility until Tuesday. So I got to have my love Thursday night until Monday morning :-) We had a GREAT time!!

We got so much accomplished...I really feel like a huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders! In those few days we managed to get so much done...

1.) Our Registries...We decided to go with Bed Bath and Beyond and Macy's. There is a little bit of everything that we selected at each store but for the most part we registered all of our kitchen needs at Bed Bath and Beyond. We did our china, flatware, bedding and bath at Macy's. It is SO hard to pick out stuff we will use for the rest of our lives, but I think we did a pretty good job! Patrick helped with all of the selecting from our measuring cups and cutting boards to the design on our china. (FYI...the $500 blender was his choice for his protein shakes...he says it's "the best"...so whoever is feeling generous, well by all means make the mans day...lol!) He was a huge help and I loved having him there to give his opinion!! I have to share with ya'll, he made me laugh so hard when we passed Loews and he asked when he would get to register for HIS stuff there! He added that he needs his man-toys like a lawn mower and yard tools...he's such a character!

2.) Our Rings...we looked at Henne Jewelers for our wedding bands! I found a beautiful diamond eternity band that I just fell in love with! Patrick selected a Palladium band with a brushed look to it...they look very good together! We are still going to continue to look but we both liked what we found at Henne's!

3.) Our Cake...Patrick got to taste our wedding cake while in town. He loved it as much as I did! We are definitely going to do a filling but are still deciding between Strawberry and Raspberry. We haven't selected a style for the cake yet but are starting the search soon...any ideas?!

4.) Our Dinners...Patrick and I had a little double date with my parents on Friday night and sampled our menu at the PAA! We decided our three choices will be the Stuffed Chicken Breast, Boursin Crusted Filet Medallions and the Orange Roughy. All three are DELICIOUS!! Our sides will be Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Broccolini Floret.

5.) Our Engagement Photos...Milla C. Photography will be taking all the photos at the wedding! Milla is an amazing person and I was so excited for Patrick to FINALLY get to meet her! We had SO much fun at the shoot! We started out at a little retro waffle house in Shadyside called "Oh Yeah! Waffles" - this place was pretty unique! They offer over 100 fixins for our waffle and I don't think they missed anything...they even offered Wasabi Waffles...I'm not that brave! I stuck with the banana chocolate chip :-) Oh Yeah offered a great backdrop for our photos. When we saw the weather cooperating we decided to take the shoot outside and landed ourselves in a yard of Sacred Heart Catholic Church (My mom was actually baptized at this church!) We had so much fun goofing around!! Patrick got into it and I was so pleasantly surprised!! He was so playful and fun and totally awesome! We got one picture back as a little sneak-peek...

Other then my "play-dough" arm (as Patrick put it haha! We both made the point that it looks displaced!) we like the first picture! I can't wait to see the rest as I know there are going to be even more better ones! Milla is so talented at what she does, she truly has a gift! As soon as I get all the photos back I will share our favorites with ya'll! :-)

We also squeezed in a meeting with our priest, Father DeWitt. This was the first time Patrick and Father really sat down and talked and they got along a little too well I'd say - haha! At times I was wishing another female was in the room to take my side!! All jokes aside, I am so happy Patrick and Father got along so well. It really meant a lot!

So as you can see, it was an all-work weekend!! We didn't have any play, but we had fun with everything we did :-) We got some good meals in there (I may have found all 7 pounds I lost...lol!!) and had some snuggle time while watching movies. All in all it was a wonderful and productive weekend :-) I wish Patrick could be here for more of them but I am thankful to have what I got. After March we will get to spend every weekend together for the rest of our lives :-D Good Stuff!

Expect another blog in 2 weeks after my trip to Tennessee for Patrick's 25th Birthday!!! Until then...

Falling For Nashville...

If you know me, then you probably know how much I adore Fall! It is my favorite time of the year for more then one reason. I love the colors that surround me and the scents in the air. I love that it's still warm outside yet not hot or cold. I LOVE football! I love that we cover up our bodies in jeans, sweaters and scarfs. And I'm obsessed with anything pumpkin flavored...pumpkin icecream from Brusters, pumpkin blizzards from Dairy Queen, pumpkin cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory, my Aunt Sharon's should-be famous pumpkin roll recipe...I can go on and on!! (obviously this isn't the best time to be less then 5 months away from your wedding!)

Anyhow, when Patrick and I talk about the future and where we will one day live I always tell him I absolutely cannot sacrifice Fall. I've told him I will relocate for him but the place we move to absolutely has to have a Fall season. After being in Nashville this weekend I feel like we could have a home and start a family there! :-)

I got to visit before and I had fun, but it was a rushed visit. This time we had all day Saturday to explore and have fun together. I loved what I saw, and most importantly, I loved what I felt. :-)

While Patrick was at his morning run through practice, I got ready for the day and spent some time on his deck reading. It was so relaxing and wonderful. Moments like these are glorious! Nothing spectacular, just a perfect time. When he got back we ended up heading out to grab a bite to eat. I was surprised when he told ME to drive! So I drove down the road as he directed and we got some sandwiches at "Penn Station Sub Shop"...delicious! I should add we later ate at a place called "San Antonio Taco Company"...not so good! Patrick was of course drawn to it as he's from San Antonio. I told him everything is better in Pennsylvania and he rebutted by saying "Texas can't be copied" - HAHAHA! It's a fun little rivalry we have :-)

We spent most of the afternoon at a place called "Centennial Park". It was really close to the Vanderbilt University campus. It was so pretty inside the park with the leaves all changing colors :-) We even saw two weddings...how ironic!

After a nice stroll around the park we landed ourselves on one of the many unique swings in the park.

It was here that we captured what could be my favorite photo of us thus far...

Every picture has some sort of story and I love the story behind this one...So Patrick is infamous for giving me bunny ears in pictures. I usually have no clue but am slowly but surely catching on. Because he's so tall I can never get him back. Well since we were sitting I knew for once I could get him back! So I put up the ears and because we were on a rocker he felt my hand bump his head...right when he snapped the picture! He knew and I knew that he knew and as a result we got one of my favorite pictures ever! I think I love it so much because it's just one of our typical moments! When we're together and even when we're apart we are always laughing at some inside joke - finally it was captured! I also love that the moment looks as good as it felt :-)

Shortly after this Patrick came up with a good idea...We've been talking a lot about the future and what's in store for us. I know that if there isn't a lockout in the NFL this year that we will most likely be relocating come June or July. It's a bit scary for me but I am all in and willing. I've worked hard to build my career and I love what I do so it's sad to realize that I may not be able to continue what I do now as we will most likely live 8 months out of the year in one location (wherever he's playing - hopefully Tennessee!) and 4 months back in Pittsburgh. Given that scenario it will be tough to find someone to hire me in a full-time position. I'm passionate about working and have since I was 14 so I don't intend on not working just because of the situation! So lately I've been trying to brainstorm ideas of things I could do. Patrick suggested that maybe starting a photography business could be good for me - as I could do this anywhere! I loved the idea and quickly got to work directing my man on where to go and what to do. I didn't take the pictures per say - I mean Patrick's arm is a lot longer then mine - which helps! But I did come up with the ideas! Check em out!

We had so much fun! Now here are some idea's my love brainstormed...He may have a knack for photography as well!

After out little photoshoot we grabbed dinner and I dropped Patrick off at the team hotel. From there I drove his car "Baby" back to his apartment...it was scary to say the least! If I ever did anything to Baby...well I don't want to find out what would happen!!! But I got her back safe and sound - and went nowhere the rest of the night! LOL!

Sunday morning I picked Patrick up at the hotel and he then drove us to the game. The Titans played the Eagles and won 37-19! The first half was pretty uneventful but the second half was like watching a whole different team! They played great and secured their 5th win giving them a 5-2 record.

I really need to make some friends of other significant others of teammates! I'm a big loner when there! I sat all by myself...I'm sure it will come eventually, and I look forward to it!

After the game and dinner Patrick and I got a little bit of wedding stuff done. We got our church papers signed and we started selecting some music to be played at the wedding. We started trying to pick out our first dance song...lol! Let's just say Patrick picked out a legit pick with Michael Buble's song "Feeling Good"...but try dancing to it!!! We were laughing so hard as we tried to get on beat...which was impossible! Needless to say I think we better hit the drawing board again lol. We'll find it I'm sure, but just haven't yet.

Other wedding news...My dieting has been strong! So far I'm down 7 pounds in 5 weeks :-) Also, some of the components of my centerpieces are in! Good stuff! So I'm moving right along.

This week I have another appointment with a florist. Next weekend Patrick will be in and we will be doing lots of fun stuff like registering, sampling our menu and cake, meeting with our priest and engagement photos :-) I can't wait to see him!!! You'll hear all about it so stop back again soon!

Cha-Cha-Cha-Changes!

Oh have I fallen behind! I missed last week's blog which I had already named "Yard Sale For My Wedding Veil" - haha! Basically I had shared with ya'll that I was getting rid of tons of stuff to make room for my fiance...well in the process I made $142.00 - Yeah! Plus I had sold $205 worth of stuff on Craigslist! I still have about $400 worth left to sell - so hopefully I get some hits here! I also learned how to do E-Bay and plan to sell some of my more expensive stuff (Coach bag and wallets, Kate Spade bag and wallet, Sherry Hill and Joviani pageant gowns - I've got a lot of good stuff that has to go!) So hopefully I can up the cashflow in - which would help furnish our home a little more personally and help with the wedding :-)

Last week I got a ton done! I found my Bridesmaid gifts and started purchasing them. Three down - five to go! I shall not tell what it is but let's just say I really hope I have some extra money when all is said and done so I can treat myself to the same gift :-) I kinda sorta love what I'm buying them and would really like to own it as well! Okay enough on that subject!!!

Another topic that I can't speak too much on but have nailed down is my centerpieces!!! I will not tell what they are but I can say this much...I've never been to a wedding with anything like it! I think it's pretty unique and I'm super excited for it! It's a bit more practical then flowers -- which my husband-to-be appreciates - haha!

We also booked our photographer last week!! Milla C Photography will do our pictures and I am thrilled! Milla actually shoots with her husband Brad so we will have two photographers with two different styles capturing our wedding! Milla and Brad do GREAT work and are super sweet on top of it! One of the things that I love about them is that they capture the moments you'd miss if you blinked. Nothing is fake or posed - it's all real moments - this is EXACTLY what I was looking for! Check out their website...

http://www.millacphotography.com/index.html#/wedding-photography/

Milla also blogs her weddings which I find ultra-cool as I'm a blogger :-)

So enough on last week - let's jump right into the "Cha-Cha-Cha-Changes" of this week! BIG NEWS!!! Patrick and I actually decided to change our church...very bold I know! But it's all for the best we feel. See originally we were getting married at my childhood church, St. Cyril of Alexandria, at 2:30 PM with the reception starting at 5:30 PM. When I first told Patrick about it I don't think it registered to him that there would be a 2 hour gap between the ceremony and reception that guests would have to fend for themselves with. When he didn't say anything I thought I had the green light. Well it all sank in this week and I got a big giant red light! I totally got where Patrick was coming from with not liking the idea of our guests having to wait around for us so my mom and I started to brainstorm. We came up with St. Paul's Cathedral! The Cathedral is actually located within walking distance of our venue and the hotel that we blocked rooms at - so it is now super convenient for all of our guests! To make matters even sweeter...the ceremony with be at 4:00 PM - so now our ceremony and reception will be seamless! 

The Cathedral isn't the easiest of places to get for a wedding. It is the mother church of the Diocese of Pittsburgh and is lead by Bishop David Zubik. In addition, it's breathtakingly beautiful so it is highly sought after! It took A LOT of prayers to land it and I am so thankful for all who came together and prayed for it for me :-) God heard us and I know deep down this is His plan and what He wanted all along :-) I now invite you to take in it's beauty!!!

I just feel so blessed to be able to come before God and take Patrick to be my husband in this historic and holy place!

Other developments this week...I found my invitations, scheduled our engagement photos (November 6th), finally picked out a color to accompany my grey (pale pink), started our "wedsite" and found the place where my Bridal Shower will take place (Donatos!! Thanks for the recommendation Jordy!). I hope I continue moving this way!!! Patrick has also been on the ball! He finally found our Honeymoon destination -- we think! I'll share all those details when we for sure book at this resort :-) It's beautiful and I can hardly wait to go there as "Maggie Bailey" :-)

Have a GREAT week! Look forward to the next post as it's going to be jam packed with lots of fun stuff :-) Until then!

Back On Track

Week #3 of wedding planning found me "back on track". I feel like I found my calm again after the difficult, trying and mentally draining week #2.

Monday morning I was surprised when I got a call from Patrick. We will usually just send a good morning text to each other. He was so sweet when he told me he woke up thinking about me and just had to tell me for himself. I'm one of those people who is all about the little things in life and that right there was so simple and little but meant the world to me! It really set the tone for the week!

Topics that seemed problematic last week got resolved this week -- Bridesmaid dresses are selected (not the ones I thought they would be!) and I found our means of transportation :-) Plus we got to dive into some fun stuff like Honeymoon planning ;-)

Bridesmaids dresses...I will share a picture since Erin requested it! Plus my sister already posted it on Facebook so they really are no longer a secret lol. I will say this...the picture doesn't do them justice! They are much prettier in person. I love that they don't look like your typical bridesmaid dress. They are very chic! They were designed by Bari Jay and will be in this same exact color which is called "Shadow".

 

They aren't exactly what I envisioned but I do really like them. I will say this, of the what seems like hundreds of dresses my girls tried on for me, no other dress was as flattering as this one! Not one of my bridesmaids will look bad in this dress, it looked so nice on all them! Which ultimately is the most important thing :-)

Patrick wasn't crazy about them at first as he thought the "half-shoulder" was "weird" but he later said he didn't think it was so much the dress as it was the girl in the dress. He made me laugh when he said she looked like an alien and her arm looks disconnected from her body - haha! Who knew Patrick would pay so much attention to detail?! LOL!

My sister Kristy and other bridesmaid Jordy picked out the dress and I told all the girls, the only way we can get this dress is if ya'll pase like this in at least one picture - haha. I told them to start practicing!!

Transportation...I found us a trolley! I thought Molly's Trolley's was the only company to provide them in Pittsburgh, but indeed they are not! Thanks to my bridesmaid Colleen for informing me to check out Lenzner Transportation! We will be booking this baby tomorrow :-)

We are also booking our DJ tomorrow...DJ Bill Bara. He is a young DJ who I feel confident will keep the party going and always have guests on the dance floor! He DJ's at some of the hottest spots in Pittsburgh which is good to know, but I did make sure that he knows the difference between a wedding and a club. He does - which is excellent! Once we are signed with him we will have a personal website which will give guests access to requesting songs they want played at the wedding...but we ultimately will have the final say...pretty cool!

Patrick and I booked our room at the "Inn on Negley" for our first night together as man and wife! This beautiful Inn is located in Shadyside -- just a few minutes away from our reception site in Oakland. We will be staying in the Braeburn Suite...check it out!!

Ahh! Can't wait! We also started talking Honeymoon :-) We decided that my dream of Tahiti is out. It's SO far away and we both agreed that we don't want to have to spend multiple days of our Honeymoon on an airplane. So we are discussing Riviera Maya, Bahamas, Jamaica and Belize. Riviera Maya seems to be winning the race...with the all inclusive, adult only resort "El Dorado Casitas Royale" my personal favorite!

http://www.eldoradosparesorts.com/hotels/el_dorado_casitas/

Look at the rooms that have their own personal swimming pools - even on the balcony!!! Love it! It almost reminds me of Tahiti with all the straw tops! Has anyone ever been here or know of anyone who has been here? I'd love to hear personal stories about this place!!

We haven't decided on this place yet - just as of right now it's my favorite. I told Patrick to make the choice. I'm already making so many of the decisions regarding the wedding. He needs to have a say in something and this seems to be the one area he was up for planning - haha.

Also, YAY me for losing 4 pounds in my first week at Weight Watchers!!!

Something fun that happened this weekend was the Engagement Luncheon that my friend and bridesmaid, Valerie, threw for me! It was just beautiful and so thoughtful of her to do! Some of my closest friends from high school were there along with my sisters and mother's sisters. I truly thought it was just going to be a get-together to see my bling and talk about my engagement. Much to my surprise it was more like a mini-shower with tons of gifts! Everyone did WAY to much! It was so thoughtful though and I'm so appreciative. My mom bought us this beautiful family tree frame that I recently purchased for my friend Kate for her wedding. I had wanted to keep it for myself so badly so it was such a nice surprise!

Another fun gift...His and Her's towels from my M.O.H. Katie

And as if throwing the party wasn't enough Valerie provided me with the most unique and entertaining gift...480 marbles! Haha! There is meaning behind this...As probably many of you know, Patrick and I both made the decision to save ourselves for marriage long before we ever knew each other. This moral life-decision is the sole reasoning behind why we were even set-up to meet each other! Well Patrick once said that when we are married should make sure to always keep that aspect of our relationship a priority since we have waited so long to get there. We've been told that couples often taper off in their love life after year one...so to make sure this doesn't happen to us Patrick came up with a great idea...we agreed to put a marble in a vase for every time we make love. Then for year two we will make sure to recycle all of those marbles to make sure we are keeping up - haha! Kinda unique right?! The expectations are obviously pretty high with 480 marbles!!!

That I'm sure would have been Patrick's favorite gift of the afternoon - haha! Although he couldn't be there to take in the afternoon for himself he still made an appearance from afar...Thank you for the beautiful flowers Love!

My family and friends know me so well...check out the Tiffany and Co. inspired touches :-) LOVE it!

Throughout the party I think I may have checked another thing off my To-Do list...My cake! I haven't even started to think about a cake...that is until I tasted the cake Valerie's mothers baker made for the party. I'm not a cake person, I'd rather have a good cookie or some ice cream but once I tasted this cake I think I became a cake person!!! It was the most delicious cake I have ever had in my entire life!!! The cake was so moist and fresh and the icing was a perfect butter cream, and the chocolate lover in me loved the sweet white chocolate shavings!! I hope she will say yes to making our cake!!!

A HUGE thank you goes out to Valerie for planning the afternoon and making it possible! And also to my bridesmaids for helping as well :-)

What an amazing time! Thank you to everyone who came out for it! It wouldn't have been the same without you!

Here's hoping Week #4 is as good as this last one :-) Stay tuned as plenty more wedding plans are to come!!! Until then...

Bridezilla?

***WARNING!!!!***

*I'm sour grapes so just take this blog entry with a grain of salt...This entry is more of a blog rant..lol!*

Week two of wedding planning didn't quite go as smoothly as the first week. I have to admit, after week one I kinda had a little bit of a chip on my shoulder thinking to myself "planning a wedding is a piece of cake". I mean everything just seemed to fall into place...venue booked, dress bought...I just checked one thing after another off my list. Hmmm, isn't it funny how God always knows when we need to be brought down a notch?! I've been brought down a few this past week for sure. It included lots of headaches and more then a few tears but I'm still planning away, anxiously awaiting March 19th!!

I'll begin with the wedding dreams...yikes! A bride-to-be can't even get any peace in her sleep! Every night it's some new fiasco...sometimes multiple times a night! They've gone from Patrick seeing me on our wedding day before I walk down the aisle (bad luck!) to me losing my ring while jetskiing in Conneaut Lake (gulp!!). The crazy thing is they are never good, something bad ALWAYS happens! Why can't I have a dream that everything works out perfectly and I'm happy as can be?! Those kinds of dreams would make for much more peaceful sleep!

On top of my sleep deprivation the search for the perfect Bridesmaids dress is on. I have 8 girls with 8 completely different bodies...not the easiest thing to deal with! I want each girl to feel comfortable and love the dress but man, is it difficult to find! I will say this, they have all been troopers. We went dress shopping this week and each girl modeled different styles for me. Dresses were either too low cut, in an unforgiving material or just downright unflattering. When we finally did find what could be "the dress" it didn't come in my color! This happened twice...ugh!

I went out on my own on Friday after work and tried on dresses myself. From seeing my girls I know what we need to find and HOPEFULLY I found "the dress"! Fingers crossed!!! They will try it on sometime this next week...I'm half temped to post a picture of the dress but at the same time I don't want to give everything away...what do you guys think? Do you want to see it???!!!

I won't even get into Flower Girl dresses...lol...just know I didn't get off on the best foot there unfortunately. I'm sure it will all work out though and fortunately on this one I still have a bit of time.

Then the guest list...oui! It keeps growing and we are totally way above capacity for our room! We HAVE to make cuts and it absolutely breaks our hearts to have to do so. Right now we are 50 over...lol!!! I guess we'll figure it out, I mean we kinda have to - lol! It's just beyond frustrating because we have so many family members and friends that we want to be there to take part in our day and not everyone is going to be able to be there...sad.

Next big obstacle...transportation! We have 24 people in our wedding party...do you know how hard it is to find a vehicle big enough for us?! About the only thing that would work is a trolley which seats 32 people. Sadly the main trolley rental store, Molly's Trolly's, is booked on March 19th. Total bummer! I'm trying to find an alternative...

As I said before, this was a challenging week. I didn't figure out too much or book anything else. I did do my share of searching though and I have some prospects. I think I have my DJ selected...I'll know after a quick meeting next week. I also think I have the place picked out where Patrick and I will spend our first night together ;-) I'll dish more on these topics once they're both officially booked.

Now that I'm finished with my rant I will go onto what I promised in the last blog...info on my travels to New York and Tennessee :-)

Last Friday, September 17th, Patrick's cousin Kaity got married to her now husband, Nate :-) What a great wedding! First off, I'm so envious she got to have her wedding in the fall. I LOVE FALL! But when you marry a football player things like fall-themed weddings go right out the window. I'm okay with this, I wouldn't trade my situation for the world (even though it isn't always ideal -- especially now that Patrick is in Tennessee...more on this later) Anyhow, Kaity and Nate had a beautiful wedding. There was so much thought put into every little detail and I got a little jealous (I won't lie!) because I know there is absolutely no way I'm going to have enough time to be able to put that much thought into my wedding. Everything was just so perfect at her wedding and I feel like mines going to end up some hodgepodge - lol. Okay, okay enough about me more about the Drollette's :-)

Kaity looked stunning in her white Maggie Sottero gown :-) I loved the back!

How cool was Kaity and Nate's transportation????!!! There is no topping this one!

The entire night screamed Fall...their reception venue was even in a barn-like building :-)

The centerpieces (each named after something special in the bride and grooms life) had apples in them which came in handy for the Bailey family juggling contest...I hope I'm still welcomed into the family even though I can't juggle!!

BEST PICTURE EVER! I may not be capable of juggling but I sure can take a perfect picture :-)

The following day Kaity and Nate hosted a reception picnic at a local park. I snapped this picture of the cute couple in their adorable matching t-shirts :-)

Patrick's parents, his brother Aaron and I left the picnic early and headed toward Nashville, Tennessee for the Titans/Steelers game! It took us 11 hours, but we finally got there at 3:30 A.M. After a few hours of shuteye it was time to awake and get ready for the game. When we got to LP Field I outfitted myself in my first Tennessee Titans t-shirt.

I'm not gonna lie, I was a little sad not being able to wear the black and gold. I found myself a little moody because of it. But that all went away when the Steelers returned the first kickoff for a touchdown...that was not how I wanted to see my fiance's new team start off the game! Especially since it was Special Teams...I mean that's essentially Patrick's team, and I never want to see that happen to the team Patrick is on! After that I found it kinda easy to cheer for the Titans - lol. I wouldn't call myself a full-blown traitor...I still caught myself cheering for the Steelers at times even though I technically wasn't supposed to - haha! I tell you, it was a hard game to go to!!

I noticed there are a lot of differences between a game at Heinz Field and a game at LP Field. First off, the Titans hook it up in regards to tickets! Our tickets were in the 6th row! At Heinz Field the Steeler family members were always placed in one of the last three rows of the bottom section, so essentially like thirty rows back from the field, which aren't bad by any means! It was just really nice to be so close to the field.

Tennessee has cheerleaders which obviously is a big difference from Pittsburgh. I was in awe of how they stayed so fresh-looking while I sat in the stands sweating my butt off. It was HOT! Ugh! And It had been cold in Pittsburgh so I had packed jeans...not smart! Heinz Field has it all over LP Field in terms of video production. Some of the stuff the Titans have to "pump up" the crowd are pretty comical.

It had to be so odd for Patrick to play against the guys he was teammates with two short weeks prior. I know he was excited to see his old friends and given the amount that came over to say hello to him I'd say they we're pretty excited to see him too :-) Even this guy who broke my heart when he released my man...insert "aww" now - haha!

Overall though, I really enjoyed Tennessee. It seems like a great place and I'm really looking forward to having the chance to explore it more as time goes on! My wonderful fiancee booked me a flight to visit him there at the end of October...that will be the next time I get to see him.

It's not easy being away from him. If there is one thing in this world that can make me feel  better at any time it's cuddle time with my man. I no longer have that. It's also tough to make all the wedding plans without him. I so wish he could be here with me making the decisions, but he's not, he can't be, and I have to be okay with that. I know it could be so much worse and I try to always tell myself that to keep it all in perspective. I need to just be thankful to be having this experience, even if he can't be here to help in it. It's so easy to forget that and I need to do a better job at remembering it!

When I got home from Tennessee I found my living room, dining room and hallways with fresh coats of new paint. A big thank you goes out to my Dad who spent his entire weekend doing it :-) I love it! I'll post before and after pics once everything is all finished...can't wait! Currently I'm getting carpeting quotes. Once it's down then we can move Patrick's furniture over and this house will be one step closer to becoming our home :-)

I'm going to call it a night here. Stay tuned for next week...hopefully it's a more peaceful one for me :-)