My Kind of Town

I will admit it. I am a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad blogger. I started off so well. 3 posts in 7 days - that's very respectable, right? Well, I am breaking my slump right here. I have been going through a lot lately, both good and bad, so I am ready to share. I am assuming the next couple of posts over the following days will be a little bit like the word vomit I was talking about before, but I haven't had the time to jot down and manage my thoughts. Now, let's take this back...

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A few weekends ago, I was extremely fortunate to be able to visit my good friend Stephanie in Chicago for the weekend. As I mentioned, she is in the middle of planning her upcoming October wedding, so she had me come out so we could catch up and I could immerse myself a little in the wedding plans (plus, I had to start acquiring inside jokes with her fiance, John for my MOH speech - mission accomplished). On day 1, the 3 of us did the food tasting, which, to say the least, was DELICIOUS. The most ridiculous part for me was having my 4 glasses of wine lined in front of me, trying to pretend that I had any idea what I was talking about. As far as vino goes, me=clueless. It all reminds me of communion.

After a girls afternoon at Nordstrom, for Stephanie to get her bridal makeup consultation, strolling through the shoe department and getting caught in the rain (Yes, finally - weather! I've been in AZ too long), John, Stephanie and I had a light dinner and muy delicioso margaritas at Mercadito. We then hit some bars and were delighted to see Becca, one of our friends from high school. The blackhawks were also playing, which was refreshing to see a Chicago team play, while in Chicago, even if they did loose- RIP Blackhawks 2010/2011, see you next season :)

Saturday I was super excited for because I knew we were planning on having a bunch of our girlfriends over to Stephanie's that afternoon/evening. Ashley came first - another one of Stephanie's bridesmaids, and one of my friends from like kindergarten or something. We checked out bridesmaid dresses and decided on one that we were all very happy with :) (Then I got a latte, I was so friggin happy that it was cold enough to have a warm drink. It was like 80 or 90 degrees + from February on in AZ, I swear). Eventually Lizzy came down, just in time to lock her keys in the car - lol. I thought I had enough street cred that I could break into her car, but alas, we needed to call for help.

But the rest of the evening was lovely, aside from Stephanie's "skinny girl margaritas" aka pure alcohol, aka me and Liz effectively tipsy after 1 glass. Becca & some of Stephanie's friends from college and beyond also came over - all awesome to see. We even hit up an adorable pub with new friend and fellow bridesmaid, Natalie, to round off the night. Always nice to hang with friends - old and new :)

 

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 After a very successful weekend with my pals, I got to briefly meet up with my family. My awesome godfather, Uncle Frank announced that he and his girlfriend (ahem, fiance) Jennifer were engaged! AWESOME! One more wedding to add onto my list and another reason to prolong my wedding obsession - can't wait until I get my "Wedding Wednesdays" posts into routine. Fortunately, I also got to see my mommy,brother, sister+family, aunt, uncle and Grandma - Happy 91st birthday to her tomorrow!

Finally!I've previously posted pics of my youngest nephew, Travis, but this time I will give my ode to Travie's brother, and my sisters oldest son, Wyatt. He is soo cool - he does karate, is on a downhill ski team, he's an awesome snowboard companion, and is an ADORABLE actor and model. He's even the state fair corndogs hero - big time, I know! Check him out!

   

XOXO



Put a Ring on It

I am coming down with a bad case of wedding fever and the only cure is the season for love. My upcoming year is packed full with wedding invitations and it has been causing me to do lots of leisurely surfing of wedding sites, blogs and collections. By far, my fav is ruffled blog - an adorable collection of real life weddings and new, creative vendors. Here is some of the other awesome things that I have become smitten with...

My heart literally skipped a beat when I saw that Vera Wang's spring line had finally premiered at David's Bridal. I saw a blurb last summer in Brides magazine about the affordable line, and I have been looking forward to it ever since. (My mattress is even Vera Wang, and it is one of my prized possesions, so the idea of wearing her someday is really, really exciting!) I really LOVE the textures and volume of these dresses and what I LOVE LOVE is that all these dresses run around $1,500. Above are just some of my favs. *lub blub, lub blub*<~~that's my heart fluttering.

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I consider myself a pretty normal girl, but I have this crazy habit of looking through wedding magazines and ripping out things I love and scrapbooking them. I was smitten with the idea of a great gatsby style wedding, and when I saw these vintage wedding posters, I thought it would be darling to have these all over a venue...cute, right?



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This past February, as I sat waiting for a spray tan, I was pleasantly surprised that 944 Phoenix had a wedding issue. There was a handful of articles that caught my attention, including "Always a Bridesmaid" which suited my fancy because I am a walking 27 dresses in the making. It includes 3 basic tips for the bridesmaid --

1. Check your ego at the door
2. Put effort into the bridal shower
3. Be prepared
All solid tips to go by, and it also goes into useful resources. The issue also gives a nod to different styles of engagement rings, including my favorite - vintage <3!

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And finally, I am lucky enough to be involved in 2 of my best and truest friend's weddings - Lizzy & Stephanie. I grew up across the street from Lizzy and probably spent 80% of my chidlhood with her. This past December, she had a beautiful winter wedding that was so fun and so full of love :)

^My lovelies from high school at Liz & Carl's wedding^
Emily, Becca, Lizzy, Sam, Me and Colleen

<~Lizzy and I in Washington DC, circa 1998



Stephanie and I started off as 3rd grade frenemies because I wore leggings & keds and she corduroy shorts & knee socks. Plus she jumped off the slide during recess, which was forbideen - scandalous, I know. This October she will be getting married in downtown Chicago and we are both immersed in the planning process (Well she's doing a great job planning, I am just loving looking at bridesmaid dresses and options for bachelorette parties!).



Sophomore Year Homecoming 2002

Happy Weddings!! XOXO

Spring has Sprung

Although it is barely spring, it already feels like summer in AZ. I did manage to romp up to Flagstaff for the day to take my final rides of the season down the slopes. A day of snow surfing was seriously good for the soul - thanks to Amy and Matt for going with me!

I'm starting to think that social networking is going to be a full-time job. Along with blogging, I've given tweeting another try, too (@AnnVerSchave). I stumbled across two of my favorite twinsies blogs and they are some serious inspiration to me on how to make my stuff pretty :) Until I have time to really look into tutoring myself on twitter and blog etiquette, I'm going to keep making mental notes on the pretty, pretty pages I see and admire...aka Kelcy's and Brooke's ~ Get it girls!

Finally, wanted to wish my mom a very Happy Birthday one more time!! She's the epitome of a great mom - always supporting me, trying to help, make me feel better and make my life easier, all while letting me run to the beat of my own drum. I love her sooooo much!

XOXO