A Bride's Brain

6 months + 21 Days

2010-08-08T00:23:00.000-07:00

Marriage is hard and amazing. I have a partner but at the same time I feel alone. I am finding out just a little over 1/2 year in, that everyday is a new experience and a new lesson.

6 Months
We went to the Hollywood Bowl and watched among others She & Him perform the song we had our first dance to at our wedding. The Bowl was sparkling and the timing of the KCRW concert featuring The Swell Season, She & Him and the Bird and The Bee was a perfectly romantic way to spend our "anniversary".

The misadventures of ordering coffee in Paris/Europe - Honeymoon Chronicals

2010-07-15T11:20:00.000-07:00

Before our honeymoon I was very excited to do many things a la European style. Probably the top thing on my list was to drink my weight in coffee in France.

So the first day in Paris we got off the plane exhausted and a little dragged down from the Ambien (a travel must). We received our luggage immediately after getting into the baggage claim. We exchanged what was in my opinion too much cash, (travel with just a few hundred dollars) exchange rates are much more favorable if you withdraw from banks! So with money in our pockets and luggage in our hands we hailed a cab thanks to my husbands recollection of high school French and we made our way from CDG to our hotel in Paris proper.

We checked into the Hotel Andrea Rivoli and left our luggage in the lobby until our room was ready. By the time all this happened it was around 11 am and I was in desperate need for a coffee and food and a walk through Paris streets. We walked around our area a bit and headed down a random street filled with cafes. We stopped at the first one and sat outside. One thing I adore about Paris is all the outdoor seating faces towards the street the entire city is built of people watching. So the waitress comes over and greets us in French, I don't speak French, Eric told her we would order and here is how our conversation went.

Me - I would like a cappuccino.
Her - We don't have cappuccino.
Me - Of course, that is Italian, how about a latte?
At this point both her and Eric give me a funny look, I am clueless because I NEED CAFFEINE!
Her - She says something in French, I am embarrassed and agree to whatever it is.

After a few moments she brings out Eric's tea and my coffee with (I kid you not) whipped cream on top. This was not exactly what I had pictured for my first cup of Parisian coffee. It became my goal of that night to spend a few moments on Google learning how to order a proper cup of coffee in French. Some of you might be wondering what about Eric and his high school French well unfortunately Eric is completely hopeless in all matters relating to coffee. He doesn't drink it at all, one might think there is something wrong with him because of that fact, I know I have thought it on multiple occasions especially when we wake up for early morning surf sessions or anything in the morning really. So that night I hit up Google and for those of you who don't know here is a quick tutorial on order coffee in France.

Café (kuh-fay) is plain coffee with nothing added, but is strong as it is brewed like espresso.
Café au lait (kuh-fay oh-lay) is a popular French coffee style that has been popularized in America, as it's served in tres francais New Orleans at Café du Monde. In France, this is simply coffee with steamed milk, and it's almost always wonderful. You will sometimes get the coffee served in one pot or in the cup, and then a pitcher of steamed milk to pour in as you please.
Café crème (kuh-fay khremm) is, as it sounds, coffee served in a large cup with hot cream.
Café Décafféiné (kuh-fay day-kah-fay-uhn-ay) is decaffeinated coffee. You will still need to tell them you want milk (lait) or cream (crème) with your coffee.
Café Noisette (kuh-fay nwah-zett) is espresso with a dash of cream in it. It is called "noisette," French for hazelnut, because of the rich, dark color of the coffee.
Café Americain (kuh-fay uh-meyhr-uh-kan) is filtered coffee, similar to traditional American coffee.
Café Léger (kuh-fay lay-zjay) is espresso with double the water.

Incidentally Café au lait was my coffee of choice for our time in France and by the second day I had that order down.

Honeymoon - Paris, Day 1

2010-07-08T13:09:00.000-07:00

That is a picture of my husband, sitting on one of the two balconies of our hotel room at the Hotel Andrea Rivoli opening the first of many bottles of wine consumed on our honeymoon which most days I wish we were still on.

If you haven't been to Paris (I had not been before the honeymoon) GO! It is life changing and I wish everyday we lived there or had coffee like they do there or really most things that they have in Paris. I loved every single moment we were there.

So Paris, Day 1...

To be continued.

Seven Hopes United - The Fair Trade Registry

2010-07-07T08:00:00.000-07:00

I am 50% hippie and 50% hard core consumer. I love to shop and I love to hug trees. Now I don't claim to be the best hippie in the world but there are some things that get my little heart a fluttering like the Fair Trade wedding registry from Seven Hopes United. To my knowledge this is the only fair trade registry option there is and we all know how many options you have when choosing to a registry or anything having to do with your wedding i.e. location, vendors ect.

What is Fair Trade?

Fair Trade is an organized social movement and market-based approach that aims to help disadvantaged producers in developing countries. Fair trade is founded on a trading partnership, based on dialogue, transparency and respect, that advocates the payment of fair wages to producers as well as social and environmental standards in areas related to the production of a wide variety of goods. It contributes to social development and economic stability by offering a means to a fair wage and securing the rights of marginalized producers and workers - especially in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East.

The Benefits of a Seven Hopes United Registry

The principle behind Seven Hopes United gift giving is that your gift works in two ways:

1. You are giving the gift of hope and a future to people who need it most, in honor of someone you love.

2. By making giving fun, innovative and convenient, your friend will feel good about the help their gift is providing.

Ten percent of the proceeds from gifts purchased from a Seven Hopes United registry are invested back into producer communities in a variety of ways, including training producers in organic and sustainable farming techniques (which helps offset worldly carbon emissions), building houses, schools, and clinics that are able to provide health care for entire communities. A mix of unique handcrafted art and earth-friendly home decor ideas, it's the kind of registry that is intended to suit not only the couple but their guests and the planet as well.

10% Completion Savings Program
Didn't receive everything you registered for? We're happy to offer you a 10% discount when you purchase any remaining registry items for up to six months. Watch for your completion savings code to arrive via email shortly after your event date.

Charitable Contributions
Simply by registering with Seven Hopes United, you can raise charitable contributions. 10% of guests' gift purchases from Seven Hopes United will be invested in community development initiatives throughout Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. This donation is made at no additional cost to you or your guests.
If this isn't enough for you how about a discount? A Bride's Brain readers can save 15% on their entire order by using the code "BRIDESBRAIN" at check out, coupon expires on August 6th.

Summer of weddings? How to afford wedding season.

2010-07-06T08:00:00.000-07:00

Planning a wedding can be really expensive and attending a wedding can be really expensive. What do you do when you have literally a summer of weddings to attend? Check out this great article from DailyWorth that helps a reader figure what to do when she is invited to 11 weddings in one summer.

Ras Wedding Shoes

2010-07-05T10:15:00.000-07:00

I was perusing Rue La La this morning when I found these. Ras white suede flats with rubber soles and red sequence hearts. These are totally wedding shoes. If I had to do my wedding all over again I would probably buy these. Finding flats for my wedding was a long mission many a shoe was tried on. If you are interested Rue La La is selling them for exactly 24 hours more or you could try your luck with the Ras website (but I didn't see them there). Don't have a Rue La La invite? No worries, click on the link Rue La La or the icon on the right side of the blog. Happy shopping.

Winner, GIVEAWAY!

2010-06-23T20:39:00.000-07:00

The winner of the headband giveaway is MC from Wedding Web Notes. Congratulations.

YAY headbands!

THANK YOU & A GIVEAWAY

2010-06-17T14:13:00.000-07:00

It has been a long time coming but I want to say thank you to all the guest posters we had while I was on my honeymoon. I love all the gals who helped blog. Thank you also to my friends who were unable to do guest posts due to schedules and at the same time were bummed they couldn't participate. Its nice to know that virtually there is a community of women and men around me who in a very weird but completely normal way are my friends via the internet.

Shout out to the guest bloggers!

Katie (Who doesn't have a blog but should!)
De of A Traveler's Perspective
Mrs. T of 99+Forever
Lisa of Blonderland
Jill Thomas Photography
Mrs. Beever of Thoughts of the All Consumed Bride
Ashley of Hi-Fi Weddings
Cupcake Wedding

And now for the long overdue giveaway...

When we went to London I couldn't help but think about all of you my readers and blog friends who helped me through planning the wedding and now still here listening to my re-caps and stories about my life. I LOVE YOU ALL. So I decided to get you a little something for your big day. All you have to do is comment on this post and a winner will be picked at random Monday. Check out the prize...
It is a totally adorable mesh head piece with a pearl in the middle of the gathering. I think it would look great on your head when you wed! I found it at my new obsession UK based TOP SHOP. Please leave a comment you have till Monday. Also feel free to share the love on twitter or facebook.

I have missed you gals and guys but I am back and I will be doing a full blown honeymoon re-cap before I do our full blown wedding re-cap. There are some exciting and very real stories I have in mind an so much to catch you up on. Have I mentioned I miss you?

The Limited Wedding Dress Collection

2010-06-17T08:11:00.000-07:00

My first real job was at The Limited. I started out as a sales associate in college and then I became a leader and then eventually an assistant manager of one of the highest grossing stores in the company. The job its self was incredible and I look fondly on my time spent there.

I am really happy today to share with you (although I am sure you have seen them already) The Limited Wedding Dress Collection. If this had existed when I was looking for my dress it would have possibly been game over I am a sucker for brand loyalty. In fact the only suits I own are from The Limited...

So without further ado the wedding dress collection both pieces under $300!!!!

{via}

HELP: Thunder Soul Premiere - LA Film Festival

2010-06-09T19:30:00.000-07:00

Times are tough, you are planning a wedding and I of all people know that this costs some crazy money. However, let me for a moment appeal to your charitable side and ask for you to donate $1, $5, $20 or anything more that you feel you can give; to help the Kashmere Stage Band (see this, this, and this to find out more) come to the LA Premiere of the documentary that was made about them and their beloved band teacher "Prof".

From the films donation website:

THUNDER SOUL, the audience award winning documentary (SXSW, DIFF, and Hot Docs) is coming to the LA film festival. In the 1970's, a Houston high school teacher, Conrad "Prof" Johnson, took his high school stage band and turned them into an internationally renown funk powerhouse. Please help us bring the Kashmere Alumni Stage Band band to LA to rock the house, and show how thirty years later, Prof's lessons of love, life and music still remain with them every day.

I LOVE documentaries that are about interesting things and THUNDER SOUL couldn't be more interesting. It takes you through so many fun parts of life ie. being in a school band, going through high school, connecting with a teacher (I know you all have one of those teachers), reuniting with old friends after 30 years. It has it all and best of all you can help the band see the film together and you can help an audience get a once in a lifetime live performance from the Kashmere Stage Band after the screening.

So before you dismiss my pitch I ask that you go to the fundraising website (did I mention they have prizes for different donations?), the film website and read this NPR article to learn more about these people. They were lost without this band, their teacher and it truly changed their lives and the world of music. If you can't give money help by spreading the word... re-post this on your blog, share a link on facebook, get on twitter and tell the world! Help the band get back together for what is sure to be an amazing night. Also, if you are in Los Angeles go and see the film, tickets are on sale at the LA film festival website.

Sneak Peek - Honeymoon

2010-06-07T11:16:00.000-07:00

So, two weeks away on a honeymoon. I felt amazing and I can't wait to write all about it. However, there was the two weeks I have been back where I worked my ass off and barely had time to eat and sleep let alone write. So I hope you will forgive me for the extended absence; the real world brought me down for a while. Here is a sneak peek of the honeymoon. In case you are mad... hopefully the gift I brought back from the UK will patch things over. (Stay tuned for a giveaway this week)

BTW - I missed you!

Guest Post:De of A Traveler's Perspective - Habana Blues

2010-05-21T08:00:00.000-07:00

We end the guest posts where we stared with De of A Traveler's Perspective. She brings us a movie that inspires her Habana Blues.

Habana Blues

A friend of mine recently reminded me of the Spanish film, "Habana Blues," that I saw while I was studying in Granada in 2005. The movie is about two aspiring Cuban musicians and how their lives unfold as they follow their dreams of musical success. At this point, the details of the story escape me (Which is probably for the best so I don't give away any spoilers to anyone who may want to see the movie!), but I do distinctly remember being completely consumed by the beautiful imagery and the emotion evoking music, and feeling the weight of the hopes, struggles, and complexities of life that the protagonists faced as they followed their hearts.

All of the music in the movie is pretty great, but I found the song, "Solos Tu y Yo," to be particularly beautiful and emotively powerful. Below is the version of the song from the movie, and although the context and lyrics certainly add to overall impression of the song, they seem unnecessary to feel the depth and heart ache that is so clearly expressed through the music alone.

"Hoy miro a través de ti,
las calles de mi Habana.
Tu tristeza y tu dolor,
reflejan sus fachadas,
es tu alma y soledad
la voz, la voz de esta nación cansada.

Solos tu y yo,
en la ciudad dormida,
solos tu y yo,
besando las heridas
ay Habana.

Cada vez te olvidabas más de ti,
para apoyar mis sueños.
Pero se que lastimé tu corazón,
jugando con tus sentimientos.
Fue la luz esa que robé,
dejando a oscuras tus deseos.

Solos tú y yo,
en la ciudad dormida,
solos tú y yo,
besando sus heridas.

Y tengo que dejarte ir,
poniendo el mar entre los dos,
pagando el precio de otros,
que viven de la contradicción,
otra familia que quedó,
marcada por la separación,
cómo luchar, con ese sol, con la política y con Dios".

----

"Today I look through you,
the streets of my Havana.
Your sorrow and pain,
reflect their facades,
your soul and solitude are
the voice, the voice of this tired nation.

Just you and me,
in the sleeping city
just you and me,
kissing these wounds
ay Havana.

All the time you forget more of yourself,
to support my dreams.
But I hurt your heart
playing with your feelings.
It was this light that I stole,
leaving your desires dark.

Just you and me
in the sleeping city
just you and me
kissing its wounds.

And I have to let you go,
placing the sea between the two of us
paying the price for others
living in contradiction,
another family that was,
marked by separation,
how do we fight, with the sun, with politics and with God. "

Guest Post: 99 + Forever - The One.

2010-05-20T08:00:00.000-07:00

Today I welcome MRS T of 99 + Forever! Gotta love this lady's STYLE.

Is he the one? I asked myself this question a lot in the lead up to the wedding. I asked anyone that would listen how they knew when they had found "the one". I got a whole lot of "You'll just know" - but I didn't just know. And that answer made me want to freak out.

Sure I loved Mr B. Loved him more than I'd ever loved anyone before. But when is love enough? How much love is enough? These thoughts kept me awake late at night in the lead up to our wedding.

The scary thing about love is that you have to put your heart in someone else's hands. You have to trust that love is enough, that love will be enough. Forever. And forever is a really long time.

I still don't know if I believe there is only one person for everyone. I think there are probably lots of people for everyone. You just have to find the one that makes you the happiest. Then hold on to their hand and jump off the cliff of marriage and try to enjoy the ride! No one really knows what's at the bottom. But together you can work it out as you go along.

So now when people ask me how do you know when someone is "the one" I say -

I think "the one" is the person that makes you feel most like yourself. The one you can always be yourself around. The one that loves you even when you're being an ass. The one that you want to call first when you have good news. The one that you couldn't imagine your life without. The one that makes a bad day better. The one that makes life fun. My favorite photo of us since we've been married - a crazy blurry iphone mess that makes me smile my face off every time I look at it.

The one that wears a pirate hat with you in your kitchen on a Wednesday night.

That's the one for me.

Katie & George an Engagement Story

2010-05-19T12:30:00.000-07:00

Today I welcome my friend Katie to the blog. I met her through De, she is a new friend and an amazing person. She was kind enough to share her engagement story with us today.
I never imagined I would meet the love of my life at a nightclub on New Year's Eve. I was happily single and out dancing with friends when I saw a tall, dark figure approach me from behind. Girls, you know how it is when you get approached from behind at a club - you look frantically at your friends to ensure he's not a total creep. My friend Deanna gave me a nod and I turned around to face my suitor. "Hi," was his clever pick up line and from there we spent the next couple hours drinking, dancing, and trying to talk over the thumping music. George was my New Year's kiss and we exchanged numbers at the end of the night, saying we'd go out soon.

After exchanging a few text messages after NYE, we went on our first date, and then another, and another, until we were quickly spending every weekend together. Falling in love with George was effortless. He is tall, dark, and handsome, but beyond appearances, he is smart, hardworking, incredibly sweet, thoughtful, and is close with his big, wonderful family. We love traveling together and went to Panama in September, Northern California to visit family during the holidays, and have taken numerous weekend trips in between.

Our most recent adventure resulted in the engagement, and is one that I'll never forget. My friend Annie's wedding was planned for May 1st in Oakhurst, a small town outside Yosemite. As a bridesmaid, I knew I would be busy with the rehearsal dinner and other duties, so George and I planned to take a couple days off work and head up before the wedding to spend Thursday hiking around Yosemite. Annie recommended hiking up to Vernal Falls, so we bundled up in all our layers to endure the hail and frigid temperatures. After hiking uphill for two hours, we got to the base of the waterfall and stopped to rest on a big flat slab of granite just next to where the water was streaming past.

When we got settled in for our break, George said, "I want to ask you something... We've been spending a lot of time together and we're both spending a lot of money on rent. I think we should move in together." Prior to this day, I had a rule for myself that I wouldn't live with a significant other unless we were engaged, so maybe it was the altitude that made me respond, "Sure, let's do it." Honestly though, I can't blame the altitude. George and I spend nearly every night together, and we each have our own apartments exactly one half mile apart from each other in Long Beach. Combined we spend a lot of money on rent and utilities, and grocery shopping is a pain because we go to Costco and then have to split everything down the middle. He caught me in a moment of weakness.

Once I agreed to moving in together, he replied, "Good, I was hoping you'd say that. I have something for you." He opened his backpack and took out a white paper bag and handed it to me. Inside the white paper bag was a blue bag from Tiffany. My downstairs neighbor Jack works at Tiffany in Costa Mesa, and during dinner with him last week, I told him about a pair of earrings I've been wanting. With that in mind, when George handed me the bag, I giddily said, "Ooh! I bet I know what these are!" When I made my way through the bags, bow, and box, only one little black velvet box stood between me and the ring. When I opened it up, he said "Katie, will you marry me?" and practically before the words were out of his mouth I said, "Oh my god, yes!"

I spent the next few minutes in utter disbelief; I laughed, I cried, I said "Oh my god" a few more times. Then I asked him if he had asked my dad, just to make sure it was legit. The whole way back down the hill, I couldn't stop smiling or looking at the gorgeous ring he picked out for me. Prior to this, we really hadn't talked much about getting engaged or married, so we kept asking each other, "Are you sure? Really sure?"

Today is Thursday*, so it's been one week since he popped the question. We've told our family, friends, co-workers and the Facebook world, and the excited response from so many loved ones was amazing (albeit slightly overwhelming.) Right now we're apartment hunting and still getting used to saying "fiancé" instead of boyfriend/girlfriend. When people ask me if I was shocked, I usually pause and try to think of a word that means "more than shocked." I was blown away, stunned, and utterly surprised at his proposal. More than anything though, I am excited, excited, excited!

I can't wait to live together, can't wait to marry him, can't wait to travel more together, you get the idea... The one thing that I am not so excited about, however, is planning a wedding. I need some serious help when it comes to ideas, especially for something that's fun, beautiful, meaningful, and inexpensive. In the meantime, I'm looking forward to enjoying our engagement and planning our life together. Yay!

*Katie wrote this on 5/6/2010

LA LA LONDON

2010-05-19T08:00:00.000-07:00

{via}

Eric and I used to have a secret word for when we were around people or in crowds but wanted to be romantic. We would say "London". To us it simply meant Love and represented hope of our future trip there together. Today that is realized as we visit London together 6 years after initially planning the visit. We are at the tail end of the honeymoon now but there is so much more to share from my blog friends.

DIY Invitation Templates from Blonderland

2010-05-18T08:00:00.000-07:00

Today I have the pleasure of having my very talented friend Lisa join us with a DIY invitation tutorial. Check out more of her creative side at her daily "creation a day" blog Blonderland.

Hello future brides and wedding enthusiasts! For all of you DIY-ers out there, I thought I'd share a couple of invitation templates. When my husband and I got married just over two years ago, we decided to design and print our own invitations. We ended up coming up with two sets, one for each side of the family. Here's a modified version of what we sent out as the more traditional invitation set:

We bought nice 8 1/2" x 11" cream-colored cardstock and color coordinated envelopes at Paper Source [hyperlink to http://www.paper-source.com/] in Los Angeles, we printed everything out on a friend's color laser printer, and carefully used a heavy duty paper cutter to cut everything down to size. We printed up clear labels for the addresses when we mailed the invitations out. Easy as pie, and we saved a bundle!

Tips: Carefully count the number of sheets of paper you'll need to buy (keeping in mind that you'll be able to get two invitations and two reception cards per sheet and four RSVP cards per sheet), and then buy a few extra sheets of paper! You're probably going to have a few of misprints and accidentally crooked cuts even if you're meticulous.

Please email me at lisa@blonderland.com if you'd like to use my files as templates for your own invitations! I can send them as editable files to be altered in Photoshop or Illustrator. (If you want me to actually enter your names and information, we could negotiate a small fee.)

If you want to know more about me, feel free to check out my daily creations on my blog [hyperlink to http://blonderland.blogspot.com], and my illustration portfolio [hyperlink to http://blonderland.com].

Happy DIY-ing!

Guest Post: Jill Thomas Photography - First See

2010-05-17T08:00:00.000-07:00

You have heard for months my love of Jill and her photo skills, her general awesomeness was one of the greatest parts of our wedding day. She has kindly written a guest post for A Bride's Brain readers and imagine my surprise when it turned out to be about Eric and I. Well this couldn't be more fitting as today it is exactly 4 months since the raining day we said I-Do.

{jill thomas photography}

I have a lot of brides who insist on not seeing their husband before the wedding. Women all over the world are raised with the superstition (or perhaps the simple romantic ideal) that on the day of the wedding, the bride and groom should first see each other when they walk down the aisle.

Romantic? Yes. What's even more romantic, though, is the less common ‘first see.’ It is here that the bride and groom see each other before the wedding, but not in front of a teary-eyed audience and a quick-snapping telephoto lens just inches from their faces. In my opinion, this is the most intimate, romantic part of the day. The bride and groom are completely able to be together, physically and spiritually, without the stress of the world around them. No rules, no timelines, no stress. They just are. Together.

Of the first-sees I have been able to witness, Jenn and Eric’s is my absolute favorite. They saw each other on the rooftop deck of a Venice Beach hotel, in the rain, completely alone and in love. It was one of the most romantic experiences I’d ever been a part of, and it is because of this experience that I am such a huge fan of first-sees. What’s more romantic than beholding your spouse-to-be before the rest of the world can?

Jill you are so sweet. The image above is by none other than Jill herself. Check out more of Jill and her skills at Jill Thomas Photography.

The Ballad of Sleepy John - Jackie Greene

2010-05-14T12:30:00.001-07:00

{via}

Here is a post from me. A song that makes my heart feel and sometimes that is the best type of song that just makes you feel something.

The Ballad of Sleepy John
Any day now the sky could fall
And I’m not one to complain
But this don’t feel like no paradise at all
Down on the corner in the rain

Old Kentucky, he’s a friend of mine
He got them Fayette County blues
Ain’t no woman ever keep the man in line
And there ain’t no woman he can refuse

Well I stumbled in with my guitar
And bought a drink behind the bar
Sat in with the band until 2:00
Then I said:

“too much whiskey make me tumble home”
“too much Jesus make me pray”
“too much love and Lord I feel so all alone”
“but that’s all right mama, that’s OK”

Cause’ Sweet Serrita, she’s behind the bar
She’s got the towel in her hand
Lord release her, she’s only 24
And she’s doing the best that she can

Well I don’t know, but I been told
That freedom is an open road
But I guess it all depends on how you drive
While you’re alive

Now people tell me I’m the Lucky One
But that don’t matter much to me
Cause’ I ain’t nothing but my father’s son
And that’s all I’m ever gonna be

Guest Post: Thoughts of the All Consumed Bride

2010-05-13T08:00:00.000-07:00

Today I welcome Born to be Mrs. Beever of Thoughts of the All Consumed Bride. She brings us a quote which makes her think of love.

We cannot really love anyone with whom we never laugh - Agnes Repplier

How true is that quote? Honestly...when I first met my husband (which he has only been for about 3 weeks now), one of the first things I was drawn to was his sense of humor and goofy behavior. My honey, whom I lovingly refer to as Mr Fix It in blog land, is a total goof off!

The funny thing is, he is now 47 years old (was 41 when we first met), so you don't necessarily think of someone that age as being too goofy. But I always tell people that he may be 47, but he acts like he's 12 years old! And it's totally true.

He makes me laugh often...almost every day. And as much as I loved and valued the men in my previous relationships, there has never been a man I've ever met like Mr Fix It. Don't get me wrong, we all have our times of sadness, seriousness, work ethic, laziness or just plain tiredness. No one can be funny 100% of the time...even in Hollywood you often hear of the funniest comedians struggling with depression and not being able to deal with their real lives. But there has to be a level of 'insanity' as it were in every relationship. Men and women need to make each other laugh.

This is never more true than in the moments when you may be totally fighting or at each other's throats...and don't kid yourselves, it's also true that if you don't fight once in a while, there's probably not much love between you anyway. Love, in it's purest form, is being able to be totally vulnerable with someone. Truly being yourself...letting someone see the good and bad of you from every moment of your days and nights.

I always say that you can't really ever 'hate' someone. Because most of the time, if you 'hate' you think that you don't care about someone who has maybe wronged or harmed you or someone you love. But the truth of the matter is, it takes just as much passion and energy to 'hate' someone as it does to love someone. And isn't that what life should really be about?

Passion.

Passion is defined as any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling, as love or hate. It also has been defined as an outburst of strong emotion or feeling. Laughter is a wonderful outburst that brings on wonderful feelings. And passion is something that can be attributed to most emotions. If love is supposed to be one of the most passionate and emotional things we go through, then laughter should be a huge part of that love.

Laughing with someone makes you grow fond of them, makes you want to spend more time with them and makes you feel connected with them. Do you remember the times (maybe in school or at work) when you saw a group of people laughing hysterically together and wishing you were a part of whatever it was that was going on to make them laugh like that? Laughing makes relationships stronger...it encourages your soul and your heart. And that is truly what I think love should be about.

One of the main things that makes me love Mr Fix It is his ability to make me laugh. I cherish it and look forward to it daily.

What about you? Is there anyone in your life that you know you can count on to lift your spirits or make you laugh when you most need it?

A Real Hi-Fi Weddings Guest Post

2010-05-12T08:00:00.000-07:00

Today I welcome Ashley of Hi-Fi Weddings who is no stranger to A Bride's Brain. She and I have become fast blog friends in her short time in the wedding blogging world. She tells us about a song that makes her think of love.

I thought about this long and hard and decided to go with Radiohead's Weird Fishes/Arpeggi and here's my reasoning:

Radiohead was the first band that made me realize I was going to be obsessed with music. After first "discovering" them I would spend most of my days reading about and listening to new music. This trait eventually helped me break the ice during the first conversation with (my now husband) Andy. We talked about new releases of that time and what music we liked...and lo and behold we were totally compatible. We dated for a couple of years before tying the knot in 2006 (4 years on the 20th of May!!!) When planning our wedding, we spent the most time compiling the mix we wanted to play, which ended up spanning 8 discs. There's also a more personal reason behind choosing this particular Radiohead song. When we were gathering songs to put on the list, we read about the release of a new Radiohead song from an upcoming album. It was as if they were giving us a special song to use on our day! We added it to our playlist and now it holds such a dear memory for us!

Image via We Heart It.

Thank you Ashley and for more musical inspiration please check out Hi-Fi Weddings.

Au Revoir Paris

2010-05-11T17:00:00.000-07:00

{via}

We are off for a free night in Nice and then in the morning Cinque Terre, Italy.

Guest Post: A Cupcake Wedding - Slow Dance With Me

2010-05-11T08:00:00.000-07:00

Today one of my favorite bloggers A Cupcake Wedding tells us what makes her think of love. Be sure to check out her blog and follow her final days of planning, she is getting married on May 22nd. I am going to take this opportunity to say CONGRATULATIONS now since on May 22nd I will be on a plane coming home from the honeymoon.

I like this song. It's nice to remind yourself of your love for each other when everything feels tense.

John Ledgend - Slow Dance

Yea, sing it with me yall, oh yea yea

Can we wait just a minute
Slow it down for a minute now baby
Your talkin loud
Your wilding out
Don't seem like my old lady
Lets go and play the song we used to play
Can we reignite the flame
Cause things just ain't the same

We can talk about the baby
We can talk until we're crazy
We can focus on it now
Or we can focus on it later
We can start another fight
We can argue and fuss all night
But I propose that we go to floor and we slow dance

Tonight I wanna dance
Can you do that with you man yea
Tonight I wanna groove
And let the music make you move
Move yea

Can we wait just a minute
Turn that TV off for a minute
Now politics and talkin shit aint really none of my buisness
Lets go and play the songs we used to play
On that old school radio
Let the music soothe your soul

Forget about the world
Im groovin with my girl
Forget about the news
Lets put on our dancin shoes
Lets not talk about the war
Do we know what they fightin for
I propose that we go to the floor and we slow dance

Tonight I wanna dance
Can you do that with you man yea
Tonight I wanna groove
And let the music make you move
Move yea yea
Move yea yea

I love it
I love it
I love it we're slow dancin together
I love it
I love it
I love it we're slow dancin together
I love it
I love it
I love it we're slow dancin together
I love it
I love it I propose that we go to floor and we slow dance

Tonight I wanna dance
Can you do that with your man yea
Tonight I wanna groove
Let the music make you move

Guest Post:De of A Traveler's Perspective - Flamenco

2010-05-10T08:50:00.000-07:00

Please welcome my dear friend Deanna of A Traveler's Perspective. You may remember from previous posts that De was a bridesmaid in our wedding. LOVE HER! De also lived in Spain for 2 years, she is just awesome like that.

I know of no musical genre more passionate than Flamenco. The hearts and souls of the cantantes are revealed as they express varying degrees of jubilation and torment that the heart endures due to love. The song, and dance, are so increadibly dynamic and full of an emotional intensity this it seems impossible that anyone could be left untouched by the rich sentiments. Flamenco is intense, sometimes raw and misunderstood, but beautiful nonetheless.

"Oh, poor heart of mine,

despite all the hard knocks

I have given you,

you never give up..."

"Ay pobre corazon mio,

por mas golpes que le doy

nunca se da por 'vensio'..."

~Solea

photos taken by De.

Bonjour

2010-05-08T08:00:00.000-07:00

{via}

We have landed in Paris and we have a few days to kill so I am going to enjoy my husband and think only of him and our love. I am going to breath in our adventure and the city lights of Paris for the first time! All the blog the fun starts Monday. Tune in then!

And we are off.

2010-05-07T12:30:00.000-07:00

{via}

After 3 months of planning, anticipation and countdowns we are off on our honeymoon vacation. While we are gone many of my dear blog land friends will be stopping by to tell stories and give advice of their own. Stick around and I will see you in 2 weeks!

Real Wedding: Annie & Coco

2010-05-06T17:00:00.000-07:00

Annie as a bride was stunning not only because she is a stunning person but she managed to plan her wedding from Peru about 4,500 miles from the wedding location in California. Then on top of that she moved to California for the last two months of her planning and was 4,500 miles away from her love Coco.

The wedding itself was filled with love, culture and little details to fill in guests on their love story. Annie and Jorge (Coco) met while Annie was on vacation in Peru. They were at a restaurant when Annie and her friend met a group of pilots and Coco just happened to be one of them. They fell fast and when Annie went back to the States they dated via the internet. They only saw each other twice within the year of meeting and then in a leap of faith she moved to Peru to be with Jorge and learn about him and his family. They were engaged in December and the whirlwind romance came to another exciting turn in the road with their marriage.

Annie and Coco were married in our hometown of Oakhurst, CA they had the wedding at a place called Paradise Springs it has a rich history in the gold rush and it was a beautiful location just up the mountain from the center of our town. It was the first day of May and there were patches of snow on the ground and sun filling the sky.
The ceremony and reception honored both Coco's Peruvian culture and Annie's hometown roots. The entire event was bilingual and we all learned a special Peruvian dance to do during the reception. Annie's family teamed together to help plan and execute the wedding. Her Mom's friends catered the event and helped to clean up. It was a true family affair with everyone pitching in.
The details: using Annie's artistic eye she put together the centerpieces, all of the invites, signs, and little details of the day. My favorite was the "wedding tea" which acted as our table escort cards and had the love story of Annie and Coco on the back. They also listed the ingredients as "Annie: Organic", "Jorge: Organic" and "Love: Organic". It was a really sweet touch. The cake was right behind us and I was terrified we were going to bump it over. It was hand made by Coco's Mom and was a traditional spice cake, SOOOO YUMMY!

The Bride and Groom dancing their pants off!

A pic of De, Annie, Coco and I. De, Annie and I were all so close in High School and Deanna and Annie even went to college together. I am so fortunate to have these gals as my friends even so long after high school.
Eric and I grabbed a shot with the bride and groom before we left for the evening. It was such a special night and one I will treasure for a long time. Annie and Coco are going back to Peru for the near future and I am so happy that she has found this wonderful man to spend her life with.

This was our first wedding as newlyweds and we couldn't have picked a better one to make you feel alive and in love. They adore each other and it makes you just, HAPPY. Congratulations my friends.

Annie & Jorge "Coco": Sneak Peek

2010-05-03T16:04:00.001-07:00

This weekend Eric and I went to our first wedding as a married couple and it was awesome. Annie and I have been friends since high school and I am just realizing this is a feat in itself. We have grown closer throughout the years and I couldn't be more happy for her and Coco (who she met on vacation in Peru). I have so much to share with you from this amazing and totally unique wedding.

Agent Provocateur - Shy Readers Turn Away

2010-04-29T12:45:00.000-07:00

I really love lingerie. I love the way it feels and I love how cute, naughty and pretty pieces can be. One of my favorite lingerie stores has to be Agent Provocateur. I will warn those who don't know it that it is VERY EXPENSIVE, I only have 2 pieces ever made by them but they are so amazing and unique. I myself bought this little number from the "Love" bridal collection to use on our wedding day (I did use them) and they were well received on the husband front.

Well imagine my thrill for you when I received my monthly email blast from them introducing Bridal Fittings. This is a service they will start to provide in the summer for all brides and up to 10 friends to come into their stores and try on collection pieces to pair with the Bride's wedding dress. The best part and the one I am most jealous of is: "A luxurious goodie bag will be provided for the bride, along with a special gift with purchase for each guest".

WHAT?!? I am so excited for those of you who get to do this. Check out more details here.

All photos courtesy of Agent Provocateur.

My new travel accessory.

2010-04-28T17:39:00.000-07:00

This weekend while I was doing a little pre-packing shopping for our trip next week I stumbled upon this. Of course I had to get it for my first European trip to cover up my brand spanking new passport. Also it makes me a little giddy because I (sort of) work in the airline industry.

Things I haven't told you.

2010-04-27T08:00:00.000-07:00

I have been gone from the blog off and on for a few weeks now, maybe about a month. WOW! I feel like a lot has happened in a month and here is a list of things that I haven't blogged about but meant to:

There has been a lot of change at work. Most of our previous management team has changed in the last few months so a lot of change and other work related things are going on in the office. It is exciting but also crazy busy. I guess this was just another way for me to say this is part of the reason I haven't been around. I haven't had time to do basic life things like activate my new ATM card, let alone blog. Hopefully that is changing now. At least, for now, I feel a little more in control. Speaking of work... I sort of got a promotion although my title hasn't changed at work I have been given a lot more responsibility which is awesome! I am so happy to have growing momentum in my position it makes me look forward to things to come.

We are thinking about buying a house and have been looking for the entire month of April. When I say house I mean condo because um, we live in LA and house prices are crazy high. However, Eric and I were so excited to learn from our accountant that we could potentially afford a house/condo in LA so we are pursuing it. We have looked at about 20 places and after we get back from our honeymoon we will be looking more seriously. It is an exciting time and we are (so far) enjoying the process.

I did the PWC (post wedding chop) isn't that what they call it in blog land? Although, I couldn't bring myself to cut the long hair I spent the last 3-4 years growing however, I did change my style a bit...

Pre-Packing Excitement

2010-04-26T14:04:00.000-07:00

With less than 2 weeks to go till our belated honeymoon everything is making me excited for the trip. I received and email from Anthropologie last week with this photo in it.It made me start itching to pack. This past weekend Eric and I went to Target to purchase some of our travel essentials i.e. shampoo bottles, toothpaste, sunscreen. His mom gave us her European converter and I pulled out the suitcases and started piling my lingerie loot from the bachelorette party into the suitcase.

Nothing could be better than the anticipation of a big event. I love the weeks before the trip when you get to plan out little things. It is a similar feeling before the wedding. Everything makes you think about it. What you can incorporate, what it will be like. Anticipation is so much fun but as some of you already know and most of you will find out the real fun comes with the memories afterward. I keep swimming around in mine talking with friends and family about the wedding day and finding out about their private moments throughout the event.

We also drove by the Smog Shoppe yesterday; there was a bride and groom in front taking pictures and it made my heart flutter.

Stay at home husband

2010-04-22T08:45:00.001-07:00

I forgot to tell Eric that one of our cars was having issues starting. Yesterday he went to go to work and it turned out that the car battery was dead. So he worked from home. He cleaned the apartment and he made me dinner while also taking the car to get a new battery and an oil change. How did I get so lucky? So this is a little glimpse into my married life. For a day I had a stay at home husband.

I miss you

2010-04-19T22:23:00.000-07:00

Hello blogland are you there? It's me Jenn. I have been an absentee blogger, blog reader and all around internet browser these days and I wish there was a good reason for it. There is in fact a crap reason (work/life) was out of control the past couple weeks and at the end of the days I just couldn't bring myself to get on the computer and catch up.

I am hoping that is all over now and I can catch back up with your stories and lives and vise versa. So here we are on another Monday and I just wanted to say I miss you. Also, since I missed it at the time a big fat CONGRATULATIONS to Mrs. Beever & Mrs. Westside Wedding who joined the married lady club in these past 2 weeks. Did I mention I miss you guys?

Rainy Day Thoughts

2010-04-12T21:02:00.000-07:00

Its raining today and it was one of those days where I barely have energy to think let alone be creative so I am going to spew out some thoughts on this Monday and hope that it resets my focus for the rest of the week.

I am at home alone. Eric is on a his first real work trip since he started working at his company nearly a year ago. He is in Vegas for a conference, rough life I know.

It is kind of nice though to have a couple nights to recoup and refocus on me. I spent most of tonight cleaning my apartment because my brother and sister are visiting tomorrow with my niece and 2 nephews. I am so excited to see them but I wish my house was a little more put together. Plus its always nice to have a clean place when you are fitting 5 extra humans into a 2 bedroom apartment.

We have been spending the last few weeks in a routine of work, dinner, TV and bed. Its a comfortable place but I am getting antsy*. Work has been really busy for both of us and I can barely find time to function these days that I suppose I have felt disconnected. When I get home Eric is a haven. It is nice to know there is someone around who you don't have explain your happenings to and who you can just be with.

These days are the days I am grateful for Eric as my partner. I have had a lot of ups and downs in the last month with work and my future and I am starting to feel normal again and steady. Anyway, this is all just a lot of rainy day musings from a wife who is happy to have a partner by her side even thought that partner happens to be in Vegas at this moment.

*I had my first honeymoon dream this weekend, it is just around the corner and I couldn't be more ready or in need of a get away.

1 Month

2010-04-07T15:45:00.000-07:00

You thought I was done with the countdowns? Oh little did you know I love me a good countdown.

1 month till our honeymoon trip!
1 month till we are on a plane to Paris, Nice, Cannes, St. Tropez, Cinque Terre and London.
1 Month till 2 weeks with my HUSBAND without distractions and full of adventure.

Is it crazy to start packing now? I didn't think so.

On a side note - would any of my blogger friends be interested in writing some guest posts while I am out?

Day dreaming for one more month...

{via}

Family Seder - Arizona

2010-04-06T13:00:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we had our annual family Seder dinner with Eric's clan. It was the first time we had seen everyone since the wedding and it was nice to have a relaxing weekend away from everything. Everyone was still abuzz about the wedding which makes me think that we accomplished our goals of having a memorable fun party that our friends and family would enjoy. One of the best quotes from the weekend was from Eric's Grandfather. He said he was telling one of his friends that on our wedding day it rained. The friend asked "what did the bride and groom do?" Eric's Grandfather replied "they walked into the rain and got married"

{we weren't the only ones in the rain)*

I think its a funny reaction and something to remember when you are planning. The unexpected happens and at the end of the day you will get married.

*courtesy of jill thomas photography

How to get over post wedding depression

2010-04-05T15:10:00.000-07:00

I think I have post wedding depression. I wouldn't say I am sad about the wedding being gone, I loved it, I re-live it in my head and I am so happy to be married. I would say that I am sad about the lack of things I have to do.

I barely have any lists to write these days. I am stockpiling inspiration to put into this blog, after recaps, but its not the same as the focus I had just 3 months ago. Wedding planning sort of consumes your thoughts. I know you all know this, I also know that I am not like other brides. I have had friends who the very day after their weddings threw away every note they had as a way to cleanse from the thoughts. Not me, I loved having things to focus all my energy on I think that was one of the reasons our wedding was so awesome because I put ourselves into it in every aspect. So I have been a little anxious as of late. I have been wishing for things to do and things to think about but all that is over now. I think I have found a cure, actually I think I have found several.

Bring a little bit of the wedding back to you. We have planter boxes on our apartment balcony; for 2 years we have lived in that apartment and I have done nothing with these boxes. They have sat empty taunting me until now. I planted succulents in the boxes, bringing just a little bit of the Smog Shoppe home to us. A daily reminder of our wedding and some pretty decor for our newlywed house.
Plan something. In my case its the honeymoon. We have waited to go on our honeymoon and now that May (Honeymoon month) is only a handful of weeks away we can start making arrangements more detailed than our destination. But my point is find something to focus on weather its planning a trip, redecorating a room or just planning to see a movie the next weekend find something to look forward to even if its day dreaming with your new husband. Which brings me to my next cure.
Day dream. It is so fun to think about the future and talk about your dreams and ambitions as a couple. You get to do this all the time when you are newlyweds because what else is there to do? Just be together and talk, dream and hope for future things. Its a fun way to distract yourself and its fun to realize that a lot of these things may actually come true because your married now your not dating. Our current day dream, home ownership in LA. Crazy, I know, but that's the thing about being married; nothing is impossible because you have a partner to help you figure out possibilities.

Awesome Vintage Wedding

2010-03-31T15:57:00.001-07:00

And by vintage I mean literally vintage.

Check out Rozana and Joao via My Parents Were Awesome.

This head piece is epic, somebody do this!!!

Also, I just want to say sorry for the major lack in communication, posting and blogging anything. Work has been totally insane and crazy things are going on and I just have had zero time to read your posts or write any of my own, yet alone write back to you all via email. I AM SORRY but I see a light at the end of the tunnel and I am hoping to get back into the swing of things here shortly. I am looking forward to the weekend with our Passover celebration in Arizona and airport/airplane time to catch up on things.

Wedding To-Dos after the Wedding

2010-03-25T16:37:00.000-07:00

me: We need to finish our photo selections by the end of this weekend!
Eric: i know
me: we are such slackers!
Eric: yup
me: jill probably thinks so too
Eric: yup

I am sure Jill doesn't actually think we are slackers but in reality we are. Eric and I have had our album proof online for weeks now and we can't seem to narrow down our photo pics which means I can't share more photos from our day and also we can't get our albums. Just a little reality check that the wedding to-dos still go on after the wedding.

H&M - The Garden Collection Wedding Dress

2010-03-23T10:32:00.000-07:00

I am one of those people who adore H&M. Sure there stuff doesn't last for years and years but for the fun and sometimes basic items they are a steal. The new Garden Collection is no exception in my mind. I have been coveting many of the pieces for our European Honeymoon.

I was pursuing the slides today and realized they have an adorable dress that could be an adorable wedding dress. The best part is its only $39.95!

Visit hm.com

Working out, body image and overall pressures.

2010-03-22T13:58:00.000-07:00

I have been working out for a couple of years now. I was a little more motivated to get into the gym when I moved to LA and realized that I had gained about 40lbs since high school. I will admit the wedding helped kick my ass a little more. For me though, working out was about my health. Since I moved to LA 2 years ago I have lost 25lbs!!! I am really proud of myself and I will say for those of you trying to loose weight for your HEALTH it is worth it. I have more energy, I feel good about my body and my active lifestyle and I have learned a few things along the way.

I have always been athletic, I played volleyball my whole life even in college but since a shoulder injury stopped me from participating on a competitive level I let my previous active lifestyle give way to the couch and junk food. When I moved to LA it was easy to get outside. The weather was always nice and I am fortunate enough to have gym access at my work and great work out buddies to burn the calories with. I started running and eventually I did my first 5K and then my first 10K and P90X videos for summer. It got easier and easier to work working out into my schedule and it paid off. I feel fantastic and I feel like myself again.

For those of you who don't have gym access or any idea what to do with your workouts I can't recommend Body By Glamour (BBG) enough. I always knew how to play volleyball but when it came to balanced work outs and gym moves I was lost. Without these programs I would just be doing cardio and sit ups instead of toning my body in specific desired areas. I am so much a fan of the program that when they asked readers about success stories I signed up right away. If you have a Glamour subscription you can see my quote in the BBG article if you don't you can check it out in their slide show on 10 Quick and Easy Ways to Lose 10 Pounds. For more info on my BBG progress of the past you can see them in my previous posts. I have started a new BBG program, I am now on week three. It is my goal to run a 1/2 marathon in October of this year, after that I might even consider running the LA marathon but first baby steps.

I want to say for the record that although I lost weight before my wedding it was not FOR the wedding. I know there is a lot of pressure from society, the wedding industry, the fashion industry, our peers and others to look, act and be a certain way. I know that you women (and a few men) have some amazing heads on your shoulders so I am sure you don't give into these pressures. I would just like to say that YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL just the way you are, if you want to work out or lose weight for your health and your quality of life I fully support it. YOU DO NOT NEED TO CHANGE for a wedding or any other life event and don't let anyone or any industry pressure you otherwise. BEAUTIFUL people are not models in magazines or actresses on TV they are happy individuals who stand up next to each other and offer support and community to one another. They are people who stand for what they believe in and I believe that is the spirit of this blog and spirit of the blogging community.

Cake vs. Pie

2010-03-19T09:19:00.000-07:00

I am going to take a break from re-caps. I want to show you more pictures and we are days away from finalizing our picks with Jill so once I have that disk in my hands they will resume.

Dessert is almost always a point of debate in the planning process and I came across the following scientific break down of the superior dessert. Check out Cake vs. Pie: A Scientific Approach. As you know, we chose pie and EVERYONE loved it.

I would love to put this to an informal vote. Go read and come back and share your thoughts. These charts are hilarious! My vote is undoubtedly pie... although I love all things sweet especially cake!

The "W" word.

2010-03-17T09:00:00.000-07:00

I cringe at the word wife. Is there something wrong with me? That is what I am, I am a wife*. I am sort of hoping this is just a step in marriage that you have to get used to. 2 months in wife is still just as confusing and interesting to hear no matter how many times someone says it.

You know what else is weird?!? I mean totally and completely freaky.

Mrs. Reid

Seriously this is my name now** right? When do you get used to this? Married women, answer me! Engaged women what do you expect you are going to have trouble getting used to after the wedding? For me it is names and the lack of planning, but that is another post.

*well I suppose this is the way I felt with the word fiance also
** it is supposed to be once I get around to changing my name officially, after the honeymoon in May

Writer's Block

2010-03-16T16:10:00.000-07:00

I have a little bit of blogger block today...

I am sure you have seen this already, I adore this ad. I adore Google so it is fitting. But this ad makes me think of our honeymoon, which is 2 MONTHS AWAY!!!! It makes me think of romance and it takes my mind off of my writers block. I hope you accept this in lieu of a proper post today.

For the messy Groom

2010-03-15T14:18:00.000-07:00

Once, you have the tie, the suit or tux all picked out how are you going to keep your groom looking sharp during dinner and dessert!?!

Try this on for size, I happen to know a few messy boys who would benefit from something like this.

{via}

BCBG Wedding Dress Inspiration - Short

2010-03-12T14:14:00.000-08:00

Here it is! Part 2 of the BCBG Wedding Dress inspiration, see the long dresses here. I am loving these dresses for a fun flirty wedding or even a reception dress/get-away dress.

Top: $298, $398
Bottom: $798, $398

Top: $348, $288*
Bottom: $358, $290

Top: $488, $278
Bottom: $178, $198

*This particular dress I own and LOVE. I wore it to my bachelorette weekend in Vegas. It also made an surprise appearance at my wedding (story to be told at a later date). I will most likely be bringing it on my honeymoon in Europe, I adore this dress.

BCBG Wedding Dress Inspiration - Long

2010-03-12T08:00:00.000-08:00

I think by now you all know that I adore BCBG. I was browsing my local store this week and started to notice a trend. BCBG is selling a lot of white dresses and if you are into in-expensive (as far as wedding dresses go) and beautiful gowns look no further than my friend BCBG...

Top Left $298 , Bottom Right $498.

(L to R) Top: $418, $358 Bottom: $328, $398

(L to R) Top: $268, $488 Bottom: $298, $348

10 Dresses under $500. You DO NOT NEED To buy a "WEDDING DRESS" to get married! Coming up next are the short options aka My PERSONAL favorites.*

*If* I had a do over it would be in a short dress. For the record I am not playing the "if" game, just saying. SHORT ROCKS!

Forget bouquets, carry a lamb.

2010-03-11T10:43:00.000-08:00

{via}

Although this photo is adorable (because of the lamb) can you even imagine seeing this and thinking "oh, this is lovely I am going emulate this for my wedding". Sometimes the wedding/fashion industry drives me INSANE!!!! I am sure you feel the same way. Speaking of INSANE fashion industry standards and wedding blogland standards go and check out A Los Angeles Love's post on reclaiming your wedding. You must read it.

Just a side note, I met A Los Angeles Love this week and she is even better in person. I have a true blog crush on this lady and I couldn't be happier to have her as a blogger friend. We discussed planning, blogging and came up with what could turn out to be a very fun idea for you the readers and fellow bloggers.

A married moment.

2010-03-10T18:04:00.000-08:00

In Google Chat - Today

me: hi

Eric: hi

me: husband!

Eric: wife!

me: YAY, we are married!

Eric: hot damn we are

Making it offical, before we make it offical.

2010-03-10T08:00:00.000-08:00

We had a few things to do before we actually had the ceremony.
Take a couple more pictures.*Hang out with your brother.
Sign the marriage license, synagogue certificate and Ketubah.

Eric's maternal grandparents and my maternal grandmother signed our synagogue certificate. Eric's brother and my sister signed our marriage license. Eric, Me, my Mom & Dad, Eric's Mom and her best friend Judy signed our Ketubah.It was an emotional moment before the ceremony. There was a finality to it all.

Rabbi Freehling also had us stand apart from each other and hold his talice (I think this is what its called) each of us held an end and he said to us; "We can walk away right now, this is not something to go into lightly. If you feel any reservations at all drop your end and we will all walk away." I am not ashamed to admit I fake dropped my end, how could you not take advantage of a moment like that? Eric and I both told the Rabbi we were ready and sure that we wanted to marry each other so we kissed and suddenly everyone was gathering upstairs to start the processional.

*Photos courtesy o f Jill Thomas Photography except for #1 and #3

You can stand under my umbrella.

2010-03-09T08:00:00.000-08:00

On your wedding day something is going to happen that you didn't plan for. SOMETHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN THAT YOU DIDN'T PLAN FOR. Trust me, I am sure every bride will tell you this. What is important is how you deal with it. Just like in planning there are unexpected bumps in the road and if you are upset by them it will alter your experience.

For us it was the rain. Obviously we knew there was a chance of rain; our tent dilemma, our tent decision & the rain. Once it started raining there was nothing we could do, we didn't have tent and we didn't have umbrella's we just had us and our wedding day and nothing was going to get in the way of us having fun and having a party.

When we got to the venue it was really raining, everything outside, where the ceremony was supposed to be, was wet. Everyone was sort of freaking out. Our caterer went up to Eric and said, "I guess we should've gotten a tent" (like he had told us a million times), my mom kept asking me if I was "ok" (yes, I was "I LOVE THE RAIN"), my Dad, Eric's Grandpa and several others came up to both of us and said "We are going to have to move the ceremony inside, what is the back up plan? You can't make people stand or sit in the rain."

I started to get a little bit flustered, it was our wedding day and we got to make the decisions. I frantically searched for Eric.

Me: "Eric, can I talk to for a minute?" (he was chatting up his grandma)

Eric: "What's up?" (we had moved away from the crowd)

Me: "Everyone, wants us to move the ceremony inside, I don't want to get married inside, do you? I don't care about the rain, do you?"

Eric: "No, we are getting married outside like we planned, its not up to them."

Me: IN MY HEAD - This is so the reason I am marrying him in less than an hour!

As Jill will attest I told my dad "no we are getting married outside- there is no back up plan"

Just moments after that; Eric's cousins showed up with 2 bags full of black umbrellas (they got married in Napa last summer). They had stopped at the dollar store and bought 100 umbrellas so our guests wouldn't be wet. Everyone was showing up and we had the Rabbi make an announcement to the guests. We were getting married outside, you could stand or sit under the awning, inside of the venue if you wanted to or you could grab and umbrella and sit in the rain but no matter what the bride and groom along with the KICK ASS (my words, not his) wedding party were going to be outside, in the rain.

A BowieBride Moment...

2010-03-08T15:45:00.000-08:00

"Who the EFF is going to spend an entire YEAR planning a party for themselves and not party?" - BowieBride

If you don't know who BowieBride is you are missing out on some much needed sanity in your planning. Fellow LA bride/blogger Britt makes me laugh on a daily basis and I am loving this post about drinking at your wedding.

Which brings me to the following real wedding fact from the wedding. Our friends and family managed to top off 15 handles of tequila along with 10 other handles of hard alcohol. This does not include our beer and wine of which we really have no way of tracking. In case you were wondering...

YES, I am proud.

SJP - Hair Inspiration

2010-03-08T15:00:00.000-08:00

I loved Sarah Jessica Parker's hair style at the Oscars.

Ready to party...

2010-03-08T10:53:00.000-08:00

We planned the photography to do most of our photos before the ceremony. This was to our advantage for a lot of reasons:

We had daylight
We all got to calm down and hang out before the ceremony
We didn't have to worry about it after so we really enjoyed the reception

*photos courtesy of Jill Thomas Photography

Personal Details

2010-03-08T10:22:00.000-08:00

I didn't think I would care so much about having a bouquet but I really adored mine. It was handmade by a family friend and for some reason when I held it in my hand it felt special.

Eric had his own little details as well like the socks but his favorite detail of the day was his glasses. Looking at our gallery they definitely made their way into the photos more often than not.
*photos courtesy of Jill Thomas Photography

Just us.

2010-03-05T09:06:00.000-08:00

Eric and I took full advantage of the time we had together at the Smog Shoppe for pictures and for daylight.

*Photos courtesy of Jill Thomas Photography

At the Smog Shoppe.

2010-03-04T14:54:00.000-08:00

We arrived at the venue and it was chaos; but in an completely awesome, OMG this is our wedding day and all this hustle and bustle is for us kind of way. It was raining, the ceremony site was soaked but everyone was smiling and Eric and I practiced our dance while we waited for Jill to arrive at the venue. I was just so freaking happy and everyone was concerned about the rain and how both of us were feeling about it. Eric and I were just happy. Its a simple way to put it but we were happy. It all hits you and you just sort of take a deep breath and take it all in. Getting married is AWESOME.This was one of my favorite non-jill photos of the entire day.

The lost slipper...

2010-03-03T14:46:00.000-08:00

{via}

Just a little Wednesday shoe inspiration or in my case distraction. *sigh*

Get on the bus!

2010-03-03T08:00:00.000-08:00

We rode in a bus to from the Hotel Erwin to the Smog Shoppe. It was fun having the entire group together in one place. It was really raining at this point and I wasn't quite sure how I felt about it yet, I just sat back and enjoyed the company.I am not sure what just happened here but Eric and I look amazing! Don't we look so happy on our wedding day? Sorry Eric, this picture makes me laugh.

Hi-Fi Reception Songs

2010-03-02T13:00:00.000-08:00

Here is a Hi-Fi Weddings reception playlist exclusively for A Bride's Brain readers.

Check out Hi-Fi Weddings for more musical inspiration and downloads.

Tracks:

Big Star - I'm in Love With a Girl

M.I.A. - Jimmy

Camera Obscura - Let's Get Out of This Country

The Beatles - I Saw Her Standing There

Michael Jackson – P.Y.T.

King Khan & BBQ Show - I'll Be Loving You

The Troggs – From Home

Feist - Mushaboom

The Easybeats - She's So Fine

The Reigning Sound - Pretty Girl

The B-52's - Rock Lobster

Link: hifiweddings.com/HiFiRecep

Hi-Fi Weddings

2010-03-02T08:00:00.000-08:00

Hi-Fi Weddings is the brain-child of Ashley; bride/wife/record store owner/modern renaissance woman turned blogger. Ashley is really onto something that I believe is going to benefit all kinds of brides and I am loving her dedication to throwing PARTIES which is totally in line with my wedding style. Hi-Fi Weddings features awesome real weddings along with a compilation of party/wedding friendly music for your planning inspiration.

Ashley featured our wedding on her site; check it out here for a great sneak peek of what our party turned into. We have been chatting back and forth over the past couple weeks and I took the liberty of creating an impromptu interview so you can find out more about Ashley and Hi-Fi Weddings:

What was your inspiration for starting Hi-Fi Weddings?

Well, I got married before the big blogging sensation took over, but the music played at our wedding was the most important part (Aside from actually getting married). My husband and I own a record store and I am a wedding photographer so I wanted to find a way to bring both of my passions together. Even now that everyone has a blog, I still haven't found one that is primarily focused on the music played at weddings. After tossing the idea back and forth in my head, and having a few dreams (a lot of answers come to me in my dreams) I decided to go ahead and launch it. I figure I'd have to do a lot of digging, searching, and emailing to gather content...but I'm hoping over time, submissions will just come in on their own. That's how it happens right?! :)

How can brides use Hi-Fi Weddings while planning their own wedding?

I have a master list of songs for brides and grooms to use or get inspiration from and I also feature real weddings with real playlists that brides and grooms had at their own wedding. I've also just recently launched "Tuesday's Tune" where I share a song that I think would be perfect on a wedding playlist. I'm also working on a vendors page that will connect brides and grooms with like-minded folks to help make their day exactly what they want. I'm hoping to have everything from DJs, to photogs, to venues that appreciate the importance of music.

What is the most important part of choosing music for your wedding?

You know when a movie really has you hooked in...and then the song starts that triggers the emotions the director is looking to hit? Well, I love that. And I wanted our wedding to be like a movie...at least in my head. From the songs I got ready to (Christopher O’Riley’s “True Love Waits” ... I'm a huge Radiohead fan), to the song I walked down the aisle to (Israel Kamakawiwo’ole "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What A Wonderful World"), to the huge mix that led us into our first moments of marriage bliss together (you can find all of the songs we played here.), I couldn't have asked for a better soundtrack to kick off one of the best days of my life!

{Ashley & Andy at their own wedding}

What was your favorite song played at your own wedding?

This is a super hard question. I never have been able to directly answer "what's your favorite" questions, but Israel's "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World" song STILL gives me chills. The song actually hits some childhood feelings because Wizard of Oz was my favorite movie growing up (I always stated I would be Judy Garland when I grew up haha) so to hear this gorgeous rendition of a song that already held such meaning for me really sealed it. I had no second guesses that would be the song I walked down the aisle to. And even when I hear it play in the background of some cheesy commercial, I'm taken back to May 2006 when I walked down the aisle to the man I said "I do" to...and the warm fuzzy chills come over me all over again!

Stay tuned later today for Hi-Fi Playlist...

Anthropologie Hair Inspiration

2010-02-26T17:40:00.000-08:00

{via}

This hair piece on one hand is kind of amazing and on the other hand makes me think you don't really need any more excuses to call my hair a birds nest. It is pretty so perhaps you could use elements of it as your hair inspiration.

I am selling my dress.

2010-02-26T16:48:00.000-08:00

It just sort of makes sense and although I am sad to see it go I hope that another bride can enjoy it as much as I did. If you know someone who might be interested please direct them to my Once Wed listing located here.

*photos courtesy of Jill Thomas Photography

A Bride's Brain is on Facebook!

2010-02-26T14:56:00.000-08:00

A Bride's Brain now has a Facebook Fan Page, click on the link and become a fan! Inspiration is shared daily that doesn't quite make it into the blog, plus all the cool kids are doing it. Oh Yeah! I just used peer pressure! You can also find a link to the page on the right side of the blog. I hope to see you over there!

Regret - Follow Up

2010-02-26T08:07:00.000-08:00

Regarding my regret post yesterday Cupcake Wedding asked me what I would have done differently.

I guess my only answer would be that I would have planned better. In the hustle and bustle of the day I just assumed that my Dad and I would cross paths while he was coming back to the hotel and I was driving to the Smog Shoppe. It didn't even occur to me that we would see each other before he arrived at the venue.

I guess if I could have a do over of that moment I would have asked him to come to my room while I was getting ready. At least then we would have been able to have a proper hello on my wedding day. I don't think he regrets anything which is awesome and I am happy to say that we did get a couple special moments later in the day* so it isn't a huge regret.

*future post topics

Something I regret

2010-02-25T14:00:00.000-08:00

We left the roof and began piling into the bus our neighbor drove us around in that night. As we walked in front of the hotel my Dad was pulling into the parking lot after setting up our chuppah at the venue. It was the first time I saw him and it wasn't a particularly special moment. I mean it was awesome and I was excited and pumped but I feel like we lost something in the hustle and bustle of the situation. He was excited to see me, warned us about the rain which at this point was coming down in a steady stream and after a kiss and a hug we were off.

Back to the roof

2010-02-25T10:06:00.000-08:00

We finished up our pictures on the boardwalk and we went upstairs to meet our wedding party on the roof for some group pics. They came out great and after just a few clicks we were ready to head to the Smog Shoppe.Smiles even in the rain! What a great group of friends/family.

Photos courtesy of jill thomas photography

Venice Boardwalk

2010-02-24T09:07:00.000-08:00

There are some strange places in the world, some colorful places and one of the most colorful places in Southern California is the Venice Beach Boardwalk. This is where we went to take our pictures before the wedding. The Hotel Erwin is right on the boardwalk so after we left the roof we walked down there for some really awesome photos.

Plenty of surprises from Eric throughout the day, like when Jill said "Eric is there anything you want me to take a picture of?" and his reply is "My socks are kind of cool!" what a cheese ball. Who knew my groom was thinking of little things all this while. me: "oh, look at the pretty tulips!" jill: "go stand over there..." LOVE HER!

I just want to say that I loved the ratio of film to digital that Jill gave us with the photos. For those of you who are interested in her work she is focusing on film now and it is lovely, just lovely. How can walking in an alley be so epic?Don't let the sunglasses fool you, there were sprinkles at this point. Eric was just rocking the look. Um, how crazy is it that we are just walking in this crowd of people?!? People smiling at us, congratulating us and giving us looks the whole time. This is one of my favorites of the entire day. If this was any other day you would have to buy a pair of glasses to stand in front of this shop and take a photo. This was when Jill said "It's amazing what people will let you do when you are wearing a wedding dress."

Photos courtesy of jill thomas photography

August and After - Feature Post

2010-02-23T14:00:00.000-08:00

I was informed today that you can see our first dance on the wedding blog August and After. A very pretty wedding blog with lots of inspiration and if you get a chance to check it out look at the brides real wedding pictures. They are gorgeous.

First Look

2010-02-23T08:00:00.000-08:00

He came in on the far end of the roof and I watched him walk to me.

The first words were something spoken for the last time "Hello Fiancé".
Eric was so excited to tell me the tent decision "no tent", it was at this point the first drops of rain came down and we couldn't have been happier.

photos courtesy of jill thomas photography

Are whoopie pies the new cupcakes?

2010-02-22T11:00:00.000-08:00

{via}

Today in my DailyCandy email I read about whoopie pies. Then it hit me, I have been seeing these creamy treats all over the internet* as of late. Could this be a new wedding dessert in the making? Yes, please someone use this idea, how yummy, messy and totally awesome would this be? Cupcakes are so last decade.

*Also seen on Cup of Jo, Design Crush, Joy the Baker and Southern Weddings.

Anticipation

2010-02-22T08:00:00.001-08:00

There are very few words I could give you to describe my feelings while standing on the roof of our hotel. Waiting for my first glimpse of Eric and his first glimpse of me. I couldn't decide what to do, where to stand, maybe I should sit, should I look towards the other side of the roof, the ocean, will he come up the stairs next to me? So many fleeting thoughts just dripping in anticipation...

Gone Fishing

2010-02-19T21:00:00.000-08:00

{via}

Eric and I along with our friend Ryan are going to Palm Springs today. I have never visited and I am really excited to get away for a short trip. We are going golfing and having a nice relaxing weekend at their family home. Sunday, while they golf again, I am going to lounge by the pool and honeymoon plan with my travel books.

{via}

I wish we were staying at the Ace Hotel I have been dying to stay there for well over a year now. Next time we go I am going to push for a stay here and shopping at the outlet mall. Have a good weekend!

Getting Dressed - The Boys

2010-02-19T08:00:00.001-08:00

Jill left us and the girls finished putting themselves together. My sister walked me up to the roof to wait for Eric. Meanwhile the boys were doing a lot of tie tying and straightening.

Our best man (seriously he was the BEST) and Eric's brother Jon.
Our Jonah. My Groom.
Just like that he was off to see me!

photos courtesy of jill thomas photography

Getting Dressed - The Girls

2010-02-18T14:00:00.000-08:00

I put on my garter and stood in front of my dress. A dress I had put on many times before, it goes without saying but none was like this. I stepped into the dress and the women I love most pulled it up around me. We laughed and I blushed; it was silly having so many hands on one dress and one person but it was fun. My mom kissed me on the cheek and said "I love you baby." I nearly lost it. We kissed again and I took a deep breath while Jill gave me instructions on meeting Eric.

photos courtesy of jill thomas photography

Husbands kind of rock...

2010-02-18T09:10:00.000-08:00

I have been working like crazy lately; long days, long nights and my home life is suffering. By suffering I mean I am rarely home Monday-Friday and when I am its to eat dinner and go to bed. So last night when I was still at work at 7pm Eric offered said he would make dinner. I got home before him around 8pm only to be greeted by my husband a few minutes later with flowers for our 1 month marriage-versary!

{gotta love Trader Joes}

Of course I put it in one of the vases I kept from our wedding decor.

Waiting

2010-02-17T15:00:00.000-08:00

My mom was still getting dressed, the girls were ready... My dress was waiting. photos courtesy of jill thomas photography

1 month

2010-02-17T10:00:00.000-08:00

{via ffffound}

Happy 1 month of marriage Husband! I look forward to kissing you for many more to come.

Things before dressing...

2010-02-17T08:00:00.000-08:00

I walked around the suite in my silk kimono robe; a robe that Eric gave to me in our first year of dating. I had my pretty panties on that I had previously purchased for the occasion from Agent Provocateur. Jill took pictures of my "little things"; the jewelry Eric's Mom gave me, my mom's borrowed garter the same one she wore on her wedding day, Eric's great grandmother's handkerchief which just happened to have blue flowers on it and my shoes, my fun pink shoes.

{jill thomas photography}

Shopping

2010-02-16T21:00:00.000-08:00

We are on a spending hiatus because we are going to Europe and we plan on shopping while we are there. If I was shopping I would buy this for our stint in Saint Tropez. Amazing.

{via oh joy! from the etsy shop ouma via greedy girl}

Primping at its best.

2010-02-16T14:30:00.000-08:00

Waking up in the morning at 6 am is kind of horrible. However, when its your wedding day you look past the early time frame and focus on the mimosas!

I got out of bed, took a shower, shaved my legs and ordered room service. I took in a couple deep breathes and opened the door to my best friend Kristin screaming at me that; GASP! "It's your wedding day!" We poured some early morning mimosas and greeted my amazing hair dresser Sasha and her assistant.
Then the fun began...

Sasha set my curls and started in on my make-up. My mom made mimosas for everyone.We each took turns getting our make-up and hair started. My grandma and Mom, waiting patiently for their turns. Eric's Mom, Roberta getting styled!Some of the gals went the DIY route and looked beautiful!Even my niece got in on the action. Here I am "stressing out" notice my stress relief bride doll.
How awesome are these Hotel Erwin robes?
We took out the curls and I almost just left my hair like this, I loved it!
Having my closest women around me on the day of the wedding, getting ready together and enjoying each other was the most soothing thing I could've asked for. I barely thought about anything but the moments we were in together. I ate breakfast while chatting with Eric's grandma, I talked individually to all of my brides-friends and family members. Even some of our out of town guests who were in the hotel stopped by. It was great to see everyone and feed off of their excitement.My sisters styling each other. I never knew so many women could share such a small bathroom. The place was a disaster the entire morning.
Brushing my teeth before I get my lipstick put on. This was the shirt I wore all morning; I purchased it from The Wedding Chicks shop!We put the final touches on my make-up and I will admit it was at this point that I started to get a little nervous. I felt overwhelmed by the love that was surrounding me and it got to be a little too much. I went into my room and sat quietly for a few moments fighting back unexplainable tears and then Jill showed up. It was show time and miraculously I was ready and so was everyone else. My mom went to her room to change and I put my underwear and robe on so we could get me into my dress. I couldn't believe we were moments away from me seeing Eric and just a few hours away from being married.The clouds were rolling in at this point but nobody cared.

Waking Up!

2010-02-10T08:00:00.000-08:00

You may remember our tent dilemma. The weather the week before our wedding was all of over the place it was going to rain and then it wasn't and we had to make a decision on having a tent in the courtyard or not. It got to the point where everyone was calling us telling us the weather forecast they found on the TV, internet, pentagon briefings. I couldn't hear one more thing about the weather anymore so I did what every sane bride would do in two days before their wedding. I told my groom to make the final decision and I forgot about it. So the morning of the wedding I had no idea if Eric had decided to get a tent or not. I personally didn't want to cover the outside with a tent at all but whatever was going to happen was going to happen; so I left it in Eric's capable hands.

The morning of the wedding I woke up to this wonderful site. A beautiful sunrise glowing over the pacific ocean, the skies were blue with just a little bit of clouds in the sky and I was ready to shower and get on with the day, no matter what.

GO TO BED!

2010-02-09T14:30:00.000-08:00

{via}

Don't leave things to the very last minute that could have been done weeks, days or hours before. Even though I was on top of my to-do lists for the major wedding things the personal things I wanted to finish were left until the very last moments before I went to sleep and in some cases the next morning while I was getting ready. So here is some advice I have for you; if you want to make a book for your future husband do it the day before or the week before the wedding, if you want to write notes to your parents and future mother-in-law do it the day before or the week before.

Don't wait until the last moments of the night when you are in bed surrounded by papers and crafts watching weekend update on SNL thinking to yourself OMG I have to be up to shower in 4 hours and then I have to be awake for 18 hours to survive this day! GO TO BED! Finish the things you want to do before this day so you can sleep. Trust me you will need the sleep! Luckily I finished most of my (stupidly, last minute) projects before SNL finished and I was sleeping by 1:30am. I felt this in the morning, but it could have been a lot worse.

After the party its the hotel...

2010-02-08T19:00:00.000-08:00

roof

Unlike R-Kelly's lyrics we didn't have our after party (after the rehearsal dinner) in the hotel lobby. We had it on the roof of the Hotel Erwin at their rooftop bar High. Eric and I wanted to have a place to gather our friends on Saturday night after most of them arrived in LA. The hotel bar was one of the main reasons we booked Hotel Erwin as our wedding hotel. This gave us the opportunity to spend more time with our guests and also see people who were not at the rehearsal dinner.

The wedding party and a lot of the rehearsal dinner guests all gathered at the hotel bar after the dinner. Our friends trickled in one by one and it turned into quite a little pre-party. I think it really got people excited for the next day and it was so fun to realize we were only hours away from the wedding where EVERYONE would be together.

The menus are lighted because you are on a roof at night! How awesome is this? It was kind of a chilly night but that didn't stop people from coming out and enjoying a couple drinks. Even Eric's Grandparents hung out.Cold friends but ultimately happy friends. After last call we all went our separate ways. Last call was pretty early; because of the guests in the hotel it is at midnight, which was officially our wedding day! Eric walked me to my room and kissed me goodnight. The next time would be in my wedding dress.
{courtesy of}

A Bride's Brain Blog Guidelines

2010-02-08T15:17:00.000-08:00

Please excuse this interruption in our regularly scheduled blogging...

In December the FTC changed some of their guidelines and regulations that affect bloggers. I decided because of these changes it would be a good time to inform all of you some of the guidelines that I have set up on A Bride's Brain.

1. I always try to source images or information that I use on this blog correctly and accurately. It is always my intention to give credit where credit is due. If you see something on my blog that isn't properly sourced please let me know. If you see something on my blog that belongs to you and you would rather it not be on my blog please, please let me know by emailing me abridesbrain (@) gmail (.) com.
Comments on A Bride's Brain are monitored. I reserve the right to take down any comments that I deem inappropriate. It is my belief that everyone is entitled to their own opinion and disagreement. If that opinion is rude, inappropriate, hurtful or SPAM I will take it down. It is my objective to use A Bride's Brain as a place of inspiration, knowledge and community in wedding planning and in marriage. Because of this we need to be respectful of each other. Thankfully I have not had to delete one comment since the inception of this blog and I hope to keep that record going.
As of December 1, 2009 the FTC has new regulations requiring bloggers to disclose any paid for relations with companies/products/services that sponsor or advertise. Because of this if A Bride's Brain runs any posts that are sponsored or advertisement posts you will be informed directly. It is my intent to be honest and forthcoming with all opportunities presented to me by this blog and to the readers of this blog.

It is very important to me as a blogger, a bride and a bridal blogger that I have full disclosure. Up until this point most of my posts about vendors have been on my own vendors because I used them personally and I stand behind their products and services. In the future this may change but I will never post about anything I do not believe in or believe will be beneficial to you as readers. If in the future there are guests posts from someone other than myself you will be notified of this. I hope you will continue to have faith in my posts sponsored or not. I only write and stand behind things I believe in.

Thank you for being a reader of A Bride's Brain I appreciate the relationships I have with each and everyone of you and the community we are growing here.

Help out a fellow bride.

2010-02-08T14:03:00.001-08:00

This sucks!

Do you know anyone who can help? We are all in this together right?

Sigh, Jill does it again!

2010-02-05T10:03:00.000-08:00

I interrupt the recaps to bring you awesomeness from our photographer Jill Thomas! She did a blog post today on our wedding and I am swooning, seriously swooning. Go check it out now! Recaps will resume when I catch my breath again. Thank you Jill!

All photos courtesy of Jill Thomas Photography.

Our non-rehearsing rehearsal

2010-02-04T11:10:00.000-08:00

We had our rehearsal dinner at Cafe Del Rey (CDR) in Marina Del Rey, CA. CDR is centrally located from the Hotel Erwin and they have great food so it was a no brainier when choosing the location.

After the dress drop off I came home in what could be classified as my only breakdown of the entire weekend. I was frazzled from the entire situation at the hotel and I was really beginning to realize what it means to have everyone you know and love in one place at one time. Although everyone was offering help with the best intentions it was a high stress situation. Eric casually talked me down and helped me realize that if this was the only thing that went off track the entire weekend we were in good shape.

Eric and I got ready together at the apartment. I kissed our kitty goodbye, mentioning that after the next day he wouldn't be a bastard anymore and we were off in these outfits...

{jill thomas photography}

It was nice just being in the car with Eric before the dinner. It was sort of the calm before the storm. The last moments of us being alone before we moved into married life. We listened to music and enjoyed our short drive to the other side of town. When we arrived at CDR no one had arrived there yet. Eric's Mom, Brother and family friend Judy were setting up the room so Eric and I along with Jon went to the bar and waited for everyone to arrive.

{photo courtesy of jon reid}

We didn't have to wait long, family and friends arrived and we all moved into the private room to enjoy the wine and beer hour. Everyone was talking, mingling, drinking it was so fun to have everyone in one room finally meeting one another. My niece Isabella was being adorable. She went around the room showing everyone her "pretty dress". We sat down Roberta welcomed everyone and we started to eat. The food was fabulous and the service was even better.

{my parents enjoying the meal, courtesy of my little sister}

{flower girl/niece Isabella with Eric and I}

Post dinner we had a "surprise" our parents put together a bunch of pictures for Jon to compile into a slide show. After about 30 minutes of setting up the projector we watched the awesome slide show. I wish there was a way I could post it for you.* after the slide show Roberta gave the loveliest speech. She made us laugh, she made us cry and she made me so happy to have a Mother In Law like her.

{photo courtesy of jon reid}

We were served dessert which was the best part of the entire meal! Eric and I passed out the presents and we all departed for the hotel and the impromptu after party that we set up on the roof.

The only rehearsal that took place was a short little meeting at our table with the wedding party that basically said "When we get to the venue tomorrow you will find out where to walk." That is really all you need to know when you are in a wedding; how to walk in a straight line and where to stand at the end. At least for our wedding it is.

*There actually probably is, I will work on that!

A Bride's Brain

6 months + 21 Days

The misadventures of ordering coffee in Paris/Europe - Honeymoon Chronicals

Honeymoon - Paris, Day 1

Seven Hopes United - The Fair Trade Registry

What is Fair Trade?

Summer of weddings? How to afford wedding season.

Ras Wedding Shoes

Winner, GIVEAWAY!

THANK YOU & A GIVEAWAY

The Limited Wedding Dress Collection

HELP: Thunder Soul Premiere - LA Film Festival

Sneak Peek - Honeymoon

Guest Post:De of A Traveler's Perspective - Habana Blues

Guest Post: 99 + Forever - The One.

Katie & George an Engagement Story

LA LA LONDON

DIY Invitation Templates from Blonderland

Guest Post: Jill Thomas Photography - First See

The Ballad of Sleepy John - Jackie Greene

Guest Post: Thoughts of the All Consumed Bride

A Real Hi-Fi Weddings Guest Post

Au Revoir Paris

Guest Post: A Cupcake Wedding - Slow Dance With Me

Guest Post:De of A Traveler's Perspective - Flamenco

Bonjour

And we are off.

Real Wedding: Annie & Coco

Annie & Jorge "Coco": Sneak Peek

Agent Provocateur - Shy Readers Turn Away

My new travel accessory.

Things I haven't told you.

Pre-Packing Excitement

Stay at home husband

I miss you

Rainy Day Thoughts

Sponsored Post: DesignerApparel.com

1 Month

Family Seder - Arizona

How to get over post wedding depression

Awesome Vintage Wedding

Wedding To-Dos after the Wedding

H&M - The Garden Collection Wedding Dress

Working out, body image and overall pressures.

Cake vs. Pie

The "W" word.

Writer's Block

For the messy Groom

BCBG Wedding Dress Inspiration - Short

BCBG Wedding Dress Inspiration - Long

Forget bouquets, carry a lamb.

A married moment.

Making it offical, before we make it offical.

You can stand under my umbrella.

A BowieBride Moment...

SJP - Hair Inspiration

Ready to party...

Personal Details

Just us.

At the Smog Shoppe.

The lost slipper...

Get on the bus!

Hi-Fi Reception Songs

Hi-Fi Weddings

Anthropologie Hair Inspiration

I am selling my dress.

A Bride's Brain is on Facebook!

Regret - Follow Up

Something I regret

Back to the roof

Venice Boardwalk

August and After - Feature Post

First Look

Are whoopie pies the new cupcakes?

Anticipation

Gone Fishing

Getting Dressed - The Boys

Getting Dressed - The Girls

Husbands kind of rock...

Waiting

Sigh, Jill does it again!