Sunday, November 21, 2010

Birds.

I had been eyeing a felted bird cake topper for quite some time... I thought it was absolutely perfect. I decided recently that it was time I started cracking down and actually start purchasing some of this stuff I had picked out for the wedding. Well, I started looking at these cake toppers again and decided I didn't like them anymore... good thing I didn't purchase them when I first found them.

After searching Etsy.com for awhile, I came across these fantastic birds by Cotton Bird Designs. I knew immediately that these were the ones I wanted. So.... they have been purchased and are currently flying over here from England. They have many different ones... some even made out of some very interesting paper.


Hopefully they don't mind me sharing this photo... Link to Etsy post.

I can't wait for them to arrive. I hope they look as fantastic in person!

Next on my list is the veil. It's all picked, I just need to finally buy it.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Engagement Photos.



On Thursday, Bill and I had our engagement photos taken. They were part of our wedding photography package. I was a little worried, I hadn't had actual photos taken since my senior pictures for high school... just short of forever ago (7 years ago). So, I was a little worried. I feel like it went well. Bill behaved like a 5 year old. I'm sure our photographer thinks we're slightly crazy... which we are, so it's ok.


Today we received a link to our online preview! I can't wait to see the rest of them!!!


Check out our photo preview!

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Gram & Gramps.

I've been MIA for quite some time now...


There has been a significant amount of family stuff going on. At the end of July, beginning of August, my grandpa became sick and was hospitalized. Everything seemed ok and he was able to go home after a couple days. A week or two later, my grandma was hospitalized. They got her situated and she was able to go home after a couple of days. During those couple days and the couple after, my grandpa was in and out of the emergency room and doctor's office for various things. 


Essentially, my grandpa decided that he was tired of living with machines and the restrictions that his medical needs gave him. He decided that he wanted to let nature take it's course. He passed away early Sunday, August 15th. I then went up to Duluth and spent Sunday and Monday with my family, seeing my grandpa one last time before he was cremated. I'll never forget how hard it was to see my grandma so incredibly sad. I left Monday evening to go back to work on Tuesday. We planned a memorial service in my home town for Thursday the 19th. Before I left, my grandma gave me a big hug and said I love you. I told her that I would see her Wednesday evening. My mom planned on bringing her by my house, which she hadn't seen yet and then we were going to take her shopping for something to wear on Thursday. She then gave me a signature "grandma kiss" and with a big smile, told me "and that's for Bill!"


I made it home very early Tuesday morning, to get up and make my way to work in Wisconsin. It was a tough day to work with all that had gone on. I made my way home and started to relax for a minute before I started making dinner and cleaning the house for any guests that would be stopping by in the next few days. As I started to make hamburger patties to grill, Bill's phone rang. I could hear my mom's voice. The look on Bill's face said enough. He handed me the phone... I can't even remember what my mom told me, but my grandma had passed away that day. She hadn't been feeling well all day. My mom and aunt brought her into the hospital and they couldn't find anything major wrong, but had decided to admit her to see if they could make things better for her. Shortly after being admitted, she passed away. They believe that she may have had a blood clot or something. The family opted to not do an autopsy. 


Bill and I picked up my sister, Moriah, and headed off to Duluth to be with the family again, spending Wednesday and Thursday with them. We planned a new memorial service for Monday, August 23rd.


I guess you could say she died of a broken heart. There is some comfort knowing that they are both together and grandma is back to taking care of grandpa. We all knew my grandpa's time would be soon, but we never would have guessed that grandma would have followed so soon. Over a month later, it's still extremely hard to believe. 


Even with the unfortunate circumstances, I'm so glad I got to spend so much time with my family. It really made me appreciate each and every one of them. Even though there was a lot of crying and sadness, there was also a lot of laughing and smiling while remembering things from the past and sharing new stories with everyone.


One of thing I hope I never forget is dinner on Monday night (16th). We had grandma with a look of shock and surprise from all of our shenanigans. 



Obituary:
Sand, Leif and Marilyn Leif Sand, 78, of Bemidji, passed away Sunday, August 15, 2010. Marilyn Sand, 73, of Bemidji, passed away Tuesday, August 17, 2010. Marilyn was born March 9, 1937 to Charles and Mary (Jones) Hohag in Lindstrom, MN; Leif was born March 18, 1932 to Osmund and Laura (Erland) Sand in Barnegat Light, NJ. They met at a dance in Center City and married on January 14, 1956. They settled on Island Park where Leif worked as a carpenter and a building inspector. Marilyn was a homemaker and active in scouting. Leif joined the Island Park Volunteer Fire Department, then Mound Fire Department when Island Park was annexed by Mound. Leif and Marilyn built and then rebuilt their home on Island Park where they lived until 1987 when they built a new home in Squaw Lake. Leif and Marilyn loved to travel; they visited Norway, Alaska, Hawaii and relatives on the East coast. They were avid fisherman, hunters, and gardeners. They are survived by children Dale (Alice) Sand, Larry (Sandy) Sand, Robert (Autumn) Sand, Carol Kelly, Tim Kelly; grandchildren Casey, Erik, Lisa, Moriah, and Peter. Leif's brothers Oscar, Siguard (Charlotte); sisters Laura (Don) Bedford, Arline (Don) Christ, and June (Carl) Swanson and Marilyn's sister Verna Huges. Leif was preceded in death by his parents and brother, Norman. Marilyn was preceded in death by her parents and sister, Charlotte. A memorial service will be held on Monday, August 23 from 11:30 to 2:30 pm at The Gillespie Center, 2590 Commerce Blvd., Mound MN 952-472-6501.

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Lights.

Wow, completely slacking... I figured that after the 4th of July things would calm down. I'm finally realizing that that won't happen any time soon.

On to wedding things.

We decided to go all out with the venue and make the decorations fit the place. I have always really liked the look of these garden lights. These ones are fromTarget.They've had them every year for the past 3 or 4 years. I'm hoping they carry them again next year, because I think Target is done with their summer items and I don't think we bought enough...

We purchased two strands for our 4th of July party and put them outside to help with our lack of outdoor lighting. Then then week after, Target put them on sale, so we picked up three more strands. I believe they are 25 feet each, but when you think about the slack that's needed, it's probably more like 20. Basically I need to dig through my mess of papers and find the info from Gale Woods. They were wonderful enough to include a 'map' of the interior with outlets and such.

Recently, I discovered the Container Store. It's wonderful... and a bad place for me to know about. I basically want everything there. But, my little sister is starting college in the fall and they recently had a college night. I went with and found these great magnets that have hooks that I think would be perfect for hanging these lights up with. The building is essentially a pole barn with metal walls and they recommend using magnets to use for decorating. I think I'll be looking around for a possiblycheaper version of them, otherwise I happen to have a 20% off coupon that would work great.


Container Store: Magnetic Hooks
Target: Lights (not the exact ones, but similar)

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Catering.

We got our official approved list of Caterers for Gale Woods last week. Life has been a little crazy the past week, so I haven't fully looked into all of them yet. There are some very interesting ones that are high on our list already.

We are leaning more towards a pig roast/BBQ. It seems to fit the whole farm setting better than a lot of the other things. Right now, top on of the list is Divine Swine. We'll keep looking and probably set up a some times to go try some food.

I was sort of surprised to get the list already. We were told it would probably be around August. I was fine with that... It was really the next *big* thing on the list of to do's that I was more than happy to be able to put off... Now, I don't really have an excuse and should probably get on top of things. We'll get to it after the 4th of July. Our yearly party is forcing us to get a ton of house related things done in a very small amount of time. While things tend to get a bit crazy, it's nice to have that push to get some of this stuff done....

Monday, June 21, 2010

Gale Woods.

About a couple months ago now we finally set a date for the wedding. We were waiting on a few things... We wanted to figure out exactly where we wanted the wedding to be at before hand. I didn't want to be stuck on a date only to find out later it was already reserved. Bill and I had a hard time really deciding the where part of the whole event... we wanted someplace that fit our personalities, that wasn't too expensive, and where we could have both the reception and the ceremony.

We landed on Gale Woods Farm in Minnetrista, MN. I actually had called sometime in February or March to see what they had left for the fall and there was really nothing. I finally scheduled a day to meet with the 'wedding lady' and check it out. We immediately fell in love... Set the date and gave them a check that day!

May 7, 2011 will be the big day!

There are so many great things about the place. The ceremony will be out back of their pavilion, which is a big red pole barn, and will look over the lake there. The inside is basically a blank slate and we can really do whatever we want (I already have some good ideas). It's quiet and private. They also have a volleyball net set up and a fire pit. They even have some farm animals! Hopefully it will all go well and the skies will stay clear for some fun outside.

I really wish I would have taken some photos while we were out there. Maybe we'll get out there again sometime this summer. It's not the longest drive, but it's about 40-45 minutes away.

A bonus... next door is one of our favorite places, Big Stone Mini Golf! Hopefully we can sneak over for some amazing wedding photos!

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Jumping on the Bandwagon.

I'm doing it too. Starting a blog.

I'm mostly doing this for myself, but if you happen to stumble upon it, welcome. My current plan is to document my journey planning a wedding. I know other things will be rolled in.... our house, life events, and whatever fun trials come my way. This way hopefully it will continue on post wedding!

I attempted to start more of a journal, but the notebook has just sat on my shelf for a few weeks. I figure this should be easier, I feel like I'm always on the computer... but maybe it's just because work is on the computer. That method would have required printing, cutting, pasting...