celebrating two years in love.

Last Sunday, the 25th, marked our 2-year anniversary. However, since we were in Omaha, we were (mostly) unable to celebrate together. Tonight we had a belated celebration, with dinner at Fleming's followed by a short stint at the casino in an (failed) attempt to win back all of the money with spent on dinner. Plus, I got to wear my new dress that I may or may not have bought specifically for this occasion..... :) All in all, a great night and a lovely way to commemorate our second year together. A few pics:

can't wait for all the years to come.

<3

Fiancé Friday #4!

Hello again blog-o-sphere!

It is Friday afternoon again, and everyone knows what that means: Fiancé Friday!! For those of you who are new to the blog, every Friday I get to take the opportunity to post my two-cents on this whole wedding planning business. This week, I thought I would chat a little bit about pictures and hotels.

Last weekend while we were in Omaha, we had the opportunity to take engagement pictures with our wedding photographer. Having never been engaged before, I had no idea what to expect. What I learned, was that apparently you can't just pick out your outfit the night before you are getting these pictures taken. This process can take weeks or even MONTHS! Not only were there outfits to pick out, but we also had to make sure we had props! Have you ever bought 36" balloons before? Neither had we, until this engagement picture process.

I must admit, the pictures themselves were fun to take. We took some in the Old Market, and then some out at Zorinsky Lake. We should be getting them back soon, so stay tuned for those...

Also, many of you know that we have been having some issues in regards to finding a hotel block for our wedding. A mid to late June wedding in Omaha means only one thing: College World Series. Yes, it's my favorite time of the year to be in Omaha (except for the 100+ degree temps and 95% humidity). However, if you are attempting to get hotel rooms for a wedding, it can turn out to be a nightmare. We may have solved that issue, but stay tuned and keep your fingers crossed!

One last note for this week is that I passed my comps, so I will be graduating in two weeks! My Master's hood gets here next week, so I think I will just be wearing my robe and hood around constantly until graduation - Harry Potter style. :) I hope you all have a great week! To end with, here is another picture from our food tasting last week!

Peace, Love, and Wedding Planning,

Kevin

shoes!

So, we spent last weekend in Omaha, as you may have already read in Fiance Friday (Sunday Edition) yesterday. In addition to choosing the food, visiting the reception site for the first time since it hasn't been covered in twelve feet of snow, and FINDING A WEDDING DRESS, I also found (what I think will be) my wedding shoes!

Since we just decided last week on yellow and grey, I hadn't done a lot of shoe-searching. I've known for a while now that I wanted colored shoes to match whatever our wedding colors would be, but since we've (ok, maybe just me...) done so much switching around, I'd held off on any serious shoe searches until the decision was final.

I went to the mall on Friday, not really looking for wedding shoes at all. I walked into DSW and wandered through a few aisles just for fun, when out of the corner of my eye, I saw a pair of perfectly yellow shoes. They were the perfect color, perfect heel height and all! I tried them on; they had my size. They were on sale for $49.99. It was fate. I bought them. End of story.

More to come on the food tasting, reception site, and my dress, once I figure out how to post about it without my other half seeing it :)

In other news, yesterday we celebrated our 2-year anniversary. We traveled back to Tucson at different times and didn't have much time to do anything fun yet (hopefully this coming weekend), but when I arrived home, I had these waiting for me. I love love love all the different colors in this bouquet. Such a perfect coming-home present :)

Fiance Friday #3 (Sunday Edition)

Hello blog-o-sphere!

I hope all is well where you are currently! I just wanted to start this by apologizing for the lateness of this post. Many of you readers have let me know that you were, indeed, disappointed that I was unable to post on Friday. With limited internet connectivity all weekend being away in Omaha, I was unable to post until now. As promised in last week's post,below is a full report on the catering tasting!

First, I thought I would start with a little lesson we all learned. With the tasting being at 1pm, and being unaware of how much food each of us would be sampling, we decided to eat lunch ahead of time at one of Holl and I's FAVORITE places, Panera Bread. For those of you reading this from Tucson, it compares with Beyond Bread, except it is 500x's better. :) Anyways, the lesson we learned from this was NOT to eat lunch before tasting the catering! There was A LOT of food once we got to Bob's (the caterer) restaurant in downtown Omaha. A side note, if you are looking for a good place for breakfast or lunch in downtown Omaha, check out Bob's Grill & Cafe.

As far as the tasting goes, we sampled several different things. First, there was both a garden and a caesar salad - both of which were very tasty! Then, there was both penne and fehttuchini, with a choice of alfredo or marinara sauce. From my viewpoint, the pasta itself is just pasta. It's really all about the sauce that can really make or break it. I was definitely not disappointed! Both sauces were outstanding!! We then had a chicken penne pasta bake, with melted cheese on top, with a mix of both sauces for the sauce. It was also DELICIOUS! The last thing we sampled was chicken parmesan, which, of course, was delicious once again! I can't say enough good things about all of this food! Those of you who know me, know that I don't lead people astray when it comes to matters of food. :)

You may be wondering now, what we chose to go with. Well, after a very insightful conversation with Bob, we have decided on going with the salads, the penne and fehttuchini, and the chicken parmesan, with breadsticks. :) Trust me, it will be amazing! :)

One last note before I end this week, this is for those of you currently/in the future planning a wedding. When you select a caterer, make sure to ask if they include a tasting! If they do, TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT!! You may already know what food you would like, just by looking at the menu, but take advantage of it anyways! Remember, there is never a reason to pass up something delicious and free! :) To end, the picture this week is of the spread of food!

Until next week,

Kevin

A Bridesmaid's Blog - What NOT to Wear.

Hi everyone!

My name is Ashly Moore and I am one of Hollyanne's bridesmaids. Let me begin by expressing how honored I am to be in Hollyanne and Kevin's wedding. I love them both so much and I am ecstatic about the wedding planning process, the big day, and of course, their new life together.

Now that being said, since Hollyanne is the first of my friends to get married, I have no idea what to expect and how exactly to be a productive member of the bridal party. However, I have discovered (the hard way) some bridesmaid duty "don'ts." (Please see below.)

1. Just because I would love a burrito and mojito bar at the reception, does not necessarily mean that the bride would as well (although Holl knows it would be a great time!)

2. Monogrammed pimp cups/whiskey flasks are not appropriate wedding favors.

3. The bachelorette party must be classy. This means no crazy Vegas getaway, strippers, etc. (*Holl - please follow these guidelines for my bachelorette party. Thanks and love ya bunches.)

Even though these are valuable nuggets of bridesmaid knowledge, the main lesson I have learned so far is...

Never wear flannel when going wedding dress shopping. EVER.

Please let me explain. Over Thanksgiving break Jolie (the maid of honor!) and I went with Hollyanne on her first wedding dress shopping experience. It was a very exciting time and I felt like I was on top of my bridesmaid game until...I saw what Jolie was wearing. We all met at David's Bridal and she was wearing a cute dress, tights, and flats. What was I wearing? That's right, a red flannel shirt (that resembles that of a lumberjack), a gray t-shirt, and black jeans. It was at that moment when I realized that (1) I looked like an idiot and (2) I had a lot to learn.

To make matters worse, earlier in the day Hollyanne, her sister Hannah, and I went outlet mall shopping and what did I wear? The same thing only with jorts (jean shorts) - see picture below. So basically to prepare for wedding dress shopping, I just changed my pants. And to take matters to yet another level, I'm pretty sure I woke up from a nap five minutes before we left and just threw my hair up in a ponytail. (I blame the tryptophan.)

Bottom line: When participating in wedding planning festivities, don't dress like a schmuck. Not only will you not receive the courtesy and respect that you desire, but it just doesn't reflect well on the bridal party. Period.

<-- Jolie!

What to wear.

Ashly. -->

What NOT to wear.

Regardless of the fact that I am oblivious to the "do's" and "don'ts" of being a bridesmaid, I do know that the most important thing is supporting the bride every step of the way. That being said, Holl - I promise to have your back. I will hold your dress up while you use the restroom, massage your feet if they cramp from wearing heels all day, and manage unruly, annoying guests. You just say the word and I'll be there.

Fiance Friday #2!

Hello out there in the blog-o-sphere! It's Friday, and everyone knows that means it's Fiance Friday and time for a post from me!!

Give the topic of my fiancée's last post, I thought I would talk a little this week about change. You see, I've learned a little something about wedding planning during these last six months of engagement, and that is that many plans can never REALLY be set in stone. For instance, let's refer back to the color situation. First, my beautiful bride-to-be wanted pink. I'm pretty sure I spoke for grooms-to-be everywhere when I strongly suggested we try a different color. Then, we took a trip to Home Depot (see previous post) and were pretty settled on more of a pomegranate color. I then came up with the fantastic idea of green! Who doesn't love green? I think we've been set on green for about the last four months or so. Then, this week, one of those crazy wedding blogs (I guess I can't call them too crazy, as perhaps you could classify this blog in with those) had pictures from a wedding with gray and yellow (See Holl's last post). My beautiful fiancée immediately fell in love with it, so now I believe those are the colors we are going with.

Ok, now here's where I make my point (those who know me, know that I tend to be a little verbose before getting to the point of things). Did I like the pomegranate? Absolutely. Did I like the green? Absolutely. Do I like the yellow and gray? Absolutely. Will I like the next color palette (I'm not saying there is going to be another one)? Absolutely (unless it's pink). Change happens a lot when you are planning a wedding. It's important to roll with the punches! For those of you who have taken StrengthsQuest (NERD ALERT), my #3 is Adaptability. :)

That's it from me for this week! For those of you counting, there are only 62 more Fridays until we get married! Stay tuned for next week when I am on-location in Omaha! We will be showing the reception venue to my parents. We will also be doing something I am REALLY looking forward to.....TASTING THE CATERING!!!!

Until then,

Kevin

PS - For those who said I needed a picture with my blog posts....here you go!

color palette!

So, just like any girl would after getting engaged, i've spent a lot (and i mean A LOT. just ask kevin. or read about it tomorrow in Fiance Friday!) of time over these past few months thinking about wedding colors. Let's just say i've changed my mind more than a few times. First I wanted a deep, pretty pink, but Kevin put the ixnay on that pretty quickly. (why are boys so afraid of pink?!) Then it was onto green, where I toiled for quite some time. Cypress, to be exact. Green has always been one of my favorite colors, and I thought (still do) it would be so summery and fresh for a June wedding. Here's a pic of two of my lovely bridesmaids, Ruth and Ashly. They are both sporting the beautiful Sydney dress from J.Crew Wedding. Ashly is wearing it in cypress. It's a great dress, and the best part is, it has pockets!

Until very recently (read: yesterday) I've been pretty stuck on cypress. However, as I was perusing wedding blogs yesterday during class (yeah, it happens once in a while), I came across a color palette I hadn't considered before, and absolutely fell in love: gray + yellow! Now, yellow is also one of my favorite colors, but it's one of those colors that (a) you don't want to wear a whole lot of it at once, and (b) not everyone has the right skin tone to pull it off. Both reasons why in the beginning of the color search process, I weeded out yellow thinking not too many of the girls would be into yellow dresses. The gray + yellow palette provides the perfect solution - having gray as the main color with pretty yellow as the accessory color. (who doesn't love fun colored shoes?!) Here is some yellow and gray inspiration...

You can see more from this lovely wedding here and here. Feel free to share your thoughts and inspiration about the new color palette idea! More to come on reception decor and apparel. 

Fiance Friday #1!

Hello to all of you out in the blog-o-sphere! Holl and I thought it would be fun to introduce a new feature we like to call "Fiance Friday." (The name was my idea). I have noticed that there are not a whole lot of grooms out in "blog land," blogging about their wedding preparations. So, every Friday (and other days on occasion - when I'm allowed :)) I'll chime in my two cents on this whole wedding planning business. I'll probably bring some comic relief along with me, because, well, that's just me. :)

I thought I would take today's post as an opportunity to share with you all some things that I have already learned throughout this process. First, some background! As many of you know, we've been engaged since the beginning of November. With more than a year until our wedding, there is still quite a bit of planning left to do. So far, I've learned MANY things! Did you know that you can get flowers in almost any color you want them?? Also, did you know they make women's shoes in about every color under the sun?? Who would've thought! Perhaps it is because I'm a guy and I only go for basic colors of white, gray, black, and brown. Apparently, not everything goes with those colors.

Speaking of colors, grooms of the world, listen to me closely! When your fiancee tells you that she wants to go to Home Depot, it IS NOT because she is suddenly interested in power tools! Yes, I have to admit I have spent over an hour of my life in Home Depot looking at color swatches in order to get inspiration for wedding colors.

I've already learned about some things I SHOULD NOT, under ANY circumstance, say while planning our wedding. These things include, "I don't care. You pick." Trust me when I say, grooms, that you should have an opinion on EVERYTHING! Now, whether that opinion is taken in to consideration every time can be a different story. :) Of course, I'm lucky enough to have a fiancee who ALWAYS takes my opinion into account. ;) The one other thing I have learned not to say is, "The church is beautiful, what do you mean we need flowers?" No matter how beautiful the location of your wedding might be, you will always need flowers. Take it from me. :)

Well, that's it for this Fiance Friday! I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! I'm done with my Comprehensive Exams for my graduate program, so it is time for some relaxation!

Until next Friday,

Kevin

Guestbook Alternatives

I would love to do something other than a traditional guest book, just for fun. One thing I came across awhile ago was this amazing ''wishing wall" from Uncommon Goods. It comes with hundreds of "wish sheets" that guests can fill out at the reception and stick into one of the slots - so cute, and would make for great home decor later on.

Then, a few weeks ago, Ruth posted this wonderful "witness banner" on her blog. It is sold at spreadthelove's Etsy shop and can be customized with our names, wedding colors, and wedding date. It would also be lovely to frame and hang up after the wedding.

Reception Site!

After getting the church booked, finding a reception site was the next step. Luckily, Kevin and I were in Omaha over New Year's and were able to check out two of our favorite sites (after narrowing it down A LOT online).

One of the two places we looked at was The Thompson Alumni Center, located on the University of Nebraska at Omaha campus. We liked this place quite a bit, actually, especially because they had an outside courtyard area that could also be rented out, in addition to the ballroom inside. However, it turned out to be not exactly what we were looking for in terms of size, so we actually ended up going with...

The River City Star Yacht Club Pavilion! When we visited this site, we left loving absolutely everything about the place. Each spring, the club puts up a white wedding tent on their grounds, and rents it out for weddings and other events through the early fall. Besides the tent itself being totally beautiful, it is located on the Missouri riverfront and offers great views of both Downtown Omaha and the new(ish) pedestrian bridge that links Omaha to Council Bluffs, Iowa.

The reservations department at the yacht club is run by two super-sweet sisters who have been extremely generous and helpful with our planning thus far. As of right now, we're planning on having a lunchtime reception (following our 10:00am wedding) with dancing and other fun activities included, of course :) The space also includes a small picnic area outside the tent, where we plan to create a kid-friendly environment to keep all the youngsters happy. We are planning on putting together some sort of kid activity kit, too - with coloring books and play-doh and all sorts of other fun things. With our rental rate, we also have dibs on the firepit, which I would love love love to utilize, but probably just isn't going to happen / isn't necessary at 2 in the afternoon...in june...in omaha. Sigh, I'll survive.

As for decoration of the tent itself, I think we'll keep it simple as use the tulle & white lights package offered by the club. I may look into some DIY decorations for added flare, like the pinwheels or bunting in the pictures below. We'll see how time and budget things work out.

Stay tuned for decoration and food updates regarding the reception!

The first post.

So, we've been engaged for several months now, but now seemed like a good time to start blogging about our wedding and future marriage. Here's a few pictures from the day of our engagement, in case you didn't get a chance to see them elsewhere.

Pretty much the first thing we did after getting engaged was setting the date. Kevin and I had been talking forever about getting married at St. John's on Creighton's campus, so that was non-negotiable. Once we decided on a summer wedding, June 25 just seemed like the obvious date choice - it is both my parent's and grandparent's wedding anniversary as well. We were able to get our date, and are ecstatic to be continuing the tradition :)

Stay tuned for more info on our wedding planning! Throughout the next year you'll be hearing from both Kevin and I!