Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!!

I thought I would give ya'll a good laugh with the "eat ham" turkey... not quite as good as chick-fil-a's logo but still good enough to wipe the holiday stress away with a laugh!

UPDATE: Bridal Jewelry

When I told ya'll about my bridal jewelry, I was very excited and thought they looked gorgeous in the picture. Well I just got them in the mail I wanted to let you know, etsy seller, opheliax, is even cooler than I thought. My jewelry was prettier than pictured AND she added a free pair of earings I did not even request! This place is awesome!

Support Our Troops

Support our soldiers this holiday season...

The American Red Cross has made it easy to just add an extra holiday card in the mail to let a soldier know they are appreciated. I know, it's off subject, but if I have readers I may as well add in the important stuff too every once in awhile (right?!?).

"From the front lines to the home front, the American Red Cross provides service members, their families and veterans with the care and assistance they need.

The Red Cross is partnering with Pitney Bowes this holiday season for the Holiday Mail for Heroes campaign. For the second year in a row, we’re collecting holiday cards to distribute to American service members, veterans and their families in the United States and around the world. Pitney Bowes is generously donating technology, resources and postage to make this holiday card program possible.

Our goal is to collect and distribute one million holiday cards to spread holiday cheer and facilitate thanks to these brave individuals and families.

Please send cards to this address, following the guidelines listed below:

Holiday Mail for Heroes

PO Box 5456

Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456

The RULES:

All cards must be postmarked no later than Wednesday, December 10, 2008. Cards sent after this date will be returned to sender. Participants are encouraged to limit the number of cards they submit to 25 from any one person or 50 from any one class or group. If you are mailing a larger quantity, please bundle the cards and place them in large mailing envelopes. Each card does not need its own envelope or postage.

• Please ensure that all cards are signed.
• Please use generic salutations such as “Dear Service Member.” Cards addressed to specific individuals can not be delivered through this program.
• Please send cards as opposed to long letters which delay a quick review process.
• Please do not include email or home addresses on the cards, as the program is not meant to foster pen pal relationships.
• Please do not include inserts of any kind, including photos, as these items will be removed during the reviewing process.
• All cards received may be used in program publicity efforts, including appearing in broadcast, print or online mediums.
• Where to Send Phone Cards, Gift Cards and Care Packages:
• Phone cards or gift cards will not be accepted with the holiday cards. Those wishing to send calling cards or gift cards/certificates should go to http://www.aafes.com/, scroll down to "AAFES Community Connection" and click on "Help Our Troops Call Home" or "Gift Cards/Certificates for Our Troops" in order to send such items.
• No 'Care Packages' will be accepted at this address. Those wishing to send care packages should go to http://www.americasupportsyou.com/ and click under "Homefront Groups" to find out how to send care packages."

This was noted on the "Holiday Mail for Heroes" section of the American Cross Website.

Thanks for reading what matters to me and remember what the holidays are all about as we approach.

Best Laughing Wedding Pictures

Jasmine Star, an Orange County photographer, is on her pusuit of happiness through her unblievable photography career. While sifting through her all her favorite frozen moments in time, she found a familiar theme. All her favorites were of laughter, true joy with best friends, on the wedding day, GLEAMING! Here are a few of the best (I think of all time).

Father of the Bride Gift

Let your daddy know you will always be his little girl...

I think I am going to use my bridal picture and instead of the poem on the canvas, write a poem about how I will always be his little girl.

You can find this canvas here and personalize it in any way you'd like .

Wedding Guest Book that Rocks!! Literally.

The most "green", affordable, and fun guestbook combination! Of course, this is one of those I ideas that I thought, "why the heck did I not think of that!"

(Above photo by: Ira Lippke Studios)

“Shelly and Kevin had a very unique and thematic guest book, which comprised of smooth rocks. Guests wrote wedding wishes on rocks for the couple to keep and be displayed forever.”

Thanks Jaime for finding this great idea for us!

FINALLY ~ I found THE bridesmaid dresses

I can't tell you how grateful I am to have a 2 year engagement. Lots have thought it was ridiculous... but planning a wedding takes time! My whole vision has changed since I started (for the better). One of those difficult, never ending decisions for me was the bridesmaid dresses. I also needed an age appropriate dress for my almost step daughter as my "Jr. bridesmaid". She will be 8 when we tie the knot. I finally decided! For my outdoor, countryish, lil rustic, southern wedding this is perfect!!! Cherry Pie Vintage, another fabulous etsy seller, is custom making these gorgeous, southern-belle dresses for me. Normally, the dress is $65, but for a custom make and custom dying, she is charging my girls $100. Yes, I said, $100 for a bridesmaid dress I love a whole lot more than ones I have paid $300-$400 for!!!

My almost step daughter will be wearing the same dress, just more modest. The front will be straight across and the back closed up. All the girls will have different colors of blue/lavender shades. To put the icing on the cake, my brother (man of honor), will be wearing a matching tie.

The perfect dress for my perfect day! :)

Follow Me!

Blogspot has come out with their newest feature- Follow This Blog. I would love to see who is reading Isn't She Lovely; it would be great if you could take a moment to Follow Me using the link on the lower, right of my blog. You can sign up whether publicly or anonymously. Thank you!

My bridal jewelry

My bridal jewelry has been one of the tougher things for me to find... I have searched and searched AND searched for the PERFECT set. While browsing etsy, I ran into opheliax and I fell in love. This is it:

And if you don't recall my dress, you can see it here.

Brunch Reception

You don't have to sacrifice the incredible food that supper brings when opting for a morning wedding... How fantastic would a "crepe bar" be at a reception serving brunch! Maybe I'm just hungry, or maybe I really like crepes (or a lil' of both) but I think this would be the perfect mix of wonderful and fabulous for brunch.

Cookie Favors in Handmade Bags

Picking out a favor for all my guests (300 invited), has been a somewhat daunting task for me. I don't like the cheesy little things, I'm not a millionaire, and I like the homemade feel without spending a gazillion hours on one endless DIY project.

I'm having a rustic/country/southern wedding with a twist of modern themed wedding. I decided on homemade sugar cookies wrapped in brown paper bags. In order to spruce it up, I am using a potato stamp to take the bag from plain to rustic fun!

Check out this clip on how to make a potato stamp...

Perfect Themed Showers

Hostess with the Mostess has come up with the most beautifully creative ideas for showers for any bride.

**Lavender, Lilac, and Lime***

***Something Blue***

***Citrus Twist***

***Natural Bride***

***Love in Paradise***

***Modern Kitchen***

***Love Comes Softly***

***Hooked***

***Coffee & Dessert***

***Citrus Twist***

***Butterfly Bride***

***Bling Bride***

Check out the blog for all the extras: tabletop, party decor, on the menu, & what to pour!

All about the Wedding Hair

I have gone round' and round' on what I want for my hair. Still haven't decided on the veil, but I think I have the hair decision down. For the ceremony my FH want my hair down. He's what I have decided on thus far...

For the reception I wanna boogie down!! I live in Texas and my wedding is in June... AKA Humidity!!! Solution: my hairdresses is going to throw my hair up real quick in the messy updo style. We haven't figured it all out yet; next time I see her for a color, we're going to try it and I will let you know how it works out.

Rehearsal Dinner Cruise

Intimate, cozy, and different... why not? Cruise the night away with no worries. To me this was a big deal for the night before since the wedding is having so many DIY things; I don't want extra stress for this night.

They do EVERYTHING! Gosh, that is a refreshing feeling after all the work I am putting into the wedding. For my rehearsal dinner, the venue offers the option of cash bar, open bar, d.j., band, full service, buffet, etc. I opted for the fajita buffet with a bartender to distribute the beer for me; The buffet is $33.00/pp (including taxes & gratuity) plus $75/hour for the bartender. I am hooking up my ipod to the stereo system for some tunes. BONUS - the kids are 1/2 off! :)

Fancy Drink Umbrellas (DIY)

I know, I know, I know.... and I'm sorry! It has been more than a day since my last post! To make up for it I have a really great DIY idea for you - Custom umbrellas for fancy drinks!!

Jennifer Skog got savy with these cute things at her shower. I'll show you how to make them.

Here is what you will need...

• Thick paper or cardstock


• Wooden skewers


• Scissors


• Circle cutter (optional, but useful)


• Glue of some sort (all I had was fun foam glue…seems to have worked)


• Double sided tape or the always-helpful Tombow Mono Adhesive


• Beads
  

First I used my circle cutter to cut circles in a 12″x12″ sheet of paper. I could get 12 3″ circles out of one sheet.

This circle cutter you can buy from Simon Say Stamp for $22.95

Cut the circle to the center, put some double sided tape on one side, and slightly overlapped the paper.

Break a skewer roughly in half (and plan on sanding these down later). If you are using tall glasses, then you may not need to adjust the length. Stick the pointy end through the center of the paper.

Dip the pointy end in some glue and stick a bead on the end. And here’s the finished product (although it will look much cooler when it’s not stuck in a water glass with wheat on it).

You can make as many styles as you like so they won't all be the same. Either way, you have a gorgeous, expensive looking finished project.

Thank you Miss Fondue for showing us how to do this!

Trash to Treasure Wedding

There are tons of places that cater to buying and selling from newlyweds to brides to be... the Nest has the best! I have scoured the internet for a place that has more than just a few listings... check out the board here. You can post something you want to buy or something you are looking for. All good for your budget!

First Christmas

Deck the halls with bells and holly... fallalalalalalalala. Your first christmas together before the kids and years together, the tree may be a bit empty. Unless, of couse, you're the matchy, matchy type who has all the ornaments and lights to go together...

Why not add a wedding cake ornament. Not just any cake, but yours! Estsy shop Pretty Girl Things will take a photo of your cake and make an ornament just for you.

These cute, 1 1/2 in. jems are even affordable! Most places around the web are charging $500-$600!!! Gorgeous Red Head is selling the same thing for $60 (give or take a few bucks contingent on complexity).

Men... if you are reading... your soon to be wife would LOVE the thought put into this one! Do you know how to spell BROWNIE POINTS for the 1st Christmas!!!