The Last Few Days…

Posted in Wedding Planning by

In the last few days leading up to our wedding, I’ve gotten a lot of well-wishes and advice from other former brides. The one thing they all say is “try to soak up as much as you can, it goes by SO FAST!”

I have no doubt that this weekend will breeze by in a flash, so I’m going to do my best to take their advice to heart. Exactly how I’ll do it is another question. I can’t help but think of Pam on The Office and the “mental snapshots” she took throughout her and Jim’s wedding.

But beyond the events of the weekend, I am wondering how I am going to feel. I’ve heard two different takes on the wedding day from former brides:

  1. “It was the best day of my life!”
  2. “I couldn’t wait for my wedding to be over! It was just stressful and not fun for me at all.”

One of my biggest fears is that I’ll end up feeling like the second example, anxious and stressed on Saturday instead of relaxed and happy. We’re in a really good position with the little details and last minute stresses, but it still worries me.

I’m going to ask my bridesmaids and family to do their best to stay calm and relaxed, because I think they’re demeanor will rub off on me. I’m also going to keep reminding myself that it’s ONE DAY and it doesn’t have to be “THE BEST DAY OF YOUR LIFE,” because that’s a lot to live up to.

What I’m expecting in all honesty is an array of emotions from joyful and excited, to stressed and even sad when it’s all over. Through it all I will try to remember what it’s all about, my love for Luke and our commitment to each other.

Do you guys have any tips for staying sane on my wedding day? How can I make the most of the short 24 hours?

Using Your Resources

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If there’s one piece of advice I can share with future brides, it’s to use your resources! If you’re the marrying age, it’s likely there are a ton of women around you who have gone through this experience and have a wealth of knowledge, connections and goods to pass along.

Throughout the process of planning our wedding, the biggest help I’ve had has come from fellow brides I know. My friends, coworkers and even strangers I’ve connected with online have provided me with a wealth of tips, tricks and information to make the planning process go smoothly.

Here are a few examples of help I’ve gotten from other brides:

– My photographer Jeremy Lawson came as a recommendation from a co-worker, Amy who recently got married

– I coordinated with a bride in Texas to share these table runners off Etsy, cutting my decor costs in half

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– I mirrored our “event flow,” which details every aspect of the weekend, off an existing shell a friend created

– Another friend from work offered up her card box birdcage so I didn’t have to purchase my own

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 It’s been such a life-saver to get help from brides who have already been through the process. I couldn’t image trying to do everything from scratch! I know a lot of women want to “own” every aspect of their wedding, but why not save yourself time and hassle?

There are also a ton of great sites where brides can connect to sell or buy used items like centerpieces, linens and even wedding dresses including, Once Wed, Pre-Owned Wedding Dresses, Brideshare, and Bravo Bride.

In an effort to “give back” to the wedding community, I’ve been trying to share my favorite tips, tricks and finds here on my blog. I hope it’s helped some of you in the planning process. I’ve learned a lot and have a lot to share, so don’t hesitate to reach out to me with questions about anything wedding-related at abattylife@gmail.com.

Life Certainly is BATTY!

Posted in Wedding Planning by

Hey guys! I’m sorry I’ve been sort of MIA these past couple weeks. With my wedding coming up next week, I’ve been all sorts of busy with dress fittings, program printing, meeting with my vendors…the list goes on.

On top of that, work has been hectic. I had a big event yesterday for my client Sharpie markers, which thankfully was a big success. Now I’m trying to wrap up all my other work before I’m out for my wedding.

There’s so much to talk about, yet no time to write!

I promise I’ll try to do a better job keeping you guys updated and will definitely fill you in on all the details of this crazy last week eventually.

Thanks for all your support, words of encouragement and comments. They mean a lot to me.

NINE MORE DAYS then I’ll be “Mrs. Batman!”

Meatza

Posted in Sunday Supper Series by

Luke here. About a month and a half ago I was reading my favorite blog, Mark’s Daily Apple, which I read…daily. I’ve been on the lookout for healthy alternatives to our favorite foods, and when Mark put a link to this recipe from one of my other favorite bloggers, Justin Owings of  Birthday Shoes, I knew we had a winner.

Birthday Shoes is a Vibram FiveFingers fan blog – definitely not where I typically turn for new food ideas, but buyoff from two of my favorite bloggers is enough for me to give it a shot.

Liz makes some amazing pizza, and one of our favorite restaurants in Chicago is Pequod’s, but we’ve been shunning most refined carbs for quite a while now. The big selling point of the recipe I had found was that it was for a pizza recipe with no bread – and we’re not talking about some cheese and pepperoni heated up in a bowl either. This was a MEATza.

A meatza is a vegetarian’s worst nightmare. It is a pizza where the crust is literally made out of ground beef. A LOT of ground beef. Like 8 quarter pounders worth. In other words, it was perfect.

I immediately recommended it to Liz, but she had other ideas…and more ideas…then a few more ideas…then some final ideas…and 6 weeks later I still hadn’t had any meatza. So last weekend, after spending all day Saturday and half the day Sunday with Liz stressing over placecards, programs, table seating, etc., etc., I knew this was going to be my big chance to finally feast on some meatza.

I gently asked, “Honey, why don’t you let me handle dinner for your Sunday Supper Series.” I took her dejected grunts as confirmation of her desire to also enjoy some meatza.

I picked up two pounds of 90/10 free range ground beef, an onion, garlic, green pepper, pepperoni, mozzarella cheese , and Trader Joe’s pizza sauce. In total, I spent about $20, although I already had the rest of the spices and parmesan cheese to follow the recipe.

IMG_1138I basically followed Justin’s (BirthdayShoes.com) recipe exactly, so I won’t repeat it. You can find the recipe here. The only differences:

  • I didn’t have nearly as much grease as to drain off as Justin describes, which might be from using 90/10 ground beef rather than the 80/20 that Justin uses. I think 90/10 was perfectly sufficient though because you add a lot of spices to the meat already so it is still packed with plenty of flavor.
  • I nixed the garlic salt since I had already added 3 cloves of minced garlic as toppings.
  • Liz hates fungus, so no ‘shrooms.

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Liz and I each had a piece and a half of the pie, which seems pretty weak until you consider that we each ate about 3 quarter pounders worth of beef (+topppings). From that perspective (and the fact that even Liz went back for seconds) testifies to the deliciousness of the meatza.

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