With our hair and makeup done, we drove to the church to get dressed.
Before I got into my dress, I helped the girls pin their brooches onto their gowns.
Then it was time to climb into my dress.
Ready, set, jump! Ok, not really, but doesn’t it look like they are waiting for me to come charging at them?
Tiffany and I had practiced getting into the dress a few weeks earlier, so she was in charge. Amber is a freelance wedding consultant and coordinator (and florist), so she was right there to help.
Once they had the dress laced completely, we realized it was going to take some yanking and pulling and craziness to get the dress tight enough.
Now, doesn’t that look like fun? This is that moment when you realize how much you love these girls!
Jewelry
Shoes
Lipstick and gloss
And one last look before we’re ready to go take pictures.
Next, the first look and some family shots before the ceremony.
All photos by Kristian Ogden Photography unless stated otherwise.
Missed something?
- The girls got ready.
- I got my hair did.
- It took a village to do my makeup.
With my hair all did, it was time to put on my make-up. So, if you’ll remember, I decided to DIY my makeup.
But first, I had to put some on Mini.
For a girl who always wants to wear makeup, she sure didn’t like having it put on!
Then, my Mom drug out a photo from 20 something years ago.
That’s me, at Mini’s age, having my hair and makeup done for a dance recital. Mom thought it was ironic that I was struggling to put Mini’s makeup on.
A little more hairspray, and Mini was free to run around again. And it was time for me to get down to business.
A quick check of the blackberry, and off we go.
I really thought I had the makeup thing under control.
First, primer and foundation.
Then, interrupted by pesky stray eyebrows.
Pretty soon, I had all the basics on, and it was time to tackle my eyes.
Can you see the anxiety in my eyes? Suddenly I realized I was way out of my league. Hello, girl who never, ever wears makeup. Silly bride, thought she could do her own eyes and not end up looking like a clown.
First, Amber stepped in. Amber was my go-to girl in my early college days. She always fixed my eyes for me.
Then, Tiffany took over. She always took care of me (and my eye makeup) in nursing school.
Things still weren’t quite right, and Aunt Teresa stepped up. Apparently, she used to do hair and makeup in Encino, Ca and has years of experience under her belt. Sure wish Mr. CC would have shared that info with me weeks before the wedding. Sie la vie!
After a few minutes, we all came to the general consensus that I was ready to go!
Next, we head to the church to slip into our gowns!
All photos by Kristian Ogden Photography unless stated otherwise.
Missed something?
- The girls got ready.
- I got my hair did.
When we last met, all the girls had their hair all beautified, and it was my turn.
And the nerves and anticipation of the day hit me.
Little Miss Thing came to talk to me and cheer me up/calm me down. And stuff her face.
It doesn’t get any sexier than the black shroud and medusa like curls. But, I could feel myself calming down. There’s just something about getting my hair done. So relaxing.
Medusa was finally starting to look like a human again. And a hairstyle was forming.
A few adjustments to my “bump”
And some hairspray, and I was done.
Flower in place
and lessons in veil placement (which were apparently extremely funny!)
And my hair was all done.
Next, who knew it would take a village to put my makeup on!
All photos by Kristian Ogden Photography unless stated otherwise.
Missed something?
- The girls got ready.
Our day broke clear and hot. The weather was absolutely gorgeous and I was beside myself with excitement. Surprisingly, I wasn’t nervous or jittery or uptight about any thing. I guess I just figured that if it wasn’t done, it wasn’t going to get done. And, all I wanted to do was marry Mr. CC and go to the beach.
Me, totally disheveled, and my Godmother, getting our mimosas on. That’s my sister, and Maid of Honor, Amy at the table.
We gathered at Momma CC’s house for a morning of hair, makeup, and mimosas. The decision to get ready at Mom’s house was the best (last minute) decision we made. We were calm and relaxed, and productive. There were a few projects that needed to be finished. So, while Mom and I finished our projects, the girls got their hair done.
Mini, with two of my bridesmaids, Amber and Tiffany.
Mini spent the morning entertaining everyone. And eating. And generally, running amuck.
Tiffany and Mini played board games and puzzles.
Another bridesmaid, Jackie, and mini colored Disney Princesses for quite a while.
Mr. CC’s aunt, Teresa, is probably the biggest champion of our relationship, and impending marriage. She flew in from California to support Mr. CC and I, and was one of our readers.
My Mother and best friend. Seriously could not have done it without her.
My mother-in-law. She looks so serious here.
Two of my mom’s sisters. Mary, in the rocking chair, lives here in town and was our other reader, and Theresa flew all the way from Seattle to celebrate with us.
Pretty soon, all my girls were done up and it was my turn to get bridal!
All photos by Kristian Ogden Photography unless stated otherwise.
I’ve talked about our my desire for a new, bigger, more spacious home. And, I talked about how we had some work that needed to be done on this house before we could comfortably put it on the market and expect anyone to want to buy it. But, most of you have no idea what I’m dealing with, with the exception of my little, bitty kitchen. So, I thought I’d share the photos we took of the house when we bought it, way back in December 2007, and then I’ll share my list of tasks that have to be completed.
We haven’t really changed much since these photos were taken. We got rid of that crazy grill, and the crap the previous owners left on the front porch, but that’s about it.
The Living Room. I loved the ceramic tile at the time, but I miss the convenience and ease of carpet.
The living room from a different angle.
We have a nice high ceiling in the living room, with a really pretty Hampton Bay ceiling fan (a must in the South).
This is the dining area and kitchen. You’ve seen my kitchen before, so I won’t go into great detail. 
Matt took these pictures while we were having the house inspected, so those random people in the house with me are the inspector and our real estate agent.
We aren’t going to do anything spectacular with this part of the house. I am still considering whether or not I’m going to resurface the kitchen cabinets. Right now, I’m leaning towards not.
The hallway.
A close up of the tile design at the end of the hallway. Seriously, one of my favorite features in the house.
The hallway laundry closet.
The only thing we have planned for this space is to finish the tile in the laundry closet, which remains linoleum, and to install some better shelving in there. There’s that one sad wire shelf, and at least 4 feet of wasted space above it. I’d like to install a light in there too, but I’m not sure if I’m that ambitious.
The master bedroom. These are boring pictures, but it’s just a square room.
The master closet, another big seller for this house. It’s currently crammed full of junk. I really want to get it cleaned out and straightened up before we put the house on the market.
The master bath, and linen closet. We’d like to tile this room, and perhaps frost the window, but otherwise, not much happening in here.
The only picture Matt took of the hallway bathroom. What you can’t see is the giant gaping holes left in the wall when the previous owners took down a towel rod. This is the room I’ve started on, but it’s not done and I’m not ready to share photos yet. Soon though.
Looking into the two smaller bedrooms. The one on the left is Kinsley’s room, and the right is the “man room” or junk room, or whatever we feel like calling it. We’ve already painted that room twice, and it will be getting another coat very soon.
The inside of the junk room.
The inside of Kinsley’s room.
So. Here’s the list of things that have to get done before I feel we can put it on the market.
Yard/Exterior
- Fix walkway
- Landscape front gardens
- Gutters
- Paint house
- Replace back doors
- Storm door for front door
- Hose rack
- New mailbox
Hall/Laundry
- Finish floor in laundry closet
- Better shelving in laundry closet
- Hide breaker panel
Bathrooms
- Replace fixtures
- Storage for hall bath
- Frost master bath window?
- Floors
General
- Paint every single wall in the house
- Storage in bedrooms
- Have carpets cleaned (replaced?)
- Replace all mini blinds with roman shades
- Ceiling fans in bedrooms
I feel like that is a ridiculously long list of things to do, but when I break it down room by room, it really isn’t so bad. There’s a few things we intend to hire out, and a few things I intend to take on myself.
So, any suggestions? I’m planning on sharing what the house looks like now soon (minus the hall bath, cause I already destroyed it and didn’t take any better pictures than that sad little one up there).
Yeah, I know. It’s been over a month since I posted anything. Nothing, no inspiration, no crafts, nothing.
So, what have I been up to?
Kinsley and I road tripped to Savannah for Mrs. Lab’s wedding.
She was a beautiful bride and it was so exciting to get to meet another Bee in person!
So that was one weekend. That shouldn’t stop me from blogging.
I made Kinsley into Hannah Montana for Halloween. I destroyed my hallway bathroom and haven’t put it back together yet. I finished my roman shades, but they need to be steamed, so no pictures yet. I decorated my house for Christmas.
So, there’s some stuff on the way, and some things still in the works. I think I failed miserably at NaPoBloMo or whatever it’s called.
I have found a new love. A new blog love, that is. My Momma Made It, which I found by clicking on a tutorial on OnePrettyThing.
I haven’t made it through all her posts yet, but I’m totally in love with her clothing refashion! Look at just a few of the lovelies I found!
So cute!! I’m really thinking about dabbling in clothing refashion because I truly despise most clothing these days. And the stuff I love is really, really expensive.
Do you have any new blogs I should follow? Especially clothing/sewing/craft/home decor blogs?
To be honest, cleaning out the panty, spice cabinet, and refrigerator was awesome. No, seriously. It was like, therapeutic to clean all that muck out.
I’m really proud of the outcome too. And, Matt noticed all the work I did without my having to mention it!!
My kitchen is a disaster. A few weeks ago, Apartment Therapy posted about their Fall Kitchen Cure. It was perfect timing. I was motivated and determined. So, I joined.
And then, I fell off the wagon.
You know, life gets in the way. So today, I finally had a whole day off and decided to get to work.
The first assignment was to take before pictures(!!) and then clean out the fridge and pantry.
So, I tidied up my kitchen and took some before pictures. The directions specifically said do not clean. I didn’t clean out any cabinet or wipe out the fridge or anything. I just did the dirty dishes and wiped the counters off.
So, here’s the before.
I have a tiny kitchen. It was one of the biggest downfalls of this house and I knew it would eventually be a problem. We bought the house anyway.
Pretty boring, huh? I know what you’re thinking. There’s nothing wrong with this girl’s kitchen, she’s crazy. Yeah, think that all you want. Shall we open the cabinets?
You didn’t think I was going to leave my window looking like that forever, did you? I’ll admit, it’s been like that for way, way too long.
Anywho, after fighting with those cheap ass mini blinds that my two horrendous cats were likely to just chew right back up for 2 hours and then gloriously giving up, I decided it was time for custom window treatments. Yep, I’m that person that calls curtains “window treatments.” The thing is, what I had in mind wasn’t exactly “curtains.”
Since I was replacing my mini blinds, privacy was of the utmost importance. The neighborhood we live in is cozy and close-knit. Those are nice words for the houses are built right on top of each other and my neighbors are nosy. Yeah. We typically keep our house pretty much on lockdown.
So, replacing the blinds with curtains wasn’t going to get it done. I don’t want my neighbors to be able to see each and every move I make. Or that I tend to get dressed at the very last minute before walking out the door. So, instead of curtains, I decided roman shades would be the perfect replacement for my mini blinds.
I did a Google image search for inspiration and boy did I ever find inspiration!
