I almost hugged the Mailman.


The first batch of our calligraphy arrived today!

Fit and Healthy


(Source)

While this may not appear immediately to be wedding related, it is!

I'm going to be competing in a 5K, "Dog Run Dog," the weekend before our wedding!
You can visit the website for the Norwich race here.

Why a 5K?

Many of you know I have lost about six dress sizes. When I started Weight Watchers, I wore a size 26 jeans and a size 24 shirt. Now, I wear either a 16W or a 16-regular depending on the store.

My weight-loss stalled (and later ended) during the stress of my first year teaching. I've been complacent and, well, lazy. :)

Weight Watchers recently launched the "Walk It" campaign, working with Active.com, to encourage members to train for a 5K. Participants receive small goodies--a magazine subscription and a silver sneaker charm--and a free interactive eight-week training guide.

In addition, my good friend Emily has committed herself to a June 5K in Burlington, VT. We were already WW buddies, and now we are Training buddies as well.

I've thrown myself into training. I biked nineteen miles today, a personal best. I've roped Christopher into walking a few miles with me each night. He's endlessly supportive.

I want to feel healthy, strong, and fit at our wedding. While I do not want to be one of those "crash diet brides," I do want to be the most beautiful version of me at our wedding.

To Do: April and May

I belong to The Knot, a popular website and magazine for "modern" and "hip" brides. It's a fairly helpful website. I purchased The Knot Book of Wedding Lists after a recent trip to the Chester town bookstore.

The Knot provides an enormous "To Do" List for brides and their families as they plan a wedding. It has helped the entire process feel less daunting: I can divide tasks into manageable monthly lists.

As I update friends and family on the planning I've already tackled, I hear a common refrain: "You've got so much done! You're so ahead of the game." The credit goes to my Stage Management experience and those fabulous The Knot lists. Their schedule allows the last two months before the wedding date to be as relaxing as possible. I'd much rather get planning finished now, crafts finished, and vendors paid well in advance.

To Do: April/May

Meet with Rev. Telos in April to finish membership orientation.

Visit Chris's family in Massachusetts in late April and craft our paper goods with the Warren women. I'll be able to visit with Chris's step-mom, grandma, and aunts. Fun!

Chris and I join as members of First Parish Unitarian Universalist in early May.

Attend my Bridal Shower in Massachusetts in mid-May: what fun!

* * * * * * * *

Finalize the guest list. Send guest additions to Agnes, the calligrapher.

Compile packages for out-of-town guests with hotel reservation and city information, and print/craft to include with invitations.

Compile invitations. Order lots of gluedots and borrow papercutters. Print inserts at Kinkos.

Chris should decide on his attire. Research locations in MA, VT, or NH to find his suit.

Ask Chris to go to a formal wear shop to be measured.

Ask Chris to think about any accessories we will need for the fathers: ties? bowties?

Finalize our wedding favors: most likely something practical but pretty.

Confirm delivery date for my gown and schedule fittings.

Buy a poofy underskirt and the lingerie my gown requires in time for first fittings.

Think about who we would want to do special performances or readings as part of the ceremony.

Calligraphy = Sanity

I'm an English teacher. I've mastered the skill of writing neat cursive on a whiteboard.

When I try to write on envelopes, however, I get all shaky from worry.

My mind begins to race: Is my envelope centered on my light box? Will my pencil guides erase completely? Is my lettering consistent? Do all of my "e"s look alike?

In other words, I get a bit weird. Weirder than normal.

I've hired a calligrapher for my own sanity. Her name is Agnes, and she is also an enormous fan of Firefly and the work of H.P. Lovecraft. She is getting married next month and is buried in her own DIY projects.Above is the test sample she created for our stationary. It is curvy and classic, and I love the "chubby" ink.

For some brides, calligraphy is an extravagant expense. If I was having a more traditional "Irish" wedding with over 200 guests... it would be an extravagant expense. But we're inviting less than sixty guests, and we only need to create about forty invitations. I've also hired her services for our placecards.

Inner and outer envelope sets seem charming, don't they?
(Or is the belief that stationary can be "charming" or "cute" another symptom of bridal-craziness?)

I ordered A-7 Ecru unlined envelope sets from LCI Paper. I may make my own envelope liners to accent our invitations. The inner envelope measures 5 7/16 x 7 7/8, almost one whole inch larger than our A-7 5 x 7 invitations. This provides plenty of room for our invitations, rehearsal dinner invites, RSVP postcards, and our over-sized foldout Vermont maps. Stellar!

Now, I just need to order some Forever Stamps before the May postal stamp price increase. I just realized if I didn't, the RSVP postcards wouldn't have enough postage and would be returned to sender! LOL

Maps!

Chris has been busily inking his own comics; I didn't want to pester him with our map. I resisted the urge to include a Googlemaps Map and the urge to hire a local cartoonist.

Fifty minutes, icons from Wedding Mapper, and a bit of Photoshop guidance... I present our wedding map:


(click on image for larger view)

We will be printing directions on the back of the map. Most of our guests will be traveling north (from Massachusetts and Pennsylvania), and we will include contact information for Amtrak and Greyhound.