beach party!

although j and i are really feeling land-locked these days and keep wishing to be on a beach somewhere, feeling the sand between our toes...

...well we may not be there yet, BUT this is pretty close!

tonight is the annual decatur beach party in downtown! this consists of 60 TONS of sand being spread all over downtown decatur! so fun! i love summer and i love festivals!



should be a good time and we may even ride our bikes to the festivities (see below post)! and now that i'm back on my diet for the last 4 month stretch, the bike ride will definitely help this mission (if the heat in georgia doesn't kill me first).

and speaking of beaches, j and i have been researching honeymoon spots - which isn't easy with the constant threat of rain and/ or hurricanes in october, but this is worth the risk:







[images via cocobayresort.com]

although i know these beach pictures don't make the work day end any quicker - i hope you all have a great weekend!

"if you want others to be happy, practice compassion. if you want to be happy, practice compassion" - hh the dalai lama

a bit of variety

i have never wanted a fancy wedding cake. truth be told, i never wanted a traditional wedding cake at all. i've always tried my best to live simply and i felt like it should transpire to all aspects of the wedding, but especially the cake. so here's the plan:

[image via http://www.punambean.com/]



[image via http://www.countryliving.com/]

j and i felt like this option would be best because it gives everyone a different option of flavor, we can have some vegan selections, and it's so cute! ok, well maybe that last part is mostly my opinion - ha. and while i'm confessing things, i guess i should also admit that building a collection of cake stands also makes the multiple cakes idea sound a little bit sweeter!

i also thought it would be great to have our relatives each make their "infamous" desserts so we could have some of the desserts we both grew up loving. for instance, my great aunt makes the best strawberry shortcake east of the mississippi. j's aunt makes killer pound "puppy" (j used to call it that when he was little - how cute!) cake. j's mom makes amazing pies [at least so i've heard, because as delicious as they look...i don't like pies sadly]. anyways, suffice it to say we'd be well covered!

and of course to complicate things, we also love the cupcake possibility. hmm - i guess we have time to make up our minds [and then change them many times too] before our wedding.

[image via happiness in a bite]

hmm - we could always do both...even if we did one at the reception and one at the rehearsal dinner. ok, enough about cake cause it's no good to talk about cake while you're trying to lose weight!

walk at home

like 99% of the population (especially girls getting married this year) i have made the resolution to get healthy and in shape. and by saying i want to be in shape, i'm really just trying to make the fact that i need to lose weight sound better! so anyways, i have started keeping a food journal to help monitor what i'm eating (based on the weight watchers system). i am also trying to train to run a 5K (another resolution!) this year. i also need to get back into the routine of going to my ymca gym. sadly, there were numerous times in 2008 that i was really getting in shape and felt wonderful, but i would get comfortable with my weight, my weight would stabilize temporarily, and then before i knew it all efforts had been lost. so this year my goal is not to diet, but to revolutionize my lifestyle when it comes to working out and eating properly.

to help me acheive this objective, i will be taking advantage of the following things:
1. the ymca's "coach approach" - an exercise support process designed to teach new and returning members how to start and stick with their exercise program.

2. classes at the ymca -with a focus on yoga (another resolution! yessss!)

3. the outdoors - enough said.

4. leslie sansone's walk at home video - i know what you're thinking - walking at home? walking indoors? i was a skeptic too, but after my [super skinny] best friend kept insisting that this video was an intense workout, i figured that i would give it a shot. to my surprise, by the end of the 4th mile, i was sweating bullets and completely worn out due to a great, low impact workout! i would definitely recommend this for those days when it's ugly outside or you can't get motivated to go to the gym. the best part about the below video is that you can do all 4 miles when you want a longer/ more intense workout (the video even includes a fitness band that is used during the 4th mile); however, if you aren't wanting to really exert yourself one day, you can only do 1 mile! 1 mile is better than no miles, right?


are there any specific workouts or exercises that have really helped you reach/ maintain your weight goals? if so, please share!

save the date!

so i've set a goal for myself to complete the save the dates this month! this thankfully means somewhat finalizing the guest list. i have had a few ideas, but i think we've finally got the endless ideas narrowed down!

the inspiration for the save the dates are:


i should note that our postcards and envelopes will be much more colorful! i am super excited to play around with these! i will definitely make sure to share once i am finished! the front of these will have to be a surprise. actually, the envelope idea may just roll over into the guestbook, but i'm torn because i sure do like the blurb concept too.


time just doesn't seem to be on my side lately. i have so many budget-friendly diy ideas, but making myself sit down and do them has proved to be harder than the crafts themselves! i know that once they are done, i will be able to sleep better at night which is a good enough motivator in itself. in the meantime, any suggestions on how to stay focused and motivated to get all of these necessary wedding things done?

side note - today i am finally back on track with getting in shape before the wedding - the holidays definitely took their toll this year and i am ready to get healthy. i have to remember that no one can achieve my goals for me and that if i don't make it happen, then no one will. this 64 degree weather in atlanta in january (!!!) definitely doesn't hurt the motivation to get outside and get moving!

[images via marthastewartweddings.com]