you got whatever it is: getting ready

[picking up where i left off...]

after rehearsal dinner, i went back to my house with my sisters and some girl friends for ice cream sundaes, my scandalous bachelorette party. one of my friends got me two huge bags of m&m's, a few hershey bars, and some reese's pieces for josh - that's how scandalous we were. my sisters (bridesmaids) and jess (moh) spent the night. i got about 3-4 hours of sleep (and not from nerves, cause i didn’t sleep well pre-wedding-week and still can't now).



i got up to meet my old running partner for a 6am wedding-day run. my car was blocked in by two of my sisters’ cars so i was stumbling around in the dark looking for car keys. after multiple fails, i took jess’s car (only set of keys i could find) after trying to use her keys to open not-her car. i almost thought it was a sign that i should stay home, but eventually i made it out to meet my friend. we started following a group that ran by us and eventually caught up to them and ran with them for about 8 miles. this was the first time i ran in a week and it wasn’t easy, but we had to get in a wedding-day run (she broke her toes the day before her wedding).

last single-lady run (7/17): 8 miles, 1:13:01 (avg pace 9:07)
[this is technically a running blog afterall]

i got home from the run and finally felt tired for the first time all week. i tried to lay down for an hour of shut eye but i thought about how i still needed to pack for the honeymoon. then i got caught up in phone calls and text messages from friends wishing me luck. i enjoyed every text/facebook message/tweet from all my friends! (thanks for the love) :)

anyway, after the nap-fail i packed stuff i’d need for the wedding (note: not the honeymoon haha) and my moh and i took off for the acanthus, my sweet venue. not only is it gorgeous, but it’s owner’s are so accommodating and go way above and beyond to make it the best day of your life. josh and i give it 4-thumbs up. sorry for the sidetrack again. hair and makeup took about 2.5 hours on 6 ladies, and then we had pictures. josh and i did a “first look” to eliminate all the time needed for post-ceremony photos. i tucked a pack of reese’s pieces in my dress as his “wedding present” and forgot about them until we had already taken all the pictures… luckily the little orange wrapper between my boobs was photoshopped out.

first look - i was all kinds of nervous.

this pic makes me think of "american gothic";
not sure i get the headless trend going on right now.

after pics, we hung out in the house as guests arrived. i spied from inside, glad to see the bottled water and fans were being taken and used (yes, i had an outdoor wedding in south carolina in july, who doesn’t like 90 degree humidity?). my friend who i'd asked to do the guestbook arrived and i got to chat with her for a little bit. before she arrived i told people to keep an eye out for “america’s next top model” because that’s what she looks like.

seriously, antm.

soon enough, it was show time...