Butterflies are flying in

I've found that many of the little things I need for decorating the reception barn are found in a little website called Etsy.com. The website was recommended to me by other wedding websites and magazines and is full of handmade items, many of which can be personalized/custom made for you.


I have not only bought a great ceramic charm for my bouquet that says"Eric & Lindsey June 18, 2011" with a classic red design, but these little die-cut butterflies that will perch on the champagne glasses, granted they don't fly off before people arrive. I ordered 140 of these little buggers for only $40, which is sweet considering I never factored in how much decorations would cost. If I was attending a wedding, I'd love to take home one of these guys. PaperLemons' Louise makes them according to which colors you want (Plum, Cream, Raspberry Red and White) and ships them all the way from England! So it'll take a little while for them to get to me here in Chicago, but I can't wait to see them! 

Wasted Weekends

The last two weekends, we've done absolutely nothing productive. We've talked a lot about different things for the wedding, but nothing that included a decision at the end of the conversation. But I guess a lot of the major decisions have already been made. Is my wedding planning ending???

I don't think so. One of the major things we've talked about while driving to miscellaneous places all over Northern Illinois is guest counts. The barn fits 148 max. We only feel comfortable seating about 120 people. That way, there isn't ten people crammed to a table bumping elbows and feeling squished. This proposes a problem because we have almost exactly 120 guests (without any children). We both think it's pushing it, but we know not everyone is going to attend. The only problem is that we won't know who is attending and who is not until a few weeks before the wedding, which is frustrating. Why can't everyone tell me today if they're coming or not? Oh, I forget, this day is over a year in advance and I'm crazy... Just another thing that will keep me up at night.

We did manage to do a drive by of the barn Saturday. It was about 2pm and they were still decorating, so we didn't want to interrupt anyone. We just drove by the front doors and peaked in. I think every wedding there puts up twinkle lights. Why doesn't the barn just provide them?