our 6th anniversary ...

Oh, how the time does fly. 

December 4, 2004 was a lovely day for a wedding. Crisp weather- around 40 degrees, sunny sky and all in good spirits. We were married at St. Timothy Church and had our reception at the Seaview Country Club in Warwick. About 150 guests attended and we all had a wonderful time. It was a winter themed event with white lights tangled around birch branches, lots of candlelight and snowflakes everywhere. It really was picture perfect. 

As favors we gave beautiful, white snowflake mugs that I find at the homes of my friends and family to this day. Glad to see they are still being put to good use! 

Happy Anniversary Blabey!!   

 Pictures were taken at Waterplace Park in Providence. 

We lost our daylight pretty quickly but still got some decent shots.

from a Mullen to a Fielding...

It is so seldom that we are in the presence of real, live, true love. I am lucky enough to have encountered it numerous times in the past couple of years.

One of my bestestest friends, Monica, was married this past weekend to her soul-mate, Gabe. I have known Monica since second grade. She was the "quiet one" who sort of sat back and did her own thing. She has a heart of gold and sometimes when I look at her I can still see the nine year old girl behind that smile. We grew up together, hung out all the time and went through our phases, stages and situations by each others side. At times, I felt like a piece of furniture in the Mullen home. Gabe is Monica's brother's best friend. He is one of the most genuinely awesome people I have ever met. I always had respect for him, growing up. His personality is amazing, he is very sweet and kind .... and a big goofball. Match made in heaven, right? Well, this match took FOREVER to make. Even though they had known each other since they were kids, Monica and Gabe just took their friendship to another level a couple of years ago.

After high school, her brothers both moved out to Colorado and a few years later, Monica followed. And Gabe did as well. They became even better friends and, out of the blue, both realized that they needed to be in a relationship together. I was THRILLED when I heard the news, as I had always wanted them to get together. When Monica came home to visit, for the first time since her new love, her smile was SO wide. I had never ever seen her beaming like that. And I will never forget it. We talked about how happy she was and I felt an amazing amount of actual JOY. I don't know if you really know what "joy" feels like - I don't think I did until that day. So you can imagine my excitement when I heard the news of her engagement. This had been 25 years in the making (in my mind).

Seeing Monica and Gabe together for the first time was surreal. His love for her was undeniable. It was beyond sweet - it was newlyweds before their time. My friends and I had to call each other and gossip about how adorable their visit was. Pulling out the chair. Holding hands. Constant smiles and kisses. Pet names. This might sound corny and annoying as hell to you, but I assure you - it was beautiful.

Being able to not only witness but to be a part of their wedding meant the world to me. The ceremony was absolutely beautiful. Their genuine grins were permanent. Watching them speak their vows, exchange rings and dance their first dance as husband and wife was pretty much magical. And the entire time I felt as though I was rooting for my favorite team, waving a giant banner that read "Go Monica and Gabe!!" (Possible foam finger as well).

I wish for everyone to be happy, but for some reason, I almost wish it MORE for these two love birds. I hope they are enjoying their honeymoon as I write this. Congratulations, once again, Monica and Gabe Fielding. I love you guys.

let's discuss dress fittings ...

I'd like to take a quick minute, because the Yankees game is starting soon, to talk about my recent Bridal Shop experiences. In this case I am referring to my fittings for a bridesmaid's gown that I will be wearing in the highly anticipated Mullen-Fielding wedding on October 24th. Now, I have never looked good in a dress. Mainly because I have a big chest, no torso and I am short as hell. But I have been in several weddings - including my own - and I have always managed to pull it off (the look, not the dress - heyyooo!!). So why should this time be any different?

I'll add a picture of the gown. It really is a pretty style.. very simple and plain. The color is almost like in the picture - a slightly different shade of green though. Looks great on the model (and the other two bridesmaids).

I went for my initial measurements back in May, they ordered the gown and I went back the first week in September to try it on. Well it was clearly 9 feet too long - a given -  and since I had lost over 20 lbs since the measurements were taken it was insanely large. No big deal. Hem it up and take it in. Very routine. "Hmmm, we are definitely going to have to use the straps on this one... and we have to sew this in on the sides, this zipper will need to be replaced, I wonder if we can put some sort of seam in the front to keep this closed, see this gap here? Maybe we could taper this ... we'll need to tuck this under a bit ... " Yep. This is how it's been going. I have been for three fittings already and have a fourth coming up next week. I know that this dress will fit me like a glove eventually but getting to that point is nothing short of horrifying. Although the women who work in the shop are very sweet I can't help but feel like I am the most ridiculously shaped girl in the universe. Like nobody has EVER seen the likes of me and I should clearly be wearing a sack-o-burlap instead of a gown.

Their newest drawing board invention is a thicker strap. This IS a strapless gown that does provide spaghetti straps as an option. We tried that option. That option failed. It was like trying to hold up a piano with some dental floss. Please, try not to envision it... I don't want anyone in the ER tonight. The thicker "makeshift" straps looked fantastic and felt so much better. So next Thursday we will find out just how well this adventure turns out. Thankfully, the seamstress is wonderful. They just want me to look my best. That's what we all want, right? I don't want to be the reason the bride can't show her wedding photos to anyone!!