Wedding details...

After all the blogging here is what it came to!
All photos courtesy of our wonderful photographer Rachel Balunsat. See her website and complete works:www.eclecticvisions.net
www.smugmug.com

Table and escort cards by DearEmma Stationary Designs Etsy.com




Cake by Safeway

Wedding Photos!

I have to rave more about our photographer Rachel Balunsat! She ROCKS. Not only does she have mad skill, but she felt like one of my G's. Ya know? She blended in so well and really went out of her way to make our day special. Here are some of her photos!


Dress by Lazaro. Purchased at the Bridal House of Fashion, Sacramento.

What they don't tell you.

We just had our first date as a married couple. We sat next to a couple who had been married for thirty years and were celebrating their marriage. It was so special to share an evening under the almost full moon, next to an out door fire with the most amaszing food prepared by Girl and the Fig. I love being a wife!

Reflecting on the ups and downs of the last 24 hours I have realized that there is no real preparation for what happens to a bride and groom during their wedding. I've read a lot of books that tell you how to prepare for your wedding day. I've download and followed to the tee multiple wedding checklists (and what is not a secret is that I've done this all prior to Timothy popping the question). However, none of these books or websites tell you how tumultuous this day really is. As my husband has said; People don't stop being people just because you are getting married and I would add that the mesh of emotions we experienced were very congruent with how life works. A magical moment isn't as magical with out the contrasting elements. As magical as our wedding was....at the end of the night I felt like I was being tugged in a zillion different directions. I was emotionally exhausted and as much as I didn't want to admit that the night was over, I just wanted to go home....home meaning I wanted to cut all the strings but the ones that tied me to Timothy. I have never felt with such certaintude that I have a home...he is my home.

Gratitude

I sit here in our hotel room the day after our wedding. I have nothing but gratitude and love in my heart. I couldn't have asked for a better weekend. Everyone who participated in our special day gave more support and love than we can wrap our heads around. A big thank you to Shannon, Shelby and my lovely sister Lara. Because of them I was prepared emotionally and mentally to walk down the aisle. You girls have made my day and all the months of preparation so much fun and so truly special. Thank you to my Mom and Dad. You guys were so present and supportive and fun. I actually got to dance with the Genser family for the first time ever!
Renate it was magic to see you and your family! Aimee, Anne, Alex and Marjorie, thank you for helping set up the reception site and being assistants to our photographers. Mellyn, thank you so much for our flowers and for being such a support to us in our wedding planning. Shannon, I love you so much! Thank you for making my vision a reality and fantasy at the same time! Timothy's family, I am so grateful to know you and love you. I LOVE BEING A BENTON!!!! :)

Sharon, my friend, my mentor my hero. Thank you for being in my life and thank you for keeping me sane and loving me. Thank you for catering our rehearsal dinner. The food was fabulous! Diane, I'm so grateful to you for opening your home to us and our families to kick off the weekend. You are beautiful. I thank you for being in our lives and for allowing us to be present on a day that was very special to you and Karl. Huckleberry Flint you guys rock. Our photographers were so fun and sincere and we now declare you friends!

To Risa and Roy. Thank you for helping us come out of this weekend centered and truly hitched. Your gift to us was perfect!

I know I have many many more to thank. I send my appreciation to you all for now and soon will seek you out individually. But for now I'm going to go enjoy my Husband!!!!!

Much love,

Dana

Wedding Vows

So I recently cleaned out one of our black hole storage unit and came across a folder containing all my essays for my senior writing class. Scribbled across most of my papers was "Show me don't tell me!" "syntax" Over and over again. Reflecting on my graduate school work I realized I had the same criticism but of course at a different level. Instead of a paper on my grandma it was a paper on cerebral vascular accidents and low air loss pressure mattress for decubiti ulcers. But I was still telling and not showing. Sitting on my living room floor I finally got it. Thank you Mr. Stuffy.

Scratching my head, I sit staring at this blank screen. How can I show and not tell my promises to Timothy? And why did I consent to writing my own vows?

I've done some googling for assistance on writing my vows but haven't come up with much. However, I did find some things of interest err humor.

Brad Pitt and Jennifer Anniston vowed to split the difference on the thermostat in their wedding vows.

There are way too many internet sites that exist to help brides and grooms with wedding vows. Geesh what an industry.

Some videos:




Dangerous Wedding Vows For Men. - For more of the funniest videos, click here

Monkeybum

If you are wondering why we are associating ourselves with "Monkeybum", let me explain. Ever since Timothy can remember his grandfather Guy has called him Monkeybum and the term has simply fit. I've decided that I am okay being Mrs. Monkeybum because I've been called worse. Let's just say that growing ten inches in one year, being the pastor's daughter and kinda goofy made me a vulnerable target.

If you want further details on the history of Monkeybum you will have to ask Grandpa Guy. I have a feeling there is more to that story than meets the eye.

Mt. Shasta

The countdown has began. Only 56 days until our wedding! I've started to reflect on my life since I've met Timothy and think about how our life is going to be as a married couple. I've been going through our photos and thought I would post some pictures from our first trip together. Our camping trip to Mt. Shasta is a special memory as it was when I realized I was in love with Timothy...and Timothy only fell more in love with me! (At least that is how my story goes! LOL)

I'm Bridezilla

I never thought I had the potential to be a Schizo- Bridezilla but yes. Here is my confession. I admit to the following crimes:

1.) Threw a fit in regards to Timothy's attire. (Yes, I cried and felt it was the end of the world because the colors he wanted didn't fit my color scheme.)
2.) I've changed my color scheme 4 times only to revert to the original. The final decision is brown, orange and burgandy. But don't hold me to that!
3.) I call my best friend at least every three days to discuss trivial wedding details (like hurricane vases and pumpkins).
4.) I had three wedding websites within the first two months of being engaged and ended up settling with a blog spot. (One of the sites even had music!)
5.) As you can tell I'm addicted to blogging.
6.) I had our wedding invite list typed up with addresses and all prior to even being engaged.
7.) Went way over budget just on my dress.
8.) Am addicted to wedding sites such as offbeat bride, DIY Bride, Wedding Bee and other wedding blogs.
9.) Think and talk about the wedding and wedding plans non-stop.
10.) Dream about what could go wrong constantly. For example last night I was carrying my wedding dress in a dream and I dropped it and lost it a week prior to the wedding.

The word is out. I figure the first step to recovery is admittance.

The Conscious Bride

According to Sheryl Nissinen author of "The Conscious Bride", women often experience depression in the months after marriage as the deal with issues such as:

1. Separation from family and friends
2. Grief from old losses
3. Letting go of attachment to singlehoodãidentity and lifestyle
4. Leap into adulthood
5. Liminality feelings (the in-between state where the woman is no longer single and not quite married characterized by feeling numb, disoriented, blank, disconnected)
6. Experience toward fiancþ: anger, separateness, loneliness
7. Wedding day issues
8. Fears about marriage and commitment
9. What is a wife?
(quoted from an Indie-bride interview)

Thank you Liz for buying me this book. After the last couple of weeks I can definately relate to some of the experiences talked about in this book. In effort to be conscious of the transitions we are going through, I will be journaling to explore these issues listed above. I want to be consisious of this comittment process and not distracted by the wedding planning (as fun as it is).

Any comments from the ladies? Can you relate? Any recommendations?

Bachelorette Party

Thank you Lara and Alex for planning an AMAZING weekend. Also thank you to all the girls who participated in the fun. Wine tasting, hot tub, an amazing house in Sonoma with amazing views, spectacular food and lots of laughter.
(Here is a picture of Sonoma valley from our house.)

I feel so blessed to have such supportive and spirited friends. And can you believe my H2B helped clean up after our weekend of party? What an amazing man.
Could I use the word "amazing" enough? I don't think so! Oh and did I mention a thank you to Marjoie? The cake was ummmmmmm unique ;)

Three more months of wedding planning!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Save the date

After supper, my H2B and I sat down to tackle our save the dates.






















Supplies: one bottle of wine, dried lavender from Mt. Shasta, save the date cards made by Erin Ellis (LOVE her work), brown calligraphy pens and soundtrack by Leonard Cohen. We had so much fun and are so excited! 5 months left to go! I wonder if people will notice the lavender... we thought it would be fun to sprinkle a bit of love. Our first trip was to Mt. Shasta, and on this trip I fell in love with Timothy.









And to celebrate after we had finished our save the dates, we fed each other strawberries and nutella and watched "Samantha Who"! (Timothy loves me so much...those of you who know him know that watching "Samantha Who" could only mean that.)

Our Engagement Photos

Thank you Rachel Balunsat for our engagement photos. It was so fun to shoot them. Gosh 2 hours of kissing and hugging in front of the camera and 416 photos. (Rachel stated it was the most amount of photo's she ever took for an engagement shoot.)
Here are a few for your preview!

Wedding WISH

These guys ROCK... and might be performing at our wedding! :)

Wedding WISH

I wish the Avett Brothers would play at our wedding!
Check them out.

One day Timothy handed me his "No Depression" Magazine and told me to pick out a band that I liked after reading about them and he would buy me their music. So I read his magazine, *Dana style. I picked it up and flipped from 2/3rds to the back to the front looking at pictures, reading sentences here and there. I came across pictures of these boys (The Avett Brothers) and new instantaneously that their music would be great. Yes, I think they are adorable...but it was more than that. Call me psychic if you will. ;) So I showed Timothy the pictures and asked him to buy their music. He asked me what I like about what they said in the interview...and I laughed. I hadn't gotten that far! He rolled his eyes...yes this is the woman he loves so much...Ridiculous. Two months later we were hooked. Owned most of their albums and had tickets to their concert. They are amazing musicians and even better performers. They have SPIRIT and SOUL.

Timothy will never doubt me again. ;)

Tips for dress shoppers!

1.) You are not a princess.
2.) Don't buy the first dress you try on.
3.) Try on dresses you don't think will look good on you...being open minded could benefit you.
4.) This does not mean try on every dress the saleslady suggests. She does not have your best intention in mind. Cling to your sense of self and remember...
5.) You are not a princess.
6.) Hormones and your mother crying nearby at the sight of you in a white dress, might make you feel like you have found "the one". Take a picture if you can and wait till the hormones balance, then reassess the dress. It's probably not the one.
7.) Be very careful if you have skin allergies. See my blog to find out why.
8.) Be adventurous. You may not be a princess but you sure are the star of the day. * Just remember that your H2B is the co-star...let him shine in his own way. Even if that means custom cowboy boots with red flames on the side and no tie! (Like my crazy h2b!)
9.) If you find the dress you will know. I knew my dress was a Lazaro dress but tried to find a more affordable one. For weeks I kept trying on dresses and nothing compared.
10.) If your dress is outside your budget, get creative. You could ask for donations to a dress fund instead of undies at your bachelorette party. Or you could sell your dress afterwards and use the money for your honeymoon. Or have a bake sale!

I'm allergic to wedding dresses!

In the last three weeks I have tried on hundreds of wedding dresses. Friday, at House of Fashion Bridal Salon, I found my dream dress and paid way to freakin much for it! It's a Lazaro dress. I love it! It's got a vintage, elegant look with a touch of sexy umph! This is the neckline.

I won't post any other pictures because I don't want ruin the surprise! The neckline is a bit... "adventurous" lets just say...and I will just have to work a couple extra shifts to afford it! But I think it's worth it. I have been fantasizing about this dress for a long time!

So why is this blog title "I'm allergic to wedding dresses?" Let me tell the not so pleasant part of my dress shopping adventures.

Last week I noticed that I had a little rash on my arm but contributed it to stress or a food allergy. Yesterday at work I noticed it was all over my abdomen, back and arms. Red little bumps that looked like chicken pox. I was sent to the ER to rule out something contagious (as I could have contracted it from a patient or give it to a patient). I was diagnosed with contact dermatitis, which is an allergic response to something your skin comes into contact with. The only new thing my skin has been in contact recently is WEDDING DRESSES. And lots of them! It must be the detergent they use to keep them clean...or all of the beading that my skin has rubbed against...as I am allergic to some metals (jewelry). I'm assuming I won't be allergic to the dress I got! But, if you see me scratching myself down the aisle...you will know why! :)

More about why I love Timothy...

So I re-read "My Story" and felt it didn't quite do justice. So I've decided to attempt to describe more about why I love Timothy.

His strong character. He is so resilient and true to himself. He wears his core on the outside.
He is so supportive of my goals and growth.
He iron's my scrubs in the morning to help me get out the door on time and drives me to work or school (which is only 8 blocks away), just because he loves me. He is kind and honest. He is a GOOD man! He has a bad ass edge appearance wise (although he says ever since he settled down with me he lost the bad ass look) but essentially has integrity and a kind heart. He can make just about anyone laugh and thrives off of it!

As I continue to plan my wedding in the next 8 months...I'm going to continue updating my blog with more reasons why I love this man! I want this to be the focus of my wedding planning.

Eyelash What?

(This Blog is for you Sarah...and my other co-brides!) Come on don't tell me you haven't heard! Eyelash extensions. The new and totally fabulous beauty trend that is only somewhat torturous. They are applied on a hair-by-hair basis to your own lashes to extend the length and thickness of your eyelashes. Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan have them, and J. Lo's are made of mink. Madonna's cost $10,000 and are studded with diamonds click here for ABC article.

Why get fake eyelashes that could possibly end up on your forehead and or check at the end of a fun night? (You know who you are ladies). Fake eyelashes always feel heavy and itchy to me. I tried eyelash extensions and was able to wear them with out problems even with my contact lenses on! I will not refer anyone to the place I got my lashes because it was quite scary; a nail salon in the outskirts of Sacramento...yes I was scared, very scared. But for only $55.00 I had extra long eyelashes for one week. These lashes normally last for three, but I didn't know you weren't supposed to wash them directly or use eye make-up remover. You must be very gentle. The less you touch, the longer the adhesive holds the fake lashes on. Although I inhaled acrylic poison for two hours and had a woman talk on her cellphone while applying my lashes...not fostering a sense of personal safety nor to say the luxury Paris Hilton could afford...my lashes turned out great!

I will do it again for my wedding. However I will not wash my eyes or rub them or try to pick off the adhesive! This will destroy your natural lashes. Tip: If you get extensions and do not want them to look Tammy Faye like, ask for short and natural lashes. I'm going to go back to my scary little nail salon in Sacramento! Wish me luck! :)If you are adventurous and on a budget try your local nail salon and see if they do extensions.
Check out this link Splendora for some San Francisco options. Safe application in a more legitimate salon costs $200-$300 for the first application and $50 for refills that are typically needed every three weeks.
Before and After Pictures:










Photos from
Extreme Lashes.