Holy Cow! It's Been Forever!

Hey guys!

I haven't written in almost 2 months!!!!! I apologize! I have been so busy with school that I haven't even had a spare moment to write...not that I really have a spare moment now. I am in the middle of the worst/greatest week of my life: the week before finals. I still have 2 papers to write and a take-home final to finish. But I have already turned in a 10 page paper, and a 15  poem portfolio, and wrote a 7 page paper. Crazy...I hope I survive til Friday!

On a wedding related note, my Save the Dates came in the mail yesterday!!! I got them from 123print.com and  they turned out so amazing. I know I planned on doing them myself, but I realized they need to go out in like 5 days! So I ended up ordering them and they exceeded my expectations exponentially. So be on the lookout for your Save the Date in the mail.

Also, I sent out my graduation party invites this week too! So, some of you should be on the lookout for that as well!

Payton & I also got our engagement pictures done by Jenny Stewart Photography and they turned out amazing! I know most of you probably saw them on facebook, but I will post a few of my favorites.

Happy Hump Day!
I promise I will be posting more frequently once school is over!

<3 Carly

Update...it's been awhile

Hello all...

It's been a little while since I have written...I am sure you all have just been hanging on the edge of your seats waiting, tongues wagging for my next post. Yeah, right. 


My senior-itis really hasn't gone away at all; perhaps, it has just intensified. However, I do have some good news, I got my plan figured out for graduate school. Right now things are kinda hanging in the valance because if Payton gets his new job, we most definitely will be moving. So we are hoping for maybe Wood River, IL because then we would be about 20 minutes from Edwardsville and I could complete my Master's degree there. So that is nice to know. However, I still have to take the GREs, get 2-3 letters of recommendation, write a personal statement, and submit a writing sample. I am not really worried about the writing sample or the personal statement. But I definitely am worried about my letters of recommendation and the GREs. The GREs are like the ACTs on 7 years of steriods, for any of you that don't know what they are.

So the plan is for my to start graduate school in January 2013. =]

But enough about my boring academic career that most of you don't give a crap about...

I have some good Weight Watchers news to share. I have lost around 7lbs. Payton has lost 14 (I hate him...).
I have been trying to drink nothing but pure water and it has helped immensely. I think I decided that probably drinking close to a gallon of sweet tea a day was not going to help my weight loss goals. So, RIP Sweet Tea you will be missed. I had a Diet Coke last night when Payt & I went to see Wanderlust and I was up until 3am....I think I have officially broke my caffeine addiction because I am back to straight water today!

We finally booked the tent for our reception from True Value. It holds up to 196 people which is the most random number ever, but that's the number. Right now, the guest list is at about 190 people. But I am not expecting every single person I invite to show up.

I need to book my caterer like tomorrow, seriously. I am so behind on that very important aspect! I was doing sooo well on staying  way ahead on my timeline, but sadly the funds ($$$$) don't always keep up with the dates I need things booked.

On a good note, we found out we are not going to have to pay for our DJ like I originally thought we were going to, so that leaves some elbow room in the budget. =]


On an even BRIGHTER note, one of my best friends from high school, Danessa, is getting married on May 12 and I am so excited for her! Even though her wedding is the same day as Kendra's bridal shower, which I definitely can't skip since I am in the wedding, I will definitely be making it to celebrate with them! I actually dropped our RSVP in the mail today and I just got the invite yesterday! lol!

I feel like this is the year of weddings for everyone my age! Kendra and I were trying to think of all the people we knew getting married this year and the list is astronomically long. Lots of partyin' going down in 2012, betches!

This is like a super boring post I think. There are no pictures, wahhh! Oh well....

Oh!!! There was one more thing I have been mulling over in my head. I have been thinking about starting to do makeup tutorials to post to youtube. I am pretty talented with makeups and it is something I really enjoy doing. I also have been cycling out old makeup and upgrading on new products. Let me know if you guys think I should or not. I could start posting them on here. I thought about maybe doing a bridal series. Like try out different looks to go with my wedding dress (aka the color white) and then post them and see which one you guys think looks the best. Or I guess I could just do pictures lol. I dunno.

Opinions!!! Please!!!

<3 Happy Sunday

It's the Weekend!!

So...this week has been a little bit on the crazy side for me.

1. I feel like my brain is trapped in an immense fog. It's like it does not want to learn anything new, remember anything, or just help me out in general.

I read my monthly horoscope the other night to see if there was a reason, and apparently Neptune is in retrograde right now in my house of productivity, which makes perfect sense.

2. I bought a new scale to weigh myself. My first ever scale I bought myself with my own grown up money (ok...Payton's grown up money).

This is scale is either the biggest jokester in life or I got friggin' jipped! I stepped on it the first time and it told me I had gained 6 pounds, which naturally spent my heart into a tachycardia-like state because I have been working so hard on eating better. So, I stepped on it again and it said I had lost 6 pounds, which I would have rather believed that, but I knew better. So once again, with a grimace on my face, I stepped on to this trickster scale and it said I had gained .2 pounds. So that is what I went with.

I was pretty disappointed, but ladies, you know how it is. However, to my chagrin, Payton stepped on the scale and he has lost almost 10 pounds just by not eating as much. It is so not fair. Rawr.

But he gave me a big hug and said .2 pounds wasn't the end of the world. And for once (lol) he is right. It's not.

Chelsey and I went to Zumba on Thursday and then partook in our Jerzday tradition. Then, tonight I decided to get off my lazy ass and work out. I seriously sweated my metaphorical balls off to Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred DVD and it is only 20 minutes long!

The good news: it went by superfast.
The bad news: I can't feel my legs.

Which really not being able to feel my legs isn't bad news, it just means progress right??

Alas, that is what I will tell myself.

Moving on....

I had an awesome project tonight that actually succeeded for once in my life. I made Jolly Rancher Vodka. I am still pondering at myself because I personally hate vodka. I guess I just convinced myself that Jolly Ranchers would make me like it. Hmmm...

It was pretty simple to make. I got some quart mason jars, a handle of vodka, and a 3.75 pound bag of JR. I think I ended up with about 35-40 JR in each jar then I filled it up with vodka. They have to sit for 12-15 hours. Mine have been sitting out at room temperature for about 8 hours and they look amazing!

this is what they looked like when I first put the JRs in.

here is what they look like now. You can see that the color has intensified some!

I have been trying them periodically throughout the night to see if they even taste good, and I think the best one is green apple, with cherry a close runner up. The cherry kinda tastes a little like cough syrup, but in a good cough syrup with codiene kinda way. 

So cheers to me for having a successful experiment!

Happy Friday y'all!

Senior-itis

Hello all,

So no new wedding planning has been accomplished lately because I have been so busy with school and let me just say, I am over it!!! I have the worst case of senioritis I have ever had. In the spring, I will have my Bachelor's in English! It has been a long hard road full of ups and downs to reach this final destination. I have changed my major at least 4 times but in the end, it was all worth it. I found my passion in reading, writing, analyzing, and critically thinking about everything. I feel like I have expanded my mind and my worldview so much. However, my  brain is done. I just can't get into school this semester. I feel like my brain has just turned off. Nothing seems interesting anymore, and I am just ready to get the next 12ish weeks over with and get on to summer! Where I can work my summer job and focus on wedding planning! That is what I would rather be doing!!

I digress, I will hold my breath for Spring Break and try to enliven my passion for school and knowledge once again. On the bright side, I have read 3 amazing books already this semester for my Senior Seminar class.

If you are looking for books to add to your Summer Reading list, these are must reads! Especially The Glass Castle. It is the very gripping memoir of Jeannette Walls. I had to teach the novel to my Senior Seminar class, and it was a very powerful and emotional book to get through!

Continuing to look on the bright side, I have lost 4lbs! I couldn't believe it when I stepped on the scale. I didn't think starting WW would have that big of an effective so quickly! It is definitely motivation to keep on doing what I am doing!

Hope you guys are having a great Thursday!

<3 Carly

My Weight Loss Determination

Hey guys...

So it has occurred to me that I have been spending too many hours sitting in front of the computer and not nearly enough time working out. I have so many important events this year that I want to look my best for: 

1. My Wedding!
2. My College Graduation!
3. Kendra's Wedding!
4. My Honeymoon!
5. Summertime in general!

So instead of whining about it and eating a whole tube of Pringles, I decided I am going to do something about it! It's no secret that I have never really been skinny. I don't think it is in my DNA, but I have been using that as an excuse for way too long now. I think somewhere in my delusional mind I am still this girl:

The one who plays softball and works out several times a week...aka the girl I was in high school. I think i was holding onto a dream. Well, it was obviously a dream because I don't look like that anymore. And somehow if I refused to look at every picture of myself on Facebook where I have a double chin or a muffin top, then those pictures don't really exist and I don't really look like that. 

But the truth is, I do. And I am over it! I want look like a tanned, toned senior in high school. I mean, I know my skin will never look that amazing again (lol!) but I can get that body back! It's not impossible.

So, here I am. Putting my heart and deepest insecurities out there for you guys to read because apparently that is the type of person I have become. Wanting to share all my moments with you guys because, well, it makes me accountable and it gives me purpose. I still am in shock at the fact I have over 1000 views on here. I never thought any of you would care enough about me or my wedding. Maybe you don't and you guys all really like Payton the best! lol!

But in my mind I have always wanted to be the type of person who gets up in the morning before noon, who works out (and actually finish the workout!) and then makes a smoothie! The type of person that drinks that smoothie before 8:30am, gets in the shower and then does her make up and her hair! (instead of just going everywhere with wet hair like I do now). The type of person who remembers to brush her teeth twice a day (instead of just once), and the girl who always has a cute outfit on. I want to be the type of person who likes vegetables and who always has a clean house all the time; who actually thinks jeans are comfortable instead of trying to get away with wearing sweatpants everywhere. I want to be the person who can actually wear knee high boots because I don't have fat calves. I want to be a success story.

I want someone to be jealous of me for a change.

As shallow as all those reasons are, I am seeing them as motivation. How amazing would it be to look back 9 months from now on the day of my wedding and to say I have accomplished all of those things and then some? I think there would be an immense sense of pride and accomplishment to be felt. By me. For a change. 

So, Carly, you ask, you are talking a pretty big game here, how do plan on accomplishing all your shallow goals?

Well, you see, I joined WeightWatchers Online today. Tonight, actually. And I am super excited about it! I have done WW before when I was in middle school and running track. I lost a pretty good amount of weight, although I don't remember how much. I do remember how awesome it felt to actually be able to put my hands around my waist though, and that memory is enough to spark my interest in it again. 

I haven't decided what workouts I am going to do yet. But Payton said he is on board to be the official "Carly Support System". So there won't be any slacking off! 

I bought an bunch of groceries tonight that are not healthy at all (hey, it was before I joined WW lol!), but hopefully I can work in some fresh fruit and veggies to eat all of the other stuff in moderation and stay under my daily point allowance. 

So if any of you out there are looking for a beginner status, sweaty, slightly unattractive workout partner who comes clad in black Wal-mart leggings, Hanes t-shirts, and mismatched socks; I am right here! You know where to find me!

<3 The Future Thinner Mrs. Baker

Members, Followers, & Creepers! Come One Come All!

Hey guys!

So...I know you guys are out there, stalking my blog on a daily basis...just kidding! But seriously, I know some people are looking at my blog because I have got almost 900 views, which is completely unbelievable! I can't believe so many of you guys care about my wedding that much!

That being said, I am a little sad that no one has commented on the posts (except for Amy on my dress pics! Thank you btw!) How can I know what you guys want me to write about if you don't comment?

Also, no one has become a member (except my Future-Step-Sister-In -Law Megan! lol! Thank you very much also!) I am definitely not feeling the love. </3

I want to know everything! Do you want more pictures, less talk? More talk, less pictures? Do you like it how it is now? Do you like the layout? Do you hate the layout? Do you not care about my wedding and just want me to stop blogging and posting it on Facebook? Do you have ideas about my theme you want to share? Or DIY projects you think I should try?

I really want to know!!!!!!!!! 


So please, help me out! Become a member, comment on the posts, and follow my blog!!!!

I will love you forever!

<3 Mrs. Baker

Oh...you know...just an update!

Hello guys and gals!!

Happy Friday to you all! I just finished with my last class of the day...hallelujah!  Anyways, last Sunday I went to the bridal expo at Thelma Keller in Effingham with my mom, Joey, Sydney, & Chelsey. We got to eat some awesome food, try amazing cake, listen to some DJs, and basically succomb to the whole sensory overload experience that was the expo. It was literally like drowning in a sea of wedding gowns, fake crystals, and pressed napkins. Lol!

Regardless, I got a few more things booked. I reserved my wedding cake maker, and she is utterly amazing. Its Cakes By Christine. She is out of Mattoon, IL and she has sooooo many delicious flavors. We go for our official cake tasting some time in the near future. However, I did snag some samples for Payton to try when we got home. Our favorite was Banana Nut, but I don't think we are going to get that for everyone because of nut allergies some people may have.

This is the style of cake we are going to have, but instead of snowflakes we are going to have butterflies!!!

Something like this maybe

But not so many butterflies, lol! Kinda overkill...

Also, I reserved my DJ. I have never heard of him before, but he djays at Stu's on the weekends sometimes. He had over 10 years of DJ experience, and he was pretty cool. He seems like he is going to be able to put on a pretty good party. Also, he told me "we can do whatever you want to do" and for those of you that know me pretty well, I like to have my way! lol!! His name is Jordan Poremba. Click on his name to visit his website. I am getting the biggest DJ package he offers, because it has the uplighting like I wanted. Which is all going to be purple. I am hoping for this type of ambiance:

Aren't all those reception super pretty? I just think the purple makes it look so classy and fun, but still has the rock-n-roll edge we are going for!

So at this point, my caterer and my tent are the two big things I don't have locked down yet. We went to True Value in Charleston the other day to look at their tents. Click on their name to check out their website. But I am not for sure if what they have is going to work. 

Next Tuesday, I have a meeting with Billi Lou Jansen from Walnut Street Weddings to look at the tents they offer and look at some of the other services she offers. I am pretty excited about it. I met her in person at the bridal expo after several email correspondences so it will be nice to actually sit down and figure some stuff out. 

I really want to take the time to price out this whole tent thing because it really is one of the most important expenses. It needs to be able to accommodate everyone comfortably as well have the functionality I desire.

Well, I hope you guys like the new blog design. Comment and let me know if you like this style or preferred the darker look from before. Also, comment if you have had any experiences with these vendors I listed above. I would gladly take any opinions or reviews. 

Have a great weekend everyone! 

Carly <3