Introducing Baby Ethan

Born September 13th
I wound up in pre-term labor and had Baby Ethan just over 5 weeks early. He was completely unexpected but wery happily welcomed! I've already been discharged from the hospital but E had to stay behind in the NICU. No worries though he is doing great and will be home shortly. We love him!

Maxie Pad

We had to say goodbye to our beloved girl Pit Pit today. Her condition kept getting worse and showed no signs of improvement. We were with her the whole way but she told us it was time. We miss her and love her.

All Dressed in Ivory

I picked up my dress at the begining of the month and am on the lookout for those last minute articles to make my attire complete... I am still fighting with that whole old, new, borrowed, blue thing but I'm sure I'll figure something out. I'm thinking about buying a plain veil and decorating the tips of it with pumpkins. Something small that will be mostly unnoticed. It'll be exciting!

Pray for Max

Our poor puppy Maxie had a sudden fit of cluster seizures last night. The cause is unknown but we have her on medication to stop them. We have to bring her in in two weeks for testing.

The poor girl is completely out of it and seems like she has no clue what happened or even what is currently going on. I just want her to get better and Tyson is worried about his mommy.

Flowers, Flowers, Everywhere

Well not really because I'm using a combination of unusual things as centerpieces as well as some branch (curly willow) flower arrangements. My new florist talked me into using this pretty little rose called a circus rose. I like it because it is both red and orange. Very pretty.

My flowers will still have the same concept as the other store. Centerpieces with flowers and berries strewn in. My bouquet has the same idea but with the addition of fall leaves and red berries instead of purple. The leaves may also be included with other things.

Tony's bout will be the same flower but with decoration to match my bouquet.

The mothers, fathers, and grandfathers will all have the circus rose with their own special arrangements.

I'm excited. Her price quote is slightly higher than what I wanted but she is also offering more then the other shop is doing so I'm good. Now I just have to finish paying for it. Yum.

Flower Hell

So the flower shop I was using went out of business and transferred all their stuff to another company. This would have been fine because they are honoring the deposit I made to the other company however, their flowers are ugly. I've been to their shop before and visited their website and well I just don't like it. It is ugly, lopsided and completely unoriginal.
Sooooo after freaking out a little I remembered to call Lucy owner of A Rose in Bloom. I met with her yesterday and am thinking I might use her instead. granted I will have to simply drop the other account and the money I paid but I think I will be satisfied with Lucy and that she will do a much better job. I've seen her work at a wedding already so I know she does well.

Baby Update

I decided to give the blog a new look because I get tired of looking at things sometimes. I however, never seem to get tired of looking at this little guy! I pull out my hundreds of sono photos all the time and then talk to him in my tummy.

We visited the specialist about his heart and things check out ok. Hopefully it stays that way forever. We got even more baby pics and another confirmation that he is definitely a he. Good thing because the baby's room has been painted orange and blue and we are buying up all the fish things we like. Tony even got a fish tank for the baby room. We have filled it up with glofish and two tank frogs. It is really cute. Although, I think Tony is overly excited and we are going to end up with a fish tank trend. Oh well, at least I don't have to walk them or take them to the park.

It's a Boy!

We found out on Monday that we are having a boy! Looks like I'm outnumbered! We are excited and everyone knows Tony is proud!

On the down side I have to see a specialist next week because there may be something wrong with his heart. Of course I'm not letting this freak me out to much because well whats the point?

I am planning on starting the baby room painting process this weekend. Our colors will be orange and blue with a fish theme. (Surprised? lol)

Whis us luck! I'm thinking about a baby shower in August? Maybe?

Kisses!

Introducing our Baby Boy!

His Name is Tyson Chicken Nugget (we call him Tyson) and he is 6 months old. He is the only puppy out of Maxie Pad's 9 beautiful babies that we kept. She could not be more proud!

Don't worry we find our our more of our own baby news on Monday! I'll keep you posted.

Sunday! Sunday! Sunday!!

Yes Sunday.

Tony and I ordered invitations a little while ago and once we received them I realized that I messed up on the wording. Nothing major thank god or I would have cried, thrown a chair or just screamed at every little thing that moves (pregnancy= emotional so I've learned.) On the wedding date I've left off that the wedding is on Sunday so it simply reads...

on November ninth two thousand eight where it should say on SUNDAY November ninth blag blah blah..... Oh well I can't expect perfection I'm so beyond scatterbrained.

We did manage to pick out some fun napkins and matchbooks to go with the invites and got everything for under $150; thanks to a friend.

It is soooo strange to read "Susan and Tony Floyd" without me writing it like a little schoolgirl doodling with hearts and flowers or fluffy clouds (everyone knows I can't draw for the life of me!)

It's exciting none the less...

Baby Kicks and Tummy Stretches

At my 14 week sonogram the lady said. "It sure is active!" I took that as a good thing. Now as kicking season is in I really understand what she meant. I've felt little movements and "kicks" from the baby for a while. I think sooner than I should have but starting last night I can REALLY feel it. It seems to have gotten stronger or bigger and kinda consistent. I'm slightly worried that he or she is moving too much. Is that possible?

I did fall asleep on my right side not the left last night.... Could I have squashed him or her? It seems to be sitting or swimming more to that side of my tummy, has for days and that is the side I feel the punches.

I even saw my tummy push out which is strange because I am not far enough along to see it move, my tummy is not even that big. Should it be bigger?

Speaking of tummy time. I can feel the weight I have gained even though the doctors claim I have lost 7lbs. My tummy itches and hurts a little like I can feel it growing. It truly is a magical experience.

My next sonogram is about a month away where Tony and I will find out just who it is we will be having. We are so excited.

My last sonogram was great. The baby moved up and forward. It even raised it's hand like it was waving! I cant wait to see it again.

On another note, our boxer girl Lola has moved in with her Grandaddy Wilson. I made the decision to re-home her after taking her stubborn nature into account. Hopefully she stays happy there.

Rose Chapel

Happy weekend everyone!


I felt like looking at the facility again today but I had to work and it is the weekend so not like I can just hop on over and peak in. So I decided that these photos would have to do and I decided to share.




How about some background?
The original name for this facility was the Central Methodist Church. It was built in the early 1900's and has almost been demolished several times. The Southside Preservation Association is the current owner keeping it strong and continually restoring it.

I like knowing that funds form the weddings held in the Chapel go to the restoration of it and several of the local buildings also owned by the SPA.

Tony and I love this place it is a perfect fit for our Halloween theme. Some of the building is even still condemned!



I can't wait to see it all dressed up for us!

Baby Stuff!

Tony and I went to the mall today just for the fun of walking around. I bought some marteinity pants for work and such so that they are there when I need then... (which is soon cause I'm already growing.)

We went into Hot Topic and looked at the baby onesies. I found a onesie that I wanted to buy for the baby! It was this one in the photo. I wanted to buy it so bad but didn't because well I wont know how big the baby is so I cant buy anything too big or too small but then I thought well I should buy something for the baby to wear that is Nightmare Before Christmas-ish so that it can match my wedding maybe I'll just make it wear something with pumpkins! I'm excited how cute!

Here are some other cute ones!

I love these things! I cant wait to shop for baby clothes I'm gonna have a problem... I can already tell. I still dont even know if I am having a boy or a girl... Maybe I should at least wait for that.... I cant even look at these things anymore!

Getting Back to It. Flowers!

I Have not really spoken much about the flowers in my wedding. In recognition of one of my favorite flower sneding holidays I decided to post a few of my inspirations.
The name of the flower shop is Bailey's Flowers.

Left and Right are my bouquet inspirations, I'm going with fall colors, black roses, leaves, berries, red, and orange. The one in the center is what the flower will look like for the groomsmen.

There will be a few festive centerpieces on the tables at my wedding. I am bringing in Halloween trees and will also have some table lanterns. The florist shop is creating arrangements that look like these photos with cirly willow and flowers strewn in. The purple flower on the right is a Hydrengra bunch. Mine will either be purple like this or a redish color. There will be some in my bouquet and it is what the bridesmaids will be holding.

The flower girl at my wedding will have a small purple bucket with fall leaves and red rose petals. She will be so cute!

Everything is Set

Just an update to let everyone know that the wedding date has officially been changed to Sunday November 9th. Everyone is re-booked and when it comes to it I will mail out invitations. I'm planning to mail them out a lot sooner than needed because I want to give everyone a chance to respond.
This kinda stresses me out now because who can I find to do my hair and makeup on a Sunday? Yikes! All of the places I would have used are closed and to do an at home thing would be way to much money. I have a few friends who may be able to help me but it looks like my tattoos are going to have to show, (sorry Sandy) I won't get the hairstyle I wanted and well we will find out about the make up later.
The Facility will only let us do the rehearsal on Monday through Thursday nights so some of my or Tony's family may not even be able to attend depending on their work schedules. Hopefully it will all fall into place.
Tony still wants all of our stuff to have October 31st written on it because that was our chosen day but what can we do? It would be silly to lie to ourselves. Maybe we will simply celebrate on our original anniversary date of November 2nd. November 9th means nothing to us. It was just a day that happened to be open.
To all our friends who are religious and have to attend church on Sunday we completely understand if you do not show or if you only show for the reception just let us know a head of time so we can plan for it. (That is after you get an invitation)
To any out of towners if you take the weekend off there is at least a lot of fun things to do in Fort Worth and Arlington. I don't know where I will be depending on the baby status but if nothing else I can direct you to fun places.
The doctor told me that I will have to have the baby by Halloween so Hopefully I will have him or her before then and be better active when family and friends arrive. Wish for the best!

On other news we have picked out baby themes and colors so it needs to hurry up and be time to know if it is a boy or girl!

Sniffle! (a long one)

As everyone who reads this should already know I have discovered that I am eight weeks pregnant. My due date is the week before my wedding. Not everyone was supposed to find out until I knew for sure I would carry but the cat is long out of the bag.

As most of my friends also know I have been beyond upset the last few days because within the week that I found out Tony and I were finally having a baby I got more crap from those who love me than I ever have in my life. I have not yet even gotten the chance to be happy about the baby.
Some people voiced their opinions on my Halloween wedding, some people voiced their opinion about my baby out of wedlock, others told me that I need to bump up or push back my date, most treated me like a child who is completely incapable of making a decision on her own. Not a single one asked me how Tony felt in all this. Thanks everyone I really needed that the first week I found out that I was having a baby and that I was possibly going to miscarry again. If I was 16 and only knew Tony for a month I could understand the crap I have been getting but I'm 22 and we have been together for what will be 5 years by the time we get married.
To everyone who kept their moth shut for a little longer thanks for at least waiting until I stopped bleeding and had a chance to calm down to talk to me about things. Which I should add was Monday. I bled for over a week.
What no one gave me was the chance to explain that I had already checked into things I already checked into the availability of the chapel, and most everyone else. The facility was booked every Friday, Saturday and Sunday in November except for Friday the week of and before Thanksgiving. None of the vendors will work the day after Thanksgiving and honestly who wants to come to a wedding then? I cant even take off work that day! Two of them were busy the week before. Also eveyone kept telling me about the stress the wedding was going to put on me and that I did not know what I was getting into. No one stopped to hear me about already having everything booked and taken care of. No one took into consideration that I plan weddings, this was not exactly my first one. Oh and lets not forget how fat I will be by then.
Yesterday after consulting with my obgyn I was told that based on my sonogram they expect me to be at least a week early however if I am late they will HAVE to make me have the baby by Halloween, no later because it would be unhealthy for me.
The facility also let me know that the first two Sundays in November opened up. The 2nd and the 9th. Now I am just waiting to hear back from the vendors.

Our choice for the day is the 9th as long as all the vendors are good with it also. We still plan to have a Halloween wedding which I am sure will make so many in my family happy however, we have already spent soooooooo much on the decorations and all that it will be dumb to change it.
On that note I don't understand why Halloween is such a horrifying date to get married on or why a Halloween theme is so bad. It is actually a date and theme that is perfectly common. I never said that we would be hanging from hooks in our backs while reading our vows or that everyone should come in a Halloween costume. We love Halloween. We also love the fact that the first time we met was close to Halloween and that when we started dating was close to Halloween a year later. We like that my birthday and our anniversary of November 2nd was just before and after Halloween. We like that Halloween is the day of rebirth and new beginnings and thought that would be a perfect way to start our lives. We also liked that Halloween is a day to honor those who are no longer with us because in the last few years Tony and I have lost several people who we loved dearly. Whatever childish morbid things people think of us because of it is simply based off a fantasy.
Tony and I are not children. We know how to think for ourselves and we know what works for us.

About the baby. There is still a chance that I will miscarry although the doctor said that he thinks it will be ok. Tony is hoping for a boy as most do. I am simply hoping for healthy and a girl would not be bad either.

If I have offended anyone I am sorry but trust me it does not equal up to the grief Tony and I have felt in this last week. To everyone who supported me and kept my head up, Thanks I really needed it. Even those faceless people who tried to chear me up while I was an uncontrollable mess at work. I am deeply embarassed but was completely out of control. To everyone who gave me crap I know you love me I love you too, I just wish you would stop looking at me as a child.

Kisses! Wish us luck!

Update!

We met with a new cake lady today. Her name is Erika and she runs a company called Confections in Cake. She had us taste and drew up a diagram of what our cake could look like. She was much much better than the other crazy lady. She, however, is using fondant to cover the cake but it is ok because she makes her own, let us taste it and got a go from me. I still dont like the texture. Tony liked it so i'm happy.

Dog Gone Demolition

Don't let those sad eyes fool you! She is a plotter.

Sooo... I was talking to Tony the other day about wanting to replace the windows in our home next year because they are a bit drafty and well I guess our beloved baby girl dog wanted to help us out...

I was standing outside talking to a neighbor about flowers when I hear a noise. I look around to the front of my house and see that miss Maxie-Pad decided to put her big head through an open window, causing the screen to fall half out of it's secured position. I walk to her as she is reaching for footing in the flower bed and say "Really? Was that necessary?" She wags her tail in response.

I walk back into the house where she happily greets me at the door. I can't spank her cause she doesn't realize what she did wrong and she is just so happy that whatever she did got me back into the house. I drop down on one knee and say "Who do you expect to pay to fix that?" She places a paw on my shoulder and licks me in the face.

Guess she hates the drafty window too.

How Dare She!

Sooo. I'm on the hunt for a cake baker who can make the "Mad Hatter" style cake that we want decorated with a "Nightmare Before Christmas" theme.

Like this Corpse bride cake... only decorated a bit more like the Jack and Sally. We want orange, red, black and different designs but you get the point.

So I talk to this lady and she is like "yea I can do what you want, blah blah blah." I get all committed and excited because she feeds me with ideas. We schedule a tasting and meeting and....

She completely changes! SHE actually said to me "I really don't want to make this cake!" Then started giving me other options that she would like better.
WHAT!
Who expects someone to pay for a cake they don't even want or like? Really? I am worried over how many "little girl's" weddings she has ruined by not giving them what they want.

Charonel Designs is the name of the company. BEWARE!!!

That was beyond horrific!

Say Cheese!

Today we took Bruser along with us to talk to the photographer. She has a little min pin named Ginger. Bruser was excited to see someone his size but then he got attacked by a kitty and got a little scared. Scardy dog aside he had fun hunting for Ginger's hidden tresure bones and toys. Jill (the photographer) loved him too!

I'm excited to finaly have the pgotographer booked. She does really, really, great work and is a doll of a lady. http://www.jillyspace.com/. We also have her husband booked to be our minister.

Last week we booked the caterer. Donna with Unique Catering. She owns a little cafe with a old movie star theme. She does a lot of work in the Dallas film industry, television mostly, and even caters for the Prison Break movie set.

We have also decided to get the people working the wedding to dress up for Halloween. Our wait staff, photographer and hopefully some facility people will be dressed up for the event.

I'm thinking that after the reception... those indulging in the Holiday season should venture out with the bridal party for some old fashon Trick or Treating! What a Ball!

The Dress

I jumpped the gun a bit and already bought my wedding dress. It is a Maggie Sottero dress that cost less than the non-designer rip off from Alfread Angelo. I'm excited!
I however, am terrified that I got it in a size that is too big.

I must be the only peron in the world worried that their dress will be too big.

My father, who was kind enough to buy me the dress, suggested I get the bigger size because well, "They can always take it in." The bridal lady suggested that I buy one size smaller... said that the other dress is "safe" but she reccomends that I buy the smaller size. I should've taken the bridal lady's advice... it is after all her job to know those kinds of things.

Everyone says never to plan your own wedding. I'm doing a great job thus far. I've gotten the facility, catering, photography, florist, decorations, and a few other details but with the dress I'm baffled. What if it comes in far too big (I say far because I already know it is too big) and even after they take it in it does not fit me correctly? What if they cant make it work?

I know another florist who whorks in a bridal store with a lady who is well known for her alterations abilities maybe I can take it there after I am dissapointed. I think I am the only bride in History who is afraid to loose weight before her wedding day.

Sniffle.

Our babies!

Without our babies home would never be the same!

Maxie-Pad Our Pittiful Pit Bull!

Lola Our Baby Bear Boxer

Bruser Our All Bark Min Pin

left to right Pringles and Subaru

Bud Buster Bunny Fu-Fu

left to right King George and Splinter

Facility Findings

When Tony and I first started planning for a wedding we were clueless, completely clueless. We ended up making the decision to buy a home instead of getting married. Reason being well, that marriage paper did not put a roof over our heads. So we put off and put off and put off.

I ended up working at a wedding planning company. I was an office assistant and a planner. The job was a lot of fun untill it slowly went out of business. None-the-less I left knowing more about the wedding industry than I ever would have otherwise.

Tony and I settled on Halloween as our wedding day really on accident. I said "We should just get married on Halloween." He said "Why not?" So I looked it up... a friday date means lower prices... so I agreed why not?

We looked up a few facilities. I had Rose Chapel in mind from from working with them before. From outside Tony hated it. The building is old, worn down and still in the middle of a big restoration process. Once inside Tony warmed up. We agreed that our halloween wedding would be great in an old building and booked it as soon as we could.

Getting Hitched!

You cant expect anything in Texas to be done without first making a big deal about it.

Tony proposed in December of 2004. Just over a year after we started dating. We were living in our first apartment. I was a full time student and we both worked at Pizza Hut. I came home from work one day... grumpy, irritated. Tony, all smiles, asked me to open a christmas gift early, to you know, cheer me up. I didn't want to I hate opening presents early and was only more irritated at the suggestion. Finally he talked me into it.

When I un-wrapped the box, inside was a scrap of paper. A map. "You have to find it." He told me. So I started my scavenger hunt around our little apartment. Bedroom, bathroom, living room, closet, back to the bedroom walking in circles till my mood lifted and I started to giggle with every new clue. My last clue I found taped to the back of our kitchen pantry door simply stated... "Turn Around." When I did Tony was there on one knee with a ring in a box. I started crying.

Early Christmas gifts became a good thing for us.