Saturday, December 31, 2011

Real Quick

I have to post this little video that I just came across, I want to remember to watch it again (and again, and again), so much beauty in those 44 seconds! I found it on Bluebird Vintage which is fast becoming one of my favorite blogs ever. If I can say it without sounding creepy, I would like to live inside their world too.



James and Aubrey Sneep Peep from Geoff Boothby / Landshark on Vimeo.

A New Year's Eve Retrospective

This year I (in no particular order):

1. Got engaged to my best friend and soul mate.
2. Adopted our wonderful olde english bulldogge Grizzie from the SPCA.
3. Adopted our wonderful little grey kitty Moshi from BARCS.
4. Graduated from college with a BFA and cum laude honors.
5. Got a job at the most adorable cozy little elementary school working with great kids.
6. Started volunteering at the SPCA spending lots of time with amazing dogs and cats.
7. Saw my dad become successfully cancer-free!
8. Saw Rammstein in concert (for the second time!)
9. Turned 25.

In 2012 I will....

1. Get married to my best friend and soul mate (and get a snazzy new last name in the process!)
2. See Rammstein in concert for the THIRD time (and finally not have to drive five hours to see them).
3. Go on our honeymoon to Disneyworld, I've been dying to go to Disney for years now (haven't been since I was little)!
4. Finally move in with Justin.

And in 2012 I will hopefully...

Get my own photography business rolling, get a new camera and start photographing weddings.

2011 has been an incredible year when I think about it, it's nice to see everything written down in front of me. 2012 is going to be a life-changing year, I'm so excited for it to get here!

And now for the obligatory "year in pictures":

I learned how to knit (it's not a diaper)....and consequently forgot how to knit...

Adopted Moshi!

Saw Rammstein in New Jersey

Discovered that I enjoy documentary photography
Also discovered another new art form that I enjoy, collage
Graduated from college


Had an awesome 4th of July

Completed our family with Grizzie, our bulldog. Lola is an excellent big (little) sister.

Got engaged.

Hung out with a lot of great friends

Met so many amazing animals at the SPCA, this is Mason, one of my favorites.


Turned 25, which is a nice number to be.

See you in 2012!

xoxo,


Caitlin

Saturday, December 24, 2011

A Christmas Retrospective

I can't believe tomorrow is Christmas! I've been saying since Justin and I got engaged that I couldn't WAIT for Christmas to come and go so that it could officially be full-out EXTREME WEDDING PLANNING MODE time. In just a little under two weeks we will officially be at the 4 month mark. Four months! This is insane! Because really, in my head, I think of it as 3 months, because the month of April is just going to be like one big giant exciting fun-fest. How am I going to sleep at night in April? How am I going to do ANYTHING in April?! Is it normal to be so unabashedly excited about one's wedding? Like, we're talking six year old-on-Christmas-morning-getting-Barbies-and-a-new-puppy excited. THAT'S VERY EXCITED. I AM USING LOTS OF CAPITAL LETTERS BECAUSE I AM SO EXCITED. This will be our last Christmas as an unmarried pair. My last Christmas as a Smith! Next Christmas I will be Mrs. Gore.


Last Christmas Justin and I were just finally figuring ourselves out. We've come a long way since then, and an even longer way since our first Christmas in 2006. We had only been dating for a month or so. We didn't spend Christmas day with one another because we just weren't at that stage yet. I remember Christmas shopping together and we just bought one another our gifts and gave them to each other right there (I guess we weren't serious enough for a formal gift exchange?). We were a little awkward, but that's okay! Justin bought me a black shiny purse and Scrabble...and I can't remember what I got him (oops). And now, here we are, so many years later, a few years older and much, much wiser (so glad I don't wear all of that horrible heavy black eyeliner any more). 


So, Justin, if you read this, Merry Christmas and I love you and I can't wait for everything that is to come!


Merry Christmas everyone and have a wonderful New Year!


xoxo,


Caitlin






[note- How many times can one use the word CHRISTMAS within two paragraphs?! This must be a record.]

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Mrs G.

A checklist of things that I am excited about (in no particular order):

- My 25th birthday is coming up in a just a few days, the 18th. I'm not normally very excited about my birthday anymore but 25 seems like a nice age to be. Plus I'm going to see the Nutcracker which I have always wanted to do! Having a birthday so close to Christmas used to be fun when I was little, getting so many presents in the month of December! But now it's just kind of another day, sometimes things can get a little lost in all of the holiday hullaballoo. It will be nice to go do something special with all (most) of my loved ones.

- Earlier this week I got a little card in the mail from Betsy Robinson's Bridal Salon that my dress is in! It's finally time to make an appointment to go for my first fitting, something that I am excited about and also a little nervous for. I just hope it fits good!

- Justin and I got our first very own Christmas tree! It's so cute in all of its haphazard glory. We're waiting for the cats to knock it over but so far they've been very good boys. I can't wait until next Christmas when we will be a married couple!

- Finally getting started on wedding crafty things! I've been waiting till the new year to start doing all of that stuff, making little decorations and things. I can't wait!


Things that I am not exactly excited about per-say but looking forward to...

- My hair growing out. Is this a weird one? I've had some dreams recently that my hair is long again and then I wake up and it's still stuck at this awkward not-quite shoulder-length style. I want long wavy hair for my wedding, why is it growing so slow! Sometimes I think maybe I want to cut it all off again (like, ALL off), but I would probably regret it. Who knows though, I think a pixie cut would be cute with my dress.

I guess that's it for now, aside from the obvious things of being totally extremely excited about GETTING MARRIED and being MR. AND MRS. GORE. I just started a new job working with kids in an elementary school and right now of course they call me Ms. Smith. I've been thinking how cool it will be when I get to tell them all to call me Mrs. Gore. Or Mrs. G! Crazy.

xoxo,

Caitlin


a recent picture of us looking fancy for good measure



Thursday, December 8, 2011

The 5 Month Mark

It's crazy that the wedding is a little under five months away. 149 days to be exact. Sometimes it still feels really surreal to be planning my wedding. I'm so excited about so many things and as much as I want the next few months to fly, I also want to savor them as much as I can. People say that being engaged is one of the best times of your life, everyone is constantly congratulating you and sharing in on your excitement. You get to make a big long list of things you want and people give them to you! You get to go taste test yummy foods and try on fun clothes that you would otherwise never get to wear. I love being engaged. I love how I always rub my thumb over the diamond on my ring. I'm weird about wearing jewelry and I thought I'd be weird about a ring but now I don't ever want to take it off, even for a second. 


If being engaged is this much fun, I can only imagine how much fun being married is. For one, I'll finally get to call Justin "Hubby". People probably hate that term but I like it. Is that dumb to be excited about? 


What was your favorite part of your engagement? And what's your favorite thing about being married?


7.29.11

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Happy Sunday


Lately I've been going crazy collecting ideas on my Pinterest page. Gathering pictures of decor, food, bridesmaid stuff, accessories, etc. Pinterest is pretty much the best thing ever. Here's a little selection of some of my favorite things right now...

via Style Me Pretty

Justin and I want to have some lawn games at our wedding for kids (both young and old) to play. I love bean-bag tosses (I refuse to call it corn holing because that just sounds gross) and this is the cutest idea I've seen with the silhouettes painted on!

via Grey Likes Weddings

I love these felt and ribbon streamers as a ceremony backdrop! The colors are nice and bright and cheery and refreshingly different from the typical wedding color scheme.

via Arrow & Apple

Anyone who knows me knows that photography is my "thing" and I have a special place in my heart for the plastic-fantastic camera that is the Holga. The dreamy lo-fi images produced by their little plastic lenses are some of my favorites ever taken. I would love to have a bunch of Holgas lying around on tables for guests to take pictures with! However, disposable cameras may be a safer (and cheaper) bet, plus they still have the look of the plastic lens that I like.
via Style Me Pretty

I LOVE this guest book idea! I've been trying to find something unique enough to suit my tastes other than the typical and literal "guest book" or having everyone sign a big photo mat or something. This is so suited to me, having everyone write little notes on a postcard! I JUST so happen to collect vintage postcards and just so happen to have a hefty little stash of them right now. Perfect? I think so. I know that Justin and I would have fun sitting around after the wedding reading everyone's notes. And how pretty would they all look in an album or collaged on a wall?
via Style Me Pretty

I love this picture. Definitely campy but whoever said there was anything wrong with a little campiness here and there? We're getting married on a farm so this feels appropriate. Plus, I love the bride's look, her cute hair cut and headpiece is adorably 1920's looking.
via Style Me Pretty

How perfect are these flowers? My colors exactly.