Barbeques and Bonfires!

How could I forget to post this!?! Being hosts and having guests in our home is such a joy for Josh and I so of course summertime barbeques and bonfires are our favorite. Josh gets an oppurtunity to show of all his hard work in the garden and I get to eat smores. If you have next Saturday evening free, by all means please stop by, we'd love to have you over. It's a chance to see everyone before the wedding madness begins, catch up with those you haven't seen in a while, and meet new faces. BYOB and we hope to see you there!

Two down, one more to go...

Congratulations Tom and Heather! We're so happy for you and your new life together. I had to share the photos from this amazingly beautiful wedding:

Heather and Tom Barry Tilson Photography slideshow

Summertime and the livin's easy

This blog would not be a truthful representation of this wedding process if I didn't honestly discuss how emotionally drained and overwhelmingly stressed I have been lately. I think a combination of focusing all my energy towards the other two weddings and coming to terms with how much work still needs to go into making our wedding a success, has really made this summer a trying time for Josh and I. Also, not having our annual camping trips, beach days, or other usual summertime activity is a bigger sacrifice than I thought it would be. I'm seeing now how important it is to maintain your normal non-wedding life's activities amidst all the wedding planning. So from here on out, the excitement and joy for our Big Day is what will keep us going. We can't sweat the small stuff. And we must remember that despite all the wedding craziness this year...everyday we wake up as the same Josh and Sheila (who happen to be exchanging vows in a couple months). Anyone want to go canoeing?

And so it begins

Zach and Breaha were married this past weekend! Wedding 1 of 3 was quite a success if I do say so myself. Thanks you guys for letting us be a part of your remarkable wedding. Enjoy some photos:

Zach & Breaha's Blaine Siesser Photography slideshow

Halfway there

6 months to go!

To help with wedding costs, Josh and I complied a list of things needed for the wedding, that we believe can be obtain by borrowing from friends and family(or friends of friends and family). Please let us know if you or anyone you know have any of these items and would be willing to let us use for the wedding.

white christmas lights
cake stands
mini cupcake baking tins
blue or green empty wine bottles (these would be to have not borrow, since we plan to cut them up)
tiki torches
picnic tables
yard games (horseshoes, bocce ball)
roasting sticks
white, green or blue hydrangeas (if someone has a hydrangea bush and would be willing to let us cut some stems to contribute to flower arrangements)

Photo booths vs Polaroids

I mentioned before that Whitney and I went to a bridal show a few weekends ago. The photos above are souvenirs from the day, the show had two photo booths and they were allowing people to try them out in hopes of booking weddings...for a hefty price of course. These photo booths are available for a rental fee of $1000-$1500. Don't get me wrong, I think it's a fun activity for the guests and a great way to get photos of all your guests but that's a big hunk of money. I believe using Polaroid instant cameras is a great alternative.

It can be even more fun and personal for your guests if you throw in fun props such as hats, glasses, and mustaches:

Or hang up some patterned fabric as a backdrop that matched your wedding colors.

This wedding had a school theme so a blackboard was used for the background at the Polaroid station. Guests could write messages for the bride and groom and a photo album was set out to house the instant photos.So here's the breakdown; you can purchase an instant Polaroid camera off Ebay for $5-$15. As for film, $200 will buy you enough for 100 shots and considering people usually pose in groups that'll give a guest list of 100 at least two times in front of the camera. Throw in miscellaneous props and a photo album and you still have savings of at least $700!!!

Here's a link to a wedding with some horribly fun photos from their own DIY photo booth.

Tea leaves, sushi and green tea ice cream

Thank the Lord for friends coming over to help assemble our Save the Date cards.I designed postcards and magnets to be uploaded to vistaprint.com where I also ordered a return address stamp all for $40. I found leaf stamps at Mejier on clearance for $2 and purchased a green ink stamp pad (the color was called "Tea Leaves") from JoAnns using a gift card I received at Christmas from Josh's cousin.

Sarah attached the magnets to each postcard, Aja and Kayla did all the stamping, and Whitney hand-addressed all the envelopes.I'm surprised we didnt get Carpal Tunnel syndrome from all the assembling, especially since took a break to make homemade sushi and crab rangoons...yumm! We finished off the day by watching My Big Fat Greek Wedding and treating ourselves to green tea ice cream. Good work ladies!(Maid of Honor-Sarah, bridesmaid-Whitney, crafty lady-Kayla, photographer-Aja)

Merry Christmas!

To my family in Arizona who we miss every day that they're away from home.
To my beautiful Nicole in beautiful France.
To Whitney who's spending her winter break in Europe.
To Josh's family who have taken me in for the 4th Christmas now and make everything so merry and bright.
To Will and Kory who spent a whole day after-Christmas shopping with us.
To Sarah for rocking out with me to 80's music.
To TJ and Uriah, congratulations on your Christmas engagement!
To everyone in our lives near and far, thanks for making this Holiday season such a special one! Hope it was the best for you and yours.
Love, Josh and Sheila

Life goes on

What have I been doing with myself? One might ask after noticing how infrequently I've been posting on here.

#1 Belly dancingThe Habibi Dancers had a show at the Riverwalk theater on November 22nd, and 23rd. Beyond the Borders was amazing and I am so thrilled to have been a part of it. We performed many peices that were outside our normal spectrum of traditional Middle-Eastern dance. The picture above is from a fusion bellydance/African number.

#2 ThanksgivingMy future sister-in-law and bridesmaid Breaha invited the family up to her place for Thanksgiving this year. We shared the weekend with her fiancee's family, and I thoroughly enjoyed the time we all spent together. Games, swimming, movies, talking about vampries (see note below) shopping and of course great food. I truly hopes this becomes a long time tradition for our families.

#3 More belly dancingA local Middle-Eastern restaurant, Aladdin's, has troupe members perform during dinner hours on the 1st and 3rd Friday of the month. Yesterday I danced there for the first time and had a blast! I felt nervous and clumsy but loved every minute of it, cant wait to do it again. My beautiful bra and belt set was hand made by the mother-in-law of another woman in our troupe, and that was the first time I've gotten to wear it. Isn't it gorgeous?

*note: I also have not been able to put down Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series. So a lot, if not all, of my free time as been spent reading these books. I've had vampires on the brain for two weeks now. If you know me, you know that I don't enjoy reading books (the last one I read was 3 years ago and before that was required reading for a high school Lit. class) see my bridesmaid Heather's blog entry regarding these books.

The game plan

Here it goes; our wedding plans.

As you know, the wedding will take place at the home of my family's close friends Steve and Gail. The ceremony will be in the woods of their property and reception in a field adjacent to these woods. There will be space for camping, a big glowing bonfire and Sunday brunch to follow, of course. In case of rain, the ceremony can be held under our tent. The tent will be built by my wonderful father(with the helpof Josh's groomsman and my brothers). In the initial budget run through, it was realized that renting a tent for $1500+ was absurd, and my genius dad suggested that he could build the tent with lumber that could be torn down and reused after the wedding, for $600 or less. Yipee! This in turn sparked a fire to try and replace anything I initially thought needed to be purchased for the wedding with items that are used or can be borrowed. Thus lowering costs and the carbon footprint our Big Day will create.

We will be married by Josh's father. Rex is the perfect person to conduct our marriage ceremony for three reasons:

1. Rex worked many years as a sucessful salesman which = good public speaking skills. He also traveled with this work doing workshop to teach his skills to others in sales and now does public workshops with his new career in healing.
2. Rex is a skilled healer and spiritual counseler. His insight and intuitive touch will make for what we believe will be a touching and deeply moving ceremony.
3. Josh and I have always wanted someone near and dear to us officiate the wedding. Nuff said.
   

Choosing wedding colors also came easily. My engagement ring contains two sapphires (my birthstone) on either side of a diamond taken from an old ring of Josh's. The day after Josh proposed, I was admiring the ring and realized I would wear the sapphire pendant my grandmother gave to me for my high school graduation. Green was choosen when it was decided we were going with a casual, rustic feel for the day. Blue will be an accent color since green is more evident in nature (duh).

Prior to the engagement I'd always believed that friends and family should have little to no involvement and responsibility beyond showing up, looking beautiful, and having the time of their lives. I just want our loved ones to enjoy the day for what it is; the union and celebration of two beloved people. I have thoroughly changed my viewpoint on this matter. I've realized that if I am to stay under budget and keep my sanity, we're going to have to enlist help from the troops. The key will be to ask everyone, and I mean everyone, to be responsible for one task. This way no one is being overwhelmed with several tasks, and everyone has a role to play. And besides, this union and celebration will be that much more personal and meaningful if all those close to us have contributed in one way or another.

Flowers will be provided by a neighbor of ours who has green hydrangea bushes and we will pick Queen Anne's Lace as they are free and grow wildly everywhere in Michigan. Ceremony music will be played by Matt and Steffan, two highschool friends of mine on acoustic guitar and Mandolin. The day will be documented in photographs by my wonderful, Aja, who has assisted me in wedding and event photography in the past. I'd love to have women from my troupe, the Habibi Dancers, perform at the reception. I'm trying to enlist a friend to do a mini Salsa lesson to encourage interaction between guests and we'll have open salsa, merengue and bachata dancing for a small portion of the reception. We wont have cake, but would like a mini desserts table with goodies made by any talented cooks we know who are wiling to contribute. Josh's old bandmates, Ben and Whitney, will hopefully do an acoustic set to kick off the after party. Sunday brunch will be prepared and served by the entire wedding party.

Go team go!

Our beautiful wedding location

We've had amazing weather for November in Michigan. The past couple of days have been in the low 70's. Today I walked around our yard barefoot for the first time in weeks! I wanted to be sure to post these photos while it's still felt like fall in these parts. Josh and I finally made it out to our ceremony/reception site to finalize all the layout for the actual ceremony, where the tent will be built, and areas for camping. My parent's good friends, Steve and Gail, have been gracious enough to suggest using their property for our wedding and we couldn't have asked for a better location. Not to mention they are absolutely the some of the nicest and laid-back people you will ever meet. Gail even told me that day about her wedding experience, a drive through chapel in Vegas, and her wishes to renew their vows in the middle of the Grand River with wading boots on! Their place is 5 miles west of our house in Grand Ledge and it really is nature at it's finest. We are SO lucky to be getting married at there. These photos were taken on a cold Autumn day, but keep in mind our date is set for August 22nd.

This is the path back to the location of the ceremony. All our guests will have a nice little walk through the woods to get there.

Clearing in the woods where we will get married!
Their dogs and cat followed us while we walked around the property.
path to the Reception tent.
This is where the reception will be. My dad and the guys will build our tent from the ground up here. Look at Josh and Gail all bundled up, it was cold that day.
Steve and Gail's horses, what a beautiful site/sight!

OCD

Maybe I should get it out there that I am a perfectionist and probably a little obsessive compulsive. It's to the point where I mostly never let anyone help me with anything, because I only want things done my way. That sounds so horrible in writing but it's true. We just had our 2nd annual Halloween Bash and this is one of the first times I've allowed other people to help me cook food and hang decorations for a party. I love being a hostess, but with that comes my urgent need for everything to be absolutely wonderful and impressive. I want the largest selection of food, the funnest atmosphere and an amazingly good time to be had by all...except for me. I always spend so much energy trying to make everything perfect that I stress way out and don't enjoy one minute of it. Even my own engagement party was spent watching a pot of water boil for corn because I was so busy trying to do everything myself that I forgot to turn the stove on for such a little thing.

So the Halloween party...I will say that I still went back and moved some decorations around, BUT there were many things I forced myself not to care about and just be grateful that people were wiling and able to help. And I had a blast! People were fed and fun was had by all including me! I desperately have to keep this experience in mind for our Big Day. It's perfectly fine to let go of my own image of how things need to be. We're getting married and nothing else matters, right?

I had sent out an email to our families and wedding party with a list of items we were hoping to obtain for our wedding. I tried to make little to no specifications on the items, forcing me to make do with what I'm given. After all beggars can't be choosers. I received the 1st items off my list the day of our Halloween party. Josh's mom had called earlier in the day asking me what type of blue vases I was looking for. In the midst of party preparation I had no time to return her call and when Josh's brother Nick showed up for the party with the vases, I got nervous about what they looked like. "what if they're not our style? the wrong shade of blue? too small? too big?" I opened the bag to find she had purchased vases that look identical to ones I had gotten on clearance months ago! It was a sign; If I can learn to let go, then I will be rewarded with beautiful blue vases. Er... I mean...don't worry, be happy.

Josh loves Sheila...and Sheila said yes

Alright, so that first post was more of a "testing...one..two..." kind of entry. You may have read it and wondered to yourself-I thought this was supposed to be a blog about Josh and Sheila's wedding? Well it is, and I'll have you know that life as we know it does not stop for a wedding. It goes on.

Let me give you a Mission Statement:

I will strive to not allow this wedding consume our lives for the next 10 months. I'll embrace this period of engagement as an opportunity to enjoy the planning of this wedding with Josh and create beautiful memories along the way. I will encourage bonds of family and friendship to become even closer by involving others in the process as much as possible. I will fulfill this mission and maintain my role as photographer, receptionist, belly dancer, and bridesmaid(x2).

Basically, I am going to blog about the wedding, yes, and every other occurrences in my life whether it applies to the planning process or not. I'm going to write about how happy dancing makes me, because in the middle of all this prenuptial stress it's the one thing I look forward to the most. I'm going to write about the hours I'm putting in answering phones, greeting visitors, copying, faxing, filing, and organizing office supplies Mon-Fri, 8am-5pm, because it's what's paying for the wedding of our dreams. I'm going to write about my photo customers and their sessions because it's the #1 thing that get's my creative juices flowing (not to mention I'm getting great ideas from the weddings I shoot). I'm going to write about my two bridesmaids who live in town and I don't see or appreciate nearly as much as I should, my two bridesmaids who are also getting married and have kindly asked me to stand beside them on their big days, and my one bridesmaid in France who I miss so dearly, because I love them all so much. I''m going to write about every single thought and every little wish for our big day because in the end, we may not be able to execute or even apply all the wedding ideas to ours, but maybe someone else will get some use out of it.

So I do expect your input. Please tell me what you think. Give me your ideas. Help me out, people. And if along the way you see any hint of Bridezilla coming out, for god's sake, let me know.