Engagement Brain Sunday, February 28, 2010

I made a doctor's appointment recently, and the nice woman taking the appointments asked me a million questions, which included, "Are you married or single?" I answered, "Mar-- I mean, sing-- um..." Finally I just said, "Sorry, I'm engaged!" And she laughed with me. I was mortified! But she seemed to understand.

A few days later, having forgotten my embarrassment, I picked up the phone at home and it was some telemarketer pretending to be a friend of my FH. (I guess that's their new strategy now?). He said, "Well, is this Mrs. _______?" And I said, "Ye-- um... not, I mean-- almost!" Unfortunately, the poor man was embarrassed and confused, and I explained, "I'm sorry, we're getting married in a few months! I never know what to say anymore!" And he said, "Congratulations!" and apologized profoundly if he'd offended me. Of course, I had to apologize for embarrassing him.

I guess I would have a prepared answer to these questions if FH and I were not engaged. If we lived together before deciding to get married, for instance, or if we were just dating, the distinction would definitely be clearer. I would know what to say to telemarketers, and it would probably be on my mind that I am still legally single, despite what my heart says.

As we get closer to the wedding, I am more and more comfortable with the idea that FH and I will be married. There's definitely a shock factor (married!), but it's true I already think of him as my partner in life. I have accidentally referred to him as "my husband" more than once, and he revealed to me that he's called me his "wife" when talking to friends!

I'm glad we're having a long engagement, but it's difficult to feel "in transition" for so long. I wonder if this isn't our minds' way of settling things down... and letting us know that the wait is almost over!

Chicago! Monday, January 18, 2010

Today I got an email showing that our engagement portraits were up. This is an email I'd been simultaneously dreading and looking forward to since the session last month. I waited for FH to sit with me and we looked at them together.

The verdict? Pretty good! Of the 90 shots given to us after our session, we marked half of them as our favorites. I'm not sure what we'll do with these shots. I plan to put at least one or two on our wedding webpage, and I'm going to order a print or two to display at our rehearsal dinner.

Three favorites from the photographer's blog:

 

 We very much enjoyed the snow! It was unbelievably fluffy and fun to walk on. Here's a shot of me gleefully kicking some snow towards FH. Take that!

 

There are more great shots, but I'm limited to showing the ones from the blog at the moment -- the rest are watermarked and on the photo-viewing page.

After I saw these, I said to David, "Wow, I sure look as though I love you very much!" It's nice to see so many shots of me looking adoringly at my future husband. It felt weird to see pictures of us kissing! And I am still disappointed that I never found the right coat. There are a few shots of me with the coat open (before I got too cold), and I like them -- it's like, "Hey, I have a shape under there!" Oh well. It was all I had. I am very happy that I was able to let it go and relax -- I think it shows in the pictures.

So that's the story of our engagement photos! As soon as I get some more blog-worthy images, I'll post them. I can't wait to show you the shots of our "snow dance!"

We Just Knew [Anniversaries] Saturday, January 2, 2010

A year ago this week, I was getting ready to go back to work after winter break, and my boyfriend and I had just come home from seeing Rachel Getting Married. At this time in our relationship, I was starting to feel like I knew he was "the one," and I was wondering what that would mean for us. I had an idea that he'd felt the same way, as he'd been hinting at it, but I wasn't sure.

Rachel Getting Married isn't really a story about a wedding, at least not on its surface. But it does feature several sincere and heartwarming wedding-related scenes, and by the end of the film, I couldn't help but wonder if this wonderful boyfriend of mine would be with me for our own, real-life wedding scenes. I wanted to know where we were going, but I was afraid to say anything, because I didn't want to risk being disappointed if we weren't on the same page. Actually, I was terrified. But I was doubly inspired because the movie is also about overcoming personal issues & fears. So, later that night, I decided to talk to FH about how I'd been feeling, and it ended up being perhaps the most memorable night of my life.

What started as a relationship talk, casually begun while taking down the Christmas tree, turned into an utterly emotional and somewhat unexpected discussion of how we felt for each other. It turns out that I'd had nothing to worry about. It was soon apparent that our feelings were mutual, and when we realized it, we made the mutual decision to be married. Married! Us! The exact moment might have been a surprise, but our engagement really wasn't. It was like we were just saying out loud the things we'd already known. And from that moment we were together in a way we hadn't been before. We were different.

Things were so informal that I never made an actual announcement. The next day, I called my mother and my two best friends, and we formally told his parents over dinner a few weeks later. I received a beautiful ring in March.

But on the night of our engagement, there was no ring, no bended knee, no asking anyone's permission. Just two people in love, who looked at each other and knew, and decided together. I can't imagine anything more personal or more romantic. Looking back on it now, FH says, "It matches our relationship. It's us."

*Photo by me.

But what will I wear? Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Ever since we hired our photographer, who is based in Chicago, I have really gotten more interested in the city. I've always loved big cities and the allure they hold; the convergence of people & culture... and I'm excited to visit a place I've only heard about in near-mythical terms.

Well, I'll get my chance -- in about three weeks, we're having our engagement pictures done - in Chicago! The area I live in (Dallas) is no slouch in the "city" department, but it will be so much fun to visit a new place. We'll be having our pictures done somewhere downtown, which I imagine will be decorated beautifully for the holidays. It might even be snowing!

Since FH has ties to the area (he went to grad school there) and I am just excited in general, we've decided to make a little vacation of it. We've planned a couple of activities to do and hope to hang around and see how the locals do it. So many things to plan: hotels to book, plane tickets, what to do with the cats while we're away, booking a pre-photoshoot hair appointment, figuring out WHAT TO WEAR.

I am someone who gets *very* cold, so being cute while freezing is just not on my agenda. I have to come up with some way to be stylish and photogenic while keeping warm. Since I'm in the market for a new coat anyway, I might as well incorporate it into my look!

I have a couple of inspirations. One is this lovely engagement-in-the-snow portrait (plenty more beautiful shots where these came from):

I love the white coat in the snow. Of course, part of the drama of this shot is the falling snow, which I have no idea whether we can replicate. But she looks nice. Here's another, more dramatic shot (different couple, different photographer):


Yesterday, I found this paparazzi photo from jezebel.com:


I like this look very much. While I don't think I want my fiance to attack my ear to buy a printed coat, I love the casual structure of this look, the way the scarf fits, the sleek gloves. It helps that I love her hair as well. This is a good example of how I'd like to look... but without the ear-biting guy, thanks.

So, now I need a coat. I love the look of a light color, because I know photographically I'll just disappear in black. I fell for this Old Navy coat. It was perfect: a good length, some waist definition, the little pockets, the fabric across the back... but when it arrived it wasn't nearly as flattering as it appeared.




The length was all wrong (it fell halfway between my calves & my ankles), the waist was too high, the sleeves didn't fit. I ordered two sizes; one was too small, and one was too big. Back to square one!

I found this military coat at DrJays.com, which bills itself as an "urban" clothing store:


Not sure if it's what I'm after, since it only comes in black. But I love the cut & the length. There's certainly plenty of structure there! I also love that Dr. Jays' plus size section features one model, and it tells you what size she's wearing in the picture. So helpful!

Then I found Avenue.com, which features Jessica London coats. Jackpot! My three favorites:



My only complaint is the length. I'm not nearly as tall as these models! Of these three, my favorite is the walking coat (shown in camel; I'd get gray), with the tweed coat a close second. I love those open necklines!

For accessories, I'm thinking some pretty drop earrings, a scarf in a beautiful face framing color (maybe a dark pink, to go with the gray coat and my brown-ish hair) & gloves. Add my jeans & a sweater, and I'll be set!

How much thought did you put into your engagement portrait outfit?

How Sweet... Friday, June 12, 2009

How sweet is this engagement shoot from photographer Jonathan Canlas?