Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! How was your Christmas? Mine was awesome. I hope Santa bought you everything you wanted. Christmas was a little different this year for me. Aaron and I celebrated on the 22nd of December instead of the 25th because he had to work. What a blow! But none the less, we had an amazing Christmas. We started off by going to Portrait Innovations Studios and taking Christmas Pictures to give to some friends and family with their Christmas Cards! How corny?!? But it was fun. Then we went to dinner at Texas De Brazil. That was really nice. If you’ve never been there, I think you should go! Make sure you’re hungry when you go! They really pile the food on! Then we ended the night with a room at the Omni hotel where we exchanged gifts and enjoyed the Christmas lights downtown. So I know you’re wondering what we gave each other for Christmas! Well we typically do it big for one another for Christmas. This year we were supposed to be going small but apparently Aaron doesn’t know what that means. I’ll start with what I bought him. I gave Aaron YSL L’Homme cologne gift set, a Michael Kors pea coat, a North Face Steep Tech Coat, Two pair of Levi’s Jeans, Two Ralph Lauren sweaters, a pair of Clark Wallabees and a pair of Lebron 10 Mangoes. I know that’s a lot! LOL but he’s worth it…and I’m sure things will slow up once we have kids and a then they will get everything! Now for what Aaron bought me…I got Prada Candy perfume, a Marc Jacobs watch, a pair of Nike AirMax 90’s, a pair of Ugg boots, Marc Jacob’s Dot perfume, a Nordstrom gift card, a North Face Jacket, and a gift card to the Louis Vuitton Store with half the money for my new bag on it. Ha! We gave way too much to one another but like I said whatever…that will all change once we have kids. On Christmas day I exchanged gifts with my family and we also had dinner at my aunt’s house in Fredericksburg, VA. That was nice! I love my family…they are crazy and all the ladies in my family are all divas! I love it…I couldn’t have asked for a better Christmas honestly and I’m excited for the New Year now. My wedding planning will be in 4th gear in 2013. I’m so excited. I cannot wait to put my plans in motion. Next on the list for my wedding planning is picking out my gown in February 2013 and my Bridesmaids meet and greet in March 2013. I’m excited to go over the wedding with them and reveal which dresses each bridesmaids will wear! Stay tuned for more updates! Bye…

 
So it's been a minute! What's up!?! I've been wrecking my brain about the struggles of finding the right dress. In all honesty I can imagine everything about my wedding and how I want everything to be but I cannot imagine myself in an all white dress. I don't wear white often and when I do it's not by choice. Well this time it's by default because I'm the bride LOL! So first I had to choose who I wanted to take with me to pick out dresses. I love my bridal party but I really don't even want them to know what my dress looks like until the day of the wedding. So I chose three people in addition to the people who have to be there such as my sister and my mother. These people were chosen based on their style and our relationship. I'm huge on relationships with people...It is important to have a relationship with people. You never know who you may need or who may need you. Okay enough of that. I chose two ladies that are near and dear to my heart and a friend. One of the ladies I chose because she is 50+ club but she is so cute and quirky to be her age. She also has been through a lot in life and no matter what lemons thrown her way she always make lemonade. I can't even say I have seen her truly upset. She's taught me so much, almost like a second mother to me. I appreciate her and I know she will cherish this moment with me forever. The 2nd person I chose is my god mother. This lady is straight up and down like 6 o'clock sharp. I love it. She does not cut any slack and she will tell you exactly what it is. She is also 50+ and fly in a conservative way. I chose her because she is one my god mother and two she has two sons so she may not have the opportunity to dress shop with anyone. I love her attitude and I also know with my being as fancy as I am her conservative edge will bring my back down to the reality of what really looks good and what really is too much! Last but not least my girl. She's my pride and joy, we talk every single day. I wouldn’t call her my best friend but she's one of my best friends! We talk all day about everything and more importantly fashion. This girl will push it to the limit! She is always up on the latest and the greatest and her edgy and up to date style is necessary for my wedding dress shopping. In addition to my three guests my mom and sister will be coming. My mom is conservative along with my sister. My sister kind of knows me though so I'm not concerned about her opinion and I'm almost sure she will go in this with an eye for what looks like me. My mom on the other hand will have me looking like a catholic priest if I let her. I'm joking...but my mom is really conservative. She always looks great but she looks at things as if she were looking for herself. It's cool...I know her. I know she won't lead me in the wrong direction. I'm excited to dress shop with these 5 ladies. I think I'm going to make little judge cards... (YES, NO, HEEEECKKKK NO, and MAYBE). My little say yes to the dress panel. Hopefully this experience will be fun and I will have my dress by the end of the day. We're going to two different bridal boutiques in Richmond, Va. Bella Rosa and Alfred Angelo. Hopefully one of these places have the perfect dress for me. Once my dress is chosen I will update a blog post will pictures of my panel and how things went. I am def not giving very many details of my dress but please believe it's going to be BAD!

Also! While I have been neglecting my blog I also had the opportunity to do a phone interview about being a plus size bride. YaNika Nicholas is the author of the book "Confidence is You". This book is a book of empowerment for the plus size community. I had the pleasure of answering questions and hearing a small portion of her chapter on being a plus size bride and finding the perfect dress. I want to encourage my blog readers to please join her group on FaceBook (Confidence is You) and follow her on Instagram (Confidence_Is_You). The book is scheduled to be released in Jan of 2013 so please buy a copy and support, I know i will be first in line for my copy. I also want to thank her for the opportunity to share my story as a plus size bride and being an inspiration to me and other women who battle with the struggle of weight.