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Hey Darlings! How are you? I hope everyone had a great memorial day weekend. Mine was awesome, Aaron surprised me with a quick get away to D.C. for the weekend. It was well needed and we had a ball. So while relaxing and collecting myself for the rest of the work week it hit me, I haven't introduced you to my girls. I love them! They are all gorgeous and mean the absolute most to me. Most of them have been through thick and thin with me. They are hands down some of the prettiest and best friends and family a girl could ever dream for! We don't turn heads when we step out, we BREAK NECKS! I couldn't imagine having any others standing with me to marry my babe! So, meet the girls....

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My Maid of Honor Morgan. Everyone say heyyyyy Morg! I don't think I would have chose anyone else to be my maid of honor. Not that I had a lot of options. I love my big sister. I aspire to be like her one day. She is great person inside and out. 

PictureBrittany
My Britt! Say hello to princess Brittany! She is the epitome of a lady! We have been joined at the hip since we fell out of the womb. From dressing alike as kids to college. We really have done it all together. I'm ride or die for my little big cousin Britt! Love her...

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Jazzy! Love my Jadamae. Say heeyyy Jasmine. Jasmine was right there with me and Britt dressed up! The triplets that never were...I couldn't imagine not having my Jadamae in my wedding. She's a girl of few words but when she speaks know it's from the heart. Love you boo!

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Wong! This my little pit in a mini! A pure fool. We argue, fuss, fight,  all of the above with one another. I honestly can say I love and hate her at the very same time. She is the person behind all my wild ventures. Say Koneeechhhheeewaaaa Tyanne! She is joined in the wedding by her beautiful daughter my god baby DiorNatalie pictured below! Bow to my princess!

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DiorNatalie
PictureLaToya
My Toya! I certainly couldn't get married without her by my side. She is one of the most beautiful people I have ever met inside and out. Love this girl. Say hello to my college roomie of 3 years LaToya! Wave to my favorite Delta girl!

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Say heyyyy Christina! My girls since the 3rd grade. We have been through it all! But she still remained my girl. I can appreciate her realness as a friend and I couldn't be more thankful for her taking part in my special day. She is also joined by her little angel AlexandraIsabella as a flower girl pictured below.

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AlexandraIsabella
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Say hello to Milinya...My beautiful sister in law to be. Aaron probanbly wouldn't marry me if I didn't have her in the wedding, and I don't think I would have left her out myself. She's a beautiful person. Can't wait to have her as one of my sister in laws. She is also joined by her daughters Kiki and Taja as Jr. Bridesmaid and Flower girl.

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Kiki and Taja
PictureKrystal
Last but not least! My Pride. The sweetest person I've ever met. I love her. She gives me all sorts of wild advice and she lets me worry her to death. I've known her for years but we just recently got close in the last five years. Hopefully our friendship will remain the same...Love my Krystal. Say heyyyy Pride!

So that's all the girls in my wedding party! If you know them, then you know the wedding will be full of personality and character! They are all something else individually! I know we are going to have a ball. We already are having a ball actually. I love them all in their own special way. Each of these people mean the world to me. I cannot wait to turn up at my wedding with my girls....While it seems all I need is my babe, life wouldn't be life without my crazy girls! Peace and as always...LOVE YOU.
 
Hey My Loves! How is everyone? Checking in to first and foremost thank everyone for all the Save the Date love! The reviews and comments have really been awesome! I cannot wait for you all to take part in our special day. Hopefully it will be as awesome as our save the date! Aaron and I have really been working hard squaring things away for this wedding. It's so much to do in what now feels like a little bit of time. Hopefully the blessings will continue and the plans will fall into place smoothly.
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One of the biggest things we have been working towards is having a place to live. We have toyed with the idea of living in an apartment, staying with my or his parents to save for a house, or simply just trying to qualify for a house. We have decided to try our home with a house. With our current family situations I couldn't imagine living any place else right now. If our employment takes us else where then we will go but currently we plan to reside in Richmond. Working in the mortgage business has made me aware of how much of buyer's market it is right now. The rates are really low and the prices of homes are at an all time low. In some cases Mortgages can be a lot less than paying rent. With that being said we decided it would be smarter to invest in a home right now while the time is right. We have worked hard in getting our credit where it should be to secure a home loan. Thankfully it's safe to say, we are ready! Our goal is to buy a home with the potential of one day being an investment property. Fingers crossed and prayers up for us and our journey! I'm already looking at different types of décor and neighborhoods for us! I'm so excited....

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I also bought my wedding shoes with the help of a special lady in my life! They are definitely ALL OF THE ABOVE! I cannot wait to strut down the aisle to my King. The shoes are probably the prettiest shoes I've ever owned. They're timeless so having them a year early means nothing. 10 year from now my shoes will still be hot! They don't match anything about my wedding. They're  a different color than my wedding colors. I picked these shoes because I looked and looked and they kept popping up and I kept liking them. They are pretty much sold out everywhere. Saks, Nordstrom, Zappos, Bloomy's...you name it they're gone! I can't wait to wear them on our special day. I've been breaking them in daily to ensure they fit and continue to feel great!

Last but not least....Where in the world am I going for my honeymoon?? I would love to know but it's Aaron's surprise to me. Apparently he has just about paid for that. How great is my babe?!? I'm excited to see what he has planned for us to do after we tie the knot. I'm generally the planner so this will be a total shocker. I'm hoping for gorgeous white sand and the sweet serenity of a private island....Keep dreaming right? well that's all we've been up to making it happen for team US! Talk to you later!
OOps! Not so fast....I almost forgot. I got my braces off!!!!! Check me out. Can't shake the smile right now!
 
What's Up? The blog update I have been anxiously waiting for! O M freakin' G! So after all the mix ups and drama the save the date is finally ready! I'm so excited. So... as I said, I've been wrecking my brain since about fall 2012 about how and what exactly I wanted my save the date to be. It really had me worried. I like really creative things and I like things to be kind of a big deal at all times. I also wanted to do something that would reach all crowds and age groups. So I said let's mix a little of their old school with a little of our new school! But I still had no clue how I wanted to do so. One day back in February, it was a snow day at Bank of America so I was sent home early I got on YouTube and searched "save the date," I don't know what made me do it but I did...and BABY let me tell you...The wheels started turning and they haven't stopped since! The light bulbs went off like fireworks and I saw my save the date vision come to life. I immediately called Aaron and I called my cousin to get their opinion. Everyone fell in love with the ideas. I knew it was for us! So then there was another hang up. Who in the world knows how to put anything on YouTube? How will I get my people to look at YouTube? So I started working at it again. I googled my life away. Finally I found what I was looking for. I said well who will make this for me again? I'm no graphic artist. This thing was beating me up on the inside.
I was kind of feeling like I could do this thing myself but I was kind of feeling like I don't want my save the date to look "live from the kitchen". If you know me then you know my big brother is an entertainer in Atlanta so I contacted him like "Yooooooo." he hit me back and supplied exactly who I needed and at the right price. He put me in contact with Ahmed of Black Wunda Films and he was saying everything I wanted to hear. It was like an instant connection. He saw my vision and knew what to do to make things happen. Then I contacted my brother from another "D" of D'zines by Danon and he also was feeling my vision. The prices were right and we brought this thing to life. So I know you're wondering "what is this save the date already?!?" Wait for it.....
Meanwhile, in order for the graphics to look right I felt like new pictures were necessary so Aaron and I took more pictures using our 2nd wedding photographer Johkari Trueheart of JT photography. Yep, 2nd photographer. I mean....I need all angles of my wedding so two was necessary, but any who...With my recent hair growth I thought it was appropriate to bring this up to date. This pictures turned out perfect. We went to Maymount Park's Japanese Garden and had a blast! The whole time we're taking pictures I'm praying to sweet baby Jesus that my save the dates come out as I want them to be.
This whole save the date action took place on a Sunday by Wednesday of that week snippets and results began rolling in and everything looked perfect! I honestly couldn't believe it because contrary to popular belief I don't live in a perfect world! I was so excited...I'm still excited. If this is any indication of how my wedding with go and marriage will go I'm ALL IN! So here goes...
On YouTube.com there were many many video save the dates from photo videos, to live videos to cartoons. I wanted a video for my save the date. As you know our wedding is at Richmond's Center Stage where many shows come and live performances. I wanted my save the date to reflect my venue. So I went with the video. Along with the video I mailed to all of my guests a "movie flyer" the movie flyer which directed them to watch our "movie" on YouTube.com. Kind of clever right?
D did an awesome job on the "movie flyer". It looks just as I envisioned it using our wedding colors Midnight, Ivory and Blush Pink.  Above is the back and front of our movie flyer. Of course I ordered custom envelopes to send them in...they turned out cute as well. This is where the drama began...The first company I went with to print them jacked them all up, had words cut off and all types of wild things. I was steaming hot, then the envelope company sent the wrong size envelopes. Keep in mind I addressed the envelopes long before the print company jacked the flyers up. So I had to call and lay a few people out, preached a few funerals....all types of wild things! Non the less I got everything squared away with a few delays but we're here. Shooting the actual video was amazing! Ahmed is awesome, he literally bought out the best in us for this video. We shot the video at my home, my mom has the house decorated very vintage but still chic and it picked up our theme nicely!  Don't judge me, I don't have any rhythm at ALL! We decided to do a music video to Marvin Gaye ft. Tammie Terell "You're All I need to Get By" I think we did awesome! My goals was for my guest to save the date but also not forget the date! Please please please go watch our video and leave comments to let us know you saw it! I hope you enjoy! Peace.
 
13 more months to go....Still a little while but time is flying. So I've been working away at this wedding like a slave pretty much by myself. The list is getting a lot smaller and the time is winding closer but not close enough. Apart of me wishes to move the date up the other part is happy I waited. I'm a perfectionist and I can't work under rushed conditions; not to mention at the time of my engagement my dad had and still has some serious health issues that are far more important than any wedding. Thankfully and prayerfully he has come around and we are well on our way to a wedding!
As you know my wedding theme is vintage chic. The whole vintage piece has me amped. I have been stalking my local thrift stores for a particular type of glass vase and I have been very successful. I'm learning the smaller surrounding county thrift stores have the best selection. Unfortunately I will not disclose exactly what I'm looking for until after the wedding. I will say it was extremely classy back in the day and its a specialty. I have a team hunting for these vases and so far we have found about 25 within the last two months. I need about 10 more to complete what I have. I have people in the DMV area looking, Charlottesville, and Richmond. I am also collecting jars for my wedding. Any kind of glass jar without the lid. I'm talking jam jars, sphagetti sauce jars, candle jars, any type of jar! I need... The jars haven't been that easy to come across but push come to shove ill buy what's necessary for those. The jars are apart of my decor but they aren't for flower arrangements, they're accent pieces to really bring out the rustic feel of our vintage theme.
I've also been wrecking my brain for this save the date. So I finally came up with an idea and built a team of talented individuals to help me implement my vision. My save the date brings out my wedding location, our wedding them, and the silliness of our love and relationship. I'm excited, so with this save the date we decided on more engagement pictures that are a little more fun. Again, I won't be disclosing exactly what the save the date is but they will be mailed out between 10-12 months prior to the wedding. My save the dates will also include lodging info and wedding info because the bulk of our guests are from out of town.
So we have 13 months to go and as of right now the only things I'm left to do is...pick my 2nd photographer, food tasting at my venu, and find wedding shoes. I'm a planner, I plan to have this wedding finished by September 2013 so that October-April I can coast and enjoy being a bride to be with my bridesmaids. I cannot wait for Aaron and I to share this special day with our families. My goal is to not only have a great time at my wedding but to also provide a time where my family can come and enjoy the day with me. I could have easily envolved my whole family and rushed through my wedding, but I want everyone to enjoy my day with me and I wanted to do this the debt free way. Hold your horses, the wedding is coming and will be worth the wait! -Bye
 
Saturday March 16th we had our first bridesmaids meeting. This meeting we went over expectations of bridesmaids outfits and different events we will be having throughout the year. The meeting was slow starting but ended up being very very fun! All but one of my 8 bridesmaids attended. I think that is very good turn out for my first official meeting. I'm excited for the upcoming year. I looked around the meeting and said to myself my bridesmaids are BAD!!!! I provided food and they brought wine. On the menu we had chicken wingettes, meatballs, seafood salad, pasta salad, veggie tray, fruit tray, spinach dip, sangria, daquris, and of course the wine they brought. We have decided on the dresses and everyone will wear. The booklets I made for them have detailed information in regards to budget, hair, nails, makeup, fitness, and of course undergarments. Everyone seems to have had a blast. The drinks and food were yum and I'm very excited for our next event in May or June. The girls decided at every event we will end by doing the wobble just to keep it light and have that dance fresh for the reception. I love them...below are some pics from Saturday's event. Bye...
 
Heyy! It's late..but something has been wearing my brain out for the past few days so I decided to do a blog about it. So I get asked all the time "Who is your best friend?" and I always answer I don't really have one of those. My friends have been my friends for years...we are all from the same area, we all know each other's familes, and we are always together even when we aren't together. But I don't really refer to any of them as a "best friend." It seems to elementary but everyone has a best friend, right? I mean so I've been asking my self..."who is my best friend?" I kinda have myself wondering now, lol. So, what exactly is a best friend...Your best friend you share secrets with, your best friend is at your lowest point and at you highest point with you, your best friend plucks your last nerve, your best friend is the person you experience a lot of "firsts" with and a lot of "lasts" with. So when I think about it while I've expeireiced alot with my girls nothing comes close to what my babe and I have had these last five years. There's been a lot of highs and many lows in our realtionship. We've had a lot of firsts together and he will be there for the lasts. When I'm making a fool of myself he's right there laughing and when he's telling a horrible joke I'm right there laughing. We argue, we fuss, we get on each others nerves constantly. He knows me and I know him. Clearly....I'M MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND!
 
I know! It's been far too long since I've updated my blog! My apologies for the neglect. I'm in a new more demanding position at work and the cake business is rolling so I've been super busy. No complaints....God is still good! So since the last update I've dress shopped, celebrated valentine's day, and I've met with the person in charge of decor! That's a lot right? I'm a girl on the move...I like to make things happen.
So I found my dress! Can you freaking believe it!? I'm still shocked. I never imagined myself in a wedding dress until February 2nd 2013, the day I fell in love with my dress. I had a wedding dress panel as I discussed in a previous blog. My panel consisted of My mother of course, My sister/maid of honor, my god mother/aunt Sandra, and my god mother Deda. I went to two locations Bella Rosa Bridal and Alfred Angelo Boutique. Let me start off by saying Bella Rosa has unquestionable service! I worked with Brittany who was absolutely awesome! This girl knew her stuff about wedding gowns and what would look great on me. I tried on about 10 gowns and it came down to the last two.  I left there and headed to Alfred Angelo where things went from awesome to horrible in a matter of seconds. I tried on about six dresses and every dress was horrible. Very cheap manufactured looking dresses. It just wasn't for me. No to mention the service that matched the quality of wedding apparel in the store. Horrible. I do not recommend this place to my worst enemies. After the horrendous experience I called back over to Bella Rosa and advised I would be purchasing the next to last dress I tried on named "Nelly"! It was over my budget but the dress was absolutely breath taking. From the lace to the tulle to the beading...breath taking. It was everything I said I didn't want on a dress but everything I needed to make my wedding complete. I went with a Kathy Ireland fitted A-line ivory dress. Yep you guessed it, I have a big train on my dress. Sounds princess like? Not at all...It's very vintage old Hollywood with a hint of sex appeal wrapped in a ball of CLASS. I'm actually drooling at the thought of it. I did try on some accessories with the dress that will give me two different looks from ceremony to reception with the same dress....I would love to share more but I definitely want you to be surprised come May 3rd, 2014! My dress is being made as we speak and will be ready at the end of August!

Valentine's day...That's just another day
for Aaron and myself. He gives me flowers at least once a month, he's always showering me with gifts and we have date night at least once a week. I love him not question in my mind. This year was a little different for us though. I typically go all out with his gift. Nothing big but it's usually
something he can use like a gift basked with a nice shirt and few of his
favorite things. This year I had to put brakes on my car so that was cut short because riding foreign is NO JOKE! My brakes were $900. I bought him a sweater and some polo gloves. He was pleased...as usual, with his easy going self. He bought my the typical vday stuff with my LV bandeau and a dinner date. It was light but it really gave me the opportunity to realize how much gifts don't matter when you're happy. Happiness is derived from within. I enjoyed tripping with him the entire weekend without all the other stuff.

Last but not least...I met with the lady in charge of my decor. I'm amped like my wedding is tomorrow. So as you know my theme is vintage chic! Man o man....She brought that thing to life. I took some pictures and she just put that thing into overdrive! the details are going to be breath taking. I'm actually incorporating every married couple in our families dead and alive with my theme. She is awesome. What I loved is, she is actually a florist so it was a one stop shop for decor and flowers! I really don't have much details to give because I gave her some pictures and she told me what we should do it flowed just like that. She gave me some tasks that I have to do between now and April 2014 that involve Antique shops and thrift stores. How freaking awesome! I cannot wait to begin my quest for these treasures. May 3rd 2014 Better get ready for me!
So, that's what I've been doing! Loving and living every moment of this wedding planning. This year and two months is about to roll around so fast. Next up is my first bridesmaids event. We will be meeting at my maid of honors house for wine and wedding talk. The letters have gone out and we will be discussing what to expect in the coming year for my wedding. From dresses, to exercises, to etiquette, to bachelorett! It's going down in March! That's all that I have for now....SeeYa!
 
 

What's up!? So I'm sitting here listening to my music. It has been a few weeks! Happy New Year! So since the new year I've been going hard trying to meet my goals and planning this wedding! I had a mini revelation about this wedding. While I want everything to be fabulous I also want to walk away from my wedding with some money in the bank. So I'm still doing my vintage chic theme, but from a "less is more" stand point. I plan on making my own favors which are will still be jaw dropping but a lot cheaper. Those are a surprise. I need them to remain original until after May 3rd 2014! LOL I'm just going another route with this wedding. I'm excited...because even with my "less is more" standpoint, it will still be jaw dropping and absolutely amazing. While I'm planning my little heart out I'm still doing a lot. We are saving to buy a house! How exciting to get married home owners. Apartments are cool, but it’s hustling backwards at our age. I'm also still growing my hair and it is growing fast! I've found my hair inspiration and I should be there by summer. In addition to those things I'm still working on my weight and I'm also working on my skin. I've been in the gym 4 days a week and I've been focused on my weight watchers. I have a twice a day skin regiment and it’s working great! So far everything looks great! I can't complain. I'm keeping it short tonight....Next up, Wedding Dress Shopping February 2nd.


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Check out my skin with minimal make up and of course my hair growth!
 
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.