Best. Day. Ever.

Well, here I am 11 days married and I am just now updating my blog. Hard to believe it’s over. It’s impossible to really describe that day accurately. It was filled with laughter and tears of joy, with feelings of complete and utter happiness, with friends and family and it went by so fast.

I know only two things for sure:

1. I love Tom more now than I ever knew was possible.
2. The reason why there is so little information on brides with disabilities is that when the day arrives it isn’t a factor. If you have spent any time being a person with a disability, you will get through the day just like you did the day before and just like you will do the day after.

I do have a few observations, for those of you who are interested:

1. Remember my entry about the shoes? Read it. Love it. Live it. Especially if you walk at all. I was on my feet A LOT more than I had planned on and was grateful that I had gone with sneakers and not dress shoes.
2. In addition to talking to your Photographer about what photos you want taken, talk about poses. My photographer knew me and my disability and worked with me accordingly, but if you don’t know your photographer he will need to know what works best for you.
3. Corset dresses may leave bruises. I am now sure these dresses are not meant for sitting. I had to keep standing because the boning on the dress cut into me when I sat down, After 15 to 20 minutes I had to stand. Keep this in mind when shopping the dress never hurt at any of my fittings.

And now, a few pictures of the best day ever:

Here I am, walking down the aisle with the best Dad in the whole world. I used one crutch and used him to support my other side. My other crutch was at the front and I used that one for the walk back down. (my crutches have a left and right.) My wheelchair was also up front just in case, but I did not use it.

Just after the "I Do's" when everyone starting clapping. Neither Tom or I cried but I am pretty sure everyone else did.

OMG! We're MARRIED. Just after the I Do's!

This is just to show my wrist corsage. I did not carry my bouquet down the aisle. It was too heavy. I thought that might happen so I asked the florist to make me a wrist corsage as well as a bouquet. It was the perfect touch!

This is what we did with the bouquet. My mom added the cover to my chair in case I needed to use it during the ceremony. We removed it before the real dancing started, but it looked really nice.

Just a fun picture. We thought it was funny.

Me and Stephy. Without her I may have lost my mind in the planning process. I think she was more frazzled than me on the wedding day though.

This is just a cool shot my friend took of me dancing. You can see my hair pins in this photo.

Tom and I during our first dance. My legs hurt, because I was so nervous that my spasticity was on high. He is basically holding me up in this picture.

My legs we still bothering me for the bridal party dance so Tom sat on me instead. He had never done such a thing and was afraid I would drop him. I did no such thing.

Even though the "I do" is officially done, I am not planning on abandoning this blog. I will just be writing as a wife now. It's a whole new adventure. Hang on tight!

87 Days and Counting! Fittings, Registries, and Anxiety...Oh My!

What a whirlwind this past weekend was! Every summer, I have a party to celebrate my birthday and more importantly, get together with some of my favorite people. This year, I decided to schedule the party around my final dress fitting and some other wedding related errands, so that both my maid-of-honor, Stephy and my matron- of-honor, Angela could be present.

I have to say, I was a little nervous for the fitting. On top of all the trouble we initially had with the hem, I was also worried that I had gained some weight over the winter and that the dress would suddenly be too small. I think this is every bride’s worst fear and let me tell you, I was not happy to be part of that cliché.

The fitting went well, there was only a small problem with the bustle, and some (apparently imagined) back bulge. The bustle was pinned and fixed. The back bulge, imagined or not, has yet to be addressed. However, I am sort of hoping it just goes away on its own. That happens right?

It was decided that my maid-of-honor who has extra closet space and no children (furry or otherwise) would be the keeper of the dress until the big day. I am confident in this decision but it is a little nerve wracking to have it so far a way. She may have to send me the occasional picture message just so I can sleep at night.

The next day, we tackled the wedding registry. My wedding shower invites had gone out the week before, so there was no more putting this off. Tom had no interest in going so I (once again) called on Stephy. My Mom had expressed interest in going, but our tastes are not similar and we are both stubborn. I did not want to spend the day arguing over the pattern of my dinner plates, or whether or not I needed a new microwave (we don’t).

The registry was harder then I expected for a few reasons. The first, was that Tom and I have been living together for a while and we already have many of the items newlyweds might register for. The second, was that I suck at making decisions, especially when I have to weigh Tom’s opinion as well as my own. The third, was that my energy level has been low as of late and even with my chair I was wilting before we got out of the first store.

Despite the challenges we got it done. Sometimes Stephy would just hold up an item, I’d scan it and then ask what it was. She found this entertaining. I liked registering at Target better than Bed Bath and Beyond. Target was easier the shelves weren’t stacked as high and the aisles were wider, plus nobody bothered us. At Bed Bath and Beyond the aisles were too narrow and Stephy had to climb on things to get to the barcodes. However Bed Bath and Beyond did have more of the little things I needed so I was glad I went there. My Target registry was on the more expensive side, so I was glad to find some cheaper options so I would have a wider range for people to choose from.

I'm not sure if I have enough for everyone, so I will probably add stuff as we get closer to the wedding/after the shower. It was fun to use the little scanner picking all the perfect things for our house, it's just too bad I have to wait for someone to actually purchase the items before I can bring them home.

Believe it or not, despite the long and productive weekend, there are things that didn’t fit in. Like my hair and make-up trial. I am hoping that that gets done when my sister is up again for my shower in July. In the next few weeks Tom and I will be meeting with both our pastor and our DJ to talk about things. The wedding is only three months away now (OMG!!) so I expect my updates will be more frequent. Thanks for reading everyone!

Alterations: Everyone has an Opinion.

Okay, so I didn’t exactly keep my word. Is anybody really that surprised? The difference is that I didn’t make the decision out of my need to hurry, at least not consciously. What my sub-conscious does on its own time is really none of my business.

I went to pick up my dress, try it on and take it home. After sitting in it for about an hour trying on combs, veils and jewelry with my mom, sister and consultants offering opinions; I went to take the dress off, asked to meet the seamstress and decided to get my dress altered at David’s Bridal. This is exactly the opposite of what several people said I should do. Again, are you surprised? In forums everywhere, people are telling brides to be not to get there dress altered at the place the bought it because the price will be outrages, but there are so many other things to consider when making this choice.

 I made this decision based on several factors. First I did more extensive research. (Some of it I will admit occurred after the fact, in an attempt to keep myself from wigging because I-just-did-what-every-told-me-not-to-and-its-gonna-ruin-the-whole-wedding!) On the surface, David’s Bridal seems to have a bad wrap when it comes to alterations, but when I dug further I saw that each negative review was not about the alterations, but about the dress not being done in time. This occurred when people waited until the last minute to alter their dress our when they went in complaining they lost weight at the last minute and needed the dress refitted. All of the people that allowed proper time for alterations had good experiences. Thanks to my need to get everything done fast time is one thing I have plenty of.

Another reason I went this route is because it just felt safer. Most of the tailoring places near me that seemed to offer good service and comparable prices to David’s Bridal were private businesses housed in people’s homes. Aside from the obvious issue of the accessibility of these places; it is unlikely that they would have the money or insurance to cover the dress if anything happened. By going through David’s Bridal I have the reassurance that if they do screw up or if something happens to the dress itself it will be replaced. This is something to consider if you are thinking about having a wedding dress altered by a seamstress that works from their home. They might be the best seamstress ever, but if their house burns down, what will they do about your dress? Some people might have insurance to cover this, but many do not.

The third reason I chose to have my dress altered at the place of purchase is that the alterations staff are going to be familiar with the dress itself. They are going to know how best to do the alterations without effecting the look of the dress. They also do alterations primarily on bridal and formal wear.

Based on research, staying with David’s Bridal will cost me about $50.00 dollars more than I might have spent at another place, but I see this as the price of piece of mind.

I will say that the alterations process itself is going to be a bit of a pain in the butt, or rather, the legs. I needed to get it hemmed so that I could walk in it, but that required standing. I failed that part of early human development and I am only good at standing in one place for about 5 minutes before my legs want to give out. If my legs are moving, I can go quite a while but the standing is awful. My legs ache and then I start to sweat and get light headed with the effort not collapse. I also never stand the same way twice. My seamstress had to reset the pins on the hem three times and only got halfway done with pinning my bustle before I thought I would pass out. Luckily, she said that there was no further need to torture me and that she could do the other side based on the first. I wanted to kiss her.

I am hoping against hope that further fitting will not be needed, we all have our delusions.