I feel like I have exploited these photos to everyone because they are just so dreamy and the evening was perfect!!  I know that it was a night that Sun and John will never forget.  We were just so happy that they let two midwestern ladies help plan it!!!

So here is the final cut.  Enjoy and please let us know if you want us to come back to California for your wedding too!!

No one would believe us if we raved about this wedding and then showed them pictures from my own camera.  Melody and Jeremy Carpenter of Carpenter Photography and Design; YOU ROCK!! Mostly because you are great photographers, but because you made the trek back to reality in good ‘ole Indiana when it was all said and done too.  Well done, Hoosiers:)

It seems like forever since we have blogged about anything, but no worries, we are doing great and moving full speed ahead into wedding season.  Yikes, it is already here!!  So what have we been up to?  Oh my, grab a comfy chair.  I will spare you the details and tell you this; we were fortunate enough to be able to participate in Super Bowl, weddings are always on our mind:), my little one turned 5:(, and we are sorting through all of our pictures and redoing our brand; sort of.  Meanwhile, we are still making timelines, and dreaming up big dreams for our clients!!!

I can’t go without saying thank you to our photographers.  You are the only proof of existence that we have and you help us build our brand more than you know!!!  Thank you for letting us use your work to promote ours!  Keep up the good work!!

Most recently, we have found our business and personal lives come full circle.  I love being a part of our bride’s life even after the I do’s.  Maybe you remember our bride blogger, Krissy (newly Strack).  Her and Paul had the most romantic and wonderful winter wedding and have now purchased a house together.  We wish them all of the best and my advice would be to fall in love with Lowe’s!!  Haha  Seriously,  we love to hear about the steps beyond the wedding.  Keep us posted on especially on the babies!!  We love them here!

Speaking of babies, here are mine.  Not so much babies anymore, huh?  Besides planning weddings, this is what Momma Alexandra and I are always up to!

Photo by: Raw Sugar Photography

Holy cow. I just got a phone call today telling me that my wedding
dress was in and ready to be tried on!! I have so many different
emotions running through me right now: anxiety, excitement,
nervousness. Â I haven’t put my dress on since July and there’s just
this feeling that comes over me when I put it on. (Corny?) I mean,
don’t get me wrong, Paul and I have been wedding planning like crazy
ever since we got engaged, but putting on that dress makes everything
just seem so much more real. Like any other woman, I am of course
thinking, “I better fit into it!!” Luckily, I have lost some weight
since the last time I put it on, and am hoping all my logged hours in
the gym will pay off come this Thursday when I get to put it on again!
But, nevertheless, there is still that horrid nightmare lingering in
the back of my mind about not fitting into it… I need to get over
it, I know! Hopefully my next blog posting will be about it fitting
perfectly, or it being too big! Hey, a girl can dream, right?
(Sidenote: Why are the sizes of wedding dresses always so much bigger
than your original size? Whoever decided that needs a reality check!)

A couple other updates….
I had my first bridal shower a few weeks ago with Paul’s side of the
family, and that is a day that I will never forget. Â I have felt like
a part of the family for so long because of the amount of time we have
been dating, but that day made me feel like an almost “official”
member! One of my favorite memories from the day was when his Mom
had everyone sit down before we opened presents and go around and
either give a good wish to Paul and I or share a favorite memory. WOW!
I was crying by person number three! Ha! It was just so special to
hear what memories others had of us, or of me when they first met me,
and I will cherish those forever. One of my favorites was from one of
his sisters who said, “I just remember the first time I met you..you
smelled so good! And you always do!” Cracked. Me. Up.
Another moment of that day was when my Grandma, who I am very close
with, gave me a gift with a card that read “Your Something Old..”
(Needless to say, again, the tears immediately fell. Definitely going
to need waterproof mascara come wedding day!) Anyway, I had no idea
this was going to happen at this shower, or at any point, so when I
opened the box and saw a gorgeous single pearl set in diamonds… I
just couldn’t believe it. First of all, I adore pearls and wear them
all the time and was planning on wearing pearl studs on my wedding
day. Second of all, the necklace was given to her by my grandpa who
bought it for her 30-35 years ago. The sentimental value in that
necklace will always be so important to me, and I will never forget
looking up at her when I opened it…we just shared a very unique
moment between granddaughter and grandmother. She is a woman that I
have always looked up to and love dearly, and I cannot imagine wearing
anything more beautiful from such an amazing person on my wedding day.

I realized that this week was the last full week of October the other
day… and time is just flying. I am ridiculously excited for all of
the events to come in November (bachelorette party, anyone? tee
he!) and all the time I have been able to spend with friends and
family has been wonderful. I think the countdown is 52 days now?? Oh
who am I kidding.. of course I know how many days!! 52 and counting
until Mrs. Strack

I love my job because we have so much fun and it never really feels like “work”. Â Okay, it does feel like work at 1am and it’s time to clean up after a late night reception party! Â However, it’s so much more enjoyable when you are surrounded by a great group of peers that are as passionate about what they do as you are!

We are fortunate to have our office located in the WeDo! complex in Fishers with a group of talented event and wedding vendors. Â Every year, we open up our doors and invite all of our wedding related friends and family and have a party. Â This year we decided to do it up midwest style and grill some hotdogs and trick or treat around the offices.

JA Alexandra had something brewing in their office and emerged as Witch 1 and Witch 2!! Â My kids were able to stop by and thoroughly enjoyed all of the tricks and treats the evening had to offer. Â We are even more fortunate to have Blonde Entertainment as a neighbor to provide a great band for the evening.

Big thanks to our fellow vendors for another great open house this year!

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We had an unexpected guest that refused to leave our party. Â At least she dressed accordingly. Â The wedding dress is compliments of this friendly witch. Â She wore it some 30 years ago!!

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Blk&Wht Table by Entertaining with a Flair

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The transfer into crisper mornings and quickly approaching evenings, has been a slow one. Â Until the smell of cinnamon brushed my nose in Fresh Market the other day. Â Now, a house full of nutmeg candles, mums, and socks and a Halloween inspired table at the office; bring it on campfires!

This table was very special because my little girls were there to help! Â Help is such a diverse word. Â We love the table because it is fun and very spooky. Â Perfect for the classy witch!! If Halloween is your favorite holiday, then go for it. Â Start out with a color scheme then keep the tableware and linens simple, but add pops of Halloween throughout. Â We went for the more Goth version of Halloween to coordinate with the ornate silver candleabra.

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I just loved the idea of this wedding. Â It was extremely intimate and full of fall flavor. Â Located at the Villages of West Clay. Â Photographer: Dawn Fisher, Galleria Studios

She Said:

I do have to make a confession. I am totally obsessed with looking at my wedding dress. I have pictures of it from the day it was purchased and probably pull them up a few times a WEEK to look. I just don’t want to forget what it looks like! The craziest part of it is, the pictures are actually on our computer that Paul and I both share but they are hidden in a secret file. That’s trust, ladies! I know Paul wouldn’t dare even search for them, and plus, he made it very clear that he didn’t want to see it until I was walking down the aisle! My dress is more than I ever imagined. I didn’t really know what I was exactly looking for when I went to pick it out, but I knew I wanted something romantic and classic. I went shopping with my Grandma and Mom and we were about 10 dresses in and at our second store when I tried on MY dress and knew it was it! I thought that was crazy before, the advice from girlfriends that I was given that said “Oh, you will know when it’s the one!” I always thought, “yeah right!” Well… that was so true. Once the veil was on and the tears came, it was a done deal! I ended up trying on a few after but I don’t even remember putting them on because all I could think about was the dress I had fallen in love with. The worst part about the dress is that I only get to wear it for one day…. no fair! It was even a little under the budget for my dress so that was just the icing on top! I cannot wait to walk down the aisle and become Mrs. Strack in such a beautiful dress!Â

Krissy

He Said:

The Dress:

I actually haven’t thought about what Krissy will look like in her dress. Not that I don’t want to, but I have kept myself from any dress conversation/thoughts because I want it to be total shock when I see her for the first time on our wedding day. No matter what she wears, I know she will be amazingly beautiful. Enough said

Paul

I will never forget the wedding where daddy’s little girl danced with her father in custom swarvoski crystal Air Jordans. Â Nor will I forget the feeling the sound of the trumpets gave me as she walked down the aisle past her British guests adorned with their best wedding day hats!

We had so much fun helping plan this wedding and the pictures are wonderful to boot!

Photography by: Randall’s Photography Â

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I was just doing some decor research for an upcoming winter wedding and I realized that I had never posted the pictures of our New Year’s Eve wedding 2010/2011. Â They make me so happy looking at them. Â The guest list was long and the party lasted way past the drop of the ball!!

The inspiration for the wedding decor was peacock feathers and navy blue with accents of silver. Â I absolutely love the contrast of flowers against the dark bridesmaids dresses. Â I love the bride’s faux fur stole even more!!! Â This group truly knows how to ring in the New Year!!

She Said:

I honestly cannot believe it is September 10th already! Time is really flying by, and I am trying to enjoy every moment of our engagement because I know it won’t last too much longer! Fortunately, our wedding planning has gone so smoothly that I’m practically waiting for something to happen because it’s just been too good to be true! (Knock on wood). If I were to pick something that has been the most difficult this far with the planning, I would probably have to say making up the guest list and venue shopping. Paul’s family is really big and mine isn’t small, plus you put in all of our friends from college and high school that have known us for years… and that equals a HUGE guest list! Obtaining all of those addresses was super fun too… (can you hear my sarcastic tone?) All I know is, I have those addresses written down and will have them forever! It was an insane amount to collect! In regards to venue shopping, I was pretty discouraged right off the bat. I was shocked at how much money everything was, and we weren’t finding places that were in our budget that we loved. We knew we wanted a place in Downtown Indianapolis because well, we just love downtown and we thought that it would be a fun atmosphere for a winter wedding and our city always looks so beautiful that time of year. We made appointments at at least 8 places, and the one that we DIDN’T make an appointment at is actually the one we chose! We had come from another appointment, and we decided to pop into the Indiana State Museum to just look around. We probably were in the museum for a total of about 15 minutes before we knew that it was the place! We were shown were the ceremony would be held, which is a beautiful “room/hallway” right over the canal. Paul’s face lit up and as Alicia and I said, was like a “little kid in a candy store.” His whole attitude about venue shopping changed, he was asking questions, giving his opinion… I wanted our venue to be a place that we both loved, not just me (as sometimes I am picking out things by myself) and this just had to be it. Not to mention, Paul is a history teacher so having it at the state museum was a special touch! It’s an amazing venue, and I know with all of the decorations and candle light, it will be breathtaking.

Krissy

He Said:

The Venue:

As far as picking the venue goes, we really didn’t have any clue what we wanted. We knew we didn’t want to get married in a church, and we preferred to do both the ceremony and reception in the same location due to the December date (you know, avoid driving in any possible nasty weather). Downtown seemed to draw our attention the most, but we also knew it would be the most expensive. Anyway, that is where we started…and sure enough, that is also where we finished. There were horror stories about couple searching for places over many many months. These couples had visited more than 20 locations and couldn’t make up their minds. I knew that wasn’t going to be us. I would probably rather jump in front of a moving locomotive than see 20 different wedding venues. So I was determined to find a suitable venue on just a few tries.

I won’t tell you exactly where we decided against, but it was 5 or 6 “Yeah I don’t think so’s” before we found what is now our wedding venue. And believe it or not, the location of the ceremony sold me quicker than the location of the reception. There was just something unique and elegant about a walk-way over the canal with views of downtown Indianapolis provided by floor to wall windows. The Indiana State Museum was the place. I knew as soon as I saw that walk-way where the ceremony would take place that we had to have our wedding here. I was actually picturing it in my mind… Oh, and the location for the reception isn’t bad either.

Paul

I have finally gotten around to blogging about the WONDERFUL Labor Day weekend that I spent with family, friends, and newlywed clients! As I look outside to the late fall type of weather with gray skies and drops of rain, I think back to the wonderful family of Lauren and Jeff that withstood the blazing heat and humidity on Friday and Saturday for their wedding at the Indianapolis Zoo. Â Not even a little rain could force us to move the ceremony inside!!!

Thank you to my beautiful bride Lauren, who remained calm as a cucumber while we buzzed around her picking up arrangements and drying off chairs.  I hope that it was everything that you have ever imagined.  Big thanks to the lively groomsmen and boys in blue with their  sword ceremony and welcoming Lauren into the Army.  It gave me goose bumps!

Morgan Matters Photography, Sunny Moon DJ, Royal Creations Flowers, Indianapolis Zoo, Rachel Dillow Designs, Centerplate

Images by me