Dreams....Do Come True!!!

I don't know if I'm turning into an old sap or if all this engagement/wedding stuff has me all lovey dovey and full of warmth, but I'm finally getting married and so far feel like it's a dream come true. And I'm not really sure I had an idea in mind of what it would be like to be in the planning/shopping stages of a wedding, but I think I dreamed of that "feeling" and it feels really good. A feeling I've never had before (obviously) and the anticipation and excitement of wedding day is already building up.....even though the big day is not until June 2013!!!!! The anticipation of what it will look like, how will the weather be, what will AK's expression be when he sees me, will I be a blubbering mess or will I hold it together, how will it feel to say "I DO" and the list goes on and on and on!!!

So with all this anticipation and so many things going on in our lives we have really wasted no time in planning or SHOPPING....believe it or not!! :) And this past weekend, one of my dreams came true....

Thursday night my momma and Jacki (a.k.a Fancy/Aunt Jacki) drove the big rig (my mom's big pick up) to Chicago for a weekend of wedding dress shopping, concert going, food eating fun!!! We kicked off the weekend late Thursday night with champagne, snacks and ideas....imagine three girls who love to plan a party that have access to Pintrest....poor AK, it was as if he wasn't even in the house. In fact he was so quiet watching TV (sports, I'm sure) that I forgot he was still awake until he came back to our room at midnight and said "that's it girls, move it to the spare room, I'm tired!" Ha, so we kindly obliged. We picked up our laptops and magazines and headed to the empty bed where we continued "the wedding meeting!" Super fun and I'm not sure what a girl would do without Pintrest these days or a wonderful Mom and a super duper Fancy!?? We closed our peepers at about 1:30a and decided to get as much beauty rest as possible, because Friday would begin the journey of wedding dress shopping.....in downtown CHICAGO!!!! :)))

Friday morning came way quicker than it should have, but we were up and off. We were headed to our first appointment at 11a and the day never stopped. The first place we went was fabulous....from our assistant to the space to the dresses.....it was fabulous. I easily could have bought the first dress I tried on, but boy I'm glad I waited!! Next stop was a different atmosphere but just as wonderful and found a definite winner there, but I still couldn't pull the trigger. I mean we still had 2 places to go and 4 more appointments total for the weekend, so how could I say yes so early?? After the second place we were in dire need of some food and a beverage (champagne and diet pepsi, duh!!) so we grabbed some lunch, hashed over the first few spots and were off to the next place. Our third place was a bust for me regarding wedding dresses, but the two positives were: 1. they served champagne (Fancy and I were tipsy by the end) and 2. My mom found a great dress option for herself...didn't buy it, but "we always know it's there!" (famous last words). Anyhow the fourth and final place was amazing, but I'm gonna just throw it out there....EXPENSIVE!! But think of bridal boutique, fancy gowns everywhere you looked, big mirrors and windows, and adorable assistants. This place had me hooked....I loved a dress there so much, I was willing to join a detasseling crew next summer just to pay it off....that's how gorgeous it was. Luckily for me, I was shopping with the voice of reason or reasons, and let the dress go. It was gorgeous, but little did I know Saturday morning.....we would beat it. Friday ended with a flying trip to Nordstrom (I mean why not?) and the longest cab ride ever to get home (Fancy and mom aren't much for the El, so cabs it was!). The night was supposed to end with a nice dinner in Bucktown, however the shopping took it out of us, so we ordered the Art of Pizza (fabulous deep dish), popped our own bottle of vino and ate and talked "wedding" a bit more. Again....poor AK. Before we knew it, it was lights out and we were preparing for round 2 on Saturday!!!!

Saturday was super fun....start to finish!!! We had one appointment scheduled for Saturday at 11a at a place I was really excited to experience!! We walked in and I'm not kidding I almost knew it was going to be special. Again the atmosphere was so fun, the designer of the boutique was in the store, our assistant was lovely, the gowns were gorgeous (and affordable! :)))....I could feel it!! I told her what we were looking for, explained the over priced experience from the night before and we were off. We snagged a few gowns as options and sure enough the first one I tried WAS THE DRESS!!!!!! I knew the second she zipped it up. I almost ran out of my dressing room just so my mom and Jacki could see my initial reaction. This is where my mom started to cry....I got teary with the first dress I tried on on Friday, but my mom hadn't shed a tear....NOT ONE until this dress!!! It's perfect, and I can't wait for AK to see it!! It's going to be so hard, because he is the one person who always knows everything and this is a pretty big secret to keep!!! And you see, so many times as a little girl I would dream of wedding dress shopping in downtown Chicago and not only did I get to shop, I got to buy......dreams do come true!!! ;) Corny I know, but so fun and so fun to say Yes to the Dress!!! So after that we were on a "dress high" and headed no where else to calm ourselves other than, you guessed it, J. Crew!!! Ha, my mom can't stay away and let's be honest, neither could we!! So after dropping some cashola and a little jolt of Starbucks it was about time to call it a day....of shopping that is. Because Saturday night, we had tickets to Bruce Springsteen (a.k.a The Boss) at Wrigley Field and my mom for one was not about to let that pass her by!!! :)) AK made us dinner (grilled fillets and sauteed potatoes and asparagus...yummo) and we were off to the concert. It was a blast....I'm not sure what we (AK & I) enjoyed more, The Boss putting on a good show or watching 40-50-60 somethings rockin out!!! Too funny, but all in all wonderful!!!

Sunday came and went quick, but not without a brunch stop at Southport Grocery (also YUMMO) and a shopping stop at Lululemon. I never need a reason to go in there, but my mom and Jacki are only by a Lulu every so often, so it was a must do!!:) We all left with a few new duds (lucky us) and we were on our way. The weekend came to a quick close unfortunately. But hopefully they both left knowing how grateful I was for them coming and taking time to shop with me. It was definitely an experience I will never EVER forget!!!!! Check out a few photos below....not many, because of the pics were of me in dresses and those will remain confidential until wedding day!!!!!!!! June 15, 2013!!!!!

out and about....dress shopping!!!

the friendly confines....hosted The Boss!! so fun!

pretty cool set up at Wrigley!!

pre concert pic!!!

the crowd on the ground dancing in the rain....pretty fun to watch, but luckily we were under the railing!!

Days of Awesomeness.....

I'm just going to warn you right now that this is going to be a marathon post, so if you don't have ample time to read start to finish, I suggest you come back when you do. This past week, was one of the best weeks of my adult life so prepare yourselves.....it's going to be long and detailed as I would hate to skip a beat. So without further ado, here goes nothin.....

This past week AK and I experienced what you call a true road trip. We packed up the Jeep and headed north to explore a part of the country I had never seen or been to....a little place people call "Northern Michigan!!" Now I had heard nothing but wonderful things about Northern Michigan, but again I had mostly heard these wonderful things from Michigan folks, so I chalked it up to nothing more than obsessive state pride once again! ;). Now that I've been, I can honestly say it's a pretty great place and one I will never forget. Will I ever call it the Caribbean, probably not, but we can settle for the Caribbean of the Midwest. Either way, it's gorgeous and I had no idea places like that existed so close to home!! We divided our trip into three legs: Traverse City, MI (Sat-Wed morning), Mackinac Island. MI (Wed afternoon-Friday morning), "The Cottage" (Friday afternoon-Sunday)....so I will try and summarize each leg, but as I mentioned, this won't be brief so brace yourselves!!!

Traverse City, MI

Traverse City is a pretty special place for many reasons, but the main one being it is the place that AK graduated high school and transformed into the every day stud muffin he is today! ;) He claims Traverse is the place that cracked his shell and made him a "cool kid", but you know I never confirmed that with any of his friends, so we'll just let him talk and go with it. Anyhow, AK is lucky enough to still have friends there, so we were welcomed with open arms. We stayed with his good friend Alicia and her husband Kyle and they are some of the kindest most generous people I have come across. They were both in the middle of their busiest season of the year and they did nothing but make us feel right at home...it. was. lovely!! And how can I forget their dog Murphy....a beautiful Golden with a fantastic personality who I swore talked back to me when I would talk to him!! :)) While in Traverse we hit up lots of delicious eateries (a few AK must eats and a few reccos from Alicia....all were finger lickin good!), we spent lots of time at the lake, and I finally got to take a walk down memory lane with my man and see where he went to high school, and where he played football, and where he lived and where he had bon fires....you get the picture. It was so fun to see him in his element and hear some pretty great high school stories of his!!
The first full day in Traverse the weather was just a bit cool so we took it upon ourselves to hit up the wineries....I mean, when in Rome, right? We did our own little winery tour and had just the best time bopping around and taking in some pretty spectacular sights. The next day we hit up the beach and made a day of it watching sail boats, playing Frisbee in the water, and catching some much needed rays!! We ended day 2 with AK's good buddy Robby and his girlfriend who made us a wonderful dinner and were so fun to hang with!! My favorite Traverse day was going to the Sleeping Bear Dunes, hitting up this inland lake called North Bar/Lake Michigan and paddle boarding with AK, and then rounding off the evening with a BBQ with Alicia and Kyle. It was one of those perfect summer days that ended under the stars with good wine and even better company....delightful. The entire Traverse experience was just so fabulous that even I was a little annoyed that AK's family had to relocate 8+ years ago!!! :))) Needless to say, I was sad to leave but was excited to experience Mackinac.....

love the view

2 lad winery.....so beautiful!!

grapes....yum!

sleeping bear dunes!!! pretty cool

lovey!

grapes make wine.....yes!!!

love the chairs and the view of the vineyard....please notice AK posing!!

Lake Michigan or the Caribbean.....you be the judge!!

wishing that was his boat!!! ;)

shadows!

North Bar.....a.k.a Heave on Earth

Lake Michigan!!

shoreline

paddle boarding!

lookin good!!

tree pose!

super cute!!

Mackinac Island

How do I even begin talking about Mackinac Island, which as of today is one of my favorite places on Earth. We arrived on the Island with Island time in mind and rest and relaxation on the agenda.....or so I thought! ;). Anyhow we arrived on the island early afternoon on Wednesday and were instantly in love with the quaint little place that is Mackinac. We immediately dropped off our bags and hit our 2 wheelers as cars and motorized vehicles are not allowed on the island and the preferred modes of transportation are bikes, feet and horses! :). So we took to the bikes and toured the island, but not without stopping more than a few times to take numerous pictures, test out the new camera tripod, and capture all the beautiful sites the island had to offer. After pedaling all 8 miles of the entire island we headed back to our B&B to freshen up. Then we painted the town red, hitting up the Seabiscuit Cafe for a fun little dinner and then headed to the Pink Poney for a nightcap but not without a little fudge from Ryba's Fudge Shop. Day/Night 1 was a success.
Now I'm not sure how I can summarize day 2, but I will do my best. Right after we woke up, AK had ants in his pants (now I know why) so we were up and at 'em!! We were off to brunch and then went for a little run through the middle part of the island that is easier to navigate by foot. After the run we decided to put on warmer clothes (little chilly on the island that day) and headed out for more exploring....or so I thought again! After not showering and putting on dirty jeans, a dirty sweatshirt and a ball cap....I was ready, much to AK's dismay! ;) If I had only known! Anyhow, we decided to pedal the island in the opposite direction than we did the day before. We had not really been riding that long when AK requested to stop on the rocky peninsula that overlooks the Mackinac Bridge. I thought it was a little soon to take a break, but I went with it. The minute we got off our bikes, AK was immediately snapping pictures, and I was a little annoyed he wouldn't just put the camera down and enjoy the beautiful sites. So the camera snapping continued and in just a few short minutes I knew why!! Once we were perfectly situated, AK busted out the camera tripod once again (nerd alert) and started setting the timer on the camera and was jumping in and out of pictures and then convinced me to pose for a "look away" picture....you know those pics that are taken from the back as people are looking out to beautiful scenery? Yeah that was me and I fell for it. But instead of taking my picture he pressed the record button on his fancy camera and jumped in the screen. At that moment, he said "Spieks" and I turned around to find him on one knee saying lots of lovey things (I wish I could remember) with a beautiful diamond ring in his hand!!!!! So he asked and I. SAID. YES!!! After that the day is a blur but I do remember housing a burger at the Chuckwagon and calling and talking to everyone who would listen to us. After making it Facebook official and chatting with all of our nearest and dearest, I decided to shower and practice some personal hygiene (FINALLY....had I only known!) and we donned some of our finest duds and went to the Grand Hotel for cocktails before having dinner at the Carriage House. Both were lovely and delicious and I was just so happy to celebrate that moment and reminisce how tough I made it for AK at times and how he skated around the city diamond shopping and proposal planning without me knowing!!! Needless to say, I'm a lucky lady and could not be more thrilled!!!!

mackinac bridge

AK loves sailboats!

pedaling around on day 1

just crusin!

gorgeous views!

jump....

bikes parked....beginning of proposal!!!!!!!!

walking down to peninsula.....

standing, posing and clueless!!!

hii.....why are you taking so many pics???

quick shot before....still clueless!

silly girl about 1 minute before the proposal

and immediately afterward

engaged and jumping for joy!!!!!!!!!

"AK"

calling all family and friends.....so fun!!!!!

a view of the carriage house where we had dinner after the proposal!!

the island!

silliness!

arch rock!

again!

atop of the island...looking down!!

celebrating our engagement at the Grand Hotel

the fancy bar atop the hotel with a 360 view of the island.....super cool!!!

we loved the flowers and AK made me pose! ;)

the Grand Hotel is quite grand!!!

call me.....maybe??? ;))

 

proposal video!!!!!!!!!! 

The Cottage

Thursday night ended pretty late so we tried our hardest to get up and get going, but it was nearly impossible. The combination of celebration, lots of champagne, and too much food made for a bit of a late rise. However, after grabbing a quick brunch we boarded our fairy and headed back to the mainland to begin our trek to Andy's parent's cottage. When we arrived at the cottage we were greeted with open arms, lots of decorations and more than enough champagne and goodies to go around. In the beginning, Andy's parents were the only ones there, but as time went on, more and more people trickled in and it really was lovely to celebrate with AK's family. Everyone was so excited for us and enjoyed listening to our story and looking at our pictures and the engagement video!! Even though the weather was a bit cool, we didn't let that ruin the fun. And by Sunday the sun came out and we enjoyed a little lake time before it was time to return to Chicago!!

family celebration!!!

big catch!!!

cottage!

kayaking!

selfie.....we got good at those!!!

pretty view of the lake!!!

 
So as you can see this past week brought quite a bit of excitement and definitely was a life changing experience. After traveling over 1200 miles in 9 days, becoming engaged and seeing the beauty Michigan has to offer we were exhausted. These last few days we have been in the beginning stages of wedding planning and trying to enjoy being newly engaged. And this weekend we are taking the AK/AS show back on the road to Eldora to celebrate with all my family and friends, so the fun continues!!! Cheers everyone!