My Sister's Wedding

Well, I'm back!

It was a whirlwind weekend, filled with fabulousness. It all went by so fast, it still doesn't seem real...

In all honesty, Jenn was the most beautiful bride I have ever seen in my life. She was so gorgeous. I spent the entire weekend just mesmerized, staring at her, because I have never seen someone so pretty before in real life. She was glowing. It is a memory I will never forget.

Our schedule was pretty packed, with rehearsals, photos, limo rides, the ceremony, and the reception. It was fun because I got along very well with the rest of the bridal party. I knew some of them, already, from high school, but others were new to me. Jenn had a few friends show up from her grad school days in Milwaukee. They were adorable, which doesn't surprise me because Jenn only surrounds herself with awesomeness.

It was simply a wonderful weekend.

Here are some photos!


(Jenn and her new hubby, Rick. Isn't he a hottie?!)


(Jenn made these gorgeous green bracelets for us bridesmaids to wear with our dresses. It was SO sweet. Jenn's hand is obviously the one with the diamond bracelet.)


(Jenn in her stunning gown)


(I sat in the back of the limo with Jenn & Rick because I'm awesome.)


(A few of the bridesmaids with Jenn at the reception. Do you see me?)

I only have one story to share:

I had a few (or many more) glasses of wine at Jenn's wedding reception. By the end of the night, I only have memories in flashes. I do remember Jenn's sweet friend Julie guiding me to my parents' hotel suite. The last thing I recall is my father opening the door. Then it all goes black. Well, on Sunday morning, I woke up in bed, still wearing my bridesmaid dress (covered in vomit). I noticed that there were dozens of pillows scattered all over the floor. I went to the bathroom and realized it was flooded. I went over to my dad, who was reading the newspaper on the couch, and asked cheerfully, "Hey, what happened here last night?" My dad looked up in surprise and asked, "You mean you don't remember?" My smile stayed frozen on my face as my dad told me what I had done.

Apparently after Jenn's friend had dropped me off, I started skipping down the hotel hallway singing "Tick Tock" by Kesha. My parents chased me back into the hotel suite, where I started running in circles, laughing hysterically. Much to their dismay, I started throwing pillows at them. I then stumbled into the bathroom and threw up everywhere (the sink, the floor, the bathtub, etc.). My dad, horrified, yelled at me "Stop throwing up everywhere!" and I apparently responded, "Don't worry, I'm going to clean it up, I promise." My dad came back to the bathroom, five minutes later, to find I was using an ice bucket to gather water from the tub. I started pouring the water all over the bathroom floor. He screamed at me to stop, but I reassured him that everything was fine, I was just cleaning up my mess. Then, I passed out on the floor, clutching the ice bucket. My parents had to drag me to bed, where I woke up the next morning.

My dad, shockingly, wasn't mad. He laughed while telling me the story and said his only regret was that he didn't get photos.

And to quote Jenn's reaction, it was an awesome end to an awesome day. Haha!

How was your weekend?

The Other Jennifer Fabulous

My sister is getting married.

Well, not my REAL sister, but one of my oldest and dearest friends.

Her name is Jenn. She lives four hours away in another state. She's freaking AMAZING.

I still remember the first time we met. We were in middle school, sitting at the same table during lunch, and our first real conversation involved one of her school assignments. It was something to do with writing a letter to a fake family, I believe. I introduced myself by suggesting that she actually send the letter to the address written in the textbook. I told her with my naive 13-year-old confidence that if the family was actually real and she got a response back, her English teacher would give her extra credit and she would be a school legend. Well, we actually mailed the letter to the Smith family at their address (I think it was 123 Main Street, Greenwich, Connecticut). We never got a response, of course. But a sisterhood had blossomed.



We quickly became known as the Two Jennifers. We were the same height, had the same sense of humor, and the same personality. She was the blond version, I was the racially ambiguous one.



Junior year of high school, I was rudely transported by my family to Ohio (14 hours away). Jenn and I kept in touch through e-mail, phone calls, and the occasional snail mail.

When I moved closer to my old hometown, however, we started visiting each other more often and regained our closeness.

...and now she's getting married.

This isn't strange. I'm 26 and have loads of friends already hitched. But it still feels weird to me. It seems like yesterday when we were giggling at sleepovers about what our weddings would be like. When we fantasized about who those future husbands would be. When we promised each other that we would be bridesmaids in each other's weddings. When we promised our kids would grow up like cousins.

And now it's actually begun. Reality is sinking in.

I'm nervous for Jenn, but I'm also really excited. After all, I'm not LOSING her. I'm just going to be sharing her with the man of her dreams. That makes me happy. But I guess this action sort of symbolizes, or cements, our adulthood.

We're not kids anymore...



I'm actually going to be out of town for the wedding for the next few days, so I won't be posting anything new until Monday. It will probably be lots of photos of the wedding, plus any crazy stories about my bridesmaid adventures. (If I'm drunk enough at the reception, I'm sure there will be PLENTY of things to share).

Have a great weekend!

I'm Scared of My Shoes!

I was reading one of my all-time favorite blogs, The Panty Drawer, this afternoon when I realized my pal and I share a similar problem. He hoards MaxMara tights, without wearing them, because he's worried the brand will stop selling them (again). Makes sense, right?

Well, my problem is embarrassing.

I hate to admit this to the fashion blogging community, but here it goes: I hoard designer shoes and rarely wear them. I'm obsessed with buying designer shoes, but I'm too scared to wear them because I fear I will break them.

The victims (bought in the past three years):
Five inch bronze Jimmy Choo sandals (worn twice). Red Jimmy Choo high heels (worn once). Black Jimmy Choo high heels (worn once). Black and white strappy Ralph Lauren sandals (never worn). Kate Spade pink dragonfly sandals (worn twice). Kate Spade black and orange star sandals (worn once). DKNY pink high heels (worn once). Brown Prada flats (never worn). Wine colored Giuseppe Zanotti heels (never worn). Tan strappy Giuseppe Zanotti sandals (never worn). Navy blue Prada high heel sandals (never worn).

These were all bought brand new. Hundreds of dollars each.

Like I said earlier, I'm just too terrified to wear them because I fear I will break a heel or wear them out. So, instead, they just sit in my closet, staring at me. Intimidating me. Torturing me with their fabulousness. It breaks my heart.

I really want to wear these shoes. Shit, I paid the money to earn that right. But something inside of me stops me every time. When I go out on a date, I stare at them, and then opt for my black flats because those trusty GAP shoes have never failed me. If I get the black flats scruffy, I can always spend ten dollars on another pair. When I go to a girls night out, I throw on my chocolate brown Jessica Simpson heels. My heart wouldn't be crushed if I got drunk and stumbled off the sidewalk in those $80 shoes.

I don't want to sell my gorgeous designer shoes. (Is that selfish?). I want to wear them.

It's a disturbing dilemma. I have no problem wearing my designer clothes and coats. It's just those damn shoes that scare me.

Looking at my favorite fashion blogs, I have a hard time thinking other people have this problem when it comes to shoes. I feel really alone in this matter...



PS. I'm too lazy to find my camera to take a photo of my shoes and closet right now, so you're stuck with these very old photos. (Plus the shoes are all still kept in their original boxes, like museum artifacts). And yes, Kerrie & I often sit in my closet with my shoes and drink wine. So the shoes aren't totally unloved...

My Fabulous Weekend

I hope you all had a great weekend. Mine was fabulous, of course.

Kerrie and I had a girls night in, with wine in a can and gourmet chocolates. We're classy bitches!



Interesting fact: For the past four years, Kerrie and I have noticed that we ALWAYS match every time we see each other (a.k.a. every single day). We do not do this on purpose. It's like we have fashion ESP or something. We're usually wearing the same colors, have the same handbag, wearing the same shoes, or even wearing the exact same outfit. This weekend, it was the same cardigan. She came over and we both burst out laughing when we saw each other.




We also did a little shopping. Here we are at Urban Outfitters. Do you like our new hats?






On Sunday, my parents took me to the zoo. It was very exciting and I had a lovely time gawking at all the animals and annoying them with my animal noise impressions.

(This llama got all up in my grill).

What did you do this weekend?

Guest Post: Meaningful Roses

The following guest post comes from Elie of Punctuation Mark. I definitely recommend checking out her charming blog! If you love delicious food, travel, and overall amazingness, you won't be disappointed!


Isn’t it beautiful to get roses from those you love? I just love it and even though these days we don’t know the real meaning of their colors years ago people sent messages to each other using the color of roses…

Red



Red roses are the quintessential symbol of love, passionate and romantic love! For the ancient Romans and Greeks it symbolized Venus, the goddess of love, and many other cultures used them to decorate wedding dresses and attires. In English gardens became the favored flower and was revered for its medicinal uses. And a single long stem rose mean “I love you”.


White



Associated to young and bridal love, the white rose represents humility, purity and innocence. Because of their widespread use in weddings they are the perfect flower to symbolize unity, virtue, and the pureness of the new bond of love. It’s been said that in Scotland when they were in bloom it was the time for new unions and marriages.


Pink



Said to be longest existing rose, pink roses have been featured in countless works of art beginning with the ancient civilizations. They symbolize tender love, grace and elegance, as well as sweetness and poetic romance. They are the most aromatic of all the varieties of roses and for that reason the different shades have also acquired their own meaning: dark mean gratitude and appreciation, and light mean admiration and sympathy.


Yellow



These are the roses that were discovered most recently growing wild in the Middle East. Their meaning has changed through the years but generally is associated with the sun, joy, wisdom and power. However, in Europe for a long time they were a symbol for jealousy and dying love. Today, unlike the romantic connotations of all the other colors the yellow rose is the only one that is the true symbol of friendship.

Have a great day and may you receive many colored roses!

The Real Me

I look like a potato today.

I am so sorry to have to tell you this news. I know most of you had this illusion that I, Jennifer Fabulous, am this gorgeous, perfect goddess, who has never even seen a bad hair day. But it's not true. There are actually days where I look like something you should cook in a stew.

This revelation most likely comes as a huge shock to you. I feel awful. Sort of like I'm revealing to you for the first time that you were actually adopted. (You're weren't. I don't think so. Shit. Maybe.)

I wish I could be one of those flawless beauties who gracefully sits down on an uncomfortable chair and makes it work. I'm not. I'm the tangled hair girl who sits on the chair and gets the cushion stuck to her ass.

I'm the girl who tries to act seductive, only to have the guy ask, concerned, "do you have something in your eye? You keep twitching."

I'm the girl who doesn't know her wrap skirt isn't tied properly and suddenly realizes in horror that she's walking in her underwear down the school hallway.

I'm the girl who makes awkward jokes at inappropriate moments.

I'm the girl who accidentally hits "send all" on a dirty text meant for her boyfriend.

I'm the girl who somehow gets an entire bottle of ketchup all over her outfit and hair during a first date. And when the guy tries to help, gets the entire mustard bottle all over him.

I'm the girl who looks like a potato when she doesn't wash her hair for two days.

That is Jennifer Fabulous. I'm awkward. I'm ridiculous. I'm me.

Now that I've introduced myself (two years into this blog), let me transition to the next phase of this post: My blogging game.

You can catch up on it here.

Day Six: Five people who mean a lot to you.


My family

(I had to clump them all together, I'm afraid).


Rian

(Our four year anniversary is in mid-November. Holy shit).


Kerrie

(Duh.)


Jenn

(She has been like a sister to me for 13 years...she's getting married in a couple weeks. I still can't believe it).


Jonny

(The male Jennifer Fabulous, who is a musical star in Branson).

Now you know the real me and my inner circle.

I am exposed.

Halloween Weekend

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!

I was kind of pleased that Halloween ended up being on a Sunday, because it meant I could celebrate it all weekend.

Rian and I kicked off the weekend by going to a pumpkin patch.

We got to pet horses, chase chickens, feed llamas, pick pumpkins, drink hot cider, and go on a hayride.








On Saturday night, Kerrie and I attended a Halloween party for a mutual friend.



Kerrie went as Rocky Balboa! Unfortunately, in this photo her boxing gloves are off.



I went as a 1960s bedtime person. Sadly, that was a very last-minute costume decision after my Tom Cruise Risky Business ensemble fell through. But at least I got to wear my actual 1960s vintage nightgown and robe out in public! Plus, there is nothing cozier than attending a party in pajamas. It was such a pleasant experience, I may have to do it again.



A few random pics of the night:







Kerrie and I kept it pretty tame that night, surprisingly. We just enjoyed spending time with friends we haven't seen in ages and admiring all the cool costumes.

How was your Halloween weekend?