US Post Office . . . you need to give your employees some intelligent information so that they can help people

. . . otherwise you are just goint to be critisized for your lack of information, lack of help, and lack of intelligence and those of you who are good in those areas, I am sorry. I don't want you to have to make up for those who can't do their job well. Just be glad you don't work with the miserable women who work at the West Gray location in Houston, Texas!! Let's not think about their lack of help or intelligence I am sure that one day someone can help them to achieve that (seriously if you are in Houston, go somewhere else . . . hint Greenbriar)

Oh, look below, pretty!

So, I guess I need to update the fact that the down town US postal employees that helped us earlier this week were one in a million. Today we got the rest of the million who apparently hate life and don't want to help out anyone or make life easier for anyon. With that said, we had a horrible chase today looking to find a post office that would let us hand cancel the invitations so that we could get them out. West Gray said "We don't do that or let you do that but down town does" After we drove down town we found out once again that the Houston West Gray Post Office is awful and ignorant. Sorry, I don't want to be mean but they have told us so many false bits of info that I will NEVER return there. So after going to down town and finding out that they won't do it but if we leave our invitations on a counter the woman in the pasport office would "get to them if she got a chance and if not she would send them upstairs" yawn. Seriously, I'd rather leave my invitations on the street and hope they would get to the correct place the way I wanted rather than trust this lady. So, after reading numerous blogs about brides going to post offices and challenging the employes who eventually let them hand cancel, I wish I lived in you city. We finally found the best post office in Houston. The same one that was used to hand cancel RHRB's invitations yet we didn't go to them originally because they used to use red ink. Well, they use black now. We love them and I would love to go back and give the woman who not only helped us get a hand canceler but got us and EXTRA one, and give her a nice present. Seriously I wish I could tell her thank you in a good way.

Other than that, PW is on his bachelor weekend this weekend. They are in Austin and I just hope it is going ok! Tomorrow mom, dad, and I drive to Dallas to go to our last girly shower.

Today before he headed out to his big weekend PW picked up our wedding bands and above is a shot of them! I am so in love with both of them. PW's says RRR 8-2-08 PBW on the inside! I want to get my engagement ring engraved with that one day since I can't get my wedding band engraved with anything. I LOVE my wedding band. I haven't even tried it on yet but I helped design it and it looks just like what I wanted. Yay!

I am sorry to be mean toward US Postal workers. It is unfortunate that the employees of that company seem to be unwilling to help the public. I realize that this is not true of all US Postal workers but I have found this to be true with three of the locations I have tried out. I have also read many blogs that have had the same info that I have so at least it isn't just in Houston!

Get ready for a very boring post to anyone other than the people who are getting married and needing to send out their invitations right now while the new, correct price wedding stamps are unavailable! The past two weeks have been spent thinking about how to get around the fact that we wanted to have the invitations reach guests by June 2nd but the stamps done come out till June 10th. The new wedding stamps are green for the RSVP card and orange for the actual invitation. First of all what man decided on these two colors for wedding stamps? I like the green but the orange? Come on!

So after a thinking hard about our options we discovered the dragonfly stamp below which is just a little more than the actual postage that we need. We went to THREE post offices looking for these stamps. Finally at the downtown post office we were able to talk to an intelligent person who was able to tell us that they haven't been delivered to post offices yet. They tried to tell me at first that "they weren't available till June 10" which I knew was untrue for two reasons. First, the internet says they are available now and have been since May 19. Second, Miss Tiramisu from Weddingbee has already posted pictures of her invitations with the dragonfly stamps on them! I sent some quick messages to Miss Tiramisu and was quickly answered with very helpful information. If you haven't gone to Weddingbee yet, you must go look through it!

So we are using the liberty bell for the RSVP cards and the dragonflies for the invitations. I like the colors of the dragonfly and I like that the liberty bell says "forever" on it which is a good message for a wedding!
So, we got online and ordered our dragonfly stamps yesterday. And this morning I received an email saying that they have shipped. So if all goes well, the invitations should go out on Friday! I would really like to call the lady from the US Post offices's 1-800 number who told me that I couldn't order the dragonfly stamps to let her know that you can in fact order them so that when the next person calls she can give out correct information! Needless to say I have had it with the people who work behind the desk at post offices. They just don't care and if they don't know the real answer they just tell you what they want without checking. Though if you are in Houston and need postal help go to the downtown post office because the employees there were friendly, helpful, and double checked information to get it correct. Very different from the other post office experiences. Oh and the best thing about the down town post office. . . it is mere minutes from Ninfa's on Navigation and so RAR and I got to go get margaritas!

So luckily it is summer time and I can stress out and worry about something as silly as stamps. It makes me feel a little crazy but I want my invitations to look nice all the way down to the most minute details! And I have to say that I've come across MANY brides who have blogged about the same issue so it makes me feel a little bit better!

I am sorry if I have put anyone to sleep with this post! I know RAR will appreciate it since she went through it all with me!

sock monkey crib bedding

Okay, this is kind of wacky, and I would never pick it, but I also kind of love it, including the red Jenny Lind crib! It's my favorite brown-and-red color scheme.

bird and banner

In my ceaseless baby research, I somehow came across this graphic design team that makes amazing wedding invitations. Their home page makes me very happy.

stationery for dogs

Click through and then on "products" and then on the word "dogs."

Cute or disturbing?

Last full day of class!

Today is my last full day of class! Tomorrow the kids leave at 12:45 and then I stay and pack up the rest of my room! So in order to fully celebrate my last full day I did a little online shopping while the kids were out of the room!
I bought this dress from J Crew on sale! I usually don't buy things online because I like to try them on but I love this and I am willing to go get it altered if I need to. I have a wedding to go to in June, one in August, and one in September and I think I could wear it to all of them if I wanted because they are all different groups!
I already own this dress in a coral color and in blue. I love it so much! I suggest that everyone goes out and gets it in at least one color right now! RHRB has it and is 6 months pregnant and I swear it looks good on a pregnant person AND a non pregnant person. Hard to believe, but true!

Thank you J Crew for taking all of my money. I know I will wear the black dress till it is worn out but goodness can't you leave me with some money? And I didn't even get to use the teacher discount because it was online and these dresses aren't in the Houston store. Oh and while we are at it J Crew, can't you make the Houston store good again?

Here is something I found online today. You must visit The Cookie Sandwich Co. and look at the delicious cookies that they sell. I want to try every single one of them!

Oh and thank you RHRB for directing us to Munki Munki! I really want to buy something from them! Perhaps the bride pj's!

Embosser "fun"!

UPDATE: After waiting oh so "patiently" I got the monogram proof from Wilshire and this is it! I really like it. I was also excited because they send you a proof with three different sizes that you can pick from. If the rest of the order/delivery goes this well I will be a forever fan of this company!

Since I have decided that I would like to make the programs for the wedding I have been on the hunt for an embosser that fits a few criteria. First it must have an extra deep area to insert the paper since our programs are 5 1/4 inches square and I want the monogram to be in the center. Second it must come from a company that has nice images or fonts to use for the cover of the program.

I met RAR at a nice pharmacy near my school yesterday to check out their selection of wedding guest books and I asked the lady working in the paper area about the embossers that they sell. I explained to her how there needed to have an extra deep area in order to place the image in the middle of the program. I was quickly told that no such embosser existed. Since I had already seen that it does in fact exist on the internet (love the internet) I explained to her that yes, it does exist I guess just not with the company that they sell.

Next RAR and I headed to the store that sold us the wedding invitations. I won't go into it because I'll just get angry but the girls working there were very rude, acted like nobody makes their own programs, and then gave us a tacky suggestion for the program cover. Don't be snooty if you are going to follow it up with tacky, you are discrediting yourself. After a bad experience with ordering the invitation from them and after yesterday RAR and I are boycotting!

So we went home and went onto Wilshire Graphic Press where I originally saw the right sized embosser online and we bought one. The ladies on Weddingbee seem to like the company and you get an email with the proof of what your image will look like before they put the order through! I am "patiently" waiting for that email!


I decided to have our monogram in the font called "Monogram" which is the top left font below. So instead of GFL it will be RWP!

We also ordered the programs online from Crane and if you know me you know that I like to have decisions made so I feel good! And I'm excited because now PW and I have a nice embosser that we can use on stationary for thank you notes and for the rest of our life!

Grades are in! The kids are finished on May 29th at 12:45 and I am done on May 30th! Everyone is ready for summer. Only 4 1/2 days to have the sign below on my door! In August I will have to make a new one. The kids are very concerned with me changing anything that has my name on it! Some even want to start calling me by my new name now. Today during our morning meeting one little boy raised his hand and asked "When are you going to have a baby?" I told him not for a while to which he responded "Well my mom had me when she was 31." So I told him that gives me 4 years and quickly steered away from talking to 8 year olds about having babies!

Waiting for August 2nd!

Oh, if I could be crazy and have a fancy dress to wear for the last bit of my wedding and to go out in afterward I would pick this Oscar de la Renta dress. I'll tell myself though that I can't get this because we are leaving early on Sunday morning so it would be crazy to go out after the wedding!

And William Yeoward, why do you have to be so mean and make this Grace cup so expensive? I want this for no real reason other than I think it is beautiful but I do think it is just to insanely expensive! And sorry for the horrible picture! I looked for a good one on the internet and I gues a tiny picture is what I get!

So I've been thinking seriously about making my own programs for the wedding cerimony. I think I have decided that I will do it for sure since I will have June and July off and why shouldn't I put in the time to make something of my own?! I want to use these Crane do it yourself programs but instead of printing so that you read them with the ribbon to the side the ribbon would be on the top and you'd open it up!
While my parents were away recently I fed the wonderful cat Tipper and one day I showed up and found a few things on the front doorstep (I have to have things sent there because FedEx and UPS apparently can't get into my gate)! I found a book that I pre ordered a few months ago on Amazon, I love Amazon! I found a jean jacket I ordered from Old Navy to replace the one I had for almost 10 years that I loved and lost recently!! AND I found a wedding present, which is always fun! I found our Cuisinart 11 cup food processor which is so exciting because now I can make RAR's apple pie just like she makes it!
And to end it all. I spent part of this weekend cleaning out my closet and my guest closet to make room for all of PW's things that will be coming here in June! This is a picture of clothes that I will be taking to Good Will that will hopefully be put to good use and not just sit in my closet gathering dust any more! I found clothes that I got circa 1998! Oh and some shoes that I am kind of embarassed that I ever owned. Thank goodness that trends change! Apparently super chunky shoes were very popular around 2001. It is appropriate on my guest room bed with my college sheets though!

I also spent a while vacuuming today and realized that my cordless vacuum cleaner just isn't good enough. I need to find a cleaner that is not insanely expensive but does a good job on wood floors as well as carpet!

PS-Notice all of the black shoes. I really didn't own any brown shoes or clothes that would go with brown shoes till I was a senior in college or older!

PPS-Only 7 1/2 days till the kids are on summer vacation and I am alone in my classroom to organize and pack up for the summer!

Thank you J Crew!

A few weeks ago I heard that J Crew is now giving a 15% discount to all teachers. While it sounded too good to be true I had to go in and find out for myself! So after my first dress fitting yesterday I made RAR and RHRB go to J Crew with me. I was SO pleased to find out that it is very true! So as a little early present to myself (next week is Teacher Appreciation week) I bought some things that I will be able to enjoy in Maui!
I haven't bought a bathing suit in about two years and have been searching for good ones knowing I will want something cute for Hawaii. I forgot how miserable trying on bathing suits was. I think it is even worse than trying on jeans which I really dislike!
I ended up getting two new bikinis! The first one is a pink searsucker halter binkini that is very cute. RHRB did not like it as much as the other one because she is not used to seeing me in pink as I am generally in blue! The top looks kind of funny in this picture and I didn't know how it would look once I had it on but it ended up looking very nice on and it is very comforatble.

The second one is a multi colored string bikini that is so cute and has little ruffles along the edges! And yes, I look just like that J Crew model in it! Ha!
And then because I knew I would be enjoying the food and the Pina Coladas I got a little skirt to cover up when I feel the need to be covered up!
Thank you J Crew! Thank you for helping teachers look a little cuter each day by giving us a 15% discount! So next time you go into J Crew and you are a teacher make sure you have your school ID with you because all you need is your ID and an email address to get the 15% off!!

My first dress fitting went very well! I REALLY wish I could talk about my dress to everyone I talk to or run in to, most of all Philip. It is SO hard not telling him what it looks like or showing him pictures. He said he had the same problem when he bought my engagement ring, but he didn't have to wait months and months till I could see it! It is so pretty and so perfect and I can't wait till I get to wear it for real!

100 days!

It is officially 100 days until PW and I get married! And only 101 days till we are here:

That means only 100 days to finish all of the planning for the wedding. Only 100 days days left of being a Miss. Less than 100 days till PW and I live in the same city! Only 100 days till I get wedding cake! And many more things that will happen in only 100 days!

And while we are counting down . . . after today only 23 days until summer break!

Quick trip to Dallas

Last weekend I headed up to Dallas to have my first shower up there! RAR joined me on Saturday so that she could make it to the shower but I headed up on Friday night! I flew in on my usual 5:30 Southwest flight and actually got in on time for a change! Philip and I headed to our very favorite restaurant Tillman's Roadhouse which is in the Bishop Arts District. We originally discovered Tillman's on a double date last Spring and instantly fell in love with it. This restaurant has the most interesting decor of any I've ever seen. It is very rustic with wooden animal heads on the wall and then very elegant with crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling.

The food is down home comfort food that is to die for! After visiting Tillman's too many times where we left moaning and groaning from overeating, Philip and I decided to split our favorite the BBQ Ribs served over macaroni and cheese.

After our delicious dinner we decided to go for dessert, something we haven't done since the first time we ate there. We decided to get the peanut butter cookie sundae! It was SO good. The bottom layer was a huge peanut butter cookie stuck to the plate with peanutbutter. On top of that was banana ice cream and on top of that was two smaller chocolate chip cookies. This was all topped off with chocolate sauce. And if that wasn't enough they provided a side of extra chocolate sauce served in a creamer. Philip and I love peanut butter! It was SO good!

Saturday was the big shower! Here is a picture of my future mother in law, myself, and the mother of the bride before the guests arrived.

This is me begining to open my wonderful gifts!

We received so many wonderful gifts. If I wanted to post about all of the wonderful ones I would have to post about all of them! The shower was a recipe shower so I received a recipe with each gift which was fun. My aunt gave me this wonderful Apilco duck terrine which I LOVE!

I had many people give me the blue ruffled Amile Henry bakers that I was registered for!
RAR gave me the turkey platter that goes with our Spode! This means that I can be in charge of Thanksgiving now!
Philip's mom gave us a cooking class for two at Sur la Table which I know Philip and I are going to really enjoy!

After the shower we went and bought Philip's wedding band. Isn't it pretty? Just kidding. I couldn't find a picture of what we picked for him but I did find this crazy ring! Can you imagine wearing all of that weight on you hand? It looks like something that Mr. T might own!

RAR and I flew back on Saturday afternoon so that we could go to an engagement party for a girl who I have known since I was 3 years old! On Sunday we went to meet with my friend's mom to talk about flower girl dresses. We finally picked a dress that I am so excited about. It looks like the dress below but we are going to have it made sleeveless. Houston in August is no place to make little girls wear something with sleeves! Oh my gosh! And they had strands of little pearl necklaces and bracelets for your flower girls that I of course love! It's never too early to get started on pearls!

It was a very fun and productive weekend! I only wish RHRB was there to share it with us. Luckily she will be flying down to Austin on Friday to meet me and my friends for my Bachelorette party this weekend! And after that we will get an entire week of her in Houston!

Oh and some very exciting news is that my dress is here finally and I get to go to my first fitting on Tuesday! Yay!

ML Good Job!

Ugh! I should be grading away right now. I really should, but I feel like I am in a coma after our meeting with the florist today. So instead I am going to gear up to grade by posting these three pictures. Monique Lhuillier's Spring 2009 collection of wedding dresses is now up on brides.com and I have to say that there are some great ones. In fact I think that there are better dresses than what she has had the past few seasons. Here are my top three dresses in order:

This first one is amazing! I would like to try this on even though I am totally in love with the dress I have bought!

This second one is beautiful! I don't think this would look wonderful on me but I do think it is very dainty and pretty!

I love this third one. I really can't imagine myself in this one but there is something I love about the ruffle on the bottom!

Ok, the Office is over and I need to go downstairs and grade. Yuck! Yuck, yuck, yuck!

On a fun note, I have a wedding shower on Saturday and I can post pictures of some of my gifts for my one reader who will not be at the shower! And I guess with that said, someone (RHRB or RAR) needs to post something soon or this is going to become my wedding blog!!

Shoes, shoes, shoes!!!

My big idea for my wedding was to have my something blue be my shoes! Blue is my favorite color and it only seems fitting that I add that as my something blue. I found these amazing dream shoes on the Barneys New York web site but have given in to the fact that they are unrealistic! They are pretty though!


So these Kate Spade shoes were a pair that I saw online and decided that they were perfect. The name of these shoes is "Lovely" which is great to begin with. The color is perfect with my dress and they are good for an August wedding.


Then I went to Nordstroms and found these. Ok, the big crystal on the toe is cheesy and I'm completely aware of this. However, it appears to be easily removable AND it looks like we could add a piece of lace from my mom's (RAR) dress OR some sort of added detail on the toe using some blue ribbon I bought because it is my favorite color of blue! So not only would I get pretty wedding shoes but I could have the little bit of blue I was wishing for! They look very white here but the ones that we bought are more of an ivory color which is perfect with my dress!

Then when the reception has been going on for a while and I am ready for a break I can slip into my new "babies"! Last time I was in Dallas I had a great lunch with PW at Mi Cocina and then we walked over to the Tory Burch store to check out the Reva flats and I picked these up as they are perfect with a dress I am wearing to a shower in June! So, if my feet are killing me at the wedding, and it doesn't kill RAR, perhaps I will slip into these!

I am thinking about . . .

I am having the hardest time thinking about anything but these things today:

NINFA'S

Mmmmm! I love Ninfa's! I wish that was for dinner tonight. And while I'm busy wishing I wish that there were no calories in the food or the Ninfaritas! For those of you wondering, if I went there for dinner tonight I would order a chicken Taco a la Ninfa and a margarita (or two!).

THE WEDDING

No this isn't my wedding dress but before I found "the one" I thought this could be it! I would say that I am at the point where the wedding is on my mind the majority of the time. Can it please just come? I'm ready!

FLOWERS FOR THE WEDDING
We haven't decided on flowers for the wedding yet and I feel like all I've done for the past few weeks is look at flowers on the internet and in books and magazines to get ideas! By the way, I love this bouquet!

PHILIP

Yep, I think I'm pretty ready for him to move down here! This is a picture from Cinco de Mayo last year at our friends' party! Notice the margarita in my hand? I wish it was there now!

SLEEP

I am SO tired! School has been very draining this year. I love my class to death but there are other things that have just made it a loooong year! And by the way these are the linens that we registered for at Restoration Hardware!

Monkey Cupcakes

For all of our two or three blog readers (who by the way already know this) here is where the name Monkey Cupcake comes from!

Part from my love of monkeys! We have Mayme and Sissy to thank for the start of the monkey obsession. Christmas Eve 1999 they presented us with stuffed monkeys that were so cute and it all started from there. I now have people give me stuffed monkeys, monkey posters, monkey erasers, monkey stationary, and many more fun monkey items!

The other part "cupcakes" comes from the excellence of a good cupcake. The particular ones in the picture were banana cupackes with chocolate buttercreme frosting. The cupcake part wasn't my favorite but I still make the buttercreme frosting if I make cupcakes!

Ask anyone (especially my neighbors in the Tri Delt house junior year of college) "I like monkeys!!!"