Wedding Checklist

Well... it is Christmas break!!! I only have a few more days left to enjoy being lazy, watching t.v. and reading for the fun of it. But I am accomplished SO MUCH during this break!

1. I booked the most beautiful venue. Logan and I will be getting married while looking out at the sunset over the lake. :) I love it so much
2. I found the bridesmaid dresses! Which means I know have a color theme! Whew... I was getting worried that I would never be able to decide on a color. Persimmon it is. :)
3. We have know where we are going to order our cupcakes (not a cake) from. I am going to meet with her later this week about details.
4. I GET TO PICK UP MY DRESS THIS WEEK!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cannot wait to wear it again. I would wear it everyday if I could.
5. Thanks to my two wonderful aunts, I have the best wedding planners of all time. I know that they are going to create such a gorgeous wedding. I have complete trust in them.
6. I have decided what I want Kadence to wear. A beautiful ivory dress with a persimmon sash and bow. She will look so adorable!
7. I have the majority of the music selected... Now I just need to decided when and where to play each song.
8. Save the dates are in the process of being made. I am currently working on address labels... ugghhh!

Let me just tell you guys, planning a wedding is probably the most fun that I have ever had in my life! I am super anxious for July 30, 2011 to arrive. I cannot not wait to marry my handsome BEST FRIEND! Prayers would be greatly appreciate through this exciting time in our lives! :)

Changes! AHH!

Plans may be changing AGAIN! My mom called me yesterday while I was in class. When I listened to her message, it sounded urgent. So, as soon as I got out of class I called her back. She told me that she has found the wedding venue of my dreams. For those of you that don't know, I am a very country girl. I have always dreamed of having my wedding on the lake with my wonderful family, close friends, and the man of my dreams! However, we have been unable to find a venue that is reasonably priced to fit my dream wedding. Therefore, we decided to have the wedding at a local church (which I was perfectly fine with). Like I said, as long as my family, close friends and the man of my dreams is there, I don't care if we get married in a courthouse (Which is tempting these days). Anyways, I immediately got on my computer and looked at a small clubhouse called Seven Coves. This venue looks out on the beautiful Lake Conroe and believe it or not, IT IS IN OUR PRICE RANGE! :) My mom told me that this is an offer that she does not want to overlook. So, my dad is going there today to take pictures and send to me. I never wanted to decide on a venue without seeing it first but the only day they have available is July 30, which is the date we had already set! What are the odds? Is it fate? Will my dream wedding come true? Well, I am praying that I fall in love with the pictures that my dad sends me and this is actually able to work out. Here are a few of the pictures from the website.

What a beautiful view! I can just picture this place at night, with white lights, fresh flowers, and my future husband waiting anxiously for me to meet him. I have been imagining this day for many months now, and I can hardly wait for it to be here. It will be the most wonderful day of my life. I am so blessed to marry Logan. He is my best friend and he make me a better person.

We also have honeymoon plans that we are pretty set on. All we have to do is book the resort and save our money for the best vacation EVER! :) More details on that will come later when they are finalized. I love you all, enjoy this wonderful Holiday season.

God Bless,

Tori

Wedding Update

I have checked 3 HUGE things off of my wedding checklist!

1. I found the most beautiful wedding dress. I knew it was the one when I saw it on the mannequin at Alfred Angelo. I tried it on and I instantly fell in love with it. My mom cried, so I knew it was the one! I am so excited to see it in December and get fitted. :)

2. We got our engagements pictures taken. The lovely Laura Bowles took them a couple weeks ago and did an amazing job. She is truly a phenomenal photographer. Here are a few that she took.

3. We FINALLY booked a church!! This has been something that I have been really stressing over the past 2 months. Venues can be so incredibly expensive and I have not been able to find one that is reasonably priced. So on Wednesday we went to some of the different churches in The Woodlands and found one that is so beautiful and big enough to seat all of our family and friends. So... We are officially getting married at Conroe Church of Christ on July 30, 2011!!! I am so excited to finally have a place and date. We can now start focusing on other things.

Christmas can not get here fast enough. My precious new nephew is due on December 18 (but I think he will make his appearance sooner) and I get to spend more quality time with my family and work more on wedding planning. The next three weeks need to go by so fast! But until then, wish me luck on finishing this semester strong and pray for strength and perseverance.

God Bless!

And so it begins...

Well, my first day of wedding dress shopping was a success! :) I found 3 dresses that I LOVE! Unfortunately, they are all three completely different styles. I decided that I don't have a specific preference when it comes to finding a wedding dress. EXCEPT, I know that I don't like a lot of poof. Not my thing. My sister and Natalie went with me so they were able to give some opinions. They also tried on a few bridesmaid's dresses! Of course they looked great in all of them but I still want to look at a few other places before I make my decision. :)

Hopefully (fingers crossed) I will find the perfect dress this weekend! My sister and I am driving to Fort Worth to meet my mom to do a little bit more wedding dress shopping. I would never be able to make a decision without my mom there to give her opinion. Friday can not get here fast enough. I will also be looking at dresses with my beautiful cousin, Bethany, because she is getting married this summer too! :) It is going to be a summer full of weddings for my family.

Here's to finding an affordable wedding dress this weekend! :)

Here Comes the Bride!

That's right! Logan and I are ENGAGED! :) It all happened on Friday night and it was so special. Here are some of my favorite pictures taken my the lovely Laura Leigh Bowles (who is also taking our engagement pictures soon)! ENJOY!

"Will you Marry Me?" He had to ask twice cause I started crying the first time. :)

I said YES!

My beautiful Ring! It is breathtakingly beautiful!

So happy together! :)

He did such a great job! He was so calm the whole night!

Well, there you go! As of now, we have not set a wedding date so keep checking back for updates! Chances are I won't do much planning until I go home for Thanksgiving! So until then I will just enjoy this new stage of my life. I am so blessed! :) Thank you for all the love and support!

Blessings from God

Well... I am a horrible blogger. I warned you that my blog posts were going to be few and far between. However, here I am updating you once again on my hectic but wonderful life. The biggest thing that has happened so far this semester is that I started my practicum!! I am in a third grade class at Cross Timbers Elementary School. I am very excited to be spending more time in the actual classroom, BUT very nervous because I will actually be teaching this year. I teach my first lesson on Wednesday (over Fact Families, yuck) and I would appreciate much prayer! :D

The rest of my classes are going good so far. I have a ton of project due in the next couple weeks so I am spending the majority of my time writing lesson plans and reading children's books. I could not ask for a better major! I LOVE IT!

In this blog I want to show the world some of my favorite people! Without these people, I would not be able to function let alone survive in this crazy world. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I will show off their lovely faces.

Logan Cates - aka my other half. This is the most amazing person I have ever met. He loves me despite of all of the crazy things I do and I will never understand why. He always knows how to make me laugh and that is what I love the best about him. He has a contagious smile and I can't help but be happy when I am with him. He is the friendliest person I know. He never meets a stranger and he knows how to make people feel so special. He is an amazing Christian influence in my life, and he challenges me everyday to be a better person. I can not wait to see what the Lord has in store for us next. I am so blessed to have you in my life, Logan!

My precious parents - Words can not describe how wonderful my parents are. Mom, you are the one who has been there for me through EVERYTHING. You are my best friend and I love that I can come to you with anything. I know that because of you and your example to me, I will understand what it takes to be a loving and caring mother and wife. Dad (even though you will probably never read this), I love you so much! Anytime I need a hug, I know that you will always be there. You always make me feel like everything is going to be alright. Thank you both for everything that you have done for our family. We have a very rare relationship and a cherish every part of it.

Trent and Tara - I love my brother and sister! We always know how to have a good time and laugh until it hurts. I look up to both of them so much. Even though we use to all hate each other when we were little, our relationship know has grown so much. Also, they have both met two wonderful people to share their lives with. Micah and Mayra, I love you both so much and I am so glad that you are a part of our family.

Nick Clifton - this kid is my longest lasting friendship from high school. We met freshman year and we have continued to be friends to this day. He might not know this, but I look up to him in so many ways. He is a great Christian example to me and he has a heart like none other. Nick, I am so glad that we have remained friends through all of the hard times we have both been through. I can't wait to see you and Katie get married and one day start a family of your own. Both of yalls friendship means the world to me.

Natalie Van Kull - aka my beautiful roommate. She is the most beautiful person that I have ever known and I am so LUCKY to know her. This is the girl that I can go to with anything. She is so trustworthy and she just loves to listen to me complain. ;) Thanks Nat for everything!

Madison, Kimberly, Holly, Tessa, Keely, Raelynn, Natalie and Laura - I could not ask for better friends here at OC. These girls have helped me out through so many difficult times. Each one of them holds a special place in my heart and I am so glad that God has blessed me such wonderful, Christian women in my life. We have had so many great laughs together and I know that there will be so many more to come. Love you girls!

I just want to give a HUGE thanks to all of you that have made an impact in my life. I love you all so much! :)

Love Never Fails

Good Afternoon friends! I hope that everyone is having a wonderful week and enjoying what little is left of the summer. As for me, it seems like all I ever do is work these days. This is the busiest time of year for the school district and we haven't slowed down in weeks. I am trying my best to enjoy these last couple of weeks with my family before I move my life back to Oklahoma. I sometimes wish that OC wasn't so far away from home, 7 hours is too long of a drive. However, I am definitely ready to be back at school, see my friends, see my niece and nephew, move into my new apartment, etc. etc. I have a feeling it is going to be a GREAT semester.

Yesterday, Logan and I celebrated our year and a half anniversary!! I can not believe that we have been together for this long. Time has flown by so fast. He means the world to me and I am so blessed that we only live an hour from each other. I can't believe that we had to both go as far as Oklahoma to find one another. Anyways, Logan took me to one of my favorite restaurants, Saltgrass, and we enjoyed a delicious steak dinner and huge brownie sundae together! He spoils me rotten sometimes!