sun, sand & the wedding plan.

If a ring, a dress and getting the proofs back on my invitations wasn't concrete evidence enough, this weekend was a fabulously sunny reminder that I am, indeed, tying the knot. Rob and I ventured to Hilton Head with our families to solidify some wedding plans and meet with several vendors for tastings, trial runs and all things wedding. It was a busy weekend, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I couldn't have asked for better wedding coordinators and vendors for our big day. Everyone totally understood our casual vibe and offered us everything we could have ever thought of, and plenty we never even considered. Our coordinator for our cake even customized a new icing for us to fit Rob's caramel obsession. Because that was obviously necessary.

Since I typically ramble for days, I figure I'd give you the photo recap of our long weekend. This is probably the most detail you'll ever hear about my wedding plans until the big day (everyone needs a little bit of mystery, right?), so get excited. Because I know you are.

 Our first long distance trip with the dogs went remarkably smoother than we had originally planned for. Brody, our pathological whiner, had a pretty little dose of acepromazine we got from our vet and spent the 10 hour ride pretty much completely wasted. God bless him, his 85 pound body had to be lifted out of the car during our first stop, where he them stumbled over to the grass to do his business. This was easily the saddest and funniest combination I've ever seen.

When Rob and I got to the island, we were pleasantly surprised to see that my grandparents had made a pitstop on their way home from Florida to spend the week with us. My grandmother, who is by far my favorite travel companion, tends to make everything more fun and exciting, and it was so fun to have her there to enjoy in some of our wedding planning (and to make the stuff I dreaded doing more fun). 

The dogs made their first trek to the beach on our first morning there. I could not wait to snap hundreds of unnecessary photos of their first encounter with sand, as if it were my first born child seeing the ocean for the first time. Brody surprisingly LOVED the ocean, barreling straight into the waves with Rob one morning. Scout, much like her remarkably beautiful mother, has decided that anything she isn't a fan of is a stupid idea and thinks anyone who does said activity is an idiot. She was not a fan of the ocean, and watched with disdain as Brody and Rob played in the waves. 

Then we taste tested cupcakes. Because this is, hands down, the best part about wedding planning. Please be excited, because these babies are going to be fantastic. 

Friday afternoon, we were fortunate enough to get a sneak peak of the house we're renting for ourselves and the wedding party during our stay in September. The house is just a few houses down from our wedding location, and the venue for our welcome party the night before. Cannot wait to see this be the central hangout during everyone's stay, and I'm slightly pleased that I can now take a vertical photo without hiding half my body behind Rob. 

Saturday morning, I took Scout on a nice 4 mile run around the plantation and to the marina across the street. I would happily work 4 jobs and sell my first born if this could be my run path every morning. I'm super proud of myself for getting in a good workout during our trip - I'm not sure if it was the beautiful morning weather or being able to run by water and beautiful scenery, but I seriously could have run a marathon that morning. And I should have. 

 I'm pretty impressed with how active we were this trip. Despite the amount of food we consumed during our tastings, eating was second hand to spending as much time as possible outdoors and involving the dogs in our stay. Bringing them definitely helped keep both Rob and I accountable to our activity plans and it was so fun to have them on our morning walks. 

I purposely booked all our appointments in one day so we could take our last day there to relax and enjoy the beautiful weather. Luck was in our favor, and it rained during our day of appointments but our free day brought us nothing but sun and blue skies. We spent the morning running wedding errands and soaking up the beach, and went to Harbor Town that evening, where we walked to the top of the lighthouse. I'm pretty sure I haven't walked up that lighthouse for at least 10 years, and I quickly realized that no amount of running, squats and zumba can prepare you for walking up 110 stairs for "fun." But, seeing the sky from that high right before sunset was absolutely breathtaking, and checking out the 18th hole set up for the RBC Heritage golf tournament wasn't a bad idea either :)

 

Honestly, I couldn't have asked for a better trip. I cannot even believe we are getting married in this place, and that we're fortunate enough to share it with our friends and family. I'm so blessed, and I cannot even begin to put into words how excited I am to marry my best friend in my favorite place in the world. Planning a destination wedding has been a frustrating experience - not being able to see anything, not knowing who the best vendors are and trusting that everything will just fall into place has been an exhausting experience for someone who likes to be in control (who, me?), and this weekend solidified that this is all really happening. We even got to see them set up for another wedding at our location, and I am seriously giddy with excitement at how "us" this entire wedding will be. 

Couldn't. Ask. For. More.