Weddings With Whitney

Ladies and Gentlemen, let me introduce you to the only bit of sanity on my wedding day.

This is Whitney Johnson. She is purely fantastic, and 100% wonderful!

Whitney was my wedding coordinator. We met when we worked together, but by that time I had already planned a great deal of my wedding on my own. She picked up right where I was at and started in on the nitty gritty!

Whitney was the rehearsal and day-of person in charge. And she was fantastic! No detail was left unattended and everything and everyone were in their places.

Austin and my wedding day would have been less than perfect had Whitney not been there. We couldn't appreciate her and her hard work more!

Here are some examples of Whitney's work. She has such an eye for color, style and seeing the Bride's vision.

Moore Wedding

(My Beautiful Wedding...)



Swartz Wedding

Battle of the Bouquets

My idea from the beginning centered around white and green hydrangeas as my flowers of choice. But as I look more, I've fallen in love with a very different look! I love bouquets filled with grasses and herbs that have that "fresh from the garden" look and feel. They look like you just went and picked your flowers that very morning! How very whimsical :)

Thus, the battle has begun. And now I only have a few days to decide on the victor! I would love some input :)

On the Hydrangeas team:

Beautiful, Elegant, Timeless, Chic.

For the Whimsical team:

Romantic, Effortless, Lovely, Sweet.

Now I can really use your help! I must announce the winner by Friday! Keeping in mind the look of my wedding, which would you choose?

Days Twelve & Eleven...

[Source]

Just before starting this post, I got a call from my Love. Mid-conversation, he told me he had a question for me. It completely altered the direction I had planned for this post.

"How are you doing in your relationship with God?"

Two different things about this question touched my heart.
First, I didn't realize that such a simple question would stir up so many emotions. It's so easy to let things slip in this area. I don't understand why, but that is usually the first thing in my life to take a back burner. I realized that I've let myself get so caught up in planning our wedding and working, that I have ended up putting my prayer life and pursuing my personal relationship with Christ last.

Austin's deep love for God and his active pursuit of a Godly life has attracted me to him from day 1. He is never afraid to ask for accountability in areas he might be struggling in, and take responsibility to make changes for the better.  He is so strong, and has so much courage to take on the role of being a leader for me, and I admire him and am so excited to lean on him as my husband.

When he asked me this, I realized that it's not very easy to open up and just start listing your flaws, especially when it comes to spiritual things. It's easy to be embarrassed or become ashamed. But when Austin asked me that question, it was probably the sweetest moment I can remember between the two of us. Austin has such a soft way of getting behind my walls and encouraging vulnurability. This is the second part of that question that grabbed my heart. He isn't afraid to reach deeper and pursue knowing me better. I never have to be afraid to show him my flaws and faults. He tenderly lifts me up and stands beside me when I crumble in my weaknesses.

There's no doubt about it, no one else has come closer to my heart and who I really am. He holds my heart in his hands, and he nurtures and cherishes it.

Austin, I look forward to being your wife, knowing that you know me better than any other soul on this earth. I look forward to seeing all the ways God continues to push us to better ourselves together. But most importantly, I look forward to allowing God to lead us into the next chapter of our life together and seeing where that chapter takes us.

Day Thirteen of Austin...



I am not a very daring or adventurous soul. In fact, the very moment I feel any bit of change or that something is different from what I am used to or comfotable with, I just want to stop. I don't like change! It's like going into a restaurant and ordering something new off the menu (You all know exactly what I'm talking about... Don't try to pretend you don't order the same bean and cheese burrito every time you go to El Gitano)! The only thing I'm ok with changing is my clothes and the arrangement of my furniture :)

For a man who likes adventure and "fun things" like fishing and mudding in his truck, I know I can be boring. I don't like driving too fast or too close to the car in front of us, I don't like cutting my hair different because I might not like it, and I epecially don't do anything that would spike an adrenaline rush (except in sports... that's my one exception). I could never paint my walls lime green or buy a beautiful berry colored sofa. I always am afraid I won't like something once I do it. But Austin knows how many things I miss out on. He has really pushed me to open up and broaden my horizons. Sometimes when I'm with him I just have to accept that a little adventure may happen, and I'm learning to be okay with that :)

Austin has shown me that sometimes, you have to go outside of your comfort zone! Sometimes it's just small things in life like food or fashion, and other times it's big things like living out my faith. Regardless, he has always supported me when I'm afraid to do something I might not like. His wonderful arms hold me close and his eyes tell me everything will be okay no matter what. I love his support and his ability to encourage me.

Thanks for supporting me, love. You're the best shoulder to lean on and have new adventures with :)

Day 14 of Austin...

This is my camera. And as anyone who knows me knows, it comes with me nearly everywhere. I spend a considerable amount of time messing with techniques and fiddling with settings, and an even longer amount of time on my computer editing the results of my "play time". Creativity, art and photography are incredibly important parts of my world.

And so is my love.

In a long distance relationship, it's so important to spend your time together focusing on each other! But every time we are together, I always find reasons to pull him into my world of photography (what can I say? He's smokin hott and makes a fantastic model!). I always end up somewhat addicted to the project, and end up spending a lot of time working on it. I know if it was me, it would be difficult to just sit and watch me edit photos! But rather than get upset about "precious time together being wasted", he always sits by my side, puts his arm around me, and gives me his support. Austin realizes the value of his actions. He knows that being beside me and simply enjoying what I enjoy means more to me than most words ever could. I don't think he is as interested in how to add soft light or filters to a photo as I am... But the way he acts would tell me he's just as excited to be sitting there as I am over the cool effects. Ausin has chosen to make me important to him, so the things I love become important to him too. There couldn't be a more supportive and encouraging man in all of creation. 

Austin is so wonderful at showing me his support, his affection, his patience and appreciation. If the saying "actions speak louder than words" is true, then I'd have to conclude with this:

Austin loves me with every bit of his being.



Thank you for showing me, Austin. I love you too :)

Fourteen Days of Austin



Today is the officical two week mark until my wedding day, and I couldn't be more excited! Normally, my evenings are spent on the phone with my handsome fiance, discussing song choices, what beverages we will have, and making sure all the little details are falling into place. But not tonight. Tonight is Austin's bachelor party! I truly am excited for him to have a night free of all my gabbing on and on, making lists of things I'm forgetting, and him trying to help me understand it's a whole lot of hulabaloo for just one day. Whew... he must feel some sort of relief!

While he is out relaxing with his man friends, I am home still working on plans. I have emailed the florist, finished the "Just" part of our "Just Married" sign, and updated my linen order (Secretly, I also enjoyed an episode of "sTORIbook weddings" and gleaned much wisdom from Tori and Dean). And now I get to write a post about all my hard work!

Actually, my intentions with this post are very different from that of most of my others. Tonight I want to start the 14 days of Austin. This is a pretty big committment for me- I usually have a hard time keeping my posts updated! Originally I wanted to start this on the first day of the official countdown at 10 days... But I'm just too excited to wait! :)

Here's what's going to happen. the 14 Days of Austin are all about... Austin! Everyday I will share a reason I love him or how he is special to me (maybe even both!). Because this is not pre-planned out, don't take them as being in any sort of order or levels of importance.

I invite you to share with me now in the sweet, sweet love of almost-marriage!

Day 14 of Austin shall follow...

My Treasures

Every journey starts somewhere.



And now God has lead me to begin a new path. I'm preparing to start a new life with an incredible man.

 And I have the privilege of taking on this new adventure under the name of Mrs. Moore.

And planning my wedding has been an adventure in itself! But all my plans are coming together so beautifully :) I couldn't be more excited!

What are you drinking?

My most recently discovered DIY craft for my wedding, started in the $1 aisle at Michaels.

I ran across these little $2 picture frames while my sister shopped for a Mother's Day present :) They are so cute, I couldn't resist! I grabbed a couple cans of spray paint, and got to work. I'm going to use these for drink labels at my wedding. I'm so excited!

These are the three designs I chose, and I got two of each. As soon as I got home, I grabbed the roll of butcher block paper and headed out to the back patio. The picture frames all had a thin sheet of plastic glued in place that acted as the glass. So I cut that out and started spray painting. Here are the results! :)

I will post an update with the finished product once I put all the pretty paper and labels in! :)

Lovely Locks...

I have spent a fairly decent amount of time trying to find the "perfect" hairstyle for my wedding day. There are so many gorgeous styles out there, but it's hard to decide on one when I haven't seen them on myself yet! But I never tire of looking. There's always something new and exciting I find, and something I want to try! I'm definitely not going for a traditional, polished, or princess look. I want something that is unmistakably "me"! Almost bohemian, but with a touch of girly class. Here are some of my favorites I have found so far :) Tell me what you think!

I'm a huge fan of braids! They are so pretty, and timeless, and they are definitely not traditional for a wedding :)

Long and lovely is another look I'm completely drawn to. It is beautiful and so elegant!

Headbands give these looks a very unique feel. I love that these can bring a bohemian vibe, and even though they are incredibly pretty, they add an element of casual ease.

So now it's your turn. What are you doing/ what did you do for your wedding? And tell me what you think of my inspiration! Which is your favorite??