Oh my! Apologies for the belated posts. I was planning to have them go up one after another, but things on the home front (hint hint) took an unexpected turn toward busy last week… Also, I meant to recap in only three posts, but I’m already on the third post and John and I haven’t even seen each other yet. Sooooo, please indulge me — I only get one wedding :) I stayed up a little later than I would have liked the night before our wedding, but it was for a good reason – I had finished all of my notes for special people (parents, bridesmaids, readers) earlier that afternoon, but I hadn’t had a chance to write John’s. We have written some pretty epic letters throughout our eight-year history, and I knew that I couldn’t just dash this one off as I was getting dressed for the rehearsal. So yes, even though it cost me a half an hour of sleep, it was worth it. But oh my, morning came early! I am not one of those people that normally hops out of bed chipper, and when the alarm went off at 6:15, even the excitement of W Day didn’t stop me from hitting snooze once or twice. When I did roll out of bed, I simply washed my face, tucked the last few things in my overnight bag, and hopped in the car with my mom and sisters. A few minutes later, still in the gray of the morning, we arrived at the Steamboat Inn, where Tia, our hair and makeup magician, was waiting for us. (She was looking chipper enough for all of us!) Once we had set down our things in the spacious room, she immediately went to work curling our hair in big metal

Yep, still thinking about it (first post here, in case you missed it). It was so gratifying to read all of your sweet comments about how you, too, think it’s important to plan out the morning of your wedding and not just let it slip haphazardly away. In fact, just typing out that sentence gives me hives — the LAST thing I want happening on that day is to not realize how late it’s getting, and be forced to rush around getting ready at the last minute. Not that that would be likely to happen, but still. Anyway, I’m happy to say that we’ve decided where we’re going to be getting ready that morning: the Steamboat Inn! Here’s a little pic of the front: Photo by wheelmaker via flickr You actually approach from the back, but as my grandmother says, no one has waterback property :) Anyway, first, though, let me say that it might seem strange that I’m getting ready anywhere other than my childhood home, which is just as close to our ceremony venue as the Steamboat. Getting ready at home would certainly save us money. However, as we’ve already discussed, a calm wedding morning environment is very important to me. It sets the tone for the day, and I want the tone to be calm, loving, and joyful. I do not want anyone racing around picking up a house that, quite honestly, will probably be cluttered from a week of wedding preparations — not me, not my Mom, not my sisters, not my bridesmaids. I want a neutral environment in which we can all relax. I also want to give Tanja a lovely, simple background in which to shoot. Here’s a shot of the suite we’ve booked — isn’t it pretty? All that being said, I think