back to school, back to school...

Spring break went by WAY too fast, and now we're back in classes again. It's okay though, because the semester is more than half way over. Zak graduates on May 3, only 7ish weeks away! I'll be in school all summer long (yuck), and then do my full time internship in the fall. I'm excited to be in the classroom full time, and doubly excited because I just got a scholarship that covers almost my entire tuition for the fall semester!! Three cheers for free money!
We had a lovely engagement party on the first Sunday of spring break. It was wonderful getting to see lots of friends and family, and we really appreciate everyone who came. The highlight of the week was Christine and Ryan's wedding on Saturday. The ceremony was beautiful, and we had lots of fun at the reception.


I've known Christine since 4th grade, so it's pretty crazy knowing she's actually married. (Mom and Dad's response to this statement: Multiply that by 1000 and you know how WE feel!) We're jealous of Christine and Ryan being married and we're ready for our wedding!! We're not wishing away time, but still, 9 months and 9 days to go...

love, z&j

they're up!

Jemma posted all of our engagement photos after many many hours editing them and they look AMAZING! (Thanks Jemma!!) You can check out the gallery here. They turned out wonderfully, but now we have to choose ONE for save-the-dates.... leave us a comment of your favorites and help us pick!!

love, z&j

FYI

...we have a wedding website! Right now it just has general information, but when the wedding gets closer it will have hotel info, links to our registries, and other specific info for your convenience. You can visit it here.
There's not really any new wedding updates. I've checked off all the boxes in the 9-12 months categories in the dozens of wedding planning checklists I have, so I've actually been focusing on school-- in between planning Christine's bachelorette party, working at Huntington Learning Center, starting to train for a triathlon, and learning photography, of course. Can't wait for spring break in THREE weeks and our engagement party and bridesmaiding in Christine and Ryan's wedding!

love, j

To keep you wanting more

The pictures won't be completely ready until this weekend, but Jemma has posted a few up on her photography blog as she has been editing. She's extremely talented and has lots of good photos you can check out. Click here to visit the blog.

love, z&j

A little snippet

So, today Jessica's friend Jemma took engagement pictures of us all around the Main Street area of Gainesville. It was VERY exciting. A couple of homeless people asked for money, we made goofy pictures, Jessica had problems striking a "serious" pose. It was great. We will not get the pictures for a few days but already got a little taste of what is to come. So far, so good. Here is a sneak peek! love, z&j

drumroll please....

I have my wedding dress!!! After three hours at David's Bridal, much patience from my Mom, Colleen and Christine, and two full racks of dresses later, I found the perfect one. We bought it Friday afternoon, and it is currently hanging in my mom's closet awaiting the big day! I haven't gotten any other accessories yet, but the dress was a very exciting purchase. This weekend we also booked a photographer, so it was a very productive weekend, wedding-wise. I've gotten to check off lots of little boxes on my 'wedding-planning time line.'

We are having engagement photos taken by my friend Jemma this upcoming weekend in Gainesville, which will be fun. I'll post some up when they're done, and hopefully we'll send out some save-the-dates soon. I think that's it for now... Life is good!

love, j

Mi na meala

Because you've always wanted to know...

"The original Irish translation for the word 'honeymoon' is mi na meala, which literally means the 'month of honey.' Irish custom held that the newlyweds would drink Mead at their wedding feast and for a full month after the wedding. In other words, for 'one moon,' hence the term honey moon." -Irish Wedding Traditions

We learned this at Bunratty Castle in Ireland this summer, and although we will NOT be drinking mead for a month (it was nasty!), we do have a honeymoon reservation! We're going to Vilano Beach for five nights and staying in this cute beach-front cottage.

Vilano is only a few miles from St. Augustine, Anastasia State Park and Guana River State Park. We'll have lots of beach time, kayaking, exploring, and relaxing. Also, from November through January, St. Augustine puts on the "Nights of Lights" and lights up the bridges, trees, fort, streets, and everything. It looks beautiful!


Just wanted to keep you updated! love, z&j