Drum Roll, Please...

Yes yes, I know. I should have posted this about a year ago.

In my defense, the bridal party has been picked and all the nice, wonderful things I have to say have been typed and saved on the computer for about 6 months. Don't ask why they haven't been uploaded.

But lo and behold, THE bridal party...

Kayla- Maid of Honor

I’ve known Kayla, well, all her life. I probably wasn’t all that happy when she arrived, but I know now that life wouldn’t have been the same without her. We haven’t always seen eye to eye, and I’m fairly certain that my hair is thinner because of all she has pulled out, but when it came time to pick my right hand girl, no doubt in my mind was it Kayla. And good thing, because every time I haven’t wanted to make a phone call to a venue or book a dress appointment, Kayla has been right there to help me. Not only is she going to make me look fantastic, I know that with her help and guidance, my wedding will go off without a hitch. Kayla is such a special person, someone I can always count on to come through for me, she will always help with whatever she can, and she puts up with all my baloney. And she is the one person that can and will keep me from turning into ever-loving Bridezilla. She has done so much to help make this wedding, the wedding I have dreamed about. I just don’t know how I will top it when it comes time for hers… Shawn? Love you sis!

Liz- Bridesmaid

Call me a peeping tom, but I first met Liz when she lived behind my Baba & Pap’s house and Kayla and I would watch her and her sister play in the backyard through the holes in the wooden fence. I somehow talked her into playing soccer on my team in 3^rd grade, and except for high school soccer (don’t worry Liz, it wasn’t a foul), we have never played a game apart. Liz is honestly the only person that I can count on to go along with my crazy ideas, without even thinking twice. I know this for a fact, just don’t ask any questions; you wouldn’t like the answers. Whether it was late-night-tea-dates on the kitchen countertops or secret spy missions I still deny to this day, my college experience wouldn’t have been the same without her. Liz and I have honestly been through everything together and she is my best friend, as cheesy as that sounds. Just don’t mess with either one of us, we will shut your power off.

Kristen- Bridesmaid

When it came to filling my last attendant spot, I had some tough decisions to make. I mean, I have lots of girls that care about me. But when I actually sat down to think about it, I knew it had to be my Cuz. No, we haven’t always been close. And we have probably fought about almost everything under the sun. She’s taller than me., but I’m older. She got the last piece of fried okra. She won’t let me hold the dead rolley-polley we found in the swimming pool and named Gordon. She refuses to be the daughter when we are playing house, she wants to be the dog. She thinks “the bird” is hers and wont share it with me. I think you get the idea… But as we got older, more mature, and I grew about 5 inches, I actually realize how important she is in my life. And I couldn’t be getting married without “The Cuz” making an appearance in my bridal party, because then it just wouldn’t be a party. Kristen is someone so special to me and someone I can truly call a friend, not just because she is family. But I would like to officially put in out there, that even though she won the fight over height, “the bird” IS MINE.

Matt- Best Man (Harvey’s words)

Growing up I was the only boy with 3 sisters and always longed to have a brother. Little did I know that I would get one my sophomore year of high school. By junior year Matt and I were inseparable. We were always together and always stirring up trouble. As we get older and life sends more obstacles our way it sometimes becomes tough for Matt and I to get together on a regular basis. However when we do finally get together it’s as if we didn’t skip a beat and we start right were we left off. Matt is more than my best friend he is my brother and I couldn’t imagine anyone else being my best man.

Shawn- Groomsman

I will admit when Kayla started bringing this new guy around I wasn’t very friendly and didn’t make life easy for Shawn. The Lee’s were my girls and I wasn’t about to share. To Shawn’s credit he never gave up and always stayed friendly and actually became one of my good friends. Shawn is a great guy with a big heart and would do anything for anyone. Working with Shawn has strengthened our relationship and furthered our friendship. Good luck man, cause you’re next.

Travis- Groomsman

Not only is Travis my boss he is also one of my best friends. I honestly can say that a lot of the reason of where I am today is due to Travis and the opportunity he has given me. Travis hasn’t just given me an opportunity, he also has been a great friend. Travis is the guy I know that I can call when I need help and I know he will be there. He has a heart of gold and I’m honored to have him in my wedding.

Steven- Lil’ Best Man

Ok, so this comes as no surprise to anyone. STEVEN IS GOING TO BE IN OUR WEDDING. Anyone that knows Harvey, knows that on most days his little shadow can be found toddling around not far behind. I knew my life was about to change forever about five ago when Harvey left me high and dry in Flagstaff at 6 in the morning because he had just gotten a phone call from Lauri that she had gone into labor. Ever since then, Steven has been the center of his world, so bad at times that I think I might possibly be second in line. For this reason, Steven was upgraded from ring bearer to lil’ best man and at Harvey’s request, will be sporting the same dapper duds as him. We both honestly love this little boy so much, you could almost think he was our own. Therefore, please excuse in advance any dinosaur roars or Power Ranger transformations during any part of the ceremony or reception.

Sammy- Ring Bearer

Our wedding party wouldn’t be complete without our very own curly headed, lil’ wrecking ball. This one might give us a run for our money, but he is second in command, behind his older brother, Steven, and the apple of his “soon-to-be Aunt’s” eye. And speaking of eyes, he’s got a set of blue ones that he knows how to use to his advantage. Even if your Uncle is more concerned with a certain someone else (ha hum… Steven…) just know that I love you and am glad you could be a part of our special day too. I love you Sam-a-loo!

Sadie- Flower Girl

If someone is going to upstage me at my own wedding, it’s going to be this little girl. Not like she needs any more excuses for any more attention, but she is going to be the cutest flower girl around. Now, this is going to go one of two ways. Oh, you mean all these people are watching me put all these flowers on the floor. Oh I’m so cute… or Complete DIVA meltdown in 3, 2, 1… Either way her Uncle Puppy and I can’t wait to see her in action. (We just wish she had a sister that could help her out. And I don’t think her father would let Brody wear a dress.) Smooches!

The ticker keeps on tickin'...

I started this blog with the intention of keeping people updated with all of the fun little details of planning our wedding. And I've done about as good of a job as Harvey has done in finishing my backyard... But we love him anyways. And so you will hold no ill feelings towards me for keeping you poorly-informed. Right ?

Anyways. Since that little ticker over there on the sidebar → surely wasn't adding days, I figured I better get down to some business.

First on the list, meet with our venue to discuss and finalize plans, pick a menu, and work on a table layout. So I enlist my trusty MOH Kayla to make the phone call and set up a meeting. She calls...

"Hi. My name is Kayla Lee... yada, yada, yada, in her professional Planet-Hollywood-I-do-this-for-a-living-voice... and I would like to set up an appointment to finalize plans for my sister's upcoming 10-10-10 wedding."

And this is the response she gets.

"Oh, we are so glad you called. Unfortunately the man you booked your event with is no longer with us and the only record we had of your sister's wedding was a last name on the calendar. No contract. No contact information. No record of an existance, except for 'Tadmor 10-10."

WHAT!?!? Seriously? Why do these kinds of things always happen to me?

Second order of business, bridesmaids' dresses. At the beginning of this whole thing when we were picking colors, Mr. Monochrome and I decided compromised on gray as the major color of the wedding. Not silver. Not platinum. Gray. Do you think I could find bridesmaid dresses in the right color? Of course not, remember who we are talking about here folks. So we enlisted a very reliable seamstress that is going to custom make the dresses in the correct color and to my girls' liking. You know, plunging v-neck, fingertip-rule need not apply. So Kayla goes to call her now that the fabric has been ordered and arrived.

"Oh, I'd hoped that I would be hearing from you soon. I've been in the hospital for the past 3 weeks. My colon ruptured. But I should be home soon. I'll call you when I'm out."

Now, don't take this the wrong way. I seriously worry about the woman's health. She is such a nice lady and it is terrible that her health has taken this turn. But really, why does everything always have to be so difficult.

However, she has since been released, we met, measured, and should have GRAY dresses before long. And my ladies will look so fantastic no one will ever know the headache we had to go through to look so good. All for the love of gray.

On a happier note, I am pleased to announce that the much anticipated arrival of my wedding dress has come. I had my first fitting on July 22nd to be exact and they got me all pinned up. It just might even be a surprise for all you squeezies... You'll just have to show up to find out.

Also, planning my bridal shower is in full effect, and by the sounds of things, is going to be quite a production. I am so excited, I could just go MAD. Invitations should be out within the next day or so. Keep an eye out... Hope to see you there!

And no blog is really ever complete without some kind of picture. So here is a little glimpse of what we do at Aunt Karla's house when Uncle Harvey is working...

A Pickle.

Oh, hello blog. How are you? No I haven't forgotten about you, I've just been so busy planning a wedding I've had no time to update... But I'm back now!

So a few weeks back I asked you fabulous people for some help with a first dance song. I got a few suggestions and tossed back and forth a few different ideas. And now we've gotten ourselves into quite a pickle. Good thing i like pickles. The one that we liked the best, from all the suggestions, was this one ↓ Etta James, At Last, performed by Beyonce. I heard it once and fell in love. I think it's wonderful, so romantic. And I can see myself swaying to this one, because as you all know I can't dance. Give it a listen... and sorry in advance for the commercial.




But I don't think Harv is quite sold on the idea. He likes it, alot more than the others. He just doesn't think it's "us". Add another pickle to my jar. So back to the drawing board we went... And we searched, and searched. And googled, and facebooked, and iTunes-ed until we were blue in the face, or ears. :) We have always liked Shania Twain's Still the One. However, Shania Twain makes me want to gouge out my eyeballs. I cannot stand the sound of that woman. But I love the lyrics. Oh the drama.

And then one Tuesday night the stars aligned. You see, I have loved American Idol since my girl Carrie was on. Guilty pleasure. And this past season I made Harv watch with me. At first, it was a struggle, to which he agreed out of love. Towards the end, not so much. Not that he would admit it, but he would call from work to see who got kicked off ;) Anyways, from the beginning we have liked Lee DeWyze. On this particular Tuesday night, they mentioned it was Shania Twain week. Shoot me in the leg. And then Harv goes, "Wouldn't it be cool if Lee did that one song."
Well, shiver me timbers... wanna take a guess as to who sang Still the One? No friggin' way right?

It was great. I love the way he sang it, and I love the lyrics. Lightyears better than that Shania woman. And this post won't be fair if you didn't listen to it too... And actually listen to the lyrics.





Needless to say, now we are more confused than when we started. Do we go with beautiful, romantic love song? Or more edgy, non-traditional "us"?

Help... Please? As in, leave a comment. Give an opinion. I'm actually ASKING FOR INPUT. Quickly, before my pickle jar turns into one of these...

I swear.

Fairly early on in the wedding planning stage, we booked a DJ. He came very well recommended, and he works with my dad, and we are super excited to have him do our wedding. Once we booked him, he sent us a list of favorite songs for everything from bridal party entrance to the last song. I never even knew you had to pick music for some of these things! Harv and I had kinda been throwing around different ideas for our first dance song, and while I would love to do something unique, I would rather spare myself the embarrassment. We went to a wedding last year where they started dancing to a slow song, the CD skipped, the groom freaked out, a mix tape started, and they rocked out. All completely planned, unbeknownst to the guests. It was hilarious and so much fun. However, it is no surprise to anyone that knows me, I CAN NOT DANCE TO SAVE MY LIFE. So the ol' sway back and forth to a slow song it is...

Anyways, the song has proven to be quite a bit more difficult than originally anticipated. Everything else has been easy.

What kind of flowers do you want?
White ones. And pink ones.

What kind of food would you like to serve?
The kind that tastes good.

You guys get the idea... But this first dance song for some reason has set out to drive me nuts. It seems all of the first dance songs are either really old, or country, or are like 7 minutes long. Don't get me wrong, I like country songs, I just wanted to try and find something not so twangy. And remember the whole not being able to dance thing? Why on Earth would I want to sway for 7 minutes? Let alone, make you sit and watch me. We need something short and sweet. I was thinking more Gavin DeGraw-ish. Harv says I'm cheesy. Direct quote. And everything I do find that I like, and Harv agrees with, is about a guy singing to his girl... I wanted something a little more well rounded. Does that even make sense? Starting to see our dilemmas?

Harv came home with an epiphany yesterday.

Kar, I found the perfect song. And I can't believe I didn't think of this sooner. I LOVE THEM. This was like my favorite group when I was younger. And it's not country! As he is frantically scrolling through his iTunes and I'm getting nervous...

And as he hits play, from the computer across the room I hear,

I swear. By the moon and the stars in the sky. And I swear. Like the shadow that's by your side.

And he calls me cheesy...


Long story short, we need your help, suggestions, and divine intervention. Unless you would be able to live with yourself knowing that Harv picked that song and you did nothing to save me. Gotta love him.

Say yes to the dress.

They should change the name of that show to "Say No to 472 dresses until you finally find one you like."

I swear I was never going to find a dress. Mentally was envisioning myself walking down the aisle in a brown paper bag, like seriously never going to find a dress.
Please excuse the blinding white skin. It's April, gimme a break.

They were all too plain...

Too princess-y...

Going to a Quinceañera...

Or feeling a slight resemblance to a ugly step sister.

And traveling with an entourage like this...

Could make anyone feel like this.

Thank goodness for this lil' guy.


But I would like everyone to rest assured, because I know you have all been losing sleep worrying about my dilemmas. There is hope in the world. A dress has been found. Paid for. And ordered. With any luck, it will arrive before October. And it's perfect. Everything I've hoped for...

But I will give you a hint.




It's white. :)

Our Story.

I wanted to tell our story, but I wanted to do it a little bit differently. I decided to write my version of what happened, and then have Harv write what he thought. Easier said than done. But after all the DVR-ed episodes of Avatar were watched, and a promised bowl of chocolate pudding, I actually got Harv to sit down and write his version. It's a little long, but I'm really happy with how it came out.

Behold, he said, she said..

He says...

I would say the initial meeting was anything but love at first sight, it was our junior year and some friends and I went to watch Silverado women’s soccer play at Coronado high school. I’m pretty sure I was there for another player but after the game while talking to some of the girls I knew on the team I was introduced to Karla Lee. She was sweaty and gross; hair pulled back in pre-wrap and had a mouth like a truck driver. Talk of the girls reverse came up and a mutual friend had recommended that Ms. Lee ask me. Not much more was said and I left shortly after and didn’t think much more of her. A few days later, Karla asked me to the girls reverse but we would not be going to the dance, we would be going to California and Disneyland instead because Karla had a soccer tournament. We would go as a group. Me and a buddy of mine Karla, Kayla, and two other girls… oh yeah and Karl was the chaperone. During the trip I constantly tried to put my (what I thought were irresistible) moves on Karla and she was just not having it. You see the buddy of mine that also went on the trip had gone to school with Karla since they were young and Karla had a secret crush on him. Needless to say the trip was a

mess and by the drive home everyone hated everyone and I don’t think I talked to Karla for at least 6 months after we got back.

So we fast forward and it is now a couple moths into our senior year of high school. It was a Friday night October 10^th and I was at my best friend Matt’s house and we were trying figure out what kind of trouble we were going to get into for the night. I began to go through the long list of female phone numbers that I had in my cell phone (maybe 20 but in high school that seemed pretty spectacular) and that is when I came across Karla’s name. I stopped and laughed and figured what the heck. To my surprise she answered and told me she just got done with her sister’s birthday and that I should come pick her up because she lived around the corner from Matt. So I did. Matt drove his own truck so that I could work my charm. I don’t remember where we went or ended up, but I do know that for a couple hours we drove around joking around and having fun. I also know that night I fell for the girl that was nothing that I normally was attracted to. She was simple, wore soccer sweats, didn’t wear make up, and quite honestly didn’t care what anyone thought about her and that’s the night the chase was on.

Throughout our senior year I considered Karla my girlfriend but she insisted to her family and everyone else that we were just friends. We talked every night on the phone we hung out on the weekends, but she was always a little distant. She was work and made me work. I guess it was the thrill of the chase that I stuck with it and by the end of high school she was my girlfriend. Just in time for her to leave for college. That summer we were inseparable. We were just two kids in puppy love.

The summer flew by and next thing I knew it was time for Karla to leave for school. I accompanied her family down to help send her off. We said our goodbyes I got a quick kiss and she was gone. I buried my head in a pillow and am not ashamed to say that I think I cried from Flagstaff to Kingman, which is about a good hour and a half. I would return in two or three weeks and that would continue on for four years. It was difficult being so far away but I got a second phone just for her so we could talk whenever for as long as we could. I started my real estate business and that kept my mind pretty occupied during the periods we were apart. We had our ups and downs and I do mean some downs, in which poor decisions were made, but we stuck together and our relationship lasted to everyone’s disbelief. I would go down for every couple of weeks and she would come home when she got a break from soccer. That was our relationship but it worked. The day Karla walked across the stage at her graduation was one of the happiest days of my life. We had made it and she was moving back home for good!

It was during Karla’s senior year while having a conversation with my mom Carol about knowing when proposing would be right. She asked me how Karla made me feel and I remember mumbling a bunch of crap but the last words that I said were I couldn’t imagine my life with out her. At that point she stopped me and said say no more. She said you know you love someone when you could never picture your life with out that person again and the thought of not having them scares you to death. She was right.

Karla and I had discussed marriage a lot and I knew the kind of ring she would want. A big One! I had one custom made based on others she had showed me and when I thought she least expected and it was just her and I, I got down on one knee and asked her to spend the rest of her life with me.

I must admit when she asked me to sit down and write our story I wasn’t to excited and it seemed like a ton of work. But as I sat here going through the memories and remembering the events that got us to were we are I’m excited to think that a lifetime of memories are still ahead of me with the love of my life, the person that my world rotates around, and the best friend I could ever pray for.

She says...

Love at first sight? Eh, not so much…
I was the girl in high school that couldn’t have cared less about who was dating who or who had hooked up with so-and-so. I had my best friends that went to different high schools and we did our own things on the weekends, none of which involved anything to do with other high school friends. And “own thing” usually meant watching Disney channel movies, drinking Slurpees, and bean-ing peoples yards while they were enjoying a nice vacation. But that’s a whole ‘notha story.
Enter Hillary. One of the “popular girls” that happened to play on the high school soccer team. She wanted to introduce me to a friend of hers after a soccer game one high during my Junior year. Much to my dismay, I obliged, mostly to get her off my case. I had heard about him before, he had quite the reputation. We’ll leave it at that. So she introduces us, we talk, and go on our merry ways.
This is where things start to get a little hairy. We’ll go with the abridged version…
I took him to GR (Girls’ Reverse, a formal dance where the girls ask the boys) our Junior year, 2002, and it was a disaster. DREADFUL. TERRIBLE. DISASTER. We didn’t talk again for quite some time. Then one night, I see him driving through my neighborhood, window down, music blarin’. Oh God, here we go again. He stops in the middle of the street and I slow down to see what he wants. To take me on a date? Seriously… I thought I got rid of him once already. Once again I hastily oblige, thinking I may be able to come up with a good excuse when he calls. No such luck, and after a barrage of phone calls in a short period of time, I am forced to actually hang out with him. Maybe just one date will make him remember how much he hates me. My family is going out to dinner for Krista’s birthday, and I tell him he can pick me up after that. October 10, 2003. If you would have told me then that the boy that I was getting picked up by was the same boy I would marry on that exact date 7 years later, I would have slapped you in the face. No way.
The rest is history. It was no walk in the park, not even close. We went through everything your typical high school couple does. Then when I decided to go away to college, much to his disappointment, we wanted to try and stay together. Oh brother! Sacrifices had to be made for it to work, and at times it was extremely difficult. After the initial shock wore off and we got into a routine, it wasn’t all that bad. Of course, it would have been better if we lived in the same area code, but we made due with what we could. And it helped that he made the trek to good ol’ Flag-hole every two or three weeks. It was during this time that I truly became a believer. He was so supportive of me and my decision to move away to play soccer go to college, even though I know he would have rather had me stay in Vegas. After millions of minutes talked on our cell phones, thousands of miles traveled on his numerous different vehicles, and all the uNnecessAry Drama in between, I graduated in May 2008 and moved back home to Las Vegas.
Getting engaged was something that we had definitely discussed, but I had made it very clear that I wanted to be living in the same state as my fiance. Nevertheless, on February 15, 2009, he proposed, in true Harvey fashion. Words can't describe what he means to me. Yes, sometimes he drives me nuts. And other times, he is quite the dork. But that is why I love him. Let the wedding planning begin...

Hello, friends.

*If you are reading this, it must mean that we actually got around to posting something on the blog!

We wanted a place that could keep all our friends and family informed about our upcoming wedding, you know, the one happening in about six months (see countdown to the right!), as well as what's going on in our lives. We will do our best to keep updating with as much as we can. Keep checking back!