My Wedding Report

I recently had my first bridal shower. Going into it, I was excited but slightly nervous. I am not one to be the center of attention, and knowing that people would obviously be looking at me a lot was a little overwhelming. (Just imagine what I’ll be like before the wedding! haha) However, once I arrived at the shower I had the best time.

My aunt did an amazing job decorating and setting everything up in her beautiful home.

Perhaps one of my favorite parts about this whole process is the opportunities that weddings create for quality time with those you love. And if you remember my post on the Five Love Languages, you’ll know that I am big on quality time. It was so fun to see my extended family and close family friends.

How cute is our flowergirl?

One of the more humorous parts of the shower was the question game. You know the game, where they ask the groom ahead of time a bunch of questions and then you have to guess his answers? Well, Mr. Ducky and I have always joked that we’d be horrible on any sort of Newlywed Game Show because he has no real absolute favorites so questions about him tend to be difficult. Sure enough that was the game at our shower and for each wrong answer I had to put gum in my mouth. I got all the relationship questions right, but when it came to his favorites it was a tad difficult. Even my Aunt said that when she talked to Mr. Ducky he wasn’t sure what to answer. Something like a favorite band/artist changes weekly depending on what mood he is in. We aren’t entering a game show anytime soon. Here is the result of me getting so many questions wrong…Sorry for the graphic and terribly unflattering picture! But now you can see how many wrong answer I had!

All of the food was delicious! Look at this fruit! Something about fresh fruit is so amazingly delicious.

My mom made a beautiful ribbon bouquet from all the gifts. Have you ever heard of the tradition that for every ribbon you break it is a future kid? Mr. Ducky was very concerned about this tradition.

Look at the hilarious favors my Aunt made! Kitchen gloves with some bling and nail polish! Mr. Ducky says they creep him out, but they make me laugh.

A picture of mama duckling and I at the end of the shower.

It was such a special time and I was so thankful for the generosity of everyone there. I regret that I didn’t take more pictures to share, but I guess I know for next time right?

Were you nervous before your first shower? What is your favorite part of a shower?

With just about two months to go all the sudden I hear Europe’s “The Final Countdown” playing in my head or simply because Mr. Ducky is humming it. It’s one of those moments when you say “Oh.My.Gosh, I have SO much to do!!”  I think I’d redo this music video with flashes of loading my my cricut and cuttlebug, lots of glue, paper everywhere and wedding magazines scattered across the floor. (Maybe with out the 80s hair as well!)

The biggest thing is all the DIY projects that I need to get moving on. Mr. Ducky and I went to Paper Source this weekend and ordered all the paper for our invitations. I need to finish the design and hopefully those will be out by next week. Our design changed a little bit when we discovered Khaki A2 matchbooks on sale for 50% off. Mr. Ducky was inspired, and sure enough we bought enough for both our invitations and programs. They have that kraft paper feel and I’m really excited for what we are going to do with them. Cross your fingers that you see a post on them next week, meaning that I finished them!

I could write out a list of all the DIY projects that need to be done, but I think that might be kind of boring for you and my head might possibly explode. I have the designs and ideas, it’s time to start executing them though. What’s the best way to prioritize?

There are so many details that need to be taken care of, much less finding a place to live and all the other things that come along with being married. We have been engaged for over a year, and the wedding has felt so far away for so long. Now it is right around the corner!

Anyone else feeling the time ticking away? What is next on your to-do list?

 
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I know what you are thinking, and there is not a baby duckling on its way. However, that was the topic of the week at our couples counseling.

It was an interesting conversation to have and while we’ve talked about it before, it was a good time to really look at a variety of issues. I thought I’d share some of the conversations that we had.

We started right at the actual birth and labor aspect. Now because of my psychology degree and lifespan developmental/women’s issues classes I have seen several videos of births. And honestly it scares me a little bit each time. I always thought that I would be one to ask for some medication to manage the pain. Our therapist asked if I had ever considered hypnotherapy during labor because it takes away the pain. I had never heard of it, but after her explanation I would definitely consider it as an option. Has anyone ever tried hypnotherapy?

When do we want kids? Mr. Ducky and I have always said that we want to wait at least 3 years or so before starting to have kids. We are both young and really want to invest in our relationship and build a strong foundation as a married couple before introducing kids into the picture. Another huge factor is financial readiness. Now, of course could an accident happen and we end up with a baby sooner rather than later? Yes, but we are hoping this will not be the case. We both agree that we would like 2 kids.

I’d like to be home with the baby at first, but I don’t see myself becoming a full-time stay at home mom. As a therapist I am able to set my own hours and days that I work. I hope to arrange my hours so that I am working when our kids are in school and I’ll be able to pick them up and be home with them in the afternoon. Before they are in school I would maybe want to work a few days a week and arrange child care accordingly depending on where we are at that point. Mr. Ducky is very supportive of these ideas. He knows that I love what I do and how much I have invested in my education. He wants me to be able to continue my work and be a mom.

How do we want to raise our children? Mr. Ducky and I had similar upbringings in terms of values and discipline. Our families were a good balance of strong boundaries and lots of support. We want to raise our kids in that same environment. We want to take our kids to church with us and teach them about our faith. There will be discipline, but also conversations of understanding and acceptance.

It’s really important to me that even after we get married, we continue to “date” and pursue one another. Our relationship will always be a priority and we will continue to be husband and wife as well as being parents. I think it is easy to lose those roles when the focus becomes only the children. Mr. Ducky and I want to be accountable to each other that we continue to take time for ourselves and invest in our relationship even when children come into the picture. This means that we have to start the habit of date nights etc. now.

While I don’t think either of us are ready for kids yet, it was exciting to think about the future.  It also gave us a chance to reflect on the appreciation we have for our families.  We are both lucky to have amazing parents that invested in us and gave us so many opportunities.  

Alright, hive now it is your turn for some questions:
How many kids do you plan on having?
When do you want to have kids?
If you already have kids, what effects will marriage have on them?
Do you or your partner plan on being at home for any period of time after they are born? Will someone be a stay at home mom or dad?
How do you plan on disciplining your children?
Have you and your partner talked much about children in the future?
Do you share the same view on most things related to children?
What topics have you covered in your couples counseling or premarital classes?