The Perfect Venue: Boulder Springs

If you've miss out on the journey catch up here and here.

After visiting Lindsay Lakes I have to admit I was pretty adamant on going with Amber Springs, but I couldn't shake the feeling of checking out Boulder Springs to make sure that Amber is what I should go with.  If you remember, Linda had told me they were opening a brand new facility in Magnolia, TX, May of 2012, and that it would look almost identical to Boulder Springs.  Everything she said except the landscape; Crystal Springs is being built on an old tree farm.

After a few phone calls trying to beg someone to take a 3 hour road trip with me just the check it out my FMIL agreed.  We set out one hot early Sunday Morning and after approx 3 hours of listening to stories of Aaron's "little boy" stories and about how much he really REALLY loved me we were finally at our destination.

Photos Via Boulder Springs Website

After looking over the entire facility I couldn't help but fall in love.  The white stone, the elegant, yet, rustic, country feel this place had was unbelievable!!  My heart pitter-pattered in excitement that our wedding venue could look like this! 

That and I was sold on the doors. 

*All photos Via Project Wedding

The Iron detailing, the scroll work.  Ahhhhhh! This place had stole my little Texas heart!  I'm actually upset because I had my FMIL take my picture in front of these very doors and a few months ago my iphone was lost by my ding dong handsome fiance with them inside. This makes me a sad bride, a very, very sad bride.  But...on the bright side, I can drool over pictures like this knowing that Aaron and I will have amazing photos in front of them.

Image Via Onewed ; Photography by D Coleman Photography

Photo Via Cory Parris

 I keep falling madly in love with door pictures like this and I couldn't help but day dream that me and Aaron could have pictures like that to swoon over for years and years to come.

Another detail that did not and will not go unnoticed is that of the stairway....

* photo Via Project Wedding

I can just see us now as the DJ annouces us as a couple for the second time of the day and us prancing down these stairs with the biggest smiles on our faces to welcome everyone to our crazy-fun reception.  Can you see it now, like I do?

Photo Via Kells Irish Pub

Okay, okay, enough day dreaming.  Lets get down to a few more pictures of the rest of the place shall we?  I can day dream all day if you'll let me.

The Gazebo

Bridal Suite (I can see me and my ladies playing dress up in here now)

*All photos Via Project Wedding

That Monday I went up to Amber Springs to discuss the details with Linda and put our deposit down.  I later called Aaron to tell him the news (of course I got approval first ya'll)  and told him "There's no backin' out now babe!!!"

So ya'll what do you think?  Do you think Crystal Springs has everything a bride could ever dream of for her wedding day?   I would say so but I may be a little biast just because of the name !!

Now I just had to wait until May when the darn place is done being built and hope I didn't make a huge mistake.

Did any other brides out there choose a venue before it was even built?  Please tell me there are a few of you out there.

The Hunt...The Dress Hunt That Is.

Back in November 2010 ( I know that seems like forever ago) just a short month into our engagement I had been talking to BM HL about all the fun wedding plans to come.  We were talking about colors, ideas, themes, and of course dresses.  She had asked me if I had any idea what I had wanted and when I was planning on going shopping.  Honestly, I hadn't really even thought about the dress shopping yet and quite frankly I was scared to death to go shopping for a dress.  Especially, "THE DRESS."  I was planning on putting it off until oh like July of 2011. 

The reason is because the last 4 years I had gained a hefty 40 pounds and I was not looking forward to it.  I just hadn't felt comfortable in my own body for quite some time.  I had this vision of this perfect self in my wedding dress.  This perfect image and that image was not what I looked like at the time.  So wedding dress shopping just didn't sound like fun.  Excited yes, because I was getting married but I just wasn't giddy about it like I thought I should be. I was almost even worried that their sample sizes wouldn't really fit. And if it didn't how embarrassing would that be?  I mean really I was not huge but I was sitting comfortably in a size 14 and that is fairly overweight for my 5'7 frame.  I really wanted to loose some weight and actually feel beautiful before dress shopping.

Well about a week or two after this conversation with BM H she called me back one day telling me she had a brilliant idea.  If you know BM HL her ideas are always brilliant so I was hooked before she even spilled the beans.  Then she spoke the words "Why don't we go wedding dress shopping on your visit to Buffalo!!!???" (You see I was going to Buffalo, NY for Christmas this year to visit my family). I could tell she was so friggin excited so I of course mustered up some excitement and said that that sounded great.  I really did think it would be fun to go and try on dresses with my best friend in the entire world.  With her and BM CB being so far away it would be the one aspect of the wedding they could share with me and be a part of.   After talking a bit more about it I had convinced her to let me bring my sister and BM CB and my cousin SB.  With that being said we were set.  I was going to try on dresses over Christmas vacation with my best girls!!

After a bit of this sinking in I decided it couldn't be too bad.  I mean all I was going to do was go and play dress up for my girls.  There was no way I would actually buy a dress in NY while I was on vacation.  Duh I live in Texas why would I buy a dress living that far away.  How would I get it home?

Well the date was set and BM CB was great and made all my appointments.  First up was LaRue's Bridal.

Upon arriving we were greeted by a sweet woman who told us to look around and we could start trying on soon.  She told us to go upstairs where the gowns were and pick out whatever we wanted.  I think my girls had a field day as there were nearly 20 dresses in the room before we decided that was enough.

I don't exactly remember all that I tried on but I tried on a lot.  I tried on nearly every style but unfortunately I just wasn't feeling any of them.  One I did like but I just liked it- I wasn't in LOVE with it.  We decided to write down the style number and price and go on to our next appointment.

Up next the Bridal Chateau.  When we walked in from the freezing rain, we were greeted and the lady asked who the bride was and shook my hand.  I immediately fell in love with a gown on the mannequin in the front so she took it right off so that I could try it on. 

It Looked something like this....

image via Shibawi.com



As we were walking she asked what I had thought I wanted my dress to look like. I told her, I like lace, I like vintage charm, and nothing too modern but still elegant. Her eyes lit up and she said she would be right back.  Meanwhile, the other girls had already wandered off to start their search.  BM HL and I started digging our way through more gowns and then our angel appeared.  She had this dress in her hand and said "How's this!" I think me and Heidi about fainted. Our jaws had hit the floor.  How could she pick that dress just by the few words that I spoke.  I had completely forgotten about mannequin dress and followed her to the dressing room.

I undressed and slipped into the beauty.  She was elegant, beautiful, charming, stunning.  I was in complete awe. I walked out into the main area and made my way to the pedestal.  I stepped up and looked in the mirror.  I felt like I was dreaming.  I felt beautiful.  I turned around to see that not only was BM HL in tears but so was BM CB and cousin SB.  My sister is a crier but not over gushy stuff but she even had a look of satisfaction on her face.  Then I turned back around to picture myself walking down the aisle.  I pictured Aaron at the other end looking at me in this dress and I knew it was the one.  At that moment I started tearing up and asked the girls what they thought.  They all nodded in agreement that this was the one.  BM CB even said "I don't know if I should say this but you look sexy!" We all kinda giggled and I told the lady I would take it. 

After getting dressed I asked her who the designer was and she joyfully proclaimed the words Maggie Sottero.  I was going to wear a Maggie.  I could not believe it!  I had ooooggled over her dresses the last few weeks and now I actually had one!! 

What you think I'm gonna give the actual name of my dress away?  Dream on ladies.... you still have to wait!