05 | September | 2013 | Chocolate Covered Race Medals

And the wedding fun has officially begun. 2 days baby!

I thought it might be fun, so close to the big day, to post a little wedding survey I found from the amazing Julie

Wedding Survey

How long did you date before you got engaged?
A little over 3 years. We met in March 2009 and Zach proposed in May 2012.

Did you get the ring you wanted?
I honestly didn’t know what ring I wanted. BUT, if I’m being terribly honest, I do remember thinking “OH MY GOSH OH MY GOSH WHAT IF I DON’T LIKE IT” when he was opening the box. Then I swooned over the beautiful ring when I saw it.

I would have loved it no matter what, I KNOW that. But seriously, Zach did well. He designed it himself, completely custom. Good guy 🙂

Was the proposal a complete surprise?
Yes! Read our engagement story here. . . I didn’t even shower.

Did you cry when he proposed?
Just a little 🙂

Was the proposal romantic or creative?
Absolutely both. It was very thoughtful and VERY Zach and I.

Where do you want to go for your honeymoon?
We’re going to Austria in February! I can’t WAIT!

Are you buying his wedding band for him?
I actually LOVE his band.

It’s a mix of different metals and very unique, just like Zach. 🙂

We went in together and just paid for both of our bands ourselves. So I guess the answer is yes?

Is your wedding band simple or elaborate?

I think it’s very simple. Just a 360 channel set diamond band that matches the band of my engagement ring.

Have you gone over your original wedding budget?
Actually no, but we were given a very nice budget to begin with. AND fewer people than originally anticipated are making it.

What day of the year will your wedding be?
September 7, 2013

What kind of weather?
Hopefully warm and sunny so we have a nice long night outdoors!

Inside or outside?
As outdoors as possible. The ceremony is all outdoors. We’ll be having dinner indoors, but are hopeful for the band and dancing to be back outside.

Time of day?
Evening. 530 ceremony and the reception goes until 1130

Any kind of theme?
No.

Will you serve dinner? Plated or buffet?
We have our guests three options of plated meals that they ordered with their RSVP cards.

What are your wedding day colors?
Coral and Navy.

How many bridesmaids? How do you know them?
Three.

Zoe, my maid of honor, I feel like I’ve known forever. She is the definition of good friend and just overall good person. And my running inspiration 🙂

Holly – Zach’s little sister, who I could not be more excited about making my own 🙂

And Jessica – my trusty “wifey” and sidekick through so much of high school and college.

What kind of cake/what will it look like?
We have four tiers with three different types of cake. The main cake being carrot cake. Then two small white cakes with different fillings and one chocolate cake with filling.

What kind of dress will you have/color/material?
My dress is white satin, which is funny because I NEVER would have gone with satin before. I can’t wait to show pictures of it after 🙂

What kind of flowers in your bouquet?
Calla lilies

Will you wear your hair up or down?
Up.

Is the reception big or small?
A little over 80 people, so I’d say small.

How long is your honeymoon?
2 weeks! WOOOO!

What will you do?
Enjoy each other :). Lots of skiing, eating, exploring Austria and relaxing I hope.

What is the age difference between you and your groom?
1.5 years. I’m 27 and Zach is 28

Have you hired a wedding planner?
No.

HOLY CRAP WERE 48 HOURS OUT!!! THIS IS CRAZY!

Phew — the whirlwind has begun. In the best way possible.

I was completely useless at work to be completely honest. I was so wedding-brained, and even spent some time pre writing some blog posts for you all since I imagine I’ll be pretty sporadic and crazy this weekend.

Zach’s brother and sister-in-law were the first to arrive yesterday, which was actually really nice. The boys went and golfed while the sister-in-law I got to hang out and bond over a bunch of wheat thins and new-to-me pumpkin spice M & M’s. Ummmm… YUM.

Everyone loved the M&M’s. They have a nice little spice to them, but nothing too overwhelming. By the time the boys got home and helped us with the snacks, that box of Wheat Thins were done while dinner was being made.

Our guests of honor were gracious enough to make us dinner… stuffed portabella mushrooms with brussel sprouts.

I was to wrapped up in our guests and enjoying the moment to snap pictures of our actual meal and snacks, but you all get the idea :).

It was so nice to get to chat with Zach’s brother and sister-in-law last night. We don’t get to spend enough time with them since they live on the East Coast, so I soak up every second we can. Not to mention, it was nice to get some inside scoop on what it’s like to be married to a Jara.

We were all exhaused last night and made it to bed before 11. By 7 AM, we were all up and chatting over coffee and slowly waking up.

My plans for the morning included a long run, of no specific distance. When I woke up, I was NOT feeling it. This week has been tough to find motivation and this morning was no different. BUT — I stuck with my morning ritual of coffee and a Larabar, and headed out.

Workout of the Day: 7.3 miles, 6.5ish running and finished walking

I got a terrible side stitch around mile 4.5 or 5. I was running some pretty serious hills at this point, and I think the dehydration and hills were a little much. I kept trying to push through, but by mile 6.5ish I decided it wasn’t worth it and decided to walk it out.

Walking it out was actually really nice. I guarantee I looked like a dang fool because I was listening to our wedding music and DEFINITELY cried through most of the walk, but that’s OK :). I’m excited and not ashamed to show it!

Alright — Zach is about to head out with his mom and I’ve got quite the list for the rest of the day: