Setting up House

As a newlywed to be, I’m always looking at items to decorate our new home. The things I’m gazing longingly at? Right now, bathroom and toiletry items. I always love a beautiful, nicely organized bathroom. Especially a gorgeous vanity.

I’ve been logging onto CSN Stores a lot recently because they seem to have everything for your new home. Like these vanity items:

This white neo classic look is lovely!

I am digging the glass bowl contemporary look.

The his and hers vanity set

Stay tuned for more from CSN Stores!

Tomorrow starts today

There's been something I've been putting off that I'm not too proud of. I haven't been exercising. It was my New Year's resolution and nearly four months later, I haven't really resolved anything. I'm not trying to get in shape just for the wedding, but for piece of mind and health. I used to be a pretty active person -- I ran a half marathon and went to the gym at least four times a week, but these past few months, I haven't been very motivated to work out. Why? When I graduated from grad school, my university gym membership expired and I never went out to look for a new membership. You can certainly work out without a gym membership, but for someone who needs motivation and accountability, it's not so easy for me. It's easier to put on your gym clothes and head to the gym when you know you're paying for it. Two, I tend to be big procrastinator. There's always tomorrow, right?

Well, tomorrow starts today. It was especially humbling when my niece patted my stomach and asked me if I was pregnant (kids say the darnest things!) and the FH discovered his BMI was in the "poor" range. With the wedding four months away (yikes!), the future hubs and I decided to start our married life together by getting into a new routine. We decided to stick to a workout schedule and even purchased a gym membership together. LA Fitness was having a grand opening special for a new location and we purchased ours for a $29.99 initiation fee and $29.99/month (we can cancel anytime after the 2nd month). We also resolved to eat out less and cut out fast food.

Our goals? He wants to lose 25 pounds. Me? I'm not too concerned with losing weight. I just want to be in shape, tone up and feel more energized (which I'm sure will result in weight loss). We sat down, looked at our schedules and drew up a realistic plan. It's a little harder for the FH (with work and school, his schedule is a bit cramped as it is). But he's choosing to look at workout time as another scheduled event in his week, like class and work--not just something he wants to do, but has to do. I'm excited to get to do what I always used to love--swimming, yoga and kickboxing. Wish us luck with our fitness goals!

The Talks

What engaged couple doesn't have The Talks? How can you marry someone, intend to spend the rest of your life with that person without making sure you're on the same page about...oh, say, children? Finances? Goals for the future? Values? Spirituality?

Well, apparently a lot of couples, if divorce rates are any indication. The fiance and I went to a Catholic Engaged Encounter, a pre-marriage retreat for engaged couples over the weekend. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy discussing our future with my fiance, but I kind of saw the weekend as a timecard to punch. The church we're marrying in requires us to attend one of these retreats as their Pre-Cana, or preparation for marriage. I'm all for marriage preparation. I'm a planner for sure. But a weekend without Internet, cell phones, television and sleeping in strange surroundings? Not so much.

Planning for the future

I know this blog focuses a lot on the steps and planning of a wedding day, but really, all of that doesn't really matter if you don't have the days and years after the wedding day all figured out. OK, no one has anything all figured out, but it would be foolish not to even give it a thought.

Today, we made some serious steps toward financial planning as husband and wife, meeting with fiancial consultants to discuss options for our future. Granted, it was just a consultation, but we are seriously considering hiring professionals to give us some realistic financial goals to shoot for.

I had been both anticipating and dreading this talk. Anticipating because, well our future is much too important not to have a structured plan. My fiance and I are both ambitious people and we know the importance of planning and goal-setting. But I've also kind of dreaded this discussion -- especially with strangers-- cuz, well, my income has dwindled down to zero, or pretty much close to that in recent months. Recession sucks. Who wants to listen to how bleak your financial future is based on your bleak present status?

But the two consultants we met with today were a good balance between realistic and encouraging. They looked at our assests and our income, our goals and told us what we needed to do to get there. It was also a helpful overview of stocks, bonds and savings strategies. So, no, it wasn't the dismal, guilt-ridden, ego-crushing lecture to send me further into financial depression as expected, but rather a positive reality check to make us feel confident and take charge of our future with both ambitious and realistic goals. Our choice to set our wedding budget to $15,000 was made because we'd rather make sure we have funds left over to build on life after the wedding. You know, for marriage.

What were some of the tips we got out of our first session? Well, it starts by laying out some basic steps (Remember, these are questions you should ask between your fiance and yourself, as you make decisions together):

1. Set goals: Where do we want to be? Career-wise? Fiancially? Do you want to be fiancially independent? Do you want to buy a house? When? Do you want to set aside a fund for regular travel?

2. Look at your current fiancial status:  This can be ultra-sensitive area, because it hits you where you might be hurting. How much income are you both taking in? Do you have any assests? Retirement fund? Savings fund? Do you have any debt, credit cards, college loans, etc.

3. Develop strategies to get to your goals: How do you go from point A (which might be at the bottom of the gutter) to point B (the light at the end of the tunnel)? This might require some help as not everyone (including myself) are savvy about their fiancial options. IRA? Stocks? Bonds? Taxes? Huh? It definitely helps to do your research or get some helpful advice to navigate through all of this. Also, goals always change as life will always change. Always reassessing goals is key.

I encourage everyone to seek out fiancial planning assistance -- whether you hire someone or seek advice from someone you know. Sure, you want a nice wedding, but it all won't matter if you don't put that same energy, focus and planning into your future and well-being.