Wedding Do or Don’t: At-Home Engagement Photos

I’ve come across some amazing engagement photos over the years, like an underwater engagement, travel-themed shoots, library love, a zombie engagement and a romantic Iceland escape, but what about taking the simple route and celebrating your engagement in the place where you perhaps feel the most comfortable?

Your home.

It sounds like such a novel, out-of-the-box idea, doesn’t it? Well, newly engaged couple Melinda Kunze and Josh Blitchington opted for just that with their recent engagement shoot in their North Carolina abode. The result is a collection of photos that truly reflect the love between the couple, set amidst the backdrop of their everyday life. It’s dreamy and romantic and everything that gives me all the feels. And to make the photos feel as authentic as possible, they left the house as-is, leaving items on the counter and stuff on the fridge.


“We are in love with [this house]. It’s adorable and perfect for us,” says Kunze. “We would love to look back in 10 years after we have moved to a different house and have memories of our first home together.”

Plus, their pups shared some of the shots, which just ups the adorableness factor. In a world where some couples’ engagement photos are overly extravagant productions that rival red carpets at movie premieres, it’s nice to see something that feels so intimate and, well, homey. Two people just being themselves is so utterly refreshing!


Would you be game for taking at-home engagement photos, friends? Is this a wedding do or don’t for you? Did you take engagement photos? Care to share one in the comments? xoxo

P.S. Do you know your parents’ engagement story?

[Photography by Anchor & Veil]

Ms. Bear on Her 38th Wedding Anniversary

It’s June 10th again! On this day 38 years ago, Brian and I were married. When you are a widow (and I imagine it’s the same for widowers), anniversaries are certainly a bittersweet day. I remember the joy of my wedding day and the promise that each tomorrow held. I didn’t know that we wouldn’t even make it to our 25th anniversary before Brian died.

Such a happy day, and look at how young we all were!

If I could give one piece of advice to the newly married, it would be to take that part about sickness and health very seriously. When I got married, I had no idea that Brian would get so sick and die so young, and that it would all happen in just a mere five-month period! I know I didn’t give that a thought as we recited our vows, or maybe I did, but in the way of the young, I never thought it would happen to us! But, when you think about it, each couple will have one partner die first (unless they die at the same time, which is really statistically unlikely!).

Anyway, this June 10th, I decided to bask in the happy memories and let the regrets go. Happy Anniversary to Brian and me…it was a ride well worth taking!

And, our greatest collaboration and accomplishment was getting these 2 wonderful girls!

Well, today is the last day of my guest posting on Melissa’s blog. I have a newfound respect for her and will be glad to go back to my regular life next week. Melissa will be back bright and early on Monday morning, so make sure you come back! Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

Tuesday Tunes: Bobby Darin’s “Beyond the Sea”

Editor’s Note: Song lyrics denoted in bold italics.

Melissa was all excited to have me do a guest post on her Tuesday Tunes this week. I have recently started listening to the Norah Jones station on Pandora. Norah and I go way back, to right after Brian died. Her music was my grieving music, and it is only in the last couple of years that I have been able to listen to it again. Back then, it tore me up; now it comforts me.

Bobby Darin’s “Beyond the Sea”
From Ultimate Bobby Darin

Somewhere beyond the sea
Somewhere waiting for me
My lover stands on golden sands
And watches the ships that go sailin’

So, I added the station on Pandora, and a strange thing began to happen. I had given a thumbs up to the song Beyond the Sea, but they began to play it numerous times each time I turned it on. I give thumbs up to lots of songs, but for some strange reason, Beyond the Sea comes on way more often than the other songs I like.

It’s far beyond the stars
It’s near beyond the moon
I know beyond a doubt
My heart will lead me there soon


We’ll meet beyond the shore
We’ll kiss just as before
Happy we’ll be beyond the sea
And never again I’ll go sailing

This is strangely comforting to me because from the very first time I listened to it, back in 2004, I just knew that this song belonged to Brian and me. Now, granted, I was fresh into grief from Brian’s death the year before, but I can truly see him waiting for me somewhere…maybe beyond the sea.

I just know he’s “somewhere waiting for me” and what better place than the beach, where so many of our happiest memories happened? Someday…

Sponsor Spotlight: VIP Sparklers

I’ve always been pretty traditional when it comes to daydreaming about my future wedding — heck, some may say it even borders on boring. I tend to go for simple flowers, soft colors and haven’t even considered the wonders of the chocolate fountain. But then I heard about VIP Sparklers, the worldwide manufacturer and supplier of sparklers and novelty items. Translation: They can make a bride and groom’s day shine — literally! I recently had the chance to chat with William Lester, the CEO behind this illuminating company (see what I did there?), so read on for the 411 on winter wedding tips and trends you don’t want to miss! xoxo

Keep in touch…
Official Web site: VIP Sparklers
Become a fan on Facebook
Follow on Twitter

Tell me about your shop. What’s the inspiration behind its launch?
VIP Sparklers has been in business for more than 10 years and was one of the first companies to bring champagne bottle sparklers to the nightlife industry at the time. We actually found our way into the wedding industry when I was honored to be the best man at a lifelong friends wedding. He put me in charge of finding wedding sparklers since we already sold our widely popular bottle sparklers. After doing a tremendous amount of work trying to locate wedding sparklers, the ones we were able to find from various vendors were your typical Fourth of July sparklers. These sparklers were either wooden or bamboo and gave off tremendous amounts of smoke and an extreme sulfur smell that wasn’t suitable for weddings. The channels and hurdles it took for us to finally locate true wedding sparklers was entirely too difficult for us, let alone the average bride. A couple months after the wedding sparkler farewell went off like fairy tale, we got in touch with some amazing wedding planners and coordinators. They helped create a way for brides to find an easy way to get true wedding sparklers for their big day! Today, we still have our doors open and have been lucky enough to be a part of thousands of weddings by bringing a sparkling end to their wedding night!

Your shop features so many inspiring finds. What inspires you the most?
Our inspiration stems from the joy we feel whenever we’re a part of making special events even more fantastic and amazing; we want to share the VIP experience with everyone! We are dedicated to following our slogan: Our products will be the least expensive item in your wedding or event, but the most memorable at the same time! We manufacture our products with the finest materials, and we focus on the highest quality for all our products. VIP Sparklers strives to feature new and exciting products for our customers, so we’re constantly expanding our inventory list at the most affordable prices. We are proud to be a part of special days and events everywhere! Recently, we have add our heart-shaped wedding sparklers, which have been getting rave reviews for fun bridal photos with the wedding party!

What are your top 3 tips for wedding shopping and finding great deals?
Our tips for finding great deals for wedding shopping is to plan ahead of time and don’t put it off until the last minute, no matter how big or small the items are for your wedding or special event. Many brides forget to order wedding sparklers, sky lanterns or other items and wait until the last week to order these items. In such cases, we can’t always guarantee arrival of their products for their event. All of our products have a shelf life of two years, so we strongly encourage our customers to place their order 2-3 months in advance. Plus, it’s always one more thing to cross off that long wedding list every bride has! If time isn’t a priority, we even offer free shipping for all wedding sparkler orders.

What are some of your favorite wedding trends for the winter? What really makes a winter wedding pop and not feel so drab?
Our popular winter wedding products tend to be the sky lanterns, confetti cannons and the smaller wedding sparklers. These are items that can be easily used in any kind of weather and are fun to use at any occasion. Any season can be transformed with wedding sparklers! Our true wedding sparklers are actually often used for winter weddings and help glow up the night!

What is your favorite item in your shop and why?
We have so many favorite products; it’s honestly tough to narrow it to just one. Our top three favorite items to get for any celebration is our 36-inch wedding sparkler, champagne bottle sparklers and premium sparklers. Our 36-inch wedding sparklers happen to be one of our most popular items as they take the best pictures at the end of the wedding night. These sparklers are so long that the bride and groom are almost walking under the sparklers, creating a magical tunnel to go through. These wedding sparklers have an extended burn time, ensuring a casual exit free of time constraints!

What’s The Best Marriage Advice You’ve Ever Received?

A lot has been said about weddings and marriages over the years — everything from cultural values to traditions to parental advice — and it seems that each new generation brings with it a new set of Love Rules for wedded bliss. My mom has even offered her tips over the years, and I love sitting down with her and hearing her tell the stories from her own special day and her life with my father.

I recently discovered Quora, a fun crowd-sourcing site full of all sorts of questions, and someone once asked this question: What is the best marriage advice you would give? The answers were surprisingly varied and insightful, and I found myself getting lost as I scrolled and scrolled through all the responses. Because we can all use a little guidance when it comes to love, whether we’re married or not, I thought I’d share a round-up of my favorite gems. Read on and be inspired…
_____________________________


“Love isn’t enough. Marry the person who brings out your best and will stand beside you at your worst.”

“I’m very excited to see my friends and family, throw this fantastic party, be a bride (my dress is amazing), but I’m most excited to marry the man I love. I’m looking most forward to our life together and growing old together, not the wedding.”

“Don’t talk, listen. It’s so frustrating when you’re talking and you know the other person is just planning his retort in his head. How can you respond if you don’t listen?”
“It is not your responsibility to change anyone but yourself. Learn to deal with this behavior or get over it. Or don’t get married. Or get divorced.”

“Be your own person. Keep your own hobbies, interests and friends. Your partner should support and encourage this, if he doesn’t, you’ll soon be resentful, angry and unhappy. This goes both ways. Let him go to his friend Pookie’s man cave to watch the game. Use the time to do something you want to do. He should reciprocate so you have time to kick Jill’s butt at tennis or read the latest issue of Wonder Woman at a Starbucks like a grownup.”

“Being married means accepting all of someone, their flaws and ugliness, not just the good parts.”

“I love my fiancé and he loves me, but I don’t want him to show me how much ear wax he just cleaned out and I won’t show him how I can pop a zit with one hand.”

What awesome advice! What would you add to the list, friends? What’s your favorite piece of love advice? If you could bestow one pearl of wisdom to the next generation, what would it be? I’d love to hear! xoxo

[Photo via We Heart It]