Ok, ok, the rest of the men!

My mother has put in a request for me to finally finishing blogging about the men in my wedding party. I didn't want them to think that I left them out. This post is therefor dedicated to... THE BROS!

There are three brothers in our wedding. Although I only grew up with one, I have gained two more in the past few years as I've been invited into the Davis family. My brother is also gaining a brother in Kyle, so we can pretty much assume all hell may just break loose here in the future at family function.

First, we'll start with the eldest of the brothers, Brett. Brett has been absolutely amazing during this wedding planning time. He has a great job working as a liquor distributor, actually I think he is now a representative for a specific brand within the company, but anyway, he has been our go-to man for advice on drinks and for gathering up resources for our open bar. Brett is also dad to the nephews, so he is incredibly valuable in keeping them in line as ring-bearer and usher. We are grateful in many ways!

With Brett

Next is Casey, Kyle's best man due to the fact that Kyle was the only family member at Casey's wedding in the Seychelles, so he wanted to "return the favor". These two grew up living in the same room for many years, attended the University of Arizona together, swam in many meets on many early mornings, and have more recently traveled together throughout Europe. Although I only had the opportunity to meet Casey twice during the first four years of our relationship, as he was living in Iraq, Djabouti, Kuwait, or Thailand, I am glad that he decided to domesticate himself in the U.S. for a few years so we would be able to hang out more often!

Casey and Karen's Wedding in the Seychelles

Me and my bro in Denver

Finally is my own brother, Brian. Why Kyle ever agreed to allow him in the wedding is beyond me! :) (Just kidding, Brian, but I know that this could spell trouble). Kyle has adopted my brother as his partner in Jack Daniels consumption. Although this angers me at times due to the resulting behaviors, I am glad to see that Brian and Kyle get along as well as they do. It just reminds me sometimes of when my brother used to steal away my high school boyfriend to play video games for hours on end. 

ONE WEEK!!!

I know, I know, where I have been lately? Well, in case you haven't experienced it all yourself, when planning a wedding, you barely have time to breathe near the end of the planning period! But, I don't want to horribly neglect my job of informing you loyal readers about all the fun that has been going on! My goal is to post a blog a day until the wedding! It may not be lengthy, but it will help build the excitement!

And, when it is all said and done, the secrets I've kept all this time are going to finally be revealed as I will continue to write about our wedding experiences to share with friends and family who were unable to be with us on our special day. It will be a great medium to recap the major events of the weekend. I also think I'd go through some major blogging withdrawal if I just quit cold turkey.

So what have I been doing? Anxiously awaiting the final packages of supplies and decorations to arrive at our doorstep. Doing art projects. Organizing timelines, drivers, gifts, bridal necessities, honeymoon luggage. Dealing with "normal" life throwing us curve balls, like my car key falling apart, or our sprinklers springing leaks. Answering so many e-mails that I try to not open Gmail until I am mentally prepared. Working out. Buying new clothes that fit my slender new figure. Trying not to run out of funds!

Are you excited? Can you believe that this journey is nearing its climactic peak? I am getting teary with anticipation and nostalgia all at the same time.

<a href="http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/5751029/Erica%27s_wedding" title="Wordle: Erica&#39;s wedding"><img src="http://www.wordle.net/thumb/wrdl/5751029/Erica%27s_wedding" alt="Wordle: Erica&#39;s wedding" style="padding:4px;border:1px solid #ddd"></a>

2 week countdown begins...

In 2 weeks we will be done with all of this! We will be married. We will be exhausted from a full weekend of fun. We will be relaxing, and ready to start the next chapter of our life, officially.

I cannot believe how fast this time has gone by. Sitting here and thinking back, I remember thinking it would never end at times, thinking that I had all the time in the world to get stuff done at other times, and missing out on some of the fun because I was so worried about the work to be done.

Kyle reminds me every morning of how long we have until we get married. His enthusiasm proves that this is just right, we are totally meant to be, and I am really lucky to have him in my life, forever!

We were out to dessert (cheat night, once again) with our good friends tonight, and we got to meet their newborn son. It is finally hitting us that we are no longer going to be "Erica and Kyle" but "The Davis FAMILY" before we know it! This is why all the heartache of making it official matters, because we have bigger goals for our relationship.

We are truly really close to finishing all the prep work that needs to be done. I have some minor art projects I'll be sure to document this week, I have some pictures and songs to upload, but other than those tasks, we are ready to roll with all the important parts. People keep telling me it will all fall together nicely. I hope so, because I am running out of brain cells and creativity.

Good thing I have a lot of post-its, because I'm gonna need a lot of reminders in the next week to make sure I am not forgetting anything!

Thanks for coming along with us on our journey so far!

Erica

Cheers!

Phoenix Bachelorette Party!

That's is right, bachelorette #2!

What a night to remember/forget! (I remember most of it!)

Thank you so much to my ladies Bev, Drue, Amanda, and Lindsay for helping to organize my evening of debauchery.

We started the evening with gourmet pizza and sangria at Grazie. There I was given a bouquet of lollipops and was told I needed to sell them to buy an outfit for my honeymoon! (see photo) Then we went to Dos Gringos, mostly for nostalgia, but somewhat to get the party started. It was too quiet, so we went to a club called BS; nearly all men there, if you get my drift, but what else would a bachelorette want?! It was totally by chance, but when I saw the nearly naked guys dancing on stage, I knew we found a good place. Cheap drinks, too! Then we moved to the final destination of Martini Ranch, negotiated a reduced cover charge, and watched Rock Lobster rock the 80's tunes, with a short trip to the club to dance, too (but a creepy guy ruined that for me). We weren't kicked out until after 2:00, but then I was insisting on a snack, so we hit up the after-hours bar, Gus's for pizza, where a very nice man practically let me steal slices from his pizza since the line was so long. I never made it inside. And I think I walked there barefoot. Rickshaw back to the Valley Ho- quick night's sleep- and a great breakfast and some pool time topped off the weekend. (Need I remind you this all took place the night of my shower, I was EXHAUSTED)

P.S. I made $70!

Things I learned at this party:

1. When eating outdoors at Grazie, bring an umbrella to protect yourself from the misters/rainstorm (the misters soaked us!)
2. Order bread
3. Always carry a "big-ass glass" with you because it is much harder to spill when dancing (see photos)
4. Don't try to sell Scottsdale douchebags a lollipop before 10:00 p.m., or before 5 drinks...
5. Use pathos to get people to feel sorry for you and give you cash (for the lollipops)
6. GO TO BS, the club where male go-go dancers (hotter than strippers) will give you jello shots and there are 2 for 1s every Saturday night!
7. Pizza, Gus's, 2:00 a.m., DONE!
8. Get a hotel room close by, like at the Valley Ho
9. Hire a rickshaw
10. Wear sensible shoes
11. Go see Rock Lobster at Martini Ranch and rock out!
12. Water, drink, water, drink, water, drink

Oh man, it was a great time, probably the most fun I've ever managed to have in Scottsdale.

My "big-ass glass" from Karen!

The lollipop bouquet and glass I carried all night- got my arm workout in!

Mom rallied for the first stop!

Nadja made it out to 2 bachelorette parties!

This one was for Kyle and all my friends who love The Captain! Not sure where I got the crown...

My Wonderful Shower!

Girl time post #2: My Bridal Shower!

I am not the world's largest fan of showers for many reasons. One, I am burnt out after all the bridal and baby showers I've attended over the past few years (they are countless). Two, I usually feel awkward asking anyone to do anything for me like plan a party. Three, I usually plan the party, so I know it will be exactly what I imagined, thus giving up control makes me a bit uneasy.

But my shower was perfect! It was at The Living Room (my favorite bar and the location of my 30th birthday bash 2 years ago), in Chandler. This martini-themed bar specializes in small plates and fabulous drinks.

30 or so of my female family and friends gathered together to celebrate! I must admit that it is exhausting to socialize with three or four different groups of people at once, making sure they are all having a good time (I know that this precursor to the wedding was good practice). We had a spread of bruschetta, flatbreads, hummus, and classic wedding cookies from Barb's Bakery downtown Phoenix.

My sisters created a few simple games, Kyle and Erica trivia for one, and Bride Bingo (for gift opening, when I got a gift or said something about the gifts they got to mark it off), and then created a mad lib out of my wedding website story. Totally typical English teacher.

My sister-in-law, Karen, also created amazing decorations and my other sister-in-law, Anji, sent out adorable invitations. My third sister-in-law, Shannon, helped put up the decorations and my mother-in-law Peg helped cover the cost!

Thank you all for all you did for me. I never felt more loved and special.

AND of course I got some wonderful gifts, the highlight definitely being my CROCK POT (so I can shut up about it now) and some scandalous goods for the honeymoon, too. :)

And of course, pictures:

My sister-in-law, Karen, created this awesome banner (and another with our wedding date) for decoration!

My sister painted these glasses with chalkboard paint and wrote in names for favors.

The ladies of the Jensen family were all here!

The spread- amazing cookies and flat breads.

Gift time!

My knives!!! :)

Thank you for making me learn to cook!

Thank you, Audra, for the Crock pot!

The new family! Anji, Peg, Shannon, Aunt Pat, Karen. Thank you for all your help!

Much Needed Girl Time

Over the past month, I've been reminded multiple times of how many wonderful females are in my life. I can love Kyle because these women taught me to first love who I am and to be comfortable with all my quirks. It is no wonder that a weekend away with them added up to one unforgettable (for the most part) time!

My first bachelorette party (yes, I got 2!) was in Denver, Colorado. My good friends from college, along with my sisters, organized a weekend of fun activities. I can honestly say that I had the time of my life! Everything was just perfect, and reminded me of all the good times we've spent together in the past.

We stayed at the Curtis hotel downtown, walking distance from bars and activities. From a pretty tame dinner and martini bar hop on Friday night, to a spa day on Saturday, to a wild night of dancing and debauchery on Saturday night, even my Sunday morning hangover could not put a damper on the fun.

I learned a few things during the course of the weekend that I feel the need to pass along for your benefit:

• My sister does not like me trying to find her a date to my wedding at a bar
• Flabongos draw a lot of attention
• Bouncers love bachelorette parties
• I know a lot about Kyle! (We played a game [see picture below] where I had to take a shot if I guessed an answer wrong for trivia questions the girls had made Kyle answer)
• I need to remember to take pictures before entering a club and sweating my mascara off
• Drinking at altitude= bad hangover
• Wear your most comfortable shoes
• Avoid throwing glasses into the street, or kicking newspaper boxes
• Don't plan for breakfast the morning after your bachelorette party (before noon)

Here are some photos:

The whole family got involved for dinner the first night!

Martini Bar Hopping

Spa Time- complete with spritzer!

Muddy feet but happy ladies!

This is where the trouble started...

A 3-course meal with drink pairing per course!!!

Delta Gamma Pride!

This spells trouble...

Now this is what fun looks like!!! Bride sailor hat AND crown!

This is called a flabongo... I only took 1 over the course of the night!

The Friday night gang! Cassie, Sarah, Melissa, Kaycee, Jenna, Amanda, Erica, Jill, Irina, Katie