The Knot: Calming Nerves and Preventing "Bridezillas"

    When I started planning the wedding, I knew right away that I didn’t want a wedding planner. Not only would that save money, but I had to face the fact that I am an anxiety-filled control freak. I could see myself having a “bridezilla” moment already, although lucky for me, it wouldn’t be televised. Since I wanted to save my money, my sanity, and  my pride, I figured I would use the internet as my wedding planner. 

    Not long before the husband and I got engaged, I had discovered TheKnot.com via StumbleUpon. So, when the time came to start planning, I remembered that gem of a website and got straight to work making it my main wedding resource.

    

     The Knot is fantastic. It’s organized and has all of the resources a bride-to-be could need to plan that perfect day. The two I took most advantage of were the checklist and wedding website. The checklist breaks down all of the things that need to be done before the day, on the day, and after the day, even down to the smallest details. It really helped me stay organized, and that’s saying something (my idea of organized is a pile of papers and notebooks full of lists that never get completed….organized chaos.) Not only is the checklist customizable, but it can also be accessed from your smart phone. As you tick off to-dos it shows on a counter at the top of the page how many tasks have been completed, how many you have left, and how many are overdue. I would highly recommend this checklist and corresponding app to anyone planning a wedding. It will save many a hair from being pulled from that beautiful head of yours.

    

     Now, I know that wedding websites aren’t really news to anyone at this point, but it was an extremely useful tool for us. There’s so much etiquette in wedding planning, and I am far from a debutante. What do I know about etiquette? Zilch. The website helped me avoid those wedding faux pas (putting registry information on shower or wedding invites) as well as allowing me to put directions to the venue, room reservation information, blurbs about the bridal party, and my favorite, the story of our engagement. I put the website on the bridal shower and wedding invites so that our guests could access all of our information in one convenient location.

    

      The Knot isn’t only The Knot either. Just a few days ago I received an email congratulating me on getting married and inviting me to one of their sister sites, The Nest. I didn’t think it could get any better, but The Nest is just as informative and fun-filled as The Knot, with financial advice, sex tips, recipes (Chris is most excited about that section…I’m no cook…I sure can make a mean sandwich though,) and even a “Pre-Baby Bucket List.” Thanks to The Nest, I am no longer having The Knot withdrawals. It’s everything you would ever need to know for after the nuptials.

     

    Just when you think, “Whoa, two sister sites that want to help me make my wedding planning and post-nuptial life easier, there’s no way it can get any better.” Well, that’s where you’re wrong, my dears. They have another sister site for when that baby-making time comes. It’s called The Bump, and yes, I’ve been on it enough already to know how absolutely perfect it is. Although that time isn’t now for Chris and me, I know that when it is, The Bump will be my home base for baby information. It’s got a guide for everything: trying to conceive, maintaining your health, deciding whether or not to breastfeed, and choosing baby names that aren’t fruits or a directional point on a compass. Yeah, I’m talking about you Kanye.

     

    I’ve been loyal to these sites, and they certainly deserve recognition and praise. If it weren’t for The Knot, our wedding would not have turned out the way it did. I wouldn’t have been calm enough to plan anything. You’re Welcome, in advance. I know you’re going to love it, and your nerves will thank you.

   

http://www.theknot.com/ 

http://www.thenest.com/

http://www.thebump.com/

 xo

Mrs. Huyck

We Said "I Do".....Now What?

    Hello, lovelies. I suppose I should start out by introducing myself. My name is Pésla, formerly Hernandez, now Huyck; hence "NewlyHuyck." I'm a huge fan of lifestyle blogs, and I've often wondered if I could start one. What would I talk about? All of the blogs I read are so interesting, the women who write them are amazing, brave, and fantastic women who really put themselves out there and seem so fearless. Although I have said to myself, "Pésla, you're not half as interesting as the ladies who write the blogs you read," this course has given me that push to stop thinking so negatively and just go for it. So, here it goes...

 

   My husband, Chris and I are newlyweds. I mean really new. We were married on the seventh of September, only a few short weeks ago, but it feels like we've been husband and wife for much longer. We had been together for over four years when we got engaged and just over six when we got married. We've felt like a married couple since our first year together. Some people may think that sounds like a negative, but to us, it's a definite positive. We just clicked right away. Now, because of that though, six years and a few months later, we're finally married and my first thought was, "Now what?" I guess I expected some new feeling, a married feeling. Chris says it's because we've already been "married" for years, living under the same roof, showing each other our best qualities and our worst, and dealing with obstacles many couples don't come around to until after they're married. This year alone has had some events that have caused change in us. Those events, both fantastic and devastating, will certainly be discussed in future posts.

    This blog will follow us through our first months of marriage, and possibly and hopefully answer that question, "Now what?" I will also be including some before wedding stuff, because who doesn't love prequels? 

xo
Mrs. Huyck