I look forward to typing this post each year and especially look forward to writing it this year as we enter a new decade! I cannot believe we are going into 2020, especially since 2010 feels like it was yesterday and decades ago all at the same time. I always enjoy this time of reflection, not only to reflect on the previous year, but to prepare for the upcoming year and decade! I have accomplished SO incredibly much in these ten years and have also accomplished so much this past year. This year has not been a year of exponential growth for my blog, but it has brought so much growth in so many other areas of my life.
I attended all of my closest friends and family’s bridal showers, bachelorette weekends, and weddings, which was so special to be part of so many wonderful events in people’s lives. I continued to power through my masters degree and started working on my thesis, while continuing to work full time in public health, and while working part-time as a graduate assistant for a university. I had my own bridal shower, bachelorette party wedding (the best day of my life), and honeymoon! I also took a leap of faith and applied for my dream job, was offered the position and we packed up our apartment and moved to Phoenix!
This year has truly been the year where I grew more than I’ve ever grown. I discovered my true passions in life, married the love of my life, and picked myself up during some difficult times. When I thought I couldn’t continue working full-time, or couldn’t finish a difficult semester, or I couldn’t apply for a job that I wasn’t experienced enough for, I pushed myself to look beyond those limiting beliefs and told myself that I COULD do it and that I was capable of anything I set my mind and heart to do. This past year taught me more about myself and more about life than I could have ever imagined. It also showed me who is truly there for me and will always be there for me, no matter what.
2019 was my year and I’m going to enter 2020 with a passion to continue to do what I love, serve people unconditionally, and continue to crush goals!
My goals for 2020:
Attend church once a week, every single week, and read my devotional daily. I didn’t make time for my faith last year, which is one regret I do have from 2019. I told myself I didn’t have time to spend with Jesus, this year, I’m going to make time.
Lose 20 pounds (working full-time while going to school has caught up to me so I’m going to lose what I gained this year). I plan to completely change my diet and workout 6 days a week. Charlie and I are starting a fitness Instagram to hold ourselves accountable, post before and after pictures, and share recipes/workouts that work for us- follow our journey @jcinchfit
Dry January! My husband and I are both accepting and not going to have one sip of alcohol for the month of January.
Be more conscious of the products I buy- cleaning supplies, detergents, makeup, food and drinks, etc. I started doing more research about harmful chemicals and toxins in products and it is TERRIFYING. I’ve always known about harmful chemicals and toxins in food and products, but I was in denial because I did not want to change my ways. This year, I am going to make conscious decisions and be a smart consumer by purchasing clean, safe, cruelty free products. I will share my favorite products with you all soon!
Stop caring what other people think and stop comparing! This is so hard with social media and I’m not going to consume myself anymore by doing what other people think I should do or do what I think other people would want me to do.
I can’t believe I am actually typing this post and we are now Mr. and Mrs. Inch! I remember this time last year, when we had been engaged for a few months and were just starting to plan our big day. The past year flew by and our wedding was here in the blink of an eye. September 14, 2019 was the best day of my life and I will never forget how magical it was. I feel like the day was five minutes long, but I have so many incredible memories and pictures, I can’t wait to finally share them with you all. I will also be sharing who all of our vendors were, which is a huge part of why are day was as amazing as it was. I can’t say it again and again, but without our amazing vendors, our wedding day wouldn’t have happened (well it would have, just way less pretty than it was) and wouldn’t have been absolutely stunning. It took a huge team to pull everything together and both my family and Charlie’s family putting in countless hours to plan our day. So a huge thank you to everyone who helped plan/execute our wedding day!
Getting ready with my bridesmaids, mom, and mother in law was so special and was the perfect start to the day. There are so many special moments I had while getting ready that I will forever cherish. It was so fun to pour mimosas while we got our hair and makeup done to calm our nerves and share some laughs before pictures and the ceremony. I absolutely LOVE how my hair and makeup turned out, I felt like a princess on my wedding day. Putting my dress on with my mom and maid of honor then sharing my first look with just my dad were two really special and sentimental moments from my wedding day that I am so happy I chose to do.
I absolutely love the detail shots from our wedding day, they are some of my favorite pictures. Picking out all of the details for our wedding day was a huge task, especially our invitation suite, which is why I’m so glad we have such beautiful detail shots to look back on.
My first look with Charlie was so special. We both definitely cried and I loved seeing Charlie’s face when he saw me in my dress for the first time. He told me that the dress I chose was exactly what he had envisioned me wearing on our wedding day and it was such a special moment for both of us.
Groom and Groomsmen Suits: Calvin Klein from Men’s Warehouse
Our ceremony was of course the most special part of our wedding day. My uncle was our officiant and it was such a personable ceremony. Charlie and I both took communion together and served each other the bread and wine then prayed together before the actual ceremony started, which helped alleviate some nerves. We wrote our own vows and saying our vows to each other was the most special moment of my life. It was so powerful to write our love for each other and then speak the words to each other on our wedding day. We now keep our vow books on our nightstands and can re-read them whenever we choose.
We did a sunset session after our ceremony and it was so nice to have an intimate moment with each other after the ceremony and before the reception. Our wedding day was so exciting and went by in the blink of an eye so it was nice to take a few moments out of the night to spend time with just each other. I am so glad we did this because I remember these moments the most from our wedding day and will forever cherish them.
I absolutely love looking back at all of the detail shots from our cocktail hour and reception. Everyone came together to make all of the little details of our day look absolutely stunning. We had a little seating area next to the dance floor for our guests to sit at and my mom designed it and picked out all of the furniture for it. My mother in law also bought the cutest pillows to add character to the seating areas, which I loved! The touch of the blush pink pillows was the perfect addition and it matched the bridesmaid dresses. Our table settings were also absolutely stunning and I couldn’t believe how beautiful the reception area looked when I walked in. Charlie and I sat at a sweetheart table, which I also loved because we were able to spend a few moments alone and listen to all of the speeches at the table by ourselves and just soak it all in. All of the details from our reception came out absolutely amazing and I love looking back at the beautiful pictures.
Paper Suite (menus, place cards, wedding programs, water bottle labels, itineraries, and welcome notes):
I don’t even think I need to say too much about the dessert table because it speaks for itself, it was stunning! I had wanted a hedge wall for the dessert table and a donut wall and my in laws all designed the most incredible wall and table. Charlie built the hedge wall by himself the week before the wedding and it came out perfect. There were donuts, mini bundt cakes, macaroons, and candy for the guests to enjoy and it was such a hit at our wedding! I also love how our cute wedding favors turned out. They were cactus cookies since the wedding was in Arizona, of course, and they tasted amazing!
As I said before, our wedding day was the most incredible day of my life, hands down! It was so magical and everything could have went wrong (only a few little things went wrong), but I still would have had the best day ever because I married my soulmate and get to spend the rest of my life with Charlie. It’s actually really funny because the few little things that went wrong, I didn’t even know about until the next day because I didn’t even realize it since I was in such a la la land. I also had so many incredible people helping with our big day to make sure that when the little things happened, I wouldn’t even notice, and clearly it worked! I will be sharing a post soon with wedding day tips and the few little things that went wrong and how to avoid them in a future post! I hope you all enjoyed seeing all of our favorite pictures from our wedding day as much as we did. If you have any questions regarding vendors or anything else from our wedding day, feel free to ask away!
I can’t believe it is my wedding week and this is the most blogging I have done in the past two years! I think all of the stress and nerves has me cranking out blog posts. Well, this is my last blog post as a single gal, the next time you hear from me on the blog, I will be a married woman!
I wanted to share my bachelorette welcome bags with all of you because they were the absolute CUTEST gifts ever. My maid of honor did such an amazing job putting the bags together and talking to the brands I was collaborating with to share her vision of the bachelorette theme. I love going to other people’s bachelorettes and getting a super cute welcome bag so I wanted to make sure all of the girls would get a fun goodie bag upon arrival in Palm Springs
Liquid IV also kindly provided Liquid IV for all of the girls welcome bags- we were given lemon lime and passion fruit flavors
The customized hangover kits were from Honeybee Gifts and they were SO cute!! I absolutely love how they turned out and let me tell you, a hangover kit is a must have item for any bachelorette party, especially when it is multiple days. Each hangover kit contained a makeup remover wipe, Emergen-C, 2 Bandaids, a Purell wipe, an Advil pack, an AlkaSeltzer, 2 ginger candies, and the cutest gold hair tie! All of the goodies came in the cutest little customized bag, which was designed and created by Honeybee Gifts.
I was also gifted the cutest items from Sassy Sash for my bachelorette weekend! They sent me a customized white sash for our tropical night and I absolutely love the flamingo on the sash, it was perfect for the tropical theme. The second sash is absolutely stunning and is a pink sash with rose gold writing. I love how it says Future Mrs. Inch and the font of the writing on the sash, it was so elegant for our fancy night out! To top it all off, the sent me a customized shirt, which I will be wearing this weekend after our wedding. Use the code: SANDYTOES20 at checkout for 20% off of your entire Sassy Sash order.
To see more about my bachelorette weekend and read all of the detail, click here!
I had the most incredible Bachelorette weekend with all of my best friends and family two weekends ago in Palm Springs, CA! I had originally planned on going to Palm Springs because I thought it would be a low key place to go, but there was nothing low key about the weekend (in a good way)! It was SO fun and wild, I think I might still be recovering, hence why I have a cold right now. I left bright and early on Thursday morning and went to the airport in Phoenix to pick up some of the girls flying in from other parts of the US. Palm Springs does have an international airport, but it tends to be much more expensive so definitely check the prices well in advance. After picking up the girls from the airport, we made a Starbucks pit stop in West Phoenix then hit the road to Palm Springs! It’s about a three and a half to four hour drive from Phoenix to Palm Springs, depending on traffic. The I-10 tends to get crowded during busy months so definitely plan accordingly. We got to Palm Springs around 3 pm and went to In N Out, of course because who goes on a West Coast road trip without an In N Out stop?!
Also, how cute is this cup Starbucks gave me?!I usually get protein style, but I figured I needed some carbs for the night!
We made really good time getting to Palm Springs and some of the girls got to the house early to decorate so we went straight to Downtown Palm Springs and looked for somewhere with good drinks after the long drive! We found the cutest little restaurant called El Patron and we all got a $4 frozen house margarita! I’m not just saying this, but it was honestly the best frozen margarita I have ever had. I usually don’t order frozen margaritas, but I’m so happy I did because the flavor was amazing and perfect for the 110 degree weather. And who can beat that price?!
After our margarita pit stop, we made our way to the house, which was less than a mile from downtown (so convenient) and met up with the rest of the group! I could not believe how amazing the house was when we walked in. When we first pulled up to the house, we couldn’t tell how extravagant it was because it is completely gated in and tucked back to the mountain, which I loved for safety and privacy. The house was absolutely incredible and perfect for a large group! It had 5 private bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms, which made it convenient for a bunch of girls who needed to get ready. It also sleeps 10 people, which is perfect for a family gathering or bachelorette party! The house used to be a bed and breakfast and all of the rooms were very separate from one another, which is always appreciated at a bachelorette party, especially if some people want to sleep and others want to stay up later. I could not believe how amazing of a job they did decorating the house! They made it look so beautiful and I loved the tropical theme for Palm Springs. We also loved the outdoor areas and pool areas. The pool was in the middle of the house, which we loved because we were given more privacy and it was a central location for everyone staying at the house. We of course brought a bunch of floaties and outdoor decorations. The house is called Villa Camelita- The Sonny & Cher House and is managed by Acme House Co. Prices vary by time of year so definitely plan ahead if you are wanting to stay here.
This was the master bedroom where my maid of honor and I slept!This was the master bathroom, which had a full sized tub and shower
We also gave all of the girls their welcome gifts when we first arrived and it was so fun watching everyone open their gifts. I also opened mine and was so surprised when I saw all of the cute goodies in the bags! A post will be going live this week and I will be sharing all of the goodies inside of the bags in a separate blog post so stay tuned for that.
After opening our welcome bags and getting situated in the house, we all started getting ready for dinner and the night out. The theme was tropical night and everyone looked SO cute in their tropical outfits! It was such a fun themed night and was perfect for Palm Springs.
We went to Rio Azul Mexican Bar & Grill and it was the perfect dinner spot to host a large group. They had a harpist playing fun songs and we got to sing along and enjoy the atmosphere. I got a jalapeno margarita and it was delicious (but definitely spicier than what I’m used to!) and got a combination platter for dinner with a chicken mini burrito and a chicken enchilada. Both were so yummy! We also got a couple of orders of fresh guacamole for the table to share and the guac was AMAZING!
We then went out for the night and first went to Toucans Tiki Lounge then went to Village Pub, which was my absolute favorite place to go out while we were in Palm Springs. They had such great music and we all loved the atmosphere because there were other bachelorette parties and a younger crowd.
Use code: SANDYTOES20 at checkout for 20% off of your entire order.
Day Two:
We slept in and made breakfast at the house when we all woke up. After breakfast, we got in our swimsuits and spent the morning laying by the pool and swimming, which was so relaxing and fun!
We then got ready and went to our 3 pm reservation for Social Cycle. We all wore matching tank tops that my maid of honor customized from Customized Girl. They were so cute and the tank tops were perfect for cycling in 110 degree weather! Social Cycle was definitely the highlight of the trip, we all had an absolute blast and our tour guide made our experience so much fun. Our first stop on Social Cycle was to Chill Bar in Downtown Palm Springs, then peddled our way to RetroRoom Lounge and the owner made our experience so so fun! After that, we made our way to Tommy Bahama Marlin Bar and we all got a frozen drink, which was so refreshing after peddling in the heat!
After a couple of hours of peddling in the heat, we made our way back to the house and jumped straight in the pool when we got home! After swimming and showering, we started getting ready for another night out. We went to Antigua Kitchen & Bar for dinner and I absolutely loved the atmosphere! We sat outside and the decor was so cute and trendy. I split the Mykonos Greek Salad and Capri Pizza with one of the girls and it was the perfect amount for the two of us. The food was delicious and we still had leftovers between the two of us. I was so sick of alcohol that I ordered a water and not a drink for dinner haha! My sweet friend was unable to make it to my bachelorette weekend so she bought me the cutest bottle of champagne I have ever seen and they brought it to the table for me, such a thoughtful gift!
After dinner, we made our way to Azucar at La Serena Villas for a cocktail before going out for the night. I got a Blood Orange Margarita and it was so delicious and fresh! We also got a couple of orders of chips and guacamole for the table (cause what’s a marg without chips and guac?!). The restaurant was SO cute and had the most amazing atmosphere, I was obsessed with the decor and I am ready to go back. La Serena Villas is also so so cute and I would love to go back to Palm Springs and stay there someday! It’s such a quaint little hotel with the cutest rooms, beautiful pool, and the cutest decor. After dinner, we went back to Village Pub and danced our hearts out for the rest of the night!
Use code: SANDYTOES20 at checkout for 20% off of your entire order.
Day Three:
We woke up after a long night out and started getting ready for brunch. We all wore the cutest matching shirts from Shop Mellow Monkey and they were the perfect brunch shirts! I love the font and color of all of the shirts and thought it would be fun to do something different and get the bride and squad shirts. We went to Trio Restaurant for brunch and it was SO fun! It was the perfect spot for a bachelorette brunch and all of the staff was so friendly. They made our experience the best time ever and had delicious drinks and food. I got the bottomless mimosas and eggs benedict for my brunch food and drink and loved both of my choices, I highly highly recommend going here, especially for a bachelorette party!
After brunch, we went back to the house and spent the afternoon at the house and swam. We all wanted to soak up as much sunshine as possible and had so much fun in the pool with all of the floaties and each other.
We ended our final night with a lingerie shower at the house and ordered pizza & drank wine together. We played fun bachelorette games and got to spend the night hanging out together in our pajamas. It was so relaxing after three days of fun and two long nights out! If you do a three night bachelorette, I’d definitely recommend staying in the third night so you can all spend quality time together and not be hungover for the travel home.
Shop my day three looks here:
Day Four:
We woke up bright and early to deflate the floaties, clean the house, and pack our bags. Before leaving, I had to use the outdoor shower before I got ready and it was so cool! I’m always a big fan of outdoor showers and this one was the perfect addition to such an amazing home. We then loaded up the cars, stopped at Starbucks in Palm Springs and headed home!
I had the most incredible bachelorette weekend and highly recommend all of the places we went to while we were in Palm Springs! Palm Springs is such a fun place for a bachelorette party and would love to go back and visit soon. A huge thank you to all of the brands who made my bachelorette weekend so special! Stay tuned for a post tomorrow, which will cover all of the goodies that we all received in our welcome bags. To name a few of the brands I partnered with for bachelorette weekend in Palm Springs: Sassy Sash, Bash, Liquid IV, and more! I will be discussing all of the brands and goodies in detail tomorrow.
Oh my goodness, it’s my WEDDING WEEK! Eeeeek I cannot believe I am actually typing these words right now. The past year and two months have been full of intense wedding planning and I am so excited/nervous for the big day this weekend! In honor of my wedding week, I wanted to share how I chose my beautiful veil (I can’t wait for you all to see the pictures of it after the big day) and how amazing the Sara Gabriel at home veil try-on process is!
We all know how stressful wedding planning can be, especially when you start realizing how many little details there are to plan and prepare for. During my wedding planning experience, I have learned how important it is to search for the most convenient options when completing tasks to ensure you don’t spend too much time on one checklist item. I had honestly been stressed out trying to figure out how I would find the time to drive two hours to Phoenix to go veil shopping, since I live in Northern Arizona where there are not too many shopping options, especially in regards to wedding items. I then found the Sara Gabriel website and was instantly relieved when I found out I could do at home try ons and have veils delivered right to my house! I chose doing at home try ons because I didn’t have to travel to another city to shop for veils, I didn’t have to visit multiple stores to find the perfect veil, I didn’t have to worry about being pressured to buy a veil in the store, and I was able to try on the veils in the comfort of my own home!
*All photos were taken with my iPhone to give you an accurate, real-life picture of the look of the veils* I also recommend trying the veils on with your dress because it will give you more of an accurate representation of what the veils will actually look like with your dress and the veils also look even more stunning with your dress on. I obviously have a robe on in these photos because I can’t share my dress until the big day 😉
Sara Gabriel allows you to try two veils of your choice on in the comfort of your own home. If you are loving two veils, but can’t make a decision between the two, this is the perfect option for you! This is also a great way to go if you are unsure if you should get a short or long veil and want to see how they will look with your dress. I was unsure of the veil type I wanted and doing the at-home try on definitely helped me make my decision. You can try each veil on for $24 each and are also given the option of choosing different lengths, tulle types, and colors on certain veil types, which I love! I also love how Sara Gabriel caters to all budgets and has so many beautiful and affordable veil options. As the wedding expenses add up, you shouldn’t have to choose an affordable veil that isn’t also a quality veil. Sara Gabriel veils are all of the absolute best quality and are all handmade at their warehouse in Denver, CO. Yes, you heard that right, no waiting for international shipping!
For my first at home try-on, I chose to try-on the Lillian veil and absolutely LOVED it! I’m actually shocked that I did not choose this veil because when I put it on, I definitely thought it was the one. This French lace veil is perfect for so many different dress styles and adds the most stunning detail to any dress. This veil contains a barely-there pencil trim, which transitions into a gently scalloped floral pattern that has been meticulously hand-cut and stitched to the edge of this picturesque veil. As you can see, the lace detailing is absolutely stunning (even in my robe) and lays perfectly. This veil is handmade in Denver, CO, is a 90″ classic shape, and approximately 108″at the widest point. The metal comb also comes already attached to the veil and is surprisingly comfortable to wear. For some reason, I always thought that the metal comb on a veil would be uncomfortable, but it’s definitely lightweight and easy to slide into your hair. I’m such a sucker for long veils and this one did not disappoint!
For my second at home try-on, I chose to try-on the Phoebe Veil, which I also loved! It is such a fun veil and adds so much character to any dress style. I think this veil would be perfect with a very simple or elegant dress. I love how it is tiered and falls perfectly. As mentioned, the veil is tiered, or cascade, which means there are two different “levels” or lengths of the veil, which is perfect for brides who want to cover their face with their veil while walking down the aisle, but don’t want to lose the veil effect in the back. The two tiers are 40″ and 90″ so the longer portion is the same length as the previous veil I tried on. I loved the crinoline ribbon along the bottom because it gives the veil a crisp finish and looks stunning with a wedding dress on. This veil is also approximately 108″ at the widest point and also comes with an attached metal comb, which is just as comfy as the one I discussed above! If you are wanting a stunning veil full of character, this veil is definitely for you!
I loved being able to try on the veils with my mom and we had so much fun deciding which one would look best with my dress. I cannot wait to show you all the veil I decided to go with (ps, it’s not pictured here because it is a surprise!) and I will be sharing a full blog post on my wedding day and you will be able to see how stunning the veil I chose is. I also love that you can search how real brides styled all of the veils by searching #lillianveil or #phoebeveil etc.! This was super helpful for me when I was deciding which veil styles would look best with my dress style.
I am so excited for you all to see the amazing veil I chose and I hoped you loved writing this post as much as I loved trying on veils from Sara Gabriel!
