2014

As you know one of my goals is to do away with lists in 2014. My other goal is to not have to unbutton my pants after every meal. It's the little things in life.

While I may have worked hard in 2013, I completely neglected myself, which is why I am surrendering to my gym owners and participating in the Fit On Challenge - a nutrition and workout plan for the entire month of January.

So stock up on your fruits and veggies because the Fit On Challenge will be posted on the blog January 2nd. Let's be honest, we have to do it the 2nd because people will be hungover, traveling, or if you are me, both on New Year's Day. 

Join me in starting the new year off right. And with all of you keeping me accountable I will no longer be able to quit on Day 3. 

See you in the New Year everybody!

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Happy Holidays

We attempted to take a Family Photo. This is the result. 

Wishing all of our followers a Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday - let's make it a good one!

xoxo

The Kelley's

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Holiday Giveaway Winners

 Kai Perfume Oil & Hand Creme 
1. I wore Kai on my wedding day and have worn it every day since! I'm constantly getting compliments on the scent, and now one of you can too. Their roll-on Perfume Oil is long lasting and their new Hand Creme is great for dry skin this winter season!

Winner: Janine Sharell

Waverly Necklace

2. Waverly Boutique in Manhattan Beach is my go-to place for vintage pieces and accessories. They constantly have the most unique necklaces and clothing that can't be found in your typical department stores. I always leave feeling I have something one-of-a-kind! One lucky follower will receive this necklace. And if you like this look, you can also snag some last minute gifts this holiday season at Waverly Boutique Online.
Winner: Erin Socha

 Restoration Hardware Throw 
3. By far the comfiest, warmest blanket there is! Ask any friend or family member of mine, because they've all gotten it from me as a gift at some point in time! Now one of you can own it in my favorite color - graphite!
Winner: Rachel S.

Linea Pelle Wallet

4. Ahh, Linea Pelle. The only purse I'll carry! This is Kyle's go-to gift for me, so I own one in about every color. My favorite style is the Dylan and now one of you can win their classic Dylan wallet. Seriously once you own an LP, you won't own anything else! And their 12 Days of Giveaways sale is going on right now which means now's your chance to own some Linea Pelle at a great price!
Winner: Heta Shah

 Kai Candles
5. Rounding out the Holiday Giveaway is something your entire house will enjoy - Kai Candles. They are the cleanest, freshest, yummiest scented candles out there. I love coming home to a house that smells like that! One of you will win both their Skylight and Nightlight candles.

Winner: Leslie

Thank you to all of you who participated and for the wonderful businesses who made it possible. Congrats to all of our winners! You will be receiving emails shortly regarding your addresses. 

Happy Holidays Guys - Thanks for all of your continued support!

xoxo

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Holiday Giveaway

Kai Perfume Oil & Hand Creme 
1. I wore Kai on my wedding day and have worn it every day since! I'm constantly getting compliments on the scent, and now one of you can too. Their roll-on Perfume Oil is long lasting and their new Hand Creme is great for dry skin this winter season!

Waverly Necklace

2. Waverly Boutique in Manhattan Beach is my go-to place for vintage pieces and accessories. They constantly have the most unique necklaces and clothing that can't be found in your typical department stores. I always leave feeling I have something one-of-a-kind! One lucky follower will receive this necklace. And if you like this look, you can also snag some last minute gifts this holiday season at Waverly Boutique Online. 

 Restoration Hardware Throw 
3. By far the comfiest, warmest blanket there is! Ask any friend or family member of mine, because they've all gotten it from me as a gift at some point in time! Now one of you can own it in my favorite color - graphite!

Linea Pelle Wallet

4. Ahh, Linea Pelle. The only purse I'll carry! This is Kyle's go-to gift for me, so I own one in about every color. My favorite style is the Dylan and now one of you can win their classic Dylan wallet. Seriously once you own an LP, you won't own anything else! And their 12 Days of Giveaways sale is going on right now which means now's your chance to own some Linea Pelle at a great price!

 Kai Candles
5. Rounding out the Holiday Giveaway is something your entire house will enjoy - Kai Candles. They are the cleanest, freshest, yummiest scented candles out there. I love coming home to a house that smells like that! One of you will win both their Skylight and Nightlight candles. 

Now here's the easy part. All you have to do is comment on this blog post below! 5 winners will then be randomly selected and receive one of my personal favorite gifts this holiday season!

Good Luck and Happy Holidays!

xo

This Giveaway has ended. Thanks for all who entered!

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Alison & Shane : ES Photo

Meet Alison & Shane. I am very proud to say that Alison is an I Guess I Do follower and says it's what helped her get through her planning process, which is why she was more than happy to share her I Guess I Do moments with all of you! The couple got married in one of my favorite places, Palos Verdes, and Alison also happens to have one of my favorite I Guess I Do moments, Un-Bridesmaiding her Bridesmaids. 

But what I love most about Alison is that she had the courage to trust her gut and plan the wedding she knew she always wanted. Enjoy Alison's story in her own words below!

...

Anyone who knows me knows I’m a planner. Why procrastinate if you can plan now? I’ve actually turned this neurosis into a career. I’m a financial planner and my title is literally “Advanced Planning Consultant.” So nothing made me happier than immediately following Shane’s proposal when he told me we had an appointment to see La Venta Inn the next day. The first words out of my mouth were “You made a plan?!”

We went to La Venta and both fell instantly in love with the venue. Not only was the view better than I remembered (from my high school cross country running days), but the old Spanish building and gardens were charming and relaxing. Now if there’s one thing I love more than planning, it’s a perfectly sunny day. It was already late December and if I was going to get a sunny September wedding date, we had to book right away! That’s when I made my first I Guess I Do mistake, we tentatively set a date one day into our engagement. This would have been fine if I hadn’t proceeded to tell friends and family to save the date.

Once I had the venue (and man) of my dreams, you’d think I’d be happy. Then why was I waking up in the middle of the night stressed and having occasional panic attacks during the day. Was I worried about the marriage commitment? Definitely not. I’m 31, more than ready. A few weeks post-engagement I went to my car on my lunch break to think. I just kept having flashbacks to hyperventilating before my bat mitzvah because there were too many people coming to see me. That’s when it hit me. Why was I throwing a large wedding? I hate being the center of attention and so does Shane. Also, being a financial planner I just couldn’t justify the outrageous costs.

I took a step back and asked myself what things will I regret not having at our wedding 30 years from now? I came up with a very short list:

1) Walk down the aisle and dance with my dad

2) First dance with my husband

3) Best friends and immediate family attend

4) Open bar

5) La Venta 

So I called my fiancé and asked if we could have a smaller wedding. He said, “that’s what I wanted in the first place.” I then figured out with La Venta that we could still book it with a smaller group if we did the 11AM – 3PM spot. Since the wedding needed to be on Sunday since my Jewish parents insisted on it, I thought it worked out nicely. A mellow Sunday affair.  

We had some trade-offs with the mid-day wedding. One good trade-off, was switching from a DJ to my favorite local acoustic guitarist, Paul Lemire. This was more our style anyways. I walked down the aisle to an acoustic version of “You Can Call Me Al” by Paul Simon. Then there was the not so pleasant task of telling a small number of close friends that they no longer needed to save the date. The true friends understood (so I think).

The biggest decision I made was to un-bridesmaid my bridesmaids. I love my best friends, but the thought of getting eight of them ready by 11AM was unnerving. Here’s how that conversation went. “So the good news is you’re still invited to the wedding and you don’t have to buy an expensive bridesmaids dress. The bad news is no more wedding party”. My best friends have known me for years and already know that I’m crazy, so nothing I do shocks them.

However, I can always count on my younger sister to give me brutally honest feedback. Her response: “What? No bridesmaid dresses, no DJ, no Photobooth. 11AM on a Sunday! OMG, your wedding is going to be so lame. (Sigh) Well at least when I get married in a few years, my wedding will be super fun in comparison.” 

So now that the smaller wedding was set, did my panic attacks go away? Yes. Did I still have I Guess I Do moments along the way? Of course I did. I still obsessed over flower girl halos, wedding shoes, changing the back of my dress from corset to zipper & buttons, etc, etc. Shane actually gave me a thirty minute time limit on weeknights and from 4-6PM on Sundays when I was allowed to discuss wedding details with him. There was a Sunday reminder in his smartphone. Trust me, this was for both of our sanities.

The month before the wedding I actually had very little to do since I’d planned every detail so far in advance. This just freed up my time to obsess about the weather. The one thing mostly out of my control. I had researched that September historically was the least foggy month in Palos Verdes.

The morning of the wedding it was perfectly sunny which is rare by the beach. I was so happy about the weather, I honestly didn’t care about much else. Did I notice minor problems with the cake, flowers, and music? Of course, I’m a perfectionist. However, I didn’t care anymore. It was a beautiful day and most importantly, I was able to talk with each of our guests individually. My favorite decision we made was for Shane to give a thank you toast in the courtyard at the end of the event. Rather than making a grand exit after Shane’s toast, we personally said goodbye to each guest before they left. It was a fabulous day with no regrets. Almost worth all of the planning. 

Photography: ES Photo  Video: Matrimony Pictures  Venue: La Venta Inn (Day of Planner - Tim Kennedy)  Flowers: Rancho Palos Verdes Flowers  Music: Paul Lemire   Spray Tan: South Bay Spray Tan (Stacey Howard)   Eyebrow Shaping: Bizar Brows at Bigoundi Salon (Rachel Bizar)  Hair: Cutaway Salon

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Winter Wedding Inspiration

1. Personalized Hot Chocolate  2. Birch Candles  3. Pine Cone Bouquet   

4. Log Cabin Tables  5. Spiked Cider Hors d'oeuvres  6. Pine Cone Cake

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Aruna Seth Shoes

Meet Aruna Seth. Remember that name my friends, and snag a pair of her shoes right now, because she is about to become the next "Must Have" shoe line in the States. Mark my word!

For my wedding, I decided to buy some fancy shoes, the red bottomed kind. Yes they looked killer, but they also killed my feet. I spent a lot of money only to kick them off and go barefoot as soon as I got to the reception. 

So when I met Aruna Seth in New York during Bridal Fashion Week, it was her designs that first caught my eye. But then she made me try a pair on, and I'm not lying when I say they were the most comfortable heels I have ever put on. Coming from a girl whose wide feet only seem to fit into flip flops - that's saying a lot!

Pippa Middleton chose to wear Aruna Seth Shoes to her sister's big day, the Royal Wedding, now find out why you should too!

As you can see, Aruna's shoes can be worn to any event - cocktail, casual, or occasion. And if your significant other is struggling for gift ideas this holiday season, then pass along this blog post. (Trust me I know how that goes, I once received a bottle of JLO Glow. I now send along hints. It's best for the both of us.)

And check out more of Aruna's Designs at www.arunaseth.com  They would make a great investment to your bridal attire, because not only will you be able to wear them again, but wear them the entire night! 

Be sure to show Aruna some love on Facebook and stay up to date with the latest collections, trends, and sales at @ArunaSeth on Twitter.

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