Dougtober 2014: A Recap

I thought this would be appropriate given all of the hard work & planning Doug puts into his crazy antics. Last night, Doug walked into the house after work and immediately said, "I don't want you to judge me by my iPhone photos..." Clearly it's Dougtober again! Creepy Google image searches, awkward selfies to get "just the right face" - welcome to my world!

So, my wonderfully weird soon-to-be hubby started a tradition, I guess! Last year (2014) was the first official "Dougtober!" What is Dougtober, you ask? Last year, Doug posted daily Halloween/pumpkin-themed pictures on Facebook every day in October -- and they were quite entertaining! (It even earned him the nickname "Pumpkin Doug" on his new hockey team!) With the help of some friends (directly through sending Doug pictures or indirectly through Doug using their posted pumpkin pics), it made for quite a treat! I'm pretty sure most - if not all - were photoshopped...but I am often concerned with what might be happening when I'm not home, so who knows!

The tradition continues this year, and so far Dougtober 2015 is not disappointing! To help celebrate its first anniversary, I wanted to share with you last year's Dougtober posts! Enjoy the often disturbing, always hilarious Dougtober 2014 posts along with some comments from Doug's "fans!"

As always...view at your own risk...

Dougtober 2014: A Recap

October 1, 2014

 Likes: 31

"You look gourd-geous."

October 2, 2014

Likes: 57

"This is already my favorite. None of the others could possibly top this hahahaha" 

October 3, 2014

Likes: 29

"You better get to work! These pictures are the only thing I am finding enjoyable about this whole, Summer is over crap called Fall!"

October 4, 2014

Likes: 17

October 5, 2014

Likes: 22

"This one I like, well I take that back......I find it easier to look at."

October 6, 2014

Likes: 20 

October 7, 2014

Likes: 32

"At the end of the month, you should have a vote for the best one, and whichever one wins you print out 100, sign them, frame them, then sell them for $20. Profit."

October 8, 2014

Likes: 25

"You look like a demon child that's going to set both pumpkins, the tree, and the house on fire."

October 9, 2014

Likes: 27 

October 10, 2014

Likes: 24 

October 11, 2014

Likes: 73

October 12, 2014

Likes: 31

"Dustin is involved ? Now its going to get real interesting!"

October 13, 2014

Likes: 48

"Lol dog hill, or dawg hill depending on your swagggg.."

October 14, 2014

Likes: 35

"You and me baby ain't nuthin' but mammals..."

October 15, 2014

Likes: 37

"Omg. They keep getting more uncomfortable." 

October 16, 2014

Likes: 53

"Omg, I can't stop laughing."

October 17, 2014

Likes: 22

"Nice arms!"..."You mean arm, his other one looks nothing like that"

October 18, 2014

Likes: 25

"I'm extremely worried about the end of the month fast approaching."

October 19, 2014

Likes: 24

" No flippin way!!!! Haaaaa!!!!" 

October 20, 2014

Likes: 21

"wtf???"

October 21, 2014

Likes: 20 

October 22, 2014

Likes: 22

"HA HA HA - This one is my personal favorite!!!"

October 23, 2014

Likes: 26

"Lmao! The many faces of Doug!!"

October 24, 2014

Likes: 26

"It's amazing how many people put babies in pumpkins"

October 25, 2014

Likes: 22

"I've never seen myself have beard before haha"

October 26, 2014

Likes: 32

"I'm actually gonna miss these come November..."

October 27, 2014

Likes: 34

"Finally....the last few were bringing me down, this one I approve of"

October 28, 2014

Likes: 39

"Are you wearing booty pop?"

October 29, 2014

Likes: 24

"Dam looking good baby"

October 30, 2014

Likes: 17

"My favorite girl in all the land"

October 31, 2014

Likes: 40

"Thanks for the BEST October ever!!!"

Bonus from the Oct. 31st Comments:

An Update on Wedding Planning

Things are moving along fairly well in terms of planning for the big day! Not knowing where I would end up starting Summer 2015 for internship (stay in Baltimore or off to Miami for a year), I wanted to get as much done as early as possible. (Good news -- I'm staying in Baltimore!!) Plus, knowing that New Year's Eve can be a big party night, it couldn't hurt to start planning early! Here's a rundown of what we've accomplished so far & when:

 

 

 Venue & Date: after visits to several places and being in contact with others, we are super excited to be holding our wedding at Normandy Farm (Blue Bell, PA)!! It's quite a popular place, and when we went to visit on 09/14/14, the earliest available Saturday on 2015 was in mid-December! We found out that they had New Year's Eve available; after giving it a few seconds to sink in, Doug looked like he just won the jackpot in poker! How fun would it be to ring in the new year with friends and family!? Plus, the venue has a restaurant & bar at which we can watch the ball drop! So we decided -- Normandy Farm on Thursday, December 31, 2015! (officially confirmed 10/06/2014!)

Setting up the grand ballroom for a wedding!

Outdoor ceremony space & patio

Catering/Cake: All catering is done by Normandy Farm, so it was easy to check that off the list, too! We still haven't decided which food options we'll choose, but at least we know who will be doing the cooking & baking! What are your thoughts -- Buffet, Served Meal, Food Stations?? Comment with your thoughts below!

Photographer: The great thing about Normandy Farm is they have an on-site photographer (and florist...see below) - Tyler Boye Photography. Why not make it easy & go with them, right?! Not only is it convenient, but they look to be great photographers as well! Doug and I met with Jamie, their sales manager, on Sat. 01/17/15, and decided on Andy for our primary photographer!

DJ: I ventured onto The Knot to check out some preferred/recommended DJs in the area. After sending out some information requests to a few companies, I quickly heard back from Fred Alvisi, owner of VIP DJ Entertainment. Even after a quick phone call (and quick read through of online reviews), we knew he was the one! (And even better, Doug's sister booked him for her wedding as well!) Music is checked off the list as of 01/27/14. 

 

Florist: We're going with the on-site florist - Willow & Thistle - for our venue décor! My mom, Doug, and I met with Steven on Sat., 02/07/15 and worked on some great ideas for the ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception. Steven was amazing at hearing all of our thoughts and coming up with some great concepts. Mom likes the big, fancy, florally things while Doug and I prefer a little more low-key; I think we came up with a good compromise & I'm excited to see how everything comes together on the big day!

SAY YES TO THE DRESS!! My second trip to try on wedding dresses was a success! I went on an impromptu dress excursion on Friday 01/09/14 with my Mom, Sheen & Trey while we were in Florida for an internship interview. Found a dress I really liked, but was still open to trying on a few more. I made another appointment at the Van Cleve Wedding Pavilion in Paoli, PA; right after the appointment with the florist (02/07/15) we ventured down the road to try on some dresses. My Mom, Aunt Vick, Sheen, Whit, Tiff, Lauren, & Brody joined in, and I'm so happy they were all there when I found my dress!! It was the second dress I tried on that day, and every other dress after that one didn't compare! I can't wait until it comes in and I can try it on again!!

 

Me as a mini bride...speak peak of the dress?!

 

 

...So what's left?

            Bridesmaids dresses

            Groom & groomsmen suits

            Outfits for my bubble boys, ring bearer, and flower girl

            Optional things: videography, photo booth

            Am I missing anything??

The Engagement Story!

So, several people suggested we write down our engagement story as soon as possible to document and remember all of the details. Hopefully we get the details right after a week and a day that the big E occurred!

I guess we should start with the night before (Doug can fill in the ring-buying escapades later), and then get into the actual engagement story!

The night before...
A typical, unassuming Friday, I went out to happy hour & dinner with Lauren, Jess, Maggie, & Mallory. Hoping to enjoy the happy hour, we decided to take an Uber so I left the car at home. I did, however, take the car keys since we hadn't made new spare keys yet (just got a new lock); I figured Doug wouldn't need the car, anyway. So I went on my merry way with the girls to Nick's Fish House (if you're ever in Baltimore -- GO! -- it's amazing), where we enjoyed several Corona buckets, yummy steamed crabs, and fun conversations. We chatted a lot about Jess' upcoming wedding and wedding planning in general -- sharing stories about wedding terrors and highlights that we've experienced. 

View from Nick's Fish House

As we're enjoying our meal, Doug texted me asking where the car keys were since he was going to go to band practice. Since I got his text late and he couldn't find the spare, he told me he was just going to take his work truck. I thought nothing of it, since his story seemed legit about needing to practice for an upcoming show. 

Happy Hour extended into the night, and we ended up at Lauren & Rob's house. Having had a few drinks and not feeling totally comfortable walking home from Lauren's, I asked Doug to pick me up on his way home from band practice, since it was on the way. (He usually wraps up at band around 10:30/11, so I figured that wouldn't be a big deal.) He then called me to say he needed to help his friend/coworker Todd on a call since he "was the only person with the part that Todd needed on [his] truck." I guess taking his work truck to band worked out! Since I wasn't totally overstaying my welcome at Lauren's (people were still hanging out), it was fine that he was going to be back closer to 12:30am than 11pm. Little did I know, Doug was making a trip to PA to ask my dad permission to marry me...

From what I know about his trip to PA, he needed to borrow Todd's Camaro (such a shame... I know...) to go to PA since I had the car keys. With my Dad going to Canada and Doug's crazy work schedule, I guess he was having a hard time finding a time to ask...plus, when he did have opportunities, he either got too nervous or something else came up. Any way...after working a 12 hour shift, he cruised up to PA and got to my parent's house around 10pm. My mom and sister were asleep (actually, Whit was awake but didn't want to come downstairs and ruin the future-father-in-law/son-in-law moment), and my dad was snoozing in his chair watching TV. 

According to Doug, he just cut to the chase and asked my dad flat out. According to my dad, he was talking a mile-a-minute and trying to have small talk about work before getting into the main point. Being the goofy guy my dad is, he told Doug he'd think about it. Doug can fill in the rest of how the convo went down -- although I think he may have blacked out from nervousness :) After getting the conversation out of the way, Doug was excited about showing my dad his sweet ride. However, he couldn't find the keys!! Concerned that Doug locked the keys in the car, they walked out to the driveway and realized that Doug had kept the car running! Thank goodness he at least put the car in park before power walking into the house!

Seemingly in the clear, Doug made is way back down to Baltimore. But then he got pulled over on 95! I guess the cops were suspicious, and asked Doug if the car was his! Sharing with the cops the story about going to PA to ask my dad's permission, they let him go - no questions asked! 

Engagement Day - 7/12/14!
I guess Doug had a big elaborate plan to propose at the same park in Maryland where his parents got engaged, but with two birthday parties scheduled for that day, it seemed like it would be difficult to pull off. Instead, we decided to walk through Federal Hill Park before making our way through the Inner Harbor and grabbing lunch before the birthday extravaganzas. Doug's modified plan was to propose in Federal Hill Park. Of course, there was "Family Fun Day" happening where people were wearing different colored t-shirts, dancing, and cheering on a hula-hoop content....not really the most romantic setting to get engaged! So...there went that plan!

We still walked around the harbor and got lunch in Power Plant Live at the Tin Roof -- it was a brand new venue, so we figured we'd check it out. It was yummy! We got a queso & salsa sampler; Doug got quesadillas and I got chicken & waffle bites (popcorn chicken tossed in a bacon maple syrup) -- yum! I guess it wasn't the best for Doug, since he was uncomfortably sitting on a ring box the whole time! I didn't even notice, though! He's either really good at acting normal (er....normal for him....), or I'm really oblivious! We made it back to the house, and decided to take it easy and skip out on the first birthday party (sorry, Jackson!) before heading to his coworker Nana's birthday party.

We ended up relaxing on the couch and watching Girl Most Likely, before getting ready for Nana's birthday. After ~3 hours at home, he decides the best moment to propose is as we're walking out the door! I have the door open and am about to walk out, when Doug says, "Can you stop for a second? I really need to do something and show you something before we go anywhere else." I guess he didn't want a Plan D! I thought he was going to show me a practical joke or something he was bringing to the party to goof with his coworkers, until he pulled out the ring box and got down on one knee. I freaked out -- started crying and asked him "ARE YOU SERIOUS!?" Doug was fumbling with the ring box, so his reply was, "If I can open this box I am!" I was in total shock to know exactly what he said, but I know it included "I love you," "I want to be with you forever," and "I'm sick of introducing you or referring to you as my my girlfriend!"

The ring was (is) gorgeous! Perfect for me! A family friend owns a jewelry store in West Chester, PA (Kaplans Fine Jewelry), so he drove up to PA a few times to pick out the ring. I guess he had picked out the ring in November, and had it in his possession for about 3 weeks before proposing. He was also able to get the wedding band that matches the engagement ring, so we can check that off the wedding planning list! (Below is a picture of the ring...even though everyone says that pictures don't do it justice! ...excuse the chipped nail polish and swollen, stumpy fingers -- it was hot out & and I wasn't prepared!)

I guess his coworkers knew about the ring and his proposal plan(s), so he wanted to propose before the party to avoid any awkward or spoiler conversations. His coworkers helped cover shifts for him while he went up to PA, and, of course, Todd helped out big time by letting Doug use his car to make many of those trips!

With social media annoyingly being a factor in anything we do these days, I had to let our families know ASAP to avoid someone at the party possibly posting something on Facebook. Could you imagine learning that your child/sister/brother got engaged through a random person on Facebook?! Gross. So, I immediately got in touch with my sister and mom to tell them the good news! I was able to FaceTime with them both so that I could see their reaction and they could see the ring! I guess my mom had a feeling it was coming soon, since my Dad told her about Doug's impromptu visit the night before! She already had a venue in mind & was ready to go dress shopping! WHOA LADY!

We called and left messages for Doug's mom, and sent her and Doug's sister a picture of us with ring:

We then shared the good news with our friends! It also helped that we had already planned a trip up to PA on Sunday to go swimming, so our family got to see the ring -- and our happy, smiling faces -- in person! We had a few, mini celebrations on Sunday: Doug went to play frisbee golf with friends; we went swimming with my sisters, cousins, and nephews; shared a champagne toast with my mom, Sheen, Whit, & Tiff; I enjoyed a girls' dinner at Whitford CC while Doug went to St. Anthony's (aka "the club") with my dad; and we had cake at Doug's mom's house!

We made things "Facebook Official" (ugh....can't believe that's a real, important thing...) on Monday night, and got so many well-wishes!

We are so lucky to have such amazing, supportive people in our lives to enjoy the day/weekend with us! We can't wait to enjoy the wedding planning process, the wedding (with all you fine people), and the rest of our life together <3