This weekend has been fabulous!!  Michelle Loretta & Kelly Simants have put together an AMAZING workshop called the Simple Plan.   They teamed up with Hotel Andra, Junebug Weddings & Aspire to Plan to put on a two day workshop on the bones of business behind our lovely wedding industry careers.

It has been eye opening & incredibly inspiring learning that yes we love what we do and in order to not burn out and to keep growing we need to go back and re-visit our business plan all the time.

So now we are at the end – I have to say, Hotel Andra is AMAZING (gorgeous and perfect!), Blair & Christy at Junebug know SO much about marketing (love them!) and Wendy with Aspire to plan is THE smartest financial wizard (thank you for sharing!) and it has been a great weekend getting to know all of the ladies and gent of the 1st Simple Plan Workshop.  We have learned SO much! (and the food was DELICIOUS!)

I have been so lucky to get to know and spend time with Shannon Lassen (Sublime Events) this year – she is an amazing gal with great style and an amazing talent for designing events!   Not to mention her stunning family!  Shannon & Dave just moved into their new home this fall with their PERFECT little girl Olive.  I just ADORE her and when you meet her – you will too!  She loves to give hugs.  Who doesn’t love hugs from a cute little girl??

A few weeks ago we went for a walk in their neighborhood and it was a lot of fun – just ask Olive!   =)

Do you ever feel like you need to give back to your community, but just don’t even know where to start? Do you sometimes like to paint? Do you like kids? Do you like pizza? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then Excel Coatings is making it easy for you this year by teaming up with the Master Builders Association (MBA) to participate in the “Painting for a Better Tomorrow” event on November 7^th at the Boys and Girls Club of Bellevue!

Click HERE to see the invite

Hello Friends!!

Today is the day!!  Get Hitched Give Hope is HEREEEEEEEE!!  I cannot believe it, all the planning, all the meetings, all of the GENEROUS wonderful amazing fabulous people …. today is the day!

So put those swanky shoes on, grab your bow tie and lace up those dresses – I can’t wait to see you!!

If you don’t have your tickets yet, not to worry – just head on down to the Arctic Club and hopefully we haven’t sold out yet!!

Here are all of the details:

Who: You & all of your friends

What: Meet us at the PARTY – its for a good cause!

Where: The Dome Room at the ARCTIC CLUB (so fancy!)

700 3rd Ave (on the corner of Cherry) Seattle, WA 98104

When: TONIGHT!!  Thursday October 29th, 2009,   5:30-9pm

Why: Well – because I’ll be there.  AND you can win vacations, diamond rings, ANNE BARGE GOWNS, PLUS the food is great, the atmosphere is COOL, there will be paparazzi, a FLIPPED OUT photobooth – RIDICULOUS desserts.  (do i really need to go on??)

So what are you waiting for??  Get on down there!!

P.S – we are 100% volunteer so EVERY dollar spent goes towards granting wishes.

For those of you who know me well know that I have a chronic problem of over committing (but I love work!) and get to hear my “venting” hee hee this maybe will help you understand that I need you to stay sane!

This post really hit home for me and I wanted to share it with all of you.

{re-posted from SageWeddingPros.com with permission}

The Myth of “Doing It All”

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Lately, I have a lot on my plate.  And, people always ask me, “How do you do it all?”  And, I usually answer something to the effect of “Somehow it all gets done.  I don’t know how, but it does.”  And, that’s not true.  This is the myth of people who do and manage so many jobs and responsibilities. NO ONE gets it ALL done.

There are two things that people like myself are good at doing: Choosing and Prioritizing.  I don’t get it all done.  I choose.  Every day I make choices about what is most important at that given moment.  And, some things are not chosen.  Some things are simply not done.

There are days I choose to get to the office early over taking a shower.  There are days that I choose to write a blog post over sleeping.  There are days that I choose to play with Lili over doing my bookkeeping. There are days that I choose to work on Get Hitched Give Hope over mmm… paper.  There are days that I choose to meet a printing deadline for The Simple Plan workbook over taking Lili to the park.  That is the long and short of it.  Lara Casey recently talked about how she hasn’t slept, worked out, eaten, laughed, or blogged while trying to finalize the last print edition of Southern Wedding Magazine.  ‘Tis true!  No one gets it all done.

I want you to know this, especially if you are new to the wedding business… especially if you are new to entrepreneurship.  I’ve always looked up to people who “get it all done”.  I have looked up to them as incredible super-beings who are on top of the world.  And, truth be told there is some pride in having people ask you, “Michelle, how do you do it all?”  But, it’s a big fat myth.  No one does it all.  We choose.  We prioritize.  And, we must do a pretty decent job at choosing and prioritizing because people seem to think we get it all done.  (HA!  Oh 24-hour-fitness, you and I are unrequited lovers long overdue for a reunion.)

Everyone has different methods of prioritizing.  I wrote about this recently in the post, Prioritizing for your Small Business.  I make lists and I condense my “priority list” down to the most important and most urgent.  I usually have 10 manageable things on my condensed list (and about 50 other sheets of paper held with a binder clip of assorted other to-dos, along with my google tasks online.)  And, I also make “on the spot” assessments of what is most important at that given moment.  I may have a list of SUPER important things, but a 2-year-old begging me “Mommy, go room.  Mommy, play bear house.”  I may have to ignore my list for one of the ladies and gent of GHGH who need help in a pinch.

I choose.  I prioritize.  That is what I do.

Post by Michelle Loretta

Last year I met Wendy with Divine Tan and she is SO fun!!  I love her cool mobile spray tan company – and I’ve been hearing for the past year about her sweet little Lyla and just couldn’t wait to meet her!  Well a couple of weeks ago we were able to meet up at Greenlake for a little playdate and it was true… Lyla is the cutest little girl, so full of life (and energy!) she kept us running for a full hour!!  Too fun!

Jen & Isaac are such a cute couple!!  They met through BNI (which I love!) they were married a year ago last May in Montana and finally moved back to Seattle about a year ago.  All year we watched as Jen’s belly grew and grew – with an original date of September 23rd we thought we had plenty of time to do their pregnancy photos – but when I received the phone call in early September from Jen saying we’d better do it this morning I was SO excited!

So we set up a little studio in their living room and snapped some beautiful portraits – and created some beautiful art.

Then – 32 short hours later they met little William (Will) Thomas Gaspar born September 3rd, 2009 7lbs & 6oz – 19inches long (and incredibly handsome!) Then two weeks later I was able to visit them and took a couple of photos – he is SO sweet!!

The first time Karolina and I met for coffee we sat and chatted for nearly 2 hours!!  It was so much fun – they didn’t have any other choice but to choose me as their wedding photographer!!  Then a couple of weeks ago I met Mark at their engagement session and now I just can’t help but love them both!!  We had WAY too much fun – we laughed till our belly’s hurt (well, I did) karate kicked the air, drank coffee and talked non-stop.  The best part about it was how Mark & Karolina interacted.  They are PERFECT for each other – so in love.  Which is good – because they are getting married THIS WEEKEND!!

Here are a couple of my favorite images from the day – I hope you love them too!

Thanks to the universe – and the WONDERFUL person who brought us DAILY CANDY (you brighten my day & help me find cool ways to  spend my money!) BARBIE HULL PHOTOGRAPHY along with many other lovable wedding artists were mentioned in this mornings version of DAILY CANDY SEATTLE WEDDING GUIDE!!

NO WAY RIGHT?!!  Check it out!!  {CLICK HERE}  or see below:

The Tao of I Do

Fall 2009 Wedding Guide

A wise man once said: All you need is love. With a ballooning guest list, an overly involved MIL, and a laissez-faire groom, you respectfully disagree.

Take a deep breath. Love, love, love. It’s easy with these simple principles.

Find a Guru
With eleven years of bridal industry know-how, Gown Diva Consulting’s Liz Navarro counsels you on the right dress shape for your body; where to find designers in your price range and style; and helps with ordering, alterations, accessories, and more.

Be Here Now
Make playfulness the day’s theme by hosting your ceremony or reception among treetops at TreeHouse Point. A renovated church-turned-nonprofit arts center, The Fremont Abbey uses all proceeds from events to fund community arts outreach.

Face the Day
Get down to basics with a brow design and signature facial that’ll make you glow from Katrina Rising at Cake. Then keep shine at bay while preserving makeup with luxurious Tatcha Aburatorigami blotting papers.

Exhibit Outer Piece
Incorporating satin ribbons, shell, horn, and leather on gold-plated backings, Monsieur Cocarde’s (monsieur.cocarde@gmail.com) custom brooches, boutonnieres, shoe accessories, and pendants make special keepsakes for your wedding party.

Live in the Moment
Don’t miss a second of your big day with a DVD by Aaron Horton Productions and Barbie Hull Photography’s scenic and specialized snapshots.

Commune with Nature
Patti Bosket’s woodsy and wonderful floral creations cater to the bride’s personal style. The designer also offers ecofriendly seasonal foliage and flowers. And Dahlia Press’s 100 percent cotton, tree-free paper and 100-year-old press lovingly craft elegant invitations.

The Art of Giving
Register at countless stores and sites and get suggestions from experts and price comparisons at Seattle-based Wishpot.com. Then surprise guests with a wedding cake that resembles a work of art from Chocolaz Artisan Cakes.

Appreciate the Little Things
Custom engagement rings and wedding bands from T. Anthony Sholdt use the finest metals and precious stones to commemorate the spirit of your ceremony and unique affection.

Prepare to kiss single life goodbye.

That was Zen; this is Tao.

I don’t even know where to begin – Andrew & Courtney are two fabulously lucky and in love people.  No joke.  Their story is truly a dream!!  They met in college – each secretly in love with each other… swearing their friends to secrecy – waiting for just the right moment and that is only part of it!!  Their families are WONDERFUL!!  And they get along so well that Courtney’s brother married Andrew’s sister!!  NO WAY RIGHT?!  I love it!!

The day was perfect.  Perfect weather, cute couple, happy family, gorgeous venues & a GREAT party!!  Here are a few of my favorite images from the day – I hope you love them!!

Church: Bellevue Congregational

Florist:  A family friend

DJ: Brian Waltz – Good Times DJ

Reception: DeLille Cellars

Photographers: Yours truly of course & the fabulous second shooter – Jennifer Richard