When Surviving Wedding Planning seems like an Impossible Feat

Trust me when I say we’ve all been there. Planning a wedding is not for the faint of heart. It will test your sanity, the strength of your relationship and your ability to survive under an enormous amount of stress but I believe if any couple can survive planning a wedding together, you can survive most everything together. So here are a few tips one would follow if you want to come out of wedding planning in one piece.

1. Breathe! Inhale! Exhale!
Wedding Planning can be overwhelming and can consume your every thought – trust me, I KNOW! So, my first tip would be to remember to breathe! Inhale and exhale. And REPEAT as many times as it takes to get a clear head and to get to a calm state of mind. Getting all worked up over the wedding planning will not get you anywhere. Breathe. Count to 10 in your head and exhale. It works!

2. Stick to your BUDGET!
Before making ANY decisions, sit down with your significant other and make a budget for your BIG DAY! Once you’ve decided on how much you’re willing to spend on your wedding, STICK TO THE BUDGET! The temptation to overspend and buy unnecessary items for your day will arise. Give yourself as many pep talks as needed to keep yourself on budget! It’s hard and the temptations are real, but you got this!

3. Be Faithful with your SAVING!
Weddings are EXPENSIVE and when you’re in the process of planning a wedding, your money seems to go to nothing but the wedding. Remember, especially if you’re paying for your own wedding, to be FAITHFUL with your savings! It’s easy to get wrapped up in paying for your wedding that you forget to save money for what comes next – life. Try to save for your future – whether it’s for your first home together, first (second or third) child, etc.

4. Be True to YOURSELF!
Remember, this is YOUR day! When it comes to planning a wedding, everyone will have their own image of how your day should go. Ignore them. This is YOUR wedding day so the quicker you realize you won’t be able to please everyone, the happier you will be with the decisions you make concerning your day. Don’t turn your wedding day into a day that doesn’t reflect who you are as an individual or who you are as a couple just to please a couple individuals.

5. Brush it Off!
When it comes to wedding planning, you will quickly learn that EVERYONE has their own opinions and they’re NOT afraid to bombard you with them. So instead of getting overwhelmed and letting these opinions consume you, BRUSH THEM OFF! It’s easier said than done but once you’ve brushed a few opinions off, it’ll get easier and you’ll feel SO much lighter.

6. Remember – It’s ONE day!
When it comes to your season of wedding planning, it’ll be all too easy for you to become all consumed with your special day. Remember, it’s ONE day out of the rest of your lives together. It’s okay if things don’t go as wanted and it’s okay to take a step back and consume yourself with something else for the time being.

7. Expect the UNEXPECTED!

Nothing in life ever goes as expected so try to avoid putting that pressure on your BIG DAY! The sooner you come to terms with the fact that there will be a minor mishap somewhere during your special day, you will release some of that stress you’ve been bottling up and you won’t sweat the small stuff. It took this perfectionist some time to come to terms with this, but it worked wonders for my stress level and my relationship with my husband.

8. Compromise!
Like everything else in life, there MUST be some give and take during the wedding planning – it’s called COMPROMISE! It’s so easy for one individual to become consumed in what “HE or SHE” wants that the other individual in the relationship often gets overlooked. Try to remember to let your significant other in on the wedding planning – if you choose the color scheme, let them choose what their part of the wedding party wears, etc. Let them be a part of the decision making and make it known that they have a VOICE in the wedding planning. It’s NOT “your” day! It’s Y’ALLS” day!

9. Prepare Yourself for the “Whatever You Want” Response
I can’t tell you how many times I received this response from my husband. It was aggravating at times because I did want HIS opinion but once you accept that this may not be your significant other’s strong suit, the response won’t come off as he/she doesn’t care but more like they don’t have an educated opinion and would like to default to you.

10. Take a STEP BACK!
If the wedding planning becomes all too much to handle, take that sweet step back and take a break from the madness. I can’t tell you how many times I got overwhelmed and took a step back for a couple days… sometimes a couple weeks. It allows you to clear your mind and rest. That way when you’re ready to tackle the next item on your wedding list, you’re well rested and have a positive mindset.

11. Enjoy Your WEDDING DAY!
If you’ve successfully completed these tips (or the majority of them) your wedding day should be a dream come true. A stress-free environment with the love of your life right by your side. And all the stress, sleepless nights and overwhelming chaos that consumed your life during your wedding planning period will seem like a thing of the past.

Love,

Cass Nicole

 

 

+Returning/ Catching Up

Howdy Y’all,

It’s been roughly seven months since I posted my last blog. So before I begin blogging again on a regular basis, I will quickly catch you up on my life.

Three months ago (Give or take a week) I moved to FLORIDA. As a girl who lived in GEORGIA for 12 years, I expected Florida to be similar to Georgia. Boy, was I mistaken! Southern Hospitality ENDS the moment you cross the Florida/Georgia line. Tim and I have met NO one outside of work. Which is crazy because Tim is one of the most outgoing people I know. I figured we’d have no problem meeting people. We live in a nice apartment complex but you would think we lived on a deserted island. No one goes outside unless it’s to hop in their vehicles to go somewhere or to take their dogs out. No one speaks to you, let alone make eye contact with you.

Where is the SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY down here? I’ve been asking this damn question since the first week we moved down here and have yet to find an answer.

Florida lacks the home welcoming/ family loving feeling you would find in Georgia. And the weather is just as unfulfilling.

 I can’t tell you how wishy washy the weather is down here. Yesterday was 70 something degrees out and today it was FREEZING! 45 degrees out! You never know if you should bundle up like you live in the north or if you should throw on your bathing suit and hit the pool.

I can’t stand this weather!

On another note, two months ago, Tim and I welcomed our second furchild into our home. Like I mentioned earlier, no one comes outside. Even those with dog’s refuse to go to the dog park. So for an entire month, Sadie Mae had no interactions with other dogs. It started to take a toll on her so after Tim gave me permission to welcome another furchild into our home, I jumped at the opportunity.

Everyone meet River Layne. She is absolutely precious! In a few words, she’s the sweetest, whiniest, needy puppy who is beyond obsessed with her older sister. It baffles Tim and I how much she loves Sadie Mae but it can be heartwarming!

Did I mention she’s Sadie Mae’s mini-me? You don’t understand how much I love that about her! They are so much alike, it’s scary! It drives Tim insane 85% of the time but I can’t help but adore the similarities, I’m obsessed with them!

And lastly, I just applied for Graduate School. I would like to pursue a career in Teaching and Learning-Administration. I’d like to eventually work in a public school as an administrator. So fingers crossed, I get accepted into Liberty University and can begin and complete my Master’s Degree.

So now that’s we’re caught up on my life, let’s begin with my regular blogs. My blogs may vary from opinions, stories, Dinner Recipes (I’ve started cooking since I moved to Florida and I hate to toot my own horn, but I’m quite the chef), and other odd and random posts.

Lend a Helping Hand to those Around You

If you’ve been keeping up with what’s going on around the globe, you’re aware of the fact that there’s a war raging on leaving hundreds of thousands homeless, desperate and willing to do whatever it takes to escape their war stricken countries.

A photo of a young child washed up along the shore of a Turkish beach left the world weeping for those refugees who lost their lives trying to make it to a safe haven where they could live without fear. A safe haven they wouldn’t reach in the end.

This sparked an outrage around the globe. Many people began urging their countries to take in refugees, to do more for those who live in those war stricken countries. People were left wanting to make a difference in the lives of those who are innocent bystanders who don’t deserve what life has thrown their way.

As we should, many have taken steps towards making a difference. No matter the size. If one life is impacted in a positive way, that is all that matters.

But I have a question. One that may spark rage within you. One that may be too blunt for some of you.

My question is why are you so willing to help those who live across the globe from you, those individuals whom you’ve never met, spoken to or even thought of until a couple weeks ago, but you aren’t willing to help those around you in your own community?

We have individuals in our community that need help in their day to day lives and we don’t even bat an eye at them. We have homeless people on almost every city corner and we walk past them as if they aren’t even there. We have children who spend year after year in foster care because so many want to adopt a child outside of the U.S. We have war veterans who are coming home from busting their asses to fight for the freedom that we all take for granted 99% of the time and yet we do little to help them get the care they need.

We have so many people in our own country who need help desperately and yet we brush them aside as if they’re not important enough for our time, love or care.

How are so many willing to help those across the globe but can’t be caught lending a helping hand in the communities around us?

Now don’t get me wrong, I do believe we should spread our love and care around to those countries in need, but we have to be willing to do the same for our own country. At the end of the day, we have our own problems that we need to attend to so that we can be that great country that every other country can lean on.

I’m not saying don’t lend a helping hand to other countries because they need us. They need us badly. All I’m saying is as you go throughout your day, lend a helping hand to someone around you in your community. For they need you as well!

PSA From Yours Truly #2

Folks, I can’t express in enough words the amount of anger and frustration I feel towards other drivers. I realize I am not the world’s greatest driver but I’m far from being the world’s worst.

Lately, on my commute to work, I have had difficulty merging onto the interstate as it seems my fellow early morning drivers don’t understand what it means to use the entrance ramp.

So I’ll take a few minutes out of my night to explain it to you. It won’t take long since you should have learned this before you received your license.

But hey! No judgement here..

Let’s begin!

There is this lane that allows you to enter the interstate known as the Entrance Ramp. While you’re on this said ramp, the point of using this ramp is to Accelerate.

If you don’t know what that word means, here is google’s definition:

Increase in the rate or speed of something.

That means while you are entering the interstate, your speed should be increasing. And by increasing, I mean you should be at the speed everyone else is moving at by the time you merge into the right lane.

If you aren’t quite sure what the word Increase means, here’s a definition:

To become or make greater in size, amount, intensity, or degree.

In simpler terms, you should be gaining speed as you move down the ramp. Not maintaining the same speed and most certainly not losing speed.

By no means should you still be at 45-50mph while merging onto the interstate unless traffic is backed up and you have no choice.

If traffic is moving at its regular speed, you best be matching that speed by the time you reach the end of the entrance ramp.

This isn’t just for the fact that it makes it harder to merge onto the interstate when you’re doing 10-15mph less than you should. Yoohoo! It’s a safety precaution.

Safety Precaution! 

I’m just throwing it out there, if you don’t want someone slamming into the back of your car because they are going the correct speed while you decide to take a long Sunday night drive when in fact it’s Wednesday morning in rush hour traffic, I highly suggest you put your foot on the gas pedal and press down! Press down as hard as you can. Put the pedal to the metal!

This way you’ll be at a decent speed that will allow you to safely merge onto the interstate without causing an accident or being an inconvenience to your fellow drivers.

And like I’ve said numerous times before, if you can’t use your brain while driving on a crowded interstate, do us all a favor and just don’t drive!

That is all!

Love,

Yours Truly

The Beauty of Watching Cars Pass By

Living in this day and age when everyone has a million places to be with a thousand different things to get done, it’s difficult to find time to simply sit down and relax. We’re constantly running around like a chicken with its head chopped off praying for an extra hour here and there, never slowing down.

And yet, there’s such beauty in slowing down, taking a breather and simply taking a look at what’s around you.

If only we’d put on the brakes for a moment.

This evening when I was headed to dinner with a friend, I saw one of my neighbors at the end of our road sitting in a chair on a hill by the main road just watching cars pass him by.

My first thought was he was most likely losing his mind but as I drove to dinner, I began to think about how peaceful and relaxing he must find that.

Sitting in a chair just watching vehicle after vehicle pass you by under a beautiful blue sky while birds chirp and frogs croak. That’s as peaceful as peaceful can be.

While everyone else was rushing about, trying to get from point A to point B, he was sitting there watching. He wasn’t rushing about, he wasn’t trying to get from point A to point B.

No, he was taking in the world around him, enjoying the beautiful weather that came out of a lousy rainy morning.

Just by glancing at him, you would have thought he was at peace with himself. Not a care in the world.

And it got me thinking-

How much happier would everyone be if we were more like him? More willing to slow down every so often to take in the world around us instead of busying ourselves every hour of every day? Would we be more at peace with ourselves? Would we appreciate life more?

But most importantly, would we be willing to take time out of our busy schedules to sit down and take in the scenery around us? To put down our to-do list for a few minutes and simply relax and relish the many blessings around us. The blessing we overlook so very often.

So would you be willing to sit down and watch the cars pass you by? If only for a few moments.

Public Service Announcement from Yours Truly

Folks,

I realize we don’t wake up in the morning saying to ourselves “Hey, I think today is the day to crash my car and cause rush hour traffic to be backed up worse than usual.” But because of some reckless driver, there is always an accident causing delays in our morning routine. Not just one day a week, but almost every day during the work week.

And if it’s alright by y’all if I say so, and excuse my French, it’s fucking ridiculous!

For those reckless drivers, if your goal was to piss a bunch of people off, causing an accident during rush hour is by far the BEST way to accomplish your goal so kudos to you!

And for those drivers who are reckless and have not caused an accident yet, let’s be honest, it’s going to happen sooner than later so here are a few tips for you:

Tips For Safe Driving-

1) Realizing the universe doesn’t revolve around you is a start. That may be news to you and I’m sure it’s come as a shock but you’ll be much happier once you realize that minor fact about life. You are NOT the only driver on the roadways. Please take that into consideration while you drive from Point A to Point B.

2) There is this lovely thing posted along the side of the road known as the Speed Limit. I’m well aware that some people see that more as a suggestion than an actual rule that’s enforced but it’s not. So instead of doing 20 over, do less. Much less.

3) All that weaving, bobbing and zigzagging you do throughout traffic- JUST STOP! It’s obvious you should have left earlier than you did and now you’re driving like a fool, putting every other driver at risk. Seriously! JUST STOP! Accept the fact that you’ll be late and consider leaving earlier next time.

4) If you know the Lord Almighty did not bless you with the World’s Greatest Driving Skills, please consider getting a chauffeur. I assure you that we’d be forever grateful.

5) There are these objects on the side of your vehicle called mirrors. USE them! Stop side swiping other vehicles because you forgot to check your mirror. Stop making other drivers swerve to miss your idiotic self. I promise you, those mirrors are there for a reason. They’re not just there to look pretty. They serve a purpose. The sooner you realize that, the better!

6) THINK before you drive!

I just want one morning when my hour commute isn’t delayed or affected by a car accident. A morning that drivers decide to be respectful of others around them, use their brains and actually drive as if their lives depend on it. Because NEWS FLASH; your life does depend on you and the others driving around you.

I understand that’s asking a hell of a lot, but it’s doable.

Sincerely, 

Yours Truly

All The Lights Are On; Yet No One’s Home

“If a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind, of what, then, is an empty desk a sign of? “

-Albert Einstein

Guys! The struggle bus is real these days. We’re almost done with week three of Kindergarten Prep and my coworker and I are baffled and stressed to the max. We’re on the struggle bus and this time we’re the passengers trying to get off this roller coaster of a ride we’re on.

As a teacher, you come to know each and every student’s strengths and weaknesses. Each student is unique and has subjects that they excel in and others that they need help in.

And then you have those students who seem to be there physically but not mentally. It’s as if all the lights are on up there, yet no one’s home. 

And there are only a few things worse than that!

We have a few students who are with us physically but mentally, they’re a million miles away.

Yesterday, my coworker and I both separately spent roughly 30 minutes with one student working on tracing his letters. No matter how many times we said “Just one trace down or just one trace across,” it ended as a bunch of scribbles.

I started to question my teaching abilities after the 35th time repeating myself. After the 36th time, I walked away. Obviously, I either can’t teach or he has no interest in learning how to trace properly!

We have a few students like that.

You can give them simple instructions like “walk to the sink” or “please come sit down on the carpet” and they’ll look at you as if you just spoke to them in a foreign language.

Even our mandarin speaking student knows what we mean when we say sit down or come over here in English.

So they have NO excuse whatsoever!

I just can’t.

Those lights are slowly turning off one by one. Slowly but surely!

That’s when you as a teacher want to go find a 2 by 4 and wack yourself in the forehead with it. Just one good time. That’s all I’d need. Possibly a concussion and a migraine. That’d get me sent home for a few days on bed rest, right?

But WAIT!

You have those children who have all the lights on upstairs and yet no one’s home and then you have those children who have all the lights on and EVERYONE is home. 

Their mom, dad, sister, brother, pet gerbil and frog are home. Hell, even their grandparents and twice removed cousin Frank is home.

It’s a party in their brain!

And sometimes that can be worse than having no one home upstairs.

For one of my student’s has a party going on in her brain all day. Every day!

You never know what she has up her sleeve!

Yesterday, my coworker was sitting beside her (not even 2 feet away) during naptime. Instead of saying “Ms. ____, I have to use the bathroom,” she looked her in the eyes and took it upon herself to pee on her mat. Right In Front of HER! 

Like what?! Why?! I can’t even!

Have you ever met a child whose brain is constantly turning over and over, never stopping, coming up with sneaky ways to make your day tougher? If so, raise your hand.

✋🏻 I have!

And ladies and gents, it is tough! It’s miserable and stressful. It makes coming to work a nightmare and one that seems to repeat itself every day. Over and over again.

So if you find that I’m on bed rest with a migraine and concussion, you’ll know why!

The struggle is real and it’s one that seems to never end.

I Let Another Love Crash and Burn

Language Barrier (Yǔyán zhàng’ài)

Growing up in the United States, I’ve always been a firm believer that if you’re going to live here, you should speak English. ‘Till this day, I still stand firm in that belief. If you’re going to live in a certain country, you should be able to speak that country’s language.

But there are individuals who come into the United States that don’t seem to believe they should learn or speak English.

And that’s infuriating for a couple reasons.

First of all, you should have the respect to learn the language of the country you’re visiting or planning on living in.

Secondly, if an American went to Europe, South America or anywhere outside of U.S borders,we would be seen as ignorant and rude if we didn’t speak even a lick of their language.

So please don’t come into our country without knowing the basic words so you can survive in a public setting.

Kindergarten Prep started 10 days ago and my coworker and I were faced with a language barrier that we have yet to break.

A student from China entered our classroom on Monday without knowing a lick of English. This student was thrown into an environment that was all too new to her; let alone terrifying.

Could you imagine being thrown into a room full of people who didn’t speak your language? Would you be comfortable and relaxed? I wouldn’t. Not at all.

So for the last 10 days, my coworker and I have been relying on google translate as we slowly learn mandarin to ensure that we can communicate with our new student as well as speaking in English in hopes that she’ll catch on sooner rather than later.

But quite frankly, it should have been one of the parent’s top priorities to teach their child English before they threw her into our classroom. This is a whole new world for her.

So ladies and gents, if you know you’re moving to a country that doesn’t speak your native language, please take it upon yourself to learn that country’s language.

Do us a favor and have a little respect for the people and their country! Whether it be France, the United States, Brazil, etc. Learn their language to the best of your ability. If not for yourself, for those who must communicate with you.

People Who Say White Folks Can’t Dance..

Are correct 90% of the time!

This would be me if I attempted this dance. Love it!

If you enjoyed this short video, the link is posted below for the full video. It’s quite ridiculous how entertaining it is.

http://local12.com/m/news/features/dance-party/stories/Dance-Party-Friday-The-Whip-and-Nae-Nae-181953.shtml#.VcneHlL3bCQ