Month: August 2013

Wedding Planning Tips: Save the Dates

Posted on by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®
wedding planning tips save the dates
photo by Savoy Ballroom, graphics by MereLynne

Want some valuable wedding planning tips when sending out your Save The Dates?

Well, you have to come to the right blog.  I recently sent out our save the dates – actually a few weeks ago, but waited to post my tips until everyone received their postcards so I wouldn’t spoil anything for anyone.

J and I decided to send postcards over an actual formal save the date card with the fancy tissue paper and embossed envelope.  First,  I am not that formal of a person and second, the postage is so much cheaper on postcards! Saving some of that cha-ching for more important parts of the wedding.

Here are some wedding planning tips when selecting your save the dates and things I would have liked to do differently:

1) postcards, postcards, postcard.  I mean, postcards are simple and easy to send.  No envelope licking (ew!) required.  Gross!  Just the thought of licking nearly 100 envelopes or having to use a wet towel – it’s just a mess.  Not to mention if you wanted to go super-duper traditional and have the outer envelope and the inner envelope – that’s double the licking.  And like I said above, the cost of sending a postcard is considerably less when sending a standard letter or worse an odd shaped envelope.  I had that happen to a friend of mine, she budgeted the average amount of postage stamps for her save the dates then when she went to USPS to mail them.  While waiting in line she got slammed when she learned that the envelope was a square and that would cost more… almost double.  That adds up for 150 save the dates… let’s do the math.  $0.46 per stamp * 150 save the dates = $69 bucks.  Now double it – $138 bucks just went to USPS that you had not planned for.

2) ensure that you have the spelling correct for all your guests.  I did not know everyone on my guest list.  Some were family of J’s that I had not met and others were some of his family friends that I had not met.  Names can be weird.  Spellings are not always common.  Double check that spelling before you waste a save the date or worse, send out a misspelled name!

3) one thing I would have done different is placed a return address on the postcards.  Luckily, I had a stamp made a few months ago, but it would have been so much nicer to have them pre-printed on the cards.  Also, I didn’t want to be blissfully unaware of any save the date not reaching their intended target.  My OCD tendencies could not handle that.

4) another thing I wish I would have thought of was space.  The space to address the save-the-dates was a little small.  I do not normally require people to have a magnifying class to read my handwriting so I had to nix first names.

5) do not put off address your save the dates.  I kind of did that.  I thought it was going to take so long to sit down and actually address the cards so I put it off, like any normal person who was avoiding a task that didn’t seem fun, which it was not fun.  It did not take as long as I thought – like an hour, maybe?  If that.

There we go – simple, easy wedding planning tips that I like to pass on to others so that they could be wiser in their wedding planning than me.  Go forth young ones and conquer.

Cheers!

 

Idea-less Tuesday

Posted on by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

Once upon a time there was this girl who had a little blog.  This girl loves to talk, share stories, and create all day long.  She loves to spend time with her two dogs, her fiance and family.  Most days this girl has no trouble coming up with stories and DIY projects or tips to share with people.  However, then there was a Tuesday where she had no idea what to talk about.  That has never happened before.

If you cannot tell this girl is me and the little blog is this one.  And I really am idea-less on what to talk about.  I thought I would share some pictures of the past few days instead of being creative.

st louis bread co
Office for the day
wedding makeup
Trial run for the wedding!
Cardinals Game
J and I at the Cards v. Cubs game.
Busch Stadium
Best view
That Thing You Do!
That Thing You Do!
One of the best movies ever made.

lazy dog
Cheers!

August Goals

Posted on by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

August Goals

Here we are… after the first full week of a new month and I’m setting up August Goals.

I like goals and to-do lists.  I feel that it gives me a sense of direction and a foundation in a sometimes chaotic life.  I mean goals keep you motivated and keep your dreams a reality.  If you have a dream then you decide on action steps to take to achieve those dreams, right?  A dream because a goal and then goal becomes action steps that you put on a to-do list… I’m digressing as I think of different ways to say goal and to-do lists.  I’m going to get back to the point – August Goals.

1) get settled into our new home.  I mentioned how we were moving (this weekend!) to a new city and I don’t want to still be unpacking boxes months from now.

2) consistently write about 3-4 posts a week for this merelynne.com.

3) create a routine between work, blog, etsy, and home life.

4) make progress on the wedding by ordering invitations and finalizing the favor idea (so excited!)

5) design some organizing templates for the site for others to use.  I have some great organizational tools that I created and they help me so much from day-to-day and I think it’s time I share them with the world.

Last month I wrote about 27 things to do while 27.  So far, I’ve accomplished one thing off that list.  But I think that is pretty impressive since it’s been less than 1 month!  Once life settles down I will keep you in the loop on my list progress.

Cheers to August Goals!

5 Moving Tips to Ease Packing

Posted on by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

5 moving tips

Want 5 moving tips to make a move easier?

Between living in different apartments during college, then moving in with J a few months ago, and now moving to a bigger city – I have this whole moving business down.

Here we go… 5 moving tips to make life a little less stressful:

1) make a plan. Don’t go all willy-nilly between rooms packing. You have everything arranged in specific rooms for a reason, so pack that way.

2) label boxes for the rooms they are going into. Your new place may not have the same number of rooms or the rooms might have a different purpose. It will be easier for your movers friends to know where to put the boxes.

3) ever watch “Undercover Boss?” I watched the episode of United Van Lines, the moving company. Their packers would wad up packing paper and place in the bottom of empty boxes for breakables.  The crumpled paper in the bottom helps add a little cushion.

4) spackle nail holes as you take down your pictures. Think “whistle while you work” here, except “spackle while you pack.”

5) clean as you go. Especially if you live in a rental that will help get the most bang for your buck . We had a two car garage, so once a room was packed the boxes and furniture went outside. After all items are out of the room it is the perfect time to clean – wipe down the trim, fans, window sills and then vacuum.  Then seal off the room.

I hope these simple 5 moving tips help!

Cheers!

If you’re looking for a few more tips, check out my friends over at The Simple Dollar.  They have a great resource to share with you.

 

Weight Loss Struggle: An Update

Posted on by Meredith Rines, MBA, CFP®

weight loss struggle
 

This picture really does not have anything to do with this post, but some days it’s exactly how I feel when it comes to my weight loss struggles.

I struggle with my weight and with weight loss. Like most people do, rather they will admit it or not. I had written all what I had gone through here. I made a commitment that I would make this blog my accountability partner with my weight loss and so, I want to make sure I stick to my word.

Here’s what I’ve been doing to work on my weight loss since my last post:

Crossfit 3-4x a week, I saw a wellness doctor about a healthy diet plan, and have J who is my biggest supporter. I’ve lost about 5 pounds so far, but I want to be honest. It’s not really about the number of pounds; I’m not going to lie getting on that scale and seeing a lower number puts a smile on my face. But it’s the way I feel when I look in a mirror and the way I feel in my clothes.

I put a pair of jeans that I haven’t been able to wear for months and they fit. Such a great feeling! My wardrobe has consisted mainly of dresses and maxi skirts lately, luckily there are some cute maxi skirts out there, but I cannot wait to pull out my shorts and jeans.

I appreciate having someone in my life that puts my needs first and basically forces me on the days I want to be lazy. All it takes is the commitment to change your life. I know that I have a way to go, but I know that I can do it. I learned a lot from Weight Watchers as a member and as a leader, but it’s time to get back to the basics.  

Here’s to getting healthy!

Cheers!