Becoming wife - domesticity

 

{Source}

They say a “wise woman builds her house”.

Since moving into our new place, I have this desire to get it all set up as best I can. We haven’t got all our furniture yet but I really want to make our house a home. I feel it’s my responsibility and I want it to be somewhere where we look forward to coming back to.

We’ve experienced a number of issues with the flat since moving in, but our Letting Agents have been great in sorting them all out and hopefully by the end of the month everything should all be fixed and our new sofa’s will have arrived as well.

We had our first trip to IKEA together last week. Mr E wasn’t too impressed with the maze like store layout and wanted to get out as quickly as possible. I on the hand was in home furnishing heaven! There are so many things I would love to buy for our place now, but we have had to prioritise and get the important stuff first. Building a home takes time!

Our wedding presents from the gift registry arrive on Saturday and while I’m looking forward to getting them, I’m wondering where everything will all go. Mr E hates clutter so I to ensure that the useable places e.g. our bedroom, kitchen and living area are as clutter-free as possible and keep the rest of unpacked boxes out of sight. Some of our wedding gifts will only come out during special occasions anyway {e.g. special plates etc}.

We lost our dishwasher when we moved here, i.e. the new place doesn’t have one, so it was back to old fashion rubber gloves and a sponge! I thought I would hate it, but I’ve got used to it and some times think I wash things better than the dishwasher ever did! It definitely disciplines you.

Another thing I enjoying is figuring out what we’re going to have for dinner, trying new dishes on my husband and getting his reaction. He loves his food and I love it when he loves what I cook. I’ve also started making his lunch for work {mine too} which is saving us loads of money.

Some things that are helping me…

- Grocery shop online. I’m not a fan of supermarkets. Some of them are huge and I always end up spending way more than I planned, due to offers or seeing extra treats. As I want to learn to stay within budget, online shopping has become my best friend. I order all my groceries, choose a delivery slot and wait for them to bring my groceries to me. The great thing is, they do all the hard work and the delivery charge works out less than petrol and my time would be. The shop I use also stores the items I regularly buy as ‘my favourites’ which makes the online experience even quicker!

- Have a menu. I know this sounds very restaurant like, but it really helps to meal plan so a)You know what you’re making, b)You know what to buy {see the first point}.

- Cooking in bulk. When I have time I try to make sauces enough to last for several meals and freeze. It saves so much time for those days I don’t feel like cooking. I’m not fully in the swing of this yet but I’m trying.

- Staying on top of things. Who says cleaning has to be done on a Saturday? Or laundry on a Sunday? Choose the day of the week that works for you. Spread the task over the week, so it doesn’t seem so large. Do your worst task first. For me that would be the bathroom! I’m not perfect, but I’m trying!

How are you making the adjustment into wife like domesticity or if you’re not yet married how are you preparing?

p.s. Congratulations to Bianca Juarez and Matt Olthoff who get married today. If you haven’t read her blog, check it out today.

Reflections…The Dress

My wedding dress was and still is the most expensive piece of clothing I own!

Meet Harriet… I remember seeing her and my first immediate thought was…princess! I never thought I would have chosen a princess-type dress but after trying it on, it was just beautiful. Prior to seeing her, I had my heart set on another dress but saw Harriet just in time.

The bridal shop where I had been courting  the previous dress, had been so lovely to me and my girls, I went back to order Harriet from them, even though they didn’t have it in their store collection.

Tip: A good sales assistant makes the whole experience more memorable. If they are rude, just leave. They don’t deserve your business.

Vendor: Sense and Sensibility, Stockport, Manchester. I have nothing but good things to say about S&S. They are genuinely a great team of girls there who provided a great service to me, right up until the big day.

 

Here you can see my bolero…

My Accessories…

I was gifted a beautiful side tiara from my Maid of Honour SB, which I wore alongside my veil. 

I went back and forth about how to do my hair, from a weave to extension pieces, but in the end I decided to go au-natural, which I’m really glad about on reflection.

  

I also wore purple shoes…

Which you can just about see here…

The week of the wedding I had also planned to get my nails and feet done {amongst other things}, but due to different things that went down, I had to cancel the appointments, re-arrange and cancel again. Very disappointed about that!

I ended up having to paint my nails on the day, which wasn’t ideal. Ladies…if you can protect those ‘me-time’ appointments, they will be a sanctuary from all the madness!

Overall – very happy with my look and received lots of beautiful compliments on the day.

{All images - Alakija & Co}

Reflections…Two months

It only seems fitting to start the recaps with a mini-anniversary celebration.

Last weekend marked two months.

My, how time flies.

  

Last weekend also marked our official relocation down south and the start of our new lives together.

We have our own place – yay!

Moving house is tough people. Thank God for the Bank Holiday weekend!

Not only is there the physical strain of packing, moving boxes and cleaning but there is also the emotional strain of closing up one part of your life to enter another. I tried my hardest to be ruthless and throw out or donate things I definitely no longer needed because I really wanted a fresh start and did not want to bring loads of unnecessary junk into our new home. I succeeded somewhat, but over the next couple of weeks I will continue to declutter. Ebay here I come!

We totally thank God you know because everything about the move went really smoothly. We received favour on so many levels and know it can only be God who helped us. The place we found is within budget and ticks all the boxes in terms of what we were looking for, but it is a lot smaller than the last place but hey that’s the South for you.

We’re currently settling into our new abode, working out new routines, ordering furniture and such like. All is good in the hood and I finally feel life moving to a level playing field. Marriage is good. Our next task is to find a church and we’re praying for direction in this area. God has done it once, so we know he can do it again. 

Internet will be up and running in a week or so and I can get back to blogging regularly again and commenting on all your lovely blogs.

Lots of lovely recaps posts coming up…x

{Photo – Jide Alakija}

Seasons...

Thanks for all your comments on last week's post. You've given me a couple of extra things to think about for when I begin recaps.

Just to give you a life update, we're currently in the process of moving and so internet access is very sporadic at the moment {this post is a blackberry special}. I've not really had an opportunity to sit down and put my recaps posts together as I would like to and I'm desperate to start them!

I also want to include wedding pictures in the posts which I can't do from my phone, so recaps will be starting in September {which is only next week - can you believe!!!}.

Summer is almost over...boo hoo but my favourite season is about to begin! Woo!

Autumn...full of woolly coats, knee boots and chunky jumpers. Kids back to school and new starts all round...love it!

What's your favourite season and why do you love it?

P.s. Happy Birthday Mum! Love you loads x

Missing other people's weddings

Two words...It sucks.

This weekend is the wedding of one of Mr E's childhood friends and next weekend is the wedding of one of my work colleagues.

Both couples came to our wedding, but unfortunately we are not able to attend theirs due to moving house.

What does one do in these situations? We will still be giving them gifts but it's not really the same, is it?

Anyone else been in the same boat, what did you do?

p.s. To E + K who got married today - Congratulations! We're so sorry we can't be there. We hope your day was wonderful and we wish you many wonderful married years ahead.