showdown at the blue orchid bistro

so, as a treat for my birthday AND for valentine's day, my fiance and i went to this darling little restaurant in dunlap, tennessee called the "blue orchid bistro" for a special dinner date together. the outside of the building was just as charming as the delicious food they served!

dunlap is a little bit of a drive out of chattanooga, so it was nice to get away from "the world" and all of our normal, everyday drama, including wedding planning, to just enjoy a nice, quiet evening together.

we sat down to begin our dinner, and we were enjoying the ambiance of the quaint little restaurant as we began talking to our waitress. the wait staff was incredibly friendly, and they were a joy to talk to! so, when they asked if we were celebrating valentine's day, i opened up that we were, as well as my birthday, and we were also enjoying our last valentine's day before we get married this october. our waitress says, "what day?" and i said, "october 1"... then... she said it... "oh my gosh! i'm getting married on october 1 too!"

it was almost an "exorcist" moment. tyler's face was a mix of acute alertness and sheer terror at what i would do next.

our waitress's name was christy, so i knew she wasn't LD, but still... here was another 10.1.11 bride in my midst! and she was serving me my food! i remained calm, and then she said, "i'm getting married in destin on the beach!"

EXHALE!

tyler's face quickly changed to relief, and my guard went down. we were able to enjoy our dinner date, and i didn't have to break out brass knuckles on our waitress. all in all, date night was a success.

i wonder sometimes if tyler will ever view me as too much to handle... but i think he enjoys the challenge... and i think that, if it came down to it, he would back me up if it came down to a match between me and the other 10.1.11 bride. and that's precisely why i love him. that and he is a FANTASTIC date, no matter where we go or what we do. in fact, one of my favorite parts of the evening was when we skipped dinner at the restaurant and, instead, opted for dessert at sonic drive-in. he makes everything special... from a special dinner out to dessert at a drive-in. and i cannot wait to enjoy everyday of my life with him.

fin.

GOTCHA!

i previously explained my issues with the "other" 10.1.11 bride...

well... she and i are going to have SERIOUS problems now...

i went to the bridal show last weekend. it definitely wasn't the best bridal show i have ever been to, but there are three more coming up, so i'm sure i will get my fill before it is all said and done. that being said, however, i went to the last bridal show with very few goals in mind. most of my planning is done, but i have a few loose ends to tie up. one of which is my day-of transportation. i've been trying to figure out how we will get from the ceremony to the reception and then to where we are staying for our first night married. (bow chicka wow wow... yeah, i went there.) anyways. i'm not too keen on doing a stretch limo, especially a stretch hummer, which is all i've found so far, so imagine my delight when i found a double decker bus at the bridal show! so different, so new, so fun! and it would easily fit our entire bridal party and immediate family.

but then... those dreaded words came out of the vendor's mouth...

"october 1? oh, i'm sorry... we were JUST booked for october 1!"

little did they know... i am quite astute. i happened to notice a stack of papers on the table. the papers just happened to be the contract booking the double decker bus of dreams. and what did i see on top of that stack of contracts? that's right... i have the other 10.1.11 bride's NAME! HA!

now, i'm not completely horrid. i won't publish her name. but i WILL publish her initials. LD, you're going down. i could have easily had your phone number, but i don't do well with numbers. lucky you.

i've given this double decker bus thing some more thought. getting a double decker bus up lookout mountain would not be a pleasant experience. none of my bridal party should fear for their life on my wedding day. therefore, we will pursue other options. BUT, the point is, LD... i've got your name. don't cross me. i'm looking for you.

fin.