Introducing Springfield Bride Jodi Morgan!

I'd like to introduce Jodi Morgan as our first Simply Weddings Guest Blogger! Jodi is from Springfield and currently working as the development coordinator for a local non-profit agency. Jodi's fiance, Vincent, is originally from Highland, Indiana, and is currently working as a structural engineer.

Jodi and Vincent met almost three years ago through Match.com. Of meeting her future husband, Jodi said: "After going on plenty of dates with nice guys that never worked out and not really being interested in the bar scene, I saw online matchmaking sites as a last ditch effort. I thought I'd try it out and, lucky for me, Vincent was the first one to respond, and we hit it off right away."

Vincent proposed to Jodi on New Year's Eve, 2006, which is her favorite holiday. They had dinner plans and were running late.

"Vincent caught me coming out of the bathroom where he told me that he had written a poem for me earlier that afternoon while I napped," Jodi said. "He read the poem and asked me to marry him. After lots of tears and calls to friends and family, we eventually were able to celebrate at dinner. It seems like it happened so long ago, but I can't believe that we're only six months away from the big day!"

The couple will be married on Friday, August 29 at the Hilton in downtown Springfield with a color scheme of black, white and red. The couple originally planned for a small and simple celebration, but it has turned into much more of an event than they ever could have imagined.

Because Jodi is a Springfield native, the wedding is going to have a "Sprinfield feel" to it, she said. Wedding photos will be taken at the Old State Capitol, favors are being ordered from Del's Popcorn Shop and Pease's, and the rehearsal dinner will be held at Cafe Brio. There will even be a Lincoln impersonator greet all of the guests at the reception!

"All in all, I'm having a blast planning the wedding and am amazed at how much planning it really takes. I'm learning so much!" Jodi said.

While Jodi continues to plan and prepare for marrying the man of her dreams, she will update readers about the chaos, excitement, nervousness and anticipation that surround the Big Day, so stay tuned!

Holiday Proposals

So with yesterday being Valentine's Day, I bet that there are a lot of girls planning weddings now! I would take a guess that Valentine's Day and Christmas Day or Christmas Eve are the two biggest times of the year for proposals...

It makes me wonder why men like to propose on holidays?

It could be because men are intimidated by holiday gift-giving, and an engagement ring is easy and special. Or maybe a holiday is a good date for men to be able to remember their engagements...

I do think holiday engagements can be done right so they are extremely special to the couple and not cheesy. Proposing on a holiday just takes a little more creativity I think.

One of my friends got engaged on Christmas Eve 2006. They agreed they wouldn't spend more than $20, so her fiance made a beautiful jewelry box all on his own. He then put the ring in the jewelry box, and when they exchanged gifts on Christmas Eve, he proposed. Her gift to him? A bottle of wine with their names and the date! How perfect!

I don't think you could have a better proposal than something so personal like that on a holiday...

Trash Talk

Check out the newest article on Simply Weddings! We talked with Kimberly Smoot of Kimberly Smoot Photography about a rising trend called Trash the Dress.

Now, as we stated in the article, it doesn't have to mean actually trashing your beloved wedding gown. And you can get the coolest pictures! Just think about getting some unique and exciting photos of yourself in your wedding gown without having to be concerned about getting dirt or water on the dress!

A Trash the Dress photo session with Kimberly is at no cost with a $300 minimum portrait purchase. And the results, from what I've seen, are incredible.

Check out Kimberly's photo galleries on her Web site and contact her if you are interested in more information on Trash the Dress.