Wedding – KEEPING UP WITH MJ.

The Wedding Party Favorites: The Little People.

I think we can all agree that majority of the time, the little people get looked over. Future bride to be’s, choose them wisely and give the the attention, love and encouragement they deserve! It was really hard for me to choose (well not so hard haha) because I have so much of my kiddies that I hold near and dear to my heart, however a decision had to be made. Let me INTRODUCE my little squad!

FLOWERGIRLS: Mckenzie-Rae (My Mini Me), Kailin (My Babygirl), Makenzie (Duran’s Niece, who’s now my niece :) )
FLOWERBOY: Matthias (My Sis/Cousin Son)
RINGBEAR: Jai (Me & Duran’s Godson)

Flowergirls, flowerboy and ring bearer. I opt’d out of having a mini bride because I just did not see the need for one. I know a lot of you are wondering…a flower-BOY? Yes. A flowerboy. My little baby Matthias. I had to include him in my wedding somehow, so I decided that the best way was to have him walk down the aisle stunting with the flower girls (and he SHOWED OUT).

I mean, look at this face! The most adorable face. I call him “wild-child” because he’s so energetic. His momma will kill me when she reads this haha. When choosing each child who will be part of your wedding party, keep in mind if you don’t have a relationship with them, they would care less about what’s going on. If they know you, they’re more energetic, happy, excited and will give smiling faces like this for your photos! Key tip. Don’t just choose children to be fillers.

Remember They Are Just Kids…

And we know kids get shy right? My little niece as you can see was very shy, but it is understandable. A big crowd, strange faces, and then being the oldest she was suppose to walk alone so that’s A LOT! PRO TIP: Have practices regularly so that they get more comfortable with throwing the petals out the basket. I had practice with my little squad, but not everyone was able to make it, so that also ties in with the shyness.

Ringbearers are important people, probably the second most important! They walk in right before the bride to let everyone know that it is time for the bride to come in. My baby boy jai did such a great job. He was a bit serious because he was focus guys! His mother told me how excited he was to have this job and he took it 100% serious. I love him for that. How fly does he look though?

**HOW BEAUTIFUL DO THEY LOOK!**
Their dresses turned out to be so much more beautiful with it on them. I was literally in awe when I saw them.
Dress Details: BHLDN.com “Leandra Dress”
Pearl Headbands: Amazon
Pear Flower Baskets: Amazon
Shoes (not seen): I cannot remember, but when I do I’ll fill this in.

The wedding party (minus the parents…that post will come soon).

I loved my entire wedding squad, rather WE loved them all. They all played an important part in our special day. PRO TIP: Choose them wisely. Remember that the little people matter. Show love and appreciation to your squad. And most importantly just have a good time with them throughout your journey and on your wedding day! I hope this post was helpful!

Thanks for stopping by and reading! XO MJ.

The Wedding Guest List: The Art Of Choosing.

Hello everyone. It’s Tuesday, which means its #weddingserieswithMJ time! If you been following me on Instagram, you know that I started this wedding series about a month ago where I share some tips, advice, and some realness to my future brides and also to anyone interested in knowing my thoughts/feelings. Today is no different. I usually post to Instagram, but I felt like this post would be a little more lengthy and it’s worthy of a blog post! Keep up with me on Instagram, by following me HERE.

Now that that’s in order, let’s get into the good stuff.

Wedding Guest List

This is possibly the worst part of wedding planning, in my opinion. It’s literally bittersweet. This is the day you would have to put on your big girl and big boy underwear and make some tough decisions. Honestly, it took me and husbae A LONG TIME to get our list figured out. It was so hard. It wasn’t that hard. No, it was hard.

Before you make the tough decisions of adding and subtracting names, you have to first have these things covered:

Your wedding budget
A specific # of people you want there
Whether you want a small, intimate wedding or a big one
Family and close friends only or friends from near or far (associate even)
People you’ve known for a super long time but lost contact
All your relatives or just the ones that have been close to you

Once you have these covered, you’ll be on your way to making your guest list official. The thing that can be stressful is wanting to invite more people than your budget can afford. Do not get caught up in that endless number game, adding past your initial number! It is not worth it, trust me. Save your coins, honey.

Set your number and do not go past it. Period!

It is so easy to keep tricking yourself into believing that you NEED to add this person or that person, but if you are surpassing your number then that means you may have to reevaluate if that person would just not be added or you may have to subtract another name and add theirs instead. That is the reality of it.

Do not feel guilty

It is easy to feel guilty. Guilty for not inviting someone, guilty for having to take someone’s name off the list, guilty for forgetting to add someone to the list, or guilty for just not wanting someone there that your spouse wanted there. Take it easy on yourself. This is not the end of the world.

Of course, we wanted to invite ALL of our friends/associates/long-distance peeps, but we could not. It’s nice to have great social media friends, but those friends are not all eligible for a wedding guest list, especially if the only time they actually talk to you is when they comment under your photo. Be REAL people! That is not how life works and you (you as in the ones who would not get the invite to that wedding) should not feel upset or be mad at the bride/groom. It is not until you endure planning a wedding would you truly understand why. And please remember that it is not always about “who you knew the longest”, it’s actually about who have been constant + consistent with you until this very day. That goes for NEW + OLD. Brides tend to feel obligated to invite people based of of long time periods of knowing them, trust me when I say that could be lit on fire and blown up in an instant. I can attest to that fact. I speak on this a little more in my previous post HERE.

Money does not grow on trees. People are not rich out here.

I mean, unless you are and you could invite as many people as you want with no worries!

Do not be afraid to cut someone off the list if they are not going to bring you the positive energy that you need on your wedding day. Remember it is YOUR DAY!

One piece of advice I remember getting A LOT was to also invite people with real-life jobs. Yes, it’s cool to want your friends there, but are your friends really interested in giving you a great wedding gift or they just want to turn up with you? Be REAL. Be SMART. I’m not saying that they would not have your best interest at heart, but there are some older folks who want to help you start your life off the best way you can and that blessing is a blessing in itself! Don’t disregard them. Don’t keep them off your list because they’re “old”. They are needed for their wisdom and they deserve a seat at the table for all they’ve done over the years. All the love they have shown.

Be wise. The old show us their wisdom in many ways.

Last thing: Do not invite someone you have to think hard to remember. If the names do not come flowing as you’re making it, then they were not supposed to be on the list. The names should flow easily as you and your husbae to be is making it!

Okay, I think I covered it all tonight for the wedding guest list. I hope this was helpful to someone out there!

Thanks for stopping by! XO MJ.

Wedding Day Getting Ready + My Bridesmaids.

Hey stars! I hope you been shinning bright throughout the week so far. Happy Tuesday! Last week I decided to start a new wedding series via instagram where I’ll share my wedding tips and/or what I’m learning as a wife + newlywed. I’ll also be writing up a post here on the blog as well!

PS: If you missed last week’s juice, click here to watch my wedding dress vlog + my SAY YES TO THE DRESS moment! Get your tissues ready!

Today’s JUICE is all about getting ready for the big day!

Tip #2: Have fun, breathe & smile for the camera!

No lie guys, the days leading up to my wedding day I was super excited. I didn’t have that much anxiety…UNTIL the night before and the morning of. It wasn’t because I was going to be a runaway bride or anything, but I felt nervous. All the questions rushed through my head, would everything go smoothly? Will I look the way I imagined? Did I forget anything? Would our dance routine look like we practiced? Would I pee myself when everyone is staring at me walk down the aisle? BANANAS! I woke up super early and I was chatty patty with one of my bridesmaids (another reason why you need to pick your bridesmaids wisely). She calmed me all the way down and made me feel like myself again.

After that, the “Getting Ready” process went as smooth as can be! I was worry free and we all got dolled up with some good music, food and great vibes. Doing my makeup (and the bridesmaids makeup) was Danielle Henry, a talented MUA and a long time friend & her assistant. She stayed our faces, especially mine! I also gave my bridemaids a box of goodies, and of course if you know me, you know I’m soft on the inside so I also included a handwritten note inside. They were shocked and teary-eyed as they read my notes. Best. Moment. Ever. I knew I wanted my bridesmaids to all have a robe for our photos, so I also included that within their box!

STORY TIME: So I ordered all our robes the same time. Of course my robe was supposed to be white because I’m the bride, however my robe got taken to the venue by accident (husbae’s fault lol). Thankfully I had an extra robe, so I improvised instead of staying upset that I didn’t have it. It worked out, thank God. Fun fact: I found my robe after I came back from my honeymoon haha. Brides, please double check your bag before leaving for the hotel. You may not be so lucky like ME! Now let’s see these photos right?

9.19.19 Getting Ready (Bride + Bridesmaids)

All Photography by George Street Photo Co.

Special thank you to my #bridequeens for making sure I had everything and that everything went smoothly. I truly love these ladies! It sure does take a village to get ready for a wedding!

Let me re-introduce to my ladies:

Julia A.– Bridesmaid
Shenelle P.– Bridesmaid
Mercy J.– Bridesmaid
Akesia P.– Maid of Honor
Akilah S.– Matron of Honor
Julia M.– Honarary Guest

I hope you guys are enjoying my wedding content. Forgive me for taking so long to show all the photos, but it’s A LOT to choose from to share! I can’t wait to share the reception content, wedding video and maybe a snippet of me walking down the aisle! All to come in the future wedding posts. Thanks for reading. See you on the next post! Don’t forget to subscribe to keep up with me! XO MJ.

Confessions of a Newlywed.

Hey guys! Welcome back to my blog and a new post about all things wedding, post-wedding, etc. It’s been 3 months since my wedding!! Time flew by. As you can already tell from the title, this post will be about some untold confessions of what it’s like to be a newlywed. This should be super fun, but before I jump into the good stuff, I’ll be sharing one tip today for my soon-to-be brides!

You’re about to be a bride? Read this part.

Okay, I get it you’re excited, nervous, pumped, anxious, and you have ALL THE FEELS. Well, you should! I’ve put together some tips for you so that you’ll have the absolute best wedding day. However, they won’t be in this post. Only ONE TIP I’ll share with you. Sidebar: The next wedding post will be the rest!

Tip 1: Choose your bridal gang wisely.

Sneak Peek of my QUEENS: Shenelle, Akilah, Akesia, Mercy, Julia H. & Julia M. + my flowergirls/boys Kailin, McKenzie-Rae, Matthias & Jai (ring-bearer).Be hella choosy with your close company! The ladies you choose are a representation of you. They could be your closest friends or family, or in some cases someone who has left a huge impact on your life. For me, I wanted to have genuine people who know me, love me, supported me, and been there for me on my good and bad days. It doesn’t matter the number you choose, but just make sure you’re not choosing people just to be “space fillers” or just because they will make your pictures look great. Make sure they are your real friends, a real bond, because it’s pretty embarrassing choosing someone, announcing it, then letting that person go before the wedding day comes. When I tell you people will notice, THEY NOTICE because they’re nosy. More importantly, you want your day to be perfect so choose people you know will do any and everything to make sure that happens for you.

** More tips coming in the next wedding post! Stay tuned.

Confessions of a Newly WED. (This should be pretty interesting…) Here’s some lines straight from the chest.

The first confession is that… these aren’t confessions. These are ‘my truths’.

As a newlywed, we believe (wives I’m speaking for us all), that we are our husbands everything and they should treat us as such. —boldfaced? YES.

Don’t follow my husbae unless I give you permission. *CHUCKLES, but very serious*

To my husbae, get use to that hot water when you shower with me, I ain’t changing it!

At work, I flash my ring (on purpose) when people look at me like I’m a child because of my babyface *rolls eyes*. I’m grown ma’am/sir.

I thought my ring would stop the thirsty dudes from attacking, but they are ruthless. They still trying. Lord send help!

Yes, we wives get extra wild, extra freaky, extra everything when we get that ring on our finger. We don’t care about no one’s opinions. Period. (I speak for me)

When husbae and I aren’t talking, at night I cuddle with him anyways on purpose…and he cuddles back *evil laugh*.

My husbae is better at the silent treatment than me, but I’ll soon LEVEL UP!

I miss coming home and just going to my bed and nap. Now I find myself always doing something around the house.

I thought my momma was my biggest fan when I used to cook, but my husbae actually is. (He gets major cool points + extras *wink wink*)

ABOUT 10,000 people asked me “How’s married life?” so far & it’s totally cool with me (sarcastic voice haha). TBH (To be honest), if it was terrible and I said it was terrible, what would be their response I wonder? Hahaha.

Married life is for learning, loving, adjusting, assembling, cooperating and head-bumping.

I want to do everything with my husbae and I have no shame in that.

I now feel like I’m my husbae’s bodyguard FOR LIFE. You come at him, you come at me. Period Pooh.

I have experienced being home two nights without my husbae and I am terrified. He better not let it happen again. (Check me again next year…I’ll probably have a different answer haha)

The art of communication is important. Still learning and unlearning daily.

“Don’t go to bed angry”…still learning that one. I haven’t mastered it yet.

I miss being a girlfriend. Fewer responsibilities *chuckles*. Shh Don’t tell my husbae.

Lastly, we aren’t perfect, but we’re imperfectly perfect together.

–Wives, what’s your “confession”? Leave it in the comments!

Here’s a few memes that also sums up my life as a newlywed. Prepare to die.

Check out my other wedding posts & don’t forget to subscribe to my blog to keep up with all the new posts coming!

THANKS FOR STOPPING BY! XO, MJ.

Our Wedding Day: Portraits.

Hey guys, today I’ll be sharing some of my favorite bridal portraits from my wedding day with you. This has been a highly requested blog post, and since we’re almost 2 months in from our wedding day (9.19.19), I thought I’ll give you guys a peek into our special day. Would you believe we got back 4,000+ photos from our photographers? Believe it. It’s A LOT. Talk about picture overload! I hope you love them as much as I do! Let me know in the comments which ones are your favorite!

I’m getting all the feels by looking at them again!

Photos by: George Street Photography

Marikah & Duran’s Registry: CLICK HERE

More wedding posts here, +here, +here, (details on my tips, thoughts on weddings, latest scoop & more!)

Love Undone.

Hello my loves, welcome back! So…great news. Today makes ONE MONTH since my wedding day, #TheMillerLove and I am in disbelief because time has been flying! I decided to just fill you guys in on how it has been going and a few extras. Keep reading, a lot of mushy lovey-dovey stuff ahead. Good luck!

What loving someone feels like…

It feels like joy on a hot summer day, with the sun shining down on your skin and the cool breeze blowing through your hair.

It feels like comfort and security and confidence when trouble arises.

It feels like bravery in the face of weapons formed against you, in the form of hate.

It feels like soft arms wrapped around your body telling you that everything will be fine because “they got you”.

It feels like God’s love shining through in human form.

It feels like lots of cuddles in the middle of the night and goodnight kisses.

It feels like not wanting to say goodbye, even though we’d see each other in a couple hours.

What loving someone looks like…

It looks like hands holding on to each other, ever so tightly,

It looks like arguments over little things but making up the next minute because it’s not worth it.

It looks like races to the bathroom, ‘double or nothing’ for the loser.

It looks like me winning ‘rock, paper, scissors’ to see who’s turn it is to turn off the lights at nighttime.

It looks like waking up early and letting the next person sleep a little while longer while you make breakfast.

It looks like phone calls on breaks just because you miss the other person and want to hear their voice.

It looks like working extra hours so that you both are living comfortably.

It looks like laughter and dance sessions around the house just because that’s what you both enjoy doing. (Dedicated to my husbae)

Loving someone else fully, is scary for some, especially if you’re afraid of being extremely vulnerable or of getting hurt because you’ve been hurt before. However, love is an amazing thing and I’ll always recommend extending your love to someone other than yourself. Most people fear vulnerability because of the stigma behind it, but for me being vulnerable isn’t a bad thing (check out this post here). I have always been a ‘sucker for love’ not only because it’s a beautiful thing, but because of the strength it takes to keep loving someone else, “in spite of”. As I reflect on my one month wedding anniversary, I’m in complete awe because I am genuinely in love with my husband and I’m so happy. Aside from the “Aww’s” and “You guys are so cute” in reality we are human beings just like you. We are imperfectly perfect and I’m okay with that. We argue over stupid stuff, but in the end, we try to understand each other’s point of view and learn and grow. That is not an easy task, but we have made a vow to not give up on each other because of love. *And honestly the make-ups are better than break-ups haha.

I know a lot of you are wondering and have asked me “how’s the married life going?”, so I’m here to fill you guys in (hopefully). Living with your better half is completely different from living with siblings/parents. You have to get used to doing things a certain way that is suitable for both of you. It has taught me how to share. Yes, as small as that is, I have been mastering the art of sharing (I can’t speak for Husbae though, he’s still learning haha). I have seen more of a side of my husbae that feeds my mind, body, and soul. He makes me feel like my worries are no more. It is important for newlyweds to not go into marriages solely expecting too much from their mates and remember that ultimately (and firstly) God should be the sole person we rely on for everything. We are growing with each other daily and relearning how to “not sweat the little stuff”. My one-month takeaway is that our love is undone, meaning it is still growing, still blooming and it is far from being done. I look forward to our love lasting years and years to come and never dying.

If you made it to the end, I applaud you. Be sure to check out my other wedding posts HERE & HERE & HERE & HERE if you haven’t!

Keep up with me on my socials! I follow back!

As always…Thanks for stopping by! xoxo MJ.

10 Things People Told Me About Weddings That Happened.

Hello my loves, new and old! Thanks for stopping by!

So if you haven’t been here in a while, you may have missed my previous posts about my wedding; the countdowns, the ups and downs etc. I got you though! Click HERE & HERE & HERE & HERE if you want to read up + see our engagement photos!

Today makes 2 WEEKS since #TheMillerLove! 9.19.19

It still feels like yesterday! Just letting you all know I have some more wedding content to share in the future, so stay tuned & subscribe to my blog for updates! Today I’ll be keeping it real as usual about things people told me that actually happened (and some things that I wasn’t told that also happened anyway). Sorry in advance for my honesty. Let’s jump right in!

“You won’t get to greet/see everyone at your wedding.” NO LIES HERE. I didn’t see a handful or so of people and I didn’t realize until the last day of my honeymoon. Crazy right? It’s possible. From the brides’ perspective, it is A LOT. So many things I couldn’t even manage to remember that day to do that I wanted to do. Majority of the people I didn’t see said that I was always “busy” hence why I didn’t see them. I mean…well yeah! It’s my wedding day.
“People wouldn’t SHOW UP”. This one right here I didn’t believe because how could you NOT SHOW UP TO MY WEDDING? That was paid for? Like every single seat/meal? After giving your confirmation that you would attend? Like that don’t even make sense. I won’t lie I was pissed…when I actually realized that those few people didn’t show up. I realized literally like a week later. And on top of that those persons didn’t even reach out to apologize, I had to reach out to them. The audacity right? I felt ‘hella annoyed‘ because this wasn’t a FREE event. Money was spent on your attendance & that my friends are NOTED in my book.
“People would crash my wedding” or “Show up who weren’t invited”. I laughed at this one because people are boldfaced. I commend their bravery. I had a couple, but no sweat seeing that #2 happened you know?
“Your wedding day will go by so quickly”. Honestly, it did, but it also didn’t. Let me explain… we started late due to some crazy circumstances, however, I enjoyed my entire wedding and had the time of my life! My ceremony went by a bit fast (I won’t get into detail about that today), but my reception was amazing. Very time-efficient.
“You may not get to eat your food”. I can’t lie to y’all, I tried my hardest to prove them wrong! I even forced husbae to tell people “no pictures we got to eat”. People don’t want to see you eat haha. The end result, we managed to gobble down the whole plate and had to give in to #6 eventually when we saw people who came from far distances to celebrate with us lol!
You will get bombarded with cameras from literally EVERYONE! I mean, this is a follow up from #1 because the photos were the driving factor of us not being able to eat peacefully for like one second haha. I get it though, people are excited (so were we) but it got real! I love the camera….but the number of smiles and photos I took that day was crazy! They didn’t lie about this one.
“This would be your one day to be a celebrity”. Guess what…they were right! Haha. Soak up all the fame and eyeballs on YOU. It was extremely overwhelming at first (although I had a poker face), but it felt “good as hell” (according to Lizzo)!
“People would show up at your wedding empty-handed.” Husbae and I laughed at this one when going through some gifts together, especially because of #2, it was like a double whammy! Don’t show up & don’t even send a gift. Yikes! It’s honestly just disrespectful to attend someone’s wedding empty-handed. I mean, it isn’t even about the gifts, but I mean if you love and appreciate the couple, show appreciation/support with something. This goes to both Family & Friends. People need to stop being cheap. As a wise woman told me, you’ll know the people who care in the end. No love lost, but notes taken.
“Prepare for mishaps”. I almost forgot about this one. This happened to me more than once on my wedding day, however, I tried my best to not get upset because of 1. This day was PAID FOR and 2. This day will only happen one time (well for me at least) so I have to live in the moment!
“It will all be worth it.” Okay…everyone was right! It was all worth it, like all the craziness/stressing. I look at photos and videos people sent me and I’m in awe of how dope my wedding was! I say this not boasting at all, I promise you. HOWEVER, ladies and gents, I still don’t recommend weddings. Save your money and ELOPE! It’s totally cool too. I won’t shame you. I’ll be rooting for you 100%! 🙂

** Here’s the link to our REGISTRY! Some people have been asking still.

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you have an awesome week. xoxo MJ

10 Days To #TheMillerLove.

It’s 10 days until my wedding day and I am filled with butterflies! How has the time gone by so quickly? It felt like just yesterday we decided to what venue to have our wedding at and literally next week we’ll be sharing our “I do’s” in front of our closest friends and family. In today’s post, as promised it’s part of my “tell-all” wedding posts. I’m going to share 10 things people don’t know about weddings. This one will be good + surprise video at the end of the post!

10 Things People Don’t Know About Weddings (My Experience)

It’s expensive as hell. Sorry, but I have to be blunt and real with you guys. Weddings are expensive so save up your coins, if you want a BIG GUEST LIST. I never understood why nobody told me this before haha and I now understand why some people decide to wait 1-2 years to plan their ‘dream’ weddings. IT MAKES SENSE NOW.
It’s stressful as hell. Yup, you literally live, breathe and eat wedding stuff daily. All I see on my instagram feed is wedding things now. Every store I visit online and in-person I see something for my wedding. It. Is. Crazy. I stress over major and minor things and it can get overwhelming at times. Thank God I have friends to keep me calm.
You have to always have answers. Reread that. Let it sink in. People will have so many questions about your business and will always want answers. I mean, that’s cool you want to know stuff, but have some manners and wait for me to share. And I don’t YOU OWE ANYONE ANSWERS! Period. You have to be intentional about your responses all the time!
Picking a color feels like a life or death decision. How in the world did I not know that blue had so many shades?! It. Is. Bananas. You have to know the right color and shade you want from EVERYTHING: suits, dresses, napkins, table cloths, lights, flowers, ties, shirts…need I go on? My advice, do something simple so you won’t bust your brains!
People will secretly HATE you & THAT’S OK. This one had to be #5 because it is real. Once someone doesn’t get an invite to your wedding, the awkwardness gets turned up a notch and they grow the biggest groins! Some may smile in your face and others are bold enough to come to ask you why they weren’t invited or where is their invitation. Excuse ME? IF THIS HAPPENS TO YOU…ask them this one thing, “Are you paying for my wedding or am I?”. That would shut down that whole scene. It’s unfair, ridiculous, disgusting + hella awkward to have to explain why a person was not invited. As much as you want everyone there, it’s not reality…and you pretty much do not owe anyone an explanation for your decisions. PERIOD.
The groom is always calm + relaxed. Honestly, the groom is never stressed and it stresses me out haha. They are like 30% involved in wedding planning, however, they are indeed getting what needs to be done behind closed doors. Don’t expect him to be holding your hand every step of the way sis, you got to do what needs to get done. Just being real.
You may lose sight of what the day is really about. This one ties in with #6. See, sometimes with all the planning 24/7, you lose the essence of why you decided to even have a wedding. For me, #6 made me so angry with the groom because I thought he wasn’t ‘doing enough’ in terms of his interest with picking simple things for the wedding and that caused arguments in our relationship. Honestly, it is not worth it. As stressful as it can get, don’t ever lose sight of the reason behind it all, which is the love you share with that person. A wedding is only a few hours, but marriage is FOREVER!
YOU NEED A WEDDING PLANNER, LIKE FORREAL. Sacrifice and get a wedding planner. I would not wish this planning on my enemy. It’s A LOT! People don’t get it. Every single detail you are enjoying on that day was handpicked and thought out (sometimes by multiple people, multiple times). I tell my friends now, don’t have a wedding based on my experience. It’s to the point where I get annoyed when people ask me “So how’s everything going?”. In my head I’m like the real answer or should I fake it? Haha. Don’t sleep on this. SAVE UP & get a wedding planner!
You may lose a friend or two. This one right here! Actually, for me, I had to cut some people off and get hella choosy with who I keep as my close company. Weddings bring out the real in people. You begin to see their true colors. I love it though because I’d rather go into my marriage with really supportive people in my corner versus a fraudulent person creeping around.
Your ‘IDGAF’ attitude heightens. Yup, this one is my favorite. It’s not even me trying to be rude or anything, but I don’t care about what people think 10x more now. Weddings make your eyes open in ways you would never think of. #’s 1-9 for example, and you learn more about yourself, what you can handle and what you will allow to handle in the future. Fun fact: Attention seekers are 100x more in your face being salty about an invite and it’s so sad. Beware of the snakes.
One more because this is important: Little things ADD UP to big things money towards your last days! Something as small as flower girls baskets or vases for the aisle can add up to so much money. This is why #8 is so important. Pro tip: Plan ahead, write things down so you won’t forget.
Okay LAST ONE. It’s your parents wedding. I won’t say anymore.

PS. If you enjoyed this post, share it with any future bride to be’s because lord knows they’ll need this advice!

For those interested in our REGISTRY! Click here.

Also, enjoy this 10 second exclusive BTS clip.

IN OTHER NEWS… I am really looking forward to my wedding day. I know it will be spectacular and memorable. Follow my socials to keep up with all my bridal events!

Thanks for stopping by! xoxo MJ.

Wedding Subscription Box Every Bride Needs.

Happy September my loves! New month, new vibes & new goals to crush!

I am back with another post and I cannot keep calm because MY WEDDING IS THIS MONTH! I promised to keep you guys in the loop as far as my wedding planning goes, but it has been crazy! I’ll tell you why later in this post, however, stay tuned to hear about my Miss to Mrs. box and why you should get your future bride to be one! And if you missed my previous wedding post click here to read up & view pics from my shoot!

So I got sent a Miss to Mrs. box, which is a wedding planning subscription box for brides. It’s the size of a shoe box. Just imagine getting a pair of shoes you ordered in the mail…but better! It contains things that every bride will need before and the day of her wedding. I would never promote something I do not love, so trust me it’s worth it. I only wish I knew about this earlier because I would’ve subscribed to get one every month! So bride to be’s, I recommend you do so early in the game. This box also gives brides something to look forward to in the mail haha. Every girl loves coming home to a package filled with goodies, am I right or am I right?

What’s inside?

Okay, the best part. What’s inside are 7 goodies. What I got was a giant ring balloon, “all that sparkles” jewelry wipes, “let’s plan this” notepad, deluxe diamond pens, 18k gold plated necklace, bride to be floral tumbler, and wedding-themed paper clips. As you can tell some are essential things for planning a wedding and some are goodies to make the bride feel like a BRIDE! People do not tell you this, but you start actually feeling like a “bride” when a little after the engagement session. For me, it was when I started getting bride things, like this box, engagement shoot, lingerie, Miss to Mrs. mug etc. We like to feel pampered up until our big day. I mean why not? This is a BIG life-changing moment for us. So keep that in mind.

What’s my favorite item?

My favorite item is definitely the bride to be floral tumbler AND the giant ring balloon. I know I know, couldn’t just choose one. I sport my tumbler everywhere, either with water or tea. It’s super cute and brings out my girly side. The giant ring balloon, (even though it’s not blown up) could be used for your bachelorette party, engagement shoot or on the day of the wedding for your photos! I’m using mine for the day of my wedding, in the hotel…maybe!

Wedding woes?

Nope, I have none….that was a big lie! I have a few wedding woes, but I’m going to save it ALL for my next post! Nothing crazy like second thoughts or anything, but some advice to future brides. It’ll be my “tell all” post. Make sure you’re subscribed to my blog so you’ll get the updates!

Thanks for stopping by! xoxo MJ.

**Disclaimer: The post is in collaboration/partnership with Miss To Mrs. Box. I was not paid for this post. All the words are mine and my opinion only.

100 Days To Miller!

MARIKAH + DURAN #TheMillerLove

Hey everyone! Happy Tuesday. Big life update: I AM GETTING MARRIED! I know, take a breath, a couple more breaths, inhale, exhale, now let’s get this post going!

My love and I are tying the knot in 100 days, so I thought it’d be cool to start blogging about it until the big day. Are y’all here for this? Let me know in the comments if I should keep doing it!

[Special thanks to the amazing Hakeem M. for the photographs. ]

100 DAYS TO MRS.!

Disclaimer: I’m keeping it 100% real with yall this whole post! It is super exciting. I know many of you may have questions, but before you bombard me with them, take another breath and rethink. My groom-to-be aka my personal photographer for the majority of my blog photography aka my best friend (Duran) and I have BEEN planning our wedding and it has been a rollercoaster of emotions and feelings! Let me tell you right now, it has gotten 10,000x more REAL now that it is 100 days away! Every day has been me doing more and more ‘wedding involved things’. Yes it has consumed all my time now!

Surprises are fun!

We do not like to be predictable, nor do we like the “traditional” way of doing things ever. Our whole relationship has been literally us being “us” the only way we know how. We did not have a whole proposal for our engagement. We decided that we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together and chose a day that was suitable for us. That includes saving the rings until the wedding day. We also knew that we wanted something intimate and meaningful with our closest friends and family there. We are literally an imperfectly perfect pair and I love it! That is our story.

Why we decided to have a wedding?

I know a lot of people who are anti-marriage/weddings and I understand it is not for everyone, but for me personally, it has been something I have always seen myself doing with the person God sent into my life. It’s so crazy that I remember this, but when Duran and I started dating back in 2014, throughout those months leading to our one year anniversary he told me that he was dating with the intentions of getting married. That was his end goal and I always admired that. As scary as it is to think about living the rest of your life out with another person, it is that same feeling I get of excitement, comfort, and amazement knowing that it will be with him.

The Planning Process

The process of planning a wedding without an official wedding planner/coordinator has been stressful, yet rewarding. Here’s why: I am hands-on with every decision, but on the other hand I have lots of HELP! Help can be good and bad though, haha! Don’t get me wrong, I’m grateful for it, but at the very beginning, the struggle was real having so many opinions on what to do and how to do it. My best advice: KNOW WHAT YOU WANT! I’m super indecisive sometimes, so that was my downfall. I have learned what it means to have patience throughout this process and I’m still taking it all in daily. I have been ‘vlogging’ some of my most special moments also and I may share some of those videos in my later posts. I’m trying to bask in this moment because it’s so special. Not just my wedding day because this is literally the beginning of the rest of our lives together as one.

Wedding Website

We have a wedding website designated to talking about our love story, registry, schedule of events, photos of our love over the years and so much more! Let me know if I should link it for you guys, in case you want to contribute to our registry! I want to be as open as possible and take you guys along on this journey.

Reality is we are still in planning mode. Now let’s briefly go through the checklist of things that got done:

Bridesmaids are chosen.
Groomsmen are chosen.
Bridesmaid dress is paid.
Bride dress/and veil is secured. I SAID YES TO MY DRESS!
Groom suit is paid. HE SAID YES TO HIS SUIT!
Makeup artist secured.
DJ secured.
Venue locked in and secured.
Photographer/videographer locked in.
Invitations sent. (MAJORITY OF THEM)
Reception Host locked in.

Things that have to still be done:

Flowers/Centerpiece.
Rehearsal Dinner.
Bridal shower.
Bachelorette shindig.
Bachelor shindig.
Bride/Groom shoes.
Flower-girl/ring-bearer outfits.
Second engagement shoot.
Hotel needs to be secured.
Hairdresser needs to be fixed.
Hair needs to be ordered.
Cake tasting and # of tier size need to be decided on.
Dance rehearsal- father/daughter, bride/groom.
Bride/Groom rings/bands.

Weddings might look light, but it’s heavy though!

So much goes into planning a wedding. It is a lot of work, but I am pretty sure it will all pay off on that day. SO EXCITED! 100 more days to Mrs.! Keep us in your prayers.

Tune in for more next week! Thanks for stopping by! xoxo MJ.

Remember They Are Just Kids…

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Set your number and do not go past it. Period!

Money does not grow on trees. People are not rich out here.

Be wise. The old show us their wisdom in many ways.

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Today’s JUICE is all about getting ready for the big day!

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Today makes 2 WEEKS since #TheMillerLove! 9.19.19

** Here’s the link to our REGISTRY! Some people have been asking still.

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MARIKAH + DURAN #TheMillerLove

100 DAYS TO MRS.!

Weddings might look light, but it’s heavy though!

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