Still Smooth Sailing

I've been a touch concerned because I hadn't heard back from the officiant or the florist. Turns out the florist moved next door and her computers and phone were down for a week, and the officiant had the flu. Poor guy, I had that same flu a few weeks ago and it's a bad one! So everything's still smooth sailing at this point.

Tomorrow we meet with Ben to see about covering the walls. I'm hoping the price isn't hellacious or I might have to learn to live with those Warhol paintings. I guess we'll see. Ben certainly comes across as more creative than my florist so I'm excited about that as a start and wonder if I can switch florists - price depending, of course. I'm sure I'd lose my deposit, so I'll have to have the original florist do something - maybe my bouquet - to keep the cost in there reasonably.

The only matters still up in the air are: rehearsal dinner and hair and makeup.

Dave's mom is working on the rehearsal dinner. His parents have graciously offered to foot the tab for that but finding somewhere in Delray Beach that isn't over the top expensive is proving difficult. The places we have found generally don't allow kids, and we have 2 in the wedding party, so that's no good. It'll work out, I'm sure.

I found a salon in Delray Beach to do my hair and makeup but the costs were just ridiculous so I cancelled the appointments. I'm still figuring that part out. I'll have to get to work on it right after Xmas though.

Everything in Order

Everything's coming along in order for the wedding. I'm getting excited. I spoke with the officiant by phone this week. His name is Reverent Joe Rodriguez and he seemed to be nice, patient, sincere, and willing to change anything I like - even though I have no idea what I want. He had a great sense of humor and I thnk he'll be a great addition to the wedding. Reverend Rodriguez was referred to us by Seaside Weddings. They will also be providing our photographer, once we get them a deposit, which will be most likely today or tomorrow. We met the photographer, Mark, and looked at a bunch of his images. Dave liked his artistic style and Dave's the one to know these things so I left that decision to him. Mark also seemed really easy to work with and to know just what needs to be done and when, so we're comfortable hanging around with him all day. One image we saw in his sample books was puzzling to me. It was of the side of a bride's face, her forehead, cheek, earring, and a part of her hair. It was as if it was taken really close up. I said "I don't get it." Dave gave me an impatient glance. Mark explained it was "photojournalism" as if that was supposed to explain something to me. Perhaps I'll never understand, but that's fine. All I know is I don't need a big picture of the side of my face.

OH! And exciting news: we found someone to cover those hideous Andy Warhol paintings! We're meeting with Ben from Absolutely Fabulous Affairs next week. Anayda, our contact at Sundy House, said she had a bride plan her wedding in the Warhol room, and the day of her wedding, 2 hours before, she saw the paintings and had just assumed they'd be taken down. Can you imagine? Yikes! So she had been using Ben as her wedding planner and he whisked in and had them covered in no time. He must keep 200 feet of tulle in his trunk at all times. Anyhow, I'm confident it'll look great. I have no idea how much it'll cost me, but at least the pictures will be right.

We also picked out tuxes last weekend, so they guys are covered. Dave's going to look so sharp in a tux. He picked a jacket that I would not have picked for him, but looks great on. I hope everyone who has to wear them likes what we chose. Nothing girly or anything, but I want everyone happy and having a good time.

Invitations went out last week also. Every RSVP we've gotten back so far as been positive and no one has said they can't make it, so that's encouraging.

It seems, at this point, there's almost nothing left to do but decide on centerpieces and pay a bunch of bills.

Registered

Alright, so we registered for wedding gifts. Both Dave and I agreed that with an established household, we should not register. We would rather people gift us with checks that we plan to put toward our honeymoon (which we'd like to take on our first anniversary) but our friends have insisted that we register.

So, we registered for things that are either on our list of things that need replacing around the house (towels, sheets, can opener, dishes), things that sound really cool (a massage chair), and general things that just need to get done (planters for landscaping). Do we NEED any of that stuff? No. We're set. We hope no one who is invited will feel obligated in the least to bring a gift. But if people really want to bring a gift and want some direction, we're registered.

In case you're reading this post just to see where we're registered, Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Lowe's.

Not a girl

I'm so not a girlie girl. However, my friend wants me to have a bridal shower and has offered to throw one for me with the help of my best man (no maid of honor for me) and my mom. My mom said she was game. My best friend said "um, I don't know the first thing about this stuff." To which I told him he didn't have to, and he'd probably not even attend as it was a girl thing. He seemed relieved. So my mom was saying that if I'm not into the girlie parts of it, she didn't want to plan stuff I wouldn't like. And I appreciate that. But... If it were up to me, if I were planning everything for the wedding, I wouldn't bother with a bridal shower. It's something my friend wants to do, and wants to do for me, so how could I say no to such a sweet sentiment? And I'm sure I'll have a good time. It's just out of my normal realm of knowledge. I've only been to one of these and I think as far as bridal showers go, it wasn't "typical" so I have no idea what to expect. I'm going to keep an open mind and just see what it's like. I dig a party, so it'll be a good time either way.

Now I have to decide if I'm going to register. I don't want to register. To me, the idea of a registry when you have an established house is presumptious. Sure, there are things I need to replace, but that's my responsibility as a working adult. We've been in this house for over two years and we really don't need anything. The things we do need, we wouldn't know what brand or whatever until we shopped for it. I get the idea of registering if you're just moving out on your own, or just moving into a new place, something like that. But we're set. So it seems like a greedy thing to me. My friend who wants to throw the shower says that registering is necessary so you don't get wierd gifts. I understand her point, but if we don't register, maybe people will just throw a check in a card toward the honeymoon we're planning for next year. That's my hope. She disagrees with me and says I'll get strange candleholders and such that people like that I might not. I dunno. I really feel strongly against this whole registry thing at this point in my life, but she makes valid arguments. I'll have to get with Dave on it and see what he thinks. I'm pretty sure he's opposed to registering too though.

Yummy

Last night Dave and I went to Sundy House for a tasting to choose what the menu items will be. OMG yummy!!! We tried two salads, both of which were delicious, and settled on one we thought was more of a crowd pleaser and had a crisper flavor. And we tried the two entrees that sounded best to us, both were terrific. I was nervous going in that we only got to try two things, and what if one or both was not good, we'd be stuck choosing something else without having tried it. But it all worked out great. We're serving: beef tenderloin with a cabernet sauvignon reduction, garlic mashed potatoes, wild mushrooms, and asparagus; and pan seared grouper, risotto with english pea and lime buerre blanc sauce, and carrots. I even liked the carrots, and I don't like carrots usually. We tried the beef with some kind of tomato risotto but it was not at all good and mashed potatoes sounded much better. We have no doubt they'll be delicious mashed potatoes since everything else was so tasty. Plus there'll be an open bar, cake, coffee, tea, the salads. We're hoping people will try the grouper. It's what I'll be having, although the beef was really good too. Dave said we'll have different things and share a few bites. It'll be a miracle if my dress isn't covered in food by the end of the meal.

The restraunt is the kind of place where, as Dave described it, they cater to "old money" and I've never been in that kind of place before. The waiters hovered a lot. They were always near to offer wine suggestions and refill your water and scrape the crumbs off the table. It was odd. I wouldn't eat there I don't think. And it's pretty expensive. Well, expensive for my budget anyhow. But the view is beautiful at the outdoor tables. And I'd guess they hover less outdoors than inside the restaurant proper.

Oh, we had a minor dilemma at the end of the meal. I was ready to leave and Dave asked if we should tip. We had great service, but I didn't think you tipped at a tasting. We sat around for a few minutes trying to figure it out. They'd brought us wine and coffee and dessert, things we weren't there for, so we wanted to tip, but neither of us had cash and they never brought a check. So we left after a little while. But we felt bad.

Slacker

I know I've been a slacker lately and haven't updated the blog. Thanks to those of you who poked me and asked what was new.

Last week I went to Sundy House to see it all set up for a wedding. The room was set for 39 guests (almost 10 more than we're expecting) so it was not the same layout, but I got to see the staff working on things and how efficient everything seemed. I also got to see how it looked with the DJ set up by the pool for cocktail hour and decided I definitely didn't want to do that.

I did not like the floral arrangements they used. Rather, it would have been fine if you couldn't see all the floral foam in the glass bowls. But it gave me a sense of my florist's statement that the arrangements I wanted (tall vases with clouds of baby's breath blooming out of them) was going to be "too heavy" in that space. Once I saw all the tables in there, I knew she was right. Drat. So back to the drawing board (and up with the price) for the flowers. The florist had an idea and I'm going to ask her to mock up something for me to see. I don't have a distinctive idea at this point.

Here's some pictures of the site all set up for that wedding. I'm a little concerned about the tables for two reasons. First, I have crappy spatial skills and can't picture the room how it'll look without seeing it just like it'll be. I have to rearrange the furniture to see how the room will look. So I'm going to have to just trust that the site knows how to arrange things best and leave it alone from there. Second, if you notice the pictures of the tables, the tablecloths are not ironed. I will drop an email to the site coordinator and just ask that they make sure to iron them. It must have just gotten missed, but I don't want it to look shabby and I think those creases look crappy.

See the picture of those ugly Warhols? Damn I hate them! I took my friend with me to see the site and she's on the same page as me about the art. It's nice that the art is original and valuable, but if it was Picasso I'd feel the same. If it was Dali, I'd be thrilled. Sigh. We got a new number for a place that has covered them in the past. Hopefully it won't cost an arm and a leg. Even if it does, it might be worth it.

Dress, check.

Yesterday I went for my second dress fitting. I didn't know what to expect but they had my dress finished and pressed and said "take it home". So I made room in the closet and it's all finished. I'm glad to have that detail done. I figure as long as we have a place to hold it, something to wear, and something to either eat or drink, it'll all work out. And the dress, check.

Site Confirmation

We went last weekend to meet with Sundy House's coordinator Anayda and have her briefly show us around. One thing we've learned after a few trips there, we must leave well in advance of when we're supposed to arrive as we're always late. We think Anayda must hate us by now. We were 45 minutes late this time. Every time we drive there, this is a fatal accident on the highway in front of us. It's ridiculous.

So we went this weekend and decided that we will definitely use the pool site. It will give us the more formal feel that we want and will provide seating for everyone, where the gazebo site was more informal and everyone would have to stand and shuffle around for flow of traffic, which we didn't want. The pool is also a little more secluded as it is not near the restaurant and we like that also. See photos of the pool site under the post It's Official.

This week's tasks include: finding an officiant, picking a top several photographers to choose from, going to the second fitting for my dress, and meeting the florist at the site to work out final details. I'm very much hoping she (the florist) will be able to cover the art in the reception room and will have some ideas for me.

Other than that, I'm working on my friend's bridal shower which takes place in two weekends.

Site Revisited

We went last night to revisit the Sundy House and look at the gazebo space (shown here) and the pool space (shown in the post It's Official) and I think we're agreed on the pool space. Dave has won me over with logistics as it doesn't seem as if the gazebo site can fit everyone comfortably. We're going to have another meeting with the site coordinator and ask to see some photos of actual weddings in both spaces for a more realistic idea of the setup. But, at this point, it is looking like the pool space will win.

We got out contract in the email today. I saw a wedding show where the woman said "You will write checks and pass out as you finish signing your name." I think I understand where she's coming from. At least the deposit is reasonable and there's some time before the balance comes due.

Today we'll likely go to the tux place and pick out styles. Happily, this is one expense that we will not incur much of. I do get the impression that Dave and I are in different places with our idea of the tuxes, but ultimately the decision will fall on what looks best on the body and is comfortable. It'll be nice to see him dressed to the nines. It's rare so I'll enjoy that, even just to play at it for the afternoon.

And just to round out the post, here's a picture of the shoes that I went with, the champagne colored ones that are comfortable. They're still a 3 1/2 inch heel, but a chunkier heel (although you can't tell in the picture) so I can actually walk in them.

Alterations

I had my first fitting today with the alterations people at David's Bridal. I figure since they sold me the dress and their store manufactured it, they should know how to alter it. I stood and stood and turned this way and that way and stood some more. Once the dress was all hemmed up, the train is a lot longer than I thought it would be. I saw it all as one dress and figured that if I lost over a foot off the length, they'd take up the back a foot also, but no can do based on the embroidery. So now the train is quite a bit longer than I had in my head but it'll be fine. It'll only be long for the ceremony then it'll be bustled up to move in. It's just fancier than I expected with the longer train. I also found shoes today that are comfortable and were a very close match to the embroidery in the dress. I got a fantastic deal on the shoes so it makes up in part for the alterations cost. I go back for a second fitting in two weeks. We'll have to start on a style for the tuxes soon so we can lock in the sale they're having next door at After Hours. Included is a picture of me trying on my "bling", sans makeup. I'd include a picture of the dress (as I had the shop get a picture of the length of the train so I can get used to it), but I don't want to ruin the surprise. I'm still debating wearing the veil but will probably wear it for the ceremony and pictures.