Two years ago, I was blessed to marry the one person on the planet who laughs at my corny jokes, makes me feel beautiful, pushes me to better myself, occasionally drives me bonkers, comforts me in sadness or frustration or illness… just loves me unconditionally. There are times where I feel like Dan and me have been married forever, and there are times when I can’t believe it’s already been two years. To make a long story short, I wouldn’t trade our relationship for the world.
I recently realized I never did a post about our wedding… so much for being a blogging bride! Without further ado, here are some of the highlights. All photos are by MKD Photography in Acton, MA– I can’t recommend them enough! If you want to check out their posts for us, here’s our engagement post and here’s our wedding post. I love, love, love them to pieces. Here we go!
This is my favorite picture. Ever!
PS- sorry for the insanity if you’re reading from Google Reader– I have no idea what happened that made this look so jacked up! If that’s where you are, click on over to the real deal… it’s way prettier.
I’ll be honest. I’ve been stalking my photographers, Mike and Kate Duval from MKD Photography, for a good long time now. Before we even chose them, I was watching them. Kind of like the FBI and Whitey Bulger (how’s THAT for topical, eh?). We knew we wanted to work with them from the get-go, and were floored by the result: the most gorgeous photos I’ve ever seen.
And we’ve been anxiously awaiting the day when we finally got to be featured on their blog. TODAY’S THE DAY!!
Here’s the link. Feel free to cry a little… I did. I am so in love with these pictures.
See if you can figure out which one was “That’s What She Said.”
Epic fail wedding blogger over here. Yep, that’s me.
This is also me/us:
You know, like the best picture EVER.
Since I know you were waiting with bated breath for me to post, I do hope you haven’t all died and whatnot. I also know that a lot of wedding bloggers stop writing midway through planning if the wedding gets called off. Didn’t happen! Happily married here, folks!
We got our disc with all the amazingness on it just last week, so now I can totally overwhelm you with the bad-assery of our big day! I just have to find the willpower to do it!
But first, a shout-out to the best vendors on the planet, who allowed me/us to be present in the day and say “eff you” to the idea that we “need a videographer because no one remembers their wedding day.” HOOEY!
Transportation: Patrick Flanagan, owner of a bitchin’ 1959 Cadillac Coupe Deville that he fully restored (and perhaps the best Craigslist find in history), and M&L Transit for shuttle
Attire: David’s Bridal for dress and hairpiece (and BM dresses), Gallet Collection for alterations and miracle bra, DSW for shoes, family and friends for accessories, Men’s Wearhouse for tuxes
Hair: Caitie Michaud at DeNovo Salon in Wakefield (who also gave me my fabulous post-wedding chop)
Makeup: did it myself with goodies from Sephora
Photography: the absolutely amazing love-them-to-pieces Mike and Kate Duval of MKD Photography
Music: uber-cool Julie Kramer with Big Jim in tow… line dances need not apply! Though I should mention she did wear a shirt to the wedding.
Flowers: Marla Porazzo at the Woburn, MA Whole Foods
BM and GM gifts: various Etsians, who will definitely be named!
Paper goods: us, never to be attempted lest you throw scissors at your matron of honor (true story… sorry, K!)
And since it’s a whopping 10pm here, this old lady needs to think about bed. Darling husband has fallen asleep on the couch studying for his firefighting academy final. He graduates Friday and will be a super-full-fledged firefighter who can pick up overtime– woohoo!
Friends from college got engaged! YAY! FI’s a groomsman in their wedding!
We’re under 100 days left! YAY!
FI GETS SWORN IN AS A FIREFIGHTER IN OUR HOMETOWN A WEEK FROM TODAY AND STARTS A WEEK FROM TOMORROW! SUPER YAY!
I still love my job! Yay!
I’ve been busy writing awesome blog posts/articles about combining finances as a young couple and planning a wedding on a budget! Yay!
And getting paid for it! Yay!
There’s a lot in my life to be happy about, and I’m totally blessed to be where I am in all senses of “be.”
Off to finish cleaning a little and finally get to watch “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” because it came out on Netflix yesterday and I got it in the mail today (I missed it in theaters). Because I’m a nerd who prefers to read adolescent fantasy series than grownup books. Though Six Graves to Munich by Mario Puzo and Beat the Reaper by Josh Bazell were both excellent.
I had my life update yesterday, so here’s a look at where we’re at wedding-wise.
HOLY CRAP WE’RE UNDER 6 MONTHS TO GO.
Thanks for that brief interruption of my normal thought process.
Flowers
Thanks to Shelley (and many others!) for the suggestion to check out Whole Foods. The one closest to me does wedding flowers, so the FI and I went in to check it out. The woman who’ll be doing ours is so sweet and accommodating– she totally understands that we’re budget-first-flower-types-second at this stage of the game. We both love the look of dahlias, but they’ll be out of season, so we’re thinking up other alternatives. We also are big into the textures of the flowers and the bouquets, so that’s a cool place to be.
You’ll all be happy to know I handed off the reins to a professional for all the flowers. Go ahead and say “I told you so” in the comments!
Hotel blocks
I’ve been in contact with a few hotels near the party site, and we just have to make the final call for the blocks. There’s one hotel that’s a lot closer to the site (about 10-15 minutes away) but more expensive, as opposed to one a little further away (10-15 minutes beyond the first) that’s less expensive.
We’re thinking of doing blocks at both, but as a guest, which would you rather?
Engagement photos
We had our engagement pictures taken last weekend! We decided to (sort of) reenact our first date by heading to the same place we went mini-golfing and got ice cream. After convincing the nice old man at the window that we weren’t actually going to play golf and that we just wanted the clubs and balls for the picture, we took a few fun “it’s all in the hips” Happy Gilmore pictures. Come to think of it, I think most of the pictures will have me with my mouth wide open, laughing. I don’t do serious photos.
After the pretend golf session, we waited around and peeked in windows until the ice cream place opened, when I proceeded to eat Rocky Road ice cream at 9 am. Breakfast of champions, I tell you!
After that, we headed to Lake Quannapowitt, also known as The Wakefield Lake because everyone’s too lazy for the “Quannapowitt,” and did some pictures there. It was really nice, since it’s a nod to where we both grew up, and it’s also where we’ll be doing photos after the ceremony. Yay!
Rehearsal dinner
I said to the FI’s moms: “Go for it.” We picked the place and are letting them run with the rest of the details. One less thing for us to worry about, and I know they’ll do a great job. As far as I know, they’ve booked the venue and put down the deposit, which is all fine with me.
Ceremony
We asked our surviving grandparents to bring up the gifts during our Mass and our godfathers to do the readings. Everyone’s been so excited to be asked, and it really means a lot to us that they’re involved.
Still TBD:
Transportation: after K&M’s wedding, we decided we liked the idea of having a shuttle between the hotel and the party– that way, we cut down on the number of cars at the party site, and we seriously cut down on the likelihood of anyone taking too much advantage of the open bar.
Tuxes: got some info for the FI, so he gets to start making decisions on this one. Should be interesting
Crafting: finish the last pomander for the FGs, make the pew decorations (half-pomanders with tissue paper instead of flowers), spray the lanterns for the party tables, figure out the invitation situation
Dress fittings: kind of dropped the ball on this one, but I just need my bustle and boobs done. No hem, no taking in, nada. Fingers crossed.
Honeymoon: ::grumble, grumble:: we can’t decide where we want to go because we have no idea how much money we have to spend. At this point, it’s in the zero-ish range, which is making things difficult. Current ideas: Switzerland/Germany/Austria (still); Portland, OR/Seattle/Vancouver; Calgary/Banff/Lake Louise (Alberta, Canada). Anyone have any input on these?
Like I said in my last post, I know I’ve been super-MIA lately. What with starting an AWESOME new job, helping the FI with the business, being down a computer and last but certainly not least being a part of MOH K’s fabulous wedding… I’ve been a little busy. And lazy about blogging. I said it.
Bakery bliss
I love, love, love, love my new job. It’s fun, challenging, interesting, fun, educational, meaningful, and fun. I love the people I work with, my new bosses, the new hires (after me– I’m already an old pro and I’ve only been there a month!), the work I do, and everything I’m learning. I feel like I’m a major part of making sure the business keeps running and keeps growing, and there’s an immense sense of pride in that.
The hours are always a surprise (4:30am-2:30pm morning shift, 11am-6pm closing shift, or 9-4ish admin shift), so that’s a little bit of a challenge, but it’s been fun getting a feel for when I work best. I actually like the morning shift! It’s a lot busier than the afternoon, so there’s more running around and chatting with guests, but the time totally flies.
What I miss about my old job: not feeling like I’m broke all the time, medical insurance, the people I worked with, and being able to have a quick chat with a few friends and Mum on instant messenger. What I don’t miss: the commute, the stress, the long hours with no thanks, the wardrobe, feeling like I’m ready to snap at any second.
Anywho, I’ve been helping the FI with his landscaping business lately. It’s been tricky trying to set a schedule so that we can get all the paperwork and billing done with both of us working (he’s still part-time at Lowe’s a few nights a week), but we’re trying to figure it all out. It doesn’t help that the printer won’t talk to the computer so we have to do the invoices twice– once on paper to send out and once in QuickBooks for his records. Has anyone else run into a printer spooler issue, especially with a Vista machine and HP printer? How’d you fix it?
Best friend’s wedding
By this point, you should know that MOH K and MOSH are my two best ladies. This past weekend, MOH K married her college sweetheart M. I was a bridesmaid, and was so honored to be part of their day. K and M get along so well with the FI and me– us girls are loud and neurotic, where the guys are the silent-but-deadly (funny) types. MOSH and BFN were also in attendance, as were most of the crew we hung out with in college. We all had a blast!
It keeps getting closer and closer and closer! Just when I thought I was safe, I remember we’re getting married in 8 months and MOH K is getting married in 3 months!
To be honest, I don’t feel like a whole lot has happened in the 2 months since I last put together one of these types of updates, but let’s take a look.
Engaged Couples Weekend- check!
Photographer booked- check!
Bridesmaids dresses ordered- check minus one!
Registered- check! I owe you a post on this one… it was FUN!
Bought my shoes x2- check! IOU another post.
Gathered more details and options for honeymoon- check!
Started wed-site- check! Won’t be showing you guys this one… sorry! Too many personal details.
Likely decided on invitation style- check, I think
Mum’s dress- check! Totally not in my purview, but thought it should be mentioned
Followed up with DJ to start discussing plans- check! Meeting next week.
Followed up with lighting company to get contract to sign- check! Will hear back next week (out of office).
Totally slacked and did the previous two bullets this morning- check! (Whoops.)
Things that I mentioned in my last update post that we still haven’t worked out totally (or at all, if we’re being honest):
Sooner-rather-than-later timeline
Decided on ceremony time– need to do ASAP
Bands (rings)– to do this spring
Ceremony details (readings, songs, etc.)– to start discussing in our next meeting w/our priest
Figure out the flower plan- should really start thinking about this soon
Programs- need to talk to the church, related to ceremony stuff
Pick food options to have firmer prices for budgeting
Finalize guest list, pursuant to point above (so we can figure out how many extra people we can afford)
Decide if we’re doing beer or cider– if cider, get brewing now! It takes ~6 months to fully mature.
Engagement photos– need to book for this spring
Don’t-sweat-quite-yet timeline
Hotels
Transportation
Booze
Tuxes
Start booking honeymoon stuff- first gotta figure out how much time we’re gonna take
Figure out the cake
Think about chocolate fountain? Maybe?
Find a new hairstylist for me– mine disappeared!
Accessories and fun stuff, minus shoes
Dress fittings
Gifts for our peeps
Rehearsal dinner plans
I should probably include a list of stuff we’re not doing:
Save-the-dates
Menu cards
Separate escort cards
Out-of-town bags
Elaborate bathroom baskets– probably just the essentials, if that
Custom napkins, drink stirrers, cupcake flags, or any other eating paraphernalia that’ll just get thrown away
Any other miscellaneous tchotchkes that really don’t matter
Freaking out about the gazillions of things we have to do. Weddings are supposed to be fun, people!
MOH K and I hadn’t seen each other for a while, so we decided to get together this past Wednesday night. I noticed there was a bridal show going on that night with free champagne and passed hors d’oeuvres, so asked if she wanted to go. Both of us have most of our vendors booked, but it would be something random and free to attend while we caught up.
Wednesday morning, we both admit to feeling kind of sick, so we postpone our plans. We decided to skip the bridal show.
Fast forward to yesterday. I get an email from a photographer saying, “Hello! It was nice to meet you at the XXXXXXXX’s bridal show. I hope you were able to meet many great vendors and get some good ideas for planning your wedding…” (it continued into a generic sales pitch).
Do you see the problems? 1) No personalization. 2) Clearly, if I wasn’t at the show, we didn’t meet.
Vendors, please. I understand you get a list of all the people who registered to attend the bridal show. I understand we sort of opt-in to receiving these types of emails when we register. Saying “it was nice to meet you” to someone who didn’t stop by your booth (when most vendors have their own signup lists) doesn’t make me want to sign a contract with you. Plus, in this magical age of the Mail Merge, there is no excuse to not have a personalized greeting for a first contact. I see MASS EMAIL written all over it.
Has anyone else run into this, whether with a wedding vendor or someone else?
Holy crap, I’m getting married 10 months from today! Thanks to The Knot for the reminder… I probably wouldn’t have even thought twice about it. Let’s review what we’ve gotten done, shall we?
Church booked with our date, ceremony time TBD (mid-afternoon)
Party site booked with our date, start time set
Bought my dress
Booked our DJ (meeting in February)
Met with the priest marrying us
Took the FOCCUS assessment
Starting going over the answers to the assessment
Secured our spot for the Engaged Couples weekend at the church
Asked our peeps to be in our party! Then realized 3 of the 8 groomsmen will likely be deployed
Made significant progress on the guest list
Bought components of the centerpieces, decided how to complete them
Inquired into a lighting scheme
Went to a tasting
Went bridesmaid dress shopping with the girls and picked the dress (to be ordered next month!)
Bought the flower girl dresses (post on this in the future… just need to upload my pictures!)
Considered invitation options
Interviewed two photographers, and will make a decision within the next week
Decided (mostly) against save-the-dates
Brainstormed ideas for favors (mostly went like this: do we brew beer or do we brew hard cider?)
Decided on the honeymoon plan
And things we haven’t quite gotten to yet, but plan to soon:
Bands (rings)
Ceremony details (readings, songs, etc.)
Figure out the flower plan
Invitations
Programs (need to talk to the church)
Hotels
Transportation
Booze
Tuxes
Engagement photos?
Start booking honeymoon stuff
Figure out the cake
Find a new hairstylist for me– mine disappeared!
Accessories and fun stuff
Gifts for our peeps
Rehearsal dinner plans
Registry
Wed-site
The last two are probably the most immediate. FMIL M had asked if we’d be registered before Christmas, which we most certainly aren’t. I hate the mall during the holidays– crowds make me really nervous. We’ll get there soon enough, though, once we figure out the direction we want to take. The wed-site is probably something I’ll mention as being done, but not posting here for privacy issues.
After gorging myself on various Thanksgiving treats, I didn’t do a whole lot on Friday. The FI and I went to the Bruins game at noon, where I yelled myself hoarse and scared the pants off the kid in front of us (if you can’t handle rabid fans, don’t sit in the second row!), only to lose to the Devils in a shootout. Tough loss. Might not have been a loss if they showed up to play before halfway though the second period though… ::grumble::
We ran a few errands and had some dinner, then the FI had to work that night. I thought I’d crochet a bit, relax, and maybe do some organizing/cleaning in the kitchen (we’re supposed to be starting demolition today, but it’s already pushed to tomorrow, and probably won’t happen for another month, given our luck).
And then I turned on TLC. Where there was a “Say Yes to the Dress” marathon, followed by a handful of episodes of “Happily Ever Faster.” End productivity, begin eye-rolling.
Say Yes to the Dress
I found it really hard to relate to women who feel that they have a “really tight budget,” only to turn around and tell the consultant that they would like to spend less than $2,500 for their dresses. Are you freaking kidding me? Your “tight budget” is $2,500???? Puh-leeze. That goes double for the women who go in with a budget, only to blow it all to pieces (and buy a dress more than twice said budget) “because it’s my wedding!” Ack, ack, pa-tooey.
Maybe I’m being hard on these women. I totally understand that weddings are all about the individual couple (cough::not-just-the-bride::cough) and their priorities. That means some couples put more emphasis on the bride’s dress and flowers, while others put the emphasis on food/drinks and photos. And I get that a budget is an allotted amount for a specific item, or the whole list of items with their anticipated prices overall. I guess even “tight” is up for debate. I can just think of a million and fifty other ways to spend that $2,500.
And can we just discuss Pnina Tornai for a second? This is totally 100% personal taste talking, but my God, have you seen skankier wedding dresses? I’m not sure the sheer-to-there look is all that church-friendly. Or grandmother-friendly. I’m just sayin’. I do have to admit that the back of one of the dresses on the site (I’ve never seen it on the show) is remarkably like mine. But mine’s better, obvi.
I do have to admit, there were a handful of highlights in the episodes I watched. I liked the bit with the southern bride not wearing the same dress as the rest of the women in her family. And I love wedding dresses (except for Pnina Tornai’s, but now I want to try one on to LMAO).
Happily Ever Faster
Evidently this gem of a show (not so much) just started airing November 20th. There weren’t many redeeming qualities for it. The owners seemed weirdly young (like they were 15 and married with kids and running a Vegas wedding service) and pretty flat charisma-wise. One of their planners, whose name I can’t find for the life of me (the one with the blond-over-black hair and funky teeth) was clueless at her best, but whiny and grating at her worst.
Not even the couples can bring the show up. One couple wasn’t engaged yet but talking to the clueless planner about packages (nothing wrong with that, thankyouverymuch), and the woman was whining that they’d been together for 6 months and he hadn’t proposed yet. You know that got a “bitch, please” out of me– I waited over 5 years! And then he proposed and she dumped him. I think. Another couple had a great story (he had cancer and she was right by his side), so the staff put together their wedding for free. The bride seemed bored the entire time. Groom was sweet, though.
And the last couple I saw was a total groom-zilla and his wordless bride. He was certainly a handful, and I probably would have told him to bug off. There aren’t quite the words for this couple, so I’ll just show you (he starts 19 seconds in, talking to nameless clueless chickadee):
Someone please tell me there are better wedding shows out there. And don’t tell me “Cake Boss.” I’m a Chef Duff (“Ace of Cakes”) fan all the way.
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