Final Details… DONE! May 3, 2007

Yarmelukes, programs, a glass to be broken at the end of the ceremony, table numbers (we’re actually doing table LETTERS) and seating cards are all finished and delivered to the catering hall. After doing a lot of last minute debating on how the seating cards should be, they are hand written by me on small blue, light blue, light brown and ivory cards. I stamped them with two different rubber stamps (tiny hydrangeas) in brown or blue. They are very charming, and very “me”. They’re about the size of a business card; a little bit fatter. Jen and I hand made tiny beads out of clay with flat bottoms and slits on top to hold them up. I’m waiting on my custom cake topper; it will be delivered by the artist tomorrow. My dress is altered slightly, and now I am REALLY happy with the way it fits me. All my accessories are in, and I tried everything on… I am pretty!

I got all misty-eyed in the Town Clerk’s office in Rye, NY, just a tiny bit, when we got our license.
My florist called me and told me my flowers were in. They get them a few days in advance so they have time to open. He promised to watch them and talk to them so they are extra beautiful as they bloom.

Everything is all set… which is good because the wedding is in two days. The weather seems to be in my favor for an outdoor ceremony.

Time to relax… (right.)

A Preview of the Program May 2, 2007

Processional – “Our Love Is Here To Stay”
written by George Gershwin, 1938

The Bride’s Walk – Can’t tell ya!  It’s a surprise for Rob… I’m sure you’ll recognize it!  –  Amber

Recessional – “Ain’t Misbehavin’”
written by Harry Brooks, Fats Waller, and Andy Razaf, 1929

I am so corny.

Let Them Eat Cake! April 22, 2007

Are you ready to hear the sexiest thing ever?

Alternating tiers of chocolate cake and vanilla cake, with a DOUBLE layer center in each tier of chocolate fudge and cheesecake.

Droooooooooooool!

Cake tasting is one of more pleasant aspects of wedding planning, even though we had to drive an hour and a half to the bakery that’s doing our cake.  (The venue we have includes the wedding cake and has a deal with this one bakery).

We quickly ruled out strawberry.  I wanted chocolate, but wanted it to be a crowd pleaser, too, so we got a vanilla tier.  Rob is mad about cheesecake, and that’s putting it mildly!  Then she suggested a fudge layer, and we had our cake!

The outside decoration is going to be a departure from the traditional white cake to match the bride in white.  My cake is a perfect match with my bridesmaids!  My ‘maids are clad in brown dresses (each one is a different shade of brown) with white sashes.  My cake tiers will each be a different shade of brown (darkest on the bottom, lightest on top) with a white icing ribbon at the base of each layer.  The bridesmaids will be carrying hydrangeas, and the cake will have tiny sprigs of hydrangea placed on it!

I felt a little dorky pulling out my colored pencil sketch of my “vision”, but the baker said she thought it was a good idea and clipped it to her notes.  I can’t wait to see it!

Shower! April 19, 2007

I got my beautiful Kitchen Aide stand mixer. I put it on a shelf, but it was far to heavy, so I plopped it on the counter. Rob eyed it and said, “We can rearrange the cabinets and put it in there.” I hairy eyeballed him.

“I did not register for a ‘Majestic Yellow’ stand mixer to have it suck in a cabinet!”

“But it’s huge!” he said.

“I don’t care.”

It’s still sitting, awkwardly, on the counter.  I refuse to move it.  It’s pretty, damnit!, and I want people to see!

I received a lot of beautiful things at my shower on Saturday, and (even though some people say we shouldn’t until after the event) I found places for them in my cabinets, putting them to use right away.

This week, more gifts arrived on our doorstep!

The huge list of thank you notes still looms ever large. I’m halfway through.

It was a beautiful shower; my bridesmaids are amazing. There was even a classical guitarist playing while people were eating… so elegant.

16 days. I can’t even talk about my to-do list.

The Ceremony April 12, 2007

We finally found someone to marry us.  (Nothing like last minute, right?)  I believe that everything happens in due time, and that everything works out, so I was fine, and so was Rob, but everyone else was worried… and they need not have been!

Reverend Holly and Reverend Ralph (hehe!) are a husband-wife duo who perform ceremonies either individually or together.  They are inter-faith ministers, and what they believe is pretty in line to my and Rob’s spirituality.  Neither of us are into organized religion, and we appreciate the softer, more spiritual approach they take to God.

I also appreciated their highly organized approach to composing a ceremony.  They have a tabbed notebook with opening remarks, vows, pronouncements, etc. and we were invited to skim through them and tab which ones we liked the best.  Then she gathered them all together and emailed them to me, and Rob and I will sit and put it together at our leisure.  This is exactly what we wanted.

I’m against talking about the ceremony too much, because I want it to be a beautiful surprise to my guests, so that’s all I’m going to say about it!

Just Put It In The Mail! April 10, 2007

Dear Wedding Guests,

That little date printed at the top of the reply card? Not arbitrary. Not plucked from the blue. No no. When I picked that date, I popped open my day planner and carefully selected it. I had it letterpressed on there in carefully selected font and ink, and even gave you a nifty little envelope, already addressed, to put it in. Not only that, but the envelope was already stamped for you. You merely had to write “Yes.” and your first and last name, and drop it in the mail. (Those of you who went above and beyond that, declaring you would be there with bells on, were much appreciated).

That date that I COULD NOT HAVE MADE IT EASIER FOR YOU TO RESPOND BY was yesterday. And at least a dozen of you missed it. Grrrr…

Pretty Pretty Princess April 6, 2007

I was trying on veils at David’s Bridal yesterday. The saleslady came up to me and said, “I’m going to put a tiara on you, just for fun.”

I didn’t want to be rude, so I let her, even though my chances of plopping a tiara on were just about nill.

It was gorgeous. It was $200, and I didn’t get it, but I loved it. I’m now scouring eBay for a less expensive alternative. A tiara… on ME? Who knew?!

29 days.

Down To The “Nitty-Gritty” April 3, 2007

Rob’s ring came in, engraved with our names, the date, and the one word (couldn’t fit more!) that describes how I feel about him.  (It’s not “sexy”, but that’s a close second!)

The menu is finalized, from pre-ceremony refreshments (“no alcohol!” insisted the bride) to dessert.

My custom-made wedding dress is finished, paid for, and tucked into my maid-of-honor’s closet.  (I thought I was going to hate it… I love it!  I do not love my un-toned arms, but what am I going to do?)

The florists have been sent the final payment, and will soon begin scouring the markets looking for the prettiest flowers of the season.

My aunt has, with my help, found a dress.

My grandpa is practicing his dance moves (my grandmother relayed this amusing bit of info).  Little does he know, I will probably step on his feet.

My mother has (finally!) found a dress.

We have Rob’s cousin on board to do the Jewish part of the ceremony.

The guy making our cake topper is working on it.

Gentlemen are getting fitted for tuxes.

The responses are flowing in.

My world is pregnant with electric anticipation, happy emotion, and stress from small details undone (bridesmaids’ shoes!  what a nightmare!) and large details that need to be tackled still (like, um, someone to legally marry us!)

32 days to go.

Foxy Lady March 24, 2007

“The long one is so elegant, but the short one is so much fun!  I can’t choose.”  My grandmother, who is 75 years young (with amazing legs!), has been debating for two weeks over what skirt to wear to my wedding.  She found a killer mandarin collar jacket with bracelet length sleeves that fits her like it was made just for her.  To go with it, she got two black skirts.  One is to the knee with flirty little kick-outs along the bottom.  When she spun for me, they flared out; gorgeous for dancing.  The longer one is drapey and to her ankles.  It’s a perfect fit on her (once she shortens it about an inch or two), but it’s kind of solem.  She felt it would be more elegant, however.

“Wear both!” I decided, after seeing them on her, and debating.  “You can wear the elegant one for the formal portraits and the ceremony, and change into the shorter skirt for dancing!”  She grinned, not having considered that, and decided I had come up with a perfect solution.

Grandma’s foxy!

Prim and Proper? ME?! March 21, 2007

My dad’s response card said “Yes” and then spelled out  his full name, including the “Sr.” at the end.  I should point out that I’ve never seen him use “Sr.” before, because my brother goes by his middle name.  I called him up and asked who this strange person was who was planning to attend my wedding.   “Couldn’t you just have written ‘Dad’?  How many people do you think are coming to my wedding named ‘Dad’?”  Ok, the answer to that question is “three”, I’ve got two dads and Rob has one.  Still, we’d narrow it down and figure it out.  My grandmother was just as bad.  Printed in perfect penmanship, she printed out her full name (like I wouldn’t know how to spell it) and stated she “will attend”.

Lighten up, party people!  This is not some stogy old wedding where Mr. and Mrs. Man’s Last Name Graciously Accept an Invitation.  I’m waiting for the response card that says “Hells yeah we’ll be there!”  This is not a funeral!

On a funner note (not a word, don’t care), my Uncle John stated he’d be there “with his video [camera] and dancing shoes”.  Of course you’d bring your video camera, Uncle J.  The man has it glued to his face at every and all family gatherings.  The last time everyone was together, I tried to get him back by snapping pictures of him, and we got into a good natured film war.  But at least he has the right idea!  Rock on, Uncle John!