I heard a funny story at a party last night... A friend of a friend is engaged to be married and the guy's mother was visiting. They engaged in some cuddling while they thought future mother-in-law was in the shower, only to look up and see her standing there. She said, "Oh good, that's how I'll get grandbabies!" :)
In wedding news, we still don't have any invitations, lol.
Ryan isn't super thrilled with the invites I picked out (although he says he doesn't exactly dislike them either,) so he wants a chance at making some of his own. We agreed that I'll see what examples he comes up with by the end of the week and, if those don't work out, we'll go with the store ones. I'm holding him to this arrangement! :)
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Some Comments from Pittsburgh :)
My 5 year-old almost-niece, who will be (unless her parents decide otherwise,) the flower girl in our wedding, said to us yesterday* "I want to go to Kristen and Ryan's wedding today!" (paraphrased, but you get the idea)
*This is when we were unexpectedly in Pittsburgh.
Also, we had some time to chat with Ryan's cousin, who is getting married a few weeks before us. She told us a story about when she was checking out locations for the reception. She'd scheduled an appointment with a wedding coordinator at one location, after specifically telling the coordinator she could only be there 1 hour, due to another obligation. She got there... waited 45 minutes... the coordinator never showed up! When they called her later, the coordinator claimed she couldn't be there because Mass ran late. (45 minutes late? Mass is generally only an hour long...)
But the best part... the coordinator then called Ryan's cousin's future mother-in-law and claimed Ryan's cousin was the one who hadn't shown up!
Needless to say, Ryan's cousin decided against booking a wedding at a location where the coordinator is a complete liar! :)
*This is when we were unexpectedly in Pittsburgh.
Also, we had some time to chat with Ryan's cousin, who is getting married a few weeks before us. She told us a story about when she was checking out locations for the reception. She'd scheduled an appointment with a wedding coordinator at one location, after specifically telling the coordinator she could only be there 1 hour, due to another obligation. She got there... waited 45 minutes... the coordinator never showed up! When they called her later, the coordinator claimed she couldn't be there because Mass ran late. (45 minutes late? Mass is generally only an hour long...)
But the best part... the coordinator then called Ryan's cousin's future mother-in-law and claimed Ryan's cousin was the one who hadn't shown up!
Needless to say, Ryan's cousin decided against booking a wedding at a location where the coordinator is a complete liar! :)
Sunday, October 17, 2010
If I could just see the dress...
How to shop for a wedding gown:
Step one - go to a store
Step two - find a dress you like
Step three - start thinking this might be the dress
Step four - wait a week
Step five - go to another store
Step six - find one you like better
So how am I ever to make up my mind???
We found a dress last weekend, when I shopped with the women of mine and Ryan's families. It was a nice dress, so nice that we decided it was better than the 3 we'd previously selected from David's Bridal. We thought it might be the dress. (And I thought it would be nice to have found the dress while shopping with so many other important people.)
Yesterday, Saturday, I went shopping with my mother and Kelly. We decided to go to another small shop in the area and I also made an appointment at the first shop, just to see that other dress again.
Of course we found another dress.
It's a very nice dress. It might be the dress. We liked it so much that we decided it was better than the last dress we'd loved. We also like that it is cheaper than the dress we thought we'd loved. And we like the shop selling it (except for the part where they kept barging into the room while I was trying to get changed... just fyi, that does not encourage me to continue shopping somewhere...)
I can't make up my miiiiiiiiind...
Kelly, by the way, was a perfect companion for dress shopping. She knows a lot about weddings and she could make some really good points about the dresses I was trying on. She also pleased my mother by trying on several bridesmaid dresses. We might all agree on a color and maybe even a designer!
Now I've been told I need to find shoes. Where does one search for shoes? Just a regular shoe store?
Also, my mother doesn't want me to wear my glasses for the wedding. But... since I hate contact lenses and I find not being able to see rather unsettling... I don't really see what choice I have? :)
Step one - go to a store
Step two - find a dress you like
Step three - start thinking this might be the dress
Step four - wait a week
Step five - go to another store
Step six - find one you like better
So how am I ever to make up my mind???
We found a dress last weekend, when I shopped with the women of mine and Ryan's families. It was a nice dress, so nice that we decided it was better than the 3 we'd previously selected from David's Bridal. We thought it might be the dress. (And I thought it would be nice to have found the dress while shopping with so many other important people.)
Yesterday, Saturday, I went shopping with my mother and Kelly. We decided to go to another small shop in the area and I also made an appointment at the first shop, just to see that other dress again.
Of course we found another dress.
It's a very nice dress. It might be the dress. We liked it so much that we decided it was better than the last dress we'd loved. We also like that it is cheaper than the dress we thought we'd loved. And we like the shop selling it (except for the part where they kept barging into the room while I was trying to get changed... just fyi, that does not encourage me to continue shopping somewhere...)
I can't make up my miiiiiiiiind...
Kelly, by the way, was a perfect companion for dress shopping. She knows a lot about weddings and she could make some really good points about the dresses I was trying on. She also pleased my mother by trying on several bridesmaid dresses. We might all agree on a color and maybe even a designer!
Now I've been told I need to find shoes. Where does one search for shoes? Just a regular shoe store?
Also, my mother doesn't want me to wear my glasses for the wedding. But... since I hate contact lenses and I find not being able to see rather unsettling... I don't really see what choice I have? :)
The One Where I Picked Out Invitations
Thursday: invitations.
It was a rainy day - the kind of day where I'd have preferred to head straight home to veg after work. Alas, I'd scheduled a 4 pm meeting at the local print shop. So I went, but it didn't bode well.
End result, though, was good. I had a meeting with Alex, who was very nice and very knowledgeable. He gave me several large books to browse through and I found several possibilities. I also discovered I know nothing about invitations... and they're a heck of a lot more expensive than I'd thought! Everything costs extra money: ink colors, layers of paper, lined envelopes... it's a little crazy.
Speaking of crazy, we took a moment to look up an invitation I'd particularly liked, from the Martha Stewart book. I already knew from searching online that these were outside of my price range, but I was curious. Exact price: $700+. Yikes.
"No wonder hardly anybody ever orders from this book," said Alex.
I think I might have found some I like, though. My mom seemed to approve of them too, when I showed them to her. Now if I could just get the last of the names/addresses from people, I might be closer to sending them :)
(PS - I guess maybe I should show them to Ryan too, huh? :) )
It was a rainy day - the kind of day where I'd have preferred to head straight home to veg after work. Alas, I'd scheduled a 4 pm meeting at the local print shop. So I went, but it didn't bode well.
End result, though, was good. I had a meeting with Alex, who was very nice and very knowledgeable. He gave me several large books to browse through and I found several possibilities. I also discovered I know nothing about invitations... and they're a heck of a lot more expensive than I'd thought! Everything costs extra money: ink colors, layers of paper, lined envelopes... it's a little crazy.
Speaking of crazy, we took a moment to look up an invitation I'd particularly liked, from the Martha Stewart book. I already knew from searching online that these were outside of my price range, but I was curious. Exact price: $700+. Yikes.
"No wonder hardly anybody ever orders from this book," said Alex.
I think I might have found some I like, though. My mom seemed to approve of them too, when I showed them to her. Now if I could just get the last of the names/addresses from people, I might be closer to sending them :)
(PS - I guess maybe I should show them to Ryan too, huh? :) )
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Dresses and hair
My sister and I might - MIGHT - have agreed on a color for the bridesmaid dresses.
Might, lol.
But we're close than before, so that's a plus. She sent me a link to a very pretty dress, which she found at a shop up near where she lives. I will check out the color at a local store this weekend. From what I can see, though, it looks nice. We may have a winner :)
Speaking of dresses, my friend told me yesterday that she ordered her dress online from House of Brides, http://www.houseofbrides.com/. The dress she received was completely not what she'd ordered and the company refused to take it back. She ended up having to buy two wedding dresses, because she couldn't use the dress and she couldn't get her money back. Terrible :(
And finally: I had my hair cut at a local salon yesterday. I need to know what the salon is like if I want them to do my hair for the wedding, you know. The sacrifices I am making... :) lol
Might, lol.
But we're close than before, so that's a plus. She sent me a link to a very pretty dress, which she found at a shop up near where she lives. I will check out the color at a local store this weekend. From what I can see, though, it looks nice. We may have a winner :)
Speaking of dresses, my friend told me yesterday that she ordered her dress online from House of Brides, http://www.houseofbrides.com/. The dress she received was completely not what she'd ordered and the company refused to take it back. She ended up having to buy two wedding dresses, because she couldn't use the dress and she couldn't get her money back. Terrible :(
And finally: I had my hair cut at a local salon yesterday. I need to know what the salon is like if I want them to do my hair for the wedding, you know. The sacrifices I am making... :) lol
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
We all survived shopping together :)
Sunday was the big day: dress shopping with everyone!
Our first appointment was at noon, in a little shop near my office. I like small stores; they have a more intimate feel. The downside is that all the dresses come in a "sample size." At least this time those dresses actually kind of fit me! (The last time I was in a small store, all the dresses were too small - how can you tell if you like a dress if you can't even put it on???)
"Do you have a particular style in mind?" I was asked.
I still don't know what all the styles even are! I just look through the dresses and pick out whatever happens to catch my eye. Otherwise ... well ... I like ivory, except when I don't, I don't like much beading, except when I do, I prefer a flowing skirt, except when I don't... you get the idea :)
We also went to David's Bridal, where I vexed the saleswoman because I'd picked out so many dresses. She was actually trying to put them back! "You don't want to be overwhelmed," she said... I wanted to say, "I'm dress shopping with my mother, my sister, my fiance's mother, and my fiance's sister-in-law... I'm already overwhelmed!"
End result: we might have found the dress! That's all I'm prepared to say - it's supposed to be a surprise after all! :)
Must figure out veils, though. I have looked at myself in the mirror while wearing a veil. I have looked at pictures of women wearing veils. And I still can't say whether a veil is good or what makes one veil prettier than another. I might need to wear a tiara, just to say I wore a tiara.
And bridesmaid dresses... oy, lol.
In other news, Ryan's sister-in-law took some photos of us Sunday evening. Not as many as I would have liked, but we might at least get one or two. As soon as I get the photos back, there will be proof that we actually do things together sometimes! :)
Our first appointment was at noon, in a little shop near my office. I like small stores; they have a more intimate feel. The downside is that all the dresses come in a "sample size." At least this time those dresses actually kind of fit me! (The last time I was in a small store, all the dresses were too small - how can you tell if you like a dress if you can't even put it on???)
"Do you have a particular style in mind?" I was asked.
I still don't know what all the styles even are! I just look through the dresses and pick out whatever happens to catch my eye. Otherwise ... well ... I like ivory, except when I don't, I don't like much beading, except when I do, I prefer a flowing skirt, except when I don't... you get the idea :)
We also went to David's Bridal, where I vexed the saleswoman because I'd picked out so many dresses. She was actually trying to put them back! "You don't want to be overwhelmed," she said... I wanted to say, "I'm dress shopping with my mother, my sister, my fiance's mother, and my fiance's sister-in-law... I'm already overwhelmed!"
End result: we might have found the dress! That's all I'm prepared to say - it's supposed to be a surprise after all! :)
Must figure out veils, though. I have looked at myself in the mirror while wearing a veil. I have looked at pictures of women wearing veils. And I still can't say whether a veil is good or what makes one veil prettier than another. I might need to wear a tiara, just to say I wore a tiara.
And bridesmaid dresses... oy, lol.
In other news, Ryan's sister-in-law took some photos of us Sunday evening. Not as many as I would have liked, but we might at least get one or two. As soon as I get the photos back, there will be proof that we actually do things together sometimes! :)
Friday, October 8, 2010
Marriage and French Onion Soup
"Does your fiance like french onion soup?" my coworker messaged me.
"I don't know," I wrote back.
Then her head popped up over the cubicle wall. "That's really the kind of thing you should know."
Rest assured - I went home and asked Ryan what he thought about french onion soup! (He said he doesn't seek it out, but he doesn't hate it either.)
***
I have invitations on the brain these days. Internet searching has turned up some lovely cards, but none of them are quuuuuuite right. It is also not as easy as I had hoped to find inexpensive invitations.
"We're going to have to shorten the guest list," I emailed Ryan. "I can only afford 25 of these invitations."
I also pitched the idea of sending 25 invitations and using evites for everyone else. Seems like a great idea, right???
Okay, okay... actual invitations it is. :)
So I emailed my cousin Lindsay and my other cousin's wife, Nikki, because they both had weddings recently. Could they please share advice about invitations? I got responses from each of them within the same day, full of great advice. I am very grateful :) In fact, I've already taken some of their advice. Lindsay suggested going to an actual store instead of purchasing online, so I stopped at a local print shop on my way home from work. Now I have a business card from them and I intend to make an appointment. I'm looking forward to it :)
***
On Sunday, I am dress shopping with Ryan's mother, Ryan's sister-in-law, my mother, and my sister.
We'd hoped to get to a Jessica McClintock boutique, but they don't open until 11 am and I have a 12 pm appointment at another store. Boo.
Ryan's mother said there's 3 ways this can go:
A) We just sit quietly and don't say anything.
B) We offer honest critiques.
C) We make you cry.
I told her if it's C, I'll just drive off and leave them :)
"I don't know," I wrote back.
Then her head popped up over the cubicle wall. "That's really the kind of thing you should know."
Rest assured - I went home and asked Ryan what he thought about french onion soup! (He said he doesn't seek it out, but he doesn't hate it either.)
***
I have invitations on the brain these days. Internet searching has turned up some lovely cards, but none of them are quuuuuuite right. It is also not as easy as I had hoped to find inexpensive invitations.
"We're going to have to shorten the guest list," I emailed Ryan. "I can only afford 25 of these invitations."
I also pitched the idea of sending 25 invitations and using evites for everyone else. Seems like a great idea, right???
Okay, okay... actual invitations it is. :)
So I emailed my cousin Lindsay and my other cousin's wife, Nikki, because they both had weddings recently. Could they please share advice about invitations? I got responses from each of them within the same day, full of great advice. I am very grateful :) In fact, I've already taken some of their advice. Lindsay suggested going to an actual store instead of purchasing online, so I stopped at a local print shop on my way home from work. Now I have a business card from them and I intend to make an appointment. I'm looking forward to it :)
***
On Sunday, I am dress shopping with Ryan's mother, Ryan's sister-in-law, my mother, and my sister.
We'd hoped to get to a Jessica McClintock boutique, but they don't open until 11 am and I have a 12 pm appointment at another store. Boo.
Ryan's mother said there's 3 ways this can go:
A) We just sit quietly and don't say anything.
B) We offer honest critiques.
C) We make you cry.
I told her if it's C, I'll just drive off and leave them :)
Monday, October 4, 2010
Dresses and Candles
Bridesmaid dresses, bridesmaid dresses, bridesmaid dresses...
Considering my typical clothing choice is jeans/tshirt or black pants/shirt, I was feeling in a bit over my head in this area. I'd tentatively chosen green and white as my colors and I was considering letting the bridesmaids and maid of honor choose their own dresses, in accordance with a color and style I'd chosen... My mother has her doubts about all of the above... Me, I'm not sure either way...
So I consulted the fashionista of the family, aka the maid of honor, aka my sister, Katie...
She said:
"Green and white are great colors. Nice choice :)"
"I like the second idea [letting everyone choose their dresses] better too."
This is good :)
Also, I'm thinking of decorations on the boat - which has nothing to do with bridesmaid dresses. I like floating candles. Ryan worries the candles might not be allowed, due to concerns about fire. I've seen floating candles in photos of decorations on the boat, but they've never been lit.
This time, I consulted our contact at Crazy Venue II:
"Floating candles are no problem! :)"
Everyone is being so helpful today! :)
Considering my typical clothing choice is jeans/tshirt or black pants/shirt, I was feeling in a bit over my head in this area. I'd tentatively chosen green and white as my colors and I was considering letting the bridesmaids and maid of honor choose their own dresses, in accordance with a color and style I'd chosen... My mother has her doubts about all of the above... Me, I'm not sure either way...
So I consulted the fashionista of the family, aka the maid of honor, aka my sister, Katie...
She said:
"Green and white are great colors. Nice choice :)"
"I like the second idea [letting everyone choose their dresses] better too."
This is good :)
Also, I'm thinking of decorations on the boat - which has nothing to do with bridesmaid dresses. I like floating candles. Ryan worries the candles might not be allowed, due to concerns about fire. I've seen floating candles in photos of decorations on the boat, but they've never been lit.
This time, I consulted our contact at Crazy Venue II:
"Floating candles are no problem! :)"
Everyone is being so helpful today! :)
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Busy Weekend
Crazy Venue II has now been completely experienced, thanks to 4 complimentary tickets from our contact :)
My take:
1) It was very loud. Must work on that with the dj, lol.
2) Buffet style dinner as a free for all is stressful. Must leave more space around the food and have people go up by table.
3) Must figure out stairs issue.
Other than that, it was a good time :) I really liked being outside on the decks, in the fresh air (and the quiet.) Although I was constantly worried my ring was going to fall off into the Potomac. That would be bad! :)
We also walked around the area and checked out the hotel we expect to use. It looked nice, hotel-like. Another family was having a wedding in their big room and let us take a peek. They seemed really happy with the whole thing, so that's a good sign.
Finally, I brought the whole family to church and they met the pastor. She was really sweet about the slight ambush and reassured my mother that there are no problems. I like her even more now than before, lol.
Photo to come if I can figure out how to get it posted! :)
My take:
1) It was very loud. Must work on that with the dj, lol.
2) Buffet style dinner as a free for all is stressful. Must leave more space around the food and have people go up by table.
3) Must figure out stairs issue.
Other than that, it was a good time :) I really liked being outside on the decks, in the fresh air (and the quiet.) Although I was constantly worried my ring was going to fall off into the Potomac. That would be bad! :)
We also walked around the area and checked out the hotel we expect to use. It looked nice, hotel-like. Another family was having a wedding in their big room and let us take a peek. They seemed really happy with the whole thing, so that's a good sign.
Finally, I brought the whole family to church and they met the pastor. She was really sweet about the slight ambush and reassured my mother that there are no problems. I like her even more now than before, lol.
Photo to come if I can figure out how to get it posted! :)
Friday, October 1, 2010
One... two... three...
And today Kelly agreed to be a bridesmaid too! :) Yay! :)
I had to track her down first though, lol. I was all set to ask her at work... then it was 9 a.m. ... 10 a.m. ... 11 a.m. ... and no sign of her. Eventually I figured out she must be on night shift, which means our shifts only overlapped for about an hour. But I was determined to ask today, so somehow I managed to slip it in during our quick conversation :)
Phew, I was nervous about asking people. I don't know why. I'm so excited that everybody said yes :)
I had to track her down first though, lol. I was all set to ask her at work... then it was 9 a.m. ... 10 a.m. ... 11 a.m. ... and no sign of her. Eventually I figured out she must be on night shift, which means our shifts only overlapped for about an hour. But I was determined to ask today, so somehow I managed to slip it in during our quick conversation :)
Phew, I was nervous about asking people. I don't know why. I'm so excited that everybody said yes :)
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