The Food!

Man oh man, I shouldn't have eaten lunch today. Adam and I went to our tasting tonight and it was so perfect. Laura had a table set in the Wilde Ballroom, where the ceremony would be and the first thing she and her team pointed out was the 6 different ways the napkins were folded. For someone who swore she would not be reduced to caring about napkin colors, this was an easy decision and we moved on to the good stuff. They brought out wine and since I don't drink it, I have no idea if it was good, but I was glad it wasn't bad (which I do think I tend to notice). Then, the appetizers started coming...

We're having passed apps during cocktail hour after the ceremony - to help tide people over while they wait for our massive family photo session to be over. I'd love to say we picked out each item, but really, Laura just put together a menu and we love it (with a few minor changes). So, we're going with:

• Tomato, Mozzerella Basil with Balsamic Drizzle
• Chicken Satay with a Yummy (a little spicy, but not too much for wimpy me) Peanut Sauce
• Pancetta-Wrapped Prawns with an Olive Oil Dipping Sauce
• Beef Sliders (with the fixins)
• Crab Cakes with an Amazing Lime Something-Or-Other Aioli

We're having two passed specialty drinks - a margarita (in honor of my dad's fave) and a raspberry puree, prosecco, and vodka drink that is oh so delicious. People will also have their pick of red wine, white wine, champagne, imported and domestic beers. I really should clarify whether or not people can order other drinks made with Vodka and Tequila. For some reason, when I said that I thought those two would be enough for folks (cause you can make almost anything with Vodka), it didn't occur to me that it might mean ONLY those two drinks she ended up putting on the menu.

For lunch, we're having a buffet with:

• a salad (yet to be determined, we tried a Caesar tonight and it was good, but I'm not generally a fan)
• a cold fusilli pasta salad
• tortellini in a cream sauce with peas and bacon (one of my dad's faves, and mine too...)
• roasted potatoes
• organic chicken with sundried tomatoes and artichokes (Adam loved his, I was so-so - I'm not big on food on the bone)
• spare ribs in a honey BBQ sauce (the original plan was a zesty orange spice glaze, but Adam wasn't a fan - again, I don't generally do meat on the bone and ribs are one of the worst for me because it just seems like a lot of work for a little meat)

I found it interesting throughout the process that I have the most bland taste in food (Taco Bell, Cheese, Ranch and Bread), but I'm being asked to make decisions for what is most likely going to be one of the most memorable parts of the event. I'd almost wish I hadn't been given a choice so I could say I had nothing to do with it if it doesn't turn out well. But I have every bit of faith in Laura and her team that it is going to be fabulous!

We did decide on cupcakes after all - but we're passing on Sweet Mandy B's and having the chef at The Wit make them for us. Looking forward to that, for sure! It feels SO real now.

Yay - we have a florist!

I'm so relieved to have found a Florist/Designer extraordinaire. One of my biggest worries throughout this whole process is my complete lack of style. For some reason, even though I think I can tell what looks nice on other people or in other places, when it comes to myself, I end up going overboard (think: TOO matchy-matchy) or get so frustrated that I'm just completely plain. I really wanted to incorporate the colors I love, without going crazy. Elaine has done such a great job of making sure I don't do that. She's really playing up the clean, minamilist design of the space with a few elegant pieces and a bit of color on the tables throughout.

When my friend Theresa got married, I remember walking into her house the night before the wedding to an abundance of gorgeous flowers all over the place. They were putting some of the finishing touches on the bouquets and centerpieces and everything looked wonderful. For being someone who is relatively anti-flower due to allergies, the feeling that they'll just die and having been de-sensitized by an ex who just sent them ALL THE TIME to the point that it was annoying - she made me a believer. Now, it was a no-brainer for me to look up Elaine for my own wedding. Lucky for me, she was available. Her company is called Bella Flora and she's worked in interior design as well as having done a lot of work for the big name florists around time like Botanicals and Heffernen Morgan. But, the personalized service she's providing me is really helping fill some holes normally taken care of by either a wedding planner or a designer (neither of which I have). So, from pinning back the drapes in the Wilde Ballroom for a spectacular view of Marina Towers and the river, to purchasing and pinning a luxurious runner that complements the colors of the room and the modern chairs and directing people once they arrive up on the roof after the ceremony, I am so happy to have that extra set of hands.

I love my DJ - Again!

Mary at Toast & Jam really came through and hooked us up with another, actually AVAILABLE, DJ, so we're now lucky enough to have Leslie doing our do just right.

This weekend, I slipped trying to plan our ceremony music in between spurts of work.

So far, this is what we have...

During Guest Seating

True Romance

Somehwere Over the Rainbow

I'm Yours

Groom and Groomsmen Arrival

The Luckiest (just beginning to end of first chorus)

Seating of the Mothers & Grandmothers

Can't Help Falling in Love (Ingrid Michaelson's Version)

Processional (Girls and Me)

Stacey and a pianist playing this version of Canon in D (but hopefully, better than these two play it!)

Recessional

PM Love Theme (from about 30 seconds through the end)

Still completely stuck on an introduction song, cake cutting and first dance.

Hair and Makeup Mayhem

Well - I had my (first) hair and makeup trial the morning of my shower. I was very worried that I'd end up with raccoon eyes (because whenever I wear eye makeup, I do) and for good reason because within 30 minutes, I felt like everything underneath my eye was all over the place.

One of the reasons I rarely wear makeup (in addition to laziness) is that my left eye and socket were badly damaged about 13 years ago and my eyes are now very uneven. Also, I blink too hard! I can't help it, my eyes just go all wonky. Because it gets worse when I'm tired and/or tipsy, some friends even call me Blinky. I seem to have mastered my own rare, subtle makeup application so that I don't think it's very noticeable. However, in both instances of the professional application, it's all I can focus on, and when I see it, even though I realize it's not that bad, it brings up lots of bad feelings because of how it got damaged in the first place. I know you are supposed to make your eyes pop, but it's driving me crazy that I'm picking up on this flaw in pics and it's something I'd rather not call attention to when every moment is being captured on film.

Anyway... I know better than to wear anything on the bottoms and rarely wear anything on the top other than some light shadow. Going into the trial, I knew this was going to be an issue, but was ASSURED, no, convinced that it was not about to happen this time or with this brand of makeup or with this expert's professional application. Well, it did, so 10 minutes before my shower I found myself worked up to tears (not helping the cause really) that my eyes had huge dark circles under them and the wiping was not helping the saggy/wrinkly appearance at all. Now, if you ask my future sister-in-law, she'll say it was fine. If you ask my fiance, he'll say "you look pretty, but sort of like you were punched in the face."

I loved the airbrush makeup application and felt like there was enough coverage, without being cakey (another pet peeve of mine). The first pic below is moments after it was completed and the 2nd one, later that afternoon. The makeup artist was right, it did get better with time and probably does look much better in pictures than it does when you're staring at a mirror 3 inches away and criticizing every single thing. I also really enjoyed the company of Mia - she did my hair as well and although I'm second guessing the style, think what she did looked very nice.

However, my dilemma is that I made so many calls and sent so many emails to inquire about availability, that I think I mixed up the girl I really wanted to try - who did lashes - with Mia. So, I ended up being shocked to find out she doesn't do them. Sooooo, as chance would have it, a makeup artist who'd actually been booked for my date emailed this week and said she was now available. I thought it wouldn't hurt to do another quickie, no pressure trial - with lashes to see the difference. Wouldn't you know it, I liked the eyes a lot (and am definitely going to go with lashes over Mascara), BUT, my face looked horrible! It was almost as if she took on the task of TRYING to make me look 15 years older (by the way though, don't EVER say that to someone who just spent an hour putting makeup on you - THAT didn't go over well).

I think there were a few reasons for the problems.

1. Horribly crazy, busy week at work that led to less than stellar personal/facial care.


2. I'd JUST come from the gym and didn't put on any moisturizer.


3. She went powder crazy.

So, the first two, I know I can remedy. The 3rd caused some sharply toned words to be exchanged between the two of us as she explained that she HAS to apply that much powder because her makeup application lasts for 12 hours or more and I responded that I cared more about the first 3 hours than the last 9. She told me, "well, makeup isn't magic, it can't hide that you're getting a little older, wrinkles just happen to the skin" and I told her, "Oh really? Well, I've been looking at my face for the past 35 years, including after my last trial AND this morning and have never seen it look like this, so it seems like a very inopportune time for it to decide to wrinkle right now."

Even after this exchange, I gave her the benefit of the doubt that it would get better as my natural oils mixed with the makeup. It did not, but man oh man, my eyes stayed perfect all day and night! I honestly think the wrinkly grossness was more my skin's fault than hers. Not to mention that she could clearly skip the powder step and I'd probably be as happy as can be.

A quick, not inexpensive trip to Ulta was a step in the right direction and my skin is well on it's way to being radiant. If you're interested, my self-prescribed cure (and a proven one at that) is MD Skincare Alpha Beta Daily Face Peel in the individually wrapped packets. It's truly magic. I use them for 30 days once every 6 months or so (except this year since we've been saving for the wedding) and love every second. I've also given them to friends as presents, much to their immediate pleasure and then disappointment when they are hooked, but don't feel like adding an extra $80 into their beauty regimine for the rest of their lives...

Okay, so here are the pics.

First Trial - Eyes (Just After Being Done)



1st Trial - Full, Fake Sexy Face



Shiny Hair!



2nd Trial - Hard to Compare This Crappy Pic With the Other, But Trust Me, Dry/Saggy Vs. Fresh and Dewy. I obviously still have wrinkles in both, but they were just really accentuated here.

Let the Peacock begin!

So, I wasn't going to officially say I was having a theme for the wedding, but I did know I wanted cobalt blue, emerald green and turquoise as my colors (since they have always been my colors, this was a pretty easy decision). Once I started looking for inspiration for these colors, lots of peacock stuff comes up and I definitely came around to the idea of trying to incorporate them pretty quickly (without being too "arts and crafty" as my potential florist said).

As mentioned, Janell is wearing a dress of mine that I've had since 2001 that has been worn by quite a few people (all of whom will be at the wedding). It's the blue of my tremendous trio of colors.

Stacey will be in green, Jenn will be in turquoise and Theresa will be in something along the same lines. My whole directive to them was to find a dress that they loved and felt they looked great in that happened to fall within the color palette of shades of blue and green. Now, it will be my job to find a pretty little necklace to go with each of the dresses that they pick out. I'm really not concerned with the dresses being similar in fabric, style, or length.

Then came the invites... This one was easy as can be (from RockPaperSizzle on Etsy, of course). The pics below aren't mine exactly, the designer is modifying the colors to match mine a little better, but my favorite part is the wrap around label for the envelope! I was so nervous about invites because for someone who is watching every penny like a hawk, I found my taste in invites to be WAY beyond my budget. I came across RockPaperSizzle by searching for peacock stuff on Etsy, so wowza to find out she is actually within my budget!

I'm thinking a peacock feather in my hair and/or in Adam's boutonniere and that oughta do it. But check in in another week or two and we better hope I don't rent a peacock to walk me down the aisle!

It sure is easy to forget to post!

Let's see, it's been a week. And what a week it's been. As usual, more work stuff than wedding stuff, but I did make some progress.

1. I bought a new dress! I found it when Janell was here for the weekend, but it didn't fit just right, so I made an appointment with the store's seamstress to see what she thought she could do. Lucky for me (unlucky for my wallet), I brought two of my best friends. I brought in my current dress and tried that one first. Definitely got some compliments (it DOES do great things for my waist), and I think they genuinely liked it. But man oh man, it was the neatest thing to put the potential new one on and when they didn't realize that I could see them in the mirror, I caught them making an "ohhhhhhh" face at each other. You know, the "ohhhhh, that's the dress!" face. That felt awesome.
   
2. Jenn finally got to meet Adam! She lives in Kansas right now and twice when she's visited, he's been out of town! I've repeatedly told Adam I wouldn't marry him without her approval (luckily, there was no doubt in my mind he wouldn't get it). But I do think we were cutting it pretty close. It was such an enjoyable night for me to chat with Jenn and Theresa and the fact that they got to see how happy I am makes me even MORE happy.
3. Our block of rooms at The Wit was set up and people started booking. There was a little glitch at first, but it's all worked out now. Even better? My future mother and sister in law are in town for my shower this weekend and while I was at work today, they took a stroll to The Wit and checked out the rooms (yay! they waited for me to take them tomorrow to show them the Roof!). I didn't think they would let them into the rooms or anything. Not only did they let them in, but they worked with them to find the exact configuration they wanted - a 2-room suite adjoined with a regular king deluxe so that the baby has somewhere to sleep, but grandparents are close too! I was nervous about people thinking it was going to be annoying to be so close to the train, but they said they were there for over 30 minutes (in a few different rooms) and never heard it once. Plus, the fact that everyone was so friendly (from the doorman to the person helping them with the rooms to the manager!) that it made them feel so comfortable. That's another reason why I felt like it was the right place. I think I mentioned before that I loved that it had the view and the style to be shi-shi, but the attitude of a family-run place that feels much more intimate than it is.
4. I finally ordered our invitations. Can't wait to post pics! I mentioned that I wasn't sure what the labels would look like on a cobalt blue metallic envelope and the designer made the cutest little wrap around label so the front has the recipient's address and then it wraps around to seal the back with our names on it. Adorable if I do say so myself!
5. We got a new DJ. I was so annoyed when the original one bailed on us, but Mary, at Toast and Jam didn't leave me hanging and found someone new! I hope she's got the endurance to make it through the wedding she has that night after our rocking daytime wedding!
6. Tomorrow morning (well, technically, this morning), I'm getting my hair and makeup trial. I'm nervous about it because I really have no preconcieved notion of what I hope to look like or what I want to do with my hair or anything. Again, perhaps I will post a pic or two to get some advice. The best part (as long as I like it!) is that my shower is in the afternoon, so I get to look pretty for it! NOW, I just need something to wear. It's going to be quite a morning.
7. I can't wait for my shower. I'm so excited Jenn and Theresa pulled something so nice together so quickly, especially with everything they have going on in their own lives right now! It means so much to me to have friends I've been close to for so long with me through this exciting time. I wish I could be geographically close to more of the people who mean so much to me more often, but one of my favorite parts of planning the wedding is how much more frequently we've been chatting - even if it is something simple.
   

It's been so nice to have my future in laws here. Adam's parents are just good people. And the fact that they made two great boys? One for me and one that attracted the sweetest wife to become my sister-in-law? That's just icing on the cake!

Speaking of cake... Portillo's chocolate cake and Sweet Mandy B's cake tomorrow. How does one choose?

I feel like a kid on Christmas. But I never got a brand new stand mixer on Christmas! I better go to bed so I can wake up!

I take it back, I don't like my DJ (or should I say non-DJ)

Just when I thought I made it through the week without a meltdown, I received an email from the Toast and Jam DJ, Tevis, that was "assigned" to us saying pretty much "oops. can't do your wedding." Obviously, we have no ground to stand on, but are left having wasted time meeting with and discussing our plans with someone who wasn't even available and took another week to tell us so. Not to mention that I turned down about 3 potential DJs who were less expensive than Tevis - and now they are all booked.