Weddingbee Blog

As a followup to my previous post, I am now officially a two reception bride. Yipee Skipee. Everything will go as planned for our official wedding day on Saturday, and then on Sunday we will do the traditional Chinese tea ceremony and dinner banquet. My seemingly brilliant lunch idea was shot down with an, “Absolutely not, no one has a LUNCH wedding banquet!” Ack! Too bad we didn’t plan to leave for our honeymoon on Sunday instead of Monday, or else this option would be completely impossible, haha!

The downside:

A) We will be EXHAUSTED, cuz we plan on having the time of our lives on Saturday! We suggested having it another weekend, but they are insisting on that particular Sunday.

B) Logistics will be a pain!

C) Essentially we will be puppets, slaves to tradition… “you have to do this,” “you have to do that.” Nod your head and smile…

D) Not so nice Chinese restaurant (go figure, Chicago’s Chinatown has slim pickings in terms of attractive restaurants; there’s really only one and it’s the most expensive - The Phoenix), all of his parents’ friends and relatives who we don’t know, long winded speeches… but absolutely NO karaoke!! haha.

E) No time to pack last minute for our honeymoon.

In order not to stress out, I have to look at the bright side, and luckily there are many positives:

A) We can invite ALL the people that we initially had to cut out due to space constraints. I think this will make our actual wedding day even more special, to be surrounded by all the people who have made an impact in our lives.

B) Our friends can bring DATES! I’m sure this will make the night more enjoyable for everyone. While I know our friends would have understood our initial intention of not allowing dates, they will definitely have more fun with their significant others. Not to mention our crowd will be a lot younger, and the vibe will be fun and kickass! hehe

C) Both sets of parents will be happy. Mine get to invite a few more people as well, and his will get to do things “their way.”

D) No need to rush! Initially the plan was to do the tea ceremony on Saturday morning, and this would have included driving 30 minutes to his family’s house, and 30 back to the hotel. Now that this is moved to the next day, we can have a leisurely morning, get the hairdo’s done earlier, and maybe even have a bridesmaids lunch! Or at least get lunch catered to our hotel room. Excellente!

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Money is a touchy issue. Mr.E’s parents insist on paying because according to Chinese tradition, the groom’s side always pays. But we know for a fact that they do not have the disposable cash to throw a banquet for 200 - 250 people. So most likely we will insist they keep all the red envelopes that come from their guests. When I told my Mom this arrangement, she was slightly miffed because all that money could be a downpayment for our future home. But I think I am ok with it because we will get to keep everything from our actual wedding day. So like I said, everyone wins! I just don’t like the way that this second reception suddenly became “mandatory” for us, with only six months before the big day!

Sorry for the long, no-picture post!